Prayer during the day - Monday, 28 December 2020 (Holy Innocents)

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 sinsas we forgive those who sin against us.

Lead us not into temptationbut 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.

Morning Prayer - Friday, 28 December 2018

Christmas Season

The Holy Innocents

Psalm 36
Sin whispers to the wicked, in the depths of their heart; there is no fear of God before their eyes. They flatter themselves in their own eyes that their abominable sin will not be found out. The words of their mouth are unrighteous and full of deceit; they have ceased to act wisely and to do good. They think out mischief upon their beds and have set themselves in no good way; nor do they abhor that which is evil.

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens and your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness stands like the strong mountains,
your justice like the great deep; you, Lord, shall save both man and beast.

How precious is your loving mercy, O God!
All mortal flesh shall take refugunder the shadow of your wings.
They shall be satisfied with the abundance of your house; they shall drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the well of life and in your light shall we see light.

O continue your loving-kindness to those who know you and your righteousness to those who are true of heart. Let not the foot of pride come against me, nor the hand of the ungodly thrust me away. There are they fallen, all who work wickedness. They are cast down and shall not be able to stand.

Psalm 146
Alleluia.
Praise the Lord, O my soul: while I live will I praise the Lord; as long as I have any being, I will sing praises to my God.

Put not your trust in princes, nor in any human power, for there is no help in them.
When their breath goes forth, they return to the earth; on that day all their thoughts perish.

Happy are those who have the God of Jacob for their help, whose hope is in the Lord their God;
Who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them; who keeps his promise for ever;
Who gives justice to those that suffer wrong and bread to those who hunger.

The Lord looses those that are bound; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind;
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous;
The Lord watches over the stranger in the land; he upholds the orphan and widow; but the way of the wicked he turns upside down.

The Lord shall reign for ever, your God, O Zion, throughout all generations.
Alleluia.

Genesis 37.13-20
And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” He answered, “Here I am.” So he said to him, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the flock; and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the valley of Hebron.

He came to Shechem, and a man found him wandering in the fields; the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” “I am seeking my brothers,” he said; “tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock.” The man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan. They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him. They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.”

Matthew 18.1-10
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of stumbling-blocks! Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one by whom the stumbling-block comes!

‘If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than to have two hands or two feet and to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the hell of fire.

‘Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.

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.

Jesus isn't all 'Good News'

The day now past turned the white of the Christmas season to red as the Church remembered the 'Holy Innocents'. Herod rushed in and took the lives of the boys, row and under - and Rachel wept for her children because they were no more.

And she weeps still in places throughout the world: Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Palestine and many other places besides - but it's not just about violence or internecine struggles or fundamentalism; let's not forget the industrialists and the pharmaceutical companies and the may putting lives on the line through political scheming and shareholder dividends!

Today I sorted a funeral for one at the other end of the scale, almost 100, and celebrated a newly minted life, engaged in the most odd thing I thing I may have ever done in terms of passing on a blessing and had another encounter with things spiritual. The problem with sin and the powers that feed from it in all of its various manifestations is that it is like having moles. Mind you, I went to a posh church a couple of years back and found a member telling me how they needed a anew lawn every few years because of the moles. That is the problem with many in the Church today. Always far too happy to 'get a man in' rather than do it themselves.

Perhaps we've contracted Church and the sin of the world out to Jesus and instead of calling Him 'Lord' are now just calling Him 'Workman'? The whole point is that we do it with Him rather than sit back assured of heaven and eternity and Him stopping the drip under the sink!

So a varied and blessed day - the problems, like the moles, were dealt with where they were obvious and many felt better for having buried them alive (so we will see them again shortly I guess). But life continues to be a challenge and to invite us to grasp what we can, ignore what we ought and to work where we aren't.

Lord, for a day gone and the encounters within in it - I thank You.
For those bound by sin and caught in error, I pray you illuminate the dark places of their hearts and lives and actions.
For those whom I have been used to bless, thank you - and for those I didn't, sorry :-(
And for tomorrow - keep me humble, keep me honest and open the gates of heaven and give me the keys to the tool cabinets to get the job done.

And for the innocents who have gone - and will be taken: Give your Church to stand with and for them and to commend those we cannot save to your grace, love, care and mercy.

On the fourth day of Christmas ...

Since Apple have put aside their Twelve Days of Christmas giveaway this year I thought I would have to do something too redress the gap left by them: Day Four ...

The (Western) Church
Today commemorates the 'Holy Innocents' - the event which under the command of Herod saw a number of boy children (two and under) put to death in an attempt to kill Jesus. It's was a day when the words of Jeremiah 31 (A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.) were fulfilled and speaks of the death of innocents through the action of the powers of darkness and oppression. So as we remember how dark forces acted against the coming into the world of the light that is Jesus - we ought also to spare a moment for the many innocents who have lost their lives in Syria and Nigeria and so many other places in our news of late.

Take a listen to to the Carol at the foot of this page and think of the words that relate to 'then' and 'now' too.

Time to make a stand, offer prayers and issue a plea for the light to be made manifest through... oh yeah, you and me!

The Western World
Is enjoying alcohol to the extent that here in the UK we, the general public, are spending some £21bn each year to combat the effects of it! So much so that the head of the College of Emergency Medicine, Dr. Clifford Mann, has called for an end to the soft approach currently used and the adoption of arrests, fines and imprisonment as a means of curbing the situation.

It seems that some things may always be with us, and that Hogarth's fears then are very much the reality for many of us today. Surely a cause for shame, prayer and engagement by the Church.

Christian 'Phone Apps (PrayerMate)

Watch the video and if you think that this App will do something to help you pray just that little more efficiently and effectively (and we all want to pray well but yet somehow rarely do it seems) then visit Andy Geer's website  and get yourself a copy - iPhone and Android versions available.

I have mine and I'll review it a bit later down the line when I've seen how it's worked for me.

Still - it's free, what do you have to lose?


Something to listen to

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.

Can't make it to church? 28th December 14

Today we have remember the 'Holy Innocents' - the children who were put to death by Herod in his quest to ensure that any competition to being king was quite literally 'put down'.

If we looks at the Gospel reading (Matthew 2.13-18) we find the following:

"Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

‘A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’

Thus says the Lord:
A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.

The Passage in Jeremiah to which the Gospel refers is our Old Testament reading for today (31.15-17 15):

"Thus says the Lord:
A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.

Thus says the Lord: Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for there is a reward for your work, says the Lord: they shall come back from the land of the enemy there is hope for your future, says the Lord: your children shall come back to their own country."

The commemoration today recalls the children who were put to death on the orders of Herod to ensure that Jesus was found and killed and this serves a couple of purposes for us in that first and foremost we realise that we are some two years into Jesus' life (which is why those boys who were up to the age of two were put to death) - a nice reminder that the Hallmark card moment of the Shepherds and Magi crowded into the stable is merely a nice image rather than a reality!

The second purpose is to remind us of the sort of bloke Herod was, for this puppet ruler was not averse to killing people who got in the way, especially if he thought they might be out to take his crown; and Jesus really fitted that bill from the description the Magi used of Him when they encountered Herod!

Herod had put to death his own children and so his actions were indeed in keeping with the story. Interestingly, outside of the Matthew account, we have little to add weight to the story until the late fourth/early fifth century when a Roman writer, Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius. mentions it in one of his writings, the second book of 'Saturnalia' (chapter 4):

'When the Emperor Augustus heard that among the boys in Syria under two years old whom Herod, king of the Jews, had ordered to kill, was his own son, he (Augustus) said: it is better to be Herod's pig, than his son.'

The problem with the account from Matthew and the reality surrounding it is that whilst some have hundreds, thousands even, as the number of those boys put to death, the reality would have been (due to the size of Bethlehem) something around one or two dozen! This is such beer that it wouldn't generally be worth a mention outside of those people who had been directly affected by the event!

That said, historical accounts of the time (and the man) do appear to indicate that this is not out of character and would have been rather likely rather than something fictitious designed to support the claims of a bunch of 'religious nutters' (my words)!

So just as we found in Mary the first follower of Jesus; the first to put their life and their ambitions on the line for the Messiah - Today we are looking at the first to have their lives taken from them because of Jesus having come into the world. Stephen might have been the first to stand for Jesus as the Christ and so lose his life for it - but the male children of Bethlehem were the first to lose their lives because of the opposition to Jesus.

This is a tough call because whilst we recall the death we do so with an air of sadness that innocents were killed and remember that today, across our 'civilised world', they still do. Today should cause offence at those who use their power wrongly; who take life because they can and do so to meet their own ends. As the light comes into the world the response is for the wicked to turn up the darkness! Herod did it then - other continue to do it now.

So today is a call for us to take up the challenge and oppose the darkness - bringing the light that is within us into the world 'so that all may see by it!', and the New Testament reading (1 Corinthians 1.26-29) is of assistance here:

'Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.

But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise;

God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;

God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God.'

Christians are not called to 'leave their brains at the door; neither are they called to engage in self-serving cleverness to be something. No we are called to be salt and light and peace to the world - it's about humility not being one of the proud. It is about serving rather than being served!

So today the call is upon us to be everything the world isn't. It is a call for us:

To celebrate people rather than self-promoting wisdom.

To seek truth rather than being subjective and puffed up with clever egotistical tosh!

To seek peace and engage in dialogue where others will merely stuff fingers in their ears and ignore everything that they choose to ignore.

And so from this we pray the collect (and the Post Communion prayer)for today:

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.

Post Communion Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ,
in your humility you have stooped to share our human life with the most defenceless of your children:
may we who have received these gifts of your passion rejoice in celebrating the witness of the Holy Innocents to the purity of your sacrifice made once for all upon the cross;
for you are alive and reign, now and for ever. Amen.

Now there are that many songs or pieces of  music that I could offer you for this day and yet one that fits the bill is the 'Coventry Carol' which has within it references to the 'Holy Innocents' and their death: