12th Sunday after Pentecost – 15th August 2021

11th Sunday after Trinity

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Proper 15

Year B – Track 2

NOTE:  OUR STREAM DROPPED 4 TIMES DURING THE EUCHARIST AND SO LARGE CHUNKS OF THE LITURGY WERE NOT CAPTURED.  WE APOLOGISE TO YOU FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE THIS MAY CAUSE YOU.

ORDER OF SERVICE

You can click to expand or minimize the order of service below.

All are requested to join in wherever text is GREEN or when instructed by Fr. David.

Where the ✝ is shown, all are encouraged to make the sign of the cross.

Where the ✊ is shown all are encouraged to strike their breast with a closed hand following the actions of Fr. David.

Where the ✋ is shown all are encouraged to tap their breast with an open hand following the actions of Fr. David.

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

Praise, my soul, the King of heaven;
To his feet thy tribute bring.
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
Who like me his praise should sing?
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise the everlasting King.

Praise him for his grace and favour
To our fathers in distress;
Praise him still the same for ever,
Slow to chide and swift to bless.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Glorious in his faithfulness.

Father-like, he tends and spares us;
Well our feeble frame he knows;
In his hands he gently bears us,
Rescues us from all our foes,
Alleluia, alleluia!
Widely as his mercy flows.

Angels, help us to adore him;
Ye behold him face to face;
Sun and moon, bow down before him;
Dwellers all in time and space.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise with us the God of grace.

♫♫ 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:

Allelulia. 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.

Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work, and to follow daily in the blessed steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. 

Amen.

A Reading from the book of:

Proverbs 9:1-6

Wisdom has built her house,
she has hewn her seven pillars.
She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine,
she has also set her table.
She has sent out her servant-girls, she calls
from the highest places in the town,
“You that are simple, turn in here!”
To those without sense she says,
“Come, eat of my bread
and drink of the wine I have mixed.
Lay aside immaturity, and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God

Psalm 34:9-14

Benedicam Dominum

Fear the Lord, you that are his saints, *
for those who fear him lack nothing.

10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger, *
but those who seek the Lord lack nothing that is good.

11 Come, children, and listen to me; *
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12 Who among you loves life *
and desires long life to enjoy prosperity?

13 Keep your tongue from evil-speaking *
and your lips from lying words.

14 Turn from evil and do good; *
seek peace and pursue it.

A Reading from the book of

Ephesians

Ephesians 5:15-20

Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God

All stand for the Acclamation and Gospel reading.

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood

Lives in me, and I live in him, says the Lord.

Alleluia!

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to:

John

✝✝✝

Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

After the Gospel reading

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

Jesus says, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”  We’ve been thinking about this for the past fortnight now, as I’m sure you’ll recall!

Even as Jesus is saying these words, you can imagine some would-be disciples slipping to the back of the crowd, before making a beeline home.   Watching Jesus give sight to the blind, and making the lame walk would have been amazing, but now he is not making any sense. Just beyond our reading for today, many of his disciples will say among themselves, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?”  The twelve will stick with Jesus, but many others will fall away.  Knowing Jesus as a great teacher is one thing, but talking about your flesh as food, and your blood as drink must have sounded like the rabbi had really lost it!

Our lectionary, or pattern of readings for Sunday worship, has really slowed down this past month.  We are on our third out of four weeks in a row on a single chapter of John’s Gospel.  It helps to recall this discourse follows Jesus’ feeding 5,000people, as the time for the Passover approaches.  With that central Jewish feast in mind, Jesus referring to the bread that comes down from heaven makes more sense.  Jesus is reinterpreting the story of the Passover, and the Exodus through his own life and ministry.

Jesus has given them physical food, but uses that to teach that he can give them spiritual food as well.  He said, “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life.”  He wants those who are listening to him to not just eat some bread and fish, and then go home to hunger again.  He wants them to develop a spiritual hunger and thirst that he, and only he can fill.  And to teach this, Jesus uses the Passover story, which was about moving from slavery to freedom, to show how faith in him also moves his followers from death to life.

It is a spiritual lesson, difficult to grasp.  We are to let that story of God’s love for us take us, bless us, break us, and give us back to the world, as I suggested only a fortnight ago.

Dom Gregory Dix, in his work of scholarship on the Eucharist, ‘The Shape of the Liturgy’, wrote, “At the heart of it all is the Eucharistic action, a thing of an absolute simplicity—the taking, blessing, breaking and giving of bread, and the taking, blessing and giving of a cup of wine and water, as these were first done with their new meaning by a young Jew, before and after supper with His friends, on the night before He died….Was ever another command so obeyed?   For century after century, spreading slowly to every continent and country, and among every race on earth, this action has been done, in every conceivable human circumstance, for every conceivable human need, from infancy to the grave, from the pinnacles of earthly greatness to the refuge of fugitives in the caves and dens of the earth.”

The communion that Jesus spoke of in John’s sixth chapter, describing himself as living bread, is something that has woven itself deeply into the human story.  Think of all the places you have taken communion, and the people whom you have taken communion alongside—people still living that you don’t see anymore, people now long dead, and seen only by God.  Imagine all the places in which God has experienced this Eucharistic meal.   Jesus is the Bread that Came Down from Heaven, whose presence sustains in every place and situation in which we find ourselves.  It is no wonder then that Jesus’ command to take, bless, break, and give is so obeyed!

