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Morning Prayer
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Ascension Day
Theme for Thursday: Justice
We offer our worship to God today with thanksgiving for God's justice and mercy, and with our prayers for people pursuing justice and for all people through out the world who live without justice and mercy.
Sentence for the Week
Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. Hebrews 4:14
Confession of Sin Optional: Show confession...
The Invitatory and Psalter
O God, let our mouths proclaim your praise.
Let our hearts rejoice in your goodness.
Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom, thanksgiving and honor, power and might be to our God for ever and ever. Amen! Alleluia!
Canticle
Jubilate Psalm 100
Alleluia. The Lord has taken our humanity into the heart of God:
Come let us adore him. Alleluia.
Be joyful in God, all you lands;*
serve with gladness and come before God's presence with a song.
For we know that you are God;*
you yourself have made us, and we are yours;
we are your people and the sheep of your pasture.
We shall enter your gates with thanksgiving, go into your courts with praise, *
give thanks to you and call upon your Name.
For you are good; your mercy is everlasting; *
and your faithfulness endures from age to age.
Alleluia. The Lord has taken our humanity into the heart of God:
Come let us adore him. Alleluia.
The Psalms Appointed
Psalm 8 Domine, Dominus noster
O God 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 we that you should be mindful of us,*
mere mortals that you should seek us out?
You have made us but little lower than the angels;*
you adorn us with glory and honor;
You give us dominion over the works of your hands;*
you put all things under our 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 God, our Governor,*
how exalted is your Name in all the world!
Psalm 47 Omnes gentes, plaudite
Clap your hands, all you peoples;*
shout to God with a cry of joy.
For God Most High is to be feared;*
God is the great Sovereign over all the earth. God subdues the peoples under us*
and the nations under our feet.
God chooses our inheritance for us,*
the pride of Jacob whom God loves.
God has gone up with a shout,*
the Most High with the sound of the ram's-horn.
Sing praises to God, sing praises;*
sing praises to our Sovereign, sing praises.
For God is Sovereign over all the earth;*
sing praises with all your skill.
God reigns over the nations;*
God sits upon the holy throne.
The nobles of the peoples have gathered together*
with the people of the God of Abraham.
The rulers of the earth belong to God,*
who is highly exalted.
All Glory to the Loving One, Source of our being, Eternal Word, and Life-Giving Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
The First Lesson
A Reading from Daniel 7:9-14
As I watched,
thrones were set in place,
and an Ancient One took his throne,
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
and its wheels were burning fire.
A stream of fire issued
and flowed out from his presence.
A thousand thousands served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.
The court sat in judgment,
and the books were opened.
I watched then because of the noise of the arrogant words that the horn was speaking. And as I watched, the beast was put to death, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time. As I watched in the night visions,
I saw one like a human being
coming with the clouds of heaven.
And he came to the Ancient One
and was presented before him.
To him was given dominion
and glory and kingship,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not pass away,
and his kingship is one
that shall never be destroyed.
A time of silence may be kept.
Officiant For the word of God in scripture,
for the Word of God among us,
for the Word of God within us.
People Thanks be to God.
Canticle
God is My Salvation Isaiah 12:2-6
Behold God is my salvation:*
I will trust in God and not be afraid,
For God is my strength and my song:*
and has become my salvation.
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation:*
and in that day all of you will say,
Give thanks and call upon the name of God:*
make known among the nations what God has done.
Sing praises for God has triumphed gloriously:*
let this be known in all the earth.
Shout and sing for joy you people of God:*
for great in your midst is the Holy One.
All Glory to the Loving One, Source of our being, Eternal Word, and Life-Giving Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
The Second Lesson
A Reading from Hebrews 2:5-18
God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. But someone has testified somewhere,
“What are human beings that you are mindful of them,
or mortals, that you care for them?
You have made them for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned them with glory and honor,
subjecting all things under their feet.”
Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying,
“I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”
And again,
“I will put my trust in him.”
And again,
“Here am I and the children whom God has given me.”
Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.
A time of silence may be kept.
Officiant For the word of God in scripture,
for the Word of God among us,
for the Word of God within us.
People Thanks be to God.
Canticle
A Song of Ezekiel Ezekiel 36:24-28
I will take you from among all nations;*
and gather you from all lands to bring you home.
I will sprinkle clean water upon you;*
and purify you from false gods and uncleanness.
A new heart I will give you*
and a new spirit put within you.
I will take the stone heart from your chest*
and give you a heart of flesh.
I will help you walk in my laws*
and cherish my commandments and do them.
You shall be my people,*
and I will be your God.
All Glory to the Loving One, Source of our being, Eternal Word, and Life-Giving Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
The Prayers
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.
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 echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world!
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 trials too great to endure, spare 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.
