Morning has broken
Like the first morning,
Blackbird has spoken
Like the first bird.
Praise for the singing,
Praise for the morning,
Praise for them springing
Fresh from the Word.

Sweet the rain’s new fall
Sunlit from heaven,
Like the first dewfall
On the first grass.
Praise for the sweetness
Of the wet garden,
Sprung in completeness
Where his feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight,
Mine is the morning
Born of the one light
Eden saw play.
Praise with elation,
Praise every morning,
God’s recreation
Of the new day.

♫♫ Scroll to the bottom of the page for the media player where you can hear the music and practice your singing. ♫♫

Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ✝

And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever. Amen

 

From Easter to Pentecost:

Alleluia. Christ is risen!

The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia

 

In Lent and other penitential occasions:

Bless the Lord who forgives all our sins;

His mercy endures for ever.

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

 

Let us pray:

Almighty God, to whom all hearts be 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.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

This prayer is omitted during Lent and Advent:

Glory to God in the highest, and peace to God’s 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.

 Holy God, holy and mighty ✝, holy and immortal, have mercy on us.

O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers; and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Jeremiah 17:5-10

Thus says the Lord:

Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals
and make mere flesh their strength,
whose hearts turn away from the Lord.

They shall be like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see when relief comes.

They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.

They shall be like a tree planted by water,
sending out its roots by the stream.

It shall not fear when heat comes,
and its leaves shall stay green;

in the year of drought it is not anxious,
and it does not cease to bear fruit.

The heart is devious above all else;
it is perverse–
who can understand it?

I the Lord test the mind
and search the heart,

to give to all according to their ways,
according to the fruit of their doings.

 This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Psalm 1

Beatus vir qui non abiit

1 Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked, *
nor lingered in the way of sinners,
nor sat in the seats of the scornful!

2 Their delight is in the law of the Lord, *
and they meditate on his law day and night.

3 They are like trees planted by streams of water,
bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; *
everything they do shall prosper.

4 It is not so with the wicked; *
they are like chaff which the wind blows away.

5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes, *
nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.

6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, *
but the way of the wicked is doomed.

1 Corinthians 15:12-20

Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ–whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have died in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God

All stand for the Acclamation and Gospel reading.

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Rejoice and be glad:

Your reward will be great in heaven.

Alleluia!

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to:

Luke 6:17-26

✝️ ✝️ ✝️

After the Gospel reading

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

In the first reading for this, the 6^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Jeremiah says, “Cursed be he who trusts in human beings.”  It is impossible to create an ideal society if that society does not have God as its foundation, its heart and its end.  St. Augustine’s ideal society was the City of God.  St. Thomas More’s ideal society, Utopia, was a renaissance City of God.

Jeremiah was the one true prophet in Jerusalem that lived through the events resulting in the Babylonian Captivity.  The king wanted to compromise the power of the Babylonians through military treaties.  Jeremiah was told by God to proclaim that man could not solve his own problems.  Man needed to trust in God.  That is a message we still need to hear.  Jeremiah counselled the King that he and all the people should renew their commitment to Yahweh, and put their faith in him to deliver them from the Babylonians.  That was the way of the faithful Hebrews.  Moses, Joshua, Gideon, and all the other successful military leaders trusted in God to fight the battle against evil for them.  But King Zedekiah, the King Jeremiah spoke to, put his trust in himself, and in foreign alliances.  This was an outright rejection of God.  More than that, these alliances meant that the people of Judah would have to recognize the gods of their pagan allies and even embrace practices of idolatry.  “Cursed is he who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the Lord.”  In 588 BC Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians, and the king was blinded and led into slavery with most of his subjects, just as Jeremiah had prophesied.

There are many very good people in our world who are determined to correct the pains of humanity.  This is wonderful to the extent that it is a determination to extend God’s love to all those who are the poor, sick and persecuted of the world.  However, there are well-meaning but mistaken people in the world who think that they can make the world a better place by trusting completely in man’s own capabilities.  This does not work.

