Leader: The peace of God be with you
All: And also with you.
Leader: God looks at the world & sees that it is good.
All: Thanks be to God!
Leader: A world worth dying for, a world worth living for.
All Thanks be to Christ!
Leader: And we are never left alone in joy or struggle, failure or victory.
All: Thanks be to you, Holy Spirit!
Please join in the refrain of our hymn if you wish – (Fountain of Life Tr 2)
(Refrain) You are the centre, you are my life,
You are the centre, Lord, of my life.
Come, Lord, & guide me, Lord of my life,
Send me your spirit, Lord of my life.(refrain)
Come, Lord, & heal me, Lord of my life,
Come, Lord, & teach me, Lord of my life.(refrain)
Give me your spirit & teach me your ways,
Give me your peace, Lord, & set me free.(refrain)
Please say the psalm as indicated.
All: The Lord cares for the weak and oppressed.
Reader: In the Lord I take shelter. How can you say to me, ‘Bird, fly back
to your mountain! See how the wicked are bending their bows and
fitting their arrows to the string, ready to shoot the upright from
the shadows.
All: The Lord cares for the weak and oppressed.
Reader: When foundations fall to ruin, what can the virtuous do?’ God is in
the holy temple, God whose throne is in heaven, whose eyes look
down on the world, whose searching gaze scans all.
All: The Lord cares for the weak and oppressed.
Reader: God tests the just and the wicked; God hates the lover of violence,
sending fire and brimstone on the wicked. A scorching wind is their lot.
All: The Lord cares for the weak and oppressed.
Reader: God is just and loves justice, the upright shall see God’s face.
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: The Lord cares for the weak and oppressed.
Please sing the canticle & its antiphon as indicated.
Cantors: God chose us in his Son
And made us his adopted children.
Side 1: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ
With every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.
Side 2: He chose us in him before the foundation of the world,
That we should be holy and blameless before him.
Side 1: He destined us in love to be his heirs through Jesus Christ, According to the purpose of his will,
Side 2: To the praise of his glorious grace
Which he freely bestows on us in the beloved.
Side 1: In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses,
According to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us.
Side 2: He has made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will,
According to his purpose which he set forth in Christ.
Side 1: His purpose he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time,
To unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
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: God chose us in his Son,
And made us his adopted children
Reading: Col I 9-11
We ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will, with all the wisdom & understanding that his spirit gives. Then you will be able to live as the Lord wants, and always do what pleases him. Your lives will be fruitful in all kinds of good works, & you will grow in your knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength which comes from his glorious might, so that you may be able to endure everything with patience.
After a few moments of silent reflection, we are invited to respond aloud to the reading – maybe with an insight, or just the repetition of a single word or phrase that is important for you, maybe relating the text or part of it to something that has happened during the day or recently.
Please stand to join in Bernadette Farrell’s setting of the Magnificat . (Christ our Light Tr 2)
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.
My spirit sings to God, my saving God.
Who on this day above all others favoured me
And raised me up, a light for all to see.
Through me great deeds will God make manifest,
And all the earth will come to call me blest.
Unbounded love & mercy sure will I proclaim,
For all who know & praise God’s holy name.
God’s mighty arm, protector of the just,
Will guard the weak & raise them from the dust.
But mighty kings will swiftly fall from thrones corrupt,
The strong brought low, the lowly lifted up.
Soon will the poor & hungry of the earth
Be richly blest, be given greater worth.
And Israel, as once foretold to Abraham,
Will live in peace throughout the promised land.
All glory be to God, Creator blest,
To Jesus Christ, God’s love made manifest,
And to the Holy Spirit, gentle comforter,
All glory be, both now & evermore.
Intercessions: different people to lead – ad lib
Look with mercy on our world as we work out policies & target needs, & misunderstand one another’s cultures & get carried away by the excesses & the taste of power …….. silence…….. You are our God,
All: living for ever & ever.
May our waking, working, eating, relaxing & sleeping become a pattern coloured & lit by your love; may our homes reflect it, our places of work be energised by it, & our relationships glow with it ……. silence ……. You are our God,
All: living for ever & ever.
To those who are losing heart, give your heavenly encouragement & patience; to the young & vulnerable, give your protection; to those who are ill or damaged, give healing & inner peace …… silence…….. You are our God,
All: living for ever & ever.
Knowing that physical death is not the end of life, but the beginning of a new dimension, we recall our loved ones who have died & commend them to your keeping – silence – You are our God,
All: living for ever & ever.
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:
Pause for people to add silently or aloud any intentions.
Leader begins the Our Father.
Leader: Eternal God & father, you create us by your power, you redeem us by your love: guide & strengthen us by your spirit, that we may give ourselves in love & service to you, to one another, to the Church & to the world. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever.
All: Amen.
All: On our heads & on our houses, the blessing of God;
In our coming & going, the Peace of God;
In our life & believing, the arms of God to welcome us & bring us home.
And may Almighty God bless us – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.