Tag: lying witnesses

Morning Prayer: Tuesday, 20 June – Acts 6:8-15 ~ fake news and false narratives

Morning Prayer

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

Opening Prayer

Gracious God, as I turn to your Word for me, may the Spirit of God rest upon me. Help me to be steadfast in my hearing, in my speaking, in my believing, and in my living. Amen.

Reading: Acts 6:8-15 (NLT)

Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed amazing miracles and signs among the people. But one day some men from the Synagogue of Freed Slaves, as it was called, started to debate with him. They were Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and the province of Asia. None of them could stand against the wisdom and the Spirit with which Stephen spoke.

So they persuaded some men to lie about Stephen, saying, “We heard him blaspheme Moses, and even God.” This roused the people, the elders, and the teachers of religious law. So they arrested Stephen and brought him before the high council.

The lying witnesses said, “This man is always speaking against the holy Temple and against the law of Moses. We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy the Temple and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”

At this point everyone in the high council stared at Stephen, because his face became as bright as an angel’s.
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Reflection and Prayer:

Lord Jesus: You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life – the one true source of love and justice in this world.

  • Watch over and care for me that I may live a godly life.
  • Help me to lead a life of integrity in my own home.
  • Protect me from crooked people with perverse ideas.
  • Deliver me from liars and deceivers, minions of the evil one.
  • Keep me away from people who slander their neighbors.

Lord Jesus: Free me from prideful, conceited people – the purveyors of fake news and false narratives. Give me faithful, godly people to be my companions – those who are above reproach – that I may love and serve you as your faithful witness to my life’s end. Soli Deo gloria!
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“Open thou mine eyes” – Elena Matei with the choir of Music Faculty from Braşov, Romania

Open thou mine eyes and I shall see; Incline my heart and I shall desire; Order my steps and I shall walk, In the ways of thy commandments.

O Lord God, be thou to me a God; No other, naught else with thee.

Vouchsafe to me to worship thee and serve thee; According to thy commandments; In truth of spirit, in reverence of body, In blessings of lips, In private and in public.
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Concluding Prayer – Psalm 4 (NLT)

Answer me when I call to you, O God who declares me innocent. Free me from my troubles. Have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

How long will you people ruin my reputation? How long will you make groundless accusations? How long will you continue your lies?

You can be sure of this: The Lord set apart the godly for himself. The Lord will answer when I call to him.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Morning Prayer: 20 Apr – Acts 6:8-15; John 6:22-29 ~ the only work: believe in Jesus

Monday of the Third Week of Easter

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

Opening sentence and prayer:

Lord, open my lips; and I shall praise Your name.
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God and Father, to all who go astray You reveal the light of Your truth and enable us to return to the right path. Grant that we who have received the grace of baptism may endeavor to be worthy of our Christian calling and reject everything opposed to it. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

A Reading from Acts: Acts 6:8-15 (NLT)

Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed amazing miracles and signs among the people. But one day some men from the Synagogue of Freed Slaves, as it was called, started to debate with him. They were Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and the province of Asia. None of them could stand against the wisdom and the Spirit with which Stephen spoke.

Saint Stephen by Luis de Morales, 1574 Museo del Prado, Madrid
Saint Stephen
by Luis de Morales, 1574
Museo del Prado, Madrid

So they persuaded some men to lie about Stephen, saying, “We heard him blaspheme Moses, and even God.” This roused the people, the elders, and the teachers of religious law. So they arrested Stephen and brought him before the high council.

The lying witnesses said, “This man is always speaking against the holy Temple and against the law of Moses. We have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy the Temple and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”

At this point everyone in the high council stared at Stephen, because his face became as bright as an angel’s.
__________

One does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God. (Mathew 4:4)
__________

A Reading from the Gospels: John 6:22-29 (NLT)

The next day the crowd that had stayed on the far shore saw that the disciples had taken the only boat, and they realized Jesus had not gone with them. Several boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the Lord had blessed the bread and the people had eaten. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him. They found him on the other side of the lake and asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.”

They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?”

Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
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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 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 the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen