All Hallows Evening Prayer for Sunday Evening (March 7, 2021)

Evening Prayer

The Service of Light

Jesus Christ is the light of the world.
A light no darkness can extinguish.

Open this link in a new tab to hear David von Kampen’s choral arrangement of “Joyous Light of Glory.”

Joyous light of glory of the immortal Father:
Heavenly, holy, blessed Jesus Christ,
We have come to the setting of the Sun
And we look to the evening light.
We sing to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy of being praised
with pure voices forever.
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
The universe proclaims your glory,
your glory, your glory.

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,
the Shepherd of Israel,
their pillar of cloud by day,
their pillar of fire by night.
In these forty days you lead us
into the desert of repentance
that in this pilgrimage of prayer
we may learn to be your people once more.
In fasting and service you bring us back to your heart.
Open our eyes to your presence in the world
and free our hands to lead others
to the radiant splendour of your mercy.
Be with us in these journey days
for without you we are lost and will perish.
To you alone be dominion and glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

Psalm 141 is sung and incense may be burned.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Randall De Bruyn’s arrangement of Psalm 141 from The Grail (England).

Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up to you.
Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up to you.

I have called to you, Lord, hasten to help me.
Hear my voice when I cry to you.
Let my prayer arise before you like incense.
the raising of my hands like the evening oblation.

Set, O Lord, a guard over my mouth,
keep watch, O Lord, at the door of my lips!
Do not turn my heart to things that are wrong,
to evil deeds with those who are sinners.

Never allow me to share in their feasting.
If the righteous strike or reprove me, it is a kindness;
but let the oil of the wicked n’er anoint my head.
Let my prayer be ever against their malice.

To you, Lord God, my eyes are turned;
in you I take refuge; spare my soul!
From the trap they have laid for me keep me safe;
Keep me from the snares of those who do evil.

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.

Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up 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

Open this link in a new tab to hear Donald Fishel’s choral arrangement of Psalm 91, “Be With Me, Lord.”

Refrain:
Be with me, Lord,
when I am in trouble.
Be with me, Lord.
Be with me, Lord,
when I am in trouble.
Be with me, Lord.

1 You who dwell in the shelter, in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in his shadow of the Almighty,
say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God in whom I trust.”
Refrain

2 No evil shall befall you, no evil shall befall you,
nor affliction come near, come near your tent,
for to his angels he has given command about you,
that they guard you in all your ways.
Refrain

3 Upon their hands, upon their hands,
they shall bear you up, bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the asp and the viper;
You shall trample down the lion and the dragon.
Refrain

4 Because he clings to me, I will deliver him;
I will set him on high
because he acknowledges my name.
He shall call upon me,
and I will answer him;
I will be with him in distress;
I will deliver him and glorify him.
Refrain

Silence is kept.

Keep us, good Lord,
under the shadow of your mercy
and, as you have bound us to yourself in love,
leave us not who call upon your name,
but grant us your salvation,
made known in the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Proclamation of the Word

The Reading

Luke 12: 13-21 The Parable of the Rich Fool

Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Then he told them a parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”

Silence is kept.

Homily

Be Rich Toward God

When I go online, I am bombarded by ads telling me how I should invest my money to make a profit and recounting the stories of young people who were able to retire at early age due to their investment strategies and business acumen. When I search for videos on YouTube, I run across this ad in which a promoter in a business suit tells me that f I click the skip ad button and do not listen to his advice, I am making a mistake of a lifetime. I have made that mistake several times, skipping his ad. In today’s reading Jesus also tells us about wise investments and where we should make them. If we ignore his advice, I believe that we WILL make the mistake of a lifetime.

We live in a world that is obsessed with wealth, a world that is preoccupied with material possessions, a world that encourages us not only to accumulate wealth and possessions but also to flaunt them before others, to put them on display as evidence of our high status along with the power and the influence, the respect and admiration, which we enjoy due to our “success.”

This is not something new as I suspect that Jesus himself was well aware. In ancient Ur at least one king defied conventional wisdom that “you can’t take with you” and was buried with a retinue of slaves and soldiers, as well as his material possessions, his earthly treasures, to serve him in the afterlife. The slaves were strangled or poisoned, and the soldiers killed with a spear thrust to follow their master into the world of the dead.

Jesus’ words of advice to us are, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” He then tells a parable, the gist of which is that what is most important in life is not storing up treasures for ourselves, but being rich toward God.

They are words that go unheeded in churches whose pastors preach the prosperity gospel. They teach that God wants his people to be rich in worldly things, the way that we can acquire these things is through faith in God, and the way in which we can show our faith in God is to make donations to the pastor. The larger the donation, the greater will be God’s blessing.

As we see from today’s reading, this is not what Jesus teaches. He warns us against greed. Life, he tells us, is not possessions and by extension wealth, status, power, influence, and prestige. Life is about being rich toward God. Jesus tells us to build up treasures for ourselves in heaven. Where our treasure lies, our heart or attention also lies. If our treasures are on earth, that is where our attention or heart will be. It will be on earthly things and not on God.

What matters most in our life is God, Jesus tells us. God is where our heart or attention should be. This includes living lives pleasing to God, living lives to God’s glory. It includes living lives that embody Jesus’ teaching—lives of compassion, kindness, gentleness, forgiveness, generosity, love, forbearance, and mercy; lives of holiness, purity, and self-control; lives which show the world that we are the followers of Jesus. We are Jesus’ disciples.

Silence is kept.

The Gospel Canticle

Open this link in a new tab to hear Chaz Bower’s choral arrangement of “My Soul Proclaims Your Greatness, Lord.”

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.

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 lowly throned instead;
the hungry filled with all good things,
the rich sent off unfed.

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,
on God, by all adored.

Intercessions

Let us complete our evening prayer to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For peace from on high and our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the welfare of all churches and for the unity of the human family, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For (name), our bishop, and (name), our pastor, and for all ministers of the Gospel, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For our nation, its government, and for all who serve and protect us, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For this city (town, university, monastery…). For every city and community, and for all those living in them, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the good earth which God has given us and for the wisdom and will to conserve it, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the safety of travelers, the recovery of the sick, the care of the destitute and the release of prisoners, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For an angel of peace to guide and protect us, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For a peaceful evening and a night free from sin, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For a Christian end to our lives and for all who have fallen asleep in Christ, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

In the communion of the Holy Spirit (and of all the saints), let us commend ourselves and one another to the living God through Christ our Lord.
To you, O Lord.

Free Prayer

In silent or spontaneous prayer all bring before God the concerns of the day.

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

Open this link to hear Kathy Sherman’s song, “Wherever Your Treasure Lies.”

Wherever your treasure lies,
there will you find your heart.
There will you find your heart.

Wherever your treasure lies,
there will you find your heart.
There will you find your heart.

Wherever your treasure lies,
there will you find your heart.
There will you find your heart.

Wherever your treasure lies,
there will you find your heart.
There will you find your heart.

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us praise the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

May our Lord Jesus Christ, and God our Father,
comfort our hearts and establish them
In every good work and word. Amen