THE WORD OF THE LORD
Opening Acclamation
Celebrant Alleluia. Christ is risen
People The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.
Collect for Purity
Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you 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.
Gathering hymn “O Spirit of Life, O Spirit of God” From Blue Hymnal, 505, vs. 2
The Collect of the Day
Celebrant The Lord be with you.
People And also with you.
Celebrant Let us pray.
Almighty God, on this day you opened the way of eternal life to every race and nation by the promised gift of your Holy Spirit: Shed abroad this gift throughout the world by the preaching of the Gospel, that it may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Lessons
The First Lesson: Numbers 11:24-30
A Reading from the Book Numbers:
Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.
Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, “My lord Moses, stop them!” But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!” And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp. The Word of the Lord.
People Thanks be to God.
Psalm 104:25-35, 37 (responsively, by half verse)
25 O Lord, how manifold are your works! *
in wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
26 Yonder is the great and wide sea
with its living things too many to number, *
creatures both small and great.
27 There move the ships,
and there is that Leviathan, *
which you have made for the sport of it.
28 All of them look to you *
to give them their food in due season.
29 You give it to them; they gather it; *
you open your hand, and they are filled with good things.
30 You hide your face, and they are terrified; *
you take away their breath,
and they die and return to their dust.
31 You send forth your Spirit, and they are created; *
and so you renew the face of the earth.
32 May the glory of the Lord endure for ever; *
may the Lord rejoice in all his works.
33 He looks at the earth and it trembles; *
he touches the mountains and they smoke.
34 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; *
I will praise my God while I have my being.
35 May these words of mine please him; *
I will rejoice in the Lord.
37 Bless the Lord, O my soul. *
Hallelujah!
The Second Lesson: Acts 2:1-21
A Reading from the Book of Acts:
When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs– in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
`In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ The Word of the Lord.
People Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation “Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia” From the Blue Hymnal 208
The Holy Gospel John 20:19-23
Gospeller The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
People Glory to you, Lord Christ
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Gospeller The Gospel of the Lord.
People Praise to you, Lord Christ.
The Sermon Rev. Fran
Fran’s sermon will be posted here.
The Baptismal Covenant
Celebrant Do you believe in God the Father?
People I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
Celebrant Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
People I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
Celebrant Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?
People I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Celebrant Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers?
People I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant Will you persevere in resisting evil, and , whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
People I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
People I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
People I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
People I will, with God’s help.
Prayers of the People
Intercessor Let us unite our hearts and minds in prayer for our world, saying,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor Inspire the sons and daughters of your church for prophetic witness to your truth, and upon old and young give clarity of vision to acknowledge your saving power in the world. We pray especially for our Bishops Susan and Jennifer, for our staff Fran, Anne, Susan, Walter, Joy, Mary, and Nicole, in our Diocesan Cycle of Prayer we pray for, Grace (Keswick), St. Thomas, (Richmond), Church of the Spirit, Kingstowne (Alexandria), St. Anne’s (Reston), Holy Comforter, (Vienna); for Ascension Church in Beraud, Haiti, and those whom you would name: [A time of silence], For the church throughout the world,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor For the nations of the world and their leaders, especially George our President and Ralph our Governor. May they overcome the babble of misunderstanding among the nations, and let all people hear in their own language and recognize in their own culture your unifying message of love: [A time of silence]. For nations and leaders,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor By your Spirit, renew the earth, make us good stewards of its resources, and teach us to enjoy its abundance rightly: [A time of silence. For planet Earth, our home,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor Send your healing Spirit upon those who are sick in body or mind, restore them to health and the joy of salvation. We pray for Mitzi, Ethan, Bishop Susan, Declan, Dick, Sally, Guy, Marco, David, Chris, Gail, Andrei, Jane, Thomas, Chris, Stephanie, Ally, Kait, Johnny, Emma, Cheryl, for those suffering from COVID-19, and those that you would name: [A time of silence]. For those in need of healing,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor We remember before you all who have died, and pray for all who will die today, and those whom you would name: [A time of silence]. May we all know the joy of life eternal shared with you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor Teach us to be good neighbors, to live in peace with one another, and in friendship share the joys and burdens of daily life: [A time of silence]. For our neighbors and members of our civic community,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor Bless our children, protect them from danger, and help parents and caregivers nurture them so that they may mature in wisdom and grow in grace: [A time of silence]. For our children,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor We give thanks for all the blessings of this life, for Andrew, Kittie, Barbara, Jean, Michael and Steve celebrating their birthdays this week, and for Elizabeth & William marking theirs today, and those blessings you would name: [a time of silence]. Fill us with your Spirit’s power,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
Intercessor Bless our enemies and show us how we may do good to them for the sake of Jesus Christ: [a time of silence]. For our enemies,
People Almighty God, hear our prayer.
In your mercy, Almighty God, receive our prayers and, according to your wisdom, provide all that we need; through Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
People Amen.
Kimberly Bracken Long. Feasting on the Word Worship Companion: Liturgies for Year A, Volume 1: Advent through Pentecost (pp. 174-175). Westminster John Knox Press. Kindle Edition, adapted by The Very Rev. Fran Gardner-Smith.
Intercessor: Together let us pray for St Thomas Church.
All: Almighty God, by your Spirit the whole body of your Church is governed and sanctified, hear our prayer for St Thomas, build in us a renewed vision of your Church; shape our life according to your will; empower us with the gifts to make us one that together we may grow as a church in the spiritual strength of community and reach out to include all people in Christ’s love, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Offertory Hymn “Like the murmur of the dove” , vv. 1 & 3 From the Blue Hymnal, 513
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The Lord’s Prayer
Officiant The Lord be with you.
People And also with you.
Officiant Let us pray.
Officiant and People
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, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Peace
Celebrant The peace of the Lord be always with you.
People And also with you.
The Blessing
Be of good courage, never be afraid
Because God who created you,
Is always with you
And loves you fiercely.
And may the blessing of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Be upon you and remain with you always.
Amen.
Closing Hymn “Now the Holy Spirit, ever one with God”, vv. 1-2 From the Blue Hymnal, 20
The Dismissal
Celebrant Let us go forth in the name of Christ, Alleluia, Alleluia!
People Thanks be to God, Alleluia, Alleluia!
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