Wednesday
Morning Prayer
Proper 14
Florence Nightingale
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Colossians 3:1
Awake, awake: fling off the night!
For God has sent a glorious light;
and we who live in Christ's new day
must works of darkness put away.
Let in the light; all sin expose
to Christ, whose life no darkness knows.
Before the cross expectant kneel;
That Christ may judge, and judging heal.
Awake, and rise up from the dead,
and Christ his light on you will shed.
Its power will wrong desires destroy,
and your whole nature fill with joy.
Then sing for joy, and use each day;
give thanks for everything alway.
Lift up your hearts; with one accord
praise God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Words: J.R. Peacey
Tune: Deus tuorum militum |
Meter: LM
Leader
Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.
Silence may be kept.
Everyone together, all kneeling:
Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in your will,
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your Name. Amen.
Leader
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.
All stand.
Leader
Lord, open our lips.
Response
And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Everyone
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
The mercy of the Lord is everlasting:
Come let us adore him.
O God, you are my God; eagerly I seek you; *
my soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you,
as in a barren and dry land where there is no water.
Therefore I have gazed upon you in your holy place, *
that I might behold your power and your glory.
For your loving-kindness is better than life itself; *
my lips shall give you praise.
So will I bless you as long as I live *
and lift up my hands in your Name.
My soul is content, as with marrow and fatness, *
and my mouth praises you with joyful lips,
When I remember you upon my bed, *
and meditate on you in the night watches.
For you have been my helper, *
and under the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.
My soul clings to you; *
your right hand holds me fast.
The mercy of the Lord is everlasting:
Come let us adore him.
101 Misericordiam et judicium or
Coverdale
1I will sing of mercy and justice; *
to you, O Lord, will I sing praises.
2I will strive to follow a blameless course;
oh, when will you come to me? *
I will walk with sincerity of heart within my house.
3I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; *
I hate the doers of evil deeds;
they shall not remain with me.
4A crooked heart shall be far from me; *
I will not know evil.
5Those who in secret slander their neighbors I will destroy; *
those who have a haughty look and a proud
heart I cannot abide.
6My eyes are upon the faithful in the land, that they may
dwell with me, *
and only those who lead a blameless life shall
be my servants.
7Those who act deceitfully shall not dwell in my house, *
and those who tell lies shall not continue in my sight.
8I will soon destroy all the wicked in the land, *
that I may root out all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
109:1-4(5-19)20-30 Deua, laudem or
Coverdale
1Hold not your tongue, O God of my praise; *
for the mouth of the wicked,
the mouth of the deceitful, is opened against me.
2They speak to me with a lying tongue; *
they encompass me with hateful words
and fight against me without a cause.
3Despite my love, they accuse me; *
but as for me, I pray for them.
4They repay evil for good, *
and hatred for my love.
20But you, O Lord my God,
oh, deal with me according to your Name; *
for your tender mercy's sake, deliver me.
21For I am poor and needy, *
and my heart is wounded within me.
22I have faded away like a shadow when it lengthens; *
I am shaken off like a locust.
23My knees are weak through fasting, *
and my flesh is wasted and gaunt.
24I have become a reproach to them; *
they see and shake their heads.
25Help me, O Lord my God; *
save me for your mercy's sake.
26Let them know that this is your hand, *
that you, O Lord, have done it.
27They may curse, but you will bless; *
let those who rise up against me be put to shame,
and your servant will rejoice.
28Let my accusers be clothed with disgrace *
and wrap themselves in their shame as in a cloak.
29I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth; *
in the midst of the multitude will I praise him;
30Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, *
to save his life from those who would condemn him.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Ghost:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be.
World without end. Amen. Amen.
Reader
A reading from the Book of Judges 13:15-24
15Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, "Allow us to detain you, and prepare a kid for you." 16The angel of the Lord said to Manoah, "If you detain me, I will not eat your food; but if you want to prepare a burnt offering, then offer it to the Lord." (For Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the Lord.) 17Then Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, "What is your name, so that we may honor you when your words come true?" 18But the angel of the Lord said to him, "Why do you ask my name? It is too wonderful." 19So Manoah took the kid with the grain offering, and offered it on the rock to the Lord, to him who works wonders. 20When the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame of the altar while Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground. 21The angel of the Lord did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah realized that it was the angel of the Lord. 22And Manoah said to his wife, "We shall surely die, for we have seen God." 23But his wife said to him, "If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering at our hands, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us such things as these."
