Easter Blessings A.D. 2018 - JS Bach's Easter Oratorio

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A blessed Easter to one and all !

O God, who for our redemption didst give thine only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious Resurrection hast delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his Resurrection; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth  with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. 

Amen.

J.S. Bach's Easter Oratorio

Maundy Thursday (BAS, Anglican Church of Canada)

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In The Book of Alternative Services of the Anglican Church of Canada the following is appointed to be said before the Ceremony of the Foot-Washing:

       Fellow servants of our Lord Jesus Christ,
       on the night before his death,
       Jesus set an example for his disciples
       by washing their feet, 
       an act of humble service.
       He taught that strength and growth
       in the life of the kingdom of God
       come not by power, authority, or even miracle,
       but by such lowly service.

       Therefore, I invite you
              (who have been appointed as representatives
              of the congregation and)

       who share in the royal priesthood of Christ,
       to come forward,
       that I may recall whose servant I am
       by following the example of my Master.
       But come remembering his admonition
       that what will be done for you
       is also to be done by you to others,
       for “a servant 
       is not greater than his master,
       nor is one who is sent 
       greater than the one who sent him.
       If you know these things, 
       blessed are you if you do them.”

It is a very simple, straightforward, and elegant solution for providing a standardised introduction to the pedilavium rather than leaving it up to the skills of the presbyter or to the employment of a lengthy exhortation from another book in Prayer Book English.   It is also very realistic in its ambitions as it is the right length for contemporary ears trained by sound bites and commercial advertising.

Jesus Washing Peter's Feet
Ford Madox Brown

At the beginning of the B.A.S. Maundy Thursday liturgy the Celebrant is directed to say the following introduction weaving together the themes and Scriptures of the day ... and these words also serve as a good word for contemplating the meaning of this day in Holy Week:

        This is the day
         that Christ the Lamb of God
         gave himself into the hands 
         of those who would slay him.

         This is the day
         that Christ gathered with his disciples 
         in the upper room.

         This is the day
         that Christ took a towel
         and washed the disciples’ feet,
         giving us an example 
         that we should do to others
         as he has done to us.

         This is the day
         that Christ our God gave us this holy feast,
         that we who eat this bread
         and drink this cup
         may here proclaim his Holy Sacrifice
         and be partakers of his resurrection,
         and at the last day 
         may reign with him in heaven.

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Holy Week: Maundy Thursday

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I have thought a great deal this last week about the treasury of prayer found in the collects of the Church. They do what most of us would like to do when we pray: address God, confident that He is listening, recalling some aspect of the life of Jesus and the Sacred Scriptures and relating those to a need that we have, and finally offering up the prayer in God's Name and to the Glory of the Holy Trinity. Below are 2 collects I treasure and pray often throughout the year, one for Palm Sunday and the other usually paired with Maundy Thursday in Holy Week and every Thursday each week of the year:

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who, of thy tender love towards mankind, hast sent thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the Cross, that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant, that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O GOD, who in a wonderful Sacrament hast left unto us a memorial of thy Passion: Grant us so to reverence the Holy Mysteries of thy Body and Blood, that we may ever know within ourselves the fruit of thy redemption; who livest and reignest with the Father in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.

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Heart of Jesus, think of me.

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HEART OF JESUS, think of me.

Eyes of Jesus, look on me.

Face of Jesus, comfort me.

Hands of Jesus, bless me.

Feet of Jesus, guide me.

Arms of Jesus, hold me.

Body of Jesus, feed me.

Blood of Jesus, wash me.

Jesus, make me thus thine own

Here and in the world to come. Amen.

Saint Augustine's Prayer Book

Order of the Holy Cross
The Episcopal Church

USA

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