All Hallows Evening Prayer for Wednesday Evening (May 5, 2021)
Evening Prayer
The Service of LightJesus Christ is the light of the world.
A light no darkness can extinguish.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Carl P. Daw Jr.’s evening hymn, “O Light Whose Splendor Thrills and Gladdens.”
O Light whose splendor thrills and gladdens
with radiance brighter than the sun,
pure gleam of God's unending glory,
O Jesus, blest Anointed One;
as twilight hovers near at sunset,
and lamps are lit, and children nod,
in evening hymns we lift our voices
to Father, Spirit, Son: one God.
In all life's brilliant, timeless moments,
let faithful voices sing your praise,
O Son of God, our Life-bestower,
whose glory lightens endless days.
Thanksgiving
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Blessed are you, O Lord Redeemer God,
You destroyed the bonds of death
and from the darkness of the tomb
drew forth the light of the world.
Led through the waters of death.
we become the children of light
singing our Alleluia
and dancing to the music of new life.
Pour out your Spirit upon us
that dreams and visions bring us
ever closer to the kingdom
of Jesus Christ our Risen Savior.
Through him and in the Holy Spirit
all glory be to you, Almighty Father,
this night and for ever and ever.
Amen.
Psalm 141 is sung and incense may be burned.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Peter Inwood’s setting of Psalm 141, “O Lord, Let My Prayer Rise Before You Like Incense.”
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
1. Lord, I am calling:
hasten to help me.
Listen to me as I cry to you.
Let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
2. Lord, set a guard at my mouth,
keep watch at the gate of my lips.
Let my heart not turn to things that are wrong,
to sharing the evil deeds done by the sinful.
No, I will never taste their delights.
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
3. The good may reprove me,
in kindness chastise me,
but the wicked shall never anoint my head.
Ev’ry day I counter their malice with prayer.
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
4 To you, Lord, my God, my eyes are turned:
in you I take refuge;
do not forsake me.
Keep me from the traps they have set for me,
from the snares of those who do evil.
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you like incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
5 Praise to the Father, praise to the Son,
all praise to the life-giving Spirit.
As it was, is now and shall always be
for ages unending. Amen.
O Lord, let my prayer rise before you as incense,
my hands like an evening offering.
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 Bernadette Farrell’s paraphrase of Psalm 139, “O God, You Search Me, and You Know Me.”
1 O God, you search me, and you know me
All my thoughts lie open to your gaze
When I walk or lie down, you are before me
Ever the maker and keeper of my days.
2 You know my resting and my rising
You discern my purpose from afar
And with love everlasting, you besiege me
In ev'ry moment of life or death, you are.
3 Before a word is on my tongue, Lord
You have known its meaning through and through
You are with me beyond my understanding
God of my present, my past and future, too.
4 Although your Spirit is upon me
Still I search for shelter from your light
There is nowhere on Earth I can escape you
Even the darkness is radiant in your sight.
5 For you created me and shaped me
Gave me life within my mother’s womb
For the wonder of who I am, I praise you.
Safe in your hands, all creation is made new.
Silence is kept.
Creator God,
may every breath we take be for your glory,
may every footstep show you as our way,
that, trusting in your presence in this world,
we may, beyond this life, still be with you
where you are alive and reign
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear John Fennelly’s hymn, “Christ Be Near at Either Hand.”
1 Christ be near at either hand,
Christ behind, before me stand,
Christ with me where e’er I go,
Christ around, above, below.
2 Christ be in my heart and mind,
Christ within my soul enshrined.
Christ control my wayward heart;
Christ abide and ne’er depart.
[instrumental interlude]
3 Christ my life and only way,
Christ my lantern night and day;
Christ be my unchanging friend,
guide and shepherd to the end.
Christ my lantern night and day;
Christ be my unchanging friend,
guide and shepherd to the end.
[reprise]
The Proclamation of the Word
The Reading
Matthew 7: 1-29 Teachings from the Sermon on the Mountain
“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
“Do not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.
“Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!”
Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
Silence is kept
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.
