Evening Prayer at the End of a Troubled
Year
Opening
Officiant: Be still and know that I am God.
People: Be still and know that I am God.
Officiant: Be still and know that I am
People: Be
still and know that I am
Officiant: Be still and know
People: Be still and know
Officiant: Be still
People: Be still
Officiant: Be
People: Be
People of God, we come to this service of Evening Prayer at
the end of a long, troubled year. It has been a year of sickness, a year of
strife at our polling places, in our streets and conflict within our families
and friendships. We have endured a year of natural disasters which have beset a
world thus far unwilling to deal with its own behaviors in the causing of climate
change. We have arrived at the end of this troubled year tired, bruised,
frightened and angry. And we watch in no small amount of apprehension as a new
year approaches.
But we are a people of faith. We are a people of hope. We
place our trust in a God who is always present with us in all things. And so we
come to this time of prayer tonight to give thanks for that loving presence as the
light begins to return to our darkened world.
May we be mindful of the difficulties of this year which is
passing as we pray this night. Let us remember those we have lost, the
struggles we have lived through, the dreams left unrealized. Let us mourn our
losses and lick our wounds. And then may we let go of this troubled year, leaving
it at the foot of the altar of God and beginning anew with the coming of a new
year.
Let us pray:
Almighty God, we give you thanks for
surrounding us, as daylight fades, with the brightness of the vesper light; and
we implore you of your great mercy that, as you enfold us with the radiance of
this light, so you would shine into our hearts the brightness of your Holy
Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Invitatory and
Psalter
Officiant: O God, make speed to save us.
People: O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and
will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
[Here the
candles of the Christmas Season are lit]
O Gracious Light Phos hilaron
O gracious light,
pure brightness of the
everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy
and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the
vesper light,
we sing your praises, O
God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver
of Life,
and to be glorified
through all the worlds.
The Lessons
Psalm 34, Benedicam Dominum
1 I will bless the Lord at all times; *
his
praise shall ever be in my mouth.
2 I will glory in the
Lord; *
let the humble hear and rejoice.
3 Proclaim with me the
greatness of the Lord; *
let us exalt his Name together.
4 I sought the Lord,
and he answered me *
and delivered me out of all my terror.
5 Look upon him and be
radiant, *
and let not your faces be ashamed.
6 I called in my affliction and the Lord heard me *
and saved me from all my troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord
encompasses those who fear him, *
and he will deliver them.
8 Taste and see that
the Lord is good; *
happy are they who trust in him!
9 Fear the Lord, you
that are his saints, *
for those who fear him lack nothing.
10 The young lions lack
and suffer hunger, *
but those who seek the Lord lack nothing that is good.
11 Come, children, and
listen to me; *
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who among you loves
life *
and desires long life to enjoy prosperity?
13 Keep your tongue
from evil-speaking *
and your lips from lying words.
14 Turn from evil and
do good; *
seek peace and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the Lord
are upon the righteous, *
and his ears are open to their cry.
16 The face of the Lord
is against those who do evil, *
to root out the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry,
and the Lord hears them *
and delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to
the brokenhearted *
and will save those whose spirits are crushed.
19 Many are the
troubles of the righteous, *
but the Lord will deliver him out of them all.
20 He will keep safe
all his bones; *
not one of them shall be broken.
21 Evil shall slay the
wicked, *
and those who hate the righteous will be punished.
22 The Lord ransoms the
life of his servants, *
and none will be punished who trust in him.
Glory to the Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit. as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be
for ever. Amen.
Matthew 1:18-25
18 Now the birth of
Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged
to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from
the Holy Spirit. 19 Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to
expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. 20 But just when
he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and
said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for
the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and
you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ 22 All
this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
23 ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and
bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel’, which means, ‘God is with us.’
24 When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him;
he took her as his wife, 25 but had no marital relations with her until she had
borne a son; and he named him Jesus.
Officiant: The Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.
Response
Magnificat, The Song of
Mary Luke 1:46-55
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in
God my Savior;*
for he has looked with
favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all
generations will call me blessed:*
the Almighty has done
great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those
who fear him*
in every generation.
He has shown the
strength of his arm,*
he has scattered the
proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the
mighty from their thrones,*
and has lifted up the
lowly.
He has filled the
hungry with good things,*
and the rich he has
sent away empty.
