Morning 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 93

⁽¹⁾ The LORD reigns, He is clothed with majesty; The LORD is clothed, He has girded Himself with strength. Surely the world is established, so that it cannot be moved. ⁽²⁾ Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting. ⁽³⁾ The floods have lifted up, O LORD, The floods have lifted up their voice; The floods lift up their waves. ⁽⁴⁾ The LORD on high is mightier Than the noise of many waters, Than the mighty waves of the sea.

⁽⁵⁾ Your testimonies are very sure; Holiness adorns Your house, O LORD, 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.

Psalm 96

⁽¹⁾ Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth. ⁽²⁾ Sing to the LORD, bless His name; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. ⁽³⁾ Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. ⁽⁴⁾ For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.

⁽⁵⁾ For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. ⁽⁶⁾ Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. ⁽⁷⁾ Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, Give to the LORD glory and strength. ⁽⁸⁾ Give to the LORD the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come into His courts.

⁽⁹⁾ Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth. ⁽¹⁰⁾ Say among the nations, 'The LORD reigns; The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved; He shall judge the peoples righteously.' ⁽¹¹⁾ Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; ⁽¹²⁾ Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the LORD.

⁽¹³⁾ For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with His truth.

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.

Ecclesiasticus Chapter 43

⁽¹⁾ How beautiful is the bright, clear sky above us! What a glorious sight it is! ⁽²⁾ The sun, when it appears, proclaims as it rises how marvelous a thing it is, made by the Most High. ⁽³⁾ At noon it dries up the land; no one can stand its blazing heat. ⁽⁴⁾ The setting sun sets fire to the hilltops, like a metal furnace glowing from the heat. It sends out fiery rays, blinding the eyes with its brightness.

⁽⁵⁾ The Lord, who made it, is great; it speeds on its way at his command. ⁽⁶⁾ There is also the moon, marking the passage of time, an eternal sign of the changing seasons. ⁽⁷⁾ The moon determines the holy days. Its light grows full and then grows dim. ⁽⁸⁾ The 'month' is named after the moon, marvelous to watch as it grows fuller each night, a signal light for the heavenly armies, shining out in the dome of the sky.

⁽⁹⁾ The shining stars make the night sky lovely, brilliant ornaments in the Lord's high heavens. ⁽¹⁰⁾ They stay in the places assigned to them by the Holy One and never relax their dutiful watch. ⁽¹¹⁾ Look at the rainbow and praise its Creator! How magnificent, how radiant, its beauty! ⁽¹²⁾ Like a bow bent by the hands of the Most High, it spans the horizon in a circle of glory.

⁽²⁷⁾ We could say much more and never finish, but it all means this: the Lord is everything. ⁽²⁸⁾ How can we find the power to praise him? He is greater than all his creation. ⁽²⁹⁾ The Lord is awesome in his greatness; his power is overwhelming. ⁽³⁰⁾ Though you do your best to praise him, he is greater than you can ever express. Though you honor him tirelessly and with all your strength, you still cannot praise him enough.

⁽³¹⁾ No one has seen him, no one can describe him; no one can praise him as he deserves. ⁽³²⁾ Mysteries greater than these are still unknown; we know only a fraction of his works.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

1 Timothy Chapter 3

⁽¹⁴⁾ These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; ⁽¹⁵⁾ but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. ⁽¹⁶⁾ And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory. ⁽¹⁾ Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, ⁽²⁾ speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, ⁽³⁾ forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. ⁽⁴⁾ For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving;

⁽⁵⁾ for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Matthew Chapter 13

⁽²⁴⁾ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; ⁽²⁵⁾ but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. ⁽²⁶⁾ But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. ⁽²⁷⁾ So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?'

⁽²⁸⁾ He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' ⁽²⁹⁾ But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. ⁽³⁰⁾ Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, 'First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.' ' ' ⁽³¹⁾ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field,

⁽³²⁾ which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.' ⁽³³⁾ Another parable He spoke to them: 'The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.' ⁽³⁴⁾ All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them,

The Gospel of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.


The Song of Zechariah Luke 1: 68 to 79
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old,
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham,
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
Free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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.

You are God        
You are God: we praise you;
You are the Lord; we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father:
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you;
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free
you did not shun the Virgin's womb.
You overcame the sting of death
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God's right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.


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, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; 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