The Homily
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12, NRSV)
If we are a Christian, we cannot view this verse from Matthew's Gospel, sometimes called the "Golden Rule", separately from Jesus’ other teachings and other commands. It is a part of a package deal. If we are genuinely Jesus’ disciple, his follower, we cannot cherry pick what teachings and commands that we keep and what teachings and commands that we ignore. Jesus himself stressed the importance of keeping his words and letting his words live on in us.
Jesus himself did not refer to Matthew 7: 12 as the “Golden Rule.” Anglican divines were the first to use the term the “Golden Rule” or the” Golden Law” in the early seventeenth century. Charles Gibbons and Thomas Jackson are credited with the first use of the term in 1604.
I have read a number of arguments online, which appear to share the common aim of watering down the Golden Rule. They are the kinds of arguments that university students will hear in lectures in comparative religion and philosophy classes.
One argument is that a number of religious traditions have similar rules and consequently Jesus’s words are not particularly unique. But when these rules are examined closely, it is clear that, while they may bear a superficial resemblance to what Jesus said, they do not have quite the same meaning. They are also used in a different context. The force of what Jesus said cannot be reduced, tempered, or weakened by drawing attention to similar sayings in other religious traditions. They cannot be adulterated by associating them with the teachings of other religions.
A second argument is that since the Golden Rule does not specifically mention being loving or kind or respectful, it cannot be regarded as meaning that we should treat others with love or kindness or respect. Nor does it imply that we should be loving or kind or respectful in our treatment of others. This line of reasoning would have us ignore what Jesus says elsewhere in the sermon on the mountain and his other teachings, commands, and example. It would have us disregard both the immediate and larger context of Jesus’ words and actions.
A third argument is that the Golden Rule is flawed. It maintains that if we want to build strong customer relations, to get ahead in business, we cannot settle for treating others as we would wish to be treated. We must treat them as they would wish to be treated. Jesus, however, did not intend the Golden Rule to be a formula for business success. Jesus’ words were meant to guide us in how we treat other people in our daily lives. They are, as Jesus said, the Law and the Prophets, in other words, a condensed version of their teachings. Those who live in accordance with these words are living in accordance with God’s Word.
A fourth argument is that Golden Rule is intrinsically selfish. According to this argument, the Golden Rule is more concerned with how other people treat us than how we treat other people on the basis that how other people treat us is used a measure of how we should treat other people. Like the line of reasoning in the other three arguments it is superficially plausible but does not hold up to close scrutiny. It takes Jesus’ words out of context and gives its own spin to them.
How then should we understand Jesus’ words, “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” We should first consider the immediate context of the sermon on the mountain in which Jesus said the words. While the division of Matthew’s Gospel into chapters and verses is an artificial one, they are helpful in identify the immediate context of these words. The oldest Bibles do not have chapters and verses. The immediate context contains Jesus’ teaching on not being overly harsh in our judgment of others, on dealing with our own shortcomings and failings before we draw those of other people to their attention, on profaning the holy, on praying to our Father in heaven with the expectation that he will answer our prayers, on entering through the narrow gate, on distinguishing false prophets by their fruit, on doing God’s will, on hearing Jesus’ words and acting on them.
We should next consider the larger context of the sermon on the mountain—what else Jesus taught his disciples and the crowds that flocked to hear him.
We should then consider Jesus’s teachings and example recorded elsewhere in Matthew’s Gospel and the other apostles’ recollections of what he taught and did. It is within this context that we should seek to interpret and understand Jesus’ words.
Not only should our interpretation and understanding of Jesus’ words reflect this larger context so should our application of them. For example, a freshman university student shared a dorm room with another young woman and the two young women became friends. Both were Christians and they did everything together. In the second year at the university, the first young woman made new and more exciting friends. She roomed with a different student. She did not return the phone calls and texts of her old roommate, walked out of the room when the old roommate walked into a room, and did whatever she could to avoid the young woman. Her old roommate was both puzzled and hurt by her actions. In her own mind, however, she thought that she was doing the right thing. Didn’t Jesus say treat others as we would want to be treated? She was doing what she wanted her old roommate to do—break off all contact with her. While it might be said that she was following the letter of the Golden Rule, she was not observing its spirit. Jesus would have us treat others with kindness, love, and respect that we would have others show us. Somehow she had missed out on that important lesson.
