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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 Lord!
~Thanks be to God!
Stay with us Lord for it is evening,
~And the day is almost over.
FRIDAY EVENING HYMN
The fields and plains were still ungrazed,
the ground untouched by things that crawl,
when God called creatures forth to play,
and woundrously Earth bore them all.
Then Life, beholding all was good,
in overflowing joy conceived:
“Let us now human beings make!”
God gave them breath that Sabbath eve.
“Let them, together and alone,
our image be, our likeness bear.
to you I give your kin the beasts
and all the earth into your care.
“For she has borne all living things:
her fruits will give you nourishment.
As for the flocks and herds, let them
with grass and foliage be content.”
Thus evening came and morning came,
the sixth day, giving God delight,
for everything was very good,
one with another ordered right!
The earth, God saw, was now complete—
a marvel of diversity!
So mirrors Earth its Maker’s life
revealed within the Trinity. Amen.
Text: Aelred-Seton Shanley; Tune: Plainsong
SERVICE OF THE WORD
PSALMODY
Antiphon
How Great is your Name, Adonai Elohim, through all the Earth!
Psalm 8
Your majesty is praised above the heavens
on the lips of children and of babes
you found praise to foil the enemy
to silence the foe and the rebel. (Antiphon)
The heavens are the work of your hands
the moon and the stars you arranged.
What are we that you should keep us in mind
mortal beings that you care for us? (Antiphon)
Yet you made us little less than gods;
with honor and glory you crowned us,
gave us charge o’er the work of your hands,
put all things under our care.(Antiphon)
All of them sheep and cattle,
yes, even the savage beasts,
birds of the air, and fish
that make their way through the water. (Antiphon)
Tobias Colgan, OSB, alt.
Reading Colossians 1: 13-17
God delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the realm of the beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. For Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. In him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Responsory
R. God looked at everything in creation, *God named everything very good! V. Light and darkness, Sun, Moon, and the stars, *God named everything very good! V. Earth and Sea, Sky and Birds, Fish and all Creatures, *God named everything very good! V. Human beings in God’s image and likeness, *God named everything very good! R. God looked at everything in creation, God named everything very good!
Gospel Canticle of Mary
Antiphon
What can we say about the Reign of God?
It is like a mustard seed which grows up to shelter the birds of the air, Alleluia
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
What can we say about the Reign of God?
It is like a mustard seed which grows up to shelter the birds of the air, Alleluia
Service of Prayer
Litany of Thanksgiving and Intercession
For the healing waters of creation, which bring pleasure and health, purity and life, ~ We thank you.
For the richness of Mother Earth, who brings forth fruits and flowers, a pleasure to taste and a joy to behold,~ We thank you.
For the soaring birds of the air, the crawling creatures on the Earth, the gliding fishes in the seas, for all creatures great and small with whom we share this precious web of life, ~ We thank you.
For the invigorating sunlight of day, the deepening mystery of night, the wonder of the stars, and the call of the unknown in the universe, ~ We thank you.
From heedless misuse and dishonoring of the wonders of your hand, ~ O God, deliver us.
From squandering resources, abusing our companion species, and polluting the habitat we all share,~ O God, deliver us.
From the folly of imagining ourselves the center of creation,~ O God, deliver us.
For the courage and wisdom to confess how little we have cared for your gifts, ~ Strengthen us, O Spirit.
For the conviction that you have called us to love and restore the Earth,
~ Strengthen us, O Spirit.
For repentance and the determination to begin our proper role in creation anew,
~ Strengthen us, O Spirit.
Prayer of Jesus
Translation prepared for the New Zealand Book of Common Prayer
Eternal Spirit, Earth-Maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver, source of all that is and that shall be, Father and Mother of us all, Loving God, in whom is heaven: The hallowing of your name shall echoe through the universe! The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the earth! Your heavenly will be done by all created beings! Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope and come on earth. With the bread we need for today, feed us. In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us. In times of temptation and test, strengthen us. From the grip of all that is evil, free us. For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever.
Amen.
Closing Prayer & Blessing
Creating and Sustaining God, as we celebrate the sixth day of the week, we praise and thank you for the wonder and beauty of all the creatures that You have made, for each one of them reveals something of Your inexpressible love. Awaken in us such a sense of wonder and delight that we receive with gratitude the gifts that Mother Earth provides to supply our needs, generously share these gifts with all your creatures, and lovingly care for our common home—all to the honor and glory of your Holy Name. Amen.
May the God of the Cosmos + bless us with reverence, wonder and awe . Amen.
Let us bless Adonai! ~And give thanks to God.
Those who wish may end evening prayer with the Marian Antiphon.
[Ave Regina Caelorum is sung from the 3rd of February until Good Friday, inclusive.]
Queen of the heavens we greet you, Queen of Angels we entreat you,
Fairest flower, heaven’s portal From whom came the Light immortal.
Matchless maiden, God did raise you For the Universe to praise you.
Hear us, O hear us, dear Mother; Show your children Jesus, our brother.
Pray for us, holy Mother of God.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray. O Gracious God, grant to your people lasting health of mind and of body.
Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may we be freed from present sorrow and attain eternal happiness. We ask this through Christ our Love. Amen.