Gathering Hymn 451 King’s Lynn

The Greeting

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

From Easter Day until Pentecost

Christ is risen!

The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

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.

Call to Penitence

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.

Penitential Kyries

Lord God, you raised your Son from the dead. Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, through you we are more than conquerors. Christ, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Holy Spirit, you help us in our weakness. Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Absolution

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.

Gloria in Excelsis

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.

The Collect

Lord of all life and power,

who through the mighty resurrection of your Son

overcame the old order of sin and death

to make all things new in him:

Grant that we, being dead to sin

and alive to you in Jesus Christ,

may reign with him in glory;

to whom with you and the Holy Spirit

be praise and honour, glory and might,

now and in all eternity. Amen.

Proclaiming and Receiving the Word

A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.      Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Get up and go towards the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ (This is a wilderness road.) So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go over to this chariot and join it.’ So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ He replied, ‘How can I, unless someone guides me?’ And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this:

‘Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
   and like a lamb silent before its shearer,
     so he does not open his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.

   Who can describe his generation?

     For his life is taken away from the earth.’

The eunuch asked Philip, ‘About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?’ Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. As they were going along the road, they came to some water; and the eunuch said, ‘Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?’ He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.                                                             Acts 8.26-40

Psalm Deus, Deus meus (22. 25-31) Edwards in C (14)

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 First Epistle of St John.                        God is love

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Saviour of the world. God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgement, because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us. Those who say, ‘I love God’, and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.                                                            I John 4.7-21

The Gradual Hymn 433 Rockingham

Hear the Gospel of our Saviour Christ, according to St John.      Jesus the true vine

Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus said ‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.’

This is the Gospel of the Lord.                                            John 15.1-8

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)

The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, Peace be with you.

Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.

 The peace of the Lord be always with you!                  John 20: 19,20

and also with you.

The Offertory Hymn (and collection) 634 Blaenwern

Celebrating at the Lord’s Table ~ 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; Above all we praise you for the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, the true paschal lamb who was sacrificed for us; by dying he destroyed our death; by rising he restored our life: 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

Eternal God, in word and sacrament

we proclaim your truth in Jesus Christ and share his life.

In his strength may we ever walk in his way,

who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Prayer of Thanksgiving

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

The God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the eternal covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight: 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

(from Easter Day to Pentecost)

Go in the peace of the Risen Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thanks be to God. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thanksgiving Hymn 492 Paderborn