We need this strengthening of the Body and Blood of Jesus, encountered in the Eucharist; when we are apart from God, we find it easier and easier to remain separated from God, and to rely on other, lesser answers to our deep hungers and thirsts, which only Jesus can satisfy.  This is where the comparison to physical hunger and thirst helps us, as we know that we need the nourishment of food and drink again and again.  We may eat a good meal now, but we will need another tomorrow, and one in between those two as well.  In that same way, we need spiritual nourishment again and again!

There are two important components to the Christian calling.  The first is coming to faith in Jesus, for which we have the sacraments of baptism and confirmation, to mark us as Christ’s own forever.  But coming to faith is just the first important step on what is to be a lifelong journey.

To continue the journey, to really progress in the life of faith, you need some practices in daily life that make this real.  Central to these practices is worship, and how Jesus feeds us in the Eucharist, just as he promised in teaching, “I am the Bread of Life.”

I know, or perhaps rather hope that I am preaching to the converted, but I also know that from time to time, each of us can find ourselves feeling distanced from God. And so, this is a word to the wise, that when that happens, know that staying away from the altar is not the way to find healing.  Keep coming – keep asking for, and expecting the peace which Jesus alone can give.  We need the nourishment we find here, every bit as much as we need something to eat, and something to drink.

We are also inevitably in contact every day with others, who have found themselves distanced from church.  This is the place where God can speak to their hearts, through our readings, the homily, and the Spirit’s presence in them in worship.  It is also the place where they can receive the bread and wine of communion, and so experience Jesus’s very real and sustaining presence, in an irreplaceable way: the nourishment we all need for our hungry souls.

It is returning, again and again, week after week, for Jesus’ presence in Word, and the sacrament of the Eucharist, that we are conformed, more and more, to be like Jesus.  And in those times in life when challenges arise, such as during the present pandemic, and we are not sure we have what it takes, we return again to be sustained by Jesus’s presence.  And if we begin to feel unworthy of God’s love, we know that we can always return to the altar, confess, and receive forgivenessThen, through Our Lord’s presence in the sacrament, we are fed for the coming week.  Always remember then, that Jesus gave us this bread, so that we might live.

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.

PROPER 15 – YEAR B – p89

12th Sunday after Pentecost

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

As we prepare to receive the spiritual food of the Eucharist, let us pray to the Lord.

Fill the Church with divine wisdom, that your people may walk in the way of truth and peace…Give us always the saving grace of your holy sacraments and bless those who administer them.

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 in 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,  and for all members of our congregation,  be they near or far.

1 Lord hear us – Lord graciously hear us.

Pardon the folly which the world thinks to be wisdom…Reveal the errors that bring wrong decisions and cause suffering…Give right judgement to all in authority.

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

Grant wisdom to all 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.

Help us, our families and friends, to live according to your will…May they live in Christ as he and the Father are one.

We pray for all who are prevented from,  or persecuted for practising their faith,  wherever they may beWe 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 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.

Have mercy on all who are enslaved by addictionFree them from their dependence, and draw them to yourself, to receive the healing power of your sacrements.

We remember all those who have been touched by the COVID 19 pandemic;  particularly here in Pattai-Ya,  where so many lives and livelihoods have been destroyed;   and where there is such heavy dependence on the hotel, hospitality and tourist industry,  now given added urgency as the outbreak continues to  increase in severity. We pray for the on-going vaccination programme here in Thailand,  that greater numbers might be safeguarded more speedily,  and then be spared  the worst  of the unpleasant side-effects.

Amongst the sick we remember;

Fr. Tom, Brian, Kyoko, Alex, Colin, Mavis, Patricia,  Eric, Kent, Graham, Elizabeth, Conrad, Griselda, Jun and any others known personally to each and every one of us…

5 Lord hear us – Lord graciously hear us.

We give thanks for all who, having praised your name in this world, now join in the eternal adoration of heaven…Have mercy on those who are dying and grant them the comfort of the Blessed Sacrament as they come to the end of their earthly lives.

We bring to you all who have died in the hope of the resurrection,   especially the millions who have perished in the COVID pandemic – and for all those known personally to us, collectively or individually…

Give them joy in the fellowship of the heavenly church,  where Christ reigns for ever.

6 Lord hear us – Lord graciously hear us.

[DAVID] – May we who receive the Body and Blood of Christ be heard as we pray in his name.

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

Amen.

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.

To God be the glory, great things he hath done;
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son;
Who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear his voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice:
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give him the glory;
Great things he hath done!

O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes;
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear his voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice:
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give him the glory;
Great things he hath done!

Great things he hath taught us, great things he hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer and higher and greater will be
Our wonder and rapture when Jesus we see.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear his voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice:
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give him the glory;
Great things he hath done!

♫♫ 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.

EUCHARISTIC PRAYER C

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.

Let all mortal flesh keep silence
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly-minded,
For with blessings in his hand
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth he stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood:
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.

At his feet the six-winged seraph;
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the Presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry,
Alleluia, alleluia,
Alleluia, Lord most high!

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

Music

Here is the music for this week’s hymns, if you would like to practice beforehand.

Performed by Fr. David Price

NOTE: The introductory music is ‘Picardy’ – Rowley