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  • Writer's pictureFr. Guillermo A. Arboleda

Evening Prayer for April 2, 2020

Evening Prayer for Thursday in the Fifth Week of Lent


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Want to pray on your own? Visit prayer.forwardmovement.org for many varieties of Daily Prayer in the Episcopal tradition.


Note: We are praying using Rite I (traditional, Elizabethan, "Ye Olde English") language during the season of Lent. This change is to help us slow down and pay attention to the words we are praying and also to experience different forms of the Confession of Sin. Beginning on March 31, we are also returning to the Daily Office Lectionary psalm selections after completing the 30-day monthly cycle of psalms from March 1-30. We will return to our typical Rite II (contemporary English) language on Easter.



Jesus said, "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Mark 8:34; BCP, p. 38)


Confession of Sin


Let us humbly confess our sins unto Almighty God.


Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep, we have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts, we have offended against thy holy laws, we have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, spare thou those who confess their faults, restore thou those who are penitent, according to thy promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesus our Lord; and grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.


The Almighty and merciful Lord grant us absolution and remission of all our sins, true repentance, amendment of life, and the grace and consolation of his Holy Spirit. Amen.


The Invitatory and Psalter


V: O God, make speed to save us. R: O Lord, make haste to help us.


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.


O Gracious Light Phos hilaron


O gracious Light, pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven, O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!

Now as we come to the setting of the sun, and our eyes behold the vesper light, we sing thy praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Thou art worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices, O Son of God, O Giver of life, and to be glorified through all the worlds.


The Psalm or Psalms Appointed


Psalm 140 Eripe me, Domine

  Deliver me, O LORD, from evildoers; *

protect me from the violent,

  Who devise evil in their hearts *

and stir up strife all day long.

  They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; *

adder's poison is under their lips.

  Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; *

protect me from the violent, who are determined to trip me up.

  The proud have hidden a snare for me and stretched out a net of cords; *

they have set traps for me along the path.

  I have said to the LORD, "You are my God; *

listen, O LORD, to my supplication.

  O Lord GOD, the strength of my salvation, *

you have covered my head in the day of battle.

  Do not grant the desires of the wicked, O LORD, *

nor let their evil plans prosper.

  Let not those who surround me lift up their heads; *

let the evil of their lips overwhelm them.

10   Let hot burning coals fall upon them; *

let them be cast into the mire, never to rise up again."

11   A slanderer shall not be established on the earth, *

and evil shall hunt down the lawless.

12   I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the poor *

and render justice to the needy.

13   Surely, the righteous will give thanks to your Name, *

and the upright shall continue in your sight.


Psalm 142 Voce mea ad Dominum

  I cry to the LORD with my voice; *

to the LORD I make loud supplication.

  I pour out my complaint before him *

and tell him all my trouble.

  When my spirit languishes within me, you know my path; *

in the way wherein I walk they have hidden a trap for me.

  I look to my right hand and find no one who knows me; *

I have no place to flee to, and no one cares for me.

  I cry out to you, O LORD; *

I say, "You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living."

  Listen to my cry for help, for I have been brought very low; *

save me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me.

  Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to your Name; *

when you have dealt bountifully with me, the righteous will gather around me.


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.


The Lessons


A reading from Second Corinthians (3:7-18)


Now if the ministry of death, chiseled in letters on stone tablets, came in glory so that the people of Israel could not gaze at Moses’ face because of the glory of his face, a glory now set aside, how much more will the ministry of the Spirit come in glory? For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, much more does the ministry of justification abound in glory! 10 Indeed, what once had glory has lost its glory because of the greater glory; 11 for if what was set aside came through glory, much more has the permanent come in glory!

12 Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, 13 not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. 14 But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. 15 Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; 16 but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.


The Song of Mary Magnificat

Luke 1:46-55


My soul doth magnify the Lord, * and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. For he hath regarded * the lowliness of his handmaiden. For behold from henceforth * all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath magnified me, * and holy is his Name. And his mercy is on them that fear him * throughout all generations. He hath showed strength with his arm; * he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, * and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things, * and the rich he hath sent empty away. He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel, * as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed for ever.


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.


A Reading from [[an excerpt from "non-biblical Christian literature" to be determined (BCP, p. 142)]]


The Song of Simeon Nunc Dimittis

Luke 2:29-32


Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, *

according to thy word;

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, *

which thou hast prepared before the face of all people,

To be a light to lighten the Gentiles, *

And to be the glory of thy people Israel.


