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Invitation to Worship
Come let us return to Adonai, Our God–
Our God who is gracious and merciful.
We make the Sign of the Cross over our lips as we begin.
O Holy ONE + open my lips,
~And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
My sacrifice is a contrite spirit,
~ A humbled, contrite heart, you will not reject.
MORNING HYMN for LENT
All may sing or alternate the verses of any Morning Hymn for Lent.
Have mercy, Lord on us; For you are ever kind;
Though we have sinned before you, Lord, Your mercy let us find.
Lord, wash away our guilt, And cleanse us from our sin;
For we confess our wrongs and see How great our guilt has been
The joy your grace can give, Let us again obtain,
And may your Spirit’s firm support Our spirits then sustain.
To God the Abba, Son, And Spirit glory be.
Who was, and is, and shall be so, For all eternity.
Text: Psalm 50/51 Nahum Tate (1652-1715); Tune: SOUTHWELL, SM
PSALMODY
Antiphon
Let us sing to your Name, O Most High,
and proclaim your loving kindness when morning dawns.
Psalm 91/92
It is good to give thanks to you, Adonai,
to make music to your name, O Most High,
to proclaim you love in the morning
and your truth in the watches of the night,
on the ten-stringed lyre and the lute,
with the murmuring sound of the harp.
Your deeds, Adonai, have made me glad;
for the work of your hands I shout with joy.
Adonai, how great are your works!
How deep are your designs!
The foolish cannot know this
and the ignorant cannot understand.
Though the wicked seem to spring up like grass
and those who do evil thrive:
their behavior will lead to destruction.
But you, Adonai, are eternal:
Those who oppose your love will perish;
those who do evil will be scattered.
To me you give the strength of an ox;
you anoint me with the purest oil.
My eyes saw the triumph of justice;
my ears heard gladly of the end of oppression.
The just can now flourish like the palm-tree
and grow like a Lebanon cedar.
Planted in the house of Adonai
they will flourish in the courts of our God,
still bearing fruit when they are old
still full of sap and green with life,
to proclaim that Adonai is just.
In God, my Rock, there is no wrong.
Glory to the One and to the Word,
and to the Breath of Love;
as always before,
so now and evermore. Amen.
Let us sing to your Name, O Most High,
and proclaim your loving kindness when morning dawns.
.
READING Isaiah 58: 1-5
Thus says ADONAI:
If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech;
If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted;
Then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall be for you like midday;
Then ADONAI will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. God will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
Silent Prayer
Responsory
R. Now the time, now the saving day, *may we prove ourselves in gentleness and patience. V. Seen always as the servants of God *may we prove ourselves in patience. V. Glory to the Abba and the Word, and the Breath of Love.
Canticle of Zachary– Luke 1:68-79
Antiphon
Love your enemies; pray for those who persecute you:
Be perfect as your Abba is perfect.
Blessed + be Adonai, the God of Israel,
Who visits this people to set us free
Raising for us a sign of salvation
In the house and family of David.
God promised throughout past ages
In words of holy prophets
To save us from our enemies,
And from the control of our oppressors.
Adonai favored our ancestors
And remembered the sacred covenant.
The pledge to Abraham and Sarah
Is now renewed for us;
That freed from the grip of our foes
We might worship without fear
And be both just and holy
For the rest of our days.
And you, child, called “prophet of the Most High,”
Will go ahead to prepare the way,
By teaching this people of salvation
Through forgiveness of their sins.
For the loving compassion of the Holy One
As the Rising Sun will shine upon us
To illumine the darkness and dispel death’s shadow
To Guide our feet on the way of peace.
Glory to the ONE and to the WORD
and to the BREATH of Love!
As always before,
so now and evermore. Amen.
Love your enemies; pray for those who persecute you:
Be perfect as your Abba is perfect.
Intercessory Prayer
The fast that you desire, Adonai, is the breaking the chains of evil and untying the bonds of injustice; ~Help us to fast by loving our sisters and brothers.
The fast that you desire, Adonai, is freeing the oppressed and welcoming the poor into our homes; ~Help us to fast by loving our sisters and brothers.
The fast that you desire, Adonai, is clothing the persons we find naked and not despising our neighbors; ~Help us to fast by loving our sisters and brothers.
The fast that you desire, Adonai, is sharing food with the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, and welcoming immigrants and strangers; ~Help us to fast by loving our sisters and brothers.
The fast that you desire, Adonai, is caring for those who are sick or injured and visiting those who are in prison; ~Help us to fast by loving our sisters and brothers.
Create in us clean hearts, O God;
~ And fill us with your Holy Spirit.
Prayer of Jesus
Our Father …
Closing Prayer & Blessing
Holy One and God of endless Compassion, you are the praise of all your saints and the joy of all creation. You call us in this holy season to return to you with all our hearts and to be moved with compassion towards all who suffer. May our Lenten prayers and practices and our whole lives help to build your reign on Earth as it is in heaven where you live and love One God for ever and ever. Amen.
May the God of Life & Freedom who calls us to break every yoke of suffering and oppression + bless us to accomplish this in prayer, fasting and works of kindness and love;
~Amen.
Let us bless the world with peace.
~And give thanks to God.