Leader: God of Life & Death,
All: We wait in hope.
Leader: God of all the worlds that are,
All: We wait in hope.
Leader: God of dazzling darkness,
All: We wait in hope. We wait in hope & awe & pray in the name
of father, son & spirit.
Please join in the hymn:
(Refrain) This is what the Lord God asks of you, only this,
That you act justly, that you love tenderly,
That you walk humbly with your God.
‘My children, I am with you such a little while,
And where I go, you cannot come,
A new commandment I give to you:
As I have loved you, so love each other.
REFRAIN
Do not let your hearts be troubled;
Trust in God now, & trust in me,
I go to prepare a place for you,
And I shall come again to take you home.
REFRAIN
‘Peace is the gift I leave with you,
A peace the world can never give,
If you keep my word, my Father will love you,
And we will come to you to make our home
REFRAIN
Please say the psalm with different readers as indicated.
All: Like everlasting foundations on a rock are the
commandments of God in the heart of a good woman.
Reader 1: Eternal God, our rock & our foundation, without you,
all that we build is but rubble. Blindly & cheaply we
construct on sand, and the building subsides & crumbles.
Reader 2: Those who guard the city, do so in vain; the watchman cannot see the corruption within.
The lights in the tower shine on through the night:
is it all for vain profit? Will they soon turn to dust?
Reader 2: Foolish we are to rise up so early, drawn to the work that consumes us.
The bread of anxiety sours & gnaws at us. We forget you give gifts while we sleep.
All: 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: Like everlasting foundations on a rock are the
commandments of God in the heart of a good woman.
Please listen to, or join in, with the 2nd psalm
(Songs for Worship I & II – Talbot Tr3)
I rejoiced when I heard them say, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord’,
And now our feet are standing within your gates, Jerusalem. (repeat)
Jerusalem, God’s city, built strong by the hand of the Lord,
To Jerusalem will the tribes go up, the people of our God.
For the peace of Jerusalem we pray, may peace come to your homes.
For the love of my brothers & friends, may peace come to you.
For the love of the house of the Lord, I will pray for you
And may the throne of justice be restored in you.
Repeat ‘Jerusalem, God’s city’ above.
Then repeat ‘I rejoiced when I heard them say’ above.
Reading: David Adam.
As long as we are alive, we are on the move. It is necessary for all living things to move & grow & change. Life is meant to be an adventure; change is a gift that we have to learn to use aright. In celtic folk tales a curse that could happen to a person was to enter a field & not be able to get back out of it. To be stuck in that place for ever – not to be able to change. We can all get ourselves stuck in routines & habits that can act like shackles. Instead we are invited to an adventure & to grow; to explore new areas of yourself & the world around you – a world that is filled with mystery & with the glory of God.
Pause.
Please stand to sing the Magnificat & its antiphon as indicated.
Cantors: You have left all things & followed me;
You will be repaid a hundred times over & gain eternal life.
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 and for ever, Amen.
All: You have left all things & followed me;
You will be repaid a hundred times over & gain eternal life.
Intercessions:
Reader: We pray on the Feast of Bridget of Sweden for the Brigettine sisters of whom she is the foundress ……. pause ……… God,
ever-mindful of them, in your mercy,
All: Hear our prayer.
Reader: Bridget was a wife & a mother before being widowed &
entering Religious Life. Let us pray for all who make new
daring choices during their lives ……. pause……… God, ever-
mindful of us, in your mercy,
All: Hear our prayer.
Reader: We pray for all Europeans & those others who choose to live
in Europe, asking that we can be welcoming in sharing our
heritage with others. ……. pause……… God, ever-mindful of us, in your mercy,
All: Hear our prayer.
Reader: We pray for the people of Sweden. May they face the
challenges of living up to the example of their patron with
courage ……. pause……… God, ever-mindful of us, in your mercy,
All: Hear our prayer.
Reader: We pray for all those named Bridget. (mention names……….)
……. pause……… God, ever-mindful of them all, in your mercy,
All: Hear our prayer.
Reader: We pray for people who have died today – for those who will die tonight – and for those whose anniversaries occur tomorrow,
remembering especially:
Pause for people to add silently or aloud any further intentions.
Leader begins the Our Father.
Leader: God, our creator, we entrust all our prayers to your safe hands & ask that we be blessed tonight. Through your son, Jesus Christ.
All: Amen.