Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession:
Christ died to sin once for all, and now lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, +pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
God our redeemer, you have delivered us from the power of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of your Son: grant, that as by his death he has recalled us to life, so by his continual presence in us he may raise us to eternal joy: through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spiriit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Acts 17: 22-31
Acts 17: 22-31
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you. “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
1 Peter 3: 13-end
1 Peter 3: 13-end
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.”But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water,and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John Glory to you, O Lord.
John 14: 15-21
John 14: 15-21
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon from Michael Tonkin
Sermon from Michael Tonkin
‘He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit.’ Words taken from this morning’s reading from 1 Peter.
Today, if it had not been for the coronavirus, Father Peter would have been being Licensed into his new role as Team Rector in the Diocese of Worcester. As far as St. Luke’s and the Barn Churches are concerned, and I am sure beyond, we are all very fortunate to still have him with us, if but, for only a little longer.
Jesus, in our Gospel reading today from John, is preparing his disciples for the fact that he would be leaving them, in his bodily form once he had ascended to his Father, but would remain with them for ever as the Holy Spirit. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you for ever. This is the Spirit of truth,” “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.” Of course, as with so much that Jesus tried to make his disciples understand, it would only be after his death on the cross and his resurrection, that they would fully come to understand. We will hear in two weeks time how they receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
It is never easy saying ‘good bye’ to friends and loved ones, and it is one of the greatest tragedies of this terrible Pandemic that so many have had loved ones die before their time and been unable to with them. We can only pray that they are now at peace with the one true God, who offers an eternal home to all who believe in Him.
It was while Paul was in Athens, as we heard from our reading from Acts that, in true Paul fashion, he went about teaching the Athenians about this one true God. I have always had a lot of time for Paul, although I am sure he was not the easiest of people to live with, being unquestionably fanatical in his desire to spread the good news of the risen Lord. Yet without his endless efforts, often against the greatest of odds, the roots of Christianity would, most likely, not have been spread so far and wide, and The New Testament would not, in a large part, have been written in the form we know it today. Without Paul’s letters and his travels as recounted by Luke in Acts the New Testament would be very short.
In Athens, as in many other places Paul visited, he began in the synagogues and market places, preaching the news of the risen Jesus. Athens at that time, as it had been for many years before, was a centre for philosophy and literature, and had a university even at that time. Paul was invited by, ‘A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers’, to speak to them, and having seen an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown God’, began to tell them about the God who made the world and everything in it, “In him we live and move and have our being”. Paul tells them they will be seen for who they truly are, and judged by God, and his Son, the risen Christ. But judgement was not what the Athenians were looking for, they wanted to bind their gods to them with gifts, and with the power and scope of their religious services, gods that they could control and use as they required.
It is, perhaps, something that we are all at times guilty of, holding on to our own personal God, who like the old advertisements for Bank Managers, were kept in a cupboard somewhere and brought out when needed. This was not Paul’s God; although for many, there and then, to believe that God might focus all truth and meaning in one man, Jesus Christ, was hard to understand or believe. We too often like the idea of controlling God more than the idea of giving God control over us. We need also to trust in the power of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus promised not only to his disciples, but to every one of us who is willing to travel His path, the path of our risen Lord. “They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”
So may we all in these troubled and uncertain times hold on to the fact that Jesus walks with us, and with the Holy Spirit lives within our very being, this day and always.
The Sick: Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Luci Mitchell-Fry, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston
RIP John Axell, Mary Smith, Revd Peter Holmes, Pattie Johnson, Norma Williams
Prayers – with thanks to Paul Gregorowski, recorded for us by Chris Lynch
Loving Lord, please bless every person in this world. We are all your children and you love each one of us utterly and unconditionally; be with us in this time of uncertainty and risk, and we pray especially for those who live always in misery and fear, who are permanently locked out of life: refugees, the homeless, the hungry, those broken in body or mind, all those without hope. Help us to use this crisis to come closer to them and to work for a better world when this is over. Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
Lord of the nations, guide the rulers of the earth, give them wisdom, teach them mercy, inspire them with your love, Protect and bless all victims who live in states of injustice, cruelty and war. Bless your beloved home on earth, the Holy Land, and any country where people cry out to you for help in their despair. Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
Living Lord, bless your family the Church; heal our destructive divisions that hinder your work and that cause you so much pain. Bless Christian Aid and all vital charities under threat during the epidemic. May we help to fill the gap so that your will may continue to be done. Please bless the Barn and St Luke’s and all in our parishes. May we bring them the light of Christ. Please bless Father Peter, Richard and Michael and all who serve you here, our churchwardens, administrators, musicians, volunteers and all who care for our children in Junior Church. And we celebrate with joy our links with Matabeleland and the Green Park School in Lusaka, for we are all one in Christ. Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
Lord of giving and grace, we than you for all your blessings to us, for the beauty of this spring morning with all its colour and light, for the love that surrounds us, for the dedication of doctors, nurses, carers and encouragers, for our families and friends near or far away, and above all for your unfailing presence with us. Help us to use this slow time to draw closer to you and to learn all the lessons of love. Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
Christ of the cross, please be with those who are sick or suffering in this time of crisis. Hold them in your healing arms and bring them peace. We pray especially in our community for: Alan Hay, Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Luci Mitchell-Fry, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston.
