Evening Prayer

--Today is the Feast of St. Basil--
Today is the Ninth day of Christmas
Behold, the dwelling of God is with mankind. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them, and be their God. Revelation 21:3

Saint and Major Saints' Days
Their sound has gone out into all lands, and their message to the ends of the world. Psalm 19:4

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

Venite
The Antiphon:

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

Alleluia. To us a child is born: O come, let us adore him. Alleluia.

The Lessons

Psalm 34

⁽¹⁾ I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. ⁽²⁾ My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. ⁽³⁾ Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. ⁽⁴⁾ I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.

⁽⁵⁾ They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed. ⁽⁶⁾ This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles. ⁽⁷⁾ The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them. ⁽⁸⁾ Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

⁽⁹⁾ Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. ⁽¹⁰⁾ The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing. ⁽¹¹⁾ Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. ⁽¹²⁾ Who is the man who desires life, And loves many days, that he may see good?

⁽¹³⁾ Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. ⁽¹⁴⁾ Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it. ⁽¹⁵⁾ The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. ⁽¹⁶⁾ The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

⁽¹⁷⁾ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears, And delivers them out of all their troubles. ⁽¹⁸⁾ The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit. ⁽¹⁹⁾ Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all. ⁽²⁰⁾ He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken.

⁽²¹⁾ Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned. ⁽²²⁾ The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.

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.

Genesis Chapter 12

⁽¹⁾ Now the LORD had said to Abram: 'Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. ⁽²⁾ I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. ⁽³⁾ I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.' ⁽⁴⁾ So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.

⁽⁵⁾ Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan. ⁽⁶⁾ Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, as far as the terebinth tree of Moreh. And the Canaanites were then in the land. ⁽⁷⁾ Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, 'To your descendants I will give this land.' And there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Hebrews Chapter 11

⁽¹⁾ Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ⁽²⁾ For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. ⁽³⁾ By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. ⁽⁴⁾ By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.

⁽⁵⁾ By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, 'and was not found, because God had taken him'; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. ⁽⁶⁾ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. ⁽⁷⁾ By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. ⁽⁸⁾ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

⁽⁹⁾ By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; ⁽¹⁰⁾ for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. ⁽¹¹⁾ By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. ⁽¹²⁾ Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude -- innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

John Chapter 6

⁽³⁵⁾ And Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. ⁽³⁶⁾ But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. ⁽³⁷⁾ All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. ⁽³⁸⁾ For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

⁽³⁹⁾ This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. ⁽⁴⁰⁾ And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.' ⁽⁴¹⁾ The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, 'I am the bread which came down from heaven.' ⁽⁴²⁾ And they said, 'Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?'

⁽⁴⁸⁾ I am the bread of life. ⁽⁴⁹⁾ Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. ⁽⁵⁰⁾ This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. ⁽⁵¹⁾ I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.'

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The First Song of Isaiah       Isaiah 12:2 to 6
 
Surely, it is God who saves me;
  I will trust in him and not be afraid.
For the Lord is my stronghold
and my sure defense,
  and he will be my Savior.
Therefore you shall draw water with rejoicing
  from the springs of salvation.
And on that day you shall say,
  Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his Name;
Make his deeds known among the peoples;
  see that they remember that his Name is exalted.
Sing the praises of the Lord,
for he has done great things,
  and this is known in all the world.
Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy,
  for the great one in the midst of you is the Holy One of Israel.
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.

A Song of Creation     Prayer of Manasseh 1 to 2, 4, 6 to 7, 11 to 15
Invocation
Glorify the Lord,
all you works of the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

The Cosmic Order
Glorify the Lord,
you angels and all powers of the Lord,
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky,
glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
Glorify the Lord,
every shower of rain and fall of dew,
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and Summer, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold,
drops of dew and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet,
glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Glorify the Lord,
O nights and days,
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Glorify the Lord,
O spirits and souls of the righteous,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
You that are holy and humble of heart,
glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.

Doxology
Let us glorify the Lord:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him 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:  Second Sunday after Christmas Day
O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Collect of the Day: Almighty God, who after the creation of the world rested from all your works and sanctified a day of rest for all your creatures: Grant that we, putting away all earthly anxieties, may be duly prepared for the service of your sanctuary, and that our rest here upon earth may be a preparation for the eternal rest promised to your people in heaven; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission: Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. 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

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20,21