From steve.benner at oremus.org Sun Feb 1 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sun, 1 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 2 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090201170000.34C13313C83@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Monday, February 2, 2009 The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, almighty God, for your Son Jesus Christ, the light to lighten the nations, who is one with you from all eternity. He searches the hearts of all your people and brings to light the image of your splendor. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 84 How dear to me is your dwelling, O Lord of hosts!* My soul has a desire and longing for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God. The sparrow has found her a house and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young;* by the side of your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God. Happy are they who dwell in your house!* they will always be praising you. Happy are the people whose strength is in you!* whose hearts are set on the pilgrims' way. Those who go through the desolate valley will find it a place of springs,* for the early rains have covered it with pools of water. They will climb from height to height,* and the God of gods will reveal himself in Zion. Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;* hearken, O God of Jacob. Behold our defender, O God;* and look upon the face of your anointed. For one day in your courts is better than a thousand in my own room,* and to stand at the threshold of the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is both sun and shield;* he will give grace and glory; No good thing will the Lord withhold* from those who walk with integrity. O Lord of hosts,* happy are they who put their trust in you! A Song of the New Jerusalem (Isaiah 60.1-3,11a,18,19,14b Arise, shine out, for your light has come, the glory of the Lord is rising upon you. Though night still covers the earth, and darkness the peoples; Above you the Holy One arises, and above you God's glory appears. The nations will come to your light, and kings to your dawning brightness. Your gates will lie open continually, shut neither by day nor by night. The sound of violence shall be heard no longer in your land, or ruin and devastation within your borders. You will call your walls, Salvation, and your gates, Praise. No more will the sun give you daylight, nor moonlight shine upon you; But the Lord will be your everlasting light, your God will be your splendour. For you shall be called the city of God, the dwelling of the Holy One of Israel. Psalm 146 Alleluia! Praise the Lord, O my soul!* I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth,* for there is no help in them. When they breathe their last, they return to earth,* and in that day their thoughts perish. Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!* whose hope is in the Lord their God; Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them;* who keeps his promise for ever; Who gives justice to those who are oppressed,* and food to those who hunger. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind;* the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous; the Lord cares for the stranger;* he sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way of the wicked. The Lord shall reign for ever,* your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Alleluia! FIRST READING [1 Samuel 1:21-end]: The man Elkanah and all his household went up to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, ?As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may appear in the presence of the Lord, and remain there for ever; I will offer him as a nazirite for all time.? Her husband Elkanah said to her, ?Do what seems best to you, wait until you have weaned him; only?may the Lord establish his word.? So the woman remained and nursed her son, until she weaned him. When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine. She brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was young. Then they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. And she said, ?Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed; and the Lord has granted me the petition that I made to him. Therefore I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord.? She left him there for the Lord. HYMN Words: (c) Timothy Dudley-Smith Tune: Pastor pastorum http://www.oremus.org/hymnal/f/f012.html Hit "Back" in your browser to return to Oremus. Faithful vigil ended, watching, waiting cease; Master, grant your servant his discharge in peace. All the Spirit promised, all the Father willed, now these eyes behold it perfectly fulfilled. This your great deliverance sets your people free; Christ their light uplifted all the nations see. Christ, your people's glory! Watching, doubting cease: grant to us your servants our discharge in peace. SECOND READING [Luke 2:22-40]: When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, 'Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord'), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, 'a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.' Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, 'Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.' And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, 'This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed and a sword will pierce your own soul too.' There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favour of God was upon him. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Let us pray to the Father through Christ our light and life. Almighty Father, your Christ is acclaimed as the glory of Israel look in mercy on your Church, sharing its light ... Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Your Christ in the temple brings judgement on the world look in mercy on the nations who long for his justice ... Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Your Christ who was rich for our sake became poor look in mercy on all who are in need and those who suffer with him ... Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Your Christ is the one in whom faithful servants find their peace look in mercy on the whole Church which glories in your salvation ... Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Your Christ is the one destined for rejection look in mercy on us as we turn towards his passion. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Almighty Father, you kept faith with Simeon and Anna, and showed them the infant King. Give us grace to trust your promises and patience to wait for their fulfilment; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, for you have sent us your salvation. Inspire us by your Holy Spirit to see with our own eyes him who is the glory of Israel, and the light for all nations, your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Open our imaginations to new dimensions of your love, and heal us of all that severs us from you and one another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. Hymn (c) 1984 by Hope Publishing Co., Carol Stream, IL 60188. All rights reserved. Used by permission. For permission to reproduce this text in all territories except the UK, Europe & Africa, contact: Hope Publishing Company, www.hopepublishing.com For UK, Europe & Africa: contact: Bishop Timothy Dudley-Smith, 9 Ashlands, Ford, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 6DY England The opening prayer of thanksgiving is adapted by Stephen Benner using phrases from a preface in _Common Worship: Services and Prayers for the Church of England_, material from which is included in this service is copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2000. The intercession is from material copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. Counting forward from December 25 as Day One, we find that Day Forty is February 2. A Jewish woman is in semi-seclusion for 40 days after giving birth to a son, and accordingly it is on February 2 that we celebrate the coming of Mary and Joseph with the infant Jesus to the Temple at Jerusalem to offer sacrifice, both on behalf of Mary and on behalf of Jesus as a first-born male. As they did so, they were greeted by the aged Simeon. In a Sunday-School pageant, I once saw, the narrator said, "And now Simeon bursts into a spontaneous song of praise, assisted by the Temple Choir." His song, called the NUNC DIMITTIS, has always had a prominent role in Christian worship. Because an old reading for this festival contains the line (Zephaniah 1:12), "I will search Jerusalem with candles," the day is also known as Candlemas, and sometimes observed with a candle-lit procession. On the other hand, Groundhog Day ("If the groundhog (or woodchuck, a kind of marmot, which burrows and hibernates) sees his shadow on 2 February, there will be six more weeks of winter.") is strictly a secular holiday, confined, as far as I know, to the United States. [James Kiefer, abridged] From steve.benner at oremus.org Mon Feb 2 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Mon, 2 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 3 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090202170000.C1789313C74@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Tuesday, February 3, 2009 Anskar, Archbishop of Hamburg, Missionary in Denmark and Sweden, 865 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God of all the prophets, you knew us and chose us before you formed us in the womb. You fill us with faith that speaks your word, hope that does not disappoint, and love that bears all things for your sake, until that day when we shall know you fully, even as we are known by you. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 71 In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge;* let me never be ashamed. In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free;* incline your ear to me and save me. Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe;* you are my crag and my stronghold. Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,* from the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor. For you are my hope, O Lord God,* my confidence since I was young. I have been sustained by you ever since I was born; from my mother's womb you have been my strength;* my praise shall be always of you. I have become a portent to many;* but you are my refuge and my strength. Let my mouth be full of your praise* and your glory all the day long. Do not cast me off in my old age;* forsake me not when my strength fails. For my enemies are talking against me,* and those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together. They say, 'God has forsaken him; go after him and seize him;* because there is none who will save.' O God, be not far from me;* come quickly to help me, O my God. Let those who set themselves against me be put to shame and be disgraced;* let those who seek to do me evil be covered with scorn and reproach. But I shall always wait in patience,* and shall praise you more and more. My mouth shall recount your mighty acts and saving deeds all day long;* though I cannot know the number of them. I will begin with the mighty works of the Lord God;* I will recall your righteousness, yours alone. O God, you have taught me since I was young,* and to this day I tell of your wonderful works. And now that I am old and greyheaded, O God, do not forsake me,* till I make known your strength to this generation and your power to all who are to come. Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens;* you have done great things; who is like you, O God? You have showed me great troubles and adversities,* but you will restore my life and bring me up again from the deep places of the earth. You strengthen me more and more;* you enfold and comfort me, Therefore I will praise you upon the lyre for your faithfulness, O my God;* I will sing to you with the harp, O Holy One of Israel. My lips will sing with joy when I play to you,* and so will my soul, which you have redeemed. My tongue will proclaim your righteousness all day long,* for they are ashamed and disgraced who sought to do me harm. A Song of God(s Chosen One (Isaiah 11.1,2,3b4a,6,9) There shall come forth a shoot from the stock of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear, But with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid. The calf, the lion and the fatling together, with a little child to lead them. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Psalm 147:1-12 Alleluia! How good it is to sing praises to our God!* how pleasant it is to honour him with praise! The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;* he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted* and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars* and calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and mighty in power;* there is no limit to his wisdom. The Lord lifts up the lowly,* but casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;* make music to our God upon the harp. He covers the heavens with clouds* and prepares rain for the earth; He makes grass to grow upon the mountains* and green plants to serve us all. He provides food for flocks and herds* and for the young ravens when they cry. He is not impressed by the might of a horse,* he has no pleasure in human strength; But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him,* in those who await his gracious favour. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Proverbs 21:21-end]: Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness ???will find life and honour. One wise person went up against a city of warriors ???and brought down the stronghold in which they trusted. To watch over mouth and tongue ???is to keep out of trouble. The proud, haughty person, named ?Scoffer?, ???acts with arrogant pride. The craving of the lazy person is?fatal, ???for lazy hands refuse to labour. All day long the wicked covet, ???but the righteous give and do not hold back. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination; ???how much more when brought with evil intent. A false witness will perish, ???but a good listener will testify successfully. The wicked put on a bold face, ???but the upright give thought to their ways. No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel, ???can avail against the Lord. The horse is made ready for the day of battle, ???but the victory belongs to the?Lord. HYMN Words: Kirden den er et gammelt hus by N. F. S. Grundtvig (1783-1872) translated by Alan Gaunt (born 1935) from a literal translation by Enid Luff. English translation ? 1998 Stainer & Bell Ltd. Used with permission. Meter: 88 88 88 Ancient and sure, the Church will stand Even though towers are falling; Towers come crashing to the ground, Bells go on pealing and calling: Hear, young and old in your distress, Hear, souls weighed down with weariness, Yearning for rest and salvation. Houses we build do not contain God in his holy perfection; Earth's holiest place will not retain More than its palest reflection. And yet God builds a dwelling place, Wondrously raised by heaven's grace Out of this earth's dust and ashes. We are God's house and church today, Living stones, chosen, well-founded; Under the cross, baptised, we stay Built up in faith, firmly grounded. Were we, on earth, no more than two, God would still build, and still renew His life and dwelling place in us. Meeting our king here face to face, Finding, with Peter, 'God with us,' We would not change the humblest place, Not for the world and its treasures. God keeps his word and, ever near Within our hearts, is speaking here, Present as Lord of creation. Houses called churches, built on earth, Honour our Lord, who embraces Children like us who, from our birth, Love to come home to these places. Here such delightful things are heard, He seals his covenant with his word, Gives us the Kingdom of Heaven. Here, at the font, our lives were claimed, Here at his table he feeds us, Here we have heard his word proclaimed, Here his love's mystery leads us. Present today as yesterday, God's Son reminds us he will stay Ever our Christ and Redeemer. God grant, wherever through the year, Summoned by bells, we are praying, That, in their pealing, people hear This word that Jesus is saying: 'The world does not see me, but you, You see that all I say comes true: My peace is with you for ever.' SECOND READING [Colossians 1:18-2:5]: Jesus Christ is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross. And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him? provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven. I, Paul, became a servant of this gospel. I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ?s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. I became its servant according to God?s commission that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is he whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil and struggle with all the energy that he powerfully inspires within me. For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you, and for those in Laodicea, and for all who have not seen me face to face. I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God?s mystery, that is, Christ himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I am saying this so that no one may deceive you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, and I rejoice to see your morale and the firmness of your faith in Christ. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Ever-present Spirit of God, as we abide with you and you with us, we cry out for our brothers and sisters: Healing Spirit, hear our prayer. For all who suffer want, loneliness or depression: Healing Spirit, hear our prayer. For racial, cultural and national groups who suffer prejudice, oppressive leaders or economic exploitation. Healing Spirit, hear our prayer. For the Church in those places where it suffers blindness, controversy, disorientation, persecution or change. Healing Spirit, hear our prayer. For those we have to tried to love and serve today. Healing Spirit, hear our prayer. Faithful God, living Saviour, in youth and old age, in weakness and adversity, from the womb to the grave, may we know your protection and proclaim your great salvation in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, you sent your servant Anskar as an apostle to the people of Scandinavia, and enabled him to lay a firm foundation for their conversion, though he did not see the results of his labors: Keep your Church from discouragement in the day of small things, knowing than when you have begun a good work you will bring it to a faithful conclusion; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Open our imaginations to new dimensions of your love, and heal us of all that severs us from you and one another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is adapted from a prayer reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The second collect is from _The Proper for the Lesser Feasts and Fasts_, 3rd edition, (c) 1980 The Church Pension Fund. Anskar (in Latin, Ansgarius) was a monk of Saxon family, born in 801 (the year after the crowning of Charlemagne). In 826, when King Harald of Denmark asked Charlemagne's successors for missionaries, Anskar led a group to Denmark, and a few years later to Sweden. Because of unsettled political conditions, his work ran into difficulties, and Anskar withdrew into Germany, where he served as first Archbishop of Hamburg. Later, however, he helped to consecrate Gotbert, the first bishop of Sweden. The Church of Sweden honors him as its apostle, and he serves as symbol of the historic friendship and present-day connection between the Anglican Churches and the Church of Sweden. [James Kiefer] From steve.benner at oremus.org Tue Feb 3 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Tue, 3 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 4 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090203170001.19102313C69@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Wednesday, February 4, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God of all the prophets, you knew us and chose us before you formed us in the womb. You fill us with faith that speaks your word, hope that does not disappoint, and love that bears all things for your sake, until that day when we shall know you fully, even as we are known by you. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 72 Give the king your justice, O God,* and your righteousness to the king's son; That he may rule your people righteously* and the poor with justice; That the mountains may bring prosperity to the people,* and the little hills bring righteousness. He shall defend the needy among the people;* he shall rescue the poor and crush the oppressor. He shall live as long as the sun and moon endure,* from one generation to another. He shall come down like rain upon the mown field,* like showers that water the earth. In his time shall the righteous flourish;* there shall be abundance of peace till the moon shall be no more. He shall rule from sea to sea,* and from the River to the ends of the earth. His foes shall bow down before him,* and his enemies lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall pay tribute,* and the kings of Arabia and Saba offer gifts. All kings shall bow down before him,* and all the nations do him service. For he shall deliver the poor who cries out in distress,* and the oppressed who has no helper. He shall have pity on the lowly and poor;* he shall preserve the lives of the needy. He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence,* and dear shall their blood be in his sight. Long may he live, and may there be given to him gold from Arabia;* may prayer be made for him always, and may they bless him all the day long. May there be abundance of grain on the earth, growing thick even on the hilltops;* may its fruit flourish like Lebanon, and its grain like grass upon the earth. May his name remain for ever and be established as long as the sun endures;* may all the nations bless themselves in him and call him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,* who alone does wondrous deeds! And blessed be his glorious name for ever!* and may all the earth be filled with his glory. Amen. Amen. A Song of the Bride (Isaiah 61.10,11; 62.13) I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall exult in my God; Who has clothed me with the garments of salvation, and has covered me with the cloak of integrity, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the earth puts forth her blossom, and as seeds in the garden spring up, So shall God make righteousness and praise blossom before all the nations. For Zion(s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem(s sake I will not rest, Until her deliverance shines out like the dawn, and her salvation as a burning torch. The nations shall see your deliverance, and all rulers shall see your glory; Then you shall be called by a new name which the mouth of God will give. You shall be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. Psalm 147:13-end Alleluia! Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem;* praise your God, O Zion; For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;* he has blessed your children within you. He has established peace on your borders;* he satisfies you with the finest wheat. He sends out his command to the earth,* and his word runs very swiftly. He gives snow like wool;* he scatters hoarfrost like ashes. He scatters his hail like bread crumbs;* who can stand against his cold? He sends forth his word and melts them;* he blows with his wind and the waters flow. He declares his word to Jacob,* his statutes and his judgements to Israel. He has not done so to any other nation;* to them he has not revealed his judgements. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Proverbs 22:1-6, 17-25]: A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, ???and favour is better than silver or?gold. The rich and the poor have this in common: ???the Lord is the maker of them?all. The clever see danger and hide; ???but the simple go on, and suffer for it. The reward for humility and fear of the Lord ???is riches and honour and life. Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse; ???the cautious will keep far from them. Train children in the right way, ???and when old, they will not stray. ???The words of the wise: Incline your ear and hear my words, ???and apply your mind to my teaching; for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, ???if all of them are ready on your?lips. So that your trust may be in the?Lord, ???I have made them known to you today?yes, to you. Have I not written for you thirty sayings ???of admonition and knowledge, to show you what is right and true, ???so that you may give a true answer to those who sent?you? Do not rob the poor because they are poor, ???or crush the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord pleads their cause ???and despoils of life those who despoil them. Make no friends with those given to anger, ???and do not associate with hotheads, or you may learn their ways ???and entangle yourself in a snare. HYMN Words: Ralph Wardlaw (1779-1853) Tune: L?beck, Song 13 Christ, of all my hopes the ground, Christ, the spring of all my joy, Still in Thee may I be found, Still for Thee my powers employ. Let Thy love my heart inflame, Keep Thy fear before my sight, Be Thy praise my highest aim, Be Thy smile my chief delight. Fountain of o'erflowing grace, Freely from Thy fulness give; Till I close my earthly race, May I prove it 'Christ to live'. Firmly trusting in Thy blood, Nothing shall my heart confound; Safely I shall pass the flood, Safely reach Immanuel's ground. Thus, O thus, an entrance give To the land of cloudless sky; Having known it 'Christ to live', Let me know it 'gain to die'. SECOND READING [Colossians 2:6-19]: As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it. Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths. These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. Do not let anyone disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels, dwelling on visions, puffed up without cause by a human way of thinking, and not holding fast to the head, from whom the whole body, nourished and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Bountiful God, you give us every good gift; hear us as we offer our prayers to you. We pray for our family and friends and for all who are dear to us, that in following you and rejoicing in your mercy, they may share in your joy for ever. Bountiful God, hear our prayer. We pray for those who are worn by their work, for older persons and for children, that they may know you are the strength of the weak and the refuge of the distressed. Bountiful God, hear our prayer. We pray for all who follow Christ, that they may grow in their sense of discipleship and calling to proclaim the Good News to others. Bountiful God, hear our prayer. We pray for all in the medical professions, that they may work wisely to promote health, knowing that you are source of all healing. Bountiful God, hear our prayer. We pray for all who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness and for all who are oppressed, that they may gain the true liberation which comes from you alone. Bountiful God, hear our prayer. Your kingdom come, O Lord, with deliverance for the needy, with peace for the righteous, with overflowing blessing for all nations, with glory, honour and praise for the only Saviour, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Open our imaginations to new dimensions of your love, and heal us of all that severs us from you and one another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and first collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is by Stephen Benner. From steve.benner at oremus.org Thu Feb 5 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 6 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090205170000.6345E313C5A@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Friday, February 6, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God of all the prophets, you knew us and chose us before you formed us in the womb. You fill us with faith that speaks your word, hope that does not disappoint, and love that bears all things for your sake, until that day when we shall know you fully, even as we are known by you. