All Hallows Evening Prayer for Saturday Evening (August 6, 2022)
PROCLAMATION OF THE LIGHT
One or more candles may be lit.
Watch and be ready, for you do not know on what day our Lord is coming. Matthew 24:42, 44
EVENING HYMN
Open this link in a new tab to hear F. Bland Tucker’s translation of the Phos hilaron, “O Gracious Light.”
O Gracious Light, Lord Jesus Christ,
In you the Father’s glory shone.
Immortal, holy, blest is he,
And blest are you, his holy Son.
Now sunset comes, but light shines forth,
the lamps are lit to pierce the night.
Praise Father, Son, and Spirit: God
Who dwells in the eternal light.
Worthy are you of endless praise,
O Son of God, Life-giving Lord;
Wherefore you are through all the earth
And in the highest heaven adored.
O Gracious Light!
PRAYER OF 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!
Your word brings on the dusk of evening,
your wisdom creates both night and day.
You determine the cycles of time,
arrange the succession of seasons,
and establish the stars in their heavenly courses.
Lord of the starry hosts is your name.
Living and eternal God, rule over us always.
Blessed be the Lord, whose word makes evening fall.
Amen.
HYMN OF THE DAY
Open this link in a new tab to hear Albert F. Bayly’s “What Does the Lord Require.”
What does the Lord require
for praise and offering?
What sacrifice, desire
or tribute did you bring?
Do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
Rulers of earth, give ear!
Should you not justice know?
Will God your pleading hear
while crime and cruelty grow?
Do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
Still down the ages ring
the prophet's stern commands:
to merchant, worker, king,
he brings God's high commands:
do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
How shall our life fulfill
God's law so hard and high?
Let Christ endue our will
with grace to fortify.
Then justly,
in mercy,
we'll humbly walk with God.
SCRIPTURE
Isaiah 1: 1, 10-20 A Solemn Warning to Judah and Jerusalem
These are the visions that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. He saw these visions during the years when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah.
Listen to the Lord, you leaders of “Sodom.”
Listen to the law of our God, people of “Gomorrah.”
“What makes you think I want all your sacrifices?”
says the Lord.
“I am sick of your burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of fattened cattle.
I get no pleasure from the blood
of bulls and lambs and goats.
When you come to worship me,
who asked you to parade through my courts with all your ceremony?
Stop bringing me your meaningless gifts;
the incense of your offerings disgusts me!
As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath
and your special days for fasting—
they are all sinful and false.
I want no more of your pious meetings.
I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals.
They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them!
When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look.
Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen,
for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims.
EVENING HYMN
Open this link in a new tab to hear F. Bland Tucker’s translation of the Phos hilaron, “O Gracious Light.”
O Gracious Light, Lord Jesus Christ,
In you the Father’s glory shone.
Immortal, holy, blest is he,
And blest are you, his holy Son.
Now sunset comes, but light shines forth,
the lamps are lit to pierce the night.
Praise Father, Son, and Spirit: God
Who dwells in the eternal light.
Worthy are you of endless praise,
O Son of God, Life-giving Lord;
Wherefore you are through all the earth
And in the highest heaven adored.
O Gracious Light!
PRAYER OF 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!
Your word brings on the dusk of evening,
your wisdom creates both night and day.
You determine the cycles of time,
arrange the succession of seasons,
and establish the stars in their heavenly courses.
Lord of the starry hosts is your name.
Living and eternal God, rule over us always.
Blessed be the Lord, whose word makes evening fall.
Amen.
HYMN OF THE DAY
Open this link in a new tab to hear Albert F. Bayly’s “What Does the Lord Require.”
What does the Lord require
for praise and offering?
What sacrifice, desire
or tribute did you bring?
Do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
Rulers of earth, give ear!
Should you not justice know?
Will God your pleading hear
while crime and cruelty grow?
Do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
Still down the ages ring
the prophet's stern commands:
to merchant, worker, king,
he brings God's high commands:
do justly,
love mercy,
walk humbly with your God.
How shall our life fulfill
God's law so hard and high?
Let Christ endue our will
with grace to fortify.
Then justly,
in mercy,
we'll humbly walk with God.
SCRIPTURE
Isaiah 1: 1, 10-20 A Solemn Warning to Judah and Jerusalem
These are the visions that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. He saw these visions during the years when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah.
Listen to the Lord, you leaders of “Sodom.”
Listen to the law of our God, people of “Gomorrah.”
“What makes you think I want all your sacrifices?”
says the Lord.
“I am sick of your burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of fattened cattle.
I get no pleasure from the blood
of bulls and lambs and goats.
When you come to worship me,
who asked you to parade through my courts with all your ceremony?
Stop bringing me your meaningless gifts;
the incense of your offerings disgusts me!
