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Morning Prayer Epiphany Season Thursday, 1 February 2024
Brigid, Abbess of Kildare, c.525 [Commemoration]
Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
Alland our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Your light springs up for the righteous
Alland all the peoples have seen your glory.
One or more of the following is said or sung:
this or another prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
king of the nations,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
your name is proclaimed in all the world.
As the Sun of Righteousness dawns in our hearts
anoint our lips with the seal of your Spirit
that we may witness to your gospel
and sing your praise in all the earth.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.
a suitable hymn, or Jubilate – A Song of Joy
1O be joyful in the Lord, all the earth; ♦
serve the Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
2Know that the Lord is God; ♦
it is he that has made us and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
3Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise; ♦
give thanks to him and bless his name.
4For the Lord is gracious; his steadfast love is everlasting, ♦
and his faithfulness endures from generation to generation.
Psalm 100
AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
This opening prayer may be said
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
AllAmen.
The Word of God Psalmody The appointed psalmody is said.
Psalm 99
1The Lord is king: let the peoples tremble; ♦
he is enthroned above the cherubim: let the earth shake.
2The Lord is great in Zion ♦
and high above all peoples.
3Let them praise your name, which is great and awesome; ♦
the Lord our God is holy.
4Mighty king, who loves justice,
you have established equity; ♦
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5Exalt the Lord our God; ♦
bow down before his footstool, for he is holy.
6Moses and Aaron among his priests
and Samuel among those who call upon his name, ♦
they called upon the Lord and he answered them.
7He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud; ♦
they kept his testimonies and the law that he gave them.
8You answered them, O Lord our God; ♦
you were a God who forgave them
and pardoned them for their offences.
9Exalt the Lord our God
and worship him upon his holy hill, ♦
for the Lord our God is holy.
Lord God, mighty king,
you love justice and establish equity;
may we love justice more than gain
and mercy more than power;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 110
Refrain:The Lord is king and has put on glorious apparel.
1The Lord said to my lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, ♦
until I make your enemies your footstool.’
2May the Lord stretch forth the sceptre of your power; ♦
rule from Zion in the midst of your enemies.
3‘Noble are you on this day of your birth; ♦
on the holy mountain, from the womb of the dawn
the dew of your new birth is upon you.’ R
4The Lord has sworn and will not retract: ♦
‘You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.’
5The king at your right hand, O Lord, ♦
shall smite down kings in the day of his wrath. R
6In all his majesty, he shall judge among the nations, ♦
smiting heads over all the wide earth.
7He shall drink from the brook beside the way; ♦
therefore shall he lift high his head.
Refrain:The Lord is king and has put on glorious apparel.
Lord Jesus, divine Son and eternal priest,
inspire us with the confidence of your final conquest of evil,
and grant that daily on our way
we may drink of the brook of your eternal life
and so find courage against all adversities;
for your mercy’s sake.
Each psalm or group of psalms may end with
AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
If there are two Scripture readings, the first may be read here, or both may be read after the canticle.
Genesis 21.1-21
The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Now Sarah said, ‘God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.’ And she said, ‘Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.’
The child grew, and was weaned; and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac. So she said to Abraham, ‘Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac.’ The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son. But God said to Abraham, ‘Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named after you. As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring.’ So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the bushes. Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot; for she said, ‘Do not let me look on the death of the child.’ And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept. And God heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, and said to her, ‘What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid; for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Come, lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make a great nation of him.’ Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, and filled the skin with water, and gave the boy a drink.
God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow. He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Canticle
A Song of the New Jerusalem, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 31 (page 582) or number 36 (page 587), may be said
Refrain:
AllAbove you the Holy One arises,
and above you God’s glory appears.
1Arise, shine out, for your light has come, ♦
the glory of the Lord is rising upon you.
2Though night still covers the earth, ♦
and darkness the peoples;
3Above you the Holy One arises, ♦
and above you God’s glory appears.
4The nations will come to your light, ♦
and kings to your dawning brightness.
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5Your gates will lie open continually, ♦
shut neither by day nor by night.
6The sound of violence shall be heard no longer in your land, ♦
or ruin and devastation within your borders.
7You will call your walls, Salvation, ♦
and your gates, Praise.
8No more will the sun give you daylight, ♦
nor moonlight shine upon you;
9But the Lord will be your everlasting light, ♦
your God will be your splendour.
10For you shall be called the city of God, ♦
the dwelling of the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 60.1-3, 11a, 18, 19, 14b
AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
AllAbove you the Holy One arises,
and above you God’s glory appears.
Scripture Reading
One or more readings appointed for the day are read.
The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.
Matthew 27.57-end
When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. So Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock. He then rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.
The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, ‘Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, “After three days I will rise again.” Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day; otherwise his disciples may go and steal him away, and tell the people, “He has been raised from the dead”, and the last deception would be worse than the first.’ Pilate said to them, ‘You have a guard of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.’ So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.
A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;
Alllet the whole earth tremble before him.
Tell it out among the nations that the Lord is King.
AllO worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
Tell out his salvation from day to day.
AllLet the whole earth tremble before him.
Declare his glory among the nations
and his wonders among all peoples.
AllO worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;
let the whole earth tremble before him.
from Psalm 96
Gospel Canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah) is normally said, or A Song of the Blessed (page 606) may be said
Refrain:
AllThis is the Christ, the Chosen of God,
the one who will bring healing to the nations.
1Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, ♦
who has come to his people and set them free.
2He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour, ♦
born of the house of his servant David.
3Through his holy prophets God promised of old ♦
to save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us,
4To show mercy to our ancestors, ♦
and to remember his holy covenant.
5This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham: ♦
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6Free to worship him without fear, ♦
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
7And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, ♦
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8To give his people knowledge of salvation ♦
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9In the tender compassion of our God ♦
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, ♦
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Luke 1.68-79
AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.
Refrain:
AllThis is the Christ, the Chosen of God,
the one who will bring healing to the nations.
Prayers
Intercessions are offered
¶ for the day and its tasks
¶ for the world and its needs
¶ for the Church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 364–365
¶ The unity of the Church
¶ The peace of the world
¶ The healing of the sick
¶ The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
¶ All who travel
A form of prayer found on page 379 may be used.
These responses may be used
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer
(or)
Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.
Silence may be kept.
The Collect of the day is said
God our creator,
who in the beginning
commanded the light to shine out of darkness:
we pray that the light of the glorious gospel of Christ
may dispel the darkness of ignorance and unbelief,
shine into the hearts of all your people,
and reveal the knowledge of your glory
in the face of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
AllAmen.
The Lord’s Prayer is said
Believing the promises of God,
as our Saviour taught us, so we pray
AllOur 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
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
(or)
Believing the promises of God,
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us
AllOur 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.
The Conclusion
May Christ, who sends us to the nations,
give us the power of his Spirit.
AllAmen.
Let us bless the Lord.
AllThanks be to God.
