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
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.
You have been gracious to your land, O LORD, *
you
have restored the good fortune of Jacob.
You have forgiven the iniquity of your people *
and
blotted out all their sins.
You have withdrawn all your fury *
and turned
yourself from your wrathful indignation.
Restore us then, O God our Savior; *
let your anger
depart from us.
Will you be displeased with us for ever? *
will you
prolong your anger from age to age?
Will you not give us life again, *
that your people
may rejoice in you?
Show us your mercy, O LORD, *
and grant us your
salvation.
I will listen to what the LORD God is saying, *
for
he is speaking peace to his faithful people
and to those who turn
their hearts to him.
Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him,
*
that his glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together; *
righteousness
and peace have kissed each other.
Truth shall spring up from the earth, *
and
righteousness shall look down from heaven.
The LORD will indeed grant prosperity, *
and our land
will yield its increase.
Righteousness shall go before him, *
and peace shall
be a pathway for his feet.
Bow down your ear, O LORD, and answer me, *
for I am
poor and in misery.
Keep watch over my life, for I am faithful; *
save
your servant who puts his trust in you.
Be merciful to me, O LORD, for you are my God; *
I
call upon you all the day long.
Gladden the soul of your servant, *
for to you, O
LORD, I lift up my soul.
For you, O LORD, are good and forgiving, *
and great
is your love toward all who call upon you.
Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer, *
and attend to the
voice of my supplications.
In the time of my trouble I will call upon you, *
for
you will answer me.
Among the gods there is none like you, O LORD, *
nor
anything like your works.
All the nations you have made will come and worship you,
O LORD, *
and glorify your Name.
For you are great;
you do wondrous things; *
and
you alone are God.
Teach me your way, O LORD,
and I will walk in your
truth; *
knit my heart to you that I may fear your Name.
I will thank you, O LORD my God, with all my heart,
*
and glorify your Name for evermore.
For great is your love toward me; *
you have
delivered me from the nethermost Pit.
The arrogant rise up against me, O God,
and a band of
violent men seeks my life; *
they have not set you before their
eyes.
But you, O LORD, are gracious and full of compassion,
*
slow to anger, and full of kindness and truth.
Turn to me and have mercy upon me; *
give your
strength to your servant;
and save the child of your handmaid.
Show me a sign of your favor,
so that those who hate
me may see it and be ashamed; *
because you, O LORD, have helped
me and comforted me.
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 Letter to the Romans.
All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but the doers of the law who will be justified. When Gentiles, who do not possess the law, do instinctively what the law requires, these, though not having the law, are a law to themselves. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, to which their own conscience also bears witness; and their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse them on the day when, according to my gospel, God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all.
But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast of your relation to God and know his will and determine what is best because you are instructed in the law, and if you are sure that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth, you, then, that teach others, will you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You that abhor idols, do you rob temples? You that boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
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.
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.
Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love, that through your grace we may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for 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.
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