Trinity 7
30/12/2022

Service for the first of January 2023 – Feast of St Basil

(Circumcision of Jesus)

Happy New Year! Welcome to St Paul’s Athens,   especially if you are here for the first time or visiting Athens. Deacon Christine leads our worship today, and is the preacher. Fr. Leonard is at the Orthodox Cathedral for the Doxology of St. Basil.

To make a donation by card to St. Paul’s we have a POS. Please come to coffee in the garden after the Liturgy.

 

Opening Hymn:  25    God rest you merry gentlemen

 

Minister:  Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father

and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you

All:            and also with you.

Minister:  O Lord, open our lips

All:            and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

Minister: Give us the joy of your saving help

All:            and sustain us with your life-giving Spirit.

 

The minister then welcomes people informally.

Prayers of Penitence

Minister:   As we come to the Lord at the start of this New Year, let us seek his grace to number our days, that we may apply our hearts to wisdom as we confess our sins in penitence and faith.

 

All: Lord God, we have sinned against you;

       we have done evil in your sight.

       We are sorry and repent.

       Have mercy on us according to your love.

       Wash away our wrongdoing and cleanse us from our sin.

       Renew a right spirit within us and restore us to the joy of your salvation;

       through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 

Minister:  May the Father of all mercies cleanse us from our sins, and restore us

in his image to the praise and glory of his name, through Jesus Christ

our Lord.

All:            Amen

Psalm       539  This is the day of the Lord; we rejoice and are glad

 

First Reading:  Numbers 6, 22-end

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: Thus you shall bless the Israelites: You shall say to them: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. “So they shall put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

Reader:    The word of the Lord.

All:            Thanks be to God.

 

Minister:  Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead.

All:            And Christ shall give you light.

Minister:  You have died and your life is hid with Christ in God.

All:            Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead.

Minister:  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on

the earth.

All:            And Christ shall give you light.

Minister:  When Christ our life appears you will appear with him in glory.

All:            Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give you light.

The Benedictus   Luke 1, 68-79     (Please stand to say the canticle together)

 

  1. Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who has come to his people and set them free.
  2. He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour, born of the house of his servant David.
  3. Through his holy prophets God promised of old to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us,
  4. To show mercy to our ancestors, and remember your holy covenant.
  5. This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham: to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
  6. Free to worship him without fear, holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
  7. And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
  8. To give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of all their sins.
  9. In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
  10. To shine on those who swell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be; world without end.  Amen.

Hymn:  32  O little town of Bethlehem  (omit *4)

2nd Reading:    St. Luke 2, 15-20

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them, and Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.

Reader:  The word of the Lord
All:          Thanks be to God.         

 

Sermon   (Please be seated) 

 

The Apostles’ Creed  (remain  standing)

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, 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, he is seated at the right hand of God the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead. 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.    Amen.

Collect (of the day):  

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was circumcised in obedience to the law for our sake and given the Name that is above every name: give us grace faithfully to bear his Name, to worship him in the freedom of the Spirit, and to proclaim him as the Saviour of the world; who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

All:  Amen

 

Collect of St. Basil the Great (Orthodox date)

Lord God, whose servant Basil proclaimed the mystery of your Word made flesh, to build up your Church in wisdom and strength: grant that we may rejoice in his presence among us, and so be brought with Basil to know the power of your unending love; 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.

All:  Amen

 

Renewal of our Covenant with God

 

Deacon: God made a covenant with the people of Israel, calling them to be a holy nation, chosen to bear witness to his steadfast love by finding delight in the law. The covenant was renewed in Jesus Christ our Lord, in his life, work, death and resurrection. In him all people may be set free from sin and its power, and united in love and obedience. In this covenant God promises us new life in Christ. For our part we promise to live no longer for ourselves but for God. We meet, therefore, as generations have met before us, to renew the covenant which bound them and binds us to God. Let us then seek forgiveness for the sin by which we have denied God’s claim upon us.

Let us pray.

God of mercy, hear us as we confess our sins. For the sin that has made us slow to learn from Christ, reluctant to follow him and afraid to bear the cross:

Lord, have mercy.

All:   Lord, forgive.

For the sin that has caused the poverty of our worship,

the formality and selfishness of our prayers, our neglect of fellowship and the means of grace, and our hesitating witness for Christ:

Lord, have mercy.

All:   Lord, forgive.

For the sin that has led us to misuse your gifts,

evade our responsibilities and fail to be good stewards of your creation:

Lord, have mercy.

All:   Lord, forgive.

For the sin that has made us unwilling to overcome evil with good, tolerant of injustice, quick to condemn and selfish in sharing your love with others:

Lord, have mercy.

All:   Lord, forgive.

 

Prayers for the sick can be offered here

 

Graciously give us eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

All:   Amen.

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 Peace      (Please stand)           The minister will introduce words for the Peace

Christ is our peace. He has reconciled us to God in one body by the cross. We meet in his name and share his peace. The peace of the Lord be always with you

All:                   and also with you

 

(The Collection will be taken during this hymn)

Hymn:   39  Unto us a boy is born

Minister:     Let us say the Grace together:   

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.

Fr. Leonard’s usual Days Off – Monday & Tuesday  (in emergencies contact Deacon Christine) Home tel :  210 72 14 906;  email anglican@otenet.gr

Deacon Chris: 22950 53164: Day Off – Friday.

Swedish Church: contact Fr. Bjorn on  694 607 2428

 

Notices :

  • This year’s online Christmas – Epiphany fundraiser features the Herald Angels in the sky over Bethlehem. With each donation one more angel is added to the heavenly host. For more details visit our website.
  • The new church history and guide book ‘OPENING the DOORS’ is now available at the cost of €10,00.
  • A POS is available so you can make your Sunday donation by card
  • Join the online Prayer Group each Tuesday morning at 09.00 – see website for the Zoom link.
  • Community Connect Coffee Mornings – now on Thursdays 11.00-13.00. January 12th; February 9th; March 9th; April 13th; May 11th; June 8th; July 13th. Contact Anne Dedes if you need information.
  • Look out for dates for the Quiz Nights through the year.

 

 

  • Liturgical material  © the Archbishops’ Council.
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