Jesus said, “I am the light of the world; whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12
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.
Alleluia.
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.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *
his mercy
endures for ever.
Let Israel now proclaim, *
“His mercy endures
for ever.”
Let the house of Aaron now proclaim, *
“His
mercy endures for ever.”
Let those who fear the LORD now proclaim, *
“His
mercy endures for ever.”
I called to the LORD in my distress; *
the LORD
answered by setting me free.
The LORD is at my side, therefore I will not fear;
*
what can anyone do to me?
The LORD is at my side to help me; *
I will triumph
over those who hate me.
It is better to rely on the LORD *
than to put any
trust in flesh.
It is better to rely on the LORD *
than to put any
trust in rulers.
All the ungodly encompass me; *
in the Name of the
LORD I will repel them.
They hem me in, they hem me in on every side; *
in
the name of the LORD I will repel them.
They swarm about me like bees;
they blaze like a fire
of thorns; *
in the name of the LORD I will repel them.
I was pressed so hard that I almost fell, *
but the
LORD came to my help.
The LORD is my strength and my song, *
and he has
become my salvation.
There is a sound of exultation and victory *
in the
tents of the righteous:
“The right hand of the LORD has triumphed! *
the
right hand of the LORD is exalted!
the right hand of the LORD has
triumphed!”
I shall not die, but live, *
and declare the works of
the LORD.
The LORD has punished me sorely, *
but he did not
hand me over to death.
Open for me the gates of righteousness; *
I will
enter them;
I will offer thanks to the LORD.
“This is the gate of the LORD; *
he who is
righteous may enter.”
I will give thanks to you, for you answered me *
and
have become my salvation.
The same stone which the builders rejected *
has
become the chief cornerstone.
This is the LORD’S doing, *
and it is marvelous
in our eyes.
On this day the LORD has acted; *
we will rejoice and
be glad in it.
Hosanna, LORD, hosanna! *
LORD, send us now success.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; *
we
bless you from the house of the LORD.
God is the LORD; he has shined upon us; *
form a
procession with branches up to the horns of the altar.
“You are my God, and I will thank you; *
you
are my God, and I will exalt you.”
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *
his mercy
endures for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Wisdom of Solomon.
But the righteous, though
they die early, will be at rest.
For old age is not honoured for
length of time,
or measured by number of years;
but
understanding is grey hair for anyone,
and a blameless life is
ripe old age.
There were some who
pleased God and were loved by him,
and while living among sinners
were taken up.
They were caught up so that evil might not change
their understanding
or guile deceive their souls.
For the
fascination of wickedness obscures what is good,
and roving desire
perverts the innocent mind.
Being perfected in a short time,
they fulfilled long years;
for their souls were pleasing to the
Lord,
therefore he took them quickly from the midst of wickedness.
Yet the peoples saw and did not understand,
or take such a
thing to heart,
that God’s grace and mercy are with his
elect,
and that he watches over his holy ones.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my
spirit rejoices in God my Savior; *
for he has looked with favor
on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
*
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his
Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every
generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has
scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and
has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and the
rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, *
for
he has remembered his promise of mercy,
The promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and
his children for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Acts of the Apostles.
While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died.
And Saul approved of their killing him. That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison.
Now those who were scattered went from place to place, proclaiming the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them. The crowds with one accord listened eagerly to what was said by Philip, hearing and seeing the signs that he did, for unclean spirits, crying with loud shrieks, came out of many who were possessed; and many others who were paralyzed or lame were cured. So there was great joy in that city.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in
peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom
you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of
your people Israel.
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.
We give you thanks, O Lord
of glory, for the example of the first martyr Stephen, who looked up
to heaven and prayed for his persecutors to your Son Jesus Christ,
who stands at your right hand; where he lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
Most holy God, the source of all good desires, all right judgments, and all just works: Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, so that our minds may be fixed on the doing of your will, and that we, being delivered from the fear of all enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the mercies of Christ Jesus our Savior. 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.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
2 Corinthians 13:14