Tag: Communion

Morning Prayer: 20 August – Psalm 123:2; Numbers 24:16-17a; Revelation 22:16-18 – on watching and waiting

Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.

Psalm 123:2

woman-in-prayerWe keep looking to the Lord our God for his mercy, just as servants keep their eyes on their master, as a slave girl watches her mistress for the slightest signal.

Numbers 24:16-17a

… the message of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who bows down with eyes wide open:

I see him, but not here and now. I perceive him, but far in the distant future. A star will rise from Jacob; a scepter will emerge from Israel.

Revelation 22:16-18

“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.”

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life. And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the words of prophecy written in this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book.

Reflection

IONA

Iona Nunnery Ruins dates to thirteenth century
Iona Nunnery Ruins
dates to thirteenth century

The nunnery on Iona (now ruined) was established at the beginning of the thirteenth century, and the nuns were at first Benedictine, then later of the Augustine order.
_____

DAWN IN THE NUNNERY
Day breaks behind the Bens of Mull
streaming across the restless Sound
blessing with thy shadows
pillars and the ruined arches of the Nunnery.

Holy place of ancient silence
basking in prayers of countless years
etching in the early sky
a benediction while a North wind snatches
the Abbey bell.

With deep compelling resonance it sounds
evoking in hearts a hidden longing
echoes of a vocation long-locked
within the rosy glow of this rough granite –
a sacred call.

Eyes uplifted, elated in expectation,
our sinful human-ness suffused with
transforming grace, we glimpse
in fleeting simplicity of soul
our Morning Star. (Fiona Martin)
__________


__________

Canticle:

Christ, as a light
illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield
overshadow me.
Christ under me;
Christ over me;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak;
in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light;
Christ as a shield;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness,
protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing
at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing
once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

_____________________________________

Peanut Gallery: The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) Our Scripture readings and reflections will be taken from the Aidan Daily Readings (Celtic Daily Prayer) during the month of August. On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.

Morning Prayer: 19 August – Psalm 22:4-5; Genesis 44:16-17; 1 Corinthians 10:15-16 – on the presence of Christ

Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.

Psalm 22:4-5

Our ancestors trusted in you, and you rescued them. They cried out to you and were saved. They trusted in you and were never disgraced.

Genesis 44:16-17

Judah answered, “Oh, my lord, what can we say to you? How can we explain this? How can we prove our innocence? God is punishing us for our sins. My lord, we have all returned to be your slaves — all of us, not just our brother who had your cup in his sack.”

“No,” Joseph said. “I would never do such a thing! Only the man who stole the cup will be my slave. The rest of you may go back to your father in peace.”

Communion Cups in Iona Abbey
Communion Cups in Iona Abbey

1 Corinthians 10:15-16

You are reasonable people. Decide for yourselves if what I am saying is true. When we bless the cup at the Lord’s Table, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ? And when we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ?

Reflection

IONA

Kenneth Macleod speaks in the same breath of Iona and of the Holy Grail, that cup which Christ blessed at His last supper, and which Joseph of Arimathea is often portrayed as holding at Christ’s wounded side to catch the drops of His blood. There is at once a simplicity, a deep mystery, and a faith that goes beyond purely rational considerations that is at the heart of the experience which is Iona, and as with the Grail, if the mystery it points to is Christ Himself and a love for Him, then perhaps that is what matters most, through the ebb and flow of many a tide.
_____

TO IONA
For their sake who lived and died in thee,
sang their faith and taught their joy to me,
for their sake I bow the knee,
Iona the blest,
isle of my heart, my grail. (Kenneth Macleod)
_____

THOU GRAIL-LIT IONA
My heart’s own shrine
where only lives what seemed to die,
my Grail-lit Isle,
ebb-tide, flow-tide, Christ is nigh. (Kenneth Macleod)
__________


__________

Canticle:

Christ, as a light
illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield
overshadow me.
Christ under me;
Christ over me;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak;
in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light;
Christ as a shield;
Christ beside me
on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness,
protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing
at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing
once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

_____________________________________

Peanut Gallery: The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) Our Scripture readings and reflections will be taken from the Aidan Daily Readings (Celtic Daily Prayer) during the month of August. On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.