Choral Eucharist for December 28th will be livestreamed and available online at Holy Trinity’s YouTube site from 10.55am at
https://www.youtube.com/live/hFT33ydBTs8
Prelude:
WELCOME
Grace and peace to you from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
OPENING HYMN NEH 42 While shepherds watched their flocks by night (Winchester Old)
1 While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
all seated on the ground,
the angel of the Lord came down,
and glory shone around.
2 'Fear not,' said he (for mighty dread
had seized their troubled mind);
'glad tidings of great joy I bring
to you and all mankind.
3 'To you in David's town this day
is born of David's line
a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord;
and this shall be the sign:
4 'The heavenly babe you there shall find
to human view displayed,
all meanly wrapped in swathing bands,
and in a manger laid.'
5 Thus spake the seraph; and forthwith
appeared a shining throng
of angels praising God, who thus
addressed their joyful song;
6 'All glory be to God on high,
and on the earth be peace;
good will henceforth from heaven to men
begin and never cease.'
APPROACH TO GOD
The angel of the Lord brought tidings to Mary;
and she conceived by the Holy Spirit.
And the word became flesh and dwelt among us;
and we have seen his glory, beheld his truth.
Come, let us sing praises to the Lord;
let us shout in triumph to the God of our salvation.
O worship the Lord in the beauty of Holiness;
let the whole earth stand in awe of him.
COLLECT FOR PURITY
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord; Amen.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION
God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.
If we confess our sins,
he who is faithful and just forgives us.
So let us confess our sins in penitence and faith.
We share a few moments of silence
CONFESSION
Almighty God, we confess to you,
and to our fellow members in the Body of Christ,
that we have sinned in thought, word and deed,
and in what we have failed to do.
We are truly sorry.
Forgive us our sins,
and deliver us from the power of evil,
for the sake of your Son who died for us,
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
THE ABSOLUTION
God, who is both power and love,
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by your Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
GLORIA
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth,
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
We worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory,
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord god, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
receive our prayer,
for you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the most high, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
COLLECT
FIRST READING Galatians 4:4-7
A reading from Paul's Letter to the Galatians
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir through God.
ends with:
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God.
GRADUAL HYMN NEH 25 God rest ye merry, gentlemen (God Rest You Merry)
1 God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
Remember Christ our Saviour,
Was born on Christmas Day,
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray.
Chorus
O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy!
2 From God our heavenly Father
A blessèd angel came,
And unto certain shepherds
Brought tidings of the same,
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by name.
Chorus
3 And when they came to Bethlehem
Where our dear Saviour lay,
They found him in a manger,
Where oxen fed on hay;
His mother Mary, kneeling down
Unto the Lord did pray:
Chorus
4 Now to the Lord sing praises,
All you within this place,
And with true love and brotherhood
Each other now embrace;
This holy tide of Christmas
All other doth efface.
Chorus
GOSPEL Matthew 2: 13-23
When the Gospel is announced:
Glory to Christ our Saviour.
Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
After the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I have called my son.’
When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’
When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, ‘He will be called a Nazorean.’
At the end:
Give thanks to the Lord for his glorious Gospel
Praise to Christ our Lord.
SERMON
NICENE CREED
I believe in one God
The Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;
I believe in Jesus Christ,
God’s only son our Lord,
Who was conceived of 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 the Father,
From then he shall 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 dead,
And the life everlasting. Amen.
INTERCESSIONS
PEACE
We meet in Christ’s name.
Let us share his peace.
OFFERTORY HYMN NEH 28 In the bleak midwinter (Cranham) (omit verse 3)
1 In the bleak mid-winter,
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter,
Long ago.
2 Our God, heaven cannot hold Him,
Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away
When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter
A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty,
Jesus Christ.
4 Angels and archangels
May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim
Throngèd the air;
But His mother only,
In her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the Beloved
With a kiss.
5 What can I give Him,
Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd,
I would bring a lamb;
If I were a wise man,
I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him-
Give my heart.
The Liturgy of the Sacrament
PRAYERS OF OFFERING
Let us present our offerings to the Lord.
Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory,
the splendour and the majesty;
for everything in heaven and on earth are yours.
All things come from you, and of your own do we give you.
THE SURSUM CORDA
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give him thanks and praise.
THE EUCHARISTIC PRAYER
It is just and right that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks to you, Almighty God,
for you created all things;
in you we live and move and have our being.
