EVENING PRAYER
Vespers
L Jesus
Christ is the Light of the world,
C the
light no darkness can overcome.
L Stay
with us, Lord, for it is evening,
C and
the day is almost over.
L Let
your light scatter the darkness,
C and
illumine your Church.
L Joyous
light of glory:
C of
the immortal Father;
heavenly, holy,
blessed Jesus Christ.
We have come to the setting of
the sun,
and we look to
the evening light.
We sing to God, the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit:
You are worthy of being praised
with pure voices
forever.
O Son of God, O Giver of life:
The universe
proclaims your glory.
C And
also with you.
L Let
us give thanks to the Lord our God.
C It
is right to give him thanks and praise.
L Blessed
are you, O Lord our God, king of the universe, who led your people Israel by a
pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night: Enlighten our darkness by
the light of your Christ; may his Word be a lamp to our feet and a light to our
path; for you are merciful, and you love your whole creation, and we, your creatures,
glorify you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
C Amen
C Let my prayer rise before you as incense;
the lifting up
of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
I O Lord, I call to you; come to me quickly;
hear my voice
when I cry to you.
II Let my prayer rise before you as incense;
the lifting up
of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
I Set a watch before my mouth, O Lord,
and guard the
door of my lips.
II Let not my heart incline to any evil thing;
let me not be
occupied in wickedness with evildoers.
I But
my eyes are turned to you, Lord God;
in you I take
refuge. Strip me not of my life.
II Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy
Spirit;
I as
it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
C Let my prayer rise before you as incense;
the lifting up
of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
L Let
the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before you, O Lord, and let your
lovingkindness descend upon us, that with purified minds we may sing your
praises with the Church on earth and the whole heavenly host, and may glorify
you forever and ever. (254)
C Amen
One or two LESSONS are read.
Silence for meditation follows each reading.
L In
many and various ways God spoke to his people of old by the prophets.
C But
now in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.
C My
soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my
Savior,
for he has looked with favor on
his lowly servant.
From this day all generations
will call me blessed.
The Almighty has
done great things for me,
and holy is his
name.
He has mercy on
those who fear him
in every
generation.
He has shown the strength of his
arm;
he has scattered the proud in
their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from
their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with
good things,
and the rich he has sent away
empty.
He has come to the help of his
servant Israel,
for he has remembered his
promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our
fathers,
to Abraham and his children
forever.
Glory to the Father, and to the
Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the
beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen
The LITANY is sung or said. The
complete Litany may be sung to the alternate musical form.
L In
peace, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
the peace from above, and for our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for
the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
this holy house, and for all who offer here their worship and praise, let us
pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
[names], for our pastor/pastors in Christ, for all servants of
the Church, and for all the people, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
our public servants, for the government and those who protect us, that they may
be upheld and strengthened in every good deed, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
those who work to bring peace, justice, health, and protection in this and
every place, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
those who bring offerings, those who do good works in this congregation, those
who toil, those who sing, and all the people here present who await from the
Lord great and abundant mercy, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
favorable weather, for an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and for
peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
our deliverance from all affliction, wrath, danger, and need, let us pray to
the Lord.
C Lord,
have mercy.
L For
the faithful who have gone before us and are at rest, let us give thanks to the
Lord.
C Alleluia.
L Help,
save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
Silence for
meditation.
L Rejoicing
in the fellowship of all the saints, let us commend ourselves, one another, and
our whole life to Christ, our Lord.
C To
you, O Lord.
L O
God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works:
Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our
hearts may be set to obey your commandments; and also that we, being defended
from the fear of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the
merits of Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy
Spirit, God forever. (255)
C Amen
L Lord,
remember us in your kingdom, and teach us to pray:
C 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, and
the power, and the glory,
forever and
ever. Amen
L Let
us bless the Lord.
C Thanks
be to God.
L The
almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and
preserve us.
C Amen