Risen Lord be with those who have died and those who mourn. Today we pray for: John Axell, Mary Smith, Joy Dyer, Revd Peter Holmes, Pattie Johnson, Norma Williams, for you are the resurrection and the life. Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
God of all hope and love, be with us in this crisis. Once it is over may we create a fairer, kinder world free from the ravages of climate change, discrimination and greed, and may our children have a better future on this precious earth.
God’s promised kingdom longing to be born,
the poor are fed first, the hurt are listened to,
the kind are in control, the cruel are cured;
our deepest hopes become tomorrow’s news;
broken bones and minds are mended, the lonely loved;
fear is a distant memory,
happiness has banished hatred,
peace has vanquished war;
hurt earth turns into Eden once again,
and everything is green and fresh and free.
This is the Kingdom Christ has promised us,
and so we know that it will surely come,
not all at once, perhaps, but bit by bit,
will come the moment that we learn to love.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” Then they were glad when they saw the Lord, Alelluia. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
Be present, be present, Lord Jesus Christ, Our risen high priest;
It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks, almighty and eternal Father, and in these days of Easter to celebrate with joyful hearts the memory of your wonderful works. For by the mystery of his passion, Jesus Christ, your risen Son, has conquered the powers of death and hell and restored to women and men the image of your glory. He has placed us once more in paradise and opened to us the gate of life eternal. And so, in the joy of this Passover, earth and heaven resound with gladness, while angels and archangels and the powers of all creation sing for ever the hymn of your glory.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. +Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight; and the blessing of God almighty, + the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be with you and those you love, today and always. Amen.
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession:
Christ died to sin once for all, and now lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, +pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ have overcome death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: grant that, as by your grace going before us you put into our minds good desires, so by your continual help we may bring them to good effect: through Jesus Christ our risen Lord, who is alive and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Acts 7: 55-end
Acts 7: 55-end
When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he fell asleep.
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
1 Peter 2: 2-10
Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, the living Stone – rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him – you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says:
‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.’
Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,
‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’
and,
‘A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.’
They stumble because they disobey the message – which is also what they were destined for. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John Glory to you, O Lord.
John 1: 43-end
John 1: 43-end
The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Philip found Nathanael and told him, ‘We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’ ‘Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?’ Nathanael asked. ‘Come and see,’ said Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, ‘Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.’ ‘How do you know me?’ Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, ‘I saw you while you were still under the fig-tree before Philip called you.’ Then Nathanael declared, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.’ Jesus said, ‘You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig-tree. You will see greater things than that.’ He then added, ‘Very truly I tell you, you will see “heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on” the Son of Man.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon
My head is buzzing, ideas are whizzing around inside my brain, and there isn’t enough time or space to get them all down on paper. Some weeks, the process of writing a sermon is slow and laborious, but not today. So much has moved on in just 7 days. On Thursday just gone we launched our telephone sermon option for people who cannot access the internet (020 8016 2474). After a successful Zoom Patronal get together last Sunday, we launch today our first Zoom act of worship. We have gone from a dry written sermon to a multiplicity of ways of sharing in worship, and it is very exciting. In addition, on Wednesday of last week, the House of Bishops allowed a slight relaxation of our churches’ closure, with permission to live stream acts of worship from inside our buildings, as long as only two people are present, and suitably distant from each other. The ways of keeping in touch with each other and of sharing worship together are increasing daily.
This is exactly what the writer of 1 Peter is talking about when he uses the image of “living stones”. Christ is that first, all-important living stone, the cornerpiece, the foundation of all that God is building in his Church, but we his people are also living stones, built up into an ever-expanding building for worship and for witness. However separated we are, we can come together to praise our God, to pray together and individually, and to share our joy in Christ. However separated we might be, we can still show in acts of love and generosity what Christ has done for us and how God’s world ought to be.
This building, so full of opportunity and challenge, does not get built without its tragedies. The death of Stephen is one such awful event, when stones are used not to build up, but to destroy. Just as the water of baptism talks of life and death, so stones were very much part of the Early Church’s suffering. Stephen was not the only martyr to be stoned and the apostle Paul and his companions on their missionary journies were frequently chased out of town by stone-throwing mobs. The writer to this group of churches in northern Turkey very deliberately uses this image to redeem those murderous stones that were used against Christians, stating that Christ himself was rejected as a useless part of the building of Israel, yet in resurrection he proves himself to be the most important part of God’s universe. What is so marvellous is that we are included in that living stone, part of the fabric, a piece of the whole. Resurrection includes us in God, totally, and that is wonderful.
However, our buildings are solidly locked this morning, and will remain so through this week. There will come a time when they will re-open for private prayer, but we may well have to sit tight for many more weeks before full congregational worship will restart. Therefore, this living building which offers prayer and worship to Almighty God will have to be active in different ways.
One positive part of the national lockdown has been the safe removal of 90% of rough sleepers from our streets, into the warmth and safety of unused hotel rooms across the country. The night shelter project was drawn rapidly to a close as this process happened, but the charity with which we work in providing these shelters continues to meet with these people, to support them into longterm accommodation, to restore their documentation and benefits or to get them back in contact with their families. The work of Glass Door, St Mungo’s, the Salvation Army and many more charities working with the homeless carries on, day by day, with case workers making remarkable progress, and food banks supplying meals and other practical support. In an article in Thursday’s Guardian, it was reported that of the over 500 homeless people now in hotels in London, many had tested positive for Corvid 19, but none had died – testimony surely to the skill and professionalism of their support teams.
