An Ordo for Epiphany 5 (RCL Proper 5A, 5 February 2017)

The Fifth Sunday after Epiphany

5 February 2017

The Gathering of the Community

Gathering Music

Announcements

Opening Hymn

‘Have Mercy on Us, O God Most High’  Common Praise #257 (sung to #219)

Introductory Responses

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

may all the earth be filled with the glory of God.

Light has sprung up for the righteous,

and joyful gladness for those who are true in heart. [i]

The Collect for Purity

Almighty God,

to you all hearts are open,

all desires known,

and from you no secrets are hidden.

Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts

by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,

that we may perfectly love you,

and worthily magnify your holy name;

through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

The Hymn of Praise

‘Alleluia!  Glory to God’  Common Praise #457 vv. 1, 5, 6

The Collect of the Day

Let us pray.

O God of light,

your Spirit reveals and illumines your presence in creation.

Shine your radiant holiness into our lives,

so that we may offer our hands and hearts to your work:

to heal and shelter, to feed and clothe,

to break every yoke and silence evil tongues.  Amen. [ii]

The Proclamation of the Word

The First Reading

A reading from the prophet Isaiah (58.1-10).

            ^58.1 Shout out, do not hold back!  Lift up your voice like a trumpet!  Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob their sins.  ² Yet day after day they seek me and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments, they delight to draw near to God.  ³ “Why do we fast, but you do not see?  Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?”  Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers.  ⁴ Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to strike with a wicked fist.  Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high.  ⁵ Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself?  Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, and to lie in sackcloth and ashes?  Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?

            ⁶ Is not this the fast that I choose:  to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?  ⁷ Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?  ⁸ Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.  ⁹ Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.

            If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, ¹⁰ if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.

Hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church.

Thanks be to God.

The Psalm

Psalm 112 with refrain from Songs for the Holy One.

Refrain (sung twice):  Holy One, give us true and faithful hearts.

¹ Hallelujah! 

Happy are they who fear the Lord *

            and have great delight in the divine commandments!

² Their descendants will be mighty in the land; *

            the generation of the upright will be blessed.

³ Wealth and riches will be in their house, *

            and their righteousness will last for ever.

⁴ Light shines in the darkness for the upright; *

            the righteous are merciful and full of compassion.

Refrain:  Holy One, give us true and faithful hearts.

⁵ It is good for them to be generous in lending *

            and to manage their affairs with justice.

⁶ For they will never be shaken; *

            the righteous will be kept in everlasting remembrance.

⁷ They will not be afraid of any evil rumours; *

            their heart is right; they put their trust in the Lord.

⁸ Their heart is established and will not shrink, *

            until they see their desire upon their enemies.

Refrain:  Holy One, give us true and faithful hearts.

⁹ They have given freely to the poor, *

            and their righteousness stands fast for ever;

            they will hold up their head with honour.

¹⁰ The wicked will see it and be angry;

they will gnash their teeth and pine away; *

            the desires of the wicked will perish.

Refrain:  Holy One, give us true and faithful hearts.

The Second Reading

A reading from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (2.1-12)

            ^2.1 When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom.  ² For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.  ³ And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling.  ⁴ My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.

            ⁶ Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish.  ⁷ But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.  ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

            ⁹ But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” — ¹⁰ these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.  ¹¹ For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within?  So also no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God.  ¹² Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.

Hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church.

Thanks be to God.

Hymn before the Gospel

‘Laudate Dominum’  Common Praise #313 (sung twice in Latin)

The Gospel

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew (5.13-20).

Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

            ^5.13 [Jesus continued to speak to his disciples,] “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.

            ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world.  A city built on a hill cannot be hid.  ¹⁵ No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.  ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

            ¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.  ¹⁸ For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.  ¹⁹ Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  ²⁰ For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The Gospel of Christ.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Hymn after the Gospel

‘Laudate Dominum’  Common Praise #313 (sung twice in Latin)

The Homily

The Affirmation of Faith

Let us affirm our faith.

We believe and trust in God,

the Author of creation,

source of all being and life,

the one for whom we exist.

We believe and trust in God,

the Word of redemption,

who took our human nature,

died for us and rose again.

We believe and trust in God,

the Spirit of wisdom,

who gives life to the people of God

and makes Christ known in the world.

We believe and trust in one God,

Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

who was and is and is to come.  Amen. [iii]

The Prayers of the Community

Intercessions, Petitions and Thanksgivings

The Exchange of the Peace

May the peace of the Lord be always with you.

