An All Hallows Service of the Word for the Sixth Day of Christmas (December 30, 2020)
On this sixth day of Christmastide we continue our celebration of the birth of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. We begin with a Christmas carol from Catalonia, a carol which reminds us that all creation was awaiting the coming of the Promised One.
Open this link in a new tab to play Craig Carnahan’s choral arrangement of the traditional Catalan Christmas carol, “Carol of the Birds.”
1. Upon this holy night,
When God's great star appears,
And floods the earth with brightness
Birds' voices rise in song
And sounding all night long
Express their glad heart's lightness
2. The Nightingale is first
To bring his song of cheer,
And tell us of His glad - ness:
Jesus, our Lord, is born
To free us from all sin
And banish ev'ry sadness!
Jesus, our Lord is born
To free us from all sin
And banish ev'ry sadness!
3. The answ'ring Sparrow cries:
"God comes to earth this day
Amid the angels flying."
Singing in sweetest tones,
The Finch his Lord now owns:
"To Him be all thanksgiving."
4. The Partridge adds his note:
"To Bethlehem I'll fly,
Where in the stall He's lying.
There, near the manger blest,
I'll build myself a nest,
And sing my love undying.
Ah! There, near the manger blest,
I'll build myself a nest,
And sing my love undying.
And sing my love undying.
Silence is kept.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and for ever. Amen.
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
O Christ, Son of God, existing before time,
you came into the world to save us.
Lord, have mercy.
Sun of Righteousness, shining with the Father’s love,
you illumine the whole universe.
Christ, have mercy.
Son of Mary: born a child,
you shared our humanity.
Lord, have mercy.
May the Lord forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are and direct what we shall be, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Blessed is the Lord:
Who has heard the voice of our prayer.
Therefore shall our hearts dance for joy:
And in our song will we praise our God.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Carl P. Daw Jr.’s hymn, “Let All Creation Bless the Lord.”
Let all creation bless the Lord,
till heav'n with praise is ringing.
Sun, moon, and stars, peal out a chord,
stir up the angels' singing.
Sing, wind and rain! Sing, snow and sleet!
Make music, day, night, cold and heat:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you.
All living things upon the earth,
green fertile hills and mountains,
sing to the God who gave you birth;
be joyful, springs and fountains.
Lithe waterlife, bright airborne birds,
wild roving beasts, tame flocks and herds:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you.
O men and women everywhere,
lift up a hymn of glory;
let all who know God's steadfast care
tell out salvation's story.
No tongue be silent; sing your part,
you humble souls and meek of heart:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you
Silence is kept.
Let us pray
A short period of silent prayer is recommended before the Collect of the Day is said.
Who has heard the voice of our prayer.
Therefore shall our hearts dance for joy:
And in our song will we praise our God.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Carl P. Daw Jr.’s hymn, “Let All Creation Bless the Lord.”
Let all creation bless the Lord,
till heav'n with praise is ringing.
Sun, moon, and stars, peal out a chord,
stir up the angels' singing.
Sing, wind and rain! Sing, snow and sleet!
Make music, day, night, cold and heat:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you.
All living things upon the earth,
green fertile hills and mountains,
sing to the God who gave you birth;
be joyful, springs and fountains.
Lithe waterlife, bright airborne birds,
wild roving beasts, tame flocks and herds:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you.
O men and women everywhere,
lift up a hymn of glory;
let all who know God's steadfast care
tell out salvation's story.
No tongue be silent; sing your part,
you humble souls and meek of heart:
exalt the God who made you,
exalt the God who made you
Silence is kept.
Let us pray
A short period of silent prayer is recommended before the Collect of the Day is said.
Almighty God,
You have shed upon us
The light of your incarnate Word:
May this light, kindled in our hearts,
Shine forth in our lives;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
One God, now and for ever. Amen.
A reading from the Letter to the Ephesians
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Silence is kept.
The letter to the Ephesians is one of Paul’s “prison epistles,” so-called because they were written while he was in prison in Rome awaiting his trial and execution. Nero was emperor and Nero was no friend to the Christians in Rome. He would use them as a scapegoat for the fire that destroyed much of Rome during his reign and which Rome’s rumor mill blamed on Nero himself. Paul’s trial was merely a formality and his execution was a foregone conclusion. Faced with certain death Paul prays for the members of the church at Ephesus. It is a moving prayer—the prayer of “a dead man walking” as the prisoners on death row at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola are known.
We are all faced with our mortality, particular in this time when pestilence stalks the land, causing hardship, suffering, and death. From his prison letters we gather that Paul’s thoughts were not focused on his impending death but upon the well-being of the churches and people to whom he wrote the letters. In today’s reading he earnestly express the desire that the Holy Spirit strengthen the Christians at Ephesus to the very core of their being, that they may know the love of Jesus and experience the fullness of God. It is a prayer that we do well to make our own, praying not only for ourselves but also for our fellow Christians—particularly persecuted Christians around the world.
The Holy Spirit knits us together into the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is not just the local church. The Body of Christ is the great cloud of witnesses to Christ—in the past, in the present, and in the future. The Holy Spirit also unites us to our Lord. We are never really alone. By the Holy Spirit we are connected to Paul, to each other, and to Jesus himself. The Holy Spirit is God dwelling in us. We are his temple.
We have most likely heard these words before. Because we have heard them before, we may not give them much thought. They are words that we would be wise to take to heart. In the dark, dank, and foul-smelling lower level of the prison where Paul was kept in his final days, he was not alone. God was with him. God is with us too.
I remember to this day the gesture of an old pastor who was assisting at a baptism. The pastor who was baptizing the infant marked the child’s forehead with the sign of the cross, saying “….you are sealed by the Holy Spirit in Baptism and marked as Christ’s own forever….” At those last words the old pastor touched his forehead. We are marked as Christ’s own forever. As the first installment on our salvation God has given us the gift of himself. We are not alone. God is with us.
