Post by Duke Jeremy of Gascony on Aug 11, 2009 1:13:12 GMT
The Gathering
Processional Hymn
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And also with you.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
All: We lift them to the Lord
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord.
All: It is just and right to give Him thanks and praise.
The confession
Priest: We gather here today to praise God Almighty for his creation and to give thanks for all that is given to us so freely, however at this time we also congregate in this house of God to ask His blessing upon the people of Ocia and their leaders who all suffer under sinful misconceptions and falsehood. Before we turn our thoughts and prayers to others; let us now bring our lives before the Lord that he might forgive us our sins:
All: Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden,
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts,
by the inspiration of Your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love You,
and worthily magnify Your Holy name,
through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
Priest: God so loved the world that he have his only Son Jesus Christ to save us from our sins, to be our advocate in Heaven, and to bring us to eternal life. Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, firmly resolved to keep God’s commandments and to live in love and peace with all.
All:[/] Almighty God, our Heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you
and against our neighbour
in thought and word and deed,
through negligence, through weakness,
through our own deliberate fault.
We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
who died for us,
forgive us all that is past
and grant that we may serve you in newness of life
to the glory of Your name.
Amen
The Absolution
Priest: Almighty God,
who forgives all who truly repent,
have mercy upon you,
pardon and deliver you from all your sins,
confirm and strengthen you in all goodness,
and keep you in life eternal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Liturgy of the Word
Reader: You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. For the LORD your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.[/quote]
This is the word of the Lord.
All: thanks be to God.
Priest: Let us now, before Almighty God, profess our faith.
All: We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of Heaven and earth,
of all that is seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father,
through Him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from Heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again,
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into Heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory,
to judge the living and the dead,
and his Kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and Son is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one Holy Catholic and apostolic church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
The peace
Priest:The Lord Jesus Christ taught us to always pursue peace, therefore let us offer to those around us a sign of that peace. The peace of the Lord be always with you.
All: And also with you.
The congregation offer a sign of peace to those around them
Sermon
In the name of Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. We come here today in the wake of a great change amongst those people whom we consider neighbours, not simply those who live in the houses on either side of us, but those who occupy foreign nations. For the love of God transcends all boundaries and envelops all peoples, and therefore so must ours and consequently I ask you to cast your minds to our brothers and sisters in those countries which surround our own. On this morning I ask you to particularly think of those souls who occupy Ocia, who even now suffer under confusion and malcontent. In the years which followed Christ’s ascension his disciples faced similar problems, but on a much larger scale. The state of Israel, as it was then, was a part of a Roman Empire which was more than a little hostile towards Christianity, and Judaism for that matter, and hence the disciples faced a seemingly insurmountable task. If they’d simply decided not to speak out against the evil which they saw in the world, which would have prevented them suffering persecution and harm, Christianity could have died out in a generation and the world we live in now would be a very different place.
However, in reality the disciples decided that it wasn’t enough to frown upon evil; they saw that change was achieved by speaking out against it and taking direct action. The result of this conviction was that the disciples went out of Israel into a world full of hostility and spoke the word of God onto a less than enthusiastic audience, but person by person, soul by soul, the faith spread. Years later the disciples had been superseded by thousands of individuals who had followed in their footsteps, and there was still much work to be done. For instance in pre-medieval France two brothers, now known as St Crispin and St Chrispinian, preached the gospel in the town of Soissons and were as a result tortured and burnt alive. It can seem at times that when we speak the word of God we speak it alone, however these two brothers revealed this to not be the case in a most spectacular fashion: God actively protected them. Through all their pain and suffering the brothers not only lived, they continued to sing God’s praise even as the flames rose around them and they still lived and still sang when only embers and ash were left around the stakes which held them. St Crispin and St Chrispinian weren’t alone in their experiences; millions of Christians have perished for speaking the truth in a world full of mistrust and hatred.
How, you might ask, does this apply to the current situation in Ocia? We have seen, and continue to see, that Ocia is a land which is not only built upon mistrust and anger, but also actively seeks to spread it to those who live nearby. Therefore we must ask ourselves “what are we to do in the face of such intentions?” In the short story I have just told Saints Crispin and Chrispinian have given us our answer: we must speak out against the wrong we see in the world and spread the word of truth to all around us, regardless of the response we are likely to receive. Amen.