Suffrages
Suffrage A
V. Show us your mercy, O God;
R. And grant us your salvation.
V. Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
R. Let your people sing with joy.
V. Give peace, O God, in all the world;
R. For only in you can we live in safety.
V. O God, keep this nation under your care;
R. And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
V. Let your way be known upon earth;
R. Your saving health among all nations.
V. Let not the needy, O God, be forgotten;
R. Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
V. Create in us clean hearts, O God;
R. And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.
Collect for the Week
Grant, we pray, Almighty God, that as we believe your only-begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into heaven, so we may also in heart and mind there ascend, and with him continually dwell; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Collect for the Diocese
Collect for Justice
Almighty God our one and only eternal judge, as we remember your son Jesus, murdered though he had committed no crime, we pray for justice in our world so that it would become your world. Ignite Jesus' courage within our hearts so that we would no longer remain passive observers to the injustices in our society but active agents of your justice and mercy. Help us stand with those who are are unjustly oppressed, and help us boldly work to ensure that all people have equal opportunity to pursue your vision of who you intended them to be in Jesus Christ our Lord, our true judge and our redeemer. Amen.
Prayers for People Engaged in Justice Ministries
We pray for the Supreme Court and the judiciaries throughout our nation that they have the courage to be agents of justice and mercy...
And we pray for people within our congregation who work in our judicial system...
Parish Intercessions
And we pray for our own needs and the needs of others.
Collect for Our Time
God of all mercy, keep us from a mindless acceptance of things as they are, and a longing for peace without the courage to work for justice. Let us all know in the life-threatening pandemics of disease, poverty, racism, and violence there is an inner calm that comes from faith in you, and that from this central heart of peace, there may flow a creative and courageous compassion, a deep thirst for racial justice, and a relentless proclamation of your love, to heal and reconcile your world in you through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Dismissal
Go in peace to act justly, be merciful, and walk humbly with your God.
We will in the name of God.
To those who have been called, who are loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance. Amen. Jude 1-2
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Acknowledgements: With Gratitude
Pray for Peace, Work for Justice.
This Daily Office App was created in 2020 at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Ladue, MO, as a partial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd. Because of the pandemic we and many congregations began offering online variations of the Daily Office from the Book of Common Prayer. George Floyd's murder brought into sharp relief the racism and many other injustices in our world. We believe it is pointless to pray for peace unless we are actively working for justice in all spheres of our daily lives.
Within our congregation we have many people such as, medical personnel and teachers, who are putting their lives at risk to help create a better world. We also have numerous parishioners employed or engaged in not-for-profit agencies, research, and outreach all of which are striving to right the wrongs of our society and in the words of the Lord's Prayer, "helping God's Kingdom come on earth". To focus our need to engage in social action we have created this Daily Office with a two week cycle of social justice themes to help us:
- Pray and reflect on our part in the systemic evils that corupt our world.
- Pray intentionally for parishioners and the programs they work in to "Heal the World."
- Pray for courage and wisdom to discover and empower us to be the change we wish to see in the world.
The Episcopal Book of Common Prayer and its many companion books through out the Anglican Communion are wonderful treasure troves of prayers and resources for deepening our spiritual lives and inspiring action in the world. Such books are however are a frozen meal, they need thawing out, warming up, and seasoning with local spices. This is what this app seeks to do. It added the necessary flavors of St. Peter's, Ladue, so whether at home, in church, or travelling the world, we can continue to remember and pray for one another as we walk the way of love and make this a better world in which our children's children can love and grow into the image of God that God creates them to be.
If you would like to adapt this app for your own congregation or community setting and add your own spices and flavors please email us and we can create a specific parish option for you.
Specific Acknowledgements and Copyrights.
The service structure and the traditional psalms canticles and prayers are taken from the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, 1979, available from The Church Hymnal Corporation, New York. Inclusive canticles and prayers have been adapted from a variety of sources including Enriching our Worship, 1998 also available from The Church Hymnal Corporation, New York.
Inclusive Psalms were taken from The Saint Helena Psalter, ©Copyright 2005 by The Order of St. Helena, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Specific prayers such as the Inclusive Lord’s Prayer has been taken from A New Zealand Prayerbook, ©Copyright 1989 the Church of the Province of New Zealand. This prayerbook has also provided inspiration for the inclusive Compline service and partial content to many of the collects.
In general, Biblical passages are taken from The New Revised Standard Version, ©Copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
We are also indebted to The Rev. Br. Richard Edward Helmer, BSG. the developer of the The Daily Office App who provided technical advice and resources as we developed this app.
We are also indebted to Sandie Willey and her gift of words and discerning eye as together we crafted many of the prayers as we worked to create this Daily Office for Our Times.
In the course of preparing this app we have visited many websites, read and prayed many prayers, and been inspired by many writers. To all the people who share their creativity with the world we say thank you for the beauty of your words and the times when a word becomes a sparkle of truth and a moment of transcendence.
With Gratitude
Rob Voyle,
Interim Rector, St. Peter's, 2020
Director of the Appreciative Way
©Copyright 2020-2026, Rob Voyle