Today is also the start of Christian Aid Week, when normally we would be out inviting people to share in the work of Christian Aid with disadvantaged people across the world, but this year we can ony do this online, via the Just Giving pages set up for our congregations (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/the-barn-kew & https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/st-lukes-kewor by phone: 02075232493 ) Please share this with your with your family and friends – many lives depend on our generosity.
The Kew Neighbourhood Association is providing much-needed support for vulnerable people here In Kew. They are blessed with a large number of volunteers, but they need our prayers for their continued efforts.
The Richmond FoodBank is continuing to operate, delivering hundreds of food parcels and frozen meals every week across the borough. If there is anyone you know who needs this service, which is free to anyone who cannot afford to buy food, please encourage them to ring 0808 2082138 Monday-Friday, or 8940 0274, and help will be arranged as soon as possible. Donations of food or of cash are always welcome: visit https://richmond.foodbank.org.uk/give-help/donate-money or phone 8940 0274, and surround your generosity with prayer for all those involved in this critical work in our borough.
The one major difficulty we have during this time of lockdown is actually telling people what we are doing as God’s people and how they can get involved. We start with prayer, which must undergird all that we do, but the example of Philip in today’s Gospel reading is perhaps the most helpful in this. Nathanael responds as an old curmudgeon when Philip says that Jesus is from Nazareth – Nathanael was from the neighbouring village of Cana, and old rivalries run deep. “Come and see” says Philip, drawing Nathanael out of his aloof reticence and into the very presence of God. As Nathanael meets Jesus he sees immediately that this is the Messiah – and it was Philip who gently encouraged him to encounter Jesus. We are called to do the same today, but we cannot bring people with us to church on Sundays for the time being. So we have to be creative. Share sermons or acts of worship via email with your friends. Like and retweet or share our Facebook and Twitter pages. Make sure that people know that support is available and there are opportunities for worship for everybody – the glory of the internet is that anyone can access what we are providing from anywhere in the world. Just because our buildings are closed does not preclude us from inviting people to meet the risen Jesus – “come and see” can easily become “join us online” or “read this” or “listen to this”.
Living stones, alive to God, growing together, worshipping, prayerful and outward-looking – all of that is encompassed in what we have read this morning. May God give us grace this week, like Philip, gently to offer a meaningful encounter with the risen Jesus to all with whom we are in contact. And may almighty God keep us and bless us through these difficult and uncertain times. Amen
The Sick: Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Luci Mitchell-Fry,
Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston
RIP Mary Smith, Revd Peter Holmes, Pattie Johnson, Norma Williams
Prayers – with thanks to Ben Worsley
Prayers
Dear Lord, we thank you for all the people who have risked and sacrificed much to provide us with all the privileges we have in Britain today. We pray for those still sacrificing, risking, and striving to make it better for everyone. We pray for clarity and reassurance in this time of uncertainty and we hope people use their power and privilege to help our communities to be safe and well. Our reflections go especially to those gone before us, for the lives of those we remembered this Friday gone.
They think of firelit homes, clean beds and wives.
I see them in foul dug-outs, gnawed by rats,
And in the ruined trenches, lashed with rain,
Dreaming of things they did with balls and bats,
And mocked by hopeless longing to regain
Bank-holidays, and picture shows, and spats,
And going to the office in the train.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer.
We pray for our local community. We confess our own failings and lack of compassion and love. We thank you that you forgive our failings and ask us to rise us up in your grace. Our community in this time is important. It brings us together, helps us and teaches us to care. We can see many great examples around us. Shopping for others. Stepping to the other side of the path. Talking over a hedge. Ringing someone for a chat. Help us to create a better community. We thank you for; Peter, Michael and Richard who are working hard at keeping us together when we are apart.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer.
At a time when people question the relevance of the church, give us the presence to be a witness in the world.
Prayer of Abandonment
By Charles de Foucauld
Father, I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will. Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me, and in all your creatures – I wish no more than this, O Lord.
Into your hands I commend my soul: I offer it to you with all the love of my heart, for I love you, Lord, and so need to give myself, to surrender myself into your hands without reserve, and with boundless confidence, for you are my Father.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer.
We pray for the comfort and healing of those who suffer in body, mind and spirit;
Alan Hay, Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Luci Mitchell-Fry, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston. Give them courage and hope in their troubles. And we pray for the dead, Mary Smith, Revd Peter Holmes, Pattie Johnson, Norma Williams. Please bring peace to those left and help them remember the bright sparks of the life once lived.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayer.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” Then they were glad when they saw the Lord, Alelluia. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
Be present, be present, Lord Jesus Christ, Our risen high priest;
It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks, almighty and eternal Father, and in these days of Easter to celebrate with joyful hearts the memory of your wonderful works. For by the mystery of his passion, Jesus Christ, your risen Son, has conquered the powers of death and hell and restored to women and men the image of your glory. He has placed us once more in paradise and opened to us the gate of life eternal. And so, in the joy of this Passover, earth and heaven resound with gladness, while angels and archangels and the powers of all creation sing for ever the hymn of your glory.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. +Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight; and the blessing of God almighty, + the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be with you and those you love, today and always. Amen.
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession:
We run the race set before us, surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. Therefore let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which clings so closely, bringing them to Jesus in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, +pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
Almighty Father, whom truly to know is eternal life: teach us to know your Son Jesus Christ as the way, the truth and the life: that we may follow the steps of your holy apostle Philip, and walk steadfastly in the way that leads to your glory; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen
Isaiah 30.15-21
Isaiah
For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. But you refused and said, ‘No! We will flee upon horses’— therefore you shall flee! and, ‘We will ride upon swift steeds’— therefore your pursuers shall be swift! A thousand shall flee at the threat of one, at the threat of five you shall flee, until you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill.
Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.
Truly, O people in Zion, inhabitants of Jerusalem, you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he hears it, he will answer you. Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God
Ephesians 1.3-10
Ephesians
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
Glory to you, O Lord.
John 14:1-14
John
Jesus said to his disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe
also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you
that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I
will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the
way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you
are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me,
you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long
time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the
Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words
I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is
doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at
least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever
believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than
these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so
that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I
will do it.
This is the Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you O Christ.
Sermon: PIP (& JIM?) (not at the Barn Church!), May 3 Revd Dr Nicholas Roberts
“Lord, show us the Father and we shall be satisfied.” John 14:8.
‘Unaccustomed as I am’ to delivering sermons by mail rather than face to face, I will do my best to imagine your looks of dismay or cries of “shame!” as you read this.
In my first job as a high church curate in the Black Country I made the mistake (never repeated) of asking a member of the congregation if she had enjoyed my Sunday evensong sermon. “Ooh no, Father, she replied, “You went on for 25 minutes, and my feet were hurting”. What follows should take less than 10 minutes to read, and you can do so lying down if necessary.
In the gospel for today Philip deserves some sympathy, if we are to take Jesus’ reply to his request at face value. He had asked a good and important question, “Jesus, you go on an awful lot about the person you describe as your father: well, where is he? What is he like? How can we tell?” And Jesus replies in what can seem a rather impatient or rejecting manner, “If you want to see the father, then look at me!”.
Maybe Philip felt a bit embarrassed, a bit ‘put down’ by this, perhaps rather tactless, reply. Jesus could be quite sharp at times, to his friends, and even, you may remember, to his mother – “Woman, what have you to do with me?”. Dress it up and sanitize it as much as you like with anodyne translations from the Greek, it wasn’t a ‘nice’ way to treat her! But the heartfelt plea “Show us the father” may be one that we know from our own experience. And I dare say that at the moment, as you read these thoughts of mine while at home, rather than through hearing them when attending a service in church, it may be a question that you very much want to ask, and have answered. Where is the Father, where is GOD, in other words, at this transformational moment in human history, when so many people are suffering and dying, and we suspect, probably correctly, that nothing will ever be quite the same again.
What we can put right out of our minds is the thought that God has deliberately sent this plague to us, perhaps as a test, or, even worse, as some kind of punishment for sinful human behaviour. I don’t believe in that kind of God at all, even though the Bible can sometimes seem to suggest it.
What I do believe, on the other hand, is that Jesus walked on earth as a man, a real, complete, full and genuine human being. He was never shielded from the awfulness, the tragedy and pain of human life. He was there in the middle of all the mess and the muddle. He certainly was not God, as it were, dressed up to look like a human being – but actually unaffected by what was going on in people’s lives around him. And learning of the death of his great friend Lazarus, “Jesus wept”.
When he replied to Philip he was saying, in effect, if you can see me as the person I really am (and not the person you want me to be) then in seeing me, you have access to seeing God: you can learn who and what God is, and how this encounter can transform your lives for the better. And, bearing in mind that the gospel of St John was written towards the end of the first century when the Church was spreading and preaching the gospel in many places, Philip and the other apostles were being commissioned to preach this loving, healing, risk taking, forgiving, even suffering, God, wherever they might go.
In Philip’s case, this may well have involved travel to Asia, and although we haven’t got much information about him, he probably died at Hierapolis, in Turkey. So he certainly did his share of missionary work, although he is of course chiefly remembered now for the various occasions in the Gospel when he played a leading role, such as in the story of the loaves and fishes.
But this leads us back, I think, to his profound request to be shown the Father. And to our own, perhaps agonised, question, “Where is God in this current crisis?” It is easy perhaps to be a bit dismissive about the impact of the virus on the economic welfare of the world, because we would rather concentrate on health and the avoidance of infection where at all possible. Mr Trump and other politicians – even our own – are sometimes, and perhaps rightly, thought of as hard headed and cynical. But of course for thousands, perhaps millions of people, that economic impact is real, and even perhaps as frightening, in its social consequences, as the disease itself.
But at a human level there may be many urgent questions that the current situation is asking. Questions about what kind of society we live in, and what kind of society we really want to be in. Is it possible that the situation with this virus is in fact asking some very profound questions about our responsibilities to one another, focussed at a physical level in the important demand that we protect others by things like washing our hands and social distancing?
Is a new understanding of our dependence on one another at least one possible good outcome of what is going on? There could be good news in that. And we can’t fail to salute the wonderful and sometimes risky commitment of hospital staff, and of course care home staff, in caring for the sick and dying, alongside other, perhaps less glamorous public servants such as bus drivers, in lonely self-isolation in their cabs.
And at a more mundane level perhaps, have you noticed how the pace of life in this city, with its empty roads and buses, has slowed down recently? More time perhaps to make that phone call, write that email, or just enjoy the environment which we don’t usually have the time to notice.
So – not a punishing God, but in spite of dreadful suffering, maybe a God of opportunity?
Please remember especially in your prayers through this week:
The Sick: Alan Hay, Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Luci Mitchell-Fry, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston
Those who have died: Mary Smith, Norma Williams
Prayers – with thanks to Beni Woolmer
Prayers
Compassionate Loving God, we pray for our world at this time of immense suffering and fear because of Covid 19. Lord, we have been forced into seclusion and isolation and have lost control of our normal lives. We pray for those whose suffering has taken them to the edge of their own inner resources, particularly doctors and nurses who are struggling to manage their own fear whilst remaining alongside those who are dying without any loved members of their families around them.