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.


The Apostles' Creed


I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.


The Prayers


V: The Lord be with you. R: And with thy spirit. Let us pray.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.


Suffrages B


That this evening may be holy, good, and peaceful, We entreat thee, O Lord.

That thy holy angels may lead us in paths of peace and goodwill, We entreat thee, O Lord.

That we may be pardoned and forgiven for our sins and offenses, We entreat thee, O Lord.

That there may be peace to thy Church and to the whole world, We entreat thee, O Lord.

That we may depart this life in thy faith and fear, and not be condemned before the great judgment seat of Christ, We entreat thee, O Lord.

That we may be bound together by thy Holy Spirit in the communion of [ ___________ and] all thy saints, entrusting one another and all our life to Christ, We entreat thee, O Lord.


Collect of the Day: Fifth Sunday in Lent


O Almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of sinful men: Grant unto thy people that they may love the thing which thou commandest, and desire that which thou dost promise; that so, among the sundry and manifold changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.


Collect of the Day: Thursday in the Fifth Week in Lent


O God, who hast called us to be thy children, and hast promised that those who suffer with Christ will be heirs with him of thy glory: Arm us with such trust in him that we may ask no rest from his demands and have no fear in his service; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


Collect of the Day: James Lloyd Breck, Priest, 1876 (April 2)

O God, who sent thy Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: call us from comfortable complacency to preach, teach, and plant thy church on new frontiers, after the example of thy servant James Lloyd Breck; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.


A Collect for the Presence of Christ


Lord Jesus, stay with us, for evening is at hand and the day is past; be our companion in the way, kindle our hearts, and awaken hope, that we may know thee as thou art revealed in Scripture and the breaking of bread. Grant this for the sake of thy love. Amen.


Prayer for Mission


O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship thee, all nations obey thee, all tongues confess and bless thee, and men and women everywhere love thee and serve thee in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Offer your own intercessions and thanksgivings...


The General Thanksgiving


Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we thine unworthy servants do give thee most humble and hearty thanks for all thy goodness and loving kindness to us and to all men. We bless thee for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for thine inestimable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ, for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.

And, we beseech thee, give us that due sense of all thy mercies, that our hearts may be unfeignedly thankful; and that we show forth thy praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to thy service, and by walking before thee in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with thee and the Holy Ghost, be all honor and glory, world without end. Amen.


A Prayer of St. Chrysostom


Almighty God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication unto thee, and hast promised through thy well beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name thou wilt be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen.


The Dismissal


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 Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen. 2 Corinthians 13:14



About Today's Commemoration(s)


James Lloyd Breck, Priest, 1876 (April 2)

Lesser Feast and Fasts 2018, p. 165 (Pre-publication version)


James Lloyd Breck was one of the most important missionaries of the Episcopal Church in the nineteenth century. He was called “The Apostle of the Wilderness.”


Breck was born in Philadelphia in 1818, and like many important churchmen of his time, was greatly influenced by the pastoral devotion, liturgical concern, and sacramental emphasis of William Augustus Muhlenberg. Breck attended Muhlenberg’s school in Flushing, New York, before entering the University of Pennsylvania. Muhlenberg inspired him, when he was sixteen years old, to dedicate himself to a missionary life. The dedication was crystallized when Breck, with three other classmates from the General Theological Seminary, founded a religious community at Nashotah, Wisconsin, which in 1844 was on the frontier.

Nashotah became a center of liturgical observance, of pastoral care, and of education. Isolated families were visited, mission stations established, and, probably for the first time since the Revolution, Episcopal missionaries were the first to reach the settlers.


Although Nashotah House flourished, and became one of the seminaries of the Episcopal Church, the “religious house” ideal did not. Breck moved on to St. Paul, Minnesota, where he began the work of the Episcopal Church there. At Gull Lake, he organized St. Columba’s Mission for the Chippewa. Although the mission did not survive, it laid the foundation for work among the Native Americans by their own native priests.


In 1855, Breck married, and in 1858 settled in Faribault, Minnesota, where his mission was associated with one of the first cathedrals established in the Episcopal Church in the United States. He also founded Seabury Divinity School, which later merged with Western Theological Seminary, to become Seabury-Western. In 1867, Breck went on to California, inspired principally by the opportunity of founding a new theological school. His schools in Benicia, California, did not survive, but the five parishes he founded did, and the church in California was strengthened immensely through his work. He died of exhaustion, at the age of 57, in 1876.

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