Think about the last century.  The twentieth century began with the most terrible war mankind had ever endured.  Millions were killed on the battlefields.  They called it the Great War.  We call it World War I. In 1919, just over a hundred years ago, the victorious nations gathered in Versailles to formulate a treaty which, they said, would guarantee that the Great War would be the war to end allwars.  At the time the treaty was signed, the then Pope, Pope Benedict XV, said that the treaty and the peace would not work.  There was no mention anywhere in the treaty about trusting in God.  No mention of eternal, spiritual values.  The treaty trusted completely in mankind’s capability to restore peace to the world.  The Pope, as we all know, was proved correct.  Within twenty years the world was engaged in an even worse war, World War II.

Ultimate reliance upon human capabilities is a sham.  It didn’t work for the people of Jeremiah’s day.  It didn’t work after World War I.  It won’t work today.  The one lesson we need to learn from history is that our only true hope must be in God.  We cannot even approach the creation of the perfect society ourselves.  “Creation without the Creator fades into nothingness.”  The perfect society must be united to, and a reflection of the Perfect One.

We cannot relate to a concept, though – we can only relate to a person.  That is why God sent His Son to us.  We relate to Jesus as individuals and as a people.  We experience His Presence within us and among us.  We love Him.  We live for Him.  We join Him in the construction of the Kingdom of God.

Blessed are the poor, St. Luke’s account of the beatitudes, sometimes referred to as ‘The Sermon on the Plains’, states in today’s gospel.  Luke is concrete.  He is not talking about attitudes like Matthew was.  He doesn’t quote the Lord as saying blessed are the poor in spirit.  Luke quotes the Lord as saying, simply, “Blessed are the poor.”

To St. Luke, the poor are blessed because they have no choice but to trust in God.  St. Luke addressed his gospel to the downtrodden, the lowly.  He sees a tremendous virtue that the poor have,  because they recognize that what they have comes from God, they are generous with others, believing that God will provide for them if they give the little they have to those more needy than themselves.  Consider your generosity to the poor, and also here to our own parish.  These are times when everyone has serious needs, yet you sacrifice from the little you have to provide for those who have even less.  Blessed are you poor.

St. Luke also quotes Jesus as saying, “Woe to the rich.” Jesus is not concerned with the amount of money a person has.  He’s concerned with the false sense of security that money often gives people.   Many people are tempted to trust in their possessions instead of trusting in God.   The Scrooges of this world have no joy, no hope and no future.  Jesus told a parable about a man who had such a great harvest he just built a bigger barn instead of distributing his surplus to the poor.   That man died that same night.   His wealth did him no good.   If our consolation is our material possessions, we have nothing to take with us when we attempt to enter the world of the spiritual.  More than this, if we trust in our possessions, we have little room for God in our lives.   We act as though we do not need him.  Just like the people acted in Jerusalem in Jeremiah’s day and in Europe at the end of World War I.

St. Paul sums up this message in today’s second reading: “If our hope is limited to this life only, we are the most pitiable of people.”

Here is a mystery of our faith: Jesus died to reunite mankind to God for all eternity.  Jesus did not live and die for the physical.  He lived and died for the spiritual.  We have been created to provide our brothers and sisters in this world with the experience of the presence of the eternal love of God, the presence of Jesus Christ.

We live in an age of expanding technological marvels.  We can hit a few keys on our computer and read documents in libraries from all around the world.  We can buy tickets to events across the country, choosing the seats we want in the theatre from our smartphones.  We ask Alexa, or Siri, or Google, and get an immediate answer. The next thousand years will be a time beyond the imagining of the science fiction writers of the past.   It will also be an empty age.  It will be empty unless we are determined to put the spiritual at the centre of our lives.   Jesus Christ is our only true hope and our only lasting refuge.  We treasure our relationship with the Lord.  Rich or poor in material possessions, Jesus Christ is the reason for our being.  We can harness the advancements in technology to serve the Lord in this life.  We can be secure in our Hope to be with Jesus forever in the next life. “Rejoice and leap for joy on that day! Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.”  Amen

Please stand for the Nicene Creed.

Let us together affirm the faith of the Church.

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 of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,

and became truly human.

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.

Let us pray for the world and for the Church:

Prayers of intercession are now said and at the end of each prayer the priest says:

Lord in your mercy,

Hear our prayer.

or

Lord hear us,

Lord graciously hear us

At the conclusion of the prayers the priest says:

Almighty God, who has promised to hear our prayers.

