Hildegard of Bingen
Hildegard was born in 1098 at Böckelheim in Germany. From her earliest years she had a powerful, visionary life, becoming a nun at the age of eighteen, much influenced by her foster-mother, Jutta, who had set up the community and whom she succeeded as Abbess in 1136. Her visions of light, which she described as “the reflection of the Living Light”, deepened her understanding of God and creation, sin and redemption. They were, however, accompanied by repeated illness and physical weakness. About twenty years later, she moved her sisters to a new Abbey at Bingen. She travelled much in the Rhineland, founding a daughter house and influencing many, including the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. She was a pastor and teacher, seeing herself as a “feather on the breath of God”. She wrote three visionary works, a natural history and a medical compendium. She died on this day in the year 1179. EH
Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/292eca36
Your merciful love, O God,
we have received in the midst of your temple.
Your praise, O God, like your name,
reaches the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with saving justice. Psalm 48
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: Hildegard of Bingen
Tune: De spiritu sancto
1 I am that great and fiery force
sparkling in everything that lives;
in shining of the river’s course,
in greening grass that glory gives.
2 I shine and glitter on the seas,
in burning sun, in moon and stars.
In unseen wind, in verdant trees
I breathe within, both near and far.
3 And where I breathe there is no death,
and meadows glow with beauties rife.
I am in all, the spirit’s breath,
the thundered word, for I am Life.
PSALMS
Psalm 86 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/vmvol2r)
1 Bow down thine ear, O Lord, and hear me *
for I am poor, and in misery.
2 Preserve thou my soul, for I am holy *
my God, save thy servant that putteth his trust in thee.
3 Be merciful unto me, O Lord *
for I will call daily upon thee.
4 Comfort the soul of thy servant *
for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For thou, Lord, art good and gracious *
and of great mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
6 Give ear, Lord, unto my prayer *
and ponder the voice of my humble desires.
7 In the time of my trouble I will call upon thee *
for thou hearest me.
8 Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord *
there is not one that can do as thou doest.
9 All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship thee, O Lord *
and shall glorify thy Name.
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things *
thou art God alone.
11 Teach me thy way, O Lord, and I will walk in thy truth *
O knit my heart unto thee, that I may fear thy Name.
12 I will thank thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart *
and will praise thy Name for evermore.
13 For great is thy mercy toward me *
and thou hast delivered my soul from the nethermost hell.
14 O God, the proud are risen against me *
and the congregations of naughty men
have sought after my soul, and have not set thee before their eyes.
15 But thou, O Lord God, art full of compassion and mercy *
long-suffering, plenteous in goodness and truth.
16 O turn thee then unto me, and have mercy upon me *
give thy strength unto thy servant, and help the son of thine handmaid.
17 Shew some token upon me for good,
that they who hate me may see it, and be ashamed *
because thou, Lord, hast holpen me, and comforted me.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,*
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 87 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/sjg229z)
1 Her foundations are upon the holy hills *
the Lord loveth the gates of Sion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
2 Very excellent things are spoken of thee *
thou city of God.
3 I will think upon Rahab and Babylon *
with them that know me.
4 Behold ye the Philistines also *
and they of Tyre, with the Morians; lo, there was he born.
5 And of Sion it shall be reported that he was born in her *
and the most High shall stablish her.
6 The Lord shall rehearse it when he writeth up the people *
that he was born there.
7 The singers also and trumpeters shall he rehearse *
All my fresh springs shall be in thee.
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 88 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/tl4xkf)
1 O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee *
O let my prayer enter into thy presence, incline thine ear unto my calling.
2 For my soul is full of trouble *
and my life draweth nigh unto hell.
3 I am counted as one of them that go down into the pit *
and I have been even as a man that hath no strength.
4 Free among the dead, like unto them that are wounded, and lie in the grave *
who are out of remembrance, and are cut away from thy hand.
5 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit *
in a place of darkness, and in the deep.
6 Thine indignation lieth hard upon me *
and thou hast vexed me with all thy storms.
7 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me *
and made me to be abhorred of them.
8 I am so fast in prison *
that I cannot get forth.
9 My sight faileth for very trouble *
Lord, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched forth my hands unto thee.
10 Dost thou shew wonders among the dead *
or shall the dead rise up again, and praise thee?
11 Shall thy loving-kindness be shewed in the grave *
or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Shall thy wondrous works be known in the dark *
and thy righteousness in the land where all things are forgotten?
13 Unto thee have I cried, O Lord *
and early shall my prayer come before thee.
14 Lord, why abhorrest thou my soul *
and hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am in misery, and like unto him that is at the point to die *
even from my youth up thy terrors have I suffered with a troubled mind.
16 Thy wrathful displeasure goeth over me *
and the fear of thee hath undone me.
17 They came round about me daily like water *
and compassed me together on every side.
18 My lovers and friends hast thou put away from me *
and hid mine acquaintance out of my sight.
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 86 (LSB Tone B: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-86-LSB.mp3)
1 Incline your ear, O LORD, and answer me,*
for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my life, for I am godly;*
save your servant, who trusts in you— you are my God.
3 Be gracious to me, O Lord,*
for to you do I cry all the day.
4 Gladden the soul of your servant,*
for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,*
abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.
6 Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer;*
listen to my plea for grace.
7 In the day of my trouble I call upon you,*
for you answer me.
8 There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,*
nor are there any works like yours.
9 All the nations you have made
shall come and worship before you, O Lord,*
and shall glorify your name.
10 For you are great and do wondrous things;*
you alone are God.
11 Teach me your way, O LORD,
that I may walk in your truth;*
unite my heart to fear your name.
12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,*
and I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your steadfast love toward me;*
you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.
14 O God, insolent men have risen up against me;
a band of ruthless men seek my life,*
and they do not set you before them.
15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,*
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and be gracious to me;*
give your strength to your servant,
and save the son of your maidservant.
17 Show me a sign of your favor,*
that those who hate me may see
and be put to shame because you, LORD,
have helped me and comforted me.
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.
Psalm 87 (Coptic Chant: https://tinyurl.com/4afp2bpa)
His foundations are in the holy mountains.
The Lord loves the gates of Zion,
more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
Glorious things have been spoken of you, O city of God.
I shall make mention of Raab and Babylon,
those who know me: behold the foreigners,
and Tyre, and the people of Ethiopia:
these were there.
“My mother Zion,” a man will say;
and a man was living in her:
and the Most High himself has founded her forever.
The Lord shall tell it in the writings of peoples and princes,
these who were in her.
The dwelling of all who rejoice is within you. ALLELUIA.
Psalm 88 (Karl Kohlhase: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-88-KH.mp3)
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry to you day and night
O let my prayer come before you;
incline your ear to my cry
My soul’s had its fill of trouble,
my life has reached Sheol
Like those who sink in a pit;
like men without any strength
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry out to you day and night
Detached among the dead,
like slain ones lain in the grave
Like those remembered no more,
like those cut off from your hand
You placed me in the lowest pit,
in darkness down in the depths
Your anger rested upon me,
assailing me with all your waves.
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry out to you day and night
Those known to me you made far off;
made like a loathsome thing
Restrained, I cannot go out;
my eye wears out from affliction
I call out to you every day, O LORD;
I stretch out my hands to you
For the dead will you work your wonders?
Will they rise to praise you? Selah
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry out to you day and night
Will your love be told in the grave,
your faithfulness in Abaddon?
Will your wonders be known in the darkness?
Your right in the land of forgetfulness?
O LORD, to you I cry out for help,
in the morning my prayer comes to you
O LORD, why do you spurn my soul?
Why hide your face from me?
