O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
I will give thanks to You, Lord, with my whole heart.
I will tell of all Your wonderful works. Psalm 9.1
Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Psalm 87
The Lord built his city on the sacred hill;
more than any other place in Israel he loves the city of Jerusalem.
Listen, city of God, to the wonderful things he says about you:
“I will include Egypt and Babylonia when I list the nations that obey me;
the people of Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia I will number among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”
Of Zion it will be said that all nations belong there and that the Almighty will make her strong. The Lord will write a list of the peoples and include them all as citizens of Jerusalem. They dance and sing, “In Zion is the source of all our blessings.”
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now and shall be for ever. Amen.
Isaiah 9.2, 6, 7
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.
They lived in a land of shadows, but now light is shining on them.
A child is born to us! A son is given to us! And he will be our ruler.
He will be called, “Wonderful Counsellor,” “Mighty God,”
“Eternal Father,” “Prince of Peace.”
His royal power will continue to grow; his kingdom will always be at peace.
He will rule as King David's successor, basing his power on right and justice,
from now until the end of time. The Lord Almighty is determined to do all this.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they will see God
THE HOLY INNOCENTS
Herod ‘the Great’ was appointed King of the Jews by the Roman authorities in Palestine and he proved to be ruthlessly efficient in his thirty-three years of dealing with his subjects.
In Matthew’s gospel, he tried to persuade the Magi, to whom he played the host on their journey seeking the one ‘who has been born king of the Jews’, to bring word of where they had found him. His desire was to eliminate Jesus and, when he realised that the Magi had tricked him and left the country.
Herod had killed all the children under the age of two, in and around Bethlehem.
These were God’s ‘innocent’ ones, paralleling the story of Pharaoh slaughtering the Hebrew children in Egypt.
A RESPONSE
The Lord says, “A sound is heard in Ramah, the sound of bitter weeping.
Rachel is crying for her children; they are gone, and she refuses to be comforted.
Jeremiah 31.15
Intercessions
Thanksgiving may be made for the day. Intercessions are offered for:
¶ the Church, especially in places of conflict
¶ the Holy Land, for peace with justice and reconciliation
¶ refugees and asylum seekers
¶ homeless people
¶ families with young children
Lord, in your mercy hear our prayer
The Collect
Heavenly Father,
whose children suffered at the hands of Herod, though they had done no wrong:
by the suffering of your Son and by the innocence of our lives
frustrate all evil designs and establish your reign of justice and peace;
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.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
May the grace of Christ our Saviour be with us all. Amen.
THIS WEEK
There will be a service of daily prayer posted
on the St Francis’ and other pages of the parish for
you to engage with whenever you have time
available for you to engage with it.
We pray that you have a blessed Christmastide
and
A safe, peaceful and happy New Year.
2 comments:
A safe and peaceful and hopefully healthy New year to you and yours too Vic. Thanks for this year's blogged messages. Always read and appreciated, if not often commented on.
Thanks - and a blessed Christmastide and safe and happy New Year to you and yours.
V
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