Grant that what we have asked in faith we may by your grace receive, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 Jesus said: Come to me all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

or

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

The Sixth Sunday After Epiphany

13th February 2022 – Proper 2 – Year C

a. For His blessings on all that he has made, let us pray to the Lord.

b. Strengthen the church to flourish like a tree planted by the water, bringing forth fruit to the glory of your kingdom…. Keep your people steadfast in trouble, always trusting in your promises.

We pray for the welfare of your church here on earth; guide and govern it by your Spirit, so that all Christians may be led in the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and righteousness of life.

We ask your blessing on +Vsevolod our Bishop, on this, our parish of St. George – for its work, its worship and its witness. We pray particularly for Fr. David in his ministry to us at this time of great personal sorrow and desolation, and for all members of our congregation, be they near or far.

1 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

c. Change and heal the inequalities and injustices of the world…Guide the rich, that they may help the poor, and the well-fed, that they may relieve hunger… Teach the powerful not to trust in their own strength, but only in your love.

d. We pray for the grace that we, our families, friends and neighbours, may hear and receive your word and walk in your way… Make us more worthy to be members of your kingdom.

We pray for the leaders of all the nations of the world, most particularly for the King and Government of Thailand at this time of unrest, and also in the countries from which we come. We remember also all the people in countries that have had problems of any kind during this past week, especially in the Ukraine.

Grant wisdom to those in authority in every land, and give to all people a desire for righteousness and peace, the will to work together in trust, to seek the common good, and to share with justice and equity the limited resources of the earth.

2 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

We pray for all who are prevented from or persecuted for practising their faith, wherever they may be. We pray for our fellow Christians, both here in Thailand, and also in our own home countries.

3 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

We pray for all those who suffer in body, mind and spirit; the sick; the poor; the depressed; the lonely; the afraid, the unloved; the persecuted; the unemployed and those who care for them. Those who grieve; and those who have nobody to pray for them.

4 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

e. Grant healing to the sick in body or mind, and empower those who minister to them… Be with those who are near to death, and give them the assurance of Resurrection.

We remember all those who have been touched by the COVID 19 pandemic; particularly here in PattaYa. We give you thanks that Thailand has now reopened to visitors from abroad, as the outbreak is essentially being contained, and for the progress which has been made with the vaccination programme,

Amongst the sick we remember;

Fr. Tom,  Brian, Terry, Kyoko, Colin, Mavis, Patricia, Eric, Kent, Elizabeth, Conrad, Griselda, Jun, Martyn, Dave, Carole, Emilia, and any others, known personally to each and every one of us…

5 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

f. Receive the souls of the faithful by the power of Christ, the firstfruits of those who have passed through death… Confirm our hope in him when we come to die.

We bring to you all who have died in the hope of the resurrection, especially the millions who have perished in the COVID pandemic –for Mick (1), John (1) Chris (1), Jean(1)……….. and all those whose anniversaries occur at this time and known to us, either collectively or individually.

6 Lord, hear us.  Lord, graciously hear us.

[DAVID] – g. We offer our prayers as those who come to Christ, that they may be healed.

Grant that what we have asked in faith we may by your grace receive, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

**TURN OFF MIC** 4

THE CONFESSION:

God is steadfast in love and infinite in mercy, welcoming sinners and inviting them to the Lord’s table.

Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, confident in God’s forgiveness.

Merciful God, our maker and our judge, we have sinned against you in thought, word and deed, and in what we have failed to do: we have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves; we repent and are sorry ✊ for all ✊ our sins ✊, Father forgive us, strengthen us to love and obey you in newness of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen

**(Note: all are encouraged to strike their breast 3 times following the lead of Fr. David as he utters the words: ‘sorry for all our sins’)**

Almighty God, who has promised forgiveness to all who turn to him in faith, pardon you ✝ and set you free from all your sins, strengthen you in all goodness and keep you in eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

THE PEACE:

The congregation stands.

We are the Body of Christ.

His Spirit is with us.

 

The peace of the Lord be always with you.

And also with you.

Please greet each other with a sign of peace.

Happy are they, they that love God,
Whose hearts have Christ confest,
Who by his cross have found their life,
And ‘neath his yoke their rest.

Glad is the praise, sweet are the songs,
When they together sing;
And strong the prayers which bow the ear
Of heaven’s eternal King.