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry out to you day and night
Impoverished and dying from childhood;
bearing dread, I am overwhelmed
Your anger has passed over me;
your terrors demolishing me
Surrounding like water all through the day;
completely encompassing me
Removing both loved one and friend,
until all I know is darkness
O LORD, God of salvation,
I cry out to you day and night
PRAYER
Eternal God,
in every time and place and circumstance your people call on you,
rejoicing in your love and cherishing your truth.
Hear the prayers of our hearts
that we may be protected from sin
and delivered from evil;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. BCW
THE WORD OF GOD
READING: 1 Samuel 25:1-22
Now Samuel died, and all Israel gathered to mourn for him. They buried him at his home in Ramah. David then left and went down to the Maon wilderness.
There was a man in Maon who did business in Carmel. He was a very important man and owned three thousand sheep and one thousand goats. At that time, he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. The man’s name was Nabal, and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and attractive woman, but her husband was a hard man who did evil things. He was a Calebite.
While in the wilderness, David heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep. So David sent ten servants, telling them, “Go up to Carmel. When you get to Nabal, greet him for me. Say this to him: ‘Peace to you, your household, and all that is yours! I’ve heard that you are now shearing sheep. As you know, your shepherds were with us in the wilderness. We didn’t mistreat them. Moreover, the whole time they were at Carmel, nothing of theirs went missing. Ask your servants; they will tell you the same. So please receive these young men favorably, because we’ve come on a special day. Please give whatever you have on hand to your servants and to your son David.’”
When David’s young men arrived, they said all this to Nabal on David’s behalf. Then they waited. But Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is David? Who is Jesse’s son? There are all sorts of slaves running away from their masters these days. Why should I take my bread, my water, and the meat I’ve butchered for my shearers and give it to people who came here from who knows where?” So David’s young servants turned around and went back the way they came. When they arrived, they reported every word of this to David.
Then David said to his soldiers, “All of you, strap on your swords!” So each of them strapped on their swords, and David did the same. Nearly four hundred men went up with David. Two hundred men remained back with the supplies.
One of Nabal’s servants told his wife Abigail, “David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he just yelled at them. But the men were very good to us and didn’t mistreat us. Nothing of ours went missing the whole time we were out with them in the fields. In fact, the whole time we were with them, watching our sheep, they were a protective wall around us both night and day. Think about that and see what you can do, because trouble is coming for our master and his whole household. But he’s such a despicable person no one can speak to him.”
Abigail quickly took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five sheep ready for cooking, five seahs of roasted grain, one hundred raisin cakes, and two hundred fig cakes. She loaded all this on donkeys and told her servants, “Go on ahead of me. I’ll be right behind you.” But she didn’t tell her husband Nabal.
As she was riding her donkey, going down a trail on the hillside, David and his soldiers appeared, descending toward her, and she met up with them. David had just been saying, “What a waste of time—guarding all this man’s stuff in the wilderness so that nothing of his went missing! He has repaid me evil instead of good! May God deal harshly with me, David, and worse still if I leave alive even one single one who urinates on a wall belonging to him come morning!”
HYMN: Hildegard of Bingen; para. Jean Janzen ©
Tune: Puer nobis nascitur https://tinyurl.com/2mfm83j5
1 O Holy Spirit, Root of life,
Creator, Cleanser of all things,
anoint our wounds, awaken us
with lustrous movement of your wings.
2 Eternal Vigor, Saving One,
you free us by your living Word,
becoming flesh to wear our pain,
and all creation is restored.
3 O Holy Wisdom, Moving Force,
encompass us with wings unfurled,
and carry us, encircling all,
above, below, and through the world.
We know that if the tent that we live in on earth is torn down, we have a building from God. It’s a house that isn’t handmade, which is eternal and located in heaven. We groan while we live in this residence. We really want to dress ourselves with our building from heaven— since we assume that when we take off this tent, we won’t find out that we are naked. Yes, while we are in this tent we groan, because we are weighed down. We want to be dressed not undressed, so that what is dying can be swallowed up by life. Now the one who prepared us for this very thing is God, and God gave us the Spirit as a down payment for our home.