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 75 We give you thanks, O God, we give you thanks,* calling upon your name and declaring all your wonderful deeds. 'I will appoint a time,' says God;* 'I will judge with equity. 'Though the earth and all its inhabitants are quaking,* I will make its pillars fast. 'I will say to the boasters, "Boast no more",* and to the wicked, "Do not toss your horns; '"Do not toss your horns so high,* nor speak with a proud neck."' For judgement is neither from the east nor from the west,* nor yet from the wilderness or the mountains. It is God who judges;* he puts down one and lifts up another. For in the Lord's hand there is a cup, full of spiced and foaming wine, which he pours out,* and all the wicked of the earth shall drink and drain the dregs. But I will rejoice for ever;* I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. He shall break off all the horns of the wicked;* but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted. Psalm 76 In Judah is God known;* his name is great in Israel. At Salem is his tabernacle,* and his dwelling is in Zion. There he broke the flashing arrows,* the shield, the sword and the weapons of battle. How glorious you are!* more splendid than the everlasting mountains! The strong of heart have been despoiled; they sink into sleep;* none of the warriors can lift a hand. At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,* both horse and rider lie stunned. What terror you inspire!* who can stand before you when you are angry? >From heaven you pronounced judgement;* the earth was afraid and was still; When God rose up to judgement* and to save all the oppressed of the earth. Truly, wrathful Edom will give you thanks,* and the remnant of Hamath will keep your feasts. Make a vow to the Lord your God and keep it;* let all around him bring gifts to him who is worthy to be feared. He breaks the spirit of princes,* and strikes terror in the kings of the earth. A Song of the Word of the Lord (Isaiah 55.611) Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; Let the wicked abandon their ways, and the unrighteous their thoughts; Return to the Lord, who will have mercy; to our God, who will richly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,( says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow come down from above, and return not again but water the earth, Bringing forth life and giving growth, seed for sowing and bread to eat, So is my word that goes forth from my mouth; it will not return to me fruitless, But it will accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the task I gave it.( Psalm 149 Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song;* sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful. Let Israel rejoice in his maker;* let the children of Zion be joyful in their king. Let them praise his name in the dance;* let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people* and adorns the poor with victory. Let the faithful rejoice in triumph;* let them be joyful on their beds. Let the praises of God be in their throat* and a twoedged sword in their hand; To wreak vengeance on the nations* and punishment on the peoples; To bind their kings in chains* and their nobles with links of iron; To inflict on them the judgement decreed;* this is glory for all his faithful people. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Proverbs 24:23-end]: These also are sayings of the?wise: Partiality in judging is not good. Whoever says to the wicked, ?You are innocent?, ???will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations; but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, ???and a good blessing will come upon them. One who gives an honest answer ???gives a kiss on the lips. Prepare your work outside, ???get everything ready for you in the field; ???and after that build your house. Do not be a witness against your neighbour without cause, ???and do not deceive with your lips. Do not say, ?I will do to others as they have done to me; ???I will pay them back for what they have done.? I passed by the field of one who was lazy, ???by the vineyard of a stupid person; and see, it was all overgrown with thorns; ???the ground was covered with nettles, ???and its stone wall was broken down. Then I saw and considered it; ???I looked and received instruction. A little sleep, a little slumber, ???a little folding of the hands to?rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, ???and want, like an armed warrior. HYMN Words: Mary Dagworthy James (1810-1883) Tune: Constancy All for Jesus! all for Jesus! All my being's ransomed pow'rs: All my thoughts and words and doings, all my days and all my hours. All for Jesus, all for Jesus! All my days and all my hours; all for Jesus, all for Jesus! All my days and all my hours. Let my hands perform His bidding, let my feet run in His ways. Let my eyes see Jesus only, let my lips speak forth His praise. All for Jesus, all for Jesus! Let my lips speak forth His praise; all for Jesus, all for Jesus! Let my lips speak forth His praise. Since my eyes were fixed on Jesus, I've lost sight of all beside, so enchained my spirit's vision, looking at the Crucified. All for Jesus, all for Jesus! Looking at the Crucified; all for Jesus, all for Jesus! Looking at the Crucified. O what wonder! How amazing! Jesus, glorious King of kings, wants to call me His beloved, lets me rest beneath His wings. All for Jesus, all for Jesus! Resting now beneath His wings; all for Jesus, all for Jesus! Resting now beneath His wings. SECOND READING [Colossians 3:12-17]: As God?s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Beginning and End of all things, we bless you for the present that is ever yielding to your new heaven and new earth. For all the means of grace, we praise you, O Lord. For every prompting of your Spirit we praise you, O Lord. We yield our cares to your unceasing mercy: Attend the sick and the suffering, In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Touch the dying: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Claim the newborn: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Shelter the homeless: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Sing in the fearful: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Chasten the arrogant and powerful: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Lift up the lowly: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Center the Church: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Grant peace to Jerusalem and every people: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Shape our lives by the mystery of Christ crucified, risen and interceding for us: In your mercy, Lord, hear us. Loving God, our Father, you gave your Son Jesus to be knitted and fastened to our souls by good will and a great desire for him: Grant us that Spirit which opens the eyes of our mind to that spiritual knowledge of you. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Open our imaginations to new dimensions of your love, and heal us of all that severs us from you and one another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The collect is by Stephen Benner, 2003, based on a passage from The Scale of Perfection by Walter Hilton, 14th century. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. From steve.benner at oremus.org Fri Feb 6 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Fri, 6 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 7 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090206170001.19BBA313C41@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Saturday, February 7, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God of all the prophets, you knew us and chose us before you formed us in the womb. You fill us with faith that speaks your word, hope that does not disappoint, and love that bears all things for your sake, until that day when we shall know you fully, even as we are known by you. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 19 The heavens declare the glory of God,* and the firmament shows his handiwork. One day tells its tale to another,* and one night imparts knowledge to another. Although they have no words or language,* and their voices are not heard, Their sound has gone out into all lands,* and their message to the ends of the world. In the deep has he set a pavilion for the sun;* it comes forth like a bridegroom out of his chamber; it rejoices like a champion to run its course. It goes forth from the uttermost edge of the heavens and runs about to the end of it again;* nothing is hidden from its burning heat. The law of the Lord is perfect and revives the soul;* the testimony of the Lord is sure and gives wisdom to the innocent. The statutes of the Lord are just and rejoice the heart;* the commandment of the Lord is clear and gives light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean and endures for ever;* the judgements of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, more than much fine gold,* sweeter far than honey, than honey in the comb. By them also is your servant enlightened,* and in keeping them there is great reward. Who can tell how often he offends?* Cleanse me from my secret faults. Above all, keep your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not get dominion over me;* then shall I be whole and sound, and innocent of a great offence. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight,* O Lord, my strength and my redeemer. Psalm 67 May God be merciful to us and bless us,* show us the light of his countenance and come to us. Let your ways be known upon earth,* your saving health among all nations. Let the peoples praise you, O God;* let all the peoples praise you. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,* for you judge the peoples with equity and guide all the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise you, O God;* let all the peoples praise you. The earth has brought forth her increase;* may God, our own God, give us his blessing. May God give us his blessing,* and may all the ends of the earth stand in awe of him. A Song of the Lord(s Gracious Deeds (Isaiah 63.13a,79) Who is this that comes from Edom, coming from Bozrah, his garments stained crimson? Who is this in glorious apparel, marching in the greatness of his strength? It is I, who announce that right has won the day, it is I,( says the Lord, for I am mighty to save.( Why are your robes all red, O Lord, and your garments like theirs who tread the winepress? I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with me.( I will recount the gracious deeds of the Lord, the praises of the Most High; All that God has done for us in his mercy, by his many acts of love. For God said, Surely, they are my people, my children who will not deal falsely,( and he became their Saviour in all their distress. So God redeemed them by his love and pity; he lifted them up and carried them through all the days of old. Psalm 150 Alleluia! Praise God in his holy temple;* praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts;* praise him for his excellent greatness. Praise him with the blast of the ram'shorn;* praise him with lyre and harp. Praise him with timbrel and dance;* praise him with strings and pipe. Praise him with resounding cymbals;* praise him with loudclanging cymbals. Let everything that has breath* praise the Lord. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Proverbs 25:11-15, 17-22]: A word fitly spoken ???is like apples of gold in a setting of silver. Like a gold ring or an ornament of?gold ???is a wise rebuke to a listening ear. Like the cold of snow in the time of?harvest ???are faithful messengers to those who send them; ???they refresh the spirit of their masters. Like clouds and wind without rain ???is one who boasts of a gift never given. With patience a ruler may be persuaded, ???and a soft tongue can break bones. Let your foot be seldom in your neighbour?s house, ???otherwise the neighbour will become weary of you and hate you. Like a war club, a sword, or a sharp arrow ???is one who bears false witness against a neighbour. Like a bad tooth or a lame foot ???is trust in a faithless person in time of trouble. Like vinegar on a wound ???is one who sings songs to a heavy heart. Like a moth in clothing or a worm in wood, ???sorrow gnaws at the human heart. If your enemies are hungry, give them bread to eat; ???and if they are thirsty, give them water to drink; for you will heap coals of fire on their heads, ???and the Lord will reward you. HYMN Words: Thomas Ken (1637-1711) Tune: Morning Hymn, Tallis? Canon, Devonshire, Deus tuorum militum, Old 100th Awake, my soul, and with the sun thy daily stage of duty run; shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise to pay thy morning sacrifice. Redeem thy mis-spent time that's past, and live this day as if thy last; improve thy talent with due care; for the great day thyself prepare. Let all thy converse be sincere, thy conscience as the noon-day clear; think how all-seeing God thy ways and all thy secret thoughts surveys. By influence of the light divine let thine own light to others shine; reflect all heaven's propitious rays in ardent love and cheerful praise. Glory to thee, who safe has kept and hath refreshed me whilst I slept; grant, Lord, when I from death shall wake, I may of endless light partake. Wake, and lift up thyself, my heart, and with the angels bear thy part, who all night long unwearied sing high praise to the eternal King. Awake, awake, ye heavenly choir, may your devotion me inspire, that I like you my age may spend, like you may on my God attend. Lord, I my vows to thee renew; disperse my sins as morning dew, grant my first springs of thought and will, and with thyself my spirit fill. Direct, control, suggest this day all I design, or do, or say; that all my powers, with all their might, in thy sole glory may unite. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow, praise him, all creatures here below, praise him above, ye heavenly host, praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. SECOND READING [Colossians 3:18-4:6]: Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is your acceptable duty in the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, or they may lose heart. Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only while being watched and in order to please them, but wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord. Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for whatever wrong has been done, and there is no partiality. Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, for you know that you also have a Master in heaven. Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. At the same time pray for us as well that God will open to us a door for the word, that we may declare the mystery of Christ, for which I am in prison, so that I may reveal it clearly, as I should. Conduct yourselves wisely towards outsiders, making the most of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: God of all time, we bless you for the gift of this day and for our hope in Christ Jesus. In the midst of all that demands our attention, free us to love you with all our hearts and to love the world with your mercy and justice. Let our love be genuine: Kyrie eleison Let our affections be tempered with holiness: Kyrie eleison Let our desires be shaped by the vision of a new heaven and a new earth: Kyrie eleison Let our actions reflect the balance of love for your reign in all things: Kyrie eleison Let our perceptions and feelings be ordered by the hope we have in Christ: Kyrie eleison Gracious Creator of heaven and earth, your Word has come among us as the true Sun of Righteousness, and the Good News of his birth has gone out to the ends of the world: Open our eyes to the light of your law, that we may be freed from sin and serve you without reproach for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Light and our Life. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Open our imaginations to new dimensions of your love, and heal us of all that severs us from you and one another; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The first collect is from _Daily Prayer_, copyright (c) The Scottish Episcopal Church, 1998. Used with permission. http://www.scottishepiscopal.com From steve.benner at oremus.org Mon Feb 9 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 10 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090209170000.EE389313C37@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Tuesday, February 10, 2009 Scholastica, sister of Benedict, Abbess of Plombariola, c.543 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd. In the waters of baptism you give us new birth, at your table you nourish us with heavenly food, and in your goodness and mercy you guide us beyond the terrors of evil and death to your Father's home to dwell in eternal light. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 135 Alleluia! Praise the name of the Lord;* give praise, you servants of the Lord, You who stand in the house of the Lord,* in the courts of the house of our God. Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;* sing praises to his name, for it is lovely. For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself* and Israel for his own possession. For I know that the Lord is great,* and that our Lord is above all gods. The Lord does whatever pleases him, in heaven and on earth,* in the seas and all the deeps. He brings up rain clouds from the ends of the earth;* he sends out lightning with the rain, and brings the winds out of his storehouse. It was he who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,* the firstborn both of human and beast. He sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt,* against Pharaoh and all his servants. He overthrew many nations* and put mighty kings to death: Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, the king of Bashan,* and all the kingdoms of Canaan. He gave their land to be an inheritance,* an inheritance for Israel his people. O Lord, your name is everlasting;* your renown, O Lord, endures from age to age. For the Lord gives his people justice* and shows compassion to his servants. The idols of the heathen are silver and gold,* the work of human hands. They have mouths, but they cannot speak;* eyes have they, but they cannot see. They have ears, but they cannot hear;* neither is there any breath in their mouth. Those who make them are like them,* and so are all who put their trust in them. Bless the Lord, O house of Israel;* O house of Aaron, bless the Lord. Bless the Lord, O house of Levi;* you who fear the Lord, bless the Lord. Blessed be the Lord out of Zion,* who dwells in Jerusalem. Alleluia! A Song of the Lamb (Revelation 19.1b,2a,5b,6b,7,9b) Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, . whose judgements are true and just. Praise our God, all you his servants, . all who fear him, both small and great. The Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns: . let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come . and his bride has made herself ready. Blessed are those who are invited . to the wedding banquet of the Lamb. Psalm 147:1-12 Alleluia! How good it is to sing praises to our God!* how pleasant it is to honour him with praise! The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;* he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted* and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars* and calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and mighty in power;* there is no limit to his wisdom. The Lord lifts up the lowly,* but casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;* make music to our God upon the harp. He covers the heavens with clouds* and prepares rain for the earth; He makes grass to grow upon the mountains* and green plants to serve us all. He provides food for flocks and herds* and for the young ravens when they cry. He is not impressed by the might of a horse,* he has no pleasure in human strength; But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him,* in those who await his gracious favour. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 1:20-2:3]: And God said, ?Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.? So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ?Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.? And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. And God said, ?Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.? And it was so. God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ?Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.? So God created humankind in his image, ???in the image of God he created them; ???male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, ?Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.? God said, ?See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.? And it was so. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. HYMN Words: John Ellerton (1826-1893) Tune: Morning (Monk); Meter: 77 77 77 Oh how fair that morning broke, When in Eden man awoke! Beast and bird and insect bright Revell'd in the gladsome light; God look'd down from Heav'n above, All was life and joy and love. Ah! the doleful change when sin Darkly, subtly enter'd in! War and pestilence and dearth Mar and sadden God's fair earth; Human sorrow fills the air; Death is reigning everywhere. Yet rejoice; for God on high Hath not left His world to die! God's dear Son, with dying breath, Broke the power of sin and death; Christ the Tempter overthrew, Christ is making all things new. Lord, in me be sin subdued, So may I with heart renew'd, Fight the fight and run the race, Work in my appointed place, Waiting for the glad new birth Of Thy perfect Heav'n and earth. SECOND READING [Mark 6:14-29]: King Herod heard of it, for Jesus? name had become known. Some were saying, ?John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him.? But others said, ?It is Elijah.? And others said, ?It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.? But when Herod heard of it, he said, ?John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.? For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip?s wife, because Herod had married her. For John had been telling Herod, ?It is not lawful for you to have your brother?s wife.? And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, ?Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.? And he solemnly swore to her, ?Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.? She went out and said to her mother, ?What should I ask for?? She replied, ?The head of John the baptizer.? Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, ?I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.? The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John?s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: We seek you daily, O Father, and you are there daily to be found. Wherever we seek you, at home, at work, on the highway, you are there, O Lord. Whatever we do, eating and drinking, writing or working, readings, meditating or praying, you are there, O Lord. If we are oppressed, you defend us, O Lord. If we hunger, you feed us, O Lord. Whatever we need, you give us, O Lord. Christ our Guide, stay with us on our pilgrimage through life: when we falter, encourage us, when we stumble, steady us, and when we have fallen, pick us up. Help us to become, step by step, more truly ourselves, and remind us that you have traveled this way before us. Amen. Almighty God, by whose grace Scholastica, the sister of Benedict, became a burning and shining light in your Church: inflame us with the same spirit of discipline and love, that we may ever walk before you as children of light; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit one God, now and for ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer The God of love who calls us, guide us this day and always: his might uphold us, his love enfold us, his peace empower us; in Jesus' Name. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is by Stephen Benner and is based on a prayer by James Norden written in 1548. The first collect is by Angela Ashwin. Our only source of information on the life of Benedict of Nursia (480?-547?) is the second book of the Dialogues of Pope Geogory the Great (540-604). This work dates from less than 50 years after the death of Benedict and is based upon the reminiscences of persons who knew the Abbot, yet it is not history or biography in our modern sense. Instead it is intended as an edifying and didactic tale illustrating the means by which humans journey towards God. Benedict, whose name in Latin means "Blessed," was born to a Christian family in the mountains to the northeast of Rome. The Roman Empire was crumbling and the Goths and Vandals controlled Italy. As a youth, he was sent to Rome for schooling and there experienced a religious awakening which caused him to renounce corrupt secular society and to join a band of Christian ascetics. He later became a hermit, living in the hill region of Subiaco. His fame as a holy person grew until he was importuned to become the abbot of a group of monks, who eventually became so peeved by his reforming zeal that they attempted to poison him. Benedict left them to their evil ways and began organizing groups of his own followers into small monasteries. In about A.D. 529, he and a few disciples came to the mountain above the city of Cassino where they established the monastery now known as Montecassino. This is probably where he wrote the monastic Rule, the only document which remains to us from his hand. Benedict's death occurred about 547, and tradition tells us he died standing before the altar, supported by his brothers, a model of fidelity and perseverance for all of his followers. Scholastica is, according to tradition, the twin sister of Benedict. She is a shadowy figure whom we know from a single charming story in the Dialogues. She led some form of consecrated life with a group of Christian women. Gregory tells us that yearly she journeyed to meet her brother at a small house midway between their residences. On one momentous occasion, as evening fell, Benedict packed up his monks to return to the monastery from which, according to his own Rule, he was not permitted to be absent overnight. Scholastica begged him to make an exception and stay over so that they could continue their holy conversation. When Benedict refused, Scholastica wept and prayed and immediately such a torrent of rain fell that no one could leave the house. As Gregory says, the woman's prayers prevailed with God because her love was the greater. When Scholastica died, Benedict had her body brought to Montecassino and placed in his own tomb. Scholastica's name means "she who has leisure to devote to study." Some skeptical historians have suggested that she is only a literary device: a personification of the Benedictine practice of reflective study. She remains very real, however, to Benedictine women, with the reality which can transcend simple historical existence, as a model of the feminine aspects of Benedictine monasticism, and an example of the power of the soul who loves God. [Sr. Margaret Clarke, O.S.B.; College of Saint Scholastica, http://news.css.edu/about/benandschol.shtml] From steve.benner at oremus.org Tue Feb 10 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Tue, 10 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 11 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090210170000.ADBA6313C50@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Wednesday, February 11, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd. In the waters of baptism you give us new birth, at your table you nourish us with heavenly food, and in your goodness and mercy you guide us beyond the terrors of evil and death to your Father's home to dwell in eternal light. