All Hallows Evening Prayer for Saturday Evening (July 11, 2020)
Evening Prayer
The Service of Light
Jesus Christ is the light of the world.
A light no darkness can extinguish.
1. O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the
everliving Father in heaven.
O Jesus, Christ, holy and blessed!
pure brightness of the
everliving Father in heaven.
O Jesus, Christ, holy and blessed!
2. Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing thy praises, O God:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing thy praises, O God:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3. Thou art worthy at all times
to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds. Amen.
to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds. Amen.
Thanksgiving
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, ruler of the universe! You
led your people Israel by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by
night. Enlighten our darkness by the light of your Christ. May his word be a
lamp to our feet and a light to our path; for you are full of loving kindness
for your whole creation, and we, your creatures, glorify you, Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.
Psalm 141 is sung and incense may be burned.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
let
my rise to you.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
let
my prayer rise to you.
1
I call out to you,
Come
quickly to my aid.
My
song cries out to you,
O
listen to me now.
I
raise my hands in off’ring to you.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
2
Let me speak your truth;
watch
over all I say.
Keep
my thoughts on you;
let
goodness rule my heart.
Keep
me far from those who do harm.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
3
Never let me dine
with
those who seek to harm.
Keep
your holy ones
always
at my side.
Plant
your wisdom deep in my soul.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
4
I look to you for help;
I
seek your loving eyes.
Guard
my life for you;
Spare
me from all wrong.
Keep
all evil far from my heart.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
5
Glory be to God
and
to God’s only Son,
glory
to the Spirit,
three
in one,
now
and for ever. Amen.
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Like
burning incense, O Lord,
(Like
burning incense, O Lord,)
let
my prayer rise to you.
(let
my prayer rise to you.)
Silence
is kept.
Let
the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before you, O Lord, and let your
loving kindness descend upon us, that with purified minds we may sing your
praises with the Church on earth and the whole heavenly host, and may glorify
you forever and ever. Amen.
The Psalms
Blessed
be the name of the Lord for ever, for ever.
1
Praise, you servants of the Lord
praise
the name of the Lord.
Blessed
be the name of the Lord
both
now and for ever.
Blessed
be the name of the Lord for ever, for ever.
2
From the rising to the setting of the sun
is
the name of the Lord to be praised.
High
above all the nations is the Lord;
above
the heavens is his glory.
Blessed
be the name of the Lord for ever, for ever.
3
Who is like the Lord, our God,
who
is enthroned on high
and
looks upon the heavens
and
the earth below?
Blessed
be the name of the Lord for ever, for ever.
4
He raises up the lowly from the dust;
from
the dunghill he lifts up the poor
to
seat them with princes,
with
princes of his own people.
Blessed
be the name of the Lord for ever, for ever.
Silence
is kept.
Lord
Jesus, surrendering the brightness of your glory, you became mortal so that we
might be raised from the dust to share your very being. May the children of God
always bless your name from the rising of the sun to its going down, for you
live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spiri, now and forever. Amen.
The Proclamation of the Word
The Reading
The
Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke
Glory
to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Once while
Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in
on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the
fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got
into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a
little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the
boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put
out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon
answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet
if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that
their nets were beginning to break. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat
to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began
to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’
knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ For he and
all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so
also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then
Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching
people.’ When they had brought their boats to shore, they left
everything and followed him.
The
Gospel of Christ
Praise
to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Homily
A Trusting Fisherman
and an Amazing Catch of Fish
This
miracle—for it is a miracle—would have been more amazing to Simon Peter and his
partners than it is to us today. We are prone to dismiss the miraculous—to treat
what the New Testament records as miracles as coincidence or due to some
explainable natural phenomena.
Simon Peter, James, and John had been fishing the waters of
Lake Gennaseret for most of their lives. They knew the habits of its fish,
where to fish, and what time of day to fish. Nonetheless they had not been
successful in catching anything. The day had been extremely disappointing. For
them catching fish was their livelihood. No day’s catch meant no food on the
table. They not only ate the fish but also sold it and used the money from its
sale to buy wheat and olive oil for the bread that was the mainstay of their
diet.
It required a measure of faith on Simon Peter’s part to do
what Jesus told him to do. The fishermen had just washed their nets. They were
through for the day.
Since Jesus had been teaching from Simon Peter’s boat, we
can safely assume that Simon Peter had been listening to Jesus. As the apostle
Paul would later write in his letter to the church at Rome, “faith comes from
hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about
Christ.”
Simon Peter had been listening to the man himself. Jesus’ words may have stirred
faith in his heart or nourished the faith that was already there. Simon Peter allowed
Jesus to use his boat and addresses him as “master.” These two things suggest
that Simon Peter was as already acquainted with Jesus. He recognized him as a
teacher.
How
did Jesus know that a school of fish was feeding off the shore of the lake? How
did that school of fish get there? The answers to those questions as
fascinating as they may be are not the most important thing in this passage.
What is most important is Simon Peter trusted Jesus and his words and did what
Jesus told him.
Whatever
we may think of the Old Testament account of Adam and Eve and the Garden of
Eden, it introduces a key theme in the Bible. Humanity became alienated from
God due to a lack of trust in God and his words. It is a theme that is repeated
in the story of the people of Israel’s relationship with God. Over and over
again they put their trust elsewhere—in alien gods, in human kings, in false
prophets, and in foreign princes.
