Spirituality: Daily Prayer

Sunday 3 May 2026

Morning Prayer

Fifth Sunday after Easter
Easter / Fifth Sunday After Easter

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:
Christ has been raised from the dead:*
the first fruits of those who sleep.
1 Corinthians 15-20


Opening

Easter Anthems

1. Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us;*
so let us celebrate the feast.
2. Not with the old leaven of corruption and wickedness,*
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
3. Christ once raised from the dead dies no more;*
death has no more dominion over him.
4. In dying, he died to sin once for all;*
in living, he lives to God.


5. See yourselves therefore as dead to sin,*
and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord.
6. Christ has been raised from the dead,*
the first fruits of those who sleep.
7. For as by man came death,*
by man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
8. For as in Adam all die,*
even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

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 8

1. O Lord our governor, *
how exalted is your name in all the world
2. Out of the mouths of infants and children * your majesty is praised above the heavens.
You have set up a stronghold against your adversaries, * to quell the enemy and the avenger
3. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,*
the moon and the stars you have set in their courses,
4. what are mortals that you should be mindful of them,* their children that you should seek them out?
5. You have made them but little lower than the angels;* you adorn them with glory and honour;
6. you give them mastery over the works of your hands;* you put all things under their feet;
7. all sheep and oxen, *
even the wild beasts of the field,
8. the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, * and all that walks in the paths of the sea.
9. O Lord our governor, *
how exalted is your name in all the world!

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.


Psalm 11

1. In the Lord have I taken refuge; *
how then can you say to me, “Fly away like a bird to the hilltop; 
2. for see how the wicked bend the bow and fit their arrows to the string, *
to shoot from ambush at the true of heart.
3. When the foundations are being destroyed, * what can the righteous do?”
4. O Lord, you are in your holy temple and enthroned in heaven. *
Your eyes behold the inhabited world; your piercing eye weighs our worth.
5. You weigh the righteous as well as the wicked, * but those who delight in violence you abhor.
6. Upon the wicked you shall rain coals of fire and burning sulphur; *
a scorching wind shall be their lot.
7. For you are righteous and delight in righteous deeds;* and the just shall see your face.


Conclusion

Wisdom 10

1. Wisdom freed a holy people and a blameless race,*
from a nation of oppressors.
2. She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord,*
and withstood fearsome rulers with wonders and signs.
3. To the saints she gave the reward of their labours,*
and led them by a marvellous road.
4. She was their shelter by day,*
and a blaze of stars by night.
5. She brought them across the Red Sea;*
she led them through mighty waters.
6. She swallowed their enemies in the waves,*
and spat them out from the depths of the sea.
7. Then, Lord, the righteous sang the glories of your name,*
and praised together your protecting hand.
8. For wisdom opened the mouths of the silent*
and gave speech to the tongues of her children.

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: Christ has been raised from the dead:* the first fruits of those who sleep.

Reading(s)

Isaiah 61.1-14

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the broken-hearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.
They shall build up the ancient ruins,
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.

Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,
foreigners shall till your land and dress your vines;
but you shall be called priests of the Lord,
you shall be named ministers of our God;
you shall enjoy the wealth of the nations,
and in their riches you shall glory.
Because their shame was double,
and dishonour was proclaimed as their lot,
therefore they shall possess a double portion;
everlasting joy shall be theirs.

For I the Lord love justice,
I hate robbery and wrongdoing;
I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
Their descendants shall be known among the nations,
and their offspring among the peoples;
all who see them shall acknowledge
that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
my whole being shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
to spring up before all the nations.


Revelation 3.1-13

‘And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars:

‘I know your works; you have a name for being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is at the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. Yet you have still a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes; they will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life; I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

‘And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

These are the words of the holy one, the true one,
who has the key of David,
who opens and no one will shut,
who shuts and no one opens:

‘I know your works. Look, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but are lying—I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you. Because you have kept my word of patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. I am coming soon; hold fast to what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. If you conquer, I will make you a pillar in the temple of my God; you will never go out of it. I will write on you the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem that comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.


Silence


Response (Psalm 96.4; 105.1)

Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.
Make known God’s deeds among the nations.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, alleluia, alleluia.

Song of Zechariah (Benedictus)

Song of Zechariah Antiphon: I am the way,* * the truth and the life, says the Lord; alleluia!

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: I am the way,* * the truth and the life, says the Lord; alleluia!

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

O God,
who alone can bring harmony to the minds of your faithful people:
give us grace to love the things you command,
and to desire the things you promise;
that, amid the uncertain changes of this world,
our hearts may be firmly fixed where true joys are to be found;
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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