So we are always confident, because we know that while we are living in the body, we are away from our home with the Lord. We live by faith and not by sight. We are confident, and we would prefer to leave the body and to be at home with the Lord. So our goal is to be acceptable to him, whether we are at home or away from home. We all must appear before Christ in court so that each person can be paid back for the things that were done while in the body, whether they were good or bad.
HYMN: Fanny Crosby
Tune: https://tinyurl.com/dnmpmtbm
1 Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.
Refrain:
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long.
2 Perfect communion, perfect delight,
visions of rapture now burst on my sight.
Angels descending bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love. [Refrain]
3 Perfect submission, all is at rest.
I in my Savior am happy and bless’d,
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with his goodness, lost in his love. [Refrain]
John’s disciples informed him about all these things. John called two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord. They were to ask him, “Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for someone else?” When they reached Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you. He asks, ‘Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for someone else?’”
Right then, Jesus healed many of their diseases, illnesses, and evil spirits, and he gave sight to a number of blind people. Then he replied to John’s disciples, “Go, report to John what you have seen and heard. Those who were blind are able to see. Those who were crippled now walk. People with skin diseases are cleansed. Those who were deaf now hear. Those who were dead are raised up. And good news is preached to the poor. Happy is anyone who doesn’t stumble along the way because of me.”
CANTICLE 1 Peter 2:21-24
(Chant by John Michael Talbot: https://tinyurl.com/y94v9fvt)
Ant. If we share fully in the sufferings of Christ,
through Christ we shall know the fullness of his consolation.
Christ suffered for you,
and left you an example
to have you follow in his footsteps.
He did no wrong;
no deceit was found in his mouth.
When he was insulted,
he returned no insult.
When he was made to suffer,
he did not counter with threats.
Instead he delivered himself up
to the One who judges justly.
In his own body
he brought your sins to the cross,
so that all of us, dead to sin,
could live in accord with God’s will.
By his wounds you were healed.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
THE PRAYERS PWC
Liberator of the peoples, fill all who confess the name of Christ
with the power your Holy Spirit.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Be the joy and the strength of all
whose lives are bound in mutual love
and for those who live in celibacy.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Grant your salvation to all who are far from home,
prisoners, exiles and victims of oppression.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Show your kindness and mercy to all who are facing trials and difficulties,
to those who are sick and to those who are dying.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Forgive our sins and set us free from all hardship,
distress, want, war and injustice.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Guide us into new and just ways of sharing the goods of the earth,
so that we may live by the abundance of your mercies.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Strengthen us in our struggle
against exploitation, greed and lack of concern,
so that we may find joy together.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
Unite us in love and service,
so that we may live in communion with all Christ’s saints.
Holy One, accomplish your purposes in us.
(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.
Most glorious and holy God,
whose servant Hildegard, strong in the faith,
was caught up in the vision of your heavenly courts:
by the breath of your Spirit
open our eyes to glimpse your glory
and our lips to sing your praises with all the angels;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen. EH
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
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BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.
DL © Daniel Lawson; used with permission.
EH Exciting Holiness, Ed. Brother Tristram SSF © European Province of the Society of Saint Francis, 1997
PWC PRAY WITHOUT CEASING: Morning and Evening Prayer for the Seasons of the Church Year Prepared by The Rev’d Dr Richard Geoffrey Leggett on behalf of The Liturgy Task Force of the Anglican Church of Canada, May 2016.
The main scripture readings are © 2011 Common English Bible.
The traditional-language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern versions of Psalm 86 is the version in Lutheran Service Book and is from the Next to the Word of God YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkVRYL-MRebncw584Ql2xfg. Psalm 87 is the version sung in the Coptic Orthodox Church. Psalm 88 is in the version sung by Karl Kohlhase http://www.k4communications.com/karl/index.html.
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 © 2024 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.
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