Cantica Gaudia

Ordinary Time, Fall: Saturday Morning Prayer

Opening: God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.

Canticle: Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land;
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise,
and God's glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open;
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land,
ruin and destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation,
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day;
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.
The Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.

Psalm: Sing to the Lord a new song;
Praise him with words and silence,
Praise her through all your actions;
Praise him in sorrow and in joy.
Praise her with music and dancing,
With bodies moving in delight.
Let the wise sing out in their freedom;
Let the whole earth echo their song.
Let all God’s creatures be peaceful
And walk in the path of true life.

Glory to God, who created us, bears our pain, and loves us, now and forever.

Reading: Our vocation is not simply to be, but to work together with God in the creation of our own life, our own identity, our own destiny. This means to say that we should not passively exist, but actively participate in his creative freedom, in our own lives, and in the lives of others, by choosing the truth.

To put it better, we are even called to shared with God the work of creating the truth of our identity. We can evade this responsibility by playing with masks, and this pleases us because it can appear at times to be a free and creative way of living. It is quite easy, it seems, to please everyone. But in the long run the cost and the sorrow come very high. To work out our own identity in God, which the Bible calls "working out our salvation," is a labor that requires sacrifice and anguish, risk and many tears. It demands close attention to reality at every moment, and great fidelity to God as he reveals himself, obscurely, in the mystery of each new situation.

The Lord’s Prayer

Abba our God,
Whom the heavens disclose,
May your name be held holy,
Your authority come.
May your longing be fulfilled
As in heaven, so on earth.
Give us today the bread of tomorrow,
And cancel our debts
As we have already forgiven our debtors.
Do not draw us in
To sinful enticement,
But set us free
From the grip of evil;
For authority and power and glory
Are yours alone, for ever.  Amen.

Prayer: Before us in the planned shape of this day, we look for unexpected surgings of new life. Around us in the people whom we know and love, we look for unopened gifts of promise. Within us in the familiar sanctuary of our own soul, we look for shinings of the everlasting light. Before us, around us, within us, we look for your life-giving mystery, O God, before us, around us, within us.

Collect:  God of the storm's still eye: when we are overwhelmed by pressures and demands which cut us off from life, take us to a place apart where we might find again our true heart's centre, our far horizon, the silence that awaits a world where we can breathe; through Jesus Christ, who brings us near to you. Amen.

Going Forth: May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.