It is a lesson that we do not want to miss the chance or opportunity to learn. Jesus did not give us the Golden Rule as a rule that we were to blindly follow without thought to what we are doing or its consequences. The principles that we find in Jesus’ teachings are not just ethical or moral precepts. They are ways to show toward other people the grace that God shows toward us.
In his first letter the apostle John wrote, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” Take a moment to think about what that means. The God who is love, in the person of the Son, in the person of Jesus, became a human being and lived among us. Jesus was the embodiment of love. He taught and showed us how to love God and to love others. He became the atonement for our sins, suffering and dying for us so that we might be put right with God. The same God who is love, in the person of the Holy Spirit, indwells our innermost being. God lives in us not only to show his love for us but also his love for all who cross our path in this life.
The apostle Paul put it this way, “But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.” We are the jars of clay, ordinary, common clay jars. Clay jars were so common in Paul’s time that were thrown away after a few uses. They were the original disposable food ware. The treasure is the power of God’s indwelling presence, the power of the presence of God who is love.
It is God’s presence that permeates and transform us. It is God’s presence which enable us not only to wish to become more like Jesus, to become holier, more loving, kinder, gentler, more compassionate, more forgiving, more generous, more patient, but also enables us to do so. We were created in God’s image. That image became marred by sin. God in his great love for us seeks to renew his image in us. If God is love and we are created in God’s image, then our restored image is to be love.
Living the Golden Rule means living Jesus’ words, keeping his words and letting them live on in us, in the spirit of Jesus, in the same spirit of love, kindness, and respect, in the same spirit of compassion, generosity, and forgiveness, which Jesus has shown us. In living the Golden Rule, we give expression to God’s grace that he has shown us and which he would have us show all whose lives intersect with ours.
An image of the journey of faith that I find compelling is that of a pilgrimage. Our destination is Jesus but our companion in the way is also Jesus. He walks beside us and waits to welcome us.
We do not take the journey of faith alone. We have other companions beside Jesus. When we stumble, we help each other up. We pass people on the side of the road and invite them to join us. Some will; others will tarry. We weep for those who tarry and pray that they will join another group of pilgrims on faith’s journey.
We do not choose who our companions will be. God does the choosing. We love them whoever they are. They are our brothers and sisters. They are those whom God has given us to love as he loves us, God’s beloved children on faith’s journey together.
The Gospel Canticle
Open this link in a new tab to hear the Carl P. Daw Jr. 's paraphrase of the Magnificat, "My Soul Proclaims with Wonder."
Refrain:
My soul proclaims with wonder
the greatness of the Lord;
rejoicing in God's goodness,
my spirit is restored.
For God has looked with favor,
on one the world thought frail;
and blessings through the ages will echo
the angel's first "All hail."
Refrain
God's mercy shields the faithful
and gives them safe retreat
to arms that turns to scatter
the proud in their conceit.
Refrain
The mighty have been vanquished;
the lowly lifted up.
The hungry find abundance;
the rich, an empty cup.
Refrain
To Abraham's descendants
the Lord will steadfast prove,
for God has made with Israel
a covenant of love.
Refrain
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
Saving God,
who called your Church to witness
that you were in Christ reconciling the world to yourself:
help us to proclaim the good news of your love,
that all who hear it may be reconciled to you;
through him who died for us and rose again
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Lord's Prayer
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
The Proclamation of the Word
The Reading
Matthew 7: 1-29 Teachings from the Sermon on the Mountain
“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
“Do not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.
“Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!”
Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
Silence is kept
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.
The Homily
Not a Rule, a Way to Love
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12, NRSV)
If we are a Christian, we cannot view this verse from Matthew's Gospel, sometimes called the "Golden Rule", separately from Jesus’ other teachings and other commands. It is a part of a package deal. If we are genuinely Jesus’ disciple, his follower, we cannot cherry pick what teachings and commands that we keep and what teachings and commands that we ignore. Jesus himself stressed the importance of keeping his words and letting his words live on in us.
