The Holy Eucharist: The Liturgy of the Word
8th Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 12, Year A) July 26, 2020
Watch the Livestream at www.Facebook.com/StMattSav/Live/
Sunday at 9:30 a.m. (or anytime afterward)
Preface
I am posting this worship service online because we at St. Matthew's Church in Savannah are unable to gather together in person this week. Due to the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) outbreak, public health officials recommend avoiding large gatherings of people to avoid spreading the illness to more vulnerable people. Therefore, the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Georgia has ordered all parishes in our diocese to suspend in-person worship until further notice.
At 9:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, I will broadcast the following worship service using Facebook Live at www.Facebook.com/StMattSav. After the service concludes, you can re-watch it at any time.
Today's service is the Liturgy of the Word (or the first part of the Holy Eucharist service we use on normal Sundays). This is for use at home while watching the live stream or reading the prayers when you cannot physically attend worship. Lay people may read the entirety of this service as printed.
May God protect you from this virus and protect the most vulnerable among us. May we be God’s hands and feet of compassion and service to all in need during this time. Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Guillermo A. Arboleda
The Word of God
AAHH #238: I'm So Glad
[featuring the vocals of Idella Jones]
1 I’m so glad Jesus lifted me.
I’m so glad Jesus lifted me.
I’m so glad Jesus lifted me,
singin' Glory, Hallelujah, Jesus lifted me!
2 Satan had me bound; Jesus lifted me.
Satan had me bound; Jesus lifted me.
Satan had me bound; Jesus lifted me,
singin' Glory, Hallelujah, Jesus lifted me!
3 When I was in trouble, Jesus lifted me.
When I was in trouble, Jesus lifted me.
When I was in trouble, Jesus lifted me,
singin' Glory, Hallelujah, Jesus lifted me!
Words: African-American Traditional, Public Domain.
Music: African-American Traditional; arr. by Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, © 2000 GIA Publications, Inc.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #95009. All rights reserved.
Opening Sentences
[BCP, p. 355]
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever. Amen.
The Collect for Purity
[BCP, p. 355]
Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: 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.
Hymn S 280: Glory to God in the Highest
[BCP, p. 356]
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.
Words: Public Domain.
Music: Robert Powell, © 1985 Church Publishing, Inc.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #77081. All rights reserved.
The Collect of the Day
[BCP, p. 357, 231]
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray:
Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the First Book of Kings (3:5-12)
At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today. And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?”
It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you.”
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Psalm 119:129-136
[BCP, p. 774]
Read responsively by half-verse (at the asterisk).
129 Your decrees are wonderful; * therefore I obey them with all my heart.
130 When your word goes forth it gives light; * it gives understanding to the simple.
131 I open my mouth and pant; * I long for your commandments.
132 Turn to me in mercy, * as you always do to those who love your Name.
133 Steady my footsteps in your word; * let no iniquity have dominion over me.
134 Rescue me from those who oppress me, * and I will keep your commandments.
135 Let your countenance shine upon your servant * and teach me your statutes.
136 My eyes shed streams of tears, * because people do not keep your law.
A Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans (8:26-39)
The Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
LEV #161: Go Preach My Gospel
1 “Go preach my gospel,” saith the Lord,
“Bid the whole earth my grace receive,
Explain to them my sacred word,
Bid them believe, obey, and live.”
2 “I’ll make my great commission known,
And ye shall prove my gospel true
By all the works that I have done,
And all the wonders ye shall do.”
3 “Go heal the sick, go raise the dead,
Go cast out devils in my name.
Nor let my prophets be afraid,
Though man reproach, and will blaspheme.”
4 “While thus ye follow my commands,
I’m with you till the world shall end.
All pow’r in trusted in my hands;
I can destroy, and can defend.”
5 He spake and light shone round His head, On a bright cloud to heav’n He rode. They to the farthest nation spread The grace of their ascended God.
Words: Isaac Watts, Public Domain.
Music: Thomas Hastings, Public Domain.
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ According to St. Matthew (13:31-33, 44-52)
Glory to you, Lord Christ.
[Common English Bible translation]
31 [Jesus] told another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and planted in his field. 32 It’s the smallest of all seeds. But when it’s grown, it’s the largest of all vegetable plants. It becomes a tree so that the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.”
