Author Archives: Steve Benner

The EpiphanyThe subtitle in the Book of Common Prayer of this, one of the principal feasts of the Church, is ‘The Manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles’. This emphasises that, from the moment of the Incarnation, the good news of Jesus Christ is for all: Jew and Gentile, the wise and the simple, male and female. NothingContinue reading “Oremus for January 6, 2026”

Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/r5j8et73 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.Indeed, the Lord is near. Lord God of the nations,we have seen the star of your gloryrising in splendor.The radiance of your incarnate Wordpierces the night that covers the earthand signals the dawn of justice and peace.May his brightness illumine our livesand beckon all nations toContinue reading “Oremus for January 5, 2026”

Antiphon1 Ant. For it is God who has established the world, *it shall never be moved;your throne is established from of old;you are from all eternity.V. The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed. †The Lord has robed himself with might; *he has girded himself with power. Psalm 93 Almighty God,you have filled us with the light of theContinue reading “Oremus for January 4, 2026”

Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/jrf6v6t2 Say to the faint of heart: Be strong and do not fear.Behold, our God will come, and he will save us. Isaiah 35 Almighty God,you have shed upon usthe new light of your incarnate Word.May this light, enkindled in our hearts,shine forth in our lives;through Jesus Christ our Lord,who lives and reigns withContinue reading “Oremus for January 3, 2026”

Basil the Great and Gregory NazianzenGregory and Basil were two friends bound together by their desire to promote and defend the divinity of Christ as proclaimed in the Nicene Creed. This was against the seemingly overwhelming pressure from both Church and State for the establishment of Arianism, which denied Christ’s divinity and thus the wholeContinue reading “Oremus for January 2, 2026”

The Naming and Circumcision of JesusThe celebration of this scriptural festival marks three events: firstly, the naming of the infant; secondly, the sign of the covenant between God and Abraham ‘and his children for ever’, thus Christ’s keeping of the Law; and thirdly, traditionally the first shedding of the Christ’s blood. The most significant ofContinue reading “Oremus for January 1, 2026”

John WycliffeJohn Wycliffe (1320s – 31 December 1384) was an English scholastic philosopher, theologian, biblical translator, reformer, priest, and a seminary professor at the University of Oxford. He became an influential dissident within the Roman Catholic priesthood during the 14th century and is considered an important predecessor to Protestantism. Wycliffe questioned the privileged status ofContinue reading “Oremus for December 31, 2025”

Josephine ButlerJosephine Butler (née Grey) was born in April 1828, and baptised on this day that year, in Northumberland. She married an Anglican priest in 1852. She became incensed by the way contemporary society treated prostitutes, most of whom were forced into such activity through desperate poverty. From 1869, she campaigned for the repeal ofContinue reading “Oremus for December 30, 2025”

Thomas BecketThomas was born in London in 1118, of a family of merchants. After a good education he served as clerk to another burgess then entered the service of Archbishop Theobald of Canterbury. Thomas proved himself an excellent administrator and skilled diplomat. In 1155 he was appointed chancellor by King Henry II. For several yearsContinue reading “Oremus for Monday, December 29, 2025”

The Holy InnocentsHerod ‘the Great’ was appointed King of the Jews by the Roman authorities in Palestine and he proved to be ruthlessly efficient in his thirty-three years of dealing with his subjects. In Matthew’s gospel, he tried to persuade the Magi, to whom he played the host on their journey seeking the one ‘whoContinue reading “Oremus for Sunday, December 28, 2025”