Jesus himself did not refer to Matthew 7: 12 as the “Golden Rule.” Anglican divines were the first to use the term the “Golden Rule” or the” Golden Law” in the early seventeenth century. Charles Gibbons and Thomas Jackson are credited with the first use of the term in 1604.
I have read a number of arguments online, which appear to share the common aim of watering down the Golden Rule. They are the kinds of arguments that university students will hear in lectures in comparative religion and philosophy classes.
One argument is that a number of religious traditions have similar rules and consequently Jesus’s words are not particularly unique. But when these rules are examined closely, it is clear that, while they may bear a superficial resemblance to what Jesus said, they do not have quite the same meaning. They are also used in a different context. The force of what Jesus said cannot be reduced, tempered, or weakened by drawing attention to similar sayings in other religious traditions. They cannot be adulterated by associating them with the teachings of other religions.
A second argument is that since the Golden Rule does not specifically mention being loving or kind or respectful, it cannot be regarded as meaning that we should treat others with love or kindness or respect. Nor does it imply that we should be loving or kind or respectful in our treatment of others. This line of reasoning would have us ignore what Jesus says elsewhere in the sermon on the mountain and his other teachings, commands, and example. It would have us disregard both the immediate and larger context of Jesus’ words and actions.
A third argument is that the Golden Rule is flawed. It maintains that if we want to build strong customer relations, to get ahead in business, we cannot settle for treating others as we would wish to be treated. We must treat them as they would wish to be treated. Jesus, however, did not intend the Golden Rule to be a formula for business success. Jesus’ words were meant to guide us in how we treat other people in our daily lives. They are, as Jesus said, the Law and the Prophets, in other words, a condensed version of their teachings. Those who live in accordance with these words are living in accordance with God’s Word.
A fourth argument is that Golden Rule is intrinsically selfish. According to this argument, the Golden Rule is more concerned with how other people treat us than how we treat other people on the basis that how other people treat us is used a measure of how we should treat other people. Like the line of reasoning in the other three arguments it is superficially plausible but does not hold up to close scrutiny. It takes Jesus’ words out of context and gives its own spin to them.
How then should we understand Jesus’ words, “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” We should first consider the immediate context of the sermon on the mountain in which Jesus said the words. While the division of Matthew’s Gospel into chapters and verses is an artificial one, they are helpful in identify the immediate context of these words. The oldest Bibles do not have chapters and verses. The immediate context contains Jesus’ teaching on not being overly harsh in our judgment of others, on dealing with our own shortcomings and failings before we draw those of other people to their attention, on profaning the holy, on praying to our Father in heaven with the expectation that he will answer our prayers, on entering through the narrow gate, on distinguishing false prophets by their fruit, on doing God’s will, on hearing Jesus’ words and acting on them.
We should next consider the larger context of the sermon on the mountain—what else Jesus taught his disciples and the crowds that flocked to hear him.
We should then consider Jesus’s teachings and example recorded elsewhere in Matthew’s Gospel and the other apostles’ recollections of what he taught and did. It is within this context that we should seek to interpret and understand Jesus’ words.
Not only should our interpretation and understanding of Jesus’ words reflect this larger context so should our application of them. For example, a freshman university student shared a dorm room with another young woman and the two young women became friends. Both were Christians and they did everything together. In the second year at the university, the first young woman made new and more exciting friends. She roomed with a different student. She did not return the phone calls and texts of her old roommate, walked out of the room when the old roommate walked into a room, and did whatever she could to avoid the young woman. Her old roommate was both puzzled and hurt by her actions. In her own mind, however, she thought that she was doing the right thing. Didn’t Jesus say treat others as we would want to be treated? She was doing what she wanted her old roommate to do—break off all contact with her. While it might be said that she was following the letter of the Golden Rule, she was not observing its spirit. Jesus would have us treat others with kindness, love, and respect that we would have others show us. Somehow she had missed out on that important lesson.