33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough.”
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure that somebody hid in a field, which someone else found and covered up. Full of joy, the finder sold everything and bought that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls.46 When he found one very precious pearl, he went and sold all that he owned and bought it.
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that people threw into the lake and gathered all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, they pulled it to the shore, where they sat down and put the good fish together into containers. But the bad fish they threw away. 49 That’s the way it will be at the end of the present age. The angels will go out and separate the evil people from the righteous people, 50 and will throw the evil ones into a burning furnace. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?”Jesus asked.
They said to him, “Yes.”
52 Then he said to them, “Therefore, every legal expert who has been trained as a disciple for the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings old and new things out of their treasure chest.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Christ.
The Sermon
“Kneading the Dough” by the Rev. Guillermo A. Arboleda
In March, the COVID-19 pandemic changed all of our lives dramatically. Most people were forced to stay home from work for a time. Even those who work in “essential jobs” have had to take many more precautions. People became more reluctant to leave their homes for non-essential tasks. In some cases, it was difficult to find food and household supplies. People sought all kinds of ways to cope with these changes to society.
One of the most popular and wholesome hobbies that folks took up during quarantine is baking. Those of us who frequent social media have seen lots of photos and videos of people experimenting with baking bread, pastries, cakes, and more. Seasoned bakers have had more time to hone their skills. Novice bakers have tried to learn a new skill. I haven’t dipped my toes in these waters, but I’m honestly more interested after this week. I know a few of you have been baking more often than normal too.
And that’s a good thing. Baking is a way to fill up time when there hasn’t been much to do, but more importantly, it’s a way to feed oneself when there are bread shortages and restaurant closures. It’s a physical, embodied practice: real work with real results. Tasks like baking and cooking can ground us and remind us that our lives matter when everything around us is disoriented and disorienting.
That might be why Jesus tells a story about baking and a woman who bakes: “He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough’” (Matt 13:33, CEB). Before we talk about the meaning of the parable, we need to learn a little more about how yeast and baking works.
“The kingdom of heaven is like yeast” Yeast are small microorganisms that live nearly everywhere and feed on sugar. In Jesus’ time, there weren’t nifty packets of rapid-rise yeast that you could store in the refrigerator. Instead, you had to cultivate what we now call a “sourdough starter” from wild yeast found in whole grain flour. There is a long tradition of using wild sourdough to bake bread, and it’s the way most small scale bakeries make fresh bread even today.
As the yeast from the sourdough starter eats sugars in the flour, they release carbon dioxide (CO2) in a process called fermentation. When you mix these tiny yeast with flour and water, they become dough. Starting a sourdough culture is simple but time-consuming. It’s a living colony of yeast so you need to tend to it and feed it more flour and water daily so that it can continue to release more carbon dioxide to help your bread rise.
In some instructional videos I watched on YouTube (citations below), I learned that it can take 7-10 days to build your first sourdough starter. Then, without refrigeration, it requires daily maintenance. Women in ancient Israel were given these domestic tasks of maintaining the yeast culture and preparing “daily bread” for their families and communities.
The chemical reaction between flour and water causes the protein in the flour to form into gluten. (Gluten is the stuff that many people don’t want to eat anymore today because of food allergies.) Gluten acts like loosely woven threads that hold the dough together. The baker must knead the dough in order to weave those threads into a stronger bond that is tight enough to hold that carbon dioxide from the yeast inside the dough. The more CO2 held inside the dough by the gluten, the lighter and airier the bread will become.
Those fluffy air pockets that we love in fresh bread are only possible because the baker has carefully mixed and kneaded this dough for a long time. If you want just one or two loaves of bread, and you’re mixing by hand (like women did in ancient times), it’s going to take at least 15-20 minutes of kneading to get the right consistency.
Now that we know more about how yeast and dough work, let’s go back to the parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough.”
The woman hides the yeast in the flour (not “mixed” as in NRSV; Levine, p. 131). For some reason, the kingdom of heaven is like secret yeast. It’s yeast that isn’t supposed to be there, so the woman must hide her work. But hiding this yeast isn’t going to be easy.