We bring to your loving gaze all those who are working to bring food into supermarkets all over the world, the lorry drivers, those who unload and pack food on to shelves, the cleaners and people at the tills. Teach us to humbly recognize how much we have not known about, and perhaps have chosen not to know, and to value more carefully those who are often overlooked and unseen.
We pray for those who are facing financial challenges; for those who have no safety net; for those whose marginalization has been made worse by the virus, particularly single parent families and those suffering from domestic violence.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer
We pray for the church and all places of worship which remain empty, except for a lone celebrant faithfully endeavouring to reach out to their communities. We pray for Christianity with its faltering model of institutional certainties. We pray that your Spirit will guide us to make this a time of transformation, a shift towards a more contemplative Christianity, where we can discover that you are the God of suffering love- you are suffering with us in this terrible time- and in all time. Etty Hillesum, a young Jewish woman who died in Auschwitz said: “ and that is all we can manage these days and also all that really matters: that we safeguard that little piece of you, God, in ourselves….there does not seem to be much You Yourself can do about our circumstances, about our lives. Neither do I hold you responsible. You cannot help us but we must help you and defend your dwelling place in us to the last” Help us to sift the wheat from the chaff; to know what we need to save and what we need to let go.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer
We pray for ourselves. Thank you for our heightened sense of gratitude for life and for all that we are coming to know about ourselves, about each other and about You, in this time of not knowing how and when this is going to end. Help us to process these life experiences we are going through humbly, and teach us to pay attention to each moment in front of us and within us. Recovery will be difficult. Help us to see more clearly how essentially connected we all are. Prompt us to pause in this solitude and to recognize the teaching hidden in this virus. Help us to let this crisis wake us up, so we can discover meaning in the pain of it.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer
We pray for those whose loved ones have had to go into hospital, into strange and unfamiliar territory, both within and without:
And all those who are grieving loved ones who have died.
We pray for those who have died:
We offer these prayers in all the holy names of God.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
The Peace
We are fellow-citizens with St Philip, all the saints and the whole household of God, through Christ our Lord, who came and preached peace to those who were far off and those who were near. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
God our Father, keep us united in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
It is indeed right and good that we should give you thanks, praise and glory, almighty and everlasting God, through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. For after his resurrection he sent out Philip and all his apostles and evangelists to preach the gospel to all nations and lead us in the way of truth. Himself the chief cornerstone, he founded his Church upon the apostles firmly to stand for ever as a sign of your holiness upon earth and a living witness to all of the way that leads to heaven. And so with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we lift our voices and join in their unending hymn of praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. +Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
God, who has prepared for you a city with eternal foundations, bring you, with St Philip and all the saints, to the eternal and triumphant joy of that city: and the blessing of God almighty, the +Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be with you and those you love, today and always. Amen.
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession:
Christ died to sin once for all, and now lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, +pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
Almighty Father, who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples with the sight of the risen Lord: give us such knowledge of his presence with us, that we may be strenthened and sustained by his risen life and serve you continually in righteousness and truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Acts 2: 14a, 36-41
Acts 2: 14a, 36-41
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. “Let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God
1 Peter 1: 17-23
1 Peter 1: 17-23
Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors,but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
Glory to you, O Lord.
Luke 24: 13-35
Luke 24: 13-35
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke:
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him,
“Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
“What things?” he asked.
“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”
He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.
They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
This is the Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you O Christ.
Sermon from Richard Austen
Today’s gospel tells us an interesting and rather meaningful story. Two disciples, Cleopas and a friend are journeying from Jerusalem to a village seven miles away on the day of the Resurrection. They were not of the twelve, or rather now the eleven, but they were clearly close followers of Jesus and known to the eleven. It’s a well-known story, one of misery turning to joy; desolation to elation. And it is a story many of us face in our own lives: when hopes and dreams are dashed, but then we find that things turn out well in the end.
Have you ever felt like you just had to get away? Have you ever been bitterly disappointed, when expectations have come to nothing? When you have felt let down? When it feels as if your world has turned to ashes? I expect we all have in one way or another and that is what Cleopas and his companion must have been feeling. It was Easter day and it seems that these two disciples were off! Who can blame them? Jerusalem had proved to be a place of pain and loss; of death, unmet expectations and disappointment. As they made their way, they were talking about all the things that had happened, and, probably, the things that hadn’t turned out quite as they expected. About Jesus’s arrest, crucifixion and death. They would have been disappointed, bewildered and sad. They had hoped Jesus was the one, but he was now dead. Surely there was nothing to keep them in Jerusalem, especially as they were not of the inner circle of disciples. Their lives had been shattered and there was the danger from the Jewish authorities too. They had heard the claims of Mary and the other women that an angel had told them of the Resurrection, but they were clearly doubtful and confused and felt the need to get away.
I don’t know why they chose to go to Emmaus or what they planned to do there. But went they did. Going to Emmaus was perhaps an escape from everything that had not gone right, or so they thought.
But here again we find Jesus looking after his people. Jesus listened to their fears, then explained the scriptures and why the Messiah had to die. He steered them away from pain and misery and back to life. He surprised them and he showed that he was there for them and, actually, that he needed them.