The prayers
Priest: Let us pray:
Almighty God, we think at this time of the people of Ocia, may You be the light in their darkness and bring us all together in sharing your Eternal Kingdom. We pray also for their leader, Matt Kovac, who has caused so much anger and mistrust in those who encounter him, may he see the error of his ways and elect to follow the path of peace which you lay before him and all of us. We pray also for those who suffer in mind, body and spirit at this time, may they be healed by knowledge of your love and compassion, Lord.
Lord in Your mercy.
All: Hear our prayer.
Priest: As our saviour taught us, so we pray:
All: Our Father in Heaven,
hallowed be Your name,
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as in Heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation by deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.
Priest: Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
All: In the name of Christ.
You shall go out with joy,
and be led forth with peace,
and the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you,
there’ll be shouts of joy,
and the trees of the field shall clap, shall clap their hands.
And the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and we’ll all go out with joy.
Processional Hymn
Guide me, O thou great redeemer,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
Hold me with thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven
Feed me till I want no more;
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through:
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer;
Be thou still my strength and shield;
Be thou still my strength and shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell's destruction
Land me safe on Canaan's side:
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to thee;
I will ever give to thee.
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
Hold me with thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven
Feed me till I want no more;
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through:
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer;
Be thou still my strength and shield;
Be thou still my strength and shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell's destruction
Land me safe on Canaan's side:
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to thee;
I will ever give to thee.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And also with you.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
All: We lift them to the Lord
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord.
All: It is just and right to give Him thanks and praise.
The confession
Priest: We gather here today to praise God Almighty for his creation and to give thanks for all that is given to us so freely, however at this time we also congregate in this house of God to ask His blessing upon the people of Ocia and their leaders who all suffer under sinful misconceptions and falsehood. Before we turn our thoughts and prayers to others; let us now bring our lives before the Lord that he might forgive us our sins:
All: Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden,
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts,
by the inspiration of Your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love You,
and worthily magnify Your Holy name,
through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
Priest: God so loved the world that he have his only Son Jesus Christ to save us from our sins, to be our advocate in Heaven, and to bring us to eternal life. Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, firmly resolved to keep God’s commandments and to live in love and peace with all.
All:[/] Almighty God, our Heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you
and against our neighbour
in thought and word and deed,
through negligence, through weakness,
through our own deliberate fault.
We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
who died for us,
forgive us all that is past
and grant that we may serve you in newness of life
to the glory of Your name.
Amen
The Absolution
Priest: Almighty God,
who forgives all who truly repent,
have mercy upon you,
pardon and deliver you from all your sins,
confirm and strengthen you in all goodness,
and keep you in life eternal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.
The Gloria in Excelsis
Glory to God in the highest
and peace to His people on earth.
Lord God, Heavenly King,
Almighty God and Father,
we worship You, we give You thanks,
we praise you for Your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
You are seated at the right hand of the Father:
received our prayer.
For You alone are the Holy one,
You alone are the Lord,
You alone are the most high, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
and peace to His people on earth.
Lord God, Heavenly King,
Almighty God and Father,
we worship You, we give You thanks,
we praise you for Your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
You are seated at the right hand of the Father:
received our prayer.
For You alone are the Holy one,
You alone are the Lord,
You alone are the most high, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
The Liturgy of the Word
Reader: You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. For the LORD your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.[/quote]
This is the word of the Lord.
All: thanks be to God.
Colours of day dawn into the mind
The sun has come up, the night is behind
Go down in the city, into the street
And let's give the message to the people we meet
So light up the fire and let the flame burn
Open the door, let Jesus return
Take seeds of His Spirit, let the fruit grow
Tell the people of Jesus, let His love show
Go through the park, on into the town
The sun still shines on, it never goes down
The light of the world is risen again
The people of darkness are needing a friend
Open your eyes, look into the sky
The darkness has come, the sun came todie
The evening draws on, the sun disappears
But Jesus is living, His Spirit is near.