According to several sources, “a bushel of wheat flour” (“three measures” in NRSV) is a lot of flour. Dr. Amy-Jill Levine says that this is “somewhere between forty and sixty pounds” of flour (p. 133)! That’s enough to feed well over one hundred people! And when you add yeast and water to flour, any baker knows that the dough rises and expands. You need a giant container or a really large kitchen to prepare sixty pounds of flour all at once.
Not only do you need space, but you need time. The woman has to knead a lot of dough for a long time in order for that dough to rise into delicious, fluffy bread. If it takes 15 minutes to knead two loaves worth, it will take a couple of days to knead this much dough by hand! Without mixing and kneading for hours, the dough won’t be leavened, it won’t rise, and the bread won’t turn out right.
The woman in this parable is preparing for a huge, hidden party. Perhaps she wants to host hundreds of guests but hasn’t told anyone else in her household yet about these plans. Perhaps she is preparing, as in another parable, to “go to the roads on the edge of town and invite everyone you find to the wedding party.’ (Matt 22:9, CEB). In any case, the leaven of the Kingdom of Heaven has spread through sixty pounds of flour, making lots of dough for lots of bread.
You don’t do all this work unless you are extravagant in your generosity. The yeast in the parable becomes bread to feed a whole community, hundreds of mouths and stomachs. In ancient times on those small farms in the Judean countryside, this is a foolish amount of food to serve at any party. Without a global food economy, you depend on the annual results of your (local) harvest. You only get a certain amount of wheat and barley and rye that grows each year and it’s gotta last through all the winter months until next year’s harvest. So if you threw a party and used up sixty pounds of flour in one shot, you might be putting yourself and your family at risk. It’s so much food that neighbors might laugh at how “wasteful” it is.
Such generosity only makes sense in a reciprocal community. You might throw a giant party today, and when you run out of flour, your neighbors will have your back because you showed love to them. We support one another and pick each other up.
That’s what the kingdom of heaven is like. God shows love and compassion to us children, and we show it to one another. The kingdom leaven of generosity spreads through the work of this woman’s hands. Through her tireless kneading, her hard work, many people will receive bread for nourishment and bread of life.
At St. Matthew’s, we are in a time of extended eucharistic fasting. For most of us (myself included), it has been months since we have received “The Body of Christ, the bread of heaven” and “The Blood of Christ, the cup of salvation” (BCP, p. 365). We have not received the bread and wine of communion because we have not been able to assemble as a church community. We have abstained from the joyful feast of Jesus’ real presence as we wait to gather together in one another’s real presence. It has been painful and challenging on social and spiritual levels.
But “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in a bushel of wheat flour until the yeast had worked its way through all the dough.” The great party is coming. We will again celebrate our physical presence as the Body of Christ and Jesus’ real presence in the Body of Christ. The hidden yeast of God’s Kingdom is preparing us. It is working its way through all of us during this time of separation. Christ is that woman who kneads generosity into our souls and bodies as we wait in prayer and hope.
And we pray that we will use that grace to continue the work of ministry. As the COVID-19 pandemic devastates the health and economic wellbeing of us and our neighbors, the needs in and around St. Matthew’s are only going to grow. May God help us to knead the dough of our lives, the dough of our church, and the dough of our neighbors. May we stay committed to sharing the abundant, foolishly generous love of God. Amen.
Bibliography
Ghoussoub, Michelle. “Here’s why everyone you know is baking bread in quarantine.” CBC News. Published 5 April 2020. Accessed 22 July 2020. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/here-s-why-everyone-you-know-is-baking-bread-in-quarantine-1.5518248.
Levine, Amy-Jill. Short Stories by Jesus: The Enigmatic Parables of a Controversial Rabbi. New York: HarperOne, 2014
Ryan, Patrick. “How to Make Sourdough Bread Masterclass.” I Love Cooking Ireland, YouTube. Published 15 December 2017. Accessed 22 July 2020. Video, 16:08. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FVfJTGpXnU&t
Susanna Z. “How Yeast Works in Bread.” YouTube. Published 13 November 2013. Accessed 22 July 2020. Video, 4:14. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXYZYKfjNBg
The Nicene Creed
[BCP, p. 358]
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:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from 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.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He 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.
