Section:
prayers
THANKSGIVING FOR GOD’S GOODNESS
Hymn Suggestions:
Let All Things Now Living (ASH GROVE)
Give Thanks to the Lord (Schutte)
All the Earth (Deiss)
How Great Thou Art (Hine)
Canticle of the Sun (Haugen)
Psalm 8
Antiphon:All-powerful, most holy, Almighty and supreme God, holy and just Father, Lord King of heaven and earth, we thank you for yourself.
From “Early Rule,” page 81, XXIII, #1 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
O God, our God,
how glorious is your name over all the earth!
You have exalted your majesty above the heavens.
Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings
you have fashioned praise because of your foes,
to silence the hostile and the vengeful.
When I behold your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars
which you set in place—
Who are we that you should be mindful of us,
that you should care for us?
You have made us little less than the gods
and crowned us with glory and honor.
You have given us rule over the works of your hands,
putting all things under our feet:
all sheep and oxen,
yes, and the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,
and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
God, our God,
how glorious is your name over all the earth!
Glory . . .
Psalm is reprinted from Psalms Anew by Nancy Schreck, OSF and Maureen Leach, OSF, © 1984 The Sisters of St. Francis, Dubuque, Iowa. Used with permission.
Psalm 92
Antiphon:You have created everything spiritual and corporal and, after making us in your own image and likeness, you placed us in paradise.
From “Early Rule,” page 82, XXIII, #1 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
O Yahweh, it is good to give you thanks,
to sing psalms to your name, O Most High,
to declare your love in the morning
and your constancy every night,
to the music of a ten-stringed lute,
to the sounding chords of the harp.
Your acts, O Yahweh, fill me with exultation;
I shout in triumph at your mighty deeds.
How great are your deeds, Yahweh,
How fathomless your thoughts!
Those who do not know this are senseless,
fools are they who do not understand this:
that though the wicked grow like grass
and every evildoer prospers,
they will be destroyed for ever.
While you, Yahweh, reign on high eternally,
your foes will surely perish,
all evildoers will be scattered.
Glory . . .
Psalm is reprinted from Psalms Anew by Nancy Schreck, OSF and Maureen Leach, OSF, © 1984 The Sisters of St. Francis, Dubuque, Iowa. Used with permission.
Ephesians 1: 3-10
Antiphon:Let us refer all good to the Lord, God Almighty and Most High, acknowledge that every good is his, and thank him, “from whom all good comes for everything.”
From “Early Rule,” page 76, XVII, #17 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing
in the heavenly places,
just as he chose us in Christ
before the foundation of the world
to be holy and blameless before him in love.
He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ,
according to the good pleasure of his will,
to the praise of his glorious grace
that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace
that he lavished on us.
With all wisdom and insight
he has made known to us the mystery of his will,
according to his good pleasure
that he set forth in Christ,
as a plan for the fullness of time,
to gather up all things in him,
things in heaven and things on earth.
Glory . . .
Reading:
With our whole heart,
our whole soul,
our whole mind,
with our whole strength and fortitude
with our whole understanding
with all our powers
with every effort,
every affection,
every feeling,
every desire and wish
let us all love the Lord God
who has given and gives to each one of us
our whole body, our whole soul and our whole life.
From “Early Rule,” page 84, XXIII, #8 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
Response:
Therefore, let nothing hinder us, nothing separate us, nothing come between us.
—Therefore, let nothing hinder us, nothing separate us, nothing come between us.
Let us love the Lord God
—Therefore, let nothing hinder us, nothing separate us, nothing come between us.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
— Therefore, let nothing hinder us, nothing separate us, nothing come between us.
From “Early Rule,” page 85, XXIII, #10 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
Gospel Canticle Antiphon: May he, the Almighty and Most High, the only true God, have, be given, and receive all honor and respect, all praise and blessing, all thanks and glory, to whom all good belongs, he who alone is good.
From “Early Rule,” page 76, XVII, #18 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
Intercessions:
Response: God of life, hear our prayer.
For the church, her members and her leaders, we pray . . .
For peace and understanding among all nations, we pray . . .
For those who are poor and in any need, we pray . . .
For all of us gathered here to be always grateful for God’s goodness, we pray . . .
For all those we hold dear, especially _________, we pray . . .
For those who have died, especially _________, we pray . . .
Our Father:
Closing Prayer:
Wherever we are,
in every place,
at every hour,
at every time of the day,
every day and continually,
let all of us truly and humbly believe,
hold in our heart and love,
honor, adore, serve,
praise and bless,
glorify and exalt,
magnify and give thanks
to the Most High and Supreme Eternal God
Trinity and Unity,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Creator of all,
Savior of all,
who believe and hope in him,
and love him, who,
without beginning and end,
is unchangeable, invisible,
indescribable, ineffable,
incomprehensible, unfathomable,
blessed, praiseworthy,
glorious, exalted,
sublime, most high,
gentle, lovable, delightful,
and totally desirable, above all else
forever, Amen.
From “Early Rule,” page 85-86, XXIII, #11 in Francis Assisi: Early Documents Vol. 1, edited by Regis J. Armstrong, OFM Cap., J.A. Wayne Hellmann, OFM Conv., William J. Short, OFM. New York: New City Press, 1999. Used with permission.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