How often Jesus surprises us. We feel that things are pretty dire – they certainly are in the World at present. We need, we long for so much, not just material things. We need Jesus to be with us and to surprise us and to protect us.
“When Jesus was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognised him.” They recognised him as the one they had left for dead in Jerusalem. They recognised him as the one who had accompanied them on the road to Emmaus. They recognised him as the one they had hoped he would be. Jesus wasn’t just giving them bread; he was giving them back themselves. This was their restoration, their resurrection perhaps. Jesus was supporting them with himself: with his body, his life, his love, his compassion, with all that he is and all that he has.
They returned to the place from which they had to get away. Cleopas and his companion arrived back in Jerusalem in the middle of the night with news of their Emmaus experience and when they got there, they heard that others had also had resurrection experiences of Jesus. Jesus was alive, seen, and present in Jerusalem. They had left Jerusalem only that morning as a place of horror and death and they returned that evening to a place now full of joy and hope. Jesus had surprised them, Jesus had not left them, Jesus was there for them.
We do not hear of Cleopas again, but after such a tremendous experience of the risen Jesus one can only assume that he and his companion became part of that great missionary effort that spread Christianity so widely in such a short time. Cleopas and his friend had had their doubts satisfied. Their fears were overcome, they had seen the Risen Lord. And he had not let them go, he had a purpose for them and he brought them back to their Christian community.
We all have doubts and fears. We all have to face losses and shattering events in our lives. The same Jesus who appeared to them is there in the background looking after us. Whatever we go through, he is there, whenever things are dark, he is there. We may not have quite the striking revelation as these two disciples did, but he can surprise us with his love. I am reminded of the lines in the old hymn “Hark my Soul”, where it says – Sought me wandering, set me right, turned my darkness into light. Jesus surprises us and he brings us back – always has, always will. We all can and we all will have our own Emmaus experiences. We can be comforted at all times by the words soon to come at the Ascension. “Be assured, I am with you always, to the end of time”. Amen
If people have the virus, please let them survive.
Please watch over everyone,
Please let the virus just be gone.
We are sorry for being bad,
Let us be happy and not sad.
Thank you for everyone and everything in our lives.
Amen
Please remember especially in your prayers through this week:
The Sick: Alan Hay, Julia Holboro, Annie Kunz, Lisa McTaggart,
Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston
Those who have died: Mary Smith, Shelagh Cochrane, Norma Williams
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” Then they were glad when they saw the Lord, Alelluia. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
Be present, be present, Lord Jesus Christ, Our risen high priest;
It is indeed right , our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks, almighty and eternal Father, and in these days of Easter to celebrate with joyful hearts the memory of your wonderful works. For by the mystery of his passion, Jesus Christ, your risen Son, has conquered the powers of death and hell and restored to women and men the image of your glory. He has placed us once more in paradise and opened to us the gate of life eternal. And so, in the joy of this Passover, earth and heaven resound with gladness, while angels and archangels and the powers of all creation sing for ever the hymn of your glory.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. +Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight; and the blessing of God almighty, + the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession:
Christ died to sin once for all, and now lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
Almighty God, you have given your only Son to die for our sins and to rise again for our justification:
Grant us so to put away the leaven of malice and wickedness that we may always serve you in pureness of living and truth; through the merits of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Acts 2, 22-32
Acts 2:22-32
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him:
“‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, 27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’
29 “Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it.
This is the Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
1 Peter 1: 3-9
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
Glory to you, O Lord.
John 20: 19-end
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” 24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon from Michael Tonkin
“Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20.29)
One of the saddest aspects of this present Pandemic is the fact that it forces so many people to be alone; to ‘self isolate’, either on their own or with a partner, and for so many to die alone away from family and friends. I read of one lady whose husband was taken to hospital, and into isolation where he later died, the saddest thing, the lady said, was that she no longer had anyone to cuddle.
We are by nature a homogeneous animal, it is in our DNA to gather together and to seek comfort from one another, probably as the disciples were doing in that locked room where they had gathered.
We also heard, in the Gospel Reading from Easter Sunday, how Mary Magdalene, on realizing that, who she thought was the gardener, was actually Jesus, at once went to hold on to him. ‘Jesus said to her, ”Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.”’
Then, of course there is poor old Thomas, who I must say I always feel a little sorry for. He knew that Jesus, the one who he had faithfully followed for years, had been crucified by the Romans, had died and been placed in a tomb, and yet now he was to believe that he had suddenly turned up in a locked room with his companions. Well, would you have believed it? Yet it was true, and again there had to be that physical proof, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Here the very physical evidence that Thomas had asked for.
There is also that wonderful moment, on that first visit, when Jesus breathes on those gathered disciples, passing on to them the Holy Spirit. As in the reading from the Acts of the Apostles, that same Holy Spirit they would receive again at Pentecost, that empowered them, to leave their locked room and go out and face the crowds and tell the Gospel story.