And also with you.

The Holy Communion

Offertory Hymn

‘You Are Salt for the Earth’  Common Praise #502 (Cantor and Congregation)

Prayer over the Gifts

Let us pray.

God of compassion and forgiveness,

receive our offering this day,

and make us one with him who is our peace,

Jesus Christ our Saviour.  Amen. [iv]

Thanksgiving at the Table

The Lord be with you. 

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts. 

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. 

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right, our duty and our joy,

that we should at all times and in all places

give thanks and praise to you, almighty and merciful God,

through our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

By the leading of a star he was shown forth to all nations;

in the waters of the Jordan you proclaimed him your beloved Son,

and in the miracle of water turned to wine he revealed your glory. 

And so, with all the choirs of angels,

with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven,

we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,

heaven and earth are full of your glory. 

Hosanna in the highest. 

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. [v]

The Thanksgiving continues with one of the following Thanksgivings.

Holy God, holy and mighty, holy and immortal: 

you we praise and glorify, you we worship and adore. 

You formed the earth from chaos;

you encircled the globe with air;

you created fire for warmth and light;

you nourish the lands with water. 

You moulded us in your image,

and with mercy higher than the mountains,

with grace deeper than the seas,

you blessed the Israelites and cherished them as your own. 

That also we, estranged and dying, might be adopted to live in your Spirit,

you called to us through the life and death of Jesus.

In the night in which he was betrayed,

our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;

broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: 

Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. 

Do this for the remembrance of me.

Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks,

and gave it for all to drink, saying: 

This cup is the new covenant in my blood,

shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. 

Do this for the remembrance of me.

Together as the body of Christ,

we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 

Christ has died.  Christ is risen.  Christ will come again.

With this bread and cup we remember your Son,

the first-born of your new creation. 

We remember his life lived for others,

and his death and resurrection, which renews the face of the earth. 

We await his coming,

when, with the world made perfect through your wisdom,

all our sins and sorrows will be no more. 

Amen.  Come, Lord Jesus.

Holy God, holy and merciful, holy and compassionate,

send upon us and this meal your Holy Spirit,

whose breath revives us for life, whose fire rouses us to love. 

Enfold in your arms all who share this holy food. 

Nurture in us the fruits of the Spirit,

so that we may be a living tree,

sharing your bounty with all the world. 

Amen.  Come, Holy Spirit.

Holy and benevolent God,

receive our praise and petitions,

as Jesus received the cry of the needy,

and fill us with your blessing,

until, needy no longer and bound to you in love,

we feast forever in the triumph of the Lamb: 

through whom all glory and honour is yours,

O God, O Living One, with the Holy Spirit,

in your holy church, now and for ever.  Amen. [vi]

The Lord’s Prayer

As our Saviour taught us, let us pray,

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial,

and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power,

and the glory are yours,

now and for ever.  Amen. [vii]

The Breaking of the Bread

God of promise,

you prepare a banquet for us in your kingdom.

Happy are those who are called

to the supper of the Lamb.

The gifts of God for the people of God.

Thanks be to God.

The Communion

The Hymn after Communion

‘O Christ, the Master Carpenter’  Common Praise #479

The Sending Forth of the Community

Prayer after Communion

Let us pray.

Eternal God,

in you we find peace beyond all telling.

May we who share in this heavenly banquet

be instruments of your peace on earth,

in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord.  Amen. [viii]

Glory to God,

whose power, working in us,

can do infinitely more

than we can ask or imagine.

Glory to God from generation to generation,

in the Church and in Christ Jesus,

for ever and ever.  Amen.

Closing Hymn

‘We Are Called’  Evangelical Lutheran Worship #720

Dismissal

The Deacon sends the Community forth with an appropriate Dismissal.

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[i] Introductory Response for Incarnation in The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 96 alt.

[ii] Trial Collect 1 for Epiphany 5A at http://www.anglican.ca/wp-content/uploads/GS2016-Trial-Use-Collects-2016-05-09.pdf.

[iii] Adapted from Common Worship  (2001) by the Rev’d Richard Geoffrey Leggett.

[iv] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 354.

[v] Common Praise #735.

[vi] Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), 67 alt.

[vii] Common Praise #744.

[viii] The Book of Alternative Services (1985), 354 alt.