Welcome to Church and we hope you will enjoy our time of worship together. The Easter season is a time of joyful celebration in the Church throughout the world that lasts for the Great 50 days from Easter day to Pentecost (Whit Sunday) which celebrates the gift of the Holy Spirit. Our joyful celebration is marked by reintroducing the Gloria and praises to God with Alleluia’s.
The service falls into four major sections:
The Gathering, in which we come together as God’s people, and prepare in penitence and joy to receive Christ in Word and Sacrament;
The Liturgy of the Word, in which we listen to the words of Scripture (culminating in the reading of the Gospel), explore the faith through the sermon and the Creed, and bring our prayers to God;
The Liturgy of the Sacrament, in which bread and wine are blessed in remembrance of Christ’s death and resurrection, linking his sacrifice on the cross with our offering of prayer and praise, and transforming the elements of bread and wine into our spiritual food, food we are invited to share in this Holy Communion;
The Dismissal, in which we are sent out to be the Body of Christ in the world.
‘God raised Jesus from the dead, and if God’s Spirit is living in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. God is the One who raised Christ from the dead, and he will give life through his Spirit that lives in you.’ 1 Peter 5:6-7 (NCV)
All who usually receive Holy Communion in their own church are warmly invited to do so today. If you do not normally receive communion you are welcome to come forward to receive a blessing, please bow your head as a signal to the minister.
¶ The Gathering
The president welcomes the people & a prayer may be said
Hymn
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
All Amen.
The Greeting
The Lord be with you
All and also with you.
Alleluia. Christ is risen.
All He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Prayer of Preparation
All Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom 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.
Prayers of Penitence
Summary of the Law
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is the only Lord.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your mind,
and with all your strength.’
The second is this: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’
There is no other commandment greater than these.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
All Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Invitation to confession
Christ our passover lamb has been sacrificed for us.
Let us therefore rejoice by putting away all malice and evil and confessing our sins with a sincere and true heart.
All Almighty God, our heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you
and against our neighbour
in thought and word and deed,
through negligence, through weakness,
through our own deliberate fault.
We are truly sorry
and repent of all our sins.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
who died for us,
forgive us all that is past
and grant that we may serve you
in newness of life
to the glory of your name. Amen.
Lord, have mercy.
All Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
All Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
All Lord, have mercy
The president says
Almighty God,
who forgives all who truly repent,
have mercy upon you,
pardon and deliver you from all your sins,
confirm and strengthen you in all goodness,
and keep you in life eternal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All Amen.
Gloria in Excelsis
All 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.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
The Collect
All Amen.
¶ The Liturgy of the Word
We sit for either one or two readings and a psalm may be said or sung between the readings.
Readings
-
Second Reading
If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.
At the end the reader may say
This is the word of the Lord.
All Thanks be to God.
Hymn A gradual hymn may be sung
Gospel Reading
Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the first and the last, says the Lord,
and the living one; I was dead,
and behold I am alive for evermore.
All Alleluia.
When the Gospel is announced the reader says
Hear the Gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
All Glory to you, O Lord.
Matthew 28:1-10
After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.’ So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
All Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon
The president says
Let us declare our faith in God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Creed
All We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate from the Holy Spirit
and the Virgin Mary and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified
under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic
and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism
for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Prayers of Intercession
These responses may be used
Lord, in your mercy
All hear our prayer.
at the end
Merciful Father,
All accept these prayers
for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
¶ The Liturgy of the Sacrament
The Peace
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples
and said, ‘Peace be with you.’
Then were they glad when they saw the Lord. Alleluia.
cf John 20.19
The peace of the Lord be always with you
All and also with you.
Let us offer one another a sign of peace.
All may exchange a sign of peace.
Preparation of the Table
Taking of the Bread and Wine
Hymn
The gifts of the people may be gathered and presented, the altar is prepared.
The Eucharistic Prayer
The Lord is here.
All His Spirit is with us.
Lift up your hearts.
All We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
All It is right to give thanks and praise.
The president praises God for his mighty acts
and all respond
All 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.
We sit or kneel as the president recalls the Last Supper
Great is the mystery of faith
All Christ has died:
Christ is risen:
Christ will come again.
The Prayer continues and leads into the doxology,
to which all respond boldly
All Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:
All 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.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
All Amen.
Breaking of the Bread
The president breaks the consecrated bread.
We break this bread
to share in the body of Christ.
All Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.
Agnus Dei
All Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world,
grant us peace.
All Jesus, Lamb of God,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, bearer of our sins,
have mercy on us.
Jesus, redeemer of the world,
grant us peace.
Giving of Communion
The president says the invitation to communion
Alleluia. Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.
All Therefore let us keep the feast. Alleluia.
All We do not presume
to come to this your table, merciful Lord,
trusting in our own righteousness,
but in your manifold and great mercies.
We are not worthy so much
as to gather up the crumbs under your table.
But you are the same Lord
whose nature is always to have mercy.
Grant us therefore, gracious Lord,
so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ
and to drink his blood,
that our sinful bodies
may be made clean by his body
and our souls washed
through his most precious blood,
and that we may evermore
dwell in him and he in us. Amen.
The president and people receive communion.
Authorized words of distribution are used and the communicant replies
Amen.
During the distribution hymns and anthems may be sung.
Hymn
Any consecrated bread and wine which is not required for is consumed at the end of the distribution or after the service.
Prayer after Communion
Silence is kept, followed by the post communion prayer
God of Life, who for our redemption gave your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection have delivered us from the power of our enemy: grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his risen life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
The Gospel is proclaimed
All Almighty God,
we thank you for feeding us
with the body and blood
of your Son Jesus Christ.
Through him we offer you
our souls and bodies
to be a living sacrifice.
Send us out
in the power of your Spirit
to live and work
to your praise and glory. Amen.
Or
The Diocesan Mission Action Plan Prayer
All God of new beginnings,
we pray that you will transform your church
as you renew us by your love.
Give us vision for the journey,
that we may travel light
and live increasingly by faith.
Inspire, enliven and empower us,
so that along the way we may be
sustained by the life of Christ
in ourselves, in one another
and in the world. Amen.
¶ The Dismissal
Blessing
The God of peace,
who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus,
that great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of the eternal covenant,
make you perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always.
All Amen.
Hymn
A minister may say a final prayer and close with
Go in the peace of Christ. Alleluia, Alleluia.
All Thanks be to God. Alleluia, Alleluia.
The ministers and people depart.
Some material included in this service is copyright: © The Archbishops’ Council 2000
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