It is a Gospel story that has travelled through time and across the world touching millions of lives. Bringing hope where there has only been despair, bringing healing and love, when all was thought to be darkness and pain. In many ways, in countless parts of our world today, there are many feeling helpless, alone and often unloved. Yet we know as Christians, as others of different faiths also know, there will always be one who loves us, walks with us and holds on to us very tightly. For as Peter wrote in his first letter to the early church; “Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.“
So even in those darkest of times, when there maybe few or even no one at our side, if we have our faith, and hold on very tightly to that, then we will truly never be alone. Amen
Dearest Lord, let us give thanks for a beautiful Spring, as we pray fo rour troubled and ailing world. We know that your love will always be there for us. May we reach out to you and feel your presence, always, in times of peace, sickness, danger and death.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
We pray for churches throught the world, and give thanks for Peter’s minstry and all who work for our church, which, sadly, is empty but lives within our hearts. Let us pray also for our sister churches, for Justin Welby, Pope Francis and Bishop Cleopas of Matabeleland and for the Green Park School in Zambia.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Bless and guide Elizabeth our Queen, and let us give thanks for he rloyalty and devotion to this country and to God. We pray for those in authority. Please guide our government to protect and love our people and to help us all as we struggle through turbulent times uintil we reach calmer waters.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Let us pray for the world and all those suffering from Corona Virus and other diseases, for the refugees, who suffer from poverty and fear. May hatred and jealousy be a victim of the virus. May your love triumph.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
We pray for families, friends and nighbours. We ppray for those we love, who are near of far. Let us give thanks for our NHS and all who work to heal and care for our people. Please guard them as the fight to save lives. Let us not forget soldiers, firefighters and police: those who work in supermarkets, pharmacies and some schools. And thank you for those who take our refuse and keep our streets clean.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Let us protect all children. We pray for those who are abused, lost and suffering. Let us pray also for those suffering from depression, loneliness, psychiatric and serious medical conditions. Please guard the frail and the elderly who are cut off from their families and friends.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
We pray for our planet and hope that when this crisis is over, we may be able to wrk towards healing our beautiful world.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind or spirit. We give thanks for the recovery of Serge Lourie, and we remember especially Alan Hay, Annie Kunz, Juliet Low, Lisa McTaggart, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Proctor, Kevin Willoughby and Max Weston.
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Let us pray for those who have died, in this country and throughout the world. We pray for those who mourn. May we be strengthened by your love and consolation. We remember Juliet Daly, Mary Allman, Shelagh Cochrane, Mary Smith (Judith Colliver’s mother), and a family friend, Yasmin Van Den Benken
Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer
Dearest Lord,
We pray for healing, love and peace:
In our hearts
In our homes
In our nation
In our world
The healing, love and peace of your will;
The healing, love and peace of our need.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” Then they were glad when they saw the Lord, Alelluia. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
Be present, be present, Lord Jesus Christ, Our risen high priest;
It is indeed right , our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks, almighty and eternal Father, and in these days of Easter to celebrate with joyful hearts the memory of your wonderful works. For by the mystery of his passion, Jesus Christ, your risen Son, has conquered the powers of death and hell and restored to women and men the image of your glory. He has placed us once more in paradise and opened to us the gate of life eternal. And so, in the joy of this Passover, earth and heaven resound with gladness, while angels and archangels and the powers of all creation sing for ever the hymn of your glory.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight; and the blessing of God almighty, + the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
Our worship together is in the name of the + Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you:
and also with you.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this most holy morning when our Lord passed from death to life, the Church invites her children throughout the world to come together to worship. This is the Passover of the Lord. We remember his death and resurrection by hearing his word and celebrating his mysteries, confident that we shall share his victory over death and live with him forever.
Let us pray:
Eternal God, who made this most holy morning to shine with the brightness of your one true light: set us aflame with the fire of your love, and bring us to the radiance of your heavenly glory: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
The Easter Candle is marked
Christ yesterday and today, the beginning and the end, Alpha and Omega, all time belongs to him and all ages: to him be glory and power, for ever and ever. Amen
May the light of Christ, rising in glory, banish all darkenss from our hearts and minds.
Christ died to sin once for all, and now lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.
Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed. We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
.
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray
Lord of all life and power, who through the mighty resurrection of your Son overcame the old order of sin and death to make all things new in him: grant that we, being dead to sin and alive to you in Jesus Christ, may reign with him in glory; to whom with you and the Holy Spirit be praise and honour, glory and might, now and in all eternity. Amen
34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favouritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. 39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
Glory to you, O Lord.
John 20:1-18
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon
Today was supposed to be my last working Sunday here, but it is not: I am here for the foreseeable future, until the current circumstance change. Today was supposed to be a day of family get-togethers and slap-up feasts, but it won’t be. Today Mary Magdalene was supposed to be finishing off the burial rituals for Jesus’s body, but she didn’t, because she was interrupted by the gardener, or so she thought.
Nothing is right today, and yet everything is absolutely right for Christ is risen! Our normal Easter activities have been put on hold, and yet Christ is risen! The churches are locked today, and yet Christ is risen! It takes much more than a vicious virus to quash the joy of resurrection. We will celebrate today, whatever our circumstances, however far away our families may be, because Christ is risen!
While that might be enough exclamation marks for now, the extraordinary reason for today’s celebration far outweighs the restrictions of the current crisis. We are separated from each other for each other’s sake, as life is precious and life is glorious, because Christ rose from the dead. We do what we can to ease the burden on doctors and nurses, whose hard and dangerous work needs our acknowledgement and whose wellbeing deserves our constant prayer, by minimising the risk of infection, but our rejoicing in the risen Christ cannot be contained.
As the large-scale celebrations have had to be put on hold, everything has had to be scaled back to a more domestic level. This is where the Easter story really begins. Mary Magdalene is coming to the tomb to do for Jesus what could not be completed in the haste of his burial on Good Friday and the subsequent Sabbath day. Mary Magdalene is prepared to anoint the body with oils and perfumes, re-wrap and re-lay the corpse in the tomb, and then go home to mourn. She is going to do for Jesus what a relative would normally do, but in these circumstances, she is taking the place of Mary, his mother, out of love and an overwhelming sense of duty. Big public mourning rites were not possible for Jesus, Mary Magdalene knew, so she went to do them as early in the morning as possible, so as not to attract any attention and to avoid any further conflict.