24The woman bore a son, and named him Samson. The boy grew, and the Lord blessed him.
The Word of the Lord.
Everyone
Thanks be to God.
Silence may be kept after the Reading.
Arise, shine, for your light has come, *
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land; *
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise, *
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light, *
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open; *
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord, *
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land, *
ruin or destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation, *
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day; *
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.
The Lord will be your everlasting light, *
and your God will be your glory.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Reader
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles 6:1-15
1Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. 2And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, "It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, 4while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word." 5What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. 7The word of God continued to spread; the number of the disciples increased greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
8Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. 9Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and others of those from Cilicia and Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. 10But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. 11Then they secretly instigated some men to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God." 12They stirred up the people as well as the elders and the scribes; then they suddenly confronted him, seized him, and brought him before the council. 13They set up false witnesses who said, "This man never stops saying things against this holy place and the law; 14for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses handed on to us." 15And all who sat in the council looked intently at him, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.
The Word of the Lord.
Everyone
Thanks be to God.
Silence may be kept after the Reading.
I will sing a new song to my God, *
for you are great and glorious, wonderful in strength, invincible.
Let the whole creation serve you, *
for you spoke and all things came into being.
You sent your breath and it formed them, *
no one is able to resist your voice.
Mountains and seas are stirred to their depths, *
rocks melt like wax at your presence.
But to those who fear you, *
you continue to show mercy.
No sacrifice, however fragrant, can please you, *
but whoever fears the Lord shall stand in your sight for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Reader
A reading from the Gospel according to John 4:1-26
1Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard, "Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John" 2although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized 3he left Judea and started back to Galilee.
4But he had to go through Samaria. 5So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. 7A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." 8(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." 11The woman said to him, "Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?" 13Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life." 15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water." 16Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come back." 17The woman answered him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband'; 18for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!" 19The woman said to him, "Sir, I see that you are a prophet. 20Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem." 21Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." 25The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us." 26Jesus said to her, "I am he, the one who is speaking to you."
The Word of the Lord.
Everyone
Thanks be to God.
Silence may be kept after the Reading.
All stand
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and Earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Leader
God be with you.
Response
And also with you.
Leader
Let us pray.
Everyone
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.
Save us from the time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Leader
Show us your mercy, O Lord;
Response
And grant us your salvation.
Leader
Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
Response
Let your people sing with joy.
Leader
Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
Response
For only in you can we live in safety.
Leader
Lord, keep this nation under your care;
Response
And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
Leader
Let your way be known upon Earth;
Response
Your saving health among all nations.
Leader
Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
Response
Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
Leader
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
Response
And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.
Leader
Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The following prayers and hymns are led according to local custom.
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
We pray for the people of The Republic of the Congo.
We pray for our sisters and brothers, members of the Apostolic Assemblies of Christ.
The commemoration of Florence Nightingale is controversial. On the one hand, she doubted or denied many of the central articles of the Creed. On the other hand, she believed in God and devoted her life to His service as she understood it.
She was born in Florence on 12 May 1820 of upper-class English parents travelling through Italy, and named for her native city. ("Florence" was not an accepted first name at the time. Her sister was born in Naples and named "Parthenope," the Greek name for that city.) Florence was reared in the Unitarian Church, but later joined the Church of England.
In her diary, an entry shortly before her seventeenth birthday reads: "On February 7th, 1837, God spoke to me and called me to his service." She did not know what the service would be, and therefore decided that she must remain single, so as to have no encumbrances and be ready for anything. With this in mind, she rejected a proposal of marriage from a young man whom she dearly loved.
She suffered from "trances" or "dreaming" spells, in which she would lose consciousness for several minutes or longer, and be unaware when she recovered that time had passed. (Could this be a form of petit mal epilepsy? No biographer of hers that I have read uses the word.)
She found the knowledge that she was subject to such spells terrifying, and feared that they meant that she was unworthy of her calling, particularly since she did not hear the voice of God again for many years.
In the spring of 1844 she came to believe that her calling was to nurse the sick. In 1850 her family sent her on a tour of Egypt for her health. Some extracts from her diary follow:
March 7. God called me in the morning and asked me would I do good for Him, for Him alone without the reputation.
March 9. During half an hour I had by myself in my cabin, settled the question with God.
April 1. Not able to go out but wished God to have it all His own way. I like Him to do exactly as He likes without even telling me the reason.
