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SERVICE OF LIGHT
Greeting/Invocation
We light the Evening Candle and say or sing:
Light and Peace in Jesus Christ our Love!
~Thanks be to God!
Stay with us O Christ, for it is evening,
~And the day is almost over.
WEDNESDAY EVENING HYMN
Dear Abba, whose creating hand
Brings harvest from the fruitful land.
Your providence we gladly own.
And bring our hymns before your throne
To praise you for the living bread
On which our lives are daily fed.
O Christ, who in the desert fed
The hungry thousands in their need,
Where want and famine still abound
Let your relieving love be found,
And in your name may we supply
Your hungry children when they cry.
O Spirit, your revealing light
Has led our questing souls aright;
Source of our science, you have taught
The marvels human minds have wrought,
So that the barren deserts yield
The bounty by your love revealed.
Text: Donald Hughes, alt.. Tune: WYCH CROSS 88.88.88
SERVICE OF THE WORD
PSALMODY
The skies proclaim your wonders, Adonai
and the stars announce your love. Alleluia!
Psalm 88/89a
I will sing your love all my days, Adonai
In every age I will proclaim your truth.
Of this I am certain: your love lasts forever;
Your faithfulness outlasts the heavens.
“With my chosen one, I have made a covenant;
I have sworn to David, my servant”
I will establish your house forever
and uphold your reign from age to age.
The skies proclaim your wonders, Adonai,
the assembly of the stars proclaims your love.
Is anyone in the heavens your equal?
Can any of the gods compare with you?
Revered in the council of the holy ones,
Great and dreadful to all around.
Who indeed is your equal, God of strength,
Clothed in truth, O God of power?
You rule the stormy seas,
you calm the roaring waves,
You split the sea monster in two
and scatter opponents with a mighty arm.
Yours is the sky, yours the Earth,
yours the whole world of creatures.
You created the North and the South,
Our mountains–Tabor and Hermon–sing out your name.
Yours is a mighty arm, Adonai;
your hand is strong, your right hand ready.
Justice and right anchor your throne,
love and truth serve in your presence.
Your people rejoice to have you as ruler,
are grateful to walk in your light.
Your Name is itself our joy
Your justice the source of our bliss.
For you, Adonai, are the glory of our strength,
it is your favor that leads us to victory.
May our leaders have you as their keeper,
their shield, the Holy One of Israel.
Glory to the ONE and to the WORD
And to the BREATH of Love!
As always before,
so now and evermore. Amen
The skies proclaim your wonders, Adonai
and the stars announce your love. Alleluia!
Reading 1 John 2:3-6
The way we may be sure that we know Christ
is to keep his commandments.
Whoever says, “I know him,”
but does not keep his commandments
is a liar, and the truth is not in that one.
But in those who keep his word,
the love of God is truly perfected.
This is the way we may know that we are in union with him:
whoever claims to abide in him
ought to live just as Jesus lived.
Responsory
R. Bear one another’s burdens, * and so fulfill the law of Christ. V. Look to each other’s interests, * and so fulfill the law of Christ.. V. Glory to the Abba...
Gospel Canticle of Mary
Antiphon
One of the lepers saw that he was cured,
so he returned and praising God with all his voice
he threw himself at the feet of Jesus.
And this man was a Samaritan.
It is customary to make the sign of the cross at the beginning of the Gospel Canticle.
My heart + is radiant with the Lord,
My whole being delights in God my Savior.
All people now will call me blessed
For God has loved this humble handmaid.
The Almighty has shown me great favor
Holy is the NAME,
Whose mercy embraces the faithful,
From one generation to the next.
The mighty arm of God,
Scatters the proud in their own conceit,
Pulls tyrants from their thrones
While lifting up the lowly:
Fills the famished with bounty,
And reveals the emptiness of riches.
Rescues lowly Israel,
Sharing such loving kindness,
As promised to our ancestors
To Abraham and Sarah, and their descendants forever.
Glory to the ONE and to WORD
And to the BREATH of Love!
As always before,
so now and evermore. Amen
One of the lepers saw that he was cured,
so he returned and praising God with all his voice
he threw himself at the feet of Jesus.
And this man was a Samaritan.
SERVICE OF PRAYER
Litany of Intercession
For astronomers, cosmologists, and all who explore the depths of space and the mysteries and wonder of the universe,
~God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
For all whose lives and work are intimately connected to the time of day and the seasons of the years, especially those affected most by global warming and climate change,
~God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
For all who are forced by poverty or war to live under the open sky, burned by the sun during the day or freezing under the stars each night,
~God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
For all who are deprived by modern lifestyles and preferences from experiencing the natural beauty and rhythms of day and night, seasons and celebrations that acknowledge our home and role in the universe,
~God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Every atom in our bodies was forged in the fiery belly of a star who lived, died and gave itself back to the universe: may we learn this Wisdom of God, manifest in the stars and in Jesus of Nazareth, and live and die in harmony with everything else going on in the universe. ~God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Prayer of Jesus
Our Father …
Closing Prayer & Blessing
God of the Starry Universe, as we celebrate the fourth day of the week, we praise and thank you for the wisdom and splendor of each shimmering star; the heat and life-giving energy of our Sun, the serene beauty and mystery of our Moon, and the reliable rhythms of days, weeks, months, seasons and years. May every person on earth be entranced by each sunset, amazed by each constellation, astonished by each season, and filled with gratitude that your universe in its infinite variety has invited each of us to be an integral part of such splendor, for your love is the power that has created all things, sustains all things in existence and frees all things to join you in building the future now and forever. Amen.
May the God of the Cosmos + bless us with reverence, wonder and awe . Amen.
Let us bless Adonai! ~Thanks be to God.
Those who wish may end evening prayer with the Salve Regina.
Those who wish may end evening prayer with the Salve Regina
Marian Antiphon
Mother of Mercy, Our Queen we greet you. Our life, our hope, our happiness we hail you. We call to you as Eve’s own children, and exiles. To you we lift our hearts in sorrow and fear, in this valley of tears. Turn then, our loving Advocate, and look with favor upon us. And after our life in exile, show us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus. O gracious, O loving, O Virgin benign, our Mother Mary.