Sad were our lot, evil this earth,
Did not its sorrows prove
The path whereby the sheep may find
The fold of Jesu’s love.

Then shall thy know, they that love him,
How all their pain is good;
And death itself cannot unbind
Their happy brotherhood.

♫♫ Scroll to the bottom of the page for the media player where you can hear the music and practice your singing. ♫♫

THE OFFERTORY

Blessed are you, God of all creation. Through your goodness we have these gifts to share. Accept and use our offerings for your glory and the service of your kingdom.

Blessed be God forever.

 Let us pray

We do not presume to come to 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 we may evermore dwell in him and he in us.  Amen.

The Lord be with you.

and also with you.

Lift up your hearts.

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give thanks and praise.

Father, we give you thanks and praise through your beloved Son Jesus Christ, your living Word, through whom you have created all things; who was sent by you in your great goodness to be our Saviour.

By the power of the Holy Spirit he took flesh; as your Son, born of the blessed Virgin, he lived on earth and went about among us; he opened wide his arms for us on the cross; he put an end to death by dying for us; and revealed the resurrection by rising to new life; so he fulfilled your will and won for you a holy people.

Proper Preface

Therefore with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying:

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.

Lord, you are holy indeed, the source of all holiness; grant that by the power of your Holy Spirit, and according to your holy will, these gifts of bread and wine may be to us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ; who, in the same night that he was betrayed, took bread and gave you thanks; he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take, eat; this is my body ✝ which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.

In the same way, after supper he took the cup and gave you thanks; he gave it to them, saying: Drink this, all of you; this is my blood ✝ of the new covenant,

which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it,

in remembrance of me.

Great is the mystery of faith:

Christ has died:

Christ is risen:

Christ will come again.

And so, Father, calling to mind his death on the cross, his perfect sacrifice, made once for the sins of the whole world; rejoicing in his mighty resurrection and glorious ascension, and looking for his coming in glory, we celebrate this memorial of our redemption.

As we offer you this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, we bring before you this bread and this cup and we thank you for counting us worthy to stand in your presence and serve you. Send the Holy Spirit on your people and gather into one in your kingdom all who share this one bread and one cup, so that we, in the company of [N and] all the saints, may praise and glorify you for ever, through Jesus Christ our Lord; by whom, and with whom, and in whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honour and glory be yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us pray with confidence to the Father, as our Saviour has taught us:

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, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.  ✋

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.✋

O Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace.✋

**(Note:  All are encouraged to tap their breast three times following the example of Fr. David as he utters the words ‘…have mercy, …have mercy and …grant us peace’)**

We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.

Though we are many, we are one body, because we all share in one bread.

This is the Lamb of God ✝, who takes away the sins of the world;

Happy are those who are called to his supper.

Lord, I am not worthy ✊ to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed.

**(Note:  All are encouraged to strike breast following the example of Fr. David as all utter the words ‘not worthy’)** 

After Communion the celebrant and the congregation say

 

Let us pray.

Father of all we give you thanks and praise that when we were still far off you met us in your Son and brought us home. Dying and living, he declared your love, gave us grace, and opened the gate of glory. May we who share Christ’s body live his risen life; we who drink his cup bring life to others; we whom the Spirit lights give light to the world. 

Keep us in this hope that we have grasped; so we and all your children shall be free, and the whole earth live to praise your name.

Father, we offer ourselves to you as a living sacrifice through Jesus Christ our Lord. Send us out in the power of your Spirit to live and work to your praise and glory.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit ✝, be amongst you and remain with you always.

Amen.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord:

In the name of Christ.  Amen.

Light’s abode, celestial Salem,
Vision dear whence peace doth spring,
Brighter than the heart can fancy,
Mansion of the highest King;
O, how glorious are the praises
Which of thee the prophets sing!

Now with gladness, now with courage,
Bear the burden on thee laid,
That hereafter these thy labours
May with endless gifts be paid,
And in everlasting glory
Thou with joy may’st be arrayed.

Laud and honour to the Father,
Laud and honour to the Son,
Laud and honour to the Spirit,
Ever Three and ever One,
Consubstantial, co-eternal,
Whilst unending ages run. Amen.

♫♫ Scroll to the bottom of the page for the media player where you can hear the music and practice your singing. ♫♫