Spirituality: Daily Prayer

Sunday 22 March 2026

Morning Prayer

Passion Sunday
Lent / Passion Sunday

O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Glory be to God, Source of all Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.
Amen.

Psalmody

Antiphon:



Opening

Psalm 86

1. Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord,*
nor anything like your works.
2. All nations you have made will come and worship you, O Lord,*
and glorify your name.
3. For you are great; you do wondrous things;*
and you alone are God.
4. Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth;*
knit my heart to you that I may fear your name.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

or

Glory be to God, Source of all Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

or a suitable hymn


Psalm 59

1. Rescue me from my enemies, O God; *
protect me from those who rise up against me.
2. Rescue me from evildoers *
and save me from those who thirst for my blood.
3. See how they lie in wait for my life, how the mighty gather together against me; *
not for any offence or fault of mine, O Lord.
4. Not because of any guilt of mine they run and prepare
themselves for battle. *
Rouse yourself, come to my side, and see;
5. for you, Lord God of hosts, are Israel’s God. Awake, and punish all the ungodly; *
show no mercy to those who are faithless and evil.
6. They go to and fro in the evening; *
they snarl like dogs and run about the city.
7. Behold, they boast with their mouths, and taunts are on their lips; *
“For who,” they say, “will hear us?”
8. But you, O Lord, you laugh at them; *
you laugh all the ungodly to scorn.
9. My eyes are fixed on you, O my Strength; *
for you, O God, are my stronghold.
10. My merciful God comes to meet me *
and will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
11. Slay them, O God, lest my people forget; *
send them reeling by your might and put them down,
O Lord our shield.
12. For the sins of their mouths, for the words of their
lips, for the cursing and lies that they utter, *
let them be caught in their pride.
13. Make an end of them in your wrath; make an end of them, and they shall be no more. *
Let everyone know that God rules in Jacob, and to the
ends of the earth.
14. They go to and fro in the evening; *
they snarl like dogs and run about the city.
15. They forage for food, *
and if they are not filled, they howl.
16. For my part, I will sing of your strength; *
I will celebrate your love in the morning;
17. For you have become my stronghold, a refuge in the day of my trouble. *
To you, O my Strength, will I sing; for you, O God, are
my stronghold and my merciful God.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

or

Glory be to God, Source of all Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.


Conclusion

Isaiah 42

1. Behold my servant, whom I uphold*
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;


2. I have put my spirit upon him*
to bring forth justice to the nations.
3. My servant will not cry nor lift up his voice*
or make it heard in the street;
4. Nor break a bruised reed, *
nor quench a dimly burning wick.
5. My servant will faithfully bring forth justice,*
and will not fail nor be discouraged, till justice has been
established in the earth.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

or

Glory be to God, Source of all Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

Antiphon: O God, you are my God; eagerly I seek you.

Reading(s)

Exodus 7.8-24

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ‘When Pharaoh says to you, “Perform a wonder”, then you shall say to Aaron, “Take your staff and throw it down before Pharaoh, and it will become a snake.”’ So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did as the Lord had commanded; Aaron threw down his staff before Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers; and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same by their secret arts. Each one threw down his staff, and they became snakes; but Aaron’s staff swallowed up theirs. Still Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said.

Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Pharaoh’s heart is hardened; he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water; stand by at the river bank to meet him, and take in your hand the staff that was turned into a snake. Say to him, “The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you to say, ‘Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness.’ But until now you have not listened. Thus says the Lord, ‘By this you shall know that I am the Lord.’ See, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, and it shall be turned to blood. The fish in the river shall die, the river itself shall stink, and the Egyptians shall be unable to drink water from the Nile.”’ The Lord said to Moses, ‘Say to Aaron, “Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over its rivers, its canals, and its ponds, and all its pools of water—so that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout the whole land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.”’

Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and of his officials he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the river, and all the water in the river was turned into blood, and the fish in the river died. The river stank so that the Egyptians could not drink its water, and there was blood throughout the whole land of Egypt. But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts; so Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the Lord had said. Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not take even this to heart. And all the Egyptians had to dig along the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the river.


Romans 5.12-21

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned— sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law. Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who was to come.

But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died through the one man’s trespass, much more surely have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many. And the free gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin. For the judgement following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification. If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

Therefore just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. For just as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. But law came in, with the result that the trespass multiplied; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, just as sin exercised dominion in death, so grace might also exercise dominion through justification leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.


Silence


Response (Psalm 6.4)

Turn, O Lord, and deliver me.
Turn, O Lord, and deliver me.
Save me for your mercy’s sake.
And deliver me.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
Turn, O Lord, and deliver me.

Song of Zechariah (Benedictus)

Song of Zechariah Antiphon: Anyone who serves me must follow me, says the Lord; * where I am, there shall my servant be also.

1 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, *
who has come to his people and set them free.
2 The Lord has raised up for us a mighty Saviour,*
born of the house of his servant David.
3 Through the holy prophets, God promised of old*
to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us,
4 to show mercy to our forebears, *
and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham:*
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 free to worship him without fear,*
holy and righteous before him, all the days of our life.
7 And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,*
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
8 to give his people knowledge of salvation*
by the forgiveness of their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God*
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,*
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

or

Glory be to God, Source of all Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit;*
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever.

Amen.

(may be said by all)

Song of Zechariah Antiphon: Anyone who serves me must follow me, says the Lord; * where I am, there shall my servant be also.

Prayers

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.

Amen


Collect of the Day

Merciful God,
look upon your family as we travel to the foot of the cross:
and, by your great goodness, guide us in body;
that, by your protection,
we may also be preserved in heart and mind;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, world without end.
Amen


God most holy, we give you thanks for bringing us out of the shadow of night into the light of morning; and we ask you for the joy of spending this day in your service, so that when evening comes, we may once more give you thanks, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord.
Amen

Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!

The Lord bless us and preserve us from all evil;
and bring us to life eternal.
Amen.

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