If I say, “Surely the darkness will cover me, and the light around me turn to night,” darkness is not dark to you, O Lord; the night is as bright as the day; darkness and light to you are both alike.
Psalm 139:10,11
Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.
Most
merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in
thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we
have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we
have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and
we humbly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
have
mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in your will,
and
walk in your ways,
to the glory of your Name. Amen.
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.
Officiant O
God, make speed to save us.
People O
Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
O gracious light,
pure
brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ,
holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the
sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing your
praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy
at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver
of Life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.
If the LORD had not been on
our side, *
let Israel now say;
If the LORD had not been on
our side, *
when enemies rose up against us;
Then would they have
swallowed us up alive *
in their fierce anger toward us;
Then would the waters have
overwhelmed us *
and the torrent gone over us;
Then would the raging
waters *
have gone right over us.
Blessed be the LORD! *
he
has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird
from the snare of the fowler; *
the snare is broken, and we have
escaped.
Our help is in the Name of
the LORD, *
the maker of heaven and earth.
Those who trust in the LORD
are like Mount Zion, *
which cannot be moved, but stands fast for
ever.
The hills stand about
Jerusalem; *
so does the LORD stand round about his people,
from this time forth for evermore.
The scepter of the wicked
shall not hold sway over the land allotted to the just, *
so that
the just shall not put their hands to evil.
Show your goodness, O LORD,
to those who are good *
and to those who are true of heart.
As for those who turn aside
to crooked ways,
the LORD will lead them away with the evildoers;
*
but peace be upon Israel.
When the LORD restored the
fortunes of Zion, *
then were we like those who dream.
Then was our mouth filled
with laughter, *
and our tongue with shouts of joy.
Then they said among the
nations, *
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
The LORD has done great
things for us, *
and we are glad indeed.
Restore our fortunes, O
LORD, *
like the watercourses of the Negev.
Those who sowed with tears
*
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying the seed, *
will come again with joy, shouldering their
sheaves.
Unless the LORD builds the
house, *
their labor is in vain who build it.
Unless the LORD watches
over the city, *
in vain the watchman keeps his vigil.
It is in vain that you rise
so early and go to bed so late; *
vain, too, to eat the bread of
toil,
for he gives to his beloved sleep.
Children are a heritage
from the LORD, *
and the fruit of the womb is a gift.
Like arrows in the hand of
a warrior *
are the children of one’s youth.
Happy is the man who has
his quiver full of them! *
he shall not be put to shame
when
he contends with his enemies in the gate.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Gospel According to John.
The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.” So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” Then they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” The man answered, “Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out.
Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him.
Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.
The
Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Seek the Lord while he
wills to be found; *
call upon him when he draws near.
Let the wicked forsake
their ways *
and the evil ones their thoughts;
And let them turn to the
Lord, and he will have compassion, *
and to our God, for he will
richly pardon.
For my thoughts are not
your thoughts, *
nor your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are
higher than the earth, *
so are my ways higher than your ways,
and
my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as rain and snow fall
from the heavens *
and return not again, but water the earth,
Bringing forth life and
giving growth, *
seed for sowing and bread for eating,
So is my word that goes
forth from my mouth; *
it will not return to me empty;
But it will accomplish that
which I have purposed, *
and prosper in that for which I sent it.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
I believe
in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I
believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived
by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was
buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose
again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right
hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and
the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic
Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of
sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Officiant The
Lord be with you.
People And
also with you.
Officiant Let
us 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,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
That this evening may
be holy, good, and peaceful.
We entreat you, O Lord.
That your holy angels
may lead us in paths of peace and goodwill,
We entreat you, O
Lord.
That we may be
pardoned and forgiven for our sins and offenses,
We entreat you, O
Lord.
That there may be
peace to your Church and to the whole world,
We entreat you, O
Lord.
That we may depart
this life in your faith and fear, and not be condemned before the
great judgment seat of Christ,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be bound
together by your Holy Spirit in the communion of all your saints,
entrusting one another and all our life to Christ,
We entreat you,
O Lord.
Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
O God, the life of all who live, the light of the faithful, the strength of those who labor, and the repose of the dead: We thank you for the blessings of the day that is past, and humbly ask for your protection through the coming night. Bring us in safety to the morning hours; through him who died and rose again for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship you, all nations obey you, all tongues confess and bless you, and men and women everywhere love you and serve you in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let
us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.
Let
us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20,21