Morning Prayer - Thursday, 30 April 2020

Easter Season 

Pandita Mary Ramabai, Translator of the Scriptures, 1922

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who alone does great wonders,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who by wisdom made the heavens,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who laid out the earth upon the waters,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who made the great lights,
for his mercy endures for ever;

the sun to rule the day,
for his mercy endures for ever;

the moon and the stars to govern the night,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who smote the firstborn of Egypt,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and brought out Israel from among them,
for his mercy endures for ever;

with a mighty hand and outstretched arm,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who divided the Red Sea in two,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and made Israel to pass through the midst of it,
for his mercy endures for ever;

but Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who led his people through the wilderness,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who smote great kings,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and slew mighty kings,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and Og, the king of Bashan,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and gave away their land for a heritage,
for his mercy endures for ever;

a heritage for Israel his servant,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who remembered us when we were in trouble,
for his mercy endures for ever;

and delivered us from our enemies,
for his mercy endures for ever;

who gives food to all creatures,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Exodus 25.1-22
The Lord said to Moses: Tell the Israelites to take for me an offering; from all whose hearts prompt them to give you shall receive the offering for me. This is the offering that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue, purple, and crimson yarns and fine linen, goats’ hair, tanned rams’ skins, fine leather, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing-oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones and gems to be set in the ephod and for the breastpiece. And have them make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them. In accordance with all that I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

They shall make an ark of acacia wood; it shall be two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside you shall overlay it, and you shall make a moulding of gold upon it all round. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side. You shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, by which to carry the ark. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. You shall put into the ark the covenant that I shall give you.

Then you shall make a mercy-seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. You shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work, at the two ends of the mercy-seat. Make one cherub at one end, and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy-seat with their wings. They shall face each other; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned towards the mercy-seat. You shall put the mercy-seat on the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall put the covenant that I shall give you. There I will meet you, and from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites.

Luke 1.57-end
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, ‘No; he is to be called John.’ They said to her, ‘None of your relatives has this name.’ Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbours, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, ‘What then will this child become?’ For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.

Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:

‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
   for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them. 
He has raised up a mighty saviour for us
   in the house of his servant David, 
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 
   that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. 
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
   and has remembered his holy covenant, 
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
   to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
   before him all our days. 
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
   for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
   by the forgiveness of their sins. 
By the tender mercy of our God,
   the dawn from on high will break upon us, 
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
   to guide our feet into the way of peace.’

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

The Collect
Risen Christ, you filled your disciples with boldness and fresh hope: strengthen us to proclaim your risen life and fill us with your peace, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.

Morning Prayer - Thursday, 9 May 2019

Easter Season

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious, for his mercy endures for ever. Give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures for ever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures for ever; who alone does great wonders, for his mercy endures for ever; who by wisdom made the heavens, for his mercy endures for ever; who laid out the earth upon the waters, for his mercy endures for ever; who made the great lights, for his mercy endures for ever; the sun to rule the day, for his mercy endures for ever; the moon and the stars to govern the night, for his mercy endures for ever; who smote the firstborn of Egypt, for his mercy endures for ever; and brought out Israel from among them, for his mercy endures for ever; with a mighty hand and outstretched arm, for his mercy endures for ever; who divided the Red Sea in two, for his mercy endures for ever; and made Israel to pass through the midst of it, for his mercy endures for ever; but Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea, for his mercy endures for ever; who led his people through the wilderness, for his mercy endures for ever; who smote great kings, for his mercy endures for ever; and slew mighty kings, for his mercy endures for ever; Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his mercy endures for ever; and Og, the king of Bashan, for his mercy endures for ever; and gave away their land for a heritage, for his mercy endures for ever; a heritage for Israel his servant, for his mercy endures for ever; who remembered us when we were in trouble, for his mercy endures for ever; and delivered us from our enemies, for his mercy endures for ever; who gives food to all creatures, for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his mercy endures for ever.

Deuteronomy 7.1-11
When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter and occupy, and he clears away many nations before you—the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations mightier and more numerous than you—and when the Lord your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you must utterly destroy them. Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for that would turn away your children from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. But this is how you must deal with them: break down their altars, smash their pillars, hew down their sacred poles, and burn their idols with fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that the Lord set his heart on you and chose you—for you were the fewest of all peoples. It was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath that he swore to your ancestors, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who maintains covenant loyalty with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, and who repays in their own person those who reject him. He does not delay but repays in their own person those who reject him. Therefore, observe diligently the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that I am commanding you today.