He has come to the help
of his servant Israel,*
for he has remembered
his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to
our fathers,*
to Abraham and his
children for ever.
Glory to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and
will be for ever.
Amen.
Meditation: Letting
Go
Brothers and Sisters, I
now invite us to consider the year that has passed. May we remember first the
joys we have experienced, the accomplishments we have achieved, the milestones we
have passed. Let us be grateful for those moments when all seemed right with
our world.
Silence
Now let us acknowledge the
hardships. Let us hold those memories in our consciousness for just a moment
without repressing them from our minds. May we acknowledge the suffering of
this very trying year even as we remember that God was present with us through
all those challenging moments. And may we
give thanks that we have made it through, painful as it might have been, grateful
for our passage through troubled times.
Silence
Now let us gather up the
pains, the fears and the anger in our hearts and the troubled memories stored in
our minds that we may let go of them. This
past year is over. The future is not yet in our hands. Only the present remains
available to us. So let us hold out our hands, unclenching them to release all
the suffering they have held this year. And as we extend our now empty hands
out to God, may they be filled with the work we have been given to do in the
coming year and the assurance of God’s loving presence.
Silence
For the year just
completed and for the year about to begin, let us give thanks to God. Amen.
The Prayers
Litany for the End of
the Year
God, with your help we
have come here,
To the
end of another year,
Some bearing smiles,
Others
bearing scars.
We reflect upon your
goodness now
Your
constant Presence,
Your unfailing love,
Your
kind regard.
You offer peace.
We
accept.
You offer nearness.
We
accept.
You offer a new life.
We
accept.
You offer transformed
hearts.
We
accept.
Heal us where we are
wounded.
Sort
us where we are confused.
Sweeten us where we are
bitter.
Open
us where we are shut-down.
For all the ways you’ve
revolutionized our hearts and minds this year
We
give thanks.
For the improvements to
our character,
We
give thanks.
For challenges tackled
and trials endured,
We
give thanks.
For disappointments
that have re-oriented us,
We
give thanks.
For pain that has
disciplined us,
We
give thanks.
For love that has
soothed us,
We
give thanks.
For the light of
Christ, whose life has illumined the path of peace,
We
give thanks.
Amen
[Litany for End-of-year
Reflection, Fran Pratt, 2016)
http://www.franpratt.com/litanies/2016/12/28/litany-for-end-of-year-reflection
Prayers for a New Year
O God, our lives are made of days and nights, of seasons and years,
for we are part of a universe of suns and moons and planets.
We mark ends and we make beginnings and, in all,
we praise you for your grace and mercy that fill our days.
Remember us, 0 God;
who from age to age have
been our comforter.
You have given us the
wonder of time,
blessings in days and
nights, seasons and years.
Bless all your children
at the turning of the year
and fill the months
ahead with the bright hope
that is ours in the
coming of the Christ child,
light coming into a darkened
world.
For you are our God,
living and reigning, for ever and ever. Amen.
[Prayer for Blessing of
a New Year, Catholic Culture]
https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=971
A Prayer of St.
Chrysostom
Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.
Benediction
Officiant: Let us bless the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.
May the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, [+] and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy
Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
[2 Corinthians 13:14]
Notes:
The service in which this liturgy was
used can be found at this site:
https://www.facebook.com/StRichardsWinterPark/videos/204073614759498
Most content used herein came from the Episcopal
Book of Common Prayer. The portions added to this service are offered with gratitude
and attributions of sources. This liturgy is freely offered to the public for use
in communal worship and individual
prayer.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Harry Scott Coverston
Orlando, Florida
If the unexamined life is not worth living, surely an unexamined
belief system, be it religious or political, is not worth holding. Most things
worth considering do not come in sound bites.
Those who believe religion and politics aren't connected don't
understand either. – Mahatma Gandhi
For what does G-d require of you but to do justice, and to love
kindness, and to walk humbly with your G-d? - Micah
6:8, Hebrew Scriptures
Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly,
now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the
work, but neither are you free to abandon it. - Rabbi
Rami Shapiro, Wisdom of the Jewish Sages (1993)
© Harry Coverston, 2020
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
1 comment:
Thank you, Harry+. This is one of the best things that's come from 2020 so far (and there's very little of the year remaining).
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