Prayer for Month | stmarysecclesfield.org.uk

Prayer for the Month

The 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.

Traditionally the Gloria is not said or sung at Communion in two seasons of the Year, Advent and Lent. They are penitential seasons when we prepare by prayer and fasting for the great feasts of Christmas and Easter.

This year Lent seemed to last longer than seven weeks! So I was very pleased when we said the gloria on Maundy Thursday at the Eucharist of the Last Supper and when we sang it again on Easter Morning.

As a prayer the Gloria is a joyful outpouring of thanks and praise to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In the Communion Service it always follows the confession and absolution and so it is a prayer of thanks to the God who has lifted our burdens; it is the prayer of those who know ourselves to be forgiven for our failures and set free from our past.

Whenever I say or sing the Gloria it reminds me that confession is not a time to make ourselves feel shame or guilt, it is not about dwelling on our mistakes and failures and sins; rather it is the good news that God is greater than our sins and that in Christ God has already dealt with our failures and faults.

We are set free and forgiven so that we can live as God’s children. Whatever our past today is a new day and a new start. Our past does not define us nor does it determine our future.

In Christ we are set free. That is why we pray the Gloria!

God bless,

Tim.

A Prayer for Ukraine - Archbishops Justin Welby & Stephen Cottrell

God of peace and justice, we pray for the people of Ukraine today.

We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons. We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow, that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them. We pray for those with power over war or peace, for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions. Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear, that you would hold and protect them.

We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

Amen

Pray for Ukraine Pastoral Letter

The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York have written a pastoral letter about the situation in Ukraine- You can read the letter here