As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath
and your special days for fasting—
they are all sinful and false.
I want no more of your pious meetings.
I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals.
They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them!
When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look.
Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen,
for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims.
Wash yourselves and be clean!
Get your sins out of my sight.
Give up your evil ways.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Help the oppressed.
Defend the cause of orphans.
Fight for the rights of widows.
“Come now, let’s settle this,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool.
If you will only obey me,
you will have plenty to eat.
But if you turn away and refuse to listen,
you will be devoured by the sword of your enemies.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Silence
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory
HOMILY
God in his warning to the people of Judah and Jerusalem in today’s reading, Isaiah 1:1,10-20 uses very strong language. He addresses them as “Sodom” and “Gomorrah” to cities notorious for their wickedness in the Bible and which according to the Bible, God destroyed in the time of Abraham, raining down fire from heaven upon them. Some commentators have compared the Bible’s description of their destruction as akin to the blast of a nuclear bomb.
Archeologists excavating ruins in the region of the ancient Mid-East where these two cities are believed to have been located have found evidence that at least one ancient city in this region may have been destroyed by the impact of a large meteor or small asteroid and the site abandoned for decades or longer. Whether this city was Sodom or Gomorrah of the Bible is disputed as no evidence has been found that identifies the city with one of these cities.
While scholars argue over why the Bible says God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, the two cities came to symbolize moral wrongdoing and evil in the Bible.
Jesus refers to Sodom in denouncing the unrepentant cities of Korazin and Bethsaida and Capernaum.
Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God. “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse. I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
“And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodnom, it would still be here today. I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you.” Matthew 11:20-24, NLT
What is the great evil that the people of Judah and Jerusalem have done that God calls them by the names of these two cities? It is certainly not neglecting their religious duties like offering sacrifices, observing new moons and festivals, gathering in solemn assemblies, and lifting their hands in prayer. It is their willingness to murder innocents—a possible allusion to human sacrifice—and their failure to fulfill their moral obligations. In calling them to repentance, God describes these obligations:
Wash yourselves and be clean!
Get your sins out of my sight.
Give up your evil ways.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Help the oppressed.
Defend the cause of orphans.
Fight for the rights of widows.
God goes on to promise to forgive them and purify them from sin if they repent, if they turn away from the evil that they are doing. However, if they refuse to repent, he will withdraw his protection and they will fall by the hands of their enemies.
Sadly, the people of Judah and Jerusalem did not give up their evil ways. The Babylonians conquered the kingdom of the south. They laid siege to Jerusalem and captured the city. The people of Judah and Jerusalem who were not killed were taken into captivity.
Scholars disagree on whether a remnant of the people of Judah were allowed to remain in the land or all who survived the Babylonian conquest of the southern kingdom were taken into captivity. In any event the people of Judah and Jerusalem did not heed God’s warning and suffered the consequences of not paying attention to it.
What lesson in this reading is there for us today? Three things stand out. The first thing is that God is not impressed by our worship—by worship teams that are professional quality in their instrument playing and singing, by celebrity preachers, by smoke machines and all the other gimmicks that characterize what is described as “contemporary worship.” Nor is he impressed by the long, wordy liturgies, elaborate ceremonial, ornate vestments, choirs, and organs of “traditional worship.” What matters to God is how we honor and respect him with our lives, and how we treat others.
The second thing is that God places a high value on doing good, working to obtain justice for the victims of injustice, helping those who are treated in an unfair and cruel way and denied opportunities and freedom, defending the cause of parentless children, and fighting for the rights of widows.
The third thing is that God is willing not just to forgive us if we have a change of heart and turn away from the bad things that we do but also wipe our slate clean and not hold what we have done against us, in other words, real forgiveness. Our debt is paid. We owe nothing. Who paid our debt? Jesus on the cross. God himself hanging there in the person of the Son took upon himself all the consequences of the bad things that we have done. God does not just overlook our sins and wrongdoings or wink at them. God forgives us if we are truly sorry for what we have done, wish that we had not done it, and in a serious and determined way seek to live a changed life.
God does not have to show us mercy. God does not have to be kind to us or to forgive us. But it is God’s nature to be merciful, to be kind and forgiving. Theologians calls the favor and goodwill God shows us, the favor and goodwill that we cannot earn and do not deserve, grace. It is by grace, by God’s unearned and undeserved favor and goodwill toward us, that we are put right with God by faith in Jesus and what God did through Jesus. It is God’s merciful kindness, his grace, that enables us to believe in Jesus
We cannot put things right with God ourselves by living the way that God would have us live. However, we can show our gratitude to God for what he has done for us by living that way, to borrow a phrase from the United Methodist Hymnal, by walking as true disciples on the way of Jesus.
