Oremus for Monday, October 12, 2020

Today we begin reading from the Gospel of Mark in preparation for next year’s Sunday readings from Mark.

Antiphon¹

Ant. The Lord will overshadow you with his pinions, *
and you will find refuge under his wings.
His faithfulness will encompass you with a shield.
V. He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, *
and abides in the shade of the Almighty,
says to the Lord, “My refuge, *
my stronghold, my God in whom I trust!” Psalm 91

Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires, known,
and from whom no secrets are hid:
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.

Music: https://tinyurl.com/ycn4djk5

O Lord, open my lips.
And my mouth will declare your praise.
Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
make haste to help me, O Lord.
Glory be 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.
Praise to you, O Christ, Alleluia!

HYMN: Fred Pratt Green ©
Tune: Offertorium https://tinyurl.com/y4sjdxgo

1 When Jesus came to Jordan
To be baptized by John,
He did not come for pardon,
But as the Sinless One.
He came to share repentance
With all who mourn their sins,
To speak the vital sentence
With which good news begins.

2 He came to share temptation,
Our utmost woe and loss,
For us and our salvation
To die upon the cross.
So when the Dove descended
On him, the Son of Man,
The hidden years had ended,
The age of grace began.

3 Come, Holy Spirit, aid us
To keep the vows we make;
This very day invade us,
And ev’ry bondage break.
Come, give our lives direction,
The gift we covet most:
To share the resurrection
That leads to Pentecost.

PSALMS
For psalms in contemporary language, https://tinyurl.com/y9tjh7rk

Psalm 65 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/y9fmulwv)

1  Thou, O God, art praised in Sion *
 and unto thee shall the vow be performed in Jerusalem.
2  Thou that hearest the prayer *
 unto thee shall all flesh come.
3  My misdeeds prevail against me *
 O be thou merciful unto our sins.
4  Blessed is the man, whom thou choosest, and receivest unto thee *
 he shall dwell in thy court, and shall be satisfied
with the pleasures of thy house, even of thy holy temple.
5  Thou shalt shew us wonderful things in thy righteousness,
O God of our salvation *
 thou that art the hope of all the ends of the earth,
and of them that remain in the broad sea.
6  Who in his strength setteth fast the mountains *
 and is girded about with power.
7  Who stilleth the raging of the sea *
 and the noise of his waves, and the madness of the people.
8  They also that dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth shall be afraid at thy tokens *
 thou that makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to praise thee.
9  Thou visitest the earth, and blessest it *
 thou makest it very plenteous.
10  The river of God is full of water *
 thou preparest their corn, for so thou providest for the earth.
11  Thou waterest her furrows, thou sendest rain into the little valleys thereof *
 thou makest it soft with the drops of rain, and blessest the increase of it.
12  Thou crownest the year with thy goodness *
 and thy clouds drop fatness.
13  They shall drop upon the dwellings of the wilderness *
 and the little hills shall rejoice on every side.
14  The folds shall be full of sheep *
 the valleys also shall stand so thick with corn, that they shall laugh and sing.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.

Psalm 66 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ybnhonff)