How differently it all worked out. Firstly, the tomb was open and empty. The two disciples she ran to tell were as useful as a chocolate tea pot, as they saw the empty tomb but just went home, leaving Mary on her own in the garden, confused and slightly terrified. How helpful are the two angels, who speak to her? She is obviously still weeping when Jesus approaches, as the lines, “Woman, why are you weeping?” are repeated word for word. It takes Jesus saying her name for the reality of the situation to be made clear. That personal contact, the connection between her name and the sound of his voice finally breaks through Mary’s grief and she realises that Jesus is alive. It is a wonderful moment, one of several that fill the post-resurrection appearances. It is loving and slightly reproachful, possibly, but done in the gentlest of ways. This is two people meeeting up after one of them thought they would never see the other again – no wonder she clings on to him and has to be peeled off, so that she can go and tell the disciples that Jesus is alive. Two people, in a garden, together again. Then the work of outreach begins. That is Easter, summed up in a few words.
For us, we can do little more than go out into our garden or whatever green space is available to us, and realize that we are with our risen Lord, forever. We can cling on to him, or we can demonstrate that he is alive by our gentleness and our reaching out to others. Love motivates us, love takes us beyond ourselves to search out the needs of those who are round about us, especially at this time. There has been no better opportunity to get to know our neighbours and to share the burdens of this lockdown together. There has been no better time to pray for God’s suffering world. There has been no better time to perform those gentle acts of kindness to the isolated and the vulnerable. Pope Francis, in his Maundy Thursday sermon, talks of these kinds of actions as belonging to “saints next door”,who, along with doctors and nurses, paramedics and NHS support staff, are making the difference between fulness of life and mere survival.
We have people ringing round members of the congregation to check that they are all right. If we had more volunteers for that, everybody could be rung up at least once a week. Most roads in Kew have an active Whatsapp group sharing and caring for each other in the street – let’s be part of those simple, practical ways of demonstrating solidarity and bearing one another’s burdens. Nothing spectacular, no grand public show, but like Mary Magdalene, quietly going about the business of caring and making a difference, in the joy of resurrection. George Elliott puts it rather better in the final paragraph of Middlemarch: “..the effect of her being (Dorothea) on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life..”
May your Easter joy be unconfined, may your families and friends be safe and well, and may we all rejoice together when we are allowed back into church, where the Easter candle will be waiting for us, shining with the full brightness of the risen Christ. Amen.
The Lord is risen, he has risen indeed! Alleluia, Alleluia.
As we celebrate the new life of Resurrection,let us pray to the one true God, who brings the promise of eternal life to us all.
We pray for our Churches throughout the world, that today stand empty, but like the empty tomb, are alive in the body of our risen Lord, and in every home that worships him today.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
We ask God’s blessing on our own churches, The Barn and St Luke’s, and on Father Peter and all who have worked to keep our worship alive and vibrant in these unusual times. For our family and friends who at present we cannot see face to face. For the great gift of communication, in all its forms and the power it has to keep us connected, as family, community and church.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Our Risen Lord, we ask for your blessing and loving care for all those who work, tirelessly in our NHS, in our Care Homes, in our Emergency Services. All those who take that extra step to help and look after others, with little or no thought for themselves. Be with them Lord, provide and reassure them in the truly loving and caring work they do.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Dear Lord let us not forget the refugees, the homeless, those who still suffer, now even more, in those war torn parts of God’s world. For those agencies who struggle to help them. May our world leaders and those more powerful countries not neglect their responsibilities towards them. The second Commandment is this “You shall love your neighbour as you love yourself”.
Lord in you mercy, hear our prayer.
There are Lord, so many today who need our prayers, all those suffering with the coronavirus, those whose treatment has been ‘put on hold’; those who suffer from mental illness, anxiety, abuse, we ask for your loving care for them all. In our own community we remember especially today: Shelagh Cochrane, Alan Hay, Juliet Low, Serge Lowrie, Joan Pritchard, Johanna Procter, Mary Smith, Kevin Willoughby, Max Weston
Lord in you mercy, hear our prayer.
With the words of Resurrection fresh in our hearts and minds, we commend to your eternal love those many thousands who have died, of all nationalities and beliefs, that they may all live with Our Risen Lord. in your kingdom for ever. We remember today from our own community Juliet Daley, Mary Allman.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Lord God, we thank you for the precious gift of new life; may we never again take it for granted, but live each moment in the fullness of life that Jesus has gained for us.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, “Peace be with you.” Then they were glad when they saw the Lord, Alelluia. The peace of the Lord be always with you: and also with you.
Be present, be present, Lord Jesus Christ, Our risen high priest;
It is indeed right , our duty and our joy, always and everywhere to give you thanks, almighty and eternal Father, and in these days of Easter to celebrate with joyful hearts the memory of your wonderful works. For by the mystery of his passion, Jesus Christ, your risen Son, has conquered the powers of death and hell and restored to women and men the image of your glory. He has placed us once more in paradise and opened to us the gate of life eternal. And so, in the joy of this Passover, earth and heaven resound with gladness, while angels and archangels and the powers of all creation sing for ever the hymn of your glory.
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight; and the blessing of God almighty, + the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