May 12. Today I am thirty--the age Christ began his mission.
Now no more childish things. No more love. No more marriage. Now Lord let me think only of Thy Will, what Thou willest me to do. Oh Lord Thy Will, Thy Will.
June 10. The Lord spoke to me; he said, Give five minutes every hour to the thought of Me. Coudst thou but love Me as Lizzie loves her husband, how happy wouldst thou be." But Lizzie does not give five minutes every hour to the thought of her husband, she thinks of him every minute, spontaneously.
Florence decided that she must train to be a nurse. Her family was horrified. In her day, nursing was done mostly by disabled army veterans or by women with no other means of support.
It was common for nurses of either sex to be drunk on the job most of the time, and they had no training at all. It was common practice never to wash or change the sheets on a bed, not even when a patient died and his bed was given to a new patient.
Florence was told to go to Kaiserswerth, Germany, to learn and train with the Lutheran order of Deaconesses who were running a hospital there.
Back in England again, she used the influence of Sidney Herbert, a family friend and Member of Parliament, to be appointed supervisor of a sanatorium in London. Under her able guidance, it turned from a chamber of horrors into a model hospital.
The innovations introduced by Miss Nightingale were, for their day, little short of revolutionary.
She demanded, and got, a system of dumb-waiters that enabled food to be sent directly to every floor, so that nurses did not exhaust themselves carrying trays up numerous flights of stairs.
She also invented and had installed a system of call bells by which a patient could ring from his bed and the bell would sound in the corridor, with a valve attached to the bell which opened when the bell rang, and remained open so that the nurse could see who had rung. "Without a system of this kind," she wrote, "a nurse is converted to a pair of legs."
While working in the poorer districts of London, Miss Nightingale encountered a Roman Catholic priest, Henry Edward Manning (later Cardinal Manning), who was working among the poor of London. She was impressed by the assistance he gave to many who had nowhere else to turn, and they became friends for life. She was greatly attracted by Roman Catholicism, but rejected much of its theology, and so reluctantly decided against joining it.
Then war broke out in the Crimea (in Russia, on the north edge of the Black Sea), and Sir Sidney Herbert, now Secretary of War, obtained permission for Florence to lead a group of 38 nurses there.
Of these, 10 were Roman Catholic nuns, 14 were Anglican nuns, and the remaining 14 were "of no particular religion, unless one counts the worship of Bacchus."
They found conditions appalling. Blankets were rotting in warehouses while the men did without, because no one had issued the proper forms for their distribution.
The lavatories in the hospitals had no running water, and the latrines were tubs to be emptied by hand. But no one emptied them, since official regulations did not specify which department was responsible for doing so. The result was that the hospital had a foul stench that could be smelled for some distance outside its walls. Far more men were dying in hospitals of infection than of wounds.
The chief concern of many of the Army doctors was that the nurses might usurp some of their authority.
Florence gradually managed to win the doctors and other authorities over, and to reform hospital procedures, with spectacular results.
Once the medical situation had ceased to be an acute problem, she turned her attention to other aspects of the soldiers' welfare.
For example, most of them squandered all their pay on drink. She noted that there was no trustworthy way for them to send money home to their families, and she set up facilities for them to do so.
First, she undertook to send money home herself for any soldier in the hospital that wanted it sent, and the soldiers brought in about 1000 pounds a month. She asked the authorities to set up an official service to do this, and they refused. By appealing to Queen Victoria herself, she overcame opposition to the idea, and the men sent home 71,000 pounds sterling in less than six months.
She established with her own money a reading-room with tables for writing letters, and the men used it enthusiastically.
She imported four schoolmasters to give lectures, and the halls were filled to overflowing. All this was done despite opposition from officers who said, "The men are hopeless brutes. You cannot expect anything from them."
At night, she would often patrol the wards, carrying a dim lamp, to make sure that all was well and no one was in need of help. She became famous as "the Lady with the Lamp."
In April 1856 the war was over, and by mid-July the hospital was emptied and her work in Crimea over. She returned to England a national hero, with a great welcome prepared for her; but she slipped into the country unnoticed and went to a convent that had supplied some of her nurses.
There, she spent the day in prayer before coming out to face the public and beginning to lobby Parliament for suitable legislation.
She wrote pamphlet after pamphlet, pointing out by pie charts, for example, that the major cause of deaths in the Army was not wounds caused by enemy action but disease caused by lack of proper sanitation.