1  O be joyful in God, all ye lands *
 sing praises unto the honour of his Name, make his praise to be glorious.
2  Say unto God, O how wonderful art thou in thy works *
 through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies be found liars unto thee.
3  For all the world shall worship thee *
 sing of thee, and praise thy Name.
4  O come hither, and behold the works of God *
 how wonderful he is in his doing toward the children of men.
5  He turned the sea into dry land *
 so that they went through the water on foot; there did we rejoice thereof.
6  He ruleth with his power for ever; his eyes behold the people *
 and such as will not believe shall not be able to exalt themselves.
7  O praise our God, ye people *
 and make the voice of his praise to be heard;
8  Who holdeth our soul in life *
 and suffereth not our feet to slip.
9  For thou, O God, hast proved us *
 thou also hast tried us, like as silver is tried.
10  Thou broughtest us into the snare *
 and laidest trouble upon our loins.
11  Thou sufferedst men to ride over our heads *
 we went through fire and water,
and thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place.
12  I will go into thine house with burnt-offerings *
 and will pay thee my vows, which I promised with my lips,
and spake with my mouth, when I was in trouble.
13  I will offer unto thee fat burnt-sacrifices, with the incense of rams *
 I will offer bullocks and goats.
14  O come hither, and hearken, all ye that fear God *
 and I will tell you what he hath done for my soul.
15  I called unto him with my mouth *
 and gave him praises with my tongue.
16  If I incline unto wickedness with mine heart *
 the Lord will not hear me.
17  But God hath heard me *
 and considered the voice of my prayer.
18  Praised be God who hath not cast out my prayer *
 nor turned his mercy from me.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.

Psalm 67 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/y7vuwqcm)

1  God be merciful unto us, and bless us *
 and shew us the light of his countenance, and be merciful unto us;
2  That thy way may be known upon earth *
 thy saving health among all nations.
3  Let the people praise thee, O God *
 yea, let all the people praise thee.
4  O let the nations rejoice and be glad *
 for thou shalt judge the folk righteously, and govern the nations upon earth.
5  Let the people praise thee, O God *
 let all the people praise thee.
6  Then shall the earth bring forth her increase *
 and God, even our own God, shall give us his blessing.
7  God shall bless us *
 and all the ends of the world shall fear him.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.

PRAYER

Light of the world,
you have come into the world’s darkness
and the darkness cannot overwhelm the light.
Let your holy name be known through all the earth,
that all people and nations may praise you
and walk in your ways;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ^BCW

THE WORD OF GOD

Reading: Numbers 20:14-29

Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, ‘Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the adversity that has befallen us: how our ancestors went down to Egypt, and we lived in Egypt for a long time; and the Egyptians oppressed us and our ancestors; and when we cried to the Lord, he heard our voice, and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt; and here we are in Kadesh, a town on the edge of your territory. Now let us pass through your land. We will not pass through field or vineyard, or drink water from any well; we will go along the King’s Highway, not turning aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.’

But Edom said to him, ‘You shall not pass through, or we will come out with the sword against you.’ The Israelites said to him, ‘We will stay on the highway; and if we drink of your water, we and our livestock, then we will pay for it. It is only a small matter; just let us pass through on foot.’ But he said, ‘You shall not pass through.’ And Edom came out against them with a large force, heavily armed. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through their territory; so Israel turned away from them.

They set out from Kadesh, and the Israelites, the whole congregation, came to Mount Hor. Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron at Mount Hor, on the border of the land of Edom, ‘Let Aaron be gathered to his people. For he shall not enter the land that I have given to the Israelites, because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah. Take Aaron and his son Eleazar, and bring them up Mount Hor; strip Aaron of his vestments, and put them on his son Eleazar. But Aaron shall be gathered to his people, and shall die there.’ Moses did as the Lord had commanded; they went up Mount Hor in the sight of the whole congregation. Moses stripped Aaron of his vestments, and put them on his son Eleazar; and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. When all the congregation saw that Aaron had died, all the house of Israel mourned for Aaron for thirty days.

HYMN: South African ©
Tune: Siyahamba https://tinyurl.com/y43awp6o

Siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwenkhos’,
siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwenkhos’.
Siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwenkhos’,
siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwen khanyen’ kwenkhos’.
Siyahamba, hamba, siyabamba, hamba, 
siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwen khanyen’ kwenkhos’.
Siyahamba, hamba, siyahamba, hamba,
siyahamb’ ekukhanyen’ kwenkhos.

We are marching* in the light of God,
we are marching in the light of God.
We are marching in the light of God,
we are marching in the light of, the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching,
marching, we are marching in the light of, 
the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching, marching, 
we are marching in the light of God.