The Prayers of the People & Confession of Sin
[Adapted from Form VI, BCP, p. 392]
In peace, we pray to you, Lord God.
Silence, about 5 seconds.
For all people in their daily life and work;
For our families, friends, and neighbors, and for those who are alone.
For Donald, our president; Brian, our governor; Van, our mayor; Al, the chair of our County Commission; Ann, the Superintendent of our Public Schools, and all other civic officials; For this community, the nation, and the world;
For all who work for justice, freedom, and peace.
For the just and proper use of your creation;
For the victims of hunger, fear, injustice, and oppression.
For all who are in danger, sorrow, or any kind of trouble;
For those who minister to the sick, the friendless, and the needy.
For all the churches in Savannah, that we may be one as you are one with the Son, and the Holy Spirit; For the peace and unity of the Church of God;
For all who proclaim the Gospel, and all who seek the Truth.
For Justin, Archbishop of Canterbury; Michael, our Presiding Bishop; Frank, our Bishop; Guillermo our Priest; and for all bishops and other ministers;
For all who serve God in his Church.
For the special needs and concerns of this congregation, especially for our Day Care’s staff, students, and families, and for those on our Parish Prayer List: Martha Avery, Zavier Bradley, Raleigh Bryant, Christine Brown, Mark Case, Genella Chamberlain, Annie Colbert, Lazola Cope, Alice Dailey, Mark Dashiell, Brittany Dawson, Imani Ferguson, Ruby Fernandez, Harry Frazier, Gary Gordon, Loretta Harmond, Marva Harris, Enoch Henderson, Charles E. Hines, Kenneth Howard, Terri Howard, Dale Hundley, Jared Hundley, Tracy Hundley, Milinda James, Alvin Jenkins, Dana Jenkins, Frances T. Jones, Lori Jones, Robert L. Jones, Sr., Ronald Jones, Tonya Jones, Whitney Kennedy, Leonard Law, Jr., Ryan Lovett, Tammie Lovett, Joan Maty, Craig Maxwell, Sada Maxwell, Carmelita Maynard, Viola Maynard, Bette Milledge, Hollie Moultrie, Patricia Murry, Russell Nails, Dorothy Neal, Glenzy Payne, Robert Payne, Dison Washington Slaughter, James Small, Gwendolyn Smith, Willie Stephens, Gisele Walton, Lori Ward, Gertrude Washington, Noel Wheeler, and Dean Williams; and those we remember now…
Silence. The People may add their own petitions.
Hear us, Lord;
For your mercy is great.
We thank you, Lord, for all the blessings of this life, especially those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries, and other blessings we remember now.
Silence. The People may add their own thanksgivings.
We will exalt you, O God our King;
And praise your Name for ever and ever.
We pray for all who have died, especially John Lewis and C. T. Vivian, that they may have a place in your eternal kingdom, and those we remember now.
Silence. The People may add their own petitions.
Lord, let your loving-kindness be upon them;
Who put their trust in you.
We pray to you also for the forgiveness of our sins.
Silence may be kept.
Leader and People:
Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; in your compassion forgive us our sins, known and unknown, things done and left undone; and so uphold us by your Spirit that we may live and serve you in newness of life, to the honor and glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Celebrant concludes with an absolution or a suitable Collect.
Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.
The Peace
[BCP, p. 360]
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.
Announcements
A. We do not yet know when we can safely return to in-person worship in our church building. The Right Rev. Frank Logue, the new Bishop of Georgia, has authorized some parishes in our Diocese to begin re-opening their buildings as early as July 1. Given the recent increase in new COVID-19 cases in Chatham County, the Vestry has decided not to proceed with Phase 1 Re-opening at this time. The church building will remain closed to all in-person gatherings. We will continue to monitor data provided by our local health experts and present a re-opening plan to the parish when we believe that it is safe to do so. Thank you for your patience and flexibility during this uncertain time.
B. Our updated weekly worship schedule during this time of social distancing and quarantine is as follows. Unless otherwise noted, all services may be read on the blog and/or viewed as a video on Facebook Live. If you know of church members who have trouble accessing these services, please reach out and show them or direct them to Fr. Arboleda for support.