Ephesians 2.11-end
So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called ‘the uncircumcision’ by those who are called ‘the circumcision’—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands—remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, so that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

The Collect
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 strengthened and sustained by his risen life and serve you continually in righteousness and truth; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Morning Prayer - Thursday 19 April 2018

Easter Season 
Alphege, Archbishop of Canterbury, Martyr, 1012 

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who alone does great wonders, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who by wisdom made the heavens, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who laid out the earth upon the waters, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who made the great lights, for his mercy endures for ever;
The sun to rule the day, for his mercy endures for ever;
The moon and the stars to govern the night, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, for his mercy endures for ever;
And brought out Israel from among them, for his mercy endures for ever;
With a mighty hand and outstretched arm, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who divided the Red Sea in two, for his mercy endures for ever;
And made Israel to pass through the midst of it, for his mercy endures for ever;
But Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who led his people through the wilderness, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who smote great kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
And slew mighty kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his mercy endures for ever;
And Og, the king of Bashan, for his mercy endures for ever;
And gave away their land for a heritage, for his mercy endures for ever;
A heritage for Israel his servant, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who remembered us when we were in trouble, for his mercy endures for ever;
And delivered us from our enemies, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who gives food to all creatures, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his mercy endures for ever.

Exodus 25.1-22
The Lord said to Moses: Tell the Israelites to take for me an offering; from all whose hearts prompt them to give you shall receive the offering for me. This is the offering that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue, purple, and crimson yarns and fine linen, goats’ hair, tanned rams’ skins, fine leather, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing-oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones and gems to be set in the ephod and for the breastpiece. And have them make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them. In accordance with all that I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

They shall make an ark of acacia wood; it shall be two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside you shall overlay it, and you shall make a moulding of gold upon it all round. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side. You shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, by which to carry the ark. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. You shall put into the ark the covenant that I shall give you.

Then you shall make a mercy-seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. You shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work, at the two ends of the mercy-seat. Make one cherub at one end, and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy-seat with their wings. They shall face each other; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned towards the mercy-seat. You shall put the mercy-seat on the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall put the covenant that I shall give you. There I will meet you, and from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites.

Luke 1.57-end
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, ‘No; he is to be called John.’ They said to her, ‘None of your relatives has this name.’ Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbours, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, ‘What then will this child become?’ For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.

Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them.
‘He has raised up a mighty saviour for us in the house of his servant David,
‘as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
‘that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
‘Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
‘and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
‘to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
‘might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
‘And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
‘for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
‘to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins.
‘By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us,
‘to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

The Collect
Merciful God, who raised up your servant Alphege to be a pastor of your people and gave him grace to suffer for justice and true religion: grant that we who celebrate his martyrdom may know the power of the risen Christ in our hearts and share his peace in lives offered to your service; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Morning Prayer - Thursday 4 May 2017

Easter Season

English Saints and Martyrs of the Reformation Era

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures for ever;

Who alone does great wonders, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who by wisdom made the heavens, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who laid out the earth upon the waters, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who made the great lights, for his mercy endures for ever;

The sun to rule the day, for his mercy endures for ever;
The moon and the stars to govern the night, for his mercy endures for ever;

Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, for his mercy endures for ever;
And brought out Israel from among them, for his mercy endures for ever;
With a mighty hand and outstretched arm, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who divided the Red Sea in two, for his mercy endures for ever;
And made Israel to pass through the midst of it, for his mercy endures for ever;
But Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who led his people through the wilderness, for his mercy endures for ever;

Who smote great kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
And slew mighty kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his mercy endures for ever;
And Og, the king of Bashan, for his mercy endures for ever;
And gave away their land for a heritage, for his mercy endures for ever;
A heritage for Israel his servant, for his mercy endures for ever;

Who remembered us when we were in trouble, for his mercy endures for ever;
And delivered us from our enemies, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who gives food to all creatures, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his mercy endures for ever.

Deuteronomy 7.1-11
When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter and occupy, and he clears away many nations before you—the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations mightier and more numerous than you—and when the Lord your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you must utterly destroy them. Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for that would turn away your children from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. But this is how you must deal with them: break down their altars, smash their pillars, hew down their sacred poles, and burn their idols with fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that the Lord set his heart on you and chose you—for you were the fewest of all peoples. It was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath that he swore to your ancestors, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who maintains covenant loyalty with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, and who repays in their own person those who reject him. He does not delay but repays in their own person those who reject him. Therefore, observe diligently the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that I am commanding you today.

Ephesians 2.11-end
So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called ‘the uncircumcision’ by those who are called ‘the circumcision’—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands—remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, so that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it.