She is perhaps the first person to use pie charts and similar graphic devices to convey statistical information.
She obtained the formation of an Army Medical Staff Corps and a Sanitary Commission to oversee military health conditions.
Throughout these efforts, she relied on the help of Sidney Herbert, insisting that he must work hard and long to get the legislation she needed through Parliament. When he protested that she was asking too much, she would not listen. His health broke, and he died in August 1861.
Florence prayed God to raise him from the dead, explaining that she needed him for the job. When God failed to comply, her faith was badly shaken.
She wrote a book called, "Suggestions for Thought: An Address to the Artisans of England", in which she explained that God was less of a Person and more of a Cosmic Force than is generally supposed by Christians. (But note that she was working on this book before Sir Sidney died, and one cannot call it simply a response to his death.)
Advance copies were given to a few friends, such as John Stuart Mill, who praised it highly. However, it was never published since Florence kept revising it--arguably, because her beliefs on the nature of God were simply not internally consistent.
Eventually, it seems, God spoke to her again and said, "You are here to carry out my program. I am not here to carry out yours." She wrote in her diary, "I must remember that God is not my private secretary."
Before his death, Sir Sidney had gotten her involved in Indian affairs. She served on the Indian Sanitary Commission.
In May 1859, she decided that there were insufficient data available in England on conditions in the Indian Army, and she wrote to 200 military stations there, asking for copies of all regulations and all documents relating to the health and sanitary administration of the army.
The reports that came back filled two vans. She read them all and summarized them for the Report of the Commission. Her conclusion was that the death toll from disease in the Indian Army was appallingly high (69 out of 1000 annually), and that this was largely due, not to the climate, but to lack of sanitation, and that preventive measures included sanitation not just for army posts but for neighboring villages and, in the long run, for all of India.
She was a friend of General Charles George Gordon, who captured the British imagination when he and his troops were beseiged at Khartoum in the Sudan, and finally captured and killed.
After his death, Florence wrote to a friend that suffering, disappointment, and lack of success are the tribute which it is the soul's greatest privilege to present to God. In Gordon's death, she wrote, we see "the triumph of failure, the triumph of the Cross. With him, all is well."
She met the scholar Benjamin Jowett, who was translating Plato into English. They became fast friends, and she contributed to the translation.
She also began an anthology of mystical writings, called "Notes from Devotional Authors of the Middle Ages, Collected, Chosen, and Freely Translated by Florence Nightingale." It was her contention that mystical prayer is not just for monks and nuns, but should form a part of the every-day life of ordinary persons.
Under the strain of ceaseless overwork, her own health broke, and she was an invalid for the latter half of her life.
On Christmas Day when she was sixty-five, she wrote: "Today, O Lord, let me dedicate this crumbling old woman to thee. Behold the handmaid of the Lord. I was thy handmaid as a girl. Since then, I have backslid."
She wrote a manual called Notes for Nurses, and a set of instructions for the matron in charge of training nurses, emphasizing the importance for a nurse of a schedule of daily prayer.
A few years before her death, she was the first woman to receive the Order of Merit from the British government. She died at ninety, and, by her directions, her tombstone read simply, "F.N. 1820-1910".
Florence Nightingale died on 13 August 1910, and is commemorated on this day on the Lutheran Calendar. The Episcopal calendar commemorates Jeremy Taylor on 13 August, and accordingly has shifted the commemoration of Nightingale.
written by James Kiefer
O God, who gave grace to your servant Florence Nightingale to bear your healing love into the shadow of death: Grant to all who heal the same virtues of patience, mercy, and steadfast love, that your saving health may be revealed to all; through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Leader
Let us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
Everyone sings or says
To my humble supplication
Lord, give ear and acceptation
Save thy servant, that hath none
Help nor hope but Thee alone. Amen.
Free intercessions may be stated (or prayers from the Book of Common Prayer).
Lord God Almighty, who has made all the peoples of the earth for your glory, to serve you in freedom and in peace: Give to the people of our country a zeal for justice and the strength of forbearance, that we may use our liberty in accordance with your gracious will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
O Lord our Governor, whose glory is in all the world: We commend this nation to your merciful care, that, being guided by your Providence, we may dwell secure in your peace. Grant to the President of the United States, the Governor of this State (or, Commonwealth), and to all in authority, wisdom and strength to know and to do your will. Fill them with the love of truth and righteousness, and make them ever mindful of their calling to serve this people in your fear; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Come! live in the light!