Your power is shown in land and sea and sky.
As a mother gathers her children,
so you gather your people,
to teach us the way of compassion and love.
You sent Christ your son to dwell among us,
by the message of an angel, to be born of the Virgin Mary.
You send your Holy Spirit to draw us into deeper faith,
to inspire us to greater works,
and to sustain us in our calling.
Now with all creation
we raise our voices to proclaim your glory, sing your praise:
SANCTUS AND BENEDICTUS
Blessed are you, most Holy God, in Jesus Christ,
who came among us as servant and King.
Through him, the light to all nations,
you call a people to yourself,
to deliver them from bondage
to a land of promise,
where all your children shall be free.
On the night when he was given up to death
knowing that his hour had come,
having loved his own, he loved them to the end.
At supper with his disciples
he took bread and offered you thanks.
He broke the bread, and gave it to them, saying,
‘Take, eat. This is my Body: it is broken for you.’
After supper, he took the cup,
he offered you thanks, and gave it to them saying:
‘Drink this, all of you.
This is my Blood of the new covenant;
it is poured out for you, and for all,
that sins may be forgiven.
Do this in remembrance of me.’
We now obey your Son’s command.
We recall his blessed passion and death,
his glorious resurrection and ascension;
and we look for the coming of his Kingdom.
Made one with him, we offer you these gifts
and with them ourselves,
a single, holy, living sacrifice.
Hear us, most merciful God,
and send your Holy Spirit upon us
and upon this bread and this wine,
that, overshadowed by his life-giving power,
they may be the Body and Blood of your Son,
and we may be kindled with the fire of your love
and renewed for the service of your Kingdom.
Help us, who are baptised
into the fellowship of Christ’s Body,
to live and work to your praise and glory;
may we grow together in unity and love
until at last, in your new creation,
we enter into our heritage,
in the company of the Virgin Mary,
the apostles and prophets,
and of all our brothers and sisters
living and departed.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
with whom, and in whom,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory be to you,
Lord of all ages,
world without end.
Amen.
THE FRACTION
The living bread is broken for the life of the world.
Lord, unite us in this sign.
LORD’S PRAYER
As our Saviour Christ has commanded and taught us,
we are bold to say;
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.
INVITATION
Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.
Happy are we who are called to share in his supper.
Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and my
soul shall be healed.
COMMUNION HYMN NEH 40 What child is this (Greensleeves)
1 What child is this, who, laid to rest
On Mary's lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds worship and angels sing:
Haste, haste, to bring him praise
The Babe, the son of Mary.
2 Why lies he in such mean estate,
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Come, have no fear, God's son is here,
His love all loves exceeding:
Nails, spear, shall pierce him through,
The cross be borne for me, for you:
Hail, hail, the Saviour comes,
The Babe, the son of Mary.
3 So bring him incense, gold and myrrh,
All tongues and peoples own him,
The King of kings salvation brings,
Let every heart enthrone him:
Raise, raise your song on high
While Mary sings a lullaby,
Joy, joy, for Christ is born,
The Babe, the son of Mary.
THANKSGIVING AND SENDING OUT
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is gracious.
And his mercy endures for ever.
POST-COMMUNION PRAYER
Almighty God, whose way is light, whose Kingdom peace:
may we, who have this day partaken of holy things,
walk as children of light,
and be worthy heirs of your Kingdom.
This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord;
Amen.
BLESSING this or some other may be used
Now may Christ, who by His Incarnation gathered all things earthly
and heavenly into a single peace, fill us with all joy and peace in
believing; and the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
DISMISSAL
Let us go in peace, to love and serve the Lord
In the name of Christ. Amen.
FINAL HYMN NEH 39 Unto us a boy is born (Puer Nobis)
1 Unto us a boy is born!
King of all creation,
came he to a world forlorn,
the Lord of every nation.
2 Cradled in a stall was he
with sleepy cows and asses;
but the very beasts could see
that he all men surpasses.
3 Herod then with fear was filled:
'A prince', he said, 'in Jewry!'
All the little boys he killed
at Bethl'em in his fury.
4 Now may Mary's son, who came
so long ago to love us,
lead us all with hearts aflame
unto the joys above us.
5 Omega and Alpha he!
Let the organ thunder,
while the choir with peals of glee
doth rend the air asunder.
ORGAN VOLUNTARY