Daily Office for Our Times

Common Prayer

Redeeming the Soul of the World Through Love and Prayer

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Friday in Easter Week

Theme for Friday: Racial Reconciliation

On this Friday, as we remember Jesus murdered on a cross for speaking God's truth of forgiveness and the reign of God's Kingdom of love, we also remember how Christ is continually murdered today by the forces of evil and oppression in our society. Today, we pray especially for all people engaged in dismantling the racism that pervades and dehumanizes our society.

The Evening Bidding

The angels of God guard us through the night

and quieten the powers of darkness.

The Spirit of God be our guide

to lead us to peace and to glory.

Confession of Sin Optional: Show confession...

The Invocation

Eternal Spirit, flow through our being and open our lips.
that our mouths may proclaim your praise.

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. Alleluia.

The Psalm

Psalm 121 Levavi oculos

I lift up my eyes to the hills;*

from where is my help to come?

My help comes from God,*

the maker of heaven and earth.

God will not let your foot be moved;*

the One who watches over you will not fall asleep.

Behold, the One who keeps watch over Israel*

shall neither slumber nor sleep;

The Holy One watches over you*

and is your shade at your right hand,

So that the sun shall not strike you by day,*

nor the moon by night.

God shall preserve you from all evil*

and is the One who shall keep you safe.

God shall watch over your going out and your coming in,*

from this time forth for evermore.

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.

Scripture for Racial Reconciliation

Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. Isaiah 10:1-2

Hear what the Spirit is saying to God's people.
Amen. All that the Lord has said we will do.

Canticle

A Song of Lamentation Lamentations 1:12,16; 3:19,22-24,26

Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?*

Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,

Which was brought upon me,*

inflicted by God's fierce anger.

For these things I weep; my eyes flow with tears,*

for a comforter is far from me, one to revive my courage.

Remember my affliction and my bitterness,*

wormwood and gall!

The steadfast love of God never ceases,*

God's mercies never end.

They are new every morning;*

great is your faithfulness.

"God is my portion," says my soul,*

"therefore will I hope in God."

It is good that we should wait quietly*

for the coming of God's salvation.

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

V. Into your hands, O God, I commend my spirit;

R. For you have redeemed me, O God of truth and integrity.

V. Keep us, O Lord, as the apple of your eye;

R. Hide us under the shadow of your wings.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

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.

Lord, hear our prayer;
And let our cry come to you.
Let us pray.

Collect for Racial Reconciliation

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your reconciling embrace: help us hear the cries of our fellow citizens who live in fear for themselves and their children simply because of the color of their skin; and as we hear their cries help us hear in them your cry for justice. Help us join our voices with them and you and work together to dismantle the racism that pervades our society so that we may all live as one, as you are one with God and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Collect for Friday Evening

O God, your unfailing providence sustains the world we live in and the life we live: Watch over the people who work this night while others sleep, and grant that we may never forget that our common life depends upon each other's toil; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

And we pray for our own needs and the needs of others...

Lord, it is night after a long day. What has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done; help us let it be. Amen.

Lord, you are the God of growth and discovery, yours is the inspiration that has altered and changed our lives yours is the power that has brought us to new challenges and opportunities. As we take our rest this night, prepare us, your new creation, to journey in this new world, watching and learning, loving and trusting, blessing and forgiving until your kingdom comes. Amen.

Final Canticle

Guide us waking, O Lord, and guard us sleeping;
that awake we may watch with Christ, and asleep we may rest in peace. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

The Song of Simeon Nunc dimittis, Luke 2:29 32

O God, you now have set your servant free*

to go in peace as you have promised;

For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior,*

whom you have prepared for all the world to see:

A Light to enlighten the nations,*

and the glory of your people Israel.

Guide us waking, O Lord, and guard us sleeping;
that awake we may watch with Christ, and asleep we may rest in peace. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God

Almighty God the source of all love, grant you an abiding joy and a restful night, that comes from knowing that you have a place in God's heart, with love to share and a life to live. Amen.

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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.

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