Shine with the joy and the love of the Lord!
We are called to be light for the kingdom,
to live in the freedom of the city of God!
We are called to act with justice.
We are called to love tenderly.
We are called to serve one another, to walk humbly with God.
Come! Open your heart!
Show your mercy to all those in fear!
We are called to be hope for the hopeless,
so all hatred and blindness will be no more!
We are called to act with justice.
We are called to love tenderly.
We are called to serve one another, to walk humbly with God.
Sing! Sing a new song!
Sing of that great day when all will be one!
God will reign and we'll walk with each other as sisters and brothers united in love!
We are called to act with justice.
We are called to love tenderly.
We are called to serve one another, to walk humbly with God.
Almighty and eternal God,
so draw our hearts to you,
so guide our minds,
so fill our imaginations,
so control our wills,
that we may be wholly yours,
utterly dedicated unto you;
and then use us, we pray you, as you will,
and always to your glory and the welfare of your people;
through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Almighty God, Father of all mercies,
we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks
for all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all whom you have made.
We bless you for our creation, preservation,
and all the blessings of this life;
but above all for your immeasurable love
in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ;
for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies,
that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise,
not only with our lips, but in our lives,
by giving up our selves to your service,
and by walking before you
in holiness and righteousness all our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.
Leader
Let us bless the Lord.
Response
Thanks be to God.
Leader
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Romans 15:13
God be with you till we meet again;
By his counsels guide, uphold you;
With his sheep securely fold you.
God be with you till we meet again.
Till we meet, till we meet,
Till we meet at Jesus' feet,
Till we meet, till we meet,
God be with you till we meet again.
Leader
O God, make speed to save us.
Response
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Everyone
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be sung.
1
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, *
then were we like those who dream.
2
Then was our mouth filled with laughter, *
and our tongue with shouts of joy.
3
Then they said among the nations, *
The Lord has done great things for them.
4
The Lord has done great things for us, *
and we are glad indeed.
5
Restore our fortunes, O Lord, *
like the watercourses of the Negev.
6
Those who sowed with tears *
will reap with songs of joy.
7
Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed, *
will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Leader
From the rising of the sun to its setting my Name shall be great among the nations, and in every place incense shall be offered to my Name, and a pure offering; for my Name shall be great among the nations, says the Lord of Hosts. Malachi 1:11
Response
Thanks be to God.
Leader
Lord, have mercy.
Response
Christ, have mercy.
Leader
Lord, have mercy.
Everyone recites the Lord's Prayer.
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.
Save us from the time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Leader
Lord, hear our prayer;
Response
And let our cry come to you.
Leader
Let us pray.
Leader
Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles, Peace I give to you; my own peace I leave with you: Regard not our sins, but the faith of your Church, and give to us the peace and unity of that heavenly City, where with the Father and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, now and for ever.
Everyone
Amen.
Free intercessions may be offered.
Leader
In peace, let us pray to the Lord, saying, "Lord, have mercy"
For the holy Church of God, that it may be filled with truth and love, and be found without fault at the day of your coming, we pray to your, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For our Presiding Bishop, for our own Bishop(s), for all bishops and other ministers, and for all the holy people of God, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For all who fear God and believe in you, Lord Christ, that our divisions may cease, and that all may be one as you and the Father are one, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For the mission of the Church, that in faithful witness it may preach the Gospel to the ends of the Earth, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For the peace of the world, that a spirit of respect and forbearance may grow among nations and peoples, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For those in positions of public trust, that they may serve justice, and promote the dignity and freedom of every person, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For all who live and work in this community, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For a blessing upon all human labor, and for the right use of the riches of creation, that the world may be freed from poverty, famine, and disaster, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For the poor, the persecuted, the sick, and all who suffer; for refugees, prisoners, and all who are in danger; that they may be relieved and protected, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For our enemies and those who wish us harm, and for all whom we have injured or offended, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For all who have commended themselves to our prayers; for our families, friends, and neighbors; that being freed from anxiety, they may live in joy, peace, and health, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For all who have died in the communion of your Church, and those whose faith is known to you alone, that, with all the saints, they may have rest in that place where there is no pain or grief, but life eternal, we pray to you, O Lord.
Response
Lord, have mercy.
Leader
For yours is the majesty, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, now and for ever.
Everyone
Amen.
Leader
Let us bless the Lord.
Response
Thanks be to God.