Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Hear our voice, O Lord, according to your faithful love,
according to your judgement give us life.
Blessed are you, God of compassion and mercy,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
In the darkness of our sin,
your light breaks forth like the dawn
and your healing springs up for deliverance.
As we rejoice in the gift of your saving help,
sustain us with your bountiful Spirit
and open our lips to sing your praise.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God for ever.
a suitable hymn, or A Song of Penitence
1 Have mercy on me, O God, in your great goodness;
according to the abundance of your compassion blot out my offences.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I acknowledge my faults
and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you only have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
5 So that you are justified in your sentence
and righteous in your judgement.
6 Cast me not away from your presence
and take not your holy spirit from me.
7 Give me again the joy of your salvation
and sustain me with your gracious spirit;
8 Then shall I teach your ways to the wicked
and sinners shall return to you.
9 Deliver me from my guilt, O God,
the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing of your righteousness.
Psalm 51.1–5,12–15
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.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
Amen.
Psalm
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.
Old Testament Reading
Full of compassion and mercy and love
is God, the Most High, the Almighty.
1 Lord almighty and God of our ancestors
you who made heaven and earth in all their glory:
2 All things tremble with awe at your presence,
before your great and mighty power.
3 Immeasurable and unsearchable is your promised mercy,
for you are God, Most High.
4 You are full of compassion, long-suffering and very merciful,
and you relent at human suffering.
5 O God, according to your great goodness,
you have promised forgiveness for repentance to those who have sinned against you.
6 The sins I have committed against you
are more in number than the sands of the sea.
7 I am not worthy to look up to the height of heaven
because of the multitude of my iniquities.
8 And now I bend the knee of my heart before you,
imploring your kindness upon me.
9 I have sinned, O God, I have sinned,
and I acknowledge my transgressions.
10 Unworthy as I am, you will save me,
according to your great mercy.
11 For all the host of heaven sings your praise,
and your glory is for ever and ever.
Manasseh 1a,2,4,6,7a,b,9a,c,11,12,14b,15b
Full of compassion and mercy and love,
is God, the Most High, the Almighty.
Scripture Reading
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul;
O my God, in you I trust.
You are the God of my salvation,
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
In you I hope all the day long.
O my God, in you I trust.
Remember, Lord, your compassion and love,
for they are from everlasting.
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul;
O my God, in you I trust.
from Psalm 25
Reflection
Gospel Canticle
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied.
1 Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel,
who has come to his people and set them free.
2 He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour,
born of the house of his servant David.
3 Through his holy prophets God promised of old to save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us,
4 To show mercy to our ancestors,
and to remember his holy covenant.
5 This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 Free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
7 And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
8 To give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of all their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Luke 1.68–79
Prayers
Almighty and everlasting God,
you hate nothing that you have made
and forgive the sins of all those who are penitent:
create and make in us new and contrite hearts
that we, worthily lamenting our sins
and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may receive from you, the God of all mercy,
perfect remission and forgiveness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer is said
Trusting in the compassion of God,
as our Saviour taught us, so we 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.
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.
The Conclusion
May God our Redeemer show us compassion and love.
Amen.
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.