28 February 2021 ~ The Second Sunday in Lent ~ Year B

Gathering Hymn 657 Abridge

The Greeting

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are 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.

Penitence
Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ says:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like it.
You shall love your neighbour as yourself.

On these two commandments depend all the law
and the prophets. Matthew 22: 37-39

Lord, have mercy on us,
and write these your laws in our hearts.

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son Jesus Christ, to save us from our sins, to intercede for us in heaven, and to bring us to eternal life. Let us then confess our sins in penitence and faith, firmly resolved to keep God’s commandments and to live in love and peace.

Almighty God,
our heavenly Father,
we have sinned in thought and word and deed,
and in what we have left undone.
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 walk in newness of life
to the glory of your name.
Amen.

Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy on you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Collect

Almighty God, you show to those who are in error the light of your truth that they may return to the way of righteousness: Grant to all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s religion, that they may reject those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Proclaiming and Receiving the Word

A reading from the Book Genesis. The Sign of the Covenant

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him, ‘I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous.’ Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him, ‘As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. God said to Abraham, ‘As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.’

This is the Word of the Lord. Genesis 17: 1-7, 15-16
Thanks be to God.
Psalm Deus, Deus meus (22.23-31) Edwards in C (82) † (second part)
23  Praise the Lord, you that fear him; •
   O seed of Jacob, glorify him;
      stand in awe of him, O seed of Israel.
24  For he has not despised nor abhorred the suffering of the poor;
      neither has he hidden his face from them; •
   but when they cried to him he heard them.
25  From you comes my praise in the great congregation; •
   I will perform my vows
      in the presence of those that fear you.
26  The poor shall eat and be satisfied; •
   those who seek the Lord shall praise him;
      their hearts shall live for ever.
27  All the ends of the earth
      shall remember and turn to the Lord, •
   and all the families of the nations shall bow before him.
28  For the kingdom is the Lord’s •
   and he rules over the nations.
29  How can those who sleep in the earth
      bow down in worship, •
   or those who go down to the dust kneel before him?
30  He has saved my life for himself;
      my descendants shall serve him; •
   this shall be told of the Lord for generations to come.
31 † They shall come and make known his salvation,
      to a people yet unborn, •
   declaring that he, the Lord, has done it.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

A reading from the Epistle of St Paul to the Romans.
God’s promised realised through faith
For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.
For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, ‘I have made you the father of many nations’)—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become ‘the father of many nations’, according to what was said, ‘So numerous shall your descendants be.’ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his faith ‘was reckoned to him as righteousness.’ Now the words, ‘it was reckoned to him’, were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.

This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God. Romans 4.13-25

The Gradual Hymn 225 Wychbold

Hear the Gospel of our Saviour Christ, according to St Mark.
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus foretells his death and resurrection

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’
He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’

This is the Gospel of the Lord. Mark 8.31-38
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

The Nicene Creed

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 by the Holy Spirit of 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 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.

Prayers of Intercession
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.

Merciful Father,
accept these our prayers
for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Peace (please stand)
Being justified by faith,
we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The peace of the Lord be always with you!
And also with you. Romans 5: 1, 2
The Offertory Hymn (and collection) 599 Breslau

The Taking of the Bread and Wine

Christ, our Passover has been sacrificed for us;
therefore let us celebrate the feast.

The Great Thanksgiving

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 our thanks and praise.
Father, almighty and everliving God, at all times and in all places it is right to give you thanks and praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who was in every way tempted as we are yet did not sin; by whose grace we are able to overcome all our temptations: and so with all your people, 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!
Blessed are you, Father, the creator and sustainer of all things; you made us in your own image; male and female you created us; even when we turned away from you, you never ceased to care for us, but in your love and mercy you freed us from the slavery of sin, giving your only begotten Son to become man and suffer death on the cross to redeem us; he made there the one complete and all-sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world: he instituted and in his holy Gospel commanded us to continue, a perpetual memory of his precious death until he comes again.
On the night that he was betrayed he took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, 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 when he had given thanks to you, he gave it to them, saying, Drink this, all of you, for 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.
Therefore, Father, with this bread and this cup we do as Christ your Son commanded:
we remember his passion and death,
we celebrate his resurrection and ascension,
and we look for the coming of his kingdom.
Accept through him, our great high priest, this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving; and as we eat and drink these holy gifts, grant by the power of the life-giving Spirit that we may be made one in your holy Church and partakers of the body and blood of your Son, that he may dwell in us and we in him;
through the same Jesus Christ our Lord,
by whom, and with whom, and in whom,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours,
Almighty Father, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer (sit or kneel to pray)

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

The Breaking of the Bread
The bread which we break
is a sharing in the body of Christ.
We being many are one body,
for we all share in the one bread.

Agnus Dei
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us;
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us;
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, grant us peace.

The Invitation
Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God,
who has taken 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.
The bread and the wine are laid out where people can approach and receive them independently. Many people like to dip the wafer in the wine.

The Post Communion Prayer
Creator of heaven and earth,
we thank you for these holy mysteries
given us by our Lord Jesus Christ,
by which we receive your grace
and are assured of your love,
which is through him now and for ever. Amen.

Almighty God,
we thank you for feeding us
with the spiritual food
of the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ.
Through him we offer you our souls and bodies
to be a living sacrifice.
Send us out in the power of your Spirit
to live and work to your praise and glory. Amen.

The Blessing
Christ give you grace to grow in holiness,
to deny yourselves, and to take up your cross and follow him:
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
be with you and remain with you always. Amen.

The Dismissal
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord!
in the name of Christ. Amen.

Thanksgiving Hymn 108 Gerontius

The Parish of Saint Catherine & Saint James with Saint Audoen
Canon Mark Gardner Tel: 01 454 2274 Mobile 087 266 0228
Email: markgardner300@gmail.com
Diocesan Lay Reader: James Kilbey
Parish Reader: Cletus Ogbata
Organist: Olesia Borsuk
Review Distribution: Margery Bell Tel: 01 4542067
Website: stcatherineandstjameswithstaudoen.ie