Evening Prayer

Easter
You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8

Confession of Sin
Most merciful God,
I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen

The Invitatory and Psalter

Lord, open our lips. 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 forever. Amen   Alleluia


From Easter to Pentecost, Christ the Passover  can be used in place of the Venite or Jubilate.

Christ the Passover  1 Corinthians 5:7 to 8; Romans 6:9 to 11; 1 Corinthians 15:20 to 22
Alleluia.
Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us;
  therefore let us keep the feast,
Not with old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil,
  but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Alleluia.

Christ being raised from the dead will never die again;
  death no longer has dominion over him.
The death that he died, he died to sin, once for all;
  but the life he lives, he lives to God.
So also consider yourselves dead to sin,
  and alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Alleluia.

  the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since by a man came death,
  by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die,
  so in Christ shall all be made alive. Alleluia.

Venite
The Antiphon:

ⓘ   A short, reflective sentence recited alongside a psalm to deepen our understanding of the readings.

Alleluia. Christ the Lord has ascended into heaven: Come let us adore him. Alleluia.

The Lessons

Psalm 8

⁽¹⁾ O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! ⁽²⁾ Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger. ⁽³⁾ When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, ⁽⁴⁾ What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?

⁽⁵⁾ For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor. ⁽⁶⁾ You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, ⁽⁷⁾ All sheep and oxen -- Even the beasts of the field, ⁽⁸⁾ The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.

⁽⁹⁾ O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Psalm 47

⁽¹⁾ Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples! Shout to God with the voice of triumph! ⁽²⁾ For the LORD Most High is awesome; He is a great King over all the earth. ⁽³⁾ He will subdue the peoples under us, And the nations under our feet. ⁽⁴⁾ He will choose our inheritance for us, The excellence of Jacob whom He loves. Selah

⁽⁵⁾ God has gone up with a shout, The LORD with the sound of a trumpet. ⁽⁶⁾ Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! ⁽⁷⁾ For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding. ⁽⁸⁾ God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne.

⁽⁹⁾ The princes of the people have gathered together, The people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; He is greatly exalted.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Ezekiel Chapter 1

⁽¹⁾ Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. ⁽²⁾ On the fifth day of the month, which was in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, ⁽³⁾ the word of the LORD came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the River Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was upon him there. ⁽⁴⁾ Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire.

⁽⁵⁾ Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. ⁽⁶⁾ Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. ⁽⁷⁾ Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves' feet. They sparkled like the color of burnished bronze. ⁽⁸⁾ The hands of a man were under their wings on their four sides; and each of the four had faces and wings.

⁽⁹⁾ Their wings touched one another. The creatures did not turn when they went, but each one went straight forward. ⁽¹⁰⁾ As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, each of the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and each of the four had the face of an eagle. ⁽¹¹⁾ Thus were their faces. Their wings stretched upward; two wings of each one touched one another, and two covered their bodies. ⁽¹²⁾ And each one went straight forward; they went wherever the spirit wanted to go, and they did not turn when they went.

⁽¹³⁾ As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches going back and forth among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of the fire went lightning. ⁽¹⁴⁾ And the living creatures ran back and forth, in appearance like a flash of lightning. ⁽²⁴⁾ When they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of many waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army; and when they stood still, they let down their wings. ⁽²⁵⁾ A voice came from above the firmament that was over their heads; whenever they stood, they let down their wings. ⁽²⁶⁾ And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. ⁽²⁷⁾ Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around.

⁽²⁸⁾ Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Hebrews Chapter 2

⁽⁵⁾ For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. ⁽⁶⁾ But one testified in a certain place, saying: 'What is man that You are mindful of him, Or the son of man that You take care of him? ⁽⁷⁾ You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, And set him over the works of Your hands. ⁽⁸⁾ You have put all things in subjection under his feet.' For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.

⁽⁹⁾ But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. ⁽¹¹⁾ For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, ⁽¹²⁾ saying: 'I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.'

⁽¹³⁾ And again: 'I will put My trust in Him.' And again: 'Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.' ⁽¹⁴⁾ Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, ⁽¹⁵⁾ and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. ⁽¹⁶⁾ For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham.

⁽¹⁷⁾ Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. ⁽¹⁸⁾ For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Matthew Chapter 28

⁽¹⁶⁾ Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. ⁽¹⁷⁾ When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. ⁽¹⁸⁾ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

⁽²⁰⁾ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.


The Song of Moses    Exodus 15:1 to 6, 11 to 13, 17 to 18

I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted;
the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my refuge;
the Lord has become my Savior.
This is my God and I will praise him,
the God of my people and I will exalt him.
The Lord is a mighty warrior;
Yahweh is his Name.
The chariots of Pharoah and his army has he hurled into the sea;
the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in the Red Sea.
The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them;
they sank into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might;
your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.
Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods?
who is like you, glorious in holiness,
awesome in renown, and worker of wonders?
You stretched forth your right hand;
the earth swallowed them up.
With your constant love you led the people you redeemed;
with your might you brought them in safety to
your holy dwelling.
You will bring them in and plant them
on the mount of your possession,
The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord,
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.
The Lord shall reign forever and forever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.


The Apostles' Creed
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 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.

The Prayers

The Lord's Prayer   Traditional
Suffrages A

Seasonal Collect:  Ascension Day
Almighty God, whose blessed Son our Savior Jesus Christ ascended far above all heavens that he might fill all things: Mercifully give us faith to perceive that, according to his promise, he abides with his Church on earth, even to the end of the ages; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
-or this-
Grant, we pray, Almighty God, that as we believe your only begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into heaven, so we may also in heart and mind there ascend, and with him continually dwell; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Personal Prayers and Reflection

This is a time to pause, consider and listen. Pray for yourself and others. When you lack the words


Closing Prayers   Thanksgiving

Conclude with the following
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