*Alternate text: dancing, singing, praying…

Reading: Romans 6:12-23 

Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for sanctification.

When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death. But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

HYMN: Charles Wesley
Tune: Cross of Jesus https://tinyurl.com/wbf3qzl

1. Come, thou long expected Jesus,
born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us,
let us find our rest in thee.

2. Israel’s strength and consolation,
hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation,
joy of every longing heart.

3. Born thy people to deliver,
born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever,
now thy gracious kingdom bring.

4. By thine own eternal spirit
rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all sufficient merit,
raise us to thy glorious throne.

Reading: Mark 1:1-13

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
   who will prepare your way;
the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
   “Prepare the way of the Lord,
   make his paths straight” ’,
John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’

And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.

CANTICLE Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55)
(Andrew Rottner: https://tinyurl.com/ybqv7yxk)

He who is mighty, has shown great strength to me
And his mercy is for those who fear his holy name
And he has shown strength with his arm and his law
And he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

He who is mighty has brought the wicked shame
And his anger is for those who curse his holy name
And he has shown rage with the mighty in their thrones
And he has lifted the low into his glorious home

O my soul magnifies the Lord,
Yes my soul magnifies the Lord.

He who is mighty has not forgotten me
And his helping is for those to serve his holy name
He has shown remembrance with his servant Israel
And he spoke the promise from which all my doubts dispel

O my soul magnifies the Lord,
Yes my soul magnifies the Lord.
O my soul magnifies the Lord,
Yes my soul magnifies the Lord.

THE PRAYERS ^BCW

We rejoice in your generous goodness, O God, and celebrate your lavish gifts to
us this day, for you have shown your love in giving Jesus Christ for the salvation
of the world. Especially we give thanks for
the labors of those who have served us today . . .
friends with whom we have shared . . .
those whom we love and have loved us . . .
opportunities for our work to help others . . .
all beauty that delights us. . . .

Gracious God, we know you are close to all in need, and by our prayers for others
we come closer to you. We are bold to claim for others your promises of new
life in Jesus Christ, as we claim them for ourselves. Especially we pray for
those in dangerous occupations . . .
physicians and nurses . . .
those who are ill or confined to nursing homes . . .
those who mourn . . .
the Roman Catholic Church. . . .

(Plainsong Mode 2: https://tinyurl.com/yctqq8cf)^DL

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today the bread of life;
and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.

Holy God,
creator of light and herald of goodness,
at the waters of his baptism
you proclaimed Jesus your beloved Son.
With the baptized of every time and generation,
may we say yes to your call to repentance
and be led to the life of abundance we experience
in your kinship and your love. Amen. ^RCLP

Music: https://tinyurl.com/y9efvwm5
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. 2 Cor. 13:14

---

---

^BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.

^EH Exciting Holiness, Ed. Brother Tristram SSF © European Province of the Society of Saint Francis, 1997

^RCLP Revised Common Lectionary Prayers. © 2002 Consultation on Common Texts admin. Augsburg Fortress.

^DL © Daniel Lawson; used with permission.

^FAS For All the Saints, revised edition © 2011 General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada

Common Worship: Festivals, material from which is included here, is copyright © The Archbishops’ Council 2008 and published by Church House Publishing.

¹ Adam Bartlett, Simple English Propers; audio from https://musicasacra.com/additional-publications/sep-practice-videos/ ©

The three main scripture readings are from the The New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Edition, The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662).

Musical links are usually either to artists’ albums posted on Spotify or to recordings made available at smallchurchmusic.com. Audio stripped from YouTube videos is footnoted accordingly above.

Compilation © 2020 Stephen T. Benner. All links worked at the time they were created, but I cannot accept responsibility for their content or any damage resulting from their use. The linked content is under the control of the respective content creators and is subject to change at any time. Any copyright texts included in this compilation are provided for non-commercial purposes related to study or worship. Please contact the respective copyright holders for permission to use the texts in other contexts.