Service for The Transfiguration of our Lord – 6th August 2023
Welcome to St Paul’s Athens, especially if you are here for the first time or visiting Athens.
The worship is led by Deacon Christine Saccali, who is also the preacher
We have a POS – you can make your donation to St. Paul’s by card. Please come to coffee in the garden after the Liturgy. Follow the service sheet online – wifi password gu5uX8mmtgb8egak
Opening Hymn Introit: 234 (Ratisbon) Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies
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.
Prayers of Penitence
Minister: Jesus says repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is close at hand. So let us turn away from our sin and turn to Christ, confessing our sins in penitence and faith.
All: When Christ appears we shall be like him,
because we shall see him as he is.
As he is pure,
all who have grasped this hope make themselves pure.
So let us confess our sins that mar his image in us.
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 540 I Will Bless Your Name Forever, My God and King
First Reading: Daniel 7.9-10,13-14 (Jennifer Dovellou)
As I watched,
thrones were set in place,
and an Ancient One[a] took his throne;
his clothing was white as snow
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames,
and its wheels were burning fire.
10 A stream of fire issued
and flowed out from his presence.
A thousand thousands served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.
The court sat in judgment,
and the books were opened.
As I watched in the night visions,
I saw one like a human being[a]
coming with the clouds of heaven.
And he came to the Ancient One[b]
and was presented before him.
14 To him was given dominion
and glory and kingship,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not pass away,
and his kingship is one
that shall never be destroyed.
Reader: Hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.
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)
- Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who has come to his people and set them free.
- He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour, born of the house of his servant David.
- Through his holy prophets God promised of old to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us,
- To show mercy to our ancestors, and remember your holy covenant.
- This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham: to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
- Free to worship him without fear, holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
- And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
- To give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of all their sins.
- In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
- 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 Gradual: 176 (St. Bartholomew) O Vision Blest of Heavenly Light
Gospel Reading: (Virginia Stevens) Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus[a] took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking about his exodus, which he was about to fulfill in Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep, but as they awoke they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us set up three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah,” not realizing what he was saying. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen;[b] listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.
Reader: Hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches
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.
Intercessions: (Virginia Stevens) Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Collect: led by the Minister
Father in heaven,
whose Son Jesus Christ was wonderfully transfigured
before chosen witnesses upon the holy mountain,
and spoke of the exodus he would accomplish at Jerusalem:
give us strength so to hear his voice and bear our cross
that in the world to come we may see him as he is;
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
All: Amen
All: 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 will transfigure our human body
and give it a form like that of his own glorious body.
We are the body of Christ.
We share his peace.
Hymn: Offertory: 381 (Ewing)) Jerusalem the Golden
(The Collection will be taken during this hymn, remember you can donate by card after the service)
Notices:
POS- the church has a POS machine, so donations and payments can be done by debit or credit card.
Opening The Doors—Our exciting new history book is now available at a cost of €10.00. It is a lasting legacy to the presence of the Anglican Church here in Athens.
Weekly Giving—If you would like to make your weekly giving to the church by our envelope scheme(which we would like to encourage) please speak to Nelly Paraskevopoulou.
Table Top Sales; There is often a Greetings a card stall and a second hand book stall in the gardens after the liturgy. Please do look out for them.
Anyone who wants to join the team of Side Persons is welcome, see the Church Wardens .
Hymn: 178 (Carlisle) ‘Tis Good, Lord to be Here
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.
Deacon Chris: 22950 53164: Day off – Friday
Swedish Church: contact Fr. Bjorn on 694 607 2428
The Anglican Church in Greece (including St. Paul’s) is self – financing, and receives no income other than from the generosity of those who worship here. We are a legal body and we pay tax. Our tax number is 997073090. If you wish to donate direct to our bank (IBAN) the account with Piraeus Bank is: The Anglican Church in Greece, St. Paul’s Athens GR 820172 0500 0050 5008 6327 479 Swift code is PIRB GRAA
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