Jesus
is described in the Bible as the second Adam. Unlike the first Adam he was
obedient but most importantly he trusted God and his words. He trusted God to
the point of suffering an excruciatingly painful death. Some of us may question
the need for Jesus to have suffered and died in such a manner. For us, whether
may realize it, Jesus’ suffering and death are a test of how much we trust God,
of how much we trust his words, of how much we trust his mercy and goodwill
toward us. We can follow Jesus’ example and trust that, through what may appear
to be an act of unkindness, God is actually working for our good and the good
of all humankind. Or we can conclude that God is not trustworthy and remain
alienated from God. The choice is ours.
Simon
Peter trusted Jesus and his words. He trusted that what Jesus was telling him
was for the good of his partners and himself. He did what Jesus told him. He let
down his nets where Jesus had told him and caught so many fish that his nets
were beginning to break. He and the other fishermen on his boat signalled to
their partners to come and help them. Soon both boats were so full of fish that
they began to sink beneath the weight of the fish.
Simon
Peter fell down at Jesus’ knees. His reaction is the only appropriate reaction
in the presence of the divine. He acknowledged his unworthiness. Jesus told Simon-Peter,
James, and John not to fear. From that day on they will be fishing for people.
Our
God, the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, is a gracious God. Indeed, he
is the God of all grace. While we may not always understand what he has done
and what he is doing, we can trust his mercy and goodwill toward us. Jesus revealed
God’s graciousness and he himself trusted God’s graciousness.
Simon Peter
sensed in Jesus God’s mercy and goodwill toward us and responded with faith and
obedience. He trusted what Jesus told him and did it. He and his partners would
experience God’s grace in the form of a miraculous catch of fish and in Jesus’
call to discipleship.
As the apostle Paul would write the church at Philippi,
God is at work in us, enabling us both to will and to work for his good
pleasure. What is God’s good pleasure? It is to join him in his mission to the
world. What is God’s mission? To restore the broken relationship between Creator
and creature so that we may live in harmony as God had originally intended—a loving
God and his loving children.
Silence is kept.
The Gospel Canticle
My
soul proclaims your greatness, O Lord;
I
sing my Savior’s praise!
Great
wonders you have done for me,
and
holy is your name.
My
soul proclaims your greatness, Lord;
I
sing my Savior’s praise!
You
looked upon my lowliness,
and
I am full of grace.
Now
ev’ry land and ev’ry age
this
blessing shall proclaim—
great
wonders you have done for me,
and
holy is your name.
My
soul proclaims your greatness, O Lord;
I
sing my Savior’s praise!
Great
wonders you have done for me,
and
holy is your name.
To
all who live in holy fear
Your
mercy ever flows.
With
mighty arm you dash the proud,
Their
scheming hearts expose.
The
ruthless you have cast aside,
the
lonely throned instead;
the
hungry filled with all good things,
the
rich sent off unfed.
My
soul proclaims your greatness, O Lord;
I
sing my Savior’s praise!
Great
wonders you have done for me,
and
holy is your name.
To
Israel, your servant blest,
your
help is ever sure;
the
promise to our parents made
their
children will secure.
Sing
glory to the Holy One,
give
honor to the Word,
and
praise the Pow’r of the Most High,
one
God, by all adored.
My
soul proclaims your greatness, O Lord;
I
sing my Savior’s praise!
Great
wonders you have done for me,
and
holy is your name,
and
holy is your name.
Intercessions
That this evening may be holy, good and
peaceful:
we
entreat you, O Lord.
That your holy angels may lead us in the
paths of peace and goodwill:
we
entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be pardoned and forgiven for our
sins and offences:
we
entreat you, O Lord.
That there may be peace in your Church and
for the whole world:
we
entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be bound together by your Holy
Spirit,
in communion with the ever-blessed Virgin
Mary and with all your saints,
entrusting one another and all our life to
Christ:
we entreat you, O Lord.
Let us commend ourselves, and all for whom we
pray,
to the mercy and protection of God.
Open prayer may be
offered and silence is kept.
The
Collect
Lighten
our darkness,
Lord,
we pray,
and
in your great mercy
defend
us from all perils and dangers of this night,
for
the love of your only Son,
our
Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.
The
Lord’s Prayer is said
And now, as our Saviour
has taught us,
we are bold to say,
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,
the power, and the glory
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Dismissal
Let all things now living a song of thanksgiving
To God the creator triumphantly raise.
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
Who still guides us on to the end of our days.
His banners are o'er us, His light goes before us,
A pillar of fire shining forth in the night.
Till shadows have vanished and darkness is banished
As forward we travel from light into light.
His law he enforces, the stars in their courses
And sun in its orbit obediently shine;
The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,
The deeps of the ocean proclaim him divine.
We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing;
With glad adoration a song let us raise
Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving:
To God in the highest, Hosanna and praise!
To God the creator triumphantly raise.
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
Who still guides us on to the end of our days.
His banners are o'er us, His light goes before us,
A pillar of fire shining forth in the night.
Till shadows have vanished and darkness is banished
As forward we travel from light into light.
His law he enforces, the stars in their courses
And sun in its orbit obediently shine;
The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,
The deeps of the ocean proclaim him divine.
We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing;
With glad adoration a song let us raise
Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving:
To God in the highest, Hosanna and praise!
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The Lord bless us and keep us.
The Lord make his face to shine upon us
and be gracious to us.
The Lord lift up his countenance upon us
and give us peace. Amen
Comments
Post a Comment