The sun has come up, the night is behind
Go down in the city, into the street
And let's give the message to the people we meet
So light up the fire and let the flame burn
Open the door, let Jesus return
Take seeds of His Spirit, let the fruit grow
Tell the people of Jesus, let His love show
Go through the park, on into the town
The sun still shines on, it never goes down
The light of the world is risen again
The people of darkness are needing a friend
Open your eyes, look into the sky
The darkness has come, the sun came todie
The evening draws on, the sun disappears
But Jesus is living, His Spirit is near.
Priest: Let us now, before Almighty God, profess our faith.
All: We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of Heaven and earth,
of all that is seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father,
through Him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from Heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again,
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into Heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory,
to judge the living and the dead,
and his Kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and Son is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one Holy Catholic and apostolic church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
The peace
Priest:The Lord Jesus Christ taught us to always pursue peace, therefore let us offer to those around us a sign of that peace. The peace of the Lord be always with you.
All: And also with you.
The congregation offer a sign of peace to those around them
Sermon
In the name of Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. We come here today in the wake of a great change amongst those people whom we consider neighbours, not simply those who live in the houses on either side of us, but those who occupy foreign nations. For the love of God transcends all boundaries and envelops all peoples, and therefore so must ours and consequently I ask you to cast your minds to our brothers and sisters in those countries which surround our own. On this morning I ask you to particularly think of those souls who occupy Ocia, who even now suffer under confusion and malcontent. In the years which followed Christ’s ascension his disciples faced similar problems, but on a much larger scale. The state of Israel, as it was then, was a part of a Roman Empire which was more than a little hostile towards Christianity, and Judaism for that matter, and hence the disciples faced a seemingly insurmountable task. If they’d simply decided not to speak out against the evil which they saw in the world, which would have prevented them suffering persecution and harm, Christianity could have died out in a generation and the world we live in now would be a very different place.
However, in reality the disciples decided that it wasn’t enough to frown upon evil; they saw that change was achieved by speaking out against it and taking direct action. The result of this conviction was that the disciples went out of Israel into a world full of hostility and spoke the word of God onto a less than enthusiastic audience, but person by person, soul by soul, the faith spread. Years later the disciples had been superseded by thousands of individuals who had followed in their footsteps, and there was still much work to be done. For instance in pre-medieval France two brothers, now known as St Crispin and St Chrispinian, preached the gospel in the town of Soissons and were as a result tortured and burnt alive. It can seem at times that when we speak the word of God we speak it alone, however these two brothers revealed this to not be the case in a most spectacular fashion: God actively protected them. Through all their pain and suffering the brothers not only lived, they continued to sing God’s praise even as the flames rose around them and they still lived and still sang when only embers and ash were left around the stakes which held them. St Crispin and St Chrispinian weren’t alone in their experiences; millions of Christians have perished for speaking the truth in a world full of mistrust and hatred.
How, you might ask, does this apply to the current situation in Ocia? We have seen, and continue to see, that Ocia is a land which is not only built upon mistrust and anger, but also actively seeks to spread it to those who live nearby. Therefore we must ask ourselves “what are we to do in the face of such intentions?” In the short story I have just told Saints Crispin and Chrispinian have given us our answer: we must speak out against the wrong we see in the world and spread the word of truth to all around us, regardless of the response we are likely to receive. Amen.
The prayers
Priest: Let us pray:
Almighty God, we think at this time of the people of Ocia, may You be the light in their darkness and bring us all together in sharing your Eternal Kingdom. We pray also for their leader, Matt Kovac, who has caused so much anger and mistrust in those who encounter him, may he see the error of his ways and elect to follow the path of peace which you lay before him and all of us. We pray also for those who suffer in mind, body and spirit at this time, may they be healed by knowledge of your love and compassion, Lord.
Lord in Your mercy.
All: Hear our prayer.
Priest: As our saviour taught us, so we pray:
All: Our Father in Heaven,
hallowed be Your name,
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
on earth as in Heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation by deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.
Priest: Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
All: In the name of Christ.
You shall go out with joy,
and be led forth with peace,
and the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you,
there’ll be shouts of joy,
and the trees of the field shall clap, shall clap their hands.
And the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and the trees of the field shall clap their hands,
and we’ll all go out with joy.
