Processional Hymn 151 Bunessan
The Gathering of God’s People ~ 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.
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
Turn to us again, O God our Saviour, and let your anger cease from us.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Show us your mercy, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Your salvation is near for those that fear you, that glory may dwell in our land.
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.
The Collect
God our redeemer, who prepared the blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son: Grant that, as she looked for his coming as our saviour, so we may be ready to greet him when he comes again as our judge; who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Proclaiming and Receiving the Word
A reading from the book of the Prophet Micah. The Ruler from Bethlehem
But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
who are one of the little clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to rule in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient days.
Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who is in labour has brought forth;
then the rest of his kindred shall return
to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth;
and he shall be the one of peace.
This is the Word of the Lord. Micah 5: 2-5a
Thanks be to God.
Psalm 80 Qui Regis Israel
1 Hear, O Shepherd of Israel, ♦︎
you that led Joseph like a flock;
2 Shine forth, you that are enthroned upon the cherubim, ♦︎
before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
3 Stir up your mighty strength ♦︎
and come to our salvation.
4 Turn us again, O God; ♦︎
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
5 O Lord God of hosts, ♦︎
how long will you be angry at your people’s prayer?
6 You feed them with the bread of tears; ♦︎
you give them abundance of tears to drink.
7 You have made us the derision of our neighbours, ♦︎
and our enemies laugh us to scorn.
8 Turn us again, O God of hosts; ♦︎
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
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 letter to the Hebrews.
Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said,
‘Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
but a body you have prepared for me;
in burnt-offerings and sin-offerings
you have taken no pleasure.
Then I said, “See, God, I have come to do your will, O God”
(in the scroll of the book it is written of me).’
When he said above, ‘You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt-offerings and sin-offerings’ (these are offered according to the law), then he added, ‘See, I have come to do your will.’ He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
This is the Word of the Lord.Thanks be to God. Hebrews 10: 5-10
The Gradual Hymn 161 Es ist ein’Ros’entsprungen
Hear the Gospel of our Saviour Christ, according to St Luke.
Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ. Mary visits Elizabeth
In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’
And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Luke 1: 39-45,46-55
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
The Sermon ~ 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)
In the tender mercy of our God, the dayspring from on high shall break upon us, to give light to those who dwell in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Luke 1: 78-79
The peace of the Lord be always with you!
And also with you.
The Offertory Hymn (and collection) 126 Merton
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; salvation is your gift through the coming of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, and by him you will make all things new when he returns in glory to judge the world: 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
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
Heavenly Father, you have given us a pledge of eternal redemption. Grant that we may always eagerly celebrate the saving mystery of the incarnation of your Son. We ask this through him whose coming is certain, whose day draws near, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. 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 & Dismissal
Christ the sun of righteousness shine upon you,
gladden your hearts and scatter the darkness from before you:
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,
be with you and remain with you always. Amen.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord!
In the name of Christ. Amen.
Thanksgiving Hymn 188 Winchester Old
Christmas Day services will be at the usual Sunday times
Saint Audoen’s Church
St. Audoen (or Ouen), Bishop of Rouen, flourished in the 7th century, and a Church was dedicated to him in Dublin by the Anglo-Normans after they had seized control of the city; erected, in 1190, on the site of an older Church dedicated to St. Columcille. Once one of the most prosperous Parishes within the city, the Church was attended by the Lord Mayor and Corporation. It is said that the last Catholic and the first Protestant Lord Mayors of Dublin are buried under the old stone floor. The last surviving city gate stands close by.
At the Reformation the Irish Church became officially reformed, while most Irish people remained Catholic. The Parish declined towards the end of the 18th century, when many of the wealthy residents moved out, a process hastened by the Act of Union of 1800. GN Wright reported in 1825 that much of the Church was in a ruinous state, and “very few Protestants” remained in the Parish. One family, now resident in Enniskerry, merchants in the High Street in the 17th, retains a link with St Audoen’s Church to this day.
Towards the end of the 20th century St. Anne’s Chapel was re-roofed as a visitors’ centre in the care of the Office of Public Works (as it is now called), like the unroofed parts of the Church, given into the care of the Board of Works (as it was then called) at the disestablishment of the Church in 1870. The Chapel dates from Henry VI, who in 1430 granted the erection of a Chantry, dedicated to St. Anne. Its founders and their successors formed the Guild of St. Anne which survived the Reformation by many years.
In the Church porch is preserved an early Celtic gravestone which has been kept here or nearby since before 1309. It was first mentioned when Jon LeDecer, Mayor of Dublin, erected a marble cistern for water in Cornmarket and placed this stone against it. In 1826 it disappeared for many years, until found in front of the newly-erected Catholic Church of St Audoen, its noble portico graced with statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her mother St Ann and St Audoen, with his Bishop’s crozier.
In the porch below the tower lies the 15th century monument of Sir Roland Fitz-Eustace, Earl Portlester, who died in 1496, and his wife, Margaret, buried at Cotlandstown, County Kildare. Fitz-Eustace was Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Chancellor and High Treasurer. A Purbeck marble effigy of an unknown ecclesiastic is preserved close by, one of a number surviving in the vicinity of the city of Dublin.
Among those buried in the church were Sir Thomas Molyneux and his son Capel, and Edward Parry, Bishop of Killaloe (who died of the plague in 1650) and his descendants, and Lady Frances Brudenell. The Parry monument can be seen in the clergy vestry, defaced by the followers of Cromwell.
The tower houses six bells, three of which are among the oldest in Ireland, dating from 1423. They were unringable between 1898 and 1983, but after being re-tuned and re-hung are now rung every week. The Bürk electric clock in the Churchwarden’s vestry and some memorial brasses in the Church came from St. Peter’s Church in Aungier Street, closed in 1975. On its site stands the YMCA building, in which the east window from St Luke’s Church, the Coombe, now hangs. The War Memorial from St Matthias’ Church Adelaide Road, for many years preserved in Christ Church Leeson Park, by kind permission of its surviving Church of Ireland congregation, has recently been erected in St Audoen’s.
