Evening Prayer: Rite Two Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Opening Sentence (BCP 115) Officiant: I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel; my heart teaches me, night after night. I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not fall. Psalm 16:7, 8

Confession of Sin (BCP 116) Officiant: Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor. Silence may be kept. All: Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen. Priest: 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. All: Amen.

The Invitatory and Psalter (BCP 117) Officiant: O God, make speed to save us. People: O Lord, make haste to help us. All: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. O Gracious Light Phos hilaron (BCP 118) All: 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 your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You are 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 Appointed (Psalm 144:9-15, BCP 800) 9 O God, I will sing to you a new song; * I will play to you on a ten-stringed lyre. 10 You give victory to kings * and have rescued David your servant. 11 Rescue me from the hurtful sword * and deliver me from the hand of foreign peoples, 12 Whose mouths speak deceitfully * and whose right hand is raised in falsehood. 13 May our sons be like plants well nurtured from their youth, * and our daughters like sculptured corners of a palace. 14 May our barns be filled to overflowing with all manner of crops; * may the flocks in our pastures increase by thousands and tens of thousands; may our cattle be fat and sleek. 15 May there be no breaching of the walls, no going into exile, * no wailing in the public squares.

The First Lesson Reader: A reading from the book of Wisdom (9:7-12) You have chosen me to be king of your people and to be judge over your sons and daughters. You have given command to build a temple on your holy mountain, and an altar in the city of your habitation, a copy of the holy tent that you prepared from the beginning. With you is wisdom, she who knows your works and was present when you made the world; she understands what is pleasing in your sight and what is right according to your commandments. Send her forth from the holy heavens, and from the throne of your glory send her, that she may labour at my side, and that I may learn what is pleasing to you. For she knows and understands all things, and she will guide me wisely in my actions and guard me with her glory. Then my works will be acceptable, and I shall judge your people justly, and shall be worthy of the throne of my father. Reader: The Word of the Lord. People: Thanks be to God.

The Song of Mary Magnificat (BCP 119) All: My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; * for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: * the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him * in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, * he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, * and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, * and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel, * for he has remembered his promise of mercy, The promise he made to our fathers, * to Abraham and his children 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 for ever. Amen. The Second Lesson Reader: A reading from 1 Timothy (4:6-10) If you put these instructions before the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with profane myths and old wives’ tales. Train yourself in godliness, for, while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and struggle, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Saviour of all people, especially of those who believe. Reader: The Word of the Lord. People: Thanks be to God.

The Song of Simeon Nunc dimittis (BCP 120) All: Lord, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised; For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see: A Light to enlighten the nations, and the glory of your 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 for ever. Amen.

The Gospel Reader: A reading from the Gospel according to Luke (10:21-24) At that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’ Then turning to the disciples, Jesus said to them privately, ‘Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.’

Homily ...... The Rev. Dr. Mark W. Frazier

The Apostles’ Creed (BCP 120) All: I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth; I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Prayers (BCP 121) Officiant: The Lord be with you. People: And also with you. Officiant: Let us pray. All: 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 A (BCP 121) Officiant: Show us your mercy, O Lord; All: And grant us your salvation. Officiant: Clothe your ministers with righteousness; All: Let your people sing with joy. Officiant: Give peace, O Lord, in all the world; All: For only in you can we live in safety. Officiant: Lord, keep this nation under your care; All: And guide us in the way of justice and truth. Officiant: Let your way be known upon earth; All: Your saving health among all nations. Officiant: Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten; All: Nor the hope of the poor be taken away. Officiant: Create in us clean hearts, O God; All: And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

The Collects The Collect for Bertha and Ethelbert Officiant: God of Creation, who molded humanity from the fertile earth: Grant that we, following the good examples of Queen Bertha and King Ethelbert, may gladly receive and fruitfully nurture the seed of the Gospel to the bounty of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. All: Amen.

The Collect for Protection (BCP 124) Officiant: O God, the life of all who live, the light of the faithful, the strength of those who labor, and the repose of the dead: We thank you for the blessings of the day that is past, and humbly ask for your protection through the coming night. Bring us in safety to the morning hours; through him who died and rose again for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. All: Amen.

A Prayer for Mission (BCP 125) Officiant: O God, you manifest in your servants the signs of your presence: Send forth upon us the Spirit of love, that in companionship with one another your abounding grace may increase among us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. All: Amen.

Announcements

The General Thanksgiving (BCP 125) All: Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable 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 pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom (BCP 126) Officiant: Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. All: Amen.

The Dismissal Officiant: Let us bless the Lord. All: Thanks be to God.

Officiant: May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 All: Amen.

Hagiography Bertha and Ethelbert, Queen & King of Kent, 616 -from Wikipedia Bertha or Aldeberge (539 – c. 612) was the Queen of Kent whose influence led to the introduction of Christianity to Anglo-Saxon . She was canonized as a saint for her role in its establishment during that period of English history. Bertha was the daughter of Charibert I, Merovingian King of Paris. When she married the pagan King Æthelberht of Kent, she brought her chaplain, Liudhard, with her to England. She restored a Christian church in , which dated from Roman times, dedicating it to Saint Martin of Tours. The present St Martin's at Canterbury occupies the same site. , whose mission was sent by Pope Gregory I to preach the Gospel in England in 596, owed much of his favorable reception to the influence of Bertha. Æthelberht (also Æthelbert, Aethelberht, Aethelbert, or Ethelbert) (c. 560 – 24 February 616) was King of Kent from about 580 or 590 until his death. In his Ecclesiastical History of the English People, the monk lists Aethelberht as the third king to hold imperium over other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. In the late ninth century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Æthelberht is referred to as a bretwalda, or "Britain-ruler". He was the first English king to convert to Christianity. The native Britons had converted to Christianity under Roman rule. The Anglo- Saxon invasions separated the British church from European Christianity for centuries, so the church in Rome had no presence or authority in Britain, and in fact, Rome knew so little about the British church that it was unaware of any schism in customs. Æthelberht, however, would have known something about the Roman church from his Frankish wife, Bertha, who had brought a bishop, Liudhard, with her across the Channel. Æthelberht had a chapel built for her. In 596, Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine, prior of the monastery of St. Andrew in Rome, to England as a missionary, and in 597, a group of nearly forty monks, led by Augustine, landed on the Isle of Thanet in Kent. According to Bede, Æthelberht was sufficiently distrustful of the newcomers to insist on meeting them under the open sky, to prevent them from performing sorcery. The monks impressed Æthelberht, but he was not converted immediately. He agreed to allow the mission to settle in Canterbury and permitted them to preach. It is not known when Æthelberht became a Christian. At the latest, Æthelberht must have converted before 601, since that year Gregory wrote to him as a Christian king. An old tradition records that Æthelberht converted on 1 June [Pentecost that year], in the summer of the year that Augustine arrived. Through Æthelberht’s influence Sæberht, king of Essex, also was converted, but there were limits to the effectiveness of the mission. The entire Kentish court did not convert: Eadbald, Æthelberht’s son and heir, was a pagan at his accession. Rædwald, king of East Anglia, was only partly converted (apparently while at Æthelberht’s court) and retained a pagan shrine next to the new Christian altar. Augustine also was unsuccessful in gaining the allegiance of the British clergy. Æthelberht’s code of laws for Kent, the earliest written code in any Germanic language, instituted a complex system of fines. Æthelberht later was canonized for his role in establishing Christianity among the Anglo-Saxons, as were his wife and daughter.