Send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me, and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.
Psalm 43:3
Officiant Lord,
open our lips.
People And
our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
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.
Come, let us sing to the Lord; *
let us shout for joy
to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving *
and
raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God, *
and a great King above
all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth, *
and the
heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, *
and his hands have
molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, *
and kneel
before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his
pasture and the sheep of his hand. *
Oh, that today you would
hearken to his voice!
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 Book of the Prophet Hosea.
Yet I have been the LORD your God ever since the land of Egypt; you know no God but me, and besides me there is no savior.
It was I who fed you in the wilderness, in the land of drought. When I fed them, they were satisfied; they were satisfied, and their heart was proud; therefore they forgot me. So I will become like a lion to them, like a leopard I will lurk beside the way. I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs, and will tear open the covering of their heart; there I will devour them like a lion, as a wild animal would mangle them.
I will destroy you, O Israel; who can help you? Where now is your king, that he may save you? Where in all your cities are your rulers, of whom you said, “Give me a king and rulers”? I gave you a king in my anger, and I took him away in my wrath. Ephraim’s iniquity is bound up; his sin is kept in store. The pangs of childbirth come for him, but he is an unwise son; for at the proper time he does not present himself at the mouth of the womb. Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol? Shall I redeem them from Death? O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your destruction? Compassion is hidden from my eyes.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come
to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of
the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old,
that he
would save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate
us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers *
and to
remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, *
to
set us free from the hands of our enemies,
Free to worship him without fear, *
holy and
righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most
High, *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the
forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from
on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow
of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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 Matthew.
At that time Herod the ruler heard reports about Jesus; and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he has been raised from the dead, and for this reason these powers are at work in him.” For Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because John had been telling him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” Though Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded him as a prophet. But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company, and she pleased Herod so much that he promised on oath to grant her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” The king was grieved, yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he commanded it to be given; he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. The head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, who brought it to her mother. His disciples came and took the body and buried it; then they went and told Jesus.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
You are God: we praise you;
You are the Lord; we
acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father:
All creation worships
you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
Cherubim and
Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God
of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your
glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble
fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs
praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you;
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son,
worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and
guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of
the Father.
When you became man to set us free
you did not shun
the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death
and
opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at
God’s right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come and
be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with
your saints
to glory everlasting.
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.
V. Save
your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
R. Govern
and uphold them, now and always.
V. Day
by day we bless you;
R. We
praise your name for ever.
V. Lord,
keep us from all sin today;
R. Have
mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
V. Lord,
show us your love and mercy;
R. For
we put our trust in you.
V. In
you, Lord, is our hope;
R. And
we shall never hope in vain.
Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
O God, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh; and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let
us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
Almighty God, Father of
all mercies,
we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks
for
all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all whom you
have made.
We bless you for our creation, preservation,
and all
the blessings of this life;
but above all for your immeasurable
love
in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ;
for
the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we pray, give us such
an awareness of your mercies,
that with truly thankful hearts we
may show forth your praise,
not only with our lips, but in our
lives,
by giving up our selves to your service,
and by walking
before you
in holiness and righteousness all our days;
through
Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be
honor and glory throughout all ages. 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