Morning Prayer: Saturday 2 January 2021

Saturday 2 January 2021

Seraphim of Sarov
Incarnation

Friday after first Sunday after Christmas

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

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.

PSALMODY

Antiphon: Your justice Lord dawns like morning light; its dawning is as sure as the sunrise. (Hosea 6.3)

Opening

Venite

1 O come let us sing out to the Lord,*
let us shout in triumph to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his face with thanksgiving*
and cry out to him joyfully in psalms.
3 For the Lord is a great God,*
and a great king above all gods.
4 In his hands are the depths of the earth,*
and the peaks of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his and he made it;*
his hands moulded dry land.
6 Come let us worship and bow down,*
and kneel before the Lord our maker.
7 For he himself is our God;*
we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
8 Today if only you would hear his voice:*
‘Do not harden your hearts as Israel did in the wilderness;
9 when your fathers tested me;*
put me to proof though they had seen my works.
10 Of whom I swore in my wrath:*
“They shall not enter my rest.”’


Glory to the Father
or a suitable Hymn
(Or from Psalm 85)

1 I will listen to what the Lord God is saying,*
for he is speaking peace to his faithful people.

2 Truly his salvation is very near to those who fear him,*
that his glory may dwell in our land.

3 Mercy and truth have met together;*
righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

4 Truth shall spring up from the earth,*
and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

Glory to the Father...
or a suitable hymn

Psalm 29
1 Ascribe to the Lord, you gods,*
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.

2 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;*
worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;
the God of glory thunders;*
the Lord is upon the mighty waters.

4 The voice of the Lord is a powerful voice;*
the voice of the Lord is a voice of splendour.

5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedar trees;*
the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon;

6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,*
and Mount Hermon like a young wild ox.

7 The voice of the Lord splits the flames of fire;
the voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;*
the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

8 The voice of the Lord makes the oak trees writhe*
and strips the forests bare.

9 And in the temple of the Lord*
all are crying, ‘Glory!’

10 The Lord sits enthroned above the flood;*
the Lord sits enthroned as king for evermore.


11 The Lord shall give strength to his people;*
the Lord shall give his people the blessing of peace.

Glory to the Father...

God of mystery and power, open our eyes to the flame of your love, and open our ears to the thunder of your justice, that we may receive your gifts of blessing and peace, to the glory of your name; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Conclusion

Isaiah 60

1 Arise, shine, for your light has come,*
the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

2 For behold darkness shall cover the earth,*
thick darkness the peoples;

3 but the Lord will arise upon you;*
God’s glory will be seen upon you.

4 Nations shall come to your light;*
kings to the brightness of your rising.

5 The sun shall be no more your light by day;*
nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night;

6 but the Lord will be your everlasting light,*
your God will be your glory

Glory to the Father...

Antiphon: Your justice Lord dawns like morning light, its dawning is as sure as the sunrise.

READING(S)

Genesis 12.1-7

Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. Abram took his wife Sarai and his brother’s son Lot, and all the possessions that they had gathered, and the persons whom they had acquired in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had come to the land of Canaan, Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. Then the Lord appeared to Abram, and said, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’ So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

Hebrews 11.1-12

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain’s. Through this he received approval as righteous, God himself giving approval to his gifts; he died, but through his faith he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken so that he did not experience death; and ‘he was not found, because God had taken him.’ For it was attested before he was taken away that ‘he had pleased God.’ And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. By faith Noah, warned by God about events as yet unseen, respected the warning and built an ark to save his household; by this he condemned the world and became an heir to the righteousness that is in accordance with faith. By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, ‘as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.’

Silence

Response Psalm (Psalm 119.130)

When your word goes forth it gives light.
When your word goes forth it gives light.
It gives understanding to the simple.
It gives light.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
When your word goes forth it gives light.

BENEDICTUS

Benedictus antiphon: To us is born this day a Saviour, Christ the Lord. (Luke 2.11)

1 Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,* for he has come to his people and set them free.
2 He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,* born of the house of his servant David.
3 Through his holy prophets he promised of old* that he would save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us.
4 He promised to show mercy to our forebears,* and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath he 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 in his sight all the days of our life.
7 You my child shall be called the prophet of the Most High,* for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8 to give his people knowledge of salvation* by the forgiveness of all 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... (may be said by all)

Benedictus antiphon: To us is born this day a Saviour, Christ the Lord. (Luke 2.11)

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, you make us glad with the yearly remembrance of the birth of your Son, Jesus Christ: grant that, as we joyfully receive him as our Saviour, so we may with confidence behold him as he comes to be our Judge;
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.