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¶ |
Prayer During
the Day Christmas Season |
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| Preparation | ||||
| O God, make speed to save us. | ||||
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All |
O Lord, make haste to help us. | |||
| I will give thanks to you, Lord, with my whole heart; | ||||
All |
I will tell of all your marvellous works. | |||
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Psalm 9.1 |
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Praise |
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| A hymn, song, canticle, extempore praise or | ||||
| 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. |
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from Gloria in Excelsis |
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The Word of God |
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Psalmody |
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| On Christmas Day and any day Psalm 8 | ||||
| (or) | ||||
| Sunday Psalm 113 Monday Psalm 87 Tuesday Psalm 97 Wednesday Psalm 110 Thursday Psalm 127 Friday Psalm 128 Saturday Psalm 150 |
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| When Morning and Evening Prayer are also celebrated, one of these cycles may be followed. | ||||
| Each psalm or group of psalms may end with | ||||
All |
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. |
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Short readings |
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| Sunday | ||||
| The Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known. | ||||
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John 1.14,16-18 |
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| Monday | ||||
| The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light has shined. For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onwards and for evermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. | ||||
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Isaiah 9.2,6,7 |
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| Tuesday | ||||
| An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel’, which means,‘God is with us.’ | ||||
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Matthew 1.20b-23 |
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| Wednesday | ||||
| The shepherds went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. | ||||
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Luke 2.16-20 |
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| Thursday | ||||
| When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God. | ||||
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Galatians 4.4-7 |
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| Friday | ||||
| The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to
all, training us
to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to
live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds. |
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Titus 2.11-14 |
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| Saturday | ||||
| Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various
ways by
the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son,
whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. |
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Hebrews 1.1-3a |
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| Or, on any day of Christmas | ||||
| In him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. | ||||
John 1.4,5 |
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Response |
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| Silence, study, song, or words from Scripture, such as | ||||
| Blessed are the pure in heart, | ||||
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All |
for they will see God. | |||
Matthew 5.8 |
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Prayers |
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| Prayers may include these concerns: | ||||
| ¶ | 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 | |||
| A form of prayer can be found here. | ||||
| The Collect of the day or the following prayer is said | ||||
| Almighty and everlasting God, who stooped to raise fallen humanity through the child-bearing of blessed Mary; grant that we, who have seen your glory revealed in our human nature and your love made perfect in our weakness, may daily be renewed in your image and conformed to the pattern of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. |
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All |
Amen. | |||
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Collect of the Blessed Virgin Mary |
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| The Lord's Prayer is said. | ||||
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The Conclusion |
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| May the grace of Christ our Saviour be with us all. | ||||
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All |
Amen. | |||