It is a lesson that we do not want to miss the chance or opportunity to learn. Jesus did not give us the Golden Rule as a rule that we were to blindly follow without thought to what we are doing or its consequences. The principles that we find in Jesus’ teachings are not just ethical or moral precepts. They are ways to show toward other people the grace that God shows toward us.
In his first letter the apostle John wrote, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” Take a moment to think about what that means. The God who is love, in the person of the Son, in the person of Jesus, became a human being and lived among us. Jesus was the embodiment of love. He taught and showed us how to love God and to love others. He became the atonement for our sins, suffering and dying for us so that we might be put right with God. The same God who is love, in the person of the Holy Spirit, indwells our innermost being. God lives in us not only to show his love for us but also his love for all who cross our path in this life.
The apostle Paul put it this way, “But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.” We are the jars of clay, ordinary, common clay jars. Clay jars were so common in Paul’s time that were thrown away after a few uses. They were the original disposable food ware. The treasure is the power of God’s indwelling presence, the power of the presence of God who is love.
It is God’s presence that permeates and transform us. It is God’s presence which enable us not only to wish to become more like Jesus, to become holier, more loving, kinder, gentler, more compassionate, more forgiving, more generous, more patient, but also enables us to do so. We were created in God’s image. That image became marred by sin. God in his great love for us seeks to renew his image in us. If God is love and we are created in God’s image, then our restored image is to be love.
Living the Golden Rule means living Jesus’ words, keeping his words and letting them live on in us, in the spirit of Jesus, in the same spirit of love, kindness, and respect, in the same spirit of compassion, generosity, and forgiveness, which Jesus has shown us. In living the Golden Rule, we give expression to God’s grace that he has shown us and which he would have us show all whose lives intersect with ours.
An image of the journey of faith that I find compelling is that of a pilgrimage. Our destination is Jesus but our companion in the way is also Jesus. He walks beside us and waits to welcome us.
We do not take the journey of faith alone. We have other companions beside Jesus. When we stumble, we help each other up. We pass people on the side of the road and invite them to join us. Some will; others will tarry. We weep for those who tarry and pray that they will join another group of pilgrims on faith’s journey.
We do not choose who our companions will be. God does the choosing. We love them whoever they are. They are our brothers and sisters. They are those whom God has given us to love as he loves us, God’s beloved children on faith’s journey together.
The Gospel Canticle
Open this link in a new tab to hear the Carl P. Daw Jr. 's paraphrase of the Magnificat, "My Soul Proclaims with Wonder."
Refrain:
My soul proclaims with wonder
the greatness of the Lord;
rejoicing in God's goodness,
my spirit is restored.
For God has looked with favor,
on one the world thought frail;
and blessings through the ages will echo
the angel's first "All hail."
Refrain
God's mercy shields the faithful
and gives them safe retreat
to arms that turns to scatter
the proud in their conceit.
Refrain
The mighty have been vanquished;
the lowly lifted up.
The hungry find abundance;
the rich, an empty cup.
Refrain
To Abraham's descendants
the Lord will steadfast prove,
for God has made with Israel
a covenant of love.
Refrain
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
Saving God,
who called your Church to witness
that you were in Christ reconciling the world to yourself:
help us to proclaim the good news of your love,
that all who hear it may be reconciled to you;
through him who died for us and rose again
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Lord's Prayer
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 in a new tab to hear Richard Gillard’s hymn, “The Servant Song.”
Will you let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you?
Pray that I may have the grace
to let you be my servant, too.
We are pilgrims on a journey,
we are trav’lers on the road.
We are here to help each other
walk the mile and bear the load.
I will hold the Christ-light for you
in the night-time of your fear.
I will hold my hand out to you,
speak the peace you long to hear.
I will weep when you are weeping,
when you laugh I'll laugh with you.
I will share your joy and sorrow
till we've seen this journey through.
When we sing to God in heaven,
we shall find such harmony,
born of all we've known together
of Christ's love and agony.
Will you let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you?
Pray that I may have the grace
to let you be my servant, too.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us praise the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
May the God of peace, who brought again
from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ,
the great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
make us perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in us what is pleasing in his sight.
Amen.
Comments
Post a Comment