Silence is kept.
Open this link in a new tab to play Marty Haugen’s “Mass of Creation Glory to God.”
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Amen.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Let us pray for all people and the Church throughout the world.
After each petition silence may be kept. Further specific petitions may be added at appropriate points in the prayers or before the response.
We pray for the peace of the world, for the leaders of the nation, and for all in authority.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the welfare of your holy church, our bishop William, and for all clergy and people.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray that we nay share with justice the resources of the earth, and live in trust and goodwill with one another,
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the aged and infirm, for the bereaved and the lonely, and for the sick and the suffering.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the poor and the oppressed, for prisoners and captives, and for all who care for them.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for ourselves and each other.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We praise you, Lord God for the communion of the saints, and for the glorious hope of the resurrection to eternal life.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
Faithful God,
you have promised to hear the prayers
of all who ask in Jesus’ name.
In your mercy, accept our prayers.
give us what we asked in faith,
according to your will;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray the prayer that Jesus gave us.
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.
Lord Jesus Christ,
Send us out with confidence in your word
To tell the world of your saving acts,
And bring glory to your name. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to play Henry Walford Davies' choral arrangement of the traditional English Christmas carol, “The Holy and the Ivy.”
The holly and the ivy
When they are both full grown
Of all trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
Refrain:
O, the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing in the choir
The holly bears a blossom
As white as any flow'r
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our dear Saviour [Refrain]
The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To do poor sinners good [Refrain]
The holly bears a prickle
As sharp as any thorn
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
On Christmas Day in the morn [Refrain]
The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
For to redeem us all [Refrain]
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
May the God of all grace bless us. Amen.
You have shed upon us
The light of your incarnate Word:
May this light, kindled in our hearts,
Shine forth in our lives;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
One God, now and for ever. Amen.
A reading from the Letter to the Ephesians
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Silence is kept.
God Is With Us
The letter to the Ephesians is one of Paul’s “prison epistles,” so-called because they were written while he was in prison in Rome awaiting his trial and execution. Nero was emperor and Nero was no friend to the Christians in Rome. He would use them as a scapegoat for the fire that destroyed much of Rome during his reign and which Rome’s rumor mill blamed on Nero himself. Paul’s trial was merely a formality and his execution was a foregone conclusion. Faced with certain death Paul prays for the members of the church at Ephesus. It is a moving prayer—the prayer of “a dead man walking” as the prisoners on death row at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola are known.
We are all faced with our mortality, particular in this time when pestilence stalks the land, causing hardship, suffering, and death. From his prison letters we gather that Paul’s thoughts were not focused on his impending death but upon the well-being of the churches and people to whom he wrote the letters. In today’s reading he earnestly express the desire that the Holy Spirit strengthen the Christians at Ephesus to the very core of their being, that they may know the love of Jesus and experience the fullness of God. It is a prayer that we do well to make our own, praying not only for ourselves but also for our fellow Christians—particularly persecuted Christians around the world.
The Holy Spirit knits us together into the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is not just the local church. The Body of Christ is the great cloud of witnesses to Christ—in the past, in the present, and in the future. The Holy Spirit also unites us to our Lord. We are never really alone. By the Holy Spirit we are connected to Paul, to each other, and to Jesus himself. The Holy Spirit is God dwelling in us. We are his temple.
We have most likely heard these words before. Because we have heard them before, we may not give them much thought. They are words that we would be wise to take to heart. In the dark, dank, and foul-smelling lower level of the prison where Paul was kept in his final days, he was not alone. God was with him. God is with us too.
I remember to this day the gesture of an old pastor who was assisting at a baptism. The pastor who was baptizing the infant marked the child’s forehead with the sign of the cross, saying “….you are sealed by the Holy Spirit in Baptism and marked as Christ’s own forever….” At those last words the old pastor touched his forehead. We are marked as Christ’s own forever. As the first installment on our salvation God has given us the gift of himself. We are not alone. God is with us.
Silence is kept.
Open this link in a new tab to play Marty Haugen’s “Mass of Creation Glory to God.”
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Amen.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Let us pray for all people and the Church throughout the world.
After each petition silence may be kept. Further specific petitions may be added at appropriate points in the prayers or before the response.
We pray for the peace of the world, for the leaders of the nation, and for all in authority.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the welfare of your holy church, our bishop William, and for all clergy and people.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray that we nay share with justice the resources of the earth, and live in trust and goodwill with one another,
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the aged and infirm, for the bereaved and the lonely, and for the sick and the suffering.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the poor and the oppressed, for prisoners and captives, and for all who care for them.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for ourselves and each other.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
We praise you, Lord God for the communion of the saints, and for the glorious hope of the resurrection to eternal life.
God of grace, hear our prayer.
Faithful God,
you have promised to hear the prayers
of all who ask in Jesus’ name.
In your mercy, accept our prayers.
give us what we asked in faith,
according to your will;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray the prayer that Jesus gave us.
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.
Lord Jesus Christ,
Send us out with confidence in your word
To tell the world of your saving acts,
And bring glory to your name. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to play Henry Walford Davies' choral arrangement of the traditional English Christmas carol, “The Holy and the Ivy.”
The holly and the ivy
When they are both full grown
Of all trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
Refrain:
O, the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ
Sweet singing in the choir
The holly bears a blossom
As white as any flow'r
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our dear Saviour [Refrain]
The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To do poor sinners good [Refrain]
The holly bears a prickle
As sharp as any thorn
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
On Christmas Day in the morn [Refrain]
The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
For to redeem us all [Refrain]
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
May the God of all grace bless us. Amen.
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