Zoom Service for the 4th Sunday in Advent – 20th December 2020
Welcome to our Sunday worship brought to our homes by Zoom. After the worship we can have a short chat together. The hymns and other shared texts you might know
by heart, or you can print out this service, or you may have a hymn book at home, or you may be happy to listen in silence. Have a candle ready to light when we get to that part of the worship.
The Sunday worship login address remains the same throughout these weeks – see website. Deacon Christine offers a Saturday morning worship option on Facebook.
This morning we will have a Christingle ‘workshop’ as part of our worship. Have ready an orange, a candle, some red tape or ribbon, 4 cocktail sticks and some dried fruits or small sweets.
The preacher this morning is Fr. Leonard
Priest: Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
All: and also with you.
1 SING we of the blessed Mother
who received the angels word,
And obedient to his summons
bore in love the infant Lord;
Sing we of the Joys of Mary
at whose breast that child was fed
Who is Son of God eternal
and the everlasting Bread.
2 Sing we, too, of Mary’s sorrows,
of the sword that pierced her through,
When beneath the cross of Jesus
she his weight of suffering knew,
Looked upon her Son and Saviour
reigning from the awful tree,
Saw the price of man’s redemption
paid to set the sinner free.
3 Sing again the joys of Mary
when she saw the risen Lord,
And in prayer with Christ’s apostles,
waited on his promised word:
From on high the blazing glory
of the Spirit’s presence came,
Heavenly breath of God’s own being,
Tokened in the wind and flame.
4 Sing the chiefest joy of Mary
when on earth her work was done,
And the Lord of all creation
brought her to his heavenly home:
Virgin Mother, Mary blessed,
Raised on high and crowned with grace,
May thy Son, the world’s redeemer,
Grant us all to see his face.
The priest then welcomes the people of God and the deacon leads us into Confession.
Deacon: When the Lord comes, he will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness, and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Therefore let us confess our sins.
All: Amen. Lord have mercy.
The deacon leads us into a short period of silence, followed by Confession.
Deacon: Lord Jesus, you came to gather the nations into the peace of your kingdom:
Kyrie eleison
All: Kyrie eleison
Deacon: You come in word and sacrament to strengthen us in holiness:
Christe eleison
All: Christe eleison
Deacon: You will come in glory with salvation for your people:
Kyrie eleison
All: Kyrie eleison
Priest: 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.
Lighting of an Advent Candle
Priest: People of God: prepare! God above all, maker of all, is one with us in
Christ. Maranatha!
All: Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Collect: Let us pray (Collect of the Day)
God our redeemer, who prepared the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of your son: grant that as she looked for his coming as our Saviour, so we may be ready to greet him when he comes again as our judge; who is alive and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
First Reading 2 Samuel 7, 1-11,16
Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, “See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.” Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.” But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever.
This is the word of the Lord
All: Thanks be to God.
Gospel alleluia (sung)
Gospel Reading
Deacon: Alleluia, alleluia. Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
All: Alleluia.
Deacon: The Lord be with you
All: and also with you
Deacon: Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to St. Luke (Luke 1, 26-38)
All: Glory to you, O Lord
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Deacon: This is the gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon
Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Intercessions: (kneel or sit) Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer Intercessor: Angelos Pouliadakis
Peace: Our Saviour Christ is the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end.
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
All: And also with you.
You might like to scroll along the gallery of the participants to see who you are sharing the peace with.
Hymn (you might now like to put aside your collection for today, but also the collections for previous Sundays when we have not been able to meet as a church. The best option is to arrange an electronic transfer with your bank – our bank details are on the website)
1 The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
With wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame.
“All hail,” said he, “O lowly maiden Mary,
Most highly favored lady.” Gloria!
2 “How blest among all women you shall be,
Whom ev’ry age will praise continally.
Your Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
“Most highly favored lady.” Gloria!
3 Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head.
“To me be as it pleases God,” she said.
“My soul shall laud and magnify God’s holy name.”
Most highly favored lady. Gloria!
4 Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ, was born
In Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn.
And Christian folk throughout the world will ever say:
“Most highly favored lady.” Gloria!
The Lord’s Prayer: (to be prayed in your own language)
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.
Priest: Eternal God, giver of love and power, your Son Jesus Christ has sent us into all the world to preach the gospel of his kingdom: confirm us in this mission, and help us to live the good news we proclaim; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Making Christingles: originally from the church of Moravia, this was adopted by the Church of England Children’s Society.
Orange: represents the world (the cosmic Christ)
Red Ribbon: represents Christ’s death on the Cross, the blood of our redemption
The Candle: Christ is the light who has come into the darkness of our world
The sticks with fruit (or sweets): Christ is Lord of time and seasons
- Lo, he comes with clouds descending,
once for favoured sinners slain;
thousand thousand saints attending
swell the triumph of his train:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
God appears on earth to reign.2. Every eye shall now behold him
robed in dreadful majesty;
those who set at naught and sold him,
pierced and nailed him to the tree,
deeply wailing, deeply wailing, deeply wailing,
shall the true Messiah see.3. Those dear tokens of his passion
still his dazzling body bears,
cause of endless exultation
to his ransomed worshippers:
with what rapture, with what rapture, with what rapture,
gaze we on those glorious scars!4. Yea, Amen, let all adore thee,
high on thine eternal throne;
Saviour, take the power and glory,
claim the kingdom for thine own:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!Thou shalt reign and thou alone.
Priest: Christ the Sun of Righteousness shine upon you, scatter the darkness from before your path, and make you ready to meet him when he comes in glory.
And the blessing…..
Deacon: Our Lord says, ‘I am coming soon’
All: Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
Deacon: May the Lord when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
All: Amen.
Fr. Leonard’s usual Day Off – Monday (in emergencies contact Deacon Christine)
Fr. Leonard is on leave from 31st December-5th January.
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
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
Notices: Christmas Day Morning Worship 10.15hrs
Christmas Mass (said) 12 Noon
All of these are by Zoom. See our website for the login address for each service.
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