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 137:1-6 By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept,* when we remembered you, O Zion. As for our harps, we hung them up* on the trees in the midst of that land. For those who led us away captive asked us for a song, and our oppressors called for mirth:* 'Sing us one of the songs of Zion.' How shall we sing the Lord's song* upon an alien soil? If I forget you, O Jerusalem,* let my right hand forget its skill. Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you,* if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy. Psalm 140 Deliver me, O Lord, from evildoers;* protect me from the violent, Who devise evil in their hearts* and stir up strife all day long. They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent;* adder's poison is under their lips. Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;* protect me from the violent, who are determined to trip me up. The proud have hidden a snare for me and stretched out a net of cords;* they have set traps for me along the path. I have said to the Lord, 'You are my God;* listen, O Lord, to my supplication. 'O Lord God, the strength of my salvation,* you have covered my head in the day of battle. 'Do not grant the desires of the wicked, O Lord,* nor let their evil plans prosper. I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the poor* and render justice to the needy. Surely, the righteous will give thanks to your name,* and the upright shall continue in your sight. A Song of Redemption (Colossians 1.1318a,19,20a) The Father has delivered us from the dominion of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son; In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. All things were created through him and for him, he is before all things and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the Church, he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead. In him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell; and through him God was pleased to reconcile all things. Psalm 147:13-end Alleluia! Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem;* praise your God, O Zion; For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;* he has blessed your children within you. He has established peace on your borders;* he satisfies you with the finest wheat. He sends out his command to the earth,* and his word runs very swiftly. He gives snow like wool;* he scatters hoarfrost like ashes. He scatters his hail like bread crumbs;* who can stand against his cold? He sends forth his word and melts them;* he blows with his wind and the waters flow. He declares his word to Jacob,* his statutes and his judgements to Israel. He has not done so to any other nation;* to them he has not revealed his judgements. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 2:4-9, 16-25]: These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created. In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up?for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground? then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And the Lord God commanded the man, ?You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.? Then the Lord God said, ?It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.? So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, ?This at last is bone of my bones ???and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, ???for out of Man this one was taken.? Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed. HYMN Words: John Ellerton (1826-1893) Tune: Saint Catherine God of the living, in whose eyes Unveiled Thy whole creation lies, All souls are Thine; we must not say That those are dead who pass away; >From this our world of flesh set free, We know them living unto Thee. Released from earthly toil and strife, With Thee is hidden still their life; Thine are their thoughts, their works, their powers, All Thine, and yet most truly ours; For well we know, where'er they be, Our dead are living unto Thee. Not spilt like water on the ground, Not wrapped in dreamless sleep profound, Not wandering in unknown despair, Beyond Thy voice, Thine arm, Thy care, Not left to lie like fallen tree; Not dead, but living unto Thee. Thy word is true, Thy will is just: To Thee we leave them, Lord, in trust; And bless Thee for the love which gave Thy Son to fill a human grave, That none might fear that world to see Where all are living unto Thee. O Giver unto man of breath, O Holder of the keys of death, O Quickener of the life within, Save us from death, the death of sin; That body, soul, and spirit be For ever living unto Thee! SECOND READING [Mark 6:30-44]: The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, ?Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.? For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, ?This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.? But he answered them, ?You give them something to eat.? They said to him, ?Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?? And he said to them, ?How many loaves have you? Go and see.? When they had found out, they said, ?Five, and two fish.? Then he ordered them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And all ate and were filled; and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Under your holy wings, you gather us, O God, and you shelter us by your grace. Together in faith communities, you call us share your love and mercy. Gather us in, O God. We give you thanks for all that gives shape to life in community: devotion to apostolic teaching, sharing in fellowship around your Word and Table, continuous prayer for the world and the Church. Gather us in, O God. Save your Church from formless piety. Gather us in, O God. Help families and the leaders of households to pattern faith. Gather us in, O God. Choose and renew our leaders for disciplemaking. Gather us in, O God. Uphold those who seek peace with justice. Gather us in, O God. Give light to all who strive to discern what is right. Gather us in, O God. Comfort the dying. Gather us in, O God. Heal the broken and suffering. Gather us in, O God. God of our joys and sorrows, comfort the exiled, console the oppressed and bring us in joy to our true home, where your faithful servants sing your praise, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for all eternity. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer The God of love who calls us, guide us this day and always: his might uphold us, his love enfold us, his peace empower us; in Jesus' Name. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and first collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. From steve.benner at oremus.org Wed Feb 11 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Wed, 11 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 12 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090211170001.21B10313C45@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Thursday, February 12, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd. In the waters of baptism you give us new birth, at your table you nourish us with heavenly food, and in your goodness and mercy you guide us beyond the terrors of evil and death to your Father's home to dwell in eternal light. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 141 O Lord, I call to you; come to me quickly;* hear my voice when I cry to you. Let my prayer be set forth in your sight as incense,* the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Set a watch before my mouth, O Lord, and guard the door of my lips;* let not my heart incline to any evil thing. Let me not be occupied in wickedness with evildoers,* nor eat of their choice foods. Let the righteous smite me in friendly rebuke; let not the oil of the unrighteous anoint my head;* for my prayer is continually against their wicked deeds. Let their rulers be overthrown in stony places,* that they may know my words are true. As when a plough turns over the earth in furrows,* let their bones be scattered at the mouth of the grave. But my eyes are turned to you, Lord God;* in you I take refuge; do not strip me of my life. Protect me from the snare which they have laid for me* and from the traps of the evildoers. Let the wicked fall into their own nets,* while I myself escape. A Song of Trust (Isaiah 26.14,79,12) We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks. Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps faith may enter in. You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord for ever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. The way of the righteous is level; you who are upright make smooth the path of the righteous. In the path of your judgements, O Lord, we wait for you; your name and renown is the desire of our soul. My soul yearns for you in the night, my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. O Lord, you will ordain peace for us, for indeed all that we have done you have done for us. Psalm 148 Alleluia! Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise him in the heights. Praise him, all you angels of his;* praise him, all his host. Praise him, sun and moon;* praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, heaven of heavens,* and you waters above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord;* for he commanded and they were created. He made them stand fast for ever and ever;* he gave them a law which shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth,* you seamonsters and all deeps; Fire and hail, snow and fog,* tempestuous wind, doing his will; Mountains and all hills,* fruit trees and all cedars; Wild beasts and all cattle,* creeping things and winged birds; Kings of the earth and all peoples,* princes and all rulers of the world; Young men and maidens,* old and young together. Let them praise the name of the Lord,* for his name only is exalted, his splendour is over earth and heaven. He has raised up strength for his people and praise for all his loyal servants,* the children of Israel, a people who are near him. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 3]: Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ?Did God say, ?You shall not eat from any tree in the garden??? The woman said to the serpent, ?We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, ?You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.? ? But the serpent said to the woman, ?You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.? So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves. They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, ?Where are you?? He said, ?I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.? He said, ?Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?? The man said, ?The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.? Then the Lord God said to the woman, ?What is this that you have done?? The woman said, ?The serpent tricked me, and I ate.? The Lord God said to the serpent, ?Because you have done this, ???cursed are you among all animals ???and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, ???and dust you shall eat ???all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, ???and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, ???and you will strike his heel.? To the woman he said, ?I will greatly increase your pangs in childbearing; ???in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, ???and he shall rule over you.? And to the man he said, ?Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, ???and have eaten of the tree about which I commanded you, ????You shall not eat of it?, cursed is the ground because of you; ???in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; ???and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face ???you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, ???for out of it you were taken; you are dust, ???and to dust you shall return.? The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all who live. And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them. Then the Lord God said, ?See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever?? therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life. HYMN Words: Edward Perronet (1726-92) alt. John Rippon (1751-1836) and others Tune: Coronation, Diademata, Ladywell, Miles Lane, Saint Leonard All hail the power of Jesus' name let angels prostrate fall; bring forth the royal diadem, and crown him Lord of all. Crown him, ye morning stars of light, who fixed this floating ball; now hail the Strength of Israel's might and crown him Lord of all. Ye prophets who our freedom won, ye searchers, great and small, by whom the work of truth is done, now crown him Lord of all. Ye seed of Israel's chosen race, ye ransomed of the fall, hail him who saves you by his grace, and crown him Lord of all. Hail him, the heir of David's line, whom David Lord did call, the God incarnate, Man divine, and crown him Lord of all. Sinners whose love can ne'er forget the wormwood and the gall, go, spread your trophies at his feet, and crown him Lord of all. Bless him, each poor oppress?d race that Christ did upward call; his hand in each achievement trace, and crown him Lord of all. Let every tribe and every tongue before him prostrate fall, and shout in universal song the crown?d Lord of all. O that with yonder sacred throng we at his feet may fall, join in the everlasting song, and crown him Lord of all. SECOND READING [Mark 6:45-end]: Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray. When evening came, the boat was out on the lake, and he was alone on the land. When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the lake. He intended to pass them by. But when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought it was a ghost and cried out; for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ?Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.? Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the market-places, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Almighty and gracious God, we bless you for your mercy in Christ and your nearness by the Word and the Spirit. Hear us as we embrace in the circle of love: the life and witness of your Church, Generous God, hear us. the world and its longing, especially for peace wherever conflict persists. Generous God, hear us. the cares of our own lives, Generous God, hear us. and those particular concerns your Spirit awakens in us, Generous God, hear us. Lord God, our protector and guide, who made us knowing both good and evil: receive our prayer and, by your wisdom, help us to discern and desire all that is good, that the offering of our lives may be acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ, who suffered the darkness of torment and trial and now is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer The God of love who calls us, guide us this day and always: his might uphold us, his love enfold us, his peace empower us; in Jesus' Name. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. From steve.benner at oremus.org Thu Feb 12 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 13 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090212170000.514AA313C4B@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for , 2009 Absalom Jones, Priest, 1818 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd. In the waters of baptism you give us new birth, at your table you nourish us with heavenly food, and in your goodness and mercy you guide us beyond the terrors of evil and death to your Father's home to dwell in eternal light. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 143 Lord, hear my prayer, and in your faithfulness heed my supplications;* answer me in your righteousness. Enter not into judgement with your servant,* for in your sight shall no one living be justified. For my enemy has sought my life and has crushed me to the ground;* making me live in dark places like those who are long dead. My spirit faints within me;* my heart within me is desolate. I remember the time past; I muse upon all your deeds;* I consider the works of your hands. I spread out my hands to you;* my soul gasps to you like a thirsty land. O Lord, make haste to answer me; my spirit fails me;* do not hide your face from me or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. Let me hear of your lovingkindness in the morning, for I put my trust in you;* show me the road that I must walk, for I lift up my soul to you. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord,* for I flee to you for refuge. Teach me to do what pleases you, for you are my God;* let your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Revive me, O Lord, for your name's sake;* for your righteousness' sake, bring me out of trouble. A Song of Wisdom (Wisdom 9.15a,c,6,911) O God of our ancestors and Lord of mercy, you have made all things by your word. By your wisdom you have formed us to have dominion over the creatures you have made; To rule the world in holiness and righteousness and to pronounce judgement in uprightness of soul. Give us the Wisdom that sits by your throne; do not reject us from among your servants, For we are your servants, with little understanding of judgement and laws. Even one who is perfect among us will be regarded as nothing without the wisdom that comes from you. With you is Wisdom, she who knows your works, and was present when you made the world. She understands what is pleasing in your sight and what is right according to your commandments. Send her forth from the holy heavens, from the throne of your glory send her. That she may labour at our side and that we may learn what is pleasing to you. For she knows and understands all things, she will guide us wisely in our actions and guard us with her glory. Psalm 149 Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song;* sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful. Let Israel rejoice in his maker;* let the children of Zion be joyful in their king. Let them praise his name in the dance;* let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people* and adorns the poor with victory. Let the faithful rejoice in triumph;* let them be joyful on their beds. Let the praises of God be in their throat* and a twoedged sword in their hand; To wreak vengeance on the nations* and punishment on the peoples; To bind their kings in chains* and their nobles with links of iron; To inflict on them the judgement decreed;* this is glory for all his faithful people. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 4:1-16]: Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ?I have produced a man with the help of the Lord.? Next she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel for his part brought of the firstlings of his flock, their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. The Lord said to Cain, ?Why are you angry, and why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.? Cain said to his brother Abel, ?Let us go out to the field.? And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, ?Where is your brother Abel?? He said, ?I do not know; am I my brother?s keeper?? And the Lord said, ?What have you done? Listen; your brother?s blood is crying out to me from the ground! And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother?s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it will no longer yield to you its strength; you will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.? Cain said to the Lord, ?My punishment is greater than I can bear! Today you have driven me away from the soil, and I shall be hidden from your face; I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and anyone who meets me may kill me.? Then the Lord said to him, ?Not so! Whoever kills Cain will suffer a sevenfold vengeance.? And the Lord put a mark on Cain, so that no one who came upon him would kill him. Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord, and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. HYMN Words: Fred Kaan (born 1929) ? 1968 Stainer & Bell Ltd Used with permission. Tune: Evelyns When in his own image God made humankind, he enfolded freedom in his great design. For he loved us even from before our birth; granting us dominion of our planet earth. God entrusted to us life as gift and aim. Sin became our prison, turning hope to shame. Cain against his brother lifted hand and sword, and the Father's pleading went unseen, unheard. Then in time, our Maker chose to intervene, set his love in person in the human scene. Jesus broke the circle of repeated sin, so that our devotion newly might begin. Choose we now in freedom where we should belong, let us turn to Jesus, let our choice be strong. May the great obedience which in Christ we see perfect all our service: then we shall be free! SECOND READING [Mark 7:1-13]: Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, ?Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?? He said to them, ?Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written, ?This people honours me with their?lips, ???but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, ???teaching human precepts as doctrines.? You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.? Then he said to them, ?You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! For Moses said, ?Honour your father and your mother?; and, ?Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.? But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, ?Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban? (that is, an offering to God)? then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Great are you, Lord, and greatly to be praised! There is no end to your greatness. Let your Spirit shape and make new our character, encourage us in constant prayer, direct us in the way of love and bring us at last to heaven with all your saints in light. All that is unfinished in us and in the world, we entrust to you, Lord. Every aspiration, longing and dream crushed by temptation, sin and dullness of heart, we entrust to you, Lord. Holy Church seeking to offer you worship in every place and culture we entrust to you, Lord. Every people and tribe oppressed by the greed and prejudice of others, we entrust to you, Lord. The empty and hungry places in our spirits and in our relationships with others, we entrust to you, Lord. O God, you have called us into the fellowship of your dear Son: Draw into closer unity the people of all races in this and every land, that in fellowship with you they may understand and help one another, and that, serving you, they may find their perfect freedom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Set us free, heavenly Father, from every bond of prejudice and fear; that, honoring the steadfast courage of your servant Absalom Jones, we may show forth in our lives the reconciling love and true freedom of the children of God, which you have given us in your Son our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer The God of love who calls us, guide us this day and always: his might uphold us, his love enfold us, his peace empower us; in Jesus' Name. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The first collect is by Joost de Blank. The second collect is from _The Proper for the Lesser Feasts and Fasts_, 3rd edition, (c) 1980 The Church Pension Fund. In 1786 the membership of St. George's Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia included both blacks and whites. However, the white members met that year and decided that thereafter black members should sit only in the balcony. Two black Sunday school teachers, Absalom Jones (1746-1818) and Richard Allen (1760-1830), learned of the decision only when, on the following Sunday, ushers tapped them on the shoulder during the opening prayers, and demanded that they move to the balcony without waiting for the end of the prayer. They walked out, followed by the other black members. Absalom Jones conferred with William White, Episcopal Bishop of Philadelphia, who agreed to accept the group as an Episcopal parish. Jones would serve as lay reader, and, after a period of study, would be ordained and serve as rector. Allen wanted the group to remain Methodist, and in 1793 he left to form a Methodist congregation. In 1816 he left the Methodists to form a new denomination, the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church. Jones (ordained deacon and priest in 1795 and 1802) and Allen (ordained deacon and elder in 1799 and 1816) were the first two black Americans to receive formal ordination in any denomination. From steve.benner at oremus.org Fri Feb 13 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 14 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090213170000.D95DF313C45@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Saturday, February 14, 2009 Cyril and Methodius, Missionaries to the Slavs, 869 and 885 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd. In the waters of baptism you give us new birth, at your table you nourish us with heavenly food, and in your goodness and mercy you guide us beyond the terrors of evil and death to your Father's home to dwell in eternal light. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 1 Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked,* nor lingered in the way of sinners, nor sat in the seats of the scornful! Their delight is in the law of the Lord,* and they meditate on his law day and night. They are like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither;* everything they do shall prosper. It is not so with the wicked:* they are like chaff which the wind blows away; Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgement comes,* nor the sinner in the council of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,* but the way of the wicked is doomed. Psalm 125 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,* which cannot be moved, but stands fast for ever. The hills stand about Jerusalem;* so does the Lord stand round about his people, from this time forth for evermore. The sceptre of the wicked shall not hold sway over the land allotted to the just,* so that the just shall not put their hands to evil. Show your goodness, O Lord, to those who are good* and to those who are true of heart. As for those who turn aside to crooked ways, the Lord will lead them away with the evildoers;* but peace be upon Israel. A Song of Hannah (1 Samuel 2.1,2,3b5,7,8) My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in my God. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is no Holy One like you, O Lord, nor any Rock like you, our God. For you are a God of knowledge and by you our actions are weighed. The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble gird on strength. Those who were full now hire themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry are well fed. The barren woman has borne sevenfold, but she who has many children is forlorn. Both the poor and the rich are of your making; you bring low and you also exalt. You raise up the poor from the dust, and lift the needy from the ash heap. You make them sit with the rulers and inherit a place of honour. For the pillars of the earth are yours and on them you have set the world. Psalm 150 Alleluia! Praise God in his holy temple;* praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts;* praise him for his excellent greatness. Praise him with the blast of the ram'shorn;* praise him with lyre and harp. Praise him with timbrel and dance;* praise him with strings and pipe. Praise him with resounding cymbals;* praise him with loudclanging cymbals. Let everything that has breath* praise the Lord. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 6:5-8, 13-22]: The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the Lord said, ?I will blot out from the earth the human beings I have created?people together with animals and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.? But Noah found favour in the sight of the Lord. And God said to Noah, ?I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence because of them; now I am going to destroy them along with the earth. Make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above; and put the door of the ark in its side; make it with lower, second, and third decks. For my part, I am going to bring a flood of waters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish my covenant with you; and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons? wives with you. And of every living thing, of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground according to its kind, two of every kind shall come in to you, to keep them alive. Also take with you every kind of food that is eaten, and store it up; and it shall serve as food for you and for them.? Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him. HYMN Words: Theoctistus, ca. 890; trans. John Mason Neale, 1862 Tune: Werde munter http://www.oremus.org/hymnal/j/j141.html Hit "Back" in your browser to return to Oremus. Jesus, Name all names above, Jesus, best and dearest; Jesus, Fount of perfect love, holiest, tenderest, nearest: Jesus, Source of grace completest; Jesus purest, Jesus sweetest; Jesus, Well of power divine, make me, keep me, seal me thine! Woe that I have turned aside after fleshly pleasure! Woe that I have never tried for the heavenly treasure! Treasure, safe in homes supernal, incorruptible, eternal; treasure no less price hath won than the passion of the Son! Jesus, crowned with thorns for me, scourged for my transgression! Witnessing, through agony, that thy good confession! Jesus, clad in purple raiment, for my evils making payment: let not all thy woe and pain, let not Calvary be in vain! Jesus, open me the gate that of old he entered who, in that most low estate, wholly on thee ventured; thou, whose wounds are ever pleading and thy passion interceding, from my misery let me rise to a home in paradise! SECOND READING [Mark 7:14-23]: Then Jesus called the crowd again and said to them, ?Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.? When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, ?Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?? (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, ?It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Blessed are you, eternal God, to be praised and glorified for ever. Hear us as we pray for your holy Catholic Church: make us all one, that the world may believe. Grant that every member of the Church may truly and humbly serve you: that the life of Christ may be revealed in us. Strengthen all who minister in Christ(s name: give them courage to proclaim your Gospel. Inspire and lead those who hold authority in the nations of the world: guide them in the ways of justice and peace. Make us alive to the needs of our community: help us to share each other(s joys and burdens. Look with kindness on our homes and families: grant that your love may grow in our hearts. Deepen our compassion for all who suffer from sickness, grief or trouble: in your presence may they find their strength. We remember those who have died: may they rest in your peace. We praise you for all your saints who have entered your eternal glory: bring us all to share in your heavenly kingdom. Christ my God, set my heart on fire with love in you, that in its flame I may love you with all my heart, with all my mind, and with all my soul and with all my strength, and my neighbor as myself, so that by keeping your commandments I may glorify you, the Giver of every good and perfect gift. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, by the power of the Holy Spirit you moved your servant Cyril and his brother Methodius to bring the light of the Gospel to a hostile and divided people: Overcome all bitterness and strife among us by the love of Christ, and make us one united family under the banner of the Prince of Peace; Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer The God of love who calls us, guide us this day and always: his might uphold us, his love enfold us, his peace empower us; in Jesus' Name. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers reprinted from _Revised Common Lectionary Prayers_, copyright (c) 2002 Consultation on Common Texts. The first collect is from the Eastern Orthodox tradition. The second collect is from _The Proper for the Lesser Feasts and Fasts_, 3rd edition, (c) 1980 The Church Pension Fund. Cyril (originally Constantine) and Methodius were brothers, from a noble family in Thessalonika, a district in northeastern Greece. Constantine was the younger, born in about 827, and his brother Methodius in about 825. They both entered the priesthood. Constantine undertook a mission to the Arabs, and then became a professor of philosophy at the imperial school in Constantinople and librarian at the cathedral of Santa Sophia. Methodius became governor of a district that had been settled by Slavs. Both brothers then retired to monastic life. In about 861, the Emperor Michel III sent them to work with the Khazars northeast of the Black Sea in the Dnieper-Volga region of what was later Russia. They learned the Khazar language and made many converts, and discovered what were believed to be relics of Clement, an early Bishop of Rome. In about 863, Prince Rotislav, the ruler of Great Moravia (in today's Czech Republic), asked the emperor for missionaries, specifying that he wanted someone who would teach his people in their own language (he had western missionaries, but they used only Latin). The emperor and the Patriarch Photius sent Methodius and his brother Constantine, who translated the Liturgy and much of the Scriptures into Slavonic. Since Slavonic had no written form, they invented an alphabet for it, the Glagolitic alphabet, which gave rise to the Cyrillic alphabet (named for Cyril), which is used to write Russian and (with modifications) several related languages today. Thus the brothers were the first to produce written material in the Slavic languages, and are regarded as the founders of Slavic literature. The brothers encountered missionaries from Germany, representing the western or Latin branch of the Church, and more particularly representing the Holy Roman Empire as founded by Charlemagne, and committed to linguistic, and cultural uniformity. They insisted on the use of the Latin liturgy, and they regarded Moravia and the Slavic peoples as their rightful mission field. When friction developed, the brothers, unwilling to be a cause of dissension among Christians, went south toward Venice, and then from Venice to Rome to see the Pope, hoping to reach an agreement that would avoid quarreling between missionaries in the field. They brought with them the above-mentioned relics of Clement, third bishop of Rome after the Apostles (see 23 November). They arrived in Rome in 868 and were received with honor. Constantine entered a monastery there, taking the name Cyril, by which he is now remembered. However, he died only a few weeks thereafter. He is buried in Rome in the Church of San Clemente. The Pope (Adrian II) gave Methodius the title of Archbishop of Sirmium (now Sremska Mitrovica in Yugoslavia) and sent him back in 869, with jurisdiction over all of Moravia and Pannonia, and authorization to use the Slavonic Liturgy. Soon, however, Prince Rotislav, who had originally invited the brothers to Moravia, died, and his successor did not support Methodius. In 870 the Frankish king Louis and his bishops deposed Methodius at a synod at Ratisbon, and imprisoned him for a little over two years. The pope (John VIII) secured his release, but told him not to use the Slavonic Liturgy any more. In 878 he was summoned to Rome on charges of heresy and using Slavonic. This time Pope John was convinced by his arguments and sent him back cleared of all charges, and with permission to use Slavonic. He died 6 April 885 in Velehrad, the old capitol of Moravia. The Carolingian bishop who succeeded him, Wiching, suppressed the Slavonic Liturgy and forced the followers of Methodius into exile. Many found refuge with King Boris of Bulgaria (852-889), under whom they reorganized a Slavic-speaking Church. Meanwhile, Pope John's successors adopted a Latin-only policy which lasted for centuries. Today Cyril and Methodius are honored by Eastern and Western Christians alike, and the importance of their work in preaching and worshiping in the language of the people is recognized on all sides. [James Kiefer, abridged] From steve.benner at oremus.org Sat Feb 14 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sat, 14 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 15 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090214170000.351AE313C40@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Sunday, February 15, 2009 The Sixth Sunday after Epiphany Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 37:26-end I have been young and now I am old,* but never have I seen the righteous forsaken, or their children begging bread. The righteous are always generous in their lending,* and their children shall be a blessing. Turn from evil and do good,* and dwell in the land for ever. For the Lord loves justice;* he does not forsake his faithful ones. They shall be kept safe for ever,* but the offspring of the wicked shall be destroyed. The righteous shall possess the land* and dwell in it for ever. The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,* and their tongue speaks what is right. The law of their God is in their heart,* and their footsteps shall not falter. The wicked spy on the righteous* and seek occasion to kill them. The Lord will not abandon them to their hand,* nor let them be found guilty when brought to trial. Wait upon the Lord and keep his way;* he will raise you up to possess the land, and when the wicked are cut off, you will see it. I have seen the wicked in their arrogance,* flourishing like a tree in full leaf. I went by and, behold, they were not there;* I searched for them, but they could not be found. Mark those who are honest; observe the upright;* for there is a future for the peaceable. Transgressors shall be destroyed, one and all;* the future of the wicked is cut off. But the deliverance of the righteous comes from the Lord;* he is their stronghold in time of trouble. The Lord will help them and rescue them;* he will rescue them from the wicked and deliver them, because they seek refuge in him. Psalm 124 If the Lord had not been on our side,* let Israel now say; If the Lord had not been on our side,* when enemies rose up against us; Then would they have swallowed us up alive* in their fierce anger towards us; Then would the waters have overwhelmed us* and the torrent gone over us; Then would the raging waters* have gone right over us. Blessed be the Lord!* he has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler;* the snare is broken and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord,* the maker of heaven and earth. A Song of the Heavenly City (Revelation 21.2226; 22.1,2b,d,3b,4) I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, . for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light the nations shall walk, . and the rulers of the earth shall bring their glory into it. Its gates shall never be shut by day, nor shall there be any night; . they shall bring into it the glory and honour of the nations. I saw the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, . flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. And either side of the river stood the tree of life, yielding its fruit each month, . and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. The throne of God and of the Lamb shall be there, and his servants shall worship him; . and they shall see his face and his name shall be on their foreheads. Psalm 117 Alleluia! Praise the Lord, all you nations;* laud him, all you peoples. For his lovingkindness towards us is great,* and the faithfulness of the Lord endures for ever. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Isaiah 50:4-10]: The Lord God has given me ???the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain ???the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens? ???wakens my ear ???to listen as those who are taught. The Lord God has opened my ear, ???and I was not rebellious, ???I did not turn backwards. I gave my back to those who struck?me, ???and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I did not hide my face ???from insult and spitting. The Lord God helps me; ???therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like?flint, ???and I know that I shall not be put to shame; ???he who vindicates me is near. Who will contend with me? ???Let us stand up together. Who are my adversaries? ???Let them confront me. It is the Lord God who helps me; ???who will declare me guilty? All of them will wear out like a garment; ???the moth will eat them up. Who among you fears the Lord ???and obeys the voice of his servant, who walks in darkness ???and has no light, yet trusts in the name of the Lord ???and relies upon his God? HYMN Words: Nahum Tate (1652-1715) and Nicholas Brady (1659-1726) Tune: University, Wiltshire, York Through all the changing scenes of life, in trouble and in joy, the praises of my God shall still my heart and tongue employ. Of his deliverance I will boast, till all that are distressed from my example comfort take, and charm their griefs to rest. O magnify the Lord with me, with me exalt his name; when in distress to him I called, he to my rescue came. The hosts of God encamp around the dwellings of the just; deliverance he affords to all who on his succour trust. O make but trial of his love: experience will decide how blest are they, and only they, who in his truth confide. Fear him, ye saints, and you will then have nothing else to fear; make you his service your delight, your wants shall be his care. To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the God whom we adore, be glory, as it was, is now, and shall be evermore. SECOND READING [2 Corinthians 12:1-12]: It is necessary to boast; nothing is to be gained by it, but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven?whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. And I know that such a person?whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows? was caught up into Paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat. On behalf of such a one I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. But if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I will be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think better of me than what is seen in me or heard from me, even considering the exceptional character of the revelations. Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given to me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, ?My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.? So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong. I have been a fool! You forced me to it. Indeed you should have been the ones commending me, for I am not at all inferior to these super-apostles, even though I am nothing. The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, signs and wonders and mighty works. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Let us bring our prayers to the Lord, our refuge and our strength. We pray for the people of Australia, in the wake of the terrible fires in that country; for those who have been killed or injured, and for those who have been bereaved or made homeless: may they know the comfort of God?s loving care. We pray for the people of Zimbabwe, and especially for Morgan Tsvangirai, as he takes up the post of prime minister: may their land be rebuilt, with peace, justice and freedom from oppression. We pray for the people of Israel, following their general election: may their political leaders truly work for peace and reconciliation in the Holy Land. We pray for those involved in the recent plane crash in New York state: for those who have died, that they may rest in peace; and for those bereaved, that they may be comforted. Heavenly Father, your Son brought healing to those who were sick and hope to those who were downcast; we ask you to hear the prayers that we make through the same Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Righteous God, you challenge the powers that rule this world and you show favor to the oppressed: Instill in us a true sense of justice, that we may discern the signs of your kingdom and strive for right to prevail; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The collect is from _A Prayer Book for Australia_. (c) 1995, The Anglican Church of Australia Trust Corporation. The petitions are gathered by Redemptorist Publications and are published each Friday on their website: http://www.rpbooks.co.uk/page.php?page=prayers From steve.benner at oremus.org Sun Feb 15 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sun, 15 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 16 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090215170000.6ADC5313C6D@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Monday, February 16, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 4 Answer me when I call, O God, defender of my cause;* you set me free when I am hardpressed; have mercy on me and hear my prayer. 'You mortals, how long will you dishonour my glory;* how long will you worship dumb idols and run after false gods?' Know that the Lord does wonders for the faithful;* when I call upon the Lord, he will hear me. Tremble, then, and do not sin;* speak to your heart in silence upon your bed. Offer the appointed sacrifices* and put your trust in the Lord. Many are saying, 'O that we might see better times!'* Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O Lord. You have put gladness in my heart,* more than when grain and wine and oil increase. I lie down in peace; at once I fall asleep;* for only you, Lord, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 8 O Lord our governor,* how exalted is your name in all the world! Out of the mouths of infants and children* your majesty is praised above the heavens. You have set up a stronghold against your adversaries,* to quell the enemy and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,* the moon and the stars you have set in their courses, What are mortals, that you should be mindful of them?* mere human beings, that you should seek them out? You have made them little lower than the angels;* you adorn them with glory and honour. You give them mastery over the works of your hands;* and put all things under their feet, All sheep and oxen,* even the wild beasts of the field, The birds of the air, the fish of the sea,* and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea. O Lord our governor,* how exalted is your name in all the world! A Song of Solomon (cf Song of Solomon 8.6,7) Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; For love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave; its flashes are flashes of fire, a raging flame. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. If all the wealth of our house were offered for love, it would be utterly scorned. Psalm 146 Alleluia! Praise the Lord, O my soul!* I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth,* for there is no help in them. When they breathe their last, they return to earth,* and in that day their thoughts perish. Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!* whose hope is in the Lord their God; Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them;* who keeps his promise for ever; Who gives justice to those who are oppressed,* and food to those who hunger. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind;* the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous; the Lord cares for the stranger;* he sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way of the wicked. The Lord shall reign for ever,* your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 7:1, 7-10, 17-23]: Then the Lord said to Noah, ?Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you alone are righteous before me in this generation. And Noah with his sons and his wife and his sons? wives went into the ark to escape the waters of the flood. Of clean animals, and of animals that are not clean, and of birds, and of everything that creeps on the ground, two and two, male and female, went into the ark with Noah, as God had commanded Noah. And after seven days the waters of the flood came on the earth. The flood continued for forty days on the earth; and the waters increased, and bore up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. The waters swelled and increased greatly on the earth; and the ark floated on the face of the waters. The waters swelled so mightily on the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered; the waters swelled above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep. And all flesh died that moved on the earth, birds, domestic animals, wild animals, all swarming creatures that swarm on the earth, and all human beings; everything on dry land in whose nostrils was the breath of life died. He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground, human beings and animals and creeping things and birds of the air; they were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those that were with him in the ark. HYMN Words: Charles Wesley Tune: Old 23rd , Surrey Where shall my wondering soul begin? How shall I all to heaven aspire? A slave redeemed from death and sin, A brand plucked from eternal fire, How shall I equal triumphs raise, Or sing my great deliverer's praise? O how shall I the goodness tell, Father, which thou to me hast showed? That I, a child of wrath and hell, I should be called a child of God, Should know, should feel my sins forgiven, Blest with this antepast of heaven! And shall I slight my Father's love? Or basely fear his gifts to own? Unmindful of his favours prove? Shall I, the hallowed cross to shun, Refuse his righteousness to impart By hiding it within my heart? Outcasts of men, to you I call, Harlots, and publicans, and thieves! He spreads his arms to embrace you all; Sinners alone his grace receives: No need of him the righteous have; He came the lost to seek and save. Come, O my guilty brethren, come, Groaning beneath your load of sin! His bleeding heart shall make you room, His open side shall take you in; He calls you now, invites you home: Come, O my guilty brethren, come! SECOND READING [Mark 7:24-end]: >From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ?Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children?s food and throw it to the dogs.? But she answered him, ?Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children?s crumbs.? Then he said to her, ?For saying that, you may go?the demon has left your daughter.? So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ?Ephphatha?, that is, ?Be opened.? And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, ?He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Holy God, we rejoice in the martyrs and prophets, teachers and leaders, and all the ordinary and extraordinary believers who have lived and loved the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. For their witness and encouragement, We thank you, Lord. Recalling their stories and deeds, we dare to take up our crosses. For their witness and encouragement, We thank you, Lord. Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, we plead for the human family and all creation: For those addicted or tormented: We pray to you, Lord. For the victims of terrorism and disaster: We pray to you, Lord. For those who despair of life(s goodness: We pray to you, Lord. For the Church, especially ecumenical councils and church agencies: We pray to you, Lord. For a resolution to unresolved matters of this day: We pray to you, Lord. O God the Word and Son of God, exalted is your name in all creation, yet you have stooped to become one with us: as you have ordained humanity the steward of your creation, so minister through us the mystery of your salvation; to the glory of your holy Name. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. From steve.benner at oremus.org Mon Feb 16 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 17 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090216170000.CDAF8313C6B@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Tuesday, February 17, 2009 Janani Luwum, Archbishop of Uganda, Martyr , 1977 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 11 In the Lord have I taken refuge;* how then can you say to me, 'Fly away like a bird to the hilltop; 'For see how the wicked bend the bow and fit their arrows to the string,* to shoot from ambush at the true of heart. 'When the foundations are being destroyed,* what can the righteous do?' The Lord is in his holy temple;* the Lord's throne is in heaven. His eyes behold the inhabited world;* his piercing eye weighs our worth. The Lord weighs the righteous as well as the wicked,* but those who delight in violence he abhors. Upon the wicked he shall rain coals of fire and burning sulphur;* a scorching wind shall be their lot. For the Lord is righteous; he delights in righteous deeds;* and the just shall see his face. Psalm 12 Help me, Lord, for there is no godly one left;* the faithful have vanished from among us. Everyone speaks falsely with their neighbour;* with a smooth tongue they speak from a double heart. O that the Lord would cut off all smooth tongues,* and close the lips that utter proud boasts! Those who say, 'With our tongue will we prevail;* our lips are our own; who is lord over us?' 'Because the needy are oppressed, and the poor cry out in misery,* I will rise up', says the Lord, 'and give them the help they long for.' The words of the Lord are pure words,* like silver refined from ore and purified seven times in the fire. O Lord, watch over us* and save us from this generation for ever. The wicked prowl on every side,* and that which is worthless is highly prized by everyone. Great and Wonderful (Revelation 15.3,4) Great and wonderful are your deeds, . Lord God the Almighty. Just and true are your ways, . O ruler of the nations. Who shall not revere and praise your name, O Lord? . for you alone are holy. All nations shall come and worship in your presence: . for your just dealings have been revealed. Psalm 147:1-12 Alleluia! How good it is to sing praises to our God!* how pleasant it is to honour him with praise! The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;* he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted* and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars* and calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and mighty in power;* there is no limit to his wisdom. The Lord lifts up the lowly,* but casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;* make music to our God upon the harp. He covers the heavens with clouds* and prepares rain for the earth; He makes grass to grow upon the mountains* and green plants to serve us all. He provides food for flocks and herds* and for the young ravens when they cry. He is not impressed by the might of a horse,* he has no pleasure in human strength; But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him,* in those who await his gracious favour. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 8:6-end]: At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made and sent out the raven; and it went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the earth. Then he sent out the dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground; but the dove found no place to set its foot, and it returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took it and brought it into the ark with him. He waited another seven days, and again he sent out the dove from the ark; and the dove came back to him in the evening, and there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf; so Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth. Then he waited another seven days, and sent out the dove; and it did not return to him any more. In the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and saw that the face of the ground was drying. In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. Then God said to Noah, ?Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons? wives with you. Bring out with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh?birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth?so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.? So Noah went out with his sons and his wife and his sons? wives. And every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out of the ark by families. Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt-offerings on the altar. And when the Lord smelt the pleasing odour, the Lord said in his heart, ?I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living creature as I have done. As long as the earth endures, ???seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, ???shall not cease.? HYMN Words: John Newton (1725-1807) Tune: Hollingside Does the gospel word proclaim Rest for those who weary be? Then, my soul, put in thy claim; Sure that promise speaks to thee. Marks of grace I cannot show; All polluted is my breast; Yet I weary am, I know, And the weary long for rest. Burdened with a load of sin; Harassed with tormenting doubt; Hourly conflicts from within; Hourly crosses from without; All my little strength is gone; Sink I must without supply; Sure upon the earth there's none Can more weary be than I. In the ark the weary dove Found a welcome resting-place; Thus my spirit longs to prove Rest in Christ, the Ark of grace. Tempest-tossed I long have been And the flood increases fast; Open, Lord, and take me in Till the storm be overpast. SECOND READING [Mark 8:11-26]: The Pharisees came and began to argue with Jesus, asking him for a sign from heaven, to test him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, ?Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation.? And he left them, and getting into the boat again, he went across to the other side. Now the disciples had forgotten to bring any bread; and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. And he cautioned them, saying, ?Watch out?beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.? They said to one another, ?It is because we have no bread.? And becoming aware of it, Jesus said to them, ?Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?? They said to him, ?Twelve.? ?And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?? And they said to him, ?Seven.? Then he said to them, ?Do you not yet understand?? They came to Bethsaida. Some people brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when he had put saliva on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, ?Can you see anything?? And the man looked up and said, ?I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.? Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. Then he sent him away to his home, saying, ?Do not even go into the village.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Baptizing God, you have plunged us into the waters as death to sin and have raised us to be alive to you in joy and service. For all whose eager and resolute living in you makes them saints to us: We thank you, Lord. For the community made holy in Christ, the living and the dead, the near and the far away: We thank you, Lord. For an awareness of our kinship to holy and just men and women: We thank you, Lord. For reminding us that perfection in you is a journey of consistent love to you and to others: We thank you, Lord. For sustaining us in the faithful use of means of grace, that we may resolve to live in your love and peace: We thank you, Lord. God of truth, protector of your people, come to the aid of all who are poor and oppressed. By the power of your life-giving Word lead us in the ways of peace and integrity, and give us the help we long for in Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen. God of truth, whose servant Janani Luwum walked in the light, and in his death defied the powers of darkness: free us from fear of those who kill the body, that we too may walk as children of light, through him who overcame darkness by the power of the cross, 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. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and the first collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The second collect is from _Common Worship: Services and Prayers for the Church of England_, material from which is included in this service is copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2000. The Church in Uganda began with the deaths of martyrs (the Martyrs of Uganda, 3 June 1886, and James Hannington and his Companions, Martyrs, 29 October 1885). Around 1900, Uganda became a British protectorate, with the chief of the Buganda tribe as nominal ruler, and with several other tribes included in the protectorate. In 1962 Uganda became an independent country within the British Commonwealth, with the Bugandan chief as president and Milton Obote, of the Lango tribe, as Prime Minister. In 1966, Obote took full control of the government. In 1971, he was overthrown by General Idi Amin, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces. Almost immediately, he began a policy of repression, arresting anyone suspected of not supporting him. Hundreds of soldiers from the Lango and Acholi tribes were shot down in their barracks. Amin ordered the expulsion of the Asian population of Uganda, about 55,000 persons, mostly small shopkeepers from India and Pakistan. Over the next few years, many Christians were killed for various offenses. A preacher who read over the radio a Psalm which mentioned Israel was shot for this in 1972. Early in 1977, there was a small army rebellion that was put down with only seven men dead. However, Amin determined to stamp out all traces of dissent. His men killed thousands, including the entire population of Milton Obote's home village. On Sunday, 30 January, Bishop Festo Kivengere preached on "The Preciousness of Life" to an audience including many high government officials. He denounced the arbitrary bloodletting, and accused the government of abusing the authority that God had entrusted to it. The government responded on the following Saturday (5 February) by an early (1:30am) raid on the home of the Archbishop, Janani Luwum, ostensibly to search for hidden stores of weapons. The Archbishop called on President Amin to deliver a note of protest at the policies of arbitrary killings and the unexplained disappearances of many persons. Amin accused the Archbishop of treason, produced a document supposedly by former President Obote attesting his guilt, and had the Archbishop and two Cabinet members (both committed Christians) arrested and held for military trial. The three met briefly with four other prisoners who were awaiting execution, and were permitted to pray with them briefly. Then the three were placed in a Land Rover and not seen alive again by their friends. The government story is that one of the prisoners tried to seize control of the vehicle and that it was wrecked and the passengers killed. The story believed by the Archbishop's supporters is that he refused to sign a confession, was beaten and otherwise abused, and finally shot. His body was placed in a sealed coffin and sent to his native village for burial there. However, the villagers opened the coffin and discovered the bullet holes. In the capital city of Kampala a crowd of about 4,500 gathered for a memorial service beside the grave that had been prepared for him next to that of the martyred bishop Hannington. In Nairobi, the capital of nearby Kenya, about 10,000 gathered for another memorial service. Bishop Kivengere was informed that he was about to be arrested, and he and his family fled to Kenya, as did the widow and orphans of Archbishop Luwum. The following June, about 25,000 Ugandans came to the capital to celebrate the centennial of the first preaching of the Gospel in their country, among the participants were many who had abandoned Christianity, but who had returned to their Faith as a result of seeing the courage of Archbishop Luwum and his companions in the face of death.[James Kiefer] From steve.benner at oremus.org Tue Feb 17 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 18 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090217170000.A3911313C77@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Wednesday, February 18, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 13 How long, O Lord; will you forget me for ever?* how long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I have perplexity in my mind, and grief in my heart, day after day?* how long shall my enemy triumph over me? Look upon me and answer me, O Lord my God;* give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death; Lest my enemy say, 'I have prevailed over him',* and my foes rejoice that I have fallen. But I put my trust in your mercy;* my heart is joyful because of your saving help. I will sing to the Lord, for he has dealt with me richly;* I will praise the name of the Lord Most High. Psalm 14 The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'* All are corrupt and commit abominable acts; there is none who does any good. The Lord looks down from heaven upon us all,* to see if there is any who is wise, if there is one who seeks after God. Everyone has proved faithless; all alike have turned bad;* there is none who does good; no, not one. Have they no knowledge, all those evildoers* who eat up my people like bread and do not call upon the Lord? See how they tremble with fear,* because God is in the company of the righteous. Their aim is to confound the plans of the afflicted,* but the Lord is their refuge. O that Israel's deliverance would come out of Zion!* when the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, Jacob will rejoice and Israel be glad. A Song of Judith (Judith 16.1316) I will sing a new song to my God, for you are great and glorious, truly strong and invincible. May your whole creation serve you, for you spoke and all things came to be. You sent forth your Spirit and they were formed, for no one can resist your voice. Mountains and seas are stirred to their depths; at your presence rocks shall melt like wax. But to those who fear you, you continue to show mercy. No sacrifice, however fragrant, can please you, but whoever fears the Lord shall stand in your sight for ever. Psalm 147:13-end Alleluia! Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem;* praise your God, O Zion; For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;* he has blessed your children within you. He has established peace on your borders;* he satisfies you with the finest wheat. He sends out his command to the earth,* and his word runs very swiftly. He gives snow like wool;* he scatters hoarfrost like ashes. He scatters his hail like bread crumbs;* who can stand against his cold? He sends forth his word and melts them;* he blows with his wind and the waters flow. He declares his word to Jacob,* his statutes and his judgements to Israel. He has not done so to any other nation;* to them he has not revealed his judgements. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 9:8-17]: Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, ?As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.? God said, ?This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.? God said to Noah, ?This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.? HYMN Words: George Conder (1821-1874) Meter: 77 77 77 All things praise Thee, Lord most high, heaven and earth and sea and sky, all were for Thy glory made, that Thy greatness, thus displayed, should all worship bring to Thee; all things praise Thee: Lord, may we. All things praise Thee: night to night sings in silent hymns of light; all things praise Thee: day to day chants Thy power in burning ray; Time and space are praising Thee; all things praise Thee: Lord, may we. All things praise Thee, high and low, rain and dew, and seven-hued bow, crimson sunset, fleecy cloud, rippling stream, and tempest loud, summer, winter, - all to Thee glory render: Lord, may we. All things praise Thee: heaven's high shrine rings with melody divine; lowly bending at Thy feet, seraph and archangel meet; This their highest bliss, to be ever praising: Lord, may we. All things praise thee; round her zones earth, with her ten thousand tones, rolls a ceaseless choral strain; roaring wind and deep-voiced main, rustling leaf and humming bee, all things praise thee: Lord, may we. All things praise Thee: gracious Lord, great Creator, powerful Word, omnipresent Spirit, now at Thy feet we humbly bow, lift our hearts in praise to Thee; All things praise Thee: Lord, may we. Copied from HymnQuest 2009: Standard Version HymnQuest ID: 50377 SECOND READING []: Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, ?Who do people say that I am?? And they answered him, ?John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.? He asked them, ?But who do you say that I am?? Peter answered him, ?You are the Messiah.? And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. ?Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ?Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.? He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ?If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.? And he said to them, ?Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Earth-shaking, sky-rumbling, all-powerful Trinity: Behold your Church. We thank you for claiming for yourself servants from every nation and time to be a royal priest dedicated to your service. Lord of glory, send us out to do the work you have given us to do. We thank you for our common vocation of giving witness to your coming reign. Lord of glory, send us out to do the work you have given us to do. Sift us like wheat, convert the catechumens, turn homeward the penitents and welcome those who are strangers. Lord of glory, send us out to do the work you have given us to do. Clothe your Church with words and deeds that free and heal. Lord of glory, come in your might. Light our lamps with the oil of your Spirit. Lord of glory, come in your might. Make us and all your Church vigilant and alert for your knocking on doors. Lord of glory, come in your might. Loving and merciful God, hear the prayers of those who cry to you, and shine with the light of your presence on those who live in the shadow of death. May we rejoice in your saving help and sing you songs of praise in the Name of our risen Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. From steve.benner at oremus.org Wed Feb 18 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Wed, 18 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 19 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090218170001.2CA55313C78@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Thursday, February 19, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 17 Hear my plea of innocence, O Lord; give heed to my cry;* listen to my prayer, which does not come from lying lips. Let my vindication come forth from your presence;* let your eyes be fixed on justice. Weigh my heart, summon me by night,* melt me down; you will find no impurity in me. I give no offence with my mouth as others do;* I have heeded the words of your lips. My footsteps hold fast to the ways of your law;* in your paths my feet shall not stumble. I call upon you, O God, for you will answer me;* incline your ear to me and hear my words. Show me your marvellous lovingkindness,* O Saviour of those who take refuge at your right hand from those who rise up against them. Keep me as the apple of your eye;* hide me under the shadow of your wings, >From the wicked who assault me,* from my deadly enemies who surround me. They have closed their heart to pity,* and their mouth speaks proud things. They press me hard, now they surround me,* watching how they may cast me to the ground, Like a lion, greedy for its prey,* and like a young lion lurking in secret places. Arise, O Lord; confront them and bring them down;* deliver me from the wicked by your sword. Deliver me, O Lord, by your hand* from those whose portion in life is this world; Whose bellies you fill with your treasure,* who are well supplied with children and leave their wealth to their little ones. But at my vindication I shall see your face;* when I awake, I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness. A Song of Baruch (Baruch 5.5,6c,79) Arise, O Jerusalem, stand upon the height: look to the east and see your children, Gathered from the west and the east at the word of the Holy One. They rejoice that God has remembered them and has brought them back to you. For God has ordered that every high mountain and the everlasting hills be made low, And the valleys filled up to make level ground so that they may walk safely in the glory of God. The woods and every fragrant tree have shaded them at God(s command. For God will lead his people with joy in the light of his glory with the mercy and righteousness that comes from God. Psalm 148 Alleluia! Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise him in the heights. Praise him, all you angels of his;* praise him, all his host. Praise him, sun and moon;* praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, heaven of heavens,* and you waters above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord;* for he commanded and they were created. He made them stand fast for ever and ever;* he gave them a law which shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth,* you seamonsters and all deeps; Fire and hail, snow and fog,* tempestuous wind, doing his will; Mountains and all hills,* fruit trees and all cedars; Wild beasts and all cattle,* creeping things and winged birds; Kings of the earth and all peoples,* princes and all rulers of the world; Young men and maidens,* old and young together. Let them praise the name of the Lord,* for his name only is exalted, his splendour is over earth and heaven. He has raised up strength for his people and praise for all his loyal servants,* the children of Israel, a people who are near him. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 11:1-9]: Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, ?Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.? And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, ?Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.? The Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built. And the Lord said, ?Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another?s speech.? So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore it was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth. HYMN Words: Joachim Neander (1650-1680) paraphrased Robert Bridges (1844-1930) Tune: Michael, Meine Hoffnung stehet feste All my hope on God is founded; He doth still my trust renew. Me through change and chance he guideth, Only good and only true. God unknown, He alone Calls my heart to be his own. Pride of man and earthly glory, Sword and crown betray his trust; What with care and toil he buildeth, Tower and temple, fall to dust. But God's power, Hour by hour, Is my temple and my tower. God's great goodness ay endureth, Deep his wisdom, passing thought: Splendour, light, and life attend him, Beauty springeth out of nought. Evermore, >From his store New-born worlds rise and adore. Daily doth the almighty giver Bounteous gifts on us bestow; His desire our soul delighteth, Pleasure leads us where we go. Love doth stand At his hand; Joy doth wait on his command. Still from man to God eternal Sacrifice of praise be done, High above all praises praising For the gift of Christ his Son. Christ doth call One and all: Ye who follow shall not fall. SECOND READING [Mark 9:2-13]: Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, ?Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.? He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, ?This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!? Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead could mean. Then they asked him, ?Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?? He said to them, ?Elijah is indeed coming first to restore all things. How then is it written about the Son of Man, that he is to go through many sufferings and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written about him.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Foundation of all that is, you are our dwelling place for all time. For what you have wrought through the waters of baptism and your indwelling Spirit: We praise you, Lord. For the peace and strength of your surrounding mercy: We praise you, Lord. For all the ways your grace has shaped the patterns of our lives: We praise you, Lord. Free us and all your church to be at home with you today. Strong God, hear us. Make our hearts hospitable to all whom we meet today. Strong God, hear us. Steady in us all our choices and encounters. Strong God, hear us. Hold tenderly to your Church, east, west, north, south, past, present and future for Christ(s sake. Strong God, hear us. O Lord Jesus, let not your word become a judgment upon us, lest we hear it and do not do it, or believe it and do not obey it. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The collect is by Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471) From steve.benner at oremus.org Thu Feb 19 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 20 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090219170000.E2E27313C29@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Friday, February 20, 2009 William Grant Broughton, First Bishop of Australia, 1853 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 6 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger;* do not punish me in your wrath. Have pity on me, Lord, for I am weak;* heal me, Lord, for my bones are racked. My spirit shakes with terror;* how long, O Lord, how long? Turn, O Lord, and deliver me;* save me for your mercy's sake. For in death no one remembers you;* and who will give you thanks in the grave? I grow weary because of my groaning;* every night I drench my bed and flood my couch with tears. My eyes are wasted with grief* and worn away because of all my enemies. Depart from me, all evildoers,* for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping. The Lord has heard my supplication;* the Lord accepts my prayer. All my enemies shall be confounded and quake with fear;* they shall turn back and suddenly be put to shame. Psalm 26 Give judgement for me, O Lord, for I have lived with integrity;* I have trusted in the Lord and have not faltered. Test me, O Lord, and try me;* examine my heart and my mind. For your love is before my eyes;* I have walked faithfully with you. I have not sat with the worthless,* nor do I consort with the deceitful. I have hated the company of evildoers;* I will not sit down with the wicked. I will wash my hands in innocence, O Lord,* that I may go in procession round your altar, Singing aloud a song of thanksgiving* and recounting all your wonderful deeds. Lord, I love the house in which you dwell* and the place where your glory abides. Do not sweep me away with sinners,* nor my life with those who thirst for blood, Whose hands are full of evil plots,* and their right hand full of bribes. As for me, I will live with integrity;* redeem me, O Lord, and have pity on me. My foot stands on level ground;* in the full assembly I will bless the Lord. A Song of Repentance (1 John 1. 59) This is the message we have heard from Christ and proclaim to you: that God is light, in whom there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with God while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true. But if we walk in the light as God is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. And the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, cleanses us from all our sins. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, the One who is faithful and just will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Psalm 149 Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song;* sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful. Let Israel rejoice in his maker;* let the children of Zion be joyful in their king. Let them praise his name in the dance;* let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people* and adorns the poor with victory. Let the faithful rejoice in triumph;* let them be joyful on their beds. Let the praises of God be in their throat* and a twoedged sword in their hand; To wreak vengeance on the nations* and punishment on the peoples; To bind their kings in chains* and their nobles with links of iron; To inflict on them the judgement decreed;* this is glory for all his faithful people. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 11:27-12:8]: Now these are the descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans. Abram and Nahor took wives; the name of Abram?s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor?s wife was Milcah. She was the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. Now Sarai was barren; she had no child. Terah took his son Abram and his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram?s wife, and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran, they settled there. The days of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran. Now the Lord said to Abram, ?Go from your country and your kindred and your father?s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.? So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. Abram took his wife Sarai and his brother?s son Lot, and all the possessions that they had gathered, and the persons whom they had acquired in Haran; and they set forth to go to the land of Canaan. When they had come to the land of Canaan, Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. Then the Lord appeared to Abram, and said, ?To your offspring I will give this land.? So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. From there he moved on to the hill country on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and invoked the name of the Lord. HYMN Words: Sydney Carter (1915-2004) ? 1971 Stainer & Bell Ltd. Used with permission. Tune: Southcote One more step along the world I go, One more step along the world I go. >From the old things to the new Keep me travelling along with you. And it's from the old I travel to the new. Keep me travelling along with you. Round the corners of the world I turn, More and more about the world I learn. All the new things that I see You'll be looking at along with me. Chorus As I travel through the bad and good Keep me travelling the way I should. Where I see no way to go You'll be telling me the way, I know. Chorus Give me courage when the world is rough, Keep me loving though the world is tough. Leap and sing in all I do, Keep me travelling along with you. Chorus You are older than the world can be, You are younger than the life in me. Ever old and ever new, Keep me travelling along with you. Chorus SECOND READING [Mark 9:14-29]: When Jesus, with Peter and James and John, came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. When the whole crowd saw him, they were immediately overcome with awe, and they ran forward to greet him. He asked them, ?What are you arguing about with them?? Someone from the crowd answered him, ?Teacher, I brought you my son; he has a spirit that makes him unable to speak; and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, but they could not do so.? He answered them, ?You faithless generation, how much longer must I be among you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him to me.? And they brought the boy to him. When the spirit saw him, immediately it threw the boy into convulsions, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the father, ?How long has this been happening to him?? And he said, ?From childhood. It has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you are able to do anything, have pity on us and help us.? Jesus said to him, ?If you are able!?All things can be done for the one who believes.? Immediately the father of the child cried out, ?I believe; help my unbelief!? When Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ?You spirit that keep this boy from speaking and hearing, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again!? After crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, ?He is dead.? But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he was able to stand. When he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, ?Why could we not cast it out?? He said to them, ?This kind can come out only through prayer.