Sundays - 9:30 Worship (You can find all of the upcoming Sunday and Holiday readings at http://www.lectionarypage.net.)
Tuesdays - 5:00 Evening Prayer
Wednesdays - 5:00 Evening Prayer
Thursdays - 5:00 Evening Prayer
C. We will hold a virtual "Coffee Hour" over Zoom next Sunday, and again on every other Sunday. Thank you to Mrs. Rachael Blue-Jones who is donating a professional Zoom login to the church for our use.
Topic: St. Matthew's Virtual Coffee Hour
Time: August 2, 2020 10:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
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D. St. Matthew's is planning to pre-record Sunday services to ensure higher quality video and audio for our worshippers at home. This provides a new opportunity for church members to be a part of the service! Mrs. Pearson and I will reach out to parishioners about recording themselves reading Scripture lessons and/or the Prayers of the People for use in these Sunday videos. If you want to get involved, please email me about your interest at FrGAA@StMattSav.org.
E. A notice on upcoming Elections: Registered voters age 65 and older or disabled, who voted by absentee ballot in the May Primary election, will be mailed a ballot for the August 11th Runoff as well as for the November General Election. If these persons have not received their absentee ballot they should contact the Board of Elections immediately at (912) 790-1520. Others not included in the exemption group described who want to vote via absentee ballot must request separate absentee ballot applications for both the August Runoff and the November General Elections. The ballot requests can be obtained at the Board of Elections office or online at www.voter.chathamcountyga.gov or the My Voter Page website www.mvp.sos.ga.gov.
F. Our Bookkeeper just published our preliminary financial reports for the first two quarters of 2020 (January 1 - June 30). These reports include income and expenditures for both the Parish and the Day Care & Learning Center. They are available on our blog. We expect to have Q1 and Q2 giving statements available for our parishioners very soon.
G. Many people are feeling the economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis, including the church. We still need your support to pay our staff, pay our bills, and provide for these online live streams. If you pledged a donation in 2020 and are able, please continue making those contributions. If you have not pledged, please consider donating to St. Matthew’s now and in the future. There are several ways to give, but the simplest are these:
Mail us a check or money order at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 1401 Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd, Savannah, GA 31415; OR
Make a secure online gift to St. Matthew’s and/or automate future gifts at: https://onrealm.org/StMattSav/-/give/now; OR
Text “stmattsav” to 73256 to make a secure online donation through your phone.
The Offertory
[BCP, p. 377]
“Walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself for us, an offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:2)
Give online at: https://onrealm.org/StMattSav/-/give/now
Hymn #530: Spread, O Spread, Thou Mighty Word
1 Spread, O spread, thou mighty word,
Spread the kingdom of the Lord,
that to earth's remotest bound
all may heed the joyful sound.
2 Word of how the Father's will
Made the world, and keeps it still;
How his only Son he gave,
earth from sin and death to save;
3 Word of how the Savior's love
earth's sore burden doth remove;
how forever, in its need,
through his death the world is freed;
4 Word of how the Spirit came
bringing peace in Jesus' name;
how his never-failing love
guides us on to heaven above.
5 Word of life, most pure and strong,
word for which the nations long;
spread abroad, until from night
All the world awakes to light.
Words: Jonathan Friedrich Bahnmaier; tr. Arthur William Farlander and Charles Winfred Douglas; alt. St. 4 F. Bland Tucker, © 1985, Church Publishing, Inc.
Music: Gott sei Dank; adapt. and harm. William Henry Havergal, Public Domain.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #20389. All rights reserved.
The Lord’s Prayer
[BCP, p. 364]
And now, as our Savior Christ has taught us, we are bold to say,
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.
The Blessing & Dismissal
[Enriching Our Worship 1, p. 71; BCP, p 366]
Live without fear: your Creator has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Go in peace to follow the good road and may God’s blessing be with you always. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord!
Thanks be to God!
Note: This service is reproduced from The Book of Common Prayer 1979 (BCP), The Hymnal 1982 (Hymn), Lift Every Voice and Sing II: An African American Hymnal (LEV), and other sources cited. Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture readings and quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible