Evening Prayer

--Today is the Feast of Augustine--
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

Saint and Major Saints' Days
You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. Ephesians 2:19

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 78

⁽¹⁾ Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth. ⁽²⁾ I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, ⁽³⁾ Which we have heard and known, And our fathers have told us. ⁽⁴⁾ We will not hide them from their children, Telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.

⁽⁵⁾ For He established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers, That they should make them known to their children; ⁽⁶⁾ That the generation to come might know them, The children who would be born, That they may arise and declare them to their children, ⁽⁷⁾ That they may set their hope in God, And not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments; ⁽⁸⁾ And may not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, A generation that did not set its heart aright, And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

⁽⁹⁾ The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, Turned back in the day of battle. ⁽¹⁰⁾ They did not keep the covenant of God; They refused to walk in His law, ⁽¹¹⁾ And forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them. ⁽¹²⁾ Marvelous things He did in the sight of their fathers, In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

⁽¹³⁾ He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; And He made the waters stand up like a heap. ⁽¹⁴⁾ In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, And all the night with a light of fire. ⁽¹⁵⁾ He split the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink in abundance like the depths. ⁽¹⁶⁾ He also brought streams out of the rock, And caused waters to run down like rivers.

⁽¹⁷⁾ But they sinned even more against Him By rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness. ⁽¹⁸⁾ And they tested God in their heart By asking for the food of their fancy. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Yes, they spoke against God: They said, 'Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? ⁽²⁰⁾ Behold, He struck the rock, So that the waters gushed out, And the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide meat for His people?'

⁽²¹⁾ Therefore the LORD heard this and was furious; So a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also came up against Israel, ⁽²²⁾ Because they did not believe in God, And did not trust in His salvation. ⁽²³⁾ Yet He had commanded the clouds above, And opened the doors of heaven, ⁽²⁴⁾ Had rained down manna on them to eat, And given them of the bread of heaven.

⁽²⁵⁾ Men ate angels' food; He sent them food to the full. ⁽²⁶⁾ He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens; And by His power He brought in the south wind. ⁽²⁷⁾ He also rained meat on them like the dust, Feathered fowl like the sand of the seas; ⁽²⁸⁾ And He let them fall in the midst of their camp, All around their dwellings.

⁽²⁹⁾ So they ate and were well filled, For He gave them their own desire. ⁽³⁰⁾ They were not deprived of their craving; But while their food was still in their mouths, ⁽³¹⁾ The wrath of God came against them, And slew the stoutest of them, And struck down the choice men of Israel. ⁽³²⁾ In spite of this they still sinned, AND did not believe in His wondrous works.

⁽³³⁾ Therefore their days He consumed in futility, And their years in fear. ⁽³⁴⁾ When He slew them, then they sought Him; And they returned and sought earnestly for God. ⁽³⁵⁾ Then they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. ⁽³⁶⁾ Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, And they lied to Him with their tongue;

⁽³⁷⁾ For their heart was not steadfast with Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant. ⁽³⁸⁾ But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, And did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, And did not stir up all His wrath; ⁽³⁹⁾ For He remembered that they were but flesh, A breath that passes away and does not come again.

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.

Deuteronomy Chapter 8

⁽¹¹⁾ Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, ⁽¹²⁾ lest -- when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; ⁽¹³⁾ and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; ⁽¹⁴⁾ when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;

⁽¹⁵⁾ who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock; ⁽¹⁶⁾ who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do you good in the end -- ⁽¹⁷⁾ then you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.' ⁽¹⁸⁾ And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

⁽¹⁹⁾ Then it shall be, if you by any means forget the LORD your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. ⁽²⁰⁾ As the nations which the LORD destroys before you, so you shall perish, because you would not be obedient to the voice of the LORD your God.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

James Chapter 1

⁽¹⁶⁾ Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. ⁽¹⁷⁾ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. ⁽¹⁸⁾ Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures. ⁽¹⁹⁾ So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;

⁽²⁰⁾ for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. ⁽²¹⁾ Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. ⁽²²⁾ But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ⁽²³⁾ For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror;

⁽²⁴⁾ for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. ⁽²⁵⁾ But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. ⁽²⁶⁾ If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless. ⁽²⁷⁾ Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Luke Chapter 11

⁽¹⁾ Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.' ⁽²⁾ So He said to them, 'When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. ⁽³⁾ Give us day by day our daily bread. ⁽⁴⁾ And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.'

⁽⁵⁾ And He said to them, 'Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; ⁽⁶⁾ for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; ⁽⁷⁾ and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'? ⁽⁸⁾ I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

⁽⁹⁾ So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁽¹⁰⁾ For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. ⁽¹¹⁾ If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? ⁽¹²⁾ Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

⁽¹³⁾ If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!'

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

A Song to the Lamb       Revelation 4:11, 5:9 to 10, 13

Splendor and honor and kingly power
are yours by right, O Lord our God,
For you created everything that is,
and by your will they were created
  and have their being;
And yours by right, O Lamb that was slain,
for with your blood you have redeemed for God,
From every family, language, people, and nation,
a kingdom of priests to serve our God.
And so, to him who sits upon the throne,
and to Christ the Lamb,
Be worship and praise, dominion and splendor,
forever and forevermore.

The Song of Zechariah Luke 1: 68 to 79

Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers;
you are worthy of praise; glory to you.
Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you in the splendor of your temple;
on the throne of your majesty, glory to you.
Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.

Glory to you, beholding the depths;
in the high vault of heaven, glory to you.
Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
we will praise you and highly exalt you forever.



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:  Sixth Sunday of Easter
O God, you have prepared for those who love you such good things as surpass our understanding: Pour into our hearts such love towards you, that we, loving you in all things and above all things, may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we can desire; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: 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.

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

May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Romans 15:13