Worship & Prayers for The Second Sunday of Easter

Opening Rite

If you’re at home you might wish to light a candle, make sure you are sitting comfortably and take a few deep breaths to still yourself. 

Alleluia! Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed! Alleluia.

Prayers of Penitence

Christ died to sin once for all, and now he lives to God. Let us renew our resolve to have done with all that is evil and confess our sins in penitence and faith.

cf Romans 6.10

Silence for reflection

Like Mary at the empty tomb,  we fail to grasp the wonder of your presence. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Like the disciples behind locked doors, we are afraid to be seen as your followers. Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.

Like Thomas in the upper room, we are slow to believe. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. 

May the God of love and power forgive you and free you from your sins, heal and strengthen you by his Spirit, and raise you to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen

The Collect  

You might like to keep a few moments of silence

Almighty Father, you have given your only Son to die for our sins and to rise again for our justification: grant us so to put away the leaven of malice and wickedness that we may always serve you in pureness of living and truth; through the merits of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen

Acts 2.14a,22-32

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.  ‘You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know - this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. For David says concerning him, “I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; moreover, my flesh will live in hope.  For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One experience corruption.  You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.”  ‘Fellow Israelites, I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. Foreseeing this, David spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, saying, “He was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh experience corruption.”  This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses.

Psalm 16

/R: You Lord, are my portion and my cup 

Preserve me, O God, for in you have I taken refuge; I have said to the Lord, 'You are my lord, all my good depends on you.' All my delight is upon the godly that are in the land, upon those who are noble in heart. /R: 

Though the idols are legion that many run after, their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, neither make mention of their names upon my lips. The Lord himself is my portion and my cup; in your hands alone is my fortune. /R: 

My share has fallen in a fair land; indeed, I have a goodly heritage. I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel, and in the night watches he instructs my heart. /R:

I have set the Lord always before me;  he is at my right hand; I shall not fall. Wherefore my heart is glad and my spirit rejoices; my flesh also shall rest secure. /R:

For you will not abandon my soul to Death, nor suffer your faithful one to see the Pit. You will show me the path of life; in your presence is the fullness of joy and in your right hand are pleasures for evermore. /R:

1 Peter 1:3-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith— being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed. Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

The Gospel according to John                                        Chapter 20:19-end

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.’ But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’  A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’  Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

This is the Gospel of the Lord   Praise to you O Christ

Reflection

The Gospel of John emphasises the importance of knowing Jesus as members of a community of disciples. Thomas was inexplicably absent the first time Jesus appeared to his companions and questioned their claim to have seen the Lord. A week later, he was with them when the risen Jesus appeared again. Thomas came to share their conviction, not by allowing them to argue him into belief, but by entering into their regular rhythm. The faith that Jesus’ disciples confessed came by knowing the risen Lord together. 

Linking the readings

The Acts reading is an extract from Peter’s speech on the day of Pentecost. It applies an early Christian interpretation of Psalm 16, using it to understand the victory of Jesus over death. The New Testament reading from 1 Peter is the opening section of a letter that encourages those whose faith is under pressure because of their loyalty to Jesus and calls them to support each other in their adversity. In this week’s Gospel reading, a renewed commitment to mutual support enables Thomas to find his faith in the crucified and risen Jesus.

Reproduced with permission www.rootsontheweb.com 2002-2021  

Prayers

Spend a few moments praying for the people you know and love, for the world, for peace and for the relief of refugees everywhere. 

On The Second Sunday of Easter    

Risen Christ, for whom no door is locked, no entrance barred: open the doors of our hearts, that we may seek the good of others and walk the joyful road of sacrifice and peace, to the praise of God the Father. Amen

Praying for the Earth                                         Birds and Insects

Help us to find joy in the glorious songs of the birds and the immense variety of insects. We praise you for their ability to fly above the earth. We give thanks for the part they play in the spreading of seeds and the fertilization of flowers. Amen

From the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer for the Church

Porvoo Communion: Diocese of Derby Diocese of Clogher (Ireland) Diocese of Aalborg (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark)

Anglican Communion: Igreja Anglicana de Moçambique e Angola Presiding Bishop: The Most Reverend Vicente Msosa

Diocese of Botswana: Parish of St Augustine, Serowe:  Fr Abraham Kajane, Fr Ford Godiraone Gaogane, Fr Temo Tshabadira, The Reverend Beauty Aultwetse and The Reverend Mercy Molefe

Corbridge Deanery:   St John’s Church, Stocksfield

From our Parish Prayer Cycle this week 

pray for all residents of Kirkstone Gardens and Hambledon Gardens

For the sick and those being cared for in hospital or at home      

For those in residential care    

For those whose year’s minds are this week 

Robert Chell, Eric Wright, Frances Cheetham, Elaine Cryer, Isabella Badger, Margaret Lackenby, Robert Morrison Monroe, William Young, Irene McQuade, William Cormack and Bryce Anderson Robson

You might like to end your prayers with The Lord's Prayer  

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, the power and the glory, for ever and ever.  Amen.

The Conclusion

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen

Let us bless the Lord! Alleluia! Alleluia! Thanks be to God! Alleluia! Alleluia!