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Planting God, how beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news. Around your table we are bound together as your Body for the life of the world. Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Deliver us from impatience that will not wait for fruit to ripen: Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Save us from forcing others to see what we see and embrace what we embrace: Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Liberate us from anger rooted in self-justification: Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Fix our gaze upon you so that we are not overwhelmed by the want and failure of others: Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Sow yourself in our words and deeds that become food for hungry souls: Grant us a grower(s wisdom, O Lord. Merciful God, you know our anguish, not from afar, but in the suffering of Jesus Christ. Take all our grieving and sorrow, all our pain and tears, and heal us for the sake of our deliverer, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. Everlasting God, your messengers have carried the Good News of Christ to the ends of the earth: grant that we who remember William Grant Broughton and the builders of your Church in Australia may know the truth of the Gospel in our hearts and build upon the foundations they have laid; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit one God, now and for ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The second collect is adapted from a prayer in _A Prayer Book for Australia_, (c) 1995, The Anglican Church of Australia Trust Corporation. When the English first settled Australia in the eighteenth century, they established churches under the authority of the Bishop of London. Over the next two centuries the Anglican Church of Australia gradually moved towards independence from England. In 1814, responsibility for British subjects in Australia passed from the Bishop of London to the new Bishop of Calcutta, and in 1836 Australia was recognized as a diocese with its own bishop, William Grant Broughton. With this new recognition of the diocese of Australia came a time of great religious expansion and church building. By 1847 this expansion had become so great that Australia was split into separate dioceses of Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Newcastle, each with their own bishops. Broughton was named the first Bishop of Sydney. As Australia's population and church grew, new dioceses continued to be formed. Five provinces of the church were established, each containing several dioceses. From steve.benner at oremus.org Fri Feb 20 19:16:37 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:16:37 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 21 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090220191637.72733313C59@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Saturday, February 21, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, O God, you lead us to the waters of refreshment and new life through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. He calls us to leave behind the dusty desert of withered hopes and dreams to become a spring of faith that others may come near to the stream of life. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 93 The Lord is king; he has put on splendid apparel;* the Lord has put on his apparel and girded himself with strength. He has made the whole world so sure* that it cannot be moved; Ever since the world began, your throne has been established;* you are from everlasting. The waters have lifted up, O Lord, the waters have lifted up their voice;* the waters have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the sound of many waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea,* mightier is the Lord who dwells on high. Your testimonies are very sure,* and holiness adorns your house, O Lord, for ever and for evermore. Psalm 98 Sing to the Lord a new song,* for he has done marvellous things. With his right hand and his holy arm* has he won for himself the victory. The Lord has made known his victory;* his righteousness has he openly shown in the sight of the nations. He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel,* and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God. Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands;* lift up your voice, rejoice and sing. Sing to the Lord with the harp,* with the harp and the voice of song. With trumpets and the sound of the horn* shout with joy before the King, the Lord. Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it,* the lands and those who dwell therein. Let the rivers clap their hands,* and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord, when he comes to judge the earth. In righteousness shall he judge the world,* and the peoples with equity. A Song of the Righteous (Wisdom 3.1,2a,3b8) The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish, they seem to have died; but they are at peace. For though, in the sight of others, they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy. Like gold in the furnace, God tried them and, like a sacrificial burnt offering, accepted them. In the time of their visitation, they will shine forth and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples and God will reign over them for ever. Psalm 150 Alleluia! Praise God in his holy temple;* praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts;* praise him for his excellent greatness. Praise him with the blast of the ram'shorn;* praise him with lyre and harp. Praise him with timbrel and dance;* praise him with strings and pipe. Praise him with resounding cymbals;* praise him with loudclanging cymbals. Let everything that has breath* praise the Lord. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 13:2, 5-18]: Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. Now Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them living together; for their possessions were so great that they could not live together, and there was strife between the herders of Abram?s livestock and the herders of Lot?s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites lived in the land. Then Abram said to Lot, ?Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herders and my herders; for we are kindred. Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.? Lot looked about him, and saw that the plain of the Jordan was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar; this was before the Lord had destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. So Lot chose for himself all the plain of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastwards; thus they separated from each other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the Plain and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the people of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord. The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, ?Raise your eyes now, and look from the place where you are, northwards and southwards and eastwards and westwards; for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring for ever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. Rise up, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.? So Abram moved his tent, and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron; and there he built an altar to the Lord. HYMN Words: Yigaddel Elohim chay weyishtabach Daniel Ben Judah (14th century), Thomas Olivers (1725-1799) Tune: Leoni The God of Abraham praise who reigns enthroned above, Ancient of everlasting Days, and God of love: Jehovah, great I AM, by earth and heaven confest; I bow and bless the sacred name for ever blest. The God of Abraham praise, at whose supreme command from earth I rise, and seek the joys at his right hand: I all on earth forsake, its wisdom, fame and power; and him our only portion make, our shield and tower. The God of Abraham praise, whose all-sufficient grace shall guide me all my happy days in all my ways. He calls a worm his friend, he calls himself my God; and he shall save me to the end through Jesu's blood. He by himself has sworn, I on his oath depend: I shall, on eagles' wings upborne, to heaven ascend; I shall behold his face, I shall his power adore and sing the wonders of his grace for evermore. Though nature's strength decay, and earth and hell withstand, to Canaan's bounds I urge my way at his command: the watery deep I pass, with Jesus in my view; and through the howling wilderness my way pursue. The goodly land I see, with peace and plenty blest: a land of sacred liberty and endless rest; there milk and honey flow, and oil and wine abound, and trees of life for ever grow, with mercy crowned. There dwells the Lord our King, the Lord our Righteousness, triumphant o'er the world of sin, the Prince of Peace: on Sion's sacred height his kingdom he maintains, and glorious with his saints in light for ever reigns. He keeps his own secure, he guards them by his side,BR> arrays in garment white and pure his spotless Bride: with streams of sacred bliss, beneath serener skies, with all the fruits of Paradise, he still supplies. Before the great Three-One they all exulting stand, and tell the wonders he hath done through all their land: the listening spheres attend, and swell the growing fame, and sing in songs which never end the wondrous name. The God who reigns on high the great archangels sing, and 'Holy, Holy, Holy.' cry, 'almighty King, who was, and is the same, and evermore shall be: Jehovah, Father, great I AM, we worship thee.' Before the Saviour's face the ransomed nations bow, o'erwhelmed at his almighty grace for ever new; he shows his prints of love- they kindle to a flame, and sound through all the worlds above the slaughtered Lamb. The whole triumphant host give thanks to God on high; 'hail, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost', they ever cry: hail, Abraham's God, and mine, (I join the heavenly lays) all might and majesty are thine, and endless praise. SECOND READING [Mark 9:30-37]: Jesus and his disciples went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ?The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.? But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him. Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, ?What were you arguing about on the way?? But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ?Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.? Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ?Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: God of the Covenant, we are your people through your grace in baptism. Added one by one to your Church, you bind us together in repentance and true profession of faith: We are reborn by water and the Spirit. Accustomed to preserving our selfish autonomy, you call us to a life of mutual oversight and shared mission. We are reborn by water and the Spirit. Teach us to see each other as sisters and brothers who share a common birth and a family table: We are reborn by water and the Spirit. Show us ways to support one another that our faith is increased, our hope confirmed and our love perfected. We are reborn by water and the Spirit. Offer through your Church hospitality to those seeking Christ and hope. We are reborn by water and the Spirit. O God, mindful of your promises, you have visited and redeemed your people: as we rejoice in the power of your victory, so hasten the day of your appearing; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Call us now and we shall awaken, call us now by name and we shall arise. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is by Stephen Benner and uses some images from a hymn by Thomas Troeger. The closing prayer is by Stephen Benner and uses some phrases from a song by Marty Haugen. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. From steve.benner at oremus.org Sat Feb 21 22:40:04 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2009 22:40:04 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 22 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090221224004.51556313DAF@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Sunday, February 22, 2009 The Last Sunday after Epiphany Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, God of majesty, you brought light out of darkness and set the sun to brighten the day. We thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, whose human body was transfigured on a lonely mountain. In his face, we have glimpsed your glory. In his life, we see your love. You lead us by the light of your truth into the way of righteousness and peace. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 103 Bless the Lord, O my soul,* and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,* and forget not all his benefits. He forgives all your sins* and heals all your infirmities; He redeems your life from the grave* and crowns you with mercy and lovingkindness; He satisfies you with good things,* and your youth is renewed like an eagle's. The Lord executes righteousness* and judgement for all who are oppressed. He made his ways known to Moses* and his works to the children of Israel. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,* slow to anger and of great kindness. He will not always accuse us,* nor will he keep his anger for ever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins,* nor rewarded us according to our wickedness. For as the heavens are high above the earth,* so is his mercy great upon those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west,* so far has he removed our sins from us. As a father cares for his children,* so does the Lord care for those who fear him. For he himself knows whereof we are made;* he remembers that we are but dust. Our days are like the grass;* we flourish like a flower of the field; When the wind goes over it, it is gone,* and its place shall know it no more. But the merciful goodness of the Lord endures for ever on those who fear him,* and his righteousness on children's children; On those who keep his covenant* and remember his commandments and do them. The Lord has set his throne in heaven,* and his kingship has dominion over all. Bless the Lord, you angels of his, you mighty ones who do his bidding,* and hearken to the voice of his word. Bless the Lord, all you his hosts,* you ministers of his who do his will. Bless the Lord, all you works of his, in all places of his dominion;* bless the Lord, O my soul. A Song of Divine Love (1 Corinthians 13.413) Love is patient and kind, love is not jealous or boastful, it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way, it is not angry or resentful. It does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth. Love bears all things and believes all things; love hopes all things and endures all things. Love will never come to an end, but prophecy will vanish, tongues cease and knowledge pass away. Now we know only in part and we prophesy only in part, But when the perfect comes, the partial shall pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became mature, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see only puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. There are three things that last for ever, faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love. Psalm 117 Alleluia! Praise the Lord, all you nations;* laud him, all you peoples. For his lovingkindness towards us is great,* and the faithfulness of the Lord endures for ever. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Wisdom 7:7-14]: Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me; I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. I preferred her to sceptres and thrones, and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her. Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem, because all gold is but a little sand in her sight, and silver will be accounted as clay before her. I loved her more than health and beauty, and I chose to have her rather than light, because her radiance never ceases. All good things came to me along with her, and in her hands uncounted wealth. I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them; but I did not know that she was their mother. I learned without guile and I impart without grudging; I do not hide her wealth, for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals; those who get it obtain friendship with God, commended for the gifts that come from instruction. HYMN Words: Anonymous Tune: Chapel Royal (886 D) Spirit of wisdom, turn our eyes >From earth and earthly vanities To heavenly truth and love; Spirit of understanding true, Our souls with heavenly light endue To seek the things above. Spirit of counsel, be our guide; Teach us, by earthly struggles tried, Our heavenly crown to win; Spirit of fortitude, thy power Be with us in temptation's hour, To keep us pure from sin. Spirit of knowledge, lead our feet In thine own paths, so safe and sweet, By angel footsteps trod; Where thou our guardian true shalt be, Spirit of gentle piety, To keep us close to God. Through all our life be ever near, Spirit of God's most holy fear, In our heart's inmost shrine; Our souls with aweful reverence fill, To worship his most holy will, All-righteous and divine. So lead us, Lord, through peace or strife, Onward to everlasting life, To win our high reward: So may we fight our lifelong fight, Strong in thine own unearthly might, And reign with Christ our Lord. SECOND READING [John 15:1-17]: Jesus said, ?I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father?s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. ?This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one?s life for one?s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Let us bring our concerns before the Lord who hears our prayers. We pray, on this national day of mourning in Australia, for all who have been affected by the recent bush fires: that the bereaved would be comforted and that those who have lost their homes would receive the support they need to rebuild their lives. We pray for the current situation in Madagascar: that there would be a peaceful solution to the problems there and that order would be restored without any further loss of life. We pray for all those who have lost their jobs in the current recession: that they would receive help and support and that, even as they face an uncertain future, they would know the peace of God. We pray for all world leaders at this difficult time: that they would have wisdom in dealing with the current economic crisis. We pray for teachers and all those employed in educating, and caring for, children: that they would find renewed strength and enthusiasm as they do this important work. Heavenly Father, we pray these things through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. O God, glorious and faithful, to those who seek you with a sincere heart you reveal the beauty of your face: Strengthen us in faith to embrace the mystery of the cross, and open our hearts to its transfiguring power; that, clinging in love to your will for us, we may walk the path of discipleship as followers of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Transform us into the likeness of Jesus Christ, that we may live for you, as he lived, and love others, as he loved them. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers in _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. From steve.benner at oremus.org Sun Feb 22 21:40:45 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sun, 22 Feb 2009 21:40:45 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 23 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090222214045.174B6313CE7@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Monday, February 23, 2009 Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, Martyr, c.155 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, God of majesty, you brought light out of darkness and set the sun to brighten the day. We thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, whose human body was transfigured on a lonely mountain. In his face, we have glimpsed your glory. In his life, we see your love. You lead us by the light of your truth into the way of righteousness and peace. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 18:1-20 I love you, O Lord my strength,* O Lord my stronghold, my crag and my haven. My God, my rock in whom I put my trust,* my shield, the horn of my salvation and my refuge; you are worthy of praise. I will call upon the Lord,* and so shall I be saved from my enemies. The breakers of death rolled over me,* and the torrents of oblivion made me afraid. The cords of hell entangled me,* and the snares of death were set for me. I called upon the Lord in my distress* and cried out to my God for help. He heard my voice from his heavenly dwelling;* my cry of anguish came to his ears. The earth reeled and rocked;* the roots of the mountains shook; they reeled because of his anger. Smoke rose from his nostrils and a consuming fire out of his mouth;* hot burning coals blazed forth from him. He parted the heavens and came down* with a storm cloud under his feet. He mounted on cherubim and flew;* he swooped on the wings of the wind. He wrapped darkness about him;* he made dark waters and thick clouds his pavilion. >From the brightness of his presence, through the clouds,* burst hailstones and coals of fire. The Lord thundered out of heaven;* the Most High uttered his voice. He loosed his arrows and scattered them;* he hurled thunderbolts and routed them. The beds of the seas were uncovered, and the foundations of the world laid bare,* at your battle cry, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils. He reached down from on high and grasped me;* he drew me out of great waters. He delivered me from my strong enemies and from those who hated me;* for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster;* but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into an open place;* he rescued me because he delighted in me. A Song of the Blessed (Matthew 5.310) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are those who suffer persecution for righteousness( sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Rejoice and be glad for you are the light of the world, and great is your reward in heaven. Psalm 146 Alleluia! Praise the Lord, O my soul!* I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth,* for there is no help in them. When they breathe their last, they return to earth,* and in that day their thoughts perish. Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!* whose hope is in the Lord their God; Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them;* who keeps his promise for ever; Who gives justice to those who are oppressed,* and food to those who hunger. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind;* the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous; the Lord cares for the stranger;* he sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way of the wicked. The Lord shall reign for ever,* your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 18:1-16]: The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. He said, ?My lord, if I find favour with you, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on?since you have come to your servant.? So they said, ?Do as you have said.? And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, ?Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.? Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate. They said to him, ?Where is your wife Sarah?? And he said, ?There, in the tent.? Then one said, ?I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.? And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ?After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?? The Lord said to Abraham, ?Why did Sarah laugh, and say, ?Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?? Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.? But Sarah denied, saying, ?I did not laugh?; for she was afraid. He said, ?Oh yes, you did laugh.? Then the men set out from there, and they looked towards Sodom; and Abraham went with them to set them on their way. HYMN Words: Shirley Erena Murray (c) Hope Publishing Co. Used with permission. Tune: Cambodia Stranger God, you come to us, knock on doors and ask for shelter, wash our feet with towel and water, teach us how to pray, heed what women say. Stranger with compassion's face, here you speak of love and healing, shout your anger, cry your feeling, show a God that's weak -- turn the other cheek. Stranger God, you come to us, unexpected, unprotected, in our body resurrected where our hope has died, hanging crucified. Strangest God of all you seem: though we mock you, or neglect you, never can we so reject you that you let us go -- love cannot say "No!" Stranger God, you come to us, Stranger God, you come to us. SECOND READING [Mark 9:38-end]: ?John said to Jesus, ?Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.? But Jesus said, ?Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward. ?If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell., And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. ?For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: High and holy God, robed in majesty, Lord of heaven and earth, we pray that you bring justice, faith and salvation to all peoples. Lord, hear us. Lord, graciously hear us. You chose us in Christ to be your people and to be the temple of your Holy Spirit; we pray that you will fill your Church with vision and hope. Lord, hear us. Lord, graciously hear us. Your Spirit enables us to cry, (Abba! Father!(, affirms that we are fellow-heirs with Christ and pleads for us in our weakness; we pray for all who are in need or distress. Lord, hear us. Lord, graciously hear us. In the baptism and birth of Jesus, you have opened heaven to us and enabled us to share in your glory: the joy of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from before the world was made. May your Church, living and departed, come to a joyful resurrection in your city of light. Lord, hear us. Lord, graciously hear us. Praise to you, God of our salvation; you come to our help and set us free. May your strength be our shield and your word be our lamp, that we may serve you with pure hearts and find victory through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Almighty God, who have to your servant Polycarp boldness to confess the name of our Savior Jesus Christ before the rulers of this world and courage to die for this faith: grant that we also may be ready to give an answer for the faith that is in us and to suffer gladly for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Transform us into the likeness of Jesus Christ, that we may live for you, as he lived, and love others, as he loved them. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers in _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The intercession is from _New Patterns for Worship_, copyright (c) The Archbishops( Council, 2002. Polycarp was Bishop of Smyrna (today known as Izmir), a city on the west coast of Turkey. The letters to the "seven churches in Asia" at the beginning of the book of Revelation include a letter to the church in Smyrna, identifying it as a church undergoing persecution. Polycarp is said to have known the Apostle John, and to have been instructed by him in the Christian faith. Polycarp, in his turn, was known to Irenaeus, who later became Bishop of Lyons in what is now France. We have (1) Irenaeus's brief memoir of Polycarp; (2) a letter to Polycarp from Ignatius of Antioch, written around 115 AD when Ignatius was passing through Turkey, being sent in chains to Rome to be put to death; (3) a letter from Polycarp to the church at Philippi, written at the same time; and (4) an account of the arrest, trial, conviction, and martyrdom of Polycarp, written after his death by one or more members of his congregation. Polycarp was denounced to the government, arrested, and tried on the charge of being a Christian. When the proconsul urged him to save his life by cursing Christ, he replied: "Eighty-six years I have served him, and he never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?" The magistrate was reluctant to kill a a gentle old man, but he had no choice. Polycarp was sentenced to be burned. As he waited for the fire to be lighted, he prayed: Lord God Almighty, Father of your blessed and beloved child Jesus Christ, through whom we have received knowledge of you, God of angels and hosts and all creation, and of the whole race of the upright who live in your presence: I bless you that you have thought me worthy of this day and hour, to be numbered among the martyrs and share in the cup of Christ, for resurrection to eternal life, for soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. Among them may I be accepted before you today, as a rich and acceptable sacrifice, just as you, the faithful and true God, have prepared and foreshown and brought about. For this reason and for all things I praise you, I bless you, I glorify you, through the eternal heavenly high priest Jesus Christ, your beloved child, through whom be glory to you, with him and the Holy Spirit, now and for the ages to come. Amen. The fire was then lit and shortly thereafter a soldier stabbed Polycarp to death by order of the magistrate. His friends gave his remains honorable burial, and wrote an account of his death to other churches. See the Penguin volume, Ancient Christian Writers. [James Kiefer] From steve.benner at oremus.org Mon Feb 23 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 24 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090223170001.06137313CDD@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Tuesday, February 24, 2009 Lord, open our lips, and our mouth shall proclaim your praise. Blessed are you, God of majesty, you brought light out of darkness and set the sun to brighten the day. We thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, whose human body was transfigured on a lonely mountain. In his face, we have glimpsed your glory. In his life, we see your love. You lead us by the light of your truth into the way of righteousness and peace. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 18:21-end The Lord rewarded me because of my righteous dealing;* because my hands were clean he rewarded me; For I have kept the ways of the Lord* and have not offended against my God; For all his judgements are before my eyes,* and his decrees I have not put away from me; For I have been blameless with him* and have kept myself from iniquity; Therefore the Lord rewarded me according to my righteous dealing,* because of the cleanness of my hands in his sight. With the faithful you show yourself faithful, O God;* with the forthright you show yourself forthright. With the pure you show yourself pure,* but with the crooked you are wily. You will save a lowly people,* but you will humble the haughty eyes. You, O Lord, are my lamp;* my God, you make my darkness bright. With you I will break down an enclosure;* with the help of my God I will scale any wall. As for God, his ways are perfect; the words of the Lord are tried in the fire;* he is a shield to all who trust in him. For who is God, but the Lord?* who is the rock, except our God? It is God who girds me about with strength* and makes my way secure. He makes me sure-footed like a deer* and lets me stand firm on the heights. He trains my hands for battle* and my arms for bending even a bow of bronze. You have given me your shield of victory;* your right hand also sustains me; your loving care makes me great. You lengthen my stride beneath me,* and my ankles do not give way. I pursue my enemies and overtake them;* I will not turn back till I have destroyed them. I strike them down and they cannot rise;* they fall defeated at my feet. You have girded me with strength for the battle;* you have cast down my adversaries beneath me; you have put my enemies to flight. I destroy those who hate me; they cry out, but there is none to help them;* they cry to the Lord, but he does not answer. I beat them small like dust before the wind;* I trample them like mud in the streets. You deliver me from the strife of the peoples;* you put me at the head of the nations. A people I have not known shall serve me; no sooner shall they hear than they shall obey me;* strangers will cringe before me. The foreign peoples will lose heart;* they shall come trembling out of their strongholds. The Lord lives! Blessed is my rock!* Exalted is the God of my salvation! He is the God who gave me victory* and cast down the peoples beneath me. You rescued me from the fury of my enemies; you exalted me above those who rose against me;* you saved me from my deadly foe; Therefore will I extol you among the nations, O Lord,* and sing praises to your name. He multiplies the victories of his king;* he shows loving-kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants for ever. A Song of Peace (Isaiah 2.35) Come, let us go up to the mountain of God, to the house of the God of Jacob; That God may teach us his ways, and that we may walk in his paths. For the law shall go out from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. God shall judge between the nations, and shall mediate for many peoples. They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. O people of Jacob, come: let us walk in the light of the Lord. Psalm 147:1-12 Alleluia! How good it is to sing praises to our God!* how pleasant it is to honour him with praise! The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;* he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted* and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars* and calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and mighty in power;* there is no limit to his wisdom. The Lord lifts up the lowly,* but casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;* make music to our God upon the harp. He covers the heavens with clouds* and prepares rain for the earth; He makes grass to grow upon the mountains* and green plants to serve us all. He provides food for flocks and herds* and for the young ravens when they cry. He is not impressed by the might of a horse,* he has no pleasure in human strength; But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him,* in those who await his gracious favour. Alleluia! FIRST READING [Genesis 18:20-end]: Then the Lord said, ?How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me; and if not, I will know.? So the men turned from there, and went towards Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the Lord. Then Abraham came near and said, ?Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?? And the Lord said, ?If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.? Abraham answered, ?Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?? And he said, ?I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.? Again he spoke to him, ?Suppose forty are found there.? He answered, ?For the sake of forty I will not do it.? Then he said, ?Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak. Suppose thirty are found there.? He answered, ?I will not do it, if I find thirty there.? He said, ?Let me take it upon myself to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.? He answered, ?For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.? Then he said, ?Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more. Suppose ten are found there.? He answered, ?For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.? And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place. HYMN Words: James Montgomery (1771-1854) Tune: Bangor, First Mode Melody (Tallis), Saint Hugh, Walsall, Windsor Lord, teach us how to pray aright, With reverence and with fear; Though dust and ashes in thy sight, We may, we must draw near. We perish if we cease from prayer; O grant us power to pray! And, when to meet thee we prepare, Lord, meet us by the way. Give deep humility; the sense Of godly sorrow give; A strong desiring confidence To hear thy voice and live: Faith in the only sacrifice That can for sin atone; To build our hopes, to fix our eyes, On Christ, on Christ alone; Patience to watch, and wait, and weep, Though mercy long delay; Courage, our fainting souls to keep, And trust thee, though thou slay. Give these, and then thy will be done: Thus strengthened with all might. We by thy Spirit and thy Son Shall pray, and pray aright. SECOND READING [Mark 10:1-16]: Jesus left that place and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan. And crowds again gathered around him; and, as was his custom, he again taught them. Some Pharisees came, and to test him they asked, ?Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?? He answered them, ?What did Moses command you?? They said, ?Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.? But Jesus said to them, ?Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation, ?God made them male and female.? ?For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.? Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. He said to them, ?Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.? People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, ?Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.? And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Baptizing God, you have plunged us into the waters as death to sin and have raised us to be alive to you in joy and service. For all whose eager and resolute living in you makes them saints to us: We thank you, Lord. For the community made holy in Christ, the living and the dead, the near and the far away: We thank you, Lord. For an awareness of our kinship to holy and just men and women: We thank you, Lord. For reminding us that perfection in you is a journey of consistent love to you and to others: We thank you, Lord. For sustaining us in the faithful use of means of grace, that we may resolve to live in your love and peace: We thank you, Lord. Lord, as we celebrate the end of festival time and the coming of the Lenten fast, may we be prepared to be joyful in our repentance and festive in our sharing of the Good News of the love shown to us in Jesus Christ. Amen. Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray as our Savior has taught us. - The Lord's Prayer Transform us into the likeness of Jesus Christ, that we may live for you, as he lived, and love others, as he loved them. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving and the closing sentence are adapted from prayers in _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The intercession is reprinted from _THE DAILY OFFICE: A Book of Hours of Daily Prayer after the Use of the Order of Saint Luke_, (c) 1997 by The Order of Saint Luke. Used by permission. The collect is (c) 2009 Stephen Benner. From steve.benner at oremus.org Tue Feb 24 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 25 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090224170000.D5B15313C7B@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Wednesday, February 25, 2009 Ash Wednesday O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us. Blessed are you, eternal God, creator and ruler of the universe. You are our God, and we are the creatures of your hand. You made us from the dust of the earth, breathed into us the breath of life, and set us in your world to love and serve you. When we rejected your love and ignored your wisdom. you did not reject us. You loved us still and call us again and again to turn to you in obedience and in love. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 32 Happy are they whose transgressions are forgiven,* and whose sin is put away! Happy are they to whom the Lord imputes no guilt,* and in whose spirit there is no guile! While I held my tongue, my bones withered away,* because of my groaning all day long. For your hand was heavy upon me day and night;* my moisture was dried up as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you,* and did not conceal my guilt. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the Lord';* then you forgave me the guilt of my sin. Therefore all the faithful will make their prayers to you in time of trouble;* when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach them. You are my hidingplace; you preserve me from trouble;* you surround me with shouts of deliverance. 'I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go;* I will guide you with my eye. 'Do not be like horse or mule, which have no understanding;* who must be fitted with bit and bridle, or else they will not stay near you.' Great are the tribulations of the wicked;* but mercy embraces those who trust in the Lord. Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord;* shout for joy, all who are true of heart. Psalm 143 Lord, hear my prayer, and in your faithfulness heed my supplications;* answer me in your righteousness. Enter not into judgement with your servant,* for in your sight shall no one living be justified. For my enemy has sought my life and has crushed me to the ground;* making me live in dark places like those who are long dead. My spirit faints within me;* my heart within me is desolate. I remember the time past; I muse upon all your deeds;* I consider the works of your hands. I spread out my hands to you;* my soul gasps to you like a thirsty land. O Lord, make haste to answer me; my spirit fails me;* do not hide your face from me or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. Let me hear of your lovingkindness in the morning, for I put my trust in you;* show me the road that I must walk, for I lift up my soul to you. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord,* for I flee to you for refuge. Teach me to do what pleases you, for you are my God;* let your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Revive me, O Lord, for your name's sake;* for your righteousness' sake, bring me out of trouble. The Song of Manasseh (Manasseh 1a,2,4,6,7a,b,9a,c,11,12,14b,15b) Lord almighty and God of our ancestors, you who made heaven and earth in all their glory: All things tremble with awe at your presence, before your great and mighty power. Immeasurable and unsearchable is your promised mercy, for you are God, Most High. You are full of compassion, longsuffering and very merciful, and you relent at human suffering. O God, according to your great goodness, you have promised forgiveness for repentance to those who have sinned against you. The sins I have committed against you are more in number than the sands of the sea. I am not worthy to look up to the height of heaven, because of the multitude of my iniquities. And now I bend the knee of my heart before you, imploring your kindness upon me. I have sinned, O God, I have sinned, and I acknowledge my transgressions. Unworthy as I am, you will save me, according to your great mercy. For all the host of heaven sings your praise, and your glory is for ever and ever. Psalm 147:13-end Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem;* praise your God, O Zion; For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;* he has blessed your children within you. He has established peace on your borders;* he satisfies you with the finest wheat. He sends out his command to the earth,* and his word runs very swiftly. He gives snow like wool;* he scatters hoarfrost like ashes. He scatters his hail like bread crumbs;* who can stand against his cold? He sends forth his word and melts them;* he blows with his wind and the waters flow. He declares his word to Jacob,* his statutes and his judgements to Israel. He has not done so to any other nation;* to them he has not revealed his judgements. FIRST READING [Isaiah 58:1-12]: Shout out, do not hold back! ???Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their rebellion, ???to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet day after day they seek me ???and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that practised righteousness ???and did not forsake the ordinance of their God; they ask of me righteous judgements, ???they delight to draw near to God. ?Why do we fast, but you do not?see? ???Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?? Look, you serve your own interest on your fast-day, ???and oppress all your workers. Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight ???and to strike with a wicked fist. Such fasting as you do today ???will not make your voice heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, ???a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, ???and to lie in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, ???a day acceptable to the Lord? Is not this the fast that I choose: ???to loose the bonds of injustice, ???to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, ???and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, ???and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover?them, ???and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, ???and your healing shall spring up?quickly; your vindicator shall go before?you, ???the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; ???you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among?you, ???the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry ???and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the?darkness ???and your gloom be like the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, ???and satisfy your needs in parched places, ???and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, ???like a spring of water, ???whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; ???you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, ???the restorer of streets to live in. HYMN Words: Carl P. Daw, Jr. (c) Hope Publishing Co. Used with permission. Tune: Southwell (Damon) Restore in us, O God, the splendor of your love; renew your image in our hearts, and all our sins remove. O Spirit, wake in us the wonder of your power; from fruitless fear unfurl our lives like springtime bud and flower. Bring us, O Christ, to share the fullness of your joy; baptize us in the risen life that death cannot destroy. Three-personed God, fulfill the promise of your grace, that we, when our searching ends, may see you face to face. SECOND READING [Hebrews 12:1-14]: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. ?Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children? ?My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, ???or lose heart when you are punished by him; for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, ???and chastises every child whom he accepts.? Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Let us bow before God, our Creator and Redeemer, and confess our sin. * Silence may be kept for reflection and self-examination. Almighty God, you alone are good and holy. Purify our lives and make us brave disciples. We do not ask you to keep us safe, but to keep us loyal, so we may serve Jesus Christ, who, tempted in every way as we are, was faithful to you. Amen. >From lack of reverence for truth and beauty; from a calculating or sentimental mind; from going along with mean and ugly things: O God, deliver us. >From cowardice that dares not face truth; laziness content with half-truth; or arrogance that thinks we know it all: O God, deliver us. >From artificial life and worship; from all that is hollow or insincere: O God, deliver us. >From trite ideals and cheap pleasures; from mistaking hard vulgarity for humor: O God, deliver us. >From being dull, pompous, or rude; from putting down our neighbors: O God, deliver us. >From cynicism about others; from intolerance or cruel indifference: O God, deliver us. >From being satisfied with things as they are, in the church or in the world; from failing to share you indignation about injustice: O God, deliver us. >From selfishness, self-indulgence, or self-pity: O God, deliver us. >From token concern for the poor, for lonely or loveless people; from confusing faith with good feeling, or love with wanting to be loved: O God, deliver us. For everything in us that may hide your light: O God, deliver us. Have mercy on your prodigal children, O God, and teach us to acknowledge our sinfulness, so that, in repentance, we may come to know your forgiveness which is the fulfilment of our life in your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Trusting in the compassion of God, let us pray as our Savior taught us: - The Lord's Prayer May the God of peace make us holy in every way and keep our whole being-- spirit, soul, and body-- free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms and collect are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is from _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The closing sentence is 1 Thessalonians 5:23, adapted. The litany of confession is from _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. From steve.benner at oremus.org Wed Feb 25 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 26 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090225170000.936B5313C5D@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Thursday, February 26, 2009 O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us. Blessed are you, eternal God, creator and ruler of the universe. You are our God, and we are the creatures of your hand. You made us from the dust of the earth, breathed into us the breath of life, and set us in your world to love and serve you. When we rejected your love and ignored your wisdom. you did not reject us. You loved us still and call us again and again to turn to you in obedience and in love. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 27 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear?* the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid? When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh,* it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who stumbled and fell. Though an army should encamp against me,* yet my heart shall not be afraid; And though war should rise up against me,* yet will I put my trust in him. One thing have I asked of the Lord; one thing I seek;* that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; To behold the fair beauty of the Lord* and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he shall keep me safe in his shelter;* he shall hide me in the secrecy of his dwelling and set me high upon a rock. Even now he lifts up my head* above my enemies round about me; Therefore I will offer in his dwelling an oblation with sounds of great gladness;* I will sing and make music to the Lord. Hearken to my voice, O Lord, when I call;* have mercy on me and answer me. You speak in my heart and say, 'Seek my face.'* Your face, Lord, will I seek. Hide not your face from me,* nor turn away your servant in displeasure. You have been my helper; cast me not away;* do not forsake me, O God of my salvation. Though my father and my mother forsake me,* the Lord will sustain me. Show me your way, O Lord;* lead me on a level path, because of my enemies. Deliver me not into the hand of my adversaries,* for false witnesses have risen up against me, and also those who speak malice. What if I had not believed that I should see the goodness of the Lord* in the land of the living! O tarry and await the Lord's pleasure; be strong and he shall comfort your heart;* wait patiently for the Lord. A Song of Repentance (1 John 1. 59) This is the message we have heard from Christ and proclaim to you: that God is light, in whom there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with God while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true. But if we walk in the light as God is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. And the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, cleanses us from all our sins. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, the One who is faithful and just will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Psalm 148 Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise him in the heights. Praise him, all you angels of his;* praise him, all his host. Praise him, sun and moon;* praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, heaven of heavens,* and you waters above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord;* for he commanded and they were created. He made them stand fast for ever and ever;* he gave them a law which shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth,* you seamonsters and all deeps; Fire and hail, snow and fog,* tempestuous wind, doing his will; Mountains and all hills,* fruit trees and all cedars; Wild beasts and all cattle,* creeping things and winged birds; Kings of the earth and all peoples,* princes and all rulers of the world; Young men and maidens,* old and young together. Let them praise the name of the Lord,* for his name only is exalted, his splendour is over earth and heaven. He has raised up strength for his people and praise for all his loyal servants,* the children of Israel, a people who are near him. FIRST READING [Genesis 19:1-3, 12-17, 24-28]: The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground. He said, ?Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant?s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way.? They said, ?No; we will spend the night in the square.? But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. Then the men said to Lot, ?Have you anyone else here? Sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone you have in the city?bring them out of the place. For we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry against its people has become great before the Lord, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.? So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, ?Up, get out of this place; for the Lord is about to destroy the city.? But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting. When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, ?Get up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or else you will be consumed in the punishment of the city.? But he lingered; so the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and left him outside the city. When they had brought them outside, they said, ?Flee for your life; do not look back or stop anywhere in the Plain; flee to the hills, or else you will be consumed.? Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulphur and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and he overthrew those cities, and all the Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But Lot?s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord; and he looked down towards Sodom and Gomorrah and towards all the land of the Plain, and saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of a furnace. HYMN Words: Charles Wesley (1707-1788) Meter: 66 66 88 (Suggested: Croft?s 136th, Darwall?s 148th, Christchurch, Old 136th) Ye ransomed souls draw near The throne of Christ, your Lord, And wait till He appear According to His word; Rejoice in hope, rejoice with me; We shall from all our sins be free. In God we put our trust: If we our sins confess, Faithful is He, and just >From all unrighteousness To cleanse us all, that gladly we May soon from all our sins be free. The word of God is sure, And never can remove; We shall in heart be pure, And perfected in love. Rejoice in hope, and claim with me That Christ from all our sins sets free. Then let us gladly bring Our sacrifice of praise, Let us give thanks and sing, And glory in His grace; Rejoice in hope, rejoice with me; We now from all our sins are free. SECOND READING [1 Corinthians 1:1-17]: Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind? just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you? so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you should be in agreement and that there should be no divisions among you, but that you should be united in the same mind and the same purpose. For it has been reported to me by Chloe?s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, ?I belong to Paul?, or ?I belong to Apollos?, or ?I belong to Cephas?, or ?I belong to Christ.? Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Lord, open a path for your Word To declare the mystery of Christ. Turn now, O God of hosts; Behold and tend the vine you have planted. May your people rejoice and sing, And your ministers be clothed with salvation. May they stand and feed your flock In the strength of your name. Keep from trouble all those who trust in you And forget not the poor for ever. Have mercy, O Lord, upon us, As we have put our hope in you. Inspire our actions, Lord, sustain them and grant them success; so that in you may be found the beginning and the end of everything we undertake. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Trusting in the compassion of God, let us pray as our Savior taught us: - The Lord's Prayer May the God of peace make us holy in every way and keep our whole being-- spirit, soul, and body-- free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is from _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The closing sentence is 1 Thessalonians 5:23, adapted. The collect is (c) Alan Griffiths. From steve.benner at oremus.org Thu Feb 26 17:00:01 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:00:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 27 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090226170001.1D59A313C30@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Friday, February 27, 2009 George Herbert, Priest, Poet, 1633 O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us. Blessed are you, eternal God, creator and ruler of the universe. You are our God, and we are the creatures of your hand. You made us from the dust of the earth, breathed into us the breath of life, and set us in your world to love and serve you. When we rejected your love and ignored your wisdom. you did not reject us. You loved us still and call us again and again to turn to you in obedience and in love. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 40 I waited patiently upon the Lord;* he stooped to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the desolate pit, out of the mire and clay;* he set my feet upon a high cliff and made my footing sure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;* many shall see and stand in awe and put their trust in the Lord. Happy are they who trust in the Lord!* they do not resort to evil spirits or turn to false gods. Great things are they that you have done, O Lord my God! how great your wonders and your plans for us!* there is none who can be compared with you. O that I could make them known and tell them!* but they are more than I can count. In sacrifice and offering you take no pleasure* you have given me ears to hear you; Burntoffering and sinoffering you have not required,* and so I said, 'Behold, I come. 'In the roll of the book it is written concerning me:* "I love to do your will, O my God; your law is deep in my heart."' I proclaimed righteousness in the great congregation;* behold, I did not restrain my lips; and that, O Lord, you know. Your righteousness have I not hidden in my heart; I have spoken of your faithfulness and your deliverance;* I have not concealed your love and faithfulness from the great congregation. You are the Lord; do not withhold your compassion from me;* let your love and your faithfulness keep me safe for ever, For innumerable troubles have crowded upon me; my sins have overtaken me and I cannot see;* they are more in number than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails me. Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me;* O Lord, make haste to help me. Let them be ashamed and altogether dismayed who seek after my life to destroy it;* let them draw back and be disgraced who take pleasure in my misfortune. Let those who say 'Aha!' and gloat over me be confounded,* because they are ashamed. Let all who seek you rejoice in you and be glad;* let those who love your salvation continually say, 'Great is the Lord!' Though I am poor and afflicted,* the Lord will have regard for me. You are my helper and my deliverer;* do not tarry, O my God. A Song of Christ the Servant 1 Peter 2.21b25 Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin, no guile was found on his lips, when he was reviled, he did not revile in turn. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but he trusted himself to God who judges justly. Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds, you have been healed, for you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. Psalm 149 Sing to the Lord a new song;* sing his praise in the congregation of the faithful. Let Israel rejoice in his maker;* let the children of Zion be joyful in their king. Let them praise his name in the dance;* let them sing praise to him with timbrel and harp. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people* and adorns the poor with victory. Let the faithful rejoice in triumph;* let them be joyful on their beds. Let the praises of God be in their throat* and a twoedged sword in their hand; To wreak vengeance on the nations* and punishment on the peoples; To bind their kings in chains* and their nobles with links of iron; To inflict on them the judgement decreed;* this is glory for all his faithful people. FIRST READING [Genesis 21:9-21]: 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. HYMN Words: George Herbert, 1633 Tune: Sandys, Carlisle Teach me, my God and King, in all things thee to see, and what I do in anything to do it as for thee. A man that looks on glass, on it may stay his eye; or if he pleaseth, through it pass, and then the heaven espy. All may of thee partake; nothing can be so mean, which with this tincture, "for thy sake," will not grow bright and clean. A servant with this clause makes drudgery divine: who sweeps a room, as for thy laws, makes that and the action fine. This is the famous stone that turneth all to gold; for that which God doth touch and own cannot for less be told. SECOND READING [1 Corinthians 1:18-end]: For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ?I will destroy the wisdom of the?wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.? Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God?s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God?s weakness is stronger than human strength. Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, ?Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.? The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: Teach us, O Lord, the way of your statutes: And lead us in the path of your commandments. Keep our nation under your care: And guide us in justice and truth. O Lord, deal graciously with your servants; teach us discernment and knowledge. Let not the needy be forgotten: Nor the hope of the poor be taken away. Guide the meek in judgement: And teach your ways to the gentle. Lord, remember your people: Whom you have purchased and redeemed of old. God of grace, you loved the world so much that you gave your only Son to be our Savior. Help us to rejoice in our salvation by showing mercy and truth, and by walking in the way of righteousness and peace. We ask this in his Name and for his sake. Amen. King of glory, King of peace, who called your servant George Herbert from the pursuit of worldly honours to be a priest in the temple of his God and King: grant us also the grace to offer ourselves with singleness of heart in humble obedience to your service; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Trusting in the compassion of God, let us pray as our Savior taught us: - The Lord's Prayer May the God of peace make us holy in every way and keep our whole being-- spirit, soul, and body-- free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is from _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The closing sentence is 1 Thessalonians 5:23, adapted. George Herbert was born in 1593, a cousin of the Earl of Pembroke. His mother was a friend of the poet John Donne. George attended Trinity College, Cambridge, and became the Public Orator of the University, responsible for giving speeches of welcome in Latin to famoous visitors, and writing letters of thanks, also in Latin, to acknowledge gifts of books for the University Library. This brought him to the attention of King James I, who granted him an annual allowance, and seemed likely to make him an ambassador. However, in 1625 the king died, and George Hebert, who had originally gone to college with the intention of becoming a priest, but had head turned by the prospect of a career at Court, determined anew to seek ordination. In 1626 he was ordained, and became vicar and then rector of the parish of Bemerton and neighboring Fugglestone, not far from Salisbury. He served faithfully as a parish priest, diligently visiting his parishioners and bringing them the sacraments when they were ill, and food and clothing when they were in want. He read Morning and Evening Prayer daily in the church, encouraging the congregation to join him when possible, and ringing the church bell before each service so that those who could not come might hear it and pause in their work to join their prayers with his. He used to go once a week to Salisbury to hear Evening Prayer sung there in the cathedral. On one occasion he was late because he had met a man whose horse had fallen with a heavy load, and he stopped, took off his coat, and helped the man to unload the cart, get the horse back on its feet, and then reload the cart. His spontaneous generosity and good will won him the affection of his parishioners. Today, however, he is remembered chiefly for his book of poems, The Temple, which he sent shortly before his death to his friend Nicholas Ferrar, to publish if he thought them suitable. They were published after Herbert's death, and have influenced the style of other poets, including Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Several of them have been used as hymns, in particular "Teach me, my God and King," and "Let all the world in every corner sing." Another of his poems contains the lines: Prayer, the Church's banquet, Angel's age, God's breath in man returning to his birth, The soul in paraphrase, the heart in pilgrimage, The Christian plummet sounding heav'n and earth. He also wrote a volume for parish clergy called A Priest to the Temple; or, The Country Parson. He died on 1 March 1633, but is commemorated two days earlier, to avoid conflict with other commemorations. From steve.benner at oremus.org Fri Feb 27 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 28 February 2009 Message-ID: <20090227170000.D95B3313C28@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Saturday, February 28, 2009 O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us. Blessed are you, eternal God, creator and ruler of the universe. You are our God, and we are the creatures of your hand. You made us from the dust of the earth, breathed into us the breath of life, and set us in your world to love and serve you. When we rejected your love and ignored your wisdom. you did not reject us. You loved us still and call us again and again to turn to you in obedience and in love. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 28 O Lord, I call to you; my rock, do not be deaf to my cry;* lest, if you do not hear me, I become like those who go down to the Pit. Hear the voice of my prayer when I cry out to you,* when I lift up my hands to your holy of holies. Do not snatch me away with the wicked or with the evildoers,* who speak peaceably with their neighbours, while strife is in their hearts. Repay them according to their deeds,* and according to the wickedness of their actions. According to the work of their hands repay them,* and give them their just deserts. They have no understanding of the Lord's doings, nor of the works of his hands;* therefore he will break them down and not build them up. Blessed is the Lord!* for he has heard the voice of my prayer. The Lord is my strength and my shield;* my heart trusts in him and I have been helped; Therefore my heart dances for joy,* and in my song will I praise him. The Lord is the strength of his people,* a safe refuge for his anointed. Save your people and bless your inheritance;* shepherd them and carry them for ever. A Song of Christ the Servant 1 Peter 2.21b25 Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin, no guile was found on his lips, when he was reviled, he did not revile in turn. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but he trusted himself to God who judges justly. Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds, you have been healed, for you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. Psalm 150 Praise God in his holy temple;* praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts;* praise him for his excellent greatness. Praise him with the blast of the ram'shorn;* praise him with lyre and harp. Praise him with timbrel and dance;* praise him with strings and pipe. Praise him with resounding cymbals;* praise him with loudclanging cymbals. Let everything that has breath* praise the Lord. FIRST READING [Genesis 22:1-14, 19]: After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, ?Abraham!? And he said, ?Here I am.? He said, ?Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt-offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you.? So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt-offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away. Then Abraham said to his young men, ?Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go over there; we will worship, and then we will come back to you.? Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. Isaac said to his father Abraham, ?Father!? And he said, ?Here I am, my son.? He said, ?The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt-offering?? Abraham said, ?God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt-offering, my son.? So the two of them walked on together. When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, ?Abraham, Abraham!? And he said, ?Here I am.? He said, ?Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.? And Abraham looked up and saw a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt-offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place ?The Lord will provide?; as it is said to this day, ?On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.? So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham lived at Beer-sheba. HYMN Words: John Newton (1725-1807) Meter: 5 5. 5 5. 6 5. 6 5 Tune: Old 104th, Paderborn, Spetisbury, Houghton, Laudate Dominum (Gauntlett) Begone, unbelief; my Saviour is near, and for my relief will surely appear; by prayer let me wrestle, and he will perform; with Christ in the vessel, I smile at the storm. Though dark be my way, since he is my guide, 'tis mine to obey, 'tis his to provide; though cisterns be broken and creatures all fail, the word he has spoken shall surely prevail. His love in time past forbids me to think he'll leave me at last in trouble to sink; while each Ebenezer I have in review confirms his good pleasure to help me quite through. Why should I complain of want or distress, temptation or pain? He told me no less; the heirs of salvation, I know from his word, through much tribulation must follow their Lord. How bitter that cup, no heart can conceive, which he drank right up that sinners might live; his way was much rougher and darker than mine; did Jesus thus suffer, and shall I repine? Since all that I meet shall work for my good, the bitter is sweet, the med'cine is food; though painful at present, 'twill cease before long; and then, O how pleasant the conqueror's song! SECOND READING [1 Corinthians 2]: When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God. Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish. But we speak God?s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But, as it is written, ?What no eye has seen, nor ear?heard, ???nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him?? these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one comprehends what is truly God?s except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. And we speak of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual. Those who are unspiritual do not receive the gifts of God?s Spirit, for they are foolishness to them, and they are unable to understand them because they are discerned spiritually. Those who are spiritual discern all things, and they are themselves subject to no one else?s scrutiny. ?For who has known the mind of?the?Lord ???so as to instruct him?? But we have the mind of Christ. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: O Lord, answer us in the day of trouble, Send us help from your holy place. Show us the path of life, For in your presence is joy. Give justice to the orphan and oppressed And break the power of wickedness and evil. Look upon the hungry and sorrowful And grant them the help for which they long. Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad; May your glory endure for ever. Your kingship has dominion over all And with you is our redemption. Hear us, Shepherd of your people, you who commanded us to love our neighbours with our whole hearts: forgive us our sins and make us whole in body and soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Trusting in the compassion of God, let us pray as our Savior taught us: - The Lord's Prayer May the God of peace make us holy in every way and keep our whole being-- spirit, soul, and body-- free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving is from _Book of Common Worship_, (c) 1993 Westminster / John Knox Press. The closing sentence is 1 Thessalonians 5:23, adapted. From steve.benner at oremus.org Sat Feb 28 17:00:00 2009 From: steve.benner at oremus.org (Steve Benner) Date: Sat, 28 Feb 2009 17:00:00 +0000 (GMT) Subject: OREMUS: 1 March 2009 Message-ID: <20090228170000.CF2BD313C3A@justus2.anglican.org> ******************************************************* Visit our website at http://www.oremus.org for more resources, a link to our store in association with Amazon and other opportunities to support this ministry. This ministry can only continue with your support. ******************************************************* OREMUS for Sunday, March 1, 2009 The First Sunday in Lent O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us. Blessed are you, God, rich in mercy, you so loved the world that when we were dead in our sins, you sent your only Son for our deliverance. Lifted up from the earth, he is light and life; exalted upon the cross, he is truth and salvation. For these and all your mercies, we praise you: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Blessed be God for ever! An opening canticle may be sung. Psalm 15 Lord, who may dwell in your tabernacle?* who may abide upon your holy hill? Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right,* who speaks the truth from his heart. There is no guile upon his tongue; he does no evil to his friend;* he does not heap contempt upon his neighbour. In his sight the wicked is rejected,* but he honours those who fear the Lord. He has sworn to do no wrong* and does not take back his word. He does not give his money in hope of gain,* nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things* shall never be overthrown. Establish, O Christ, your kingdom in our hearts and keep us untainted by this earthly life; that in your Father's house we may be received into the eternal habitations; where you are alive and reign, now and for ever. Amen. Psalm 92 It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord,* and to sing praises to your name, O Most High; To tell of your lovingkindness early in the morning* and of your faithfulness in the night season; On the psaltery and on the lyre* and to the melody of the harp. For you have made me glad by your acts, O Lord;* and I shout for joy because of the works of your hands. Lord, how great are your works!* your thoughts are very deep. The dullard does not know, nor does the fool understand,* that though the wicked grow like weeds, and all the workers of iniquity flourish, They flourish only to be destroyed for ever;* but you, O Lord, are exalted for evermore. For lo, your enemies, O Lord, lo, your enemies shall perish,* and all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. But my horn you have exalted like the horns of wild bulls;* I am anointed with fresh oil. My eyes also gloat over my enemies,* and my ears rejoice to hear the doom of the wicked who rise up against me. The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,* and shall spread abroad like a cedar of Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord* shall flourish in the courts of our God; They shall still bear fruit in old age;* they shall be green and succulent; That they may show how upright the Lord is,* my rock, in whom there is no fault. A Song of Humility (Hosea 6.16) Come, let us return to the Lord who has torn us and will heal us. God has stricken us and will bind up our wounds. After two days, he will revive us, and on the third day will raise us up, that we may live in his presence. Let us strive to know the Lord; his appearing is as sure as the sunrise. He will come to us like the showers, like the spring rains that water the earth. O Ephraim, how shall I deal with you? How shall I deal with you, O Judah? Your love for me is like the morning mist, like the dew that goes early away. Therefore, I have hewn them by the prophets, and my judgement goes forth as the light. For loyalty is my desire and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.( Psalm 117 Praise the Lord, all you nations;* laud him, all you peoples. For his lovingkindness towards us is great,* and the faithfulness of the Lord endures for ever. FIRST READING [Ecclesiasticus 2]: My child, when you come to serve the Lord, ???prepare yourself for testing. Set your heart right and be steadfast, ???and do not be impetuous in time of calamity. Cling to him and do not depart, ???so that your last days may be prosperous. Accept whatever befalls you, ???and in times of humiliation be patient. For gold is tested in the fire, ???and those found acceptable, in the furnace of humiliation. Trust in him, and he will help you; ???make your ways straight, and hope in him. You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; ???do not stray, or else you may fall. You who fear the Lord, trust in him, ???and your reward will not be lost. You who fear the Lord, hope for good things, ???for lasting joy and mercy. Consider the generations of old and see: ???has anyone trusted in the Lord and been disappointed? Or has anyone persevered in the fear of the Lord and been forsaken? ???Or has anyone called upon him and been neglected? For the Lord is compassionate and merciful; ???he forgives sins and saves in time of distress. Woe to timid hearts and to slack hands, ???and to the sinner who walks a double path! Woe to the faint-hearted who have no trust! ???Therefore they will have no shelter. Woe to you who have lost your nerve! ???What will you do when the Lord?s reckoning comes? Those who fear the Lord do not disobey his words, ???and those who love him keep his ways. Those who fear the Lord seek to please him, ???and those who love him are filled with his law. Those who fear the Lord prepare their hearts, ???and humble themselves before him. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, ???but not into the hands of mortals; for equal to his majesty is his mercy, ???and equal to his name are his works. HYMN Words: William H Bathurst (1796-1877) Tune: Cheshire O Saviour, may we never rest Till Thou art form'd within, Till Thou hast calm'd our troubled breast, And crush'd the power of sin. O may we gaze upon Thy Cross, Until the wondrous sight Makes earthly treasures seem but dross, And earthly sorrows light: Until, released from carnal ties, Our spirit upward springs, And sees true peace above the skies, True joy in heavenly things. There as we gaze, may we become United, Lord, to Thee, And, in a fairer, happier home, Thy perfect beauty see. SECOND READING [Matthew 6:1-18]: For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin. The Benedictus (Morning), the Magnificat (Evening), or Nunc dimittis (Night) may follow. Prayer: The kingdom of God is close at hand. In this season of Lent, let us bring our prayers to the Lord, the king of all creation. We pray for all agencies that bring relief and help to those who live in poverty. Even as we struggle in this challenged economy, may we be generous in our response to their need. We pray for the people of Zimbabwe in the face of the cholera epidemic in that land: that those who have died may rest in peace, and that those who survive may receive aid for their recovery. We pray for all parents who have lost children: may they be sustained and comforted by the knowledge of God?s love. We pray for all those who care for children and adults with disabilities; for families and for health workers: may they be given the support that they need. We pray for the people of Wales, as they celebrate their patron saint: may the prayers of St David be always with them. Heavenly Father, creator and sustainer of the world, and giver of all good gifts, we ask you to hear the prayers that we make through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. God of the new and eternal covenant, as the forty days of the great flood swept away the world's corruption and watered new beginnings of righteousness and life: grant to us, who are washed clean and born again in the saving flood of baptism, the wellspring of your grace, that your gift of new life may flourish once again; through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Trusting in the compassion of God, let us pray as our Savior taught us: - The Lord's Prayer May God give us his comfort and his peace, his light and his joy, in this world and the next. Amen. ******************************************************* The psalms are from _Celebrating Common Prayer_ (Mowbray), (c) The Society of Saint Francis 1992, which is used with permission. The canticle is from _Common Worship: Daily Prayer, Preliminary Edition_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The biblical passage is from The New Revised Standard Version (Anglicized Edition), copyright (c) 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The opening prayer of thanksgiving adapts phrases from _Opening Prayers: Collects in Contemporary Language_. Canterbury Press, Norwich, 1999. The closing sentence is from _New Patterns for Worship_, copyright (c) The Archbishops' Council, 2002. The collect is from _A Prayer Book for Australia_. (c) 1995, The Anglican Church of Australia Trust Corporation. The petitions are gathered by Redemptorist Publications and are published each Friday on their website: http://www.rpbooks.co.uk/page.php?page=prayers