So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

The Collect
Merciful God, who, when your Church on earth was torn apart by the ravages of sin, raised up men and women in this land who witnessed to their faith with courage and constancy: give to your Church that peace which is your will, and grant that those who have been divided on earth may be reconciled in heaven and share together in the vision of your glory; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Morning Prayer - May 8

Julian of Norwich, Spiritual Writer.  c.1417

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who alone does great wonders, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who by wisdom made the heavens, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who laid out the earth upon the waters, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who made the great lights, for his mercy endures for ever;
The sun to rule the day, for his mercy endures for ever;
The moon and the stars to govern the night, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, for his mercy endures for ever; And brought out Israel from among them, for his mercy endures for ever;
With a mighty hand and outstretched arm, for his mercy endures for ever; Who divided the Red Sea in two, for his mercy endures for ever;
And made Israel to pass through the midst of it, for his mercy endures for ever;
But Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who led his people through the wilderness, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who smote great kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
And slew mighty kings, for his mercy endures for ever;
Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his mercy endures for ever;
And Og, the king of Bashan, for his mercy endures for ever;
And gave away their land for a heritage, for his mercy endures for ever;
A heritage for Israel his servant, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who remembered us when we were in trouble, for his mercy endures for ever;
And delivered us from our enemies, for his mercy endures for ever;
Who gives food to all creatures, for his mercy endures for ever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his mercy endures for ever.

Exodus 25.1-22
The Lord said to Moses: Tell the Israelites to take for me an offering; from all whose hearts prompt them to give you shall receive the offering for me. This is the offering that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, blue, purple, and crimson yarns and fine linen, goats’ hair, tanned rams’ skins, fine leather, acacia wood, oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing-oil and for the fragrant incense, onyx stones and gems to be set in the ephod and for the breastpiece. And have them make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them. In accordance with all that I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.
They shall make an ark of acacia wood; it shall be two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside you shall overlay it, and you shall make a moulding of gold upon it all round. You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side. You shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, by which to carry the ark. The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. You shall put into the ark the covenant that I shall give you.

Then you shall make a mercy-seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. You shall make two cherubim of gold; you shall make them of hammered work, at the two ends of the mercy-seat. Make one cherub at one end, and one cherub at the other; of one piece with the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubim at its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy-seat with their wings. They shall face each other; the faces of the cherubim shall be turned towards the mercy-seat. You shall put the mercy-seat on the top of the ark; and in the ark you shall put the covenant that I shall give you. There I will meet you, and from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites.

Luke 1.57-end
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbours and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, ‘No; he is to be called John.’ They said to her, ‘None of your relatives has this name.’ Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbours, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, ‘What then will this child become?’ For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.
Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
   for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a mighty saviour for us
   in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
   that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
   and has remembered his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
   to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
   before him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
   for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
   by the forgiveness of their sins.
By the tender mercy of our God,
   the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
   to guide our feet into the way of peace.’

The Collect
Most holy God, the ground of our beseeching,
who through your servant Julian revealed the wonders of your love:
grant that as we are created in your nature and restored by your grace,
our wills may be so made one with yours that we may come to see you face to face and gaze on you for ever;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Psalm 136
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who alone does great wonders,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who by wisdom made the heavens,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who laid out the earth upon the waters,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who made the great lights,
for his mercy endures for ever;

The sun to rule the day,
for his mercy endures for ever;

The moon and the stars to govern the night,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who smote the firstborn of Egypt,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And brought out Israel from among them,
for his mercy endures for ever;

With a mighty hand and outstretched arm,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who divided the Red Sea in two,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And made Israel to pass through the midst of it,
for his mercy endures for ever;

But Pharaoh and his host he overthrew in the Red Sea,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who led his people through the wilderness,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who smote great kings,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And slew mighty kings,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And Og, the king of Bashan,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And gave away their land for a heritage,
for his mercy endures for ever;

A heritage for Israel his servant,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who remembered us when we were in trouble,
for his mercy endures for ever;

And delivered us from our enemies,
for his mercy endures for ever;

Who gives food to all creatures,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his mercy endures for ever.

Deuteronomy 7.1-11
When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are about to enter and occupy, and he clears away many nations before you—the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations mightier and more numerous than you—and when the Lord your God gives them over to you and you defeat them, then you must utterly destroy them. Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for that would turn away your children from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. But this is how you must deal with them: break down their altars, smash their pillars, hew down their sacred poles, and burn their idols with fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that the Lord set his heart on you and chose you—for you were the fewest of all peoples. It was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath that he swore to your ancestors, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who maintains covenant loyalty with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, and who repays in their own person those who reject him. He does not delay but repays in their own person those who reject him. Therefore, observe diligently the commandment—the statutes and the ordinances—that I am commanding you today.

Ephesians 2.11-end
So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called ‘the uncircumcision’ by those who are called ‘the circumcision’—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands—remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, so that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

The Collect
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 strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.