Silence
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Open this link to hear Ryan Flanigan’s setting of the Apostles Creed.
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 seen 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
SONG OF PRAISE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Stuart Townend’s “My Soul Will Magnify.”
My soul will magnify the Lord
I rejoice in God, my Savior
In the wonder of His favor
For He has done great things for me
He was mindful of His servant
Every age shall call be blessed
The hope of Abraham come
In the giving of the Son
For He who promised is mighty
In remembering His mercy
My soul will magnify the Lord
For His grace to those who fear Him
Through every generation
The proud He scatters to the wind
As the ruler's strength is broken
And the rich are left with nothing
The humble lifted high
And the hungry satisfied
Our portion and our treasure
Our hope and help forever
My soul will magnify the Lord
I rejoice in God, my Savior
In the wonder of His favor
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
During the silence that follows each bidding, the congregation may pray aloud or silently for each concern or need
To our Father in heaven
let us make our requests with thanksgiving,
through our only mediator,
Jesus Christ the Son.
I ask your prayers for peace in the life of the world ...
Pray for God's peace.
Silence
I ask your prayers for all who suffer injury, sickness and loss ...
Pray for all who are afflicted.
Get your sins out of my sight.
Give up your evil ways.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Help the oppressed.
Defend the cause of orphans.
Fight for the rights of widows.
“Come now, let’s settle this,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool.
If you will only obey me,
you will have plenty to eat.
But if you turn away and refuse to listen,
you will be devoured by the sword of your enemies.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Silence
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory
HOMILY
A Stubborn People and a Merciful God
God in his warning to the people of Judah and Jerusalem in today’s reading, Isaiah 1:1,10-20 uses very strong language. He addresses them as “Sodom” and “Gomorrah” to cities notorious for their wickedness in the Bible and which according to the Bible, God destroyed in the time of Abraham, raining down fire from heaven upon them. Some commentators have compared the Bible’s description of their destruction as akin to the blast of a nuclear bomb.
Archeologists excavating ruins in the region of the ancient Mid-East where these two cities are believed to have been located have found evidence that at least one ancient city in this region may have been destroyed by the impact of a large meteor or small asteroid and the site abandoned for decades or longer. Whether this city was Sodom or Gomorrah of the Bible is disputed as no evidence has been found that identifies the city with one of these cities.
While scholars argue over why the Bible says God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, the two cities came to symbolize moral wrongdoing and evil in the Bible.
Jesus refers to Sodom in denouncing the unrepentant cities of Korazin and Bethsaida and Capernaum.
Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God. “What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse. I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
“And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodnom, it would still be here today. I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you.” Matthew 11:20-24, NLT
What is the great evil that the people of Judah and Jerusalem have done that God calls them by the names of these two cities? It is certainly not neglecting their religious duties like offering sacrifices, observing new moons and festivals, gathering in solemn assemblies, and lifting their hands in prayer. It is their willingness to murder innocents—a possible allusion to human sacrifice—and their failure to fulfill their moral obligations. In calling them to repentance, God describes these obligations:
Wash yourselves and be clean!
Get your sins out of my sight.
Give up your evil ways.
Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Help the oppressed.
Defend the cause of orphans.
Fight for the rights of widows.
God goes on to promise to forgive them and purify them from sin if they repent, if they turn away from the evil that they are doing. However, if they refuse to repent, he will withdraw his protection and they will fall by the hands of their enemies.
Sadly, the people of Judah and Jerusalem did not give up their evil ways. The Babylonians conquered the kingdom of the south. They laid siege to Jerusalem and captured the city. The people of Judah and Jerusalem who were not killed were taken into captivity.
Scholars disagree on whether a remnant of the people of Judah were allowed to remain in the land or all who survived the Babylonian conquest of the southern kingdom were taken into captivity. In any event the people of Judah and Jerusalem did not heed God’s warning and suffered the consequences of not paying attention to it.
What lesson in this reading is there for us today? Three things stand out. The first thing is that God is not impressed by our worship—by worship teams that are professional quality in their instrument playing and singing, by celebrity preachers, by smoke machines and all the other gimmicks that characterize what is described as “contemporary worship.” Nor is he impressed by the long, wordy liturgies, elaborate ceremonial, ornate vestments, choirs, and organs of “traditional worship.” What matters to God is how we honor and respect him with our lives, and how we treat others.
The second thing is that God places a high value on doing good, working to obtain justice for the victims of injustice, helping those who are treated in an unfair and cruel way and denied opportunities and freedom, defending the cause of parentless children, and fighting for the rights of widows.
The third thing is that God is willing not just to forgive us if we have a change of heart and turn away from the bad things that we do but also wipe our slate clean and not hold what we have done against us, in other words, real forgiveness. Our debt is paid. We owe nothing. Who paid our debt? Jesus on the cross. God himself hanging there in the person of the Son took upon himself all the consequences of the bad things that we have done. God does not just overlook our sins and wrongdoings or wink at them. God forgives us if we are truly sorry for what we have done, wish that we had not done it, and in a serious and determined way seek to live a changed life.
God does not have to show us mercy. God does not have to be kind to us or to forgive us. But it is God’s nature to be merciful, to be kind and forgiving. Theologians calls the favor and goodwill God shows us, the favor and goodwill that we cannot earn and do not deserve, grace. It is by grace, by God’s unearned and undeserved favor and goodwill toward us, that we are put right with God by faith in Jesus and what God did through Jesus. It is God’s merciful kindness, his grace, that enables us to believe in Jesus
We cannot put things right with God ourselves by living the way that God would have us live. However, we can show our gratitude to God for what he has done for us by living that way, to borrow a phrase from the United Methodist Hymnal, by walking as true disciples on the way of Jesus.
Silence
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Open this link to hear Ryan Flanigan’s setting of the Apostles Creed.
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 seen 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
SONG OF PRAISE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Stuart Townend’s “My Soul Will Magnify.”
My soul will magnify the Lord
I rejoice in God, my Savior
In the wonder of His favor
For He has done great things for me
He was mindful of His servant
Every age shall call be blessed
The hope of Abraham come
In the giving of the Son
For He who promised is mighty
In remembering His mercy
My soul will magnify the Lord
For His grace to those who fear Him
Through every generation
The proud He scatters to the wind
As the ruler's strength is broken
And the rich are left with nothing
The humble lifted high
And the hungry satisfied
Our portion and our treasure
Our hope and help forever
My soul will magnify the Lord
I rejoice in God, my Savior
In the wonder of His favor
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
During the silence that follows each bidding, the congregation may pray aloud or silently for each concern or need
To our Father in heaven
let us make our requests with thanksgiving,
through our only mediator,
Jesus Christ the Son.
I ask your prayers for peace in the life of the world ...
Pray for God's peace.
Silence
I ask your prayers for all who suffer injury, sickness and loss ...
Pray for all who are afflicted.
Silence
I ask your prayers for all who wield authority and influence ...
Pray for all who exercise power.
Silence
I ask your prayers for all whom we have wronged ...
Pray for all who hate us.
Silence
I ask your prayers for our bishop(s) ...
and for all whom Christ has appointed to his service ...
Pray for God's people.
Silence
I ask your prayers for ...
During the silence members of the congregation may ask the prayers of the congregation for specific concerns and needs
Silence
Give thanks to God for all
in whom Christ has been honoured,
(especially ... )
Silence
O God, whose will it is
that all should find salvation
and come to know the truth:
receive the prayers and petitions
which we offer in faith and love;
through him who gave proof of your purpose,
and who sacrificed himself
to win freedom for all humankind,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Collect
Almighty and everlasting God,
by your Spirit the whole body of the Church
is governed and sanctified;
hear the prayers we offer
for all your faithful people
that in the ministry to which you have called us
we may serve you in holiness and truth;
through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ
Amen.
RESPONSE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Steve Angrisano’ s setting of “Lord have mercy."
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy
Christ have mercy
Christ have mercy
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy
THE LORD’S PRAYER
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
As our Saviour taught his disciples,
we pray:
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.
BLESSING
The blessing of God,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
remain with us always. Amen.
I ask your prayers for all who wield authority and influence ...
Pray for all who exercise power.
Silence
I ask your prayers for all whom we have wronged ...
Pray for all who hate us.
Silence
I ask your prayers for our bishop(s) ...
and for all whom Christ has appointed to his service ...
Pray for God's people.
Silence
I ask your prayers for ...
During the silence members of the congregation may ask the prayers of the congregation for specific concerns and needs
Silence
Give thanks to God for all
in whom Christ has been honoured,
(especially ... )
Silence
O God, whose will it is
that all should find salvation
and come to know the truth:
receive the prayers and petitions
which we offer in faith and love;
through him who gave proof of your purpose,
and who sacrificed himself
to win freedom for all humankind,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Collect
Almighty and everlasting God,
by your Spirit the whole body of the Church
is governed and sanctified;
hear the prayers we offer
for all your faithful people
that in the ministry to which you have called us
we may serve you in holiness and truth;
through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ
Amen.
RESPONSE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Steve Angrisano’ s setting of “Lord have mercy."
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy
Christ have mercy
Christ have mercy
Lord have mercy
Lord have mercy
THE LORD’S PRAYER
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
As our Saviour taught his disciples,
we pray:
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.
BLESSING
The blessing of God,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
remain with us always. Amen.
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