Leader: The feast that we begin to celebrate tonight invites us to
enter more deeply into the heart of Christ.
All: Lead us into your heart.
Leader: In entering more deeply into the heart of Christ we want to
be open to having our hearts widened & deepened.
All: Be with us as we try to respond to this invitation.
Incense is lit as a symbol of our prayer rising to God before the hymn.
Please join in the hymn:
All ye who seek a comfort sure in trouble & distress,
Whatever sorrows vex the mind, or guilt the soul oppress:
Jesus, who gave himself for you upon the cross to die,
Opens to you his sacred heart, oh, to that heart draw nigh.
You hear how kindly he invites: you hear his word so blest;
‘All you that labour, come to me, and I will give you rest’.
What meeker than the saviour’s heart as on the cross he lay?
He did his murderers forgive & for their pardon pray.
We will listen to, or join in with, psalm 145.
(Christ be our Light Tr 11).
Refrain: Alleluia, alleluia, I will praise the Lord all my days.
It is God who keeps faith for ever, who is just to those who are oppressed,
It is God who gives food to the hungry & sets the captive free. (R).
It is God who gives good vision, & who raises those who are outcast,
All those whose thoughts are just God will cherish, the stranger is in God’s care.
(R).
God upholds the widow & orphan, but spoils the plans of the proud,
God’s reign will last through all time, Zion’s God from age to age. (R)
We will read a contemporary version of Psalm 112 taking a verse each round the group.
All: We give thanks to God.
As the noonday sun burns & does not relent, as the pressure mounts on the brain, as the elderly nod through the afternoon:
All: We give thanks to God.
As the shadows lengthen & the day declines, as the air cools around the homeless, as a night of grieving looms:
All: We give thanks to God.
As we grow angry at senseless violence, as we cradle the wounded in our arms, as we patiently repair the damage:
All: We give thanks to God.
As the sloucher straightens his back, as the poor rise up from the scrapheap, as the barren at last conceive:
All: We give thanks to God.
As Sarah, Rebekah, & Rachel give birth, as Ruth follows Naomi to a new home, as Rahab & Tamar find their place in the story:
All: We give thanks to God.
As we seek to deepen our trust, as we glimpse the power of compassion, as we see the divine in the outcast:
All: We give thanks to God.
As we remember the tales of our ancestors, as we recall the moments of freedom, as we renew our strength at its source:
All: We give thanks to God. Glory be to the Father and to the
Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is
now and ever shall be, world without end, Amen.
All: Learn from me for I am meek & humble of heart,
And you will find rest for your souls.
Reading: Exodus & Cardinal Hume.
A God of tenderness & compassion, slow to anger, rich in kindness & faithfulness, for thousands he maintains his kindness, forgives faults……..
Compassion, where it is truest, noblest, most beautiful, most loving, is in God. There we find the model, the inspiration. The terms ‘love’ & ‘compassion’ are interchangeable. In practical terms we have to learn to be compassionate. It doesn’t start in trouble spots on the other side of the globe: it starts at home & the surrounding area. That is where we learn to be concerned for the elderly, those who are sick, poor, those who struggle with disability, those who feel unloved. From the home we are able to stretch out further & further.
Silent or shared reflection.
Please stand to sing the Magnificat & its antiphon as indicated.
Cantors: I have come to spread fire on earth,
And how I wish it were blazing already.
Side 1: My being proclaims your greatness.
And my spirit finds joy in you, God my Saviour;
Side 2: For you have looked upon me, your servant, in my lowliness:
All ages to come shall call me blessed.
Side 1: God, you who are mighty, have done great things for me:
Holy is your name.
Side 2: Your mercy is from age to age
Towards those who fear you.
Side 1: You have shown might with your arm,
And confused the proud in their inmost thoughts.
Side 2: You have deposed the mighty from their thrones,
And raised the lowly to high places.
Side 1: The hungry you have given every good thing,
While the rich you have sent away empty.
Side 2: You have upheld Israel, your servant,
Ever mindful of your mercy –
Side 1: Even as you promised our ancestors,
Promised Abraham, Sarah. and their descendants for ever.
All: Give praise to the Father Almighty,
To his Son Jesus Christ our lord;
To the Spirit who dwells in our hearts,
Both now & for ever, Amen.
All: I have come to spread fire on earth.
And how I wish it were blazing already
Intercessions: these will be ad lib this eveninq, & will conclude with
Reader: We pray for people who have died today & for those who
will die tonight. We also remember in prayer those whose
anniversaries occur tomorrow, remembering especially:
Leader begins the Our Father…….
Leader: Almighty God & father, we reverence the Sacred
Heart of Jesus, your beloved Son, as we call to mind
the great things his love has done for us. We pray that
we will be instruments of that love in our relationships.
Fill us with the grace that flows in abundance from the
heart of Jesus. We make our prayer through that same
Jesus Christ our Lord who lives & reigns with you & the
Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Leader: The love of the Faithful Creator.
All: The peace of the Wounded Healer,
Leader: The joy of the Challenging Spirit,
All: The hope of the Three in One surround & encourage each of us, today, this night & forever. Amen.
At the end of this time of prayer, let us reflect on what this feast means for us personally.
A chant for instruments will be played.
(Light in our Darkness CD tr 7.)