ALTERNATIVE FORMS
OF MORNING AND EVENING WORSHIPFIRST FORMGATHERING IN GOD’S NAME
Instrumental music may be played. Hymns and songs may be sung. The minister may greet the people, who may greet each other.
The minister may read aloud one or more of the sentence of Scripture on pages 10-14, 18-19, and 33-34 or other suitable sentences of Scripture.CONFESSION OF SIN
The minister then reads one or more of these sentences of Scripture.
When a wicked person turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he shall save his life. For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord; so turn and live. Ezekiel 18: 27,32
I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Psalm 51: 3
Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities. Psalm 51: 9
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51: 17
Rend your hearts, and not your garments. Return to the LORD, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and relents over disaster. Joel 2: 13
To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us. Daniel 9: 9-10
Correct me, O LORD, but in justice; not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.
Jeremiah 10: 24
Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 3: 2
I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.
Luke 15: 18-19
Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.
Psalm 143: 2
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1: 8-9
The minister says this Exhortation. He may omit the second paragraph.
Dear brothers and sisters, the Scriptures encourages us repeatedly to acknowledge and confess our manifold sins and wickedness; and that we should not try to hide them from Almighty God our heavenly Father; but confess them with humble, lowly, penitent, and obedient hearts, so that we may receive forgiveness through God’s infinite goodness and mercy.
[We ought at all times humbly to admit our sins before God, but chiefly when we meet together to give thanks for the great benefits we have received at his hands, to offer the praise that is due him, to hear his holy word, and to ask what is necessary for our bodies and souls.]
Therefore let us approach the throne of our gracious God and say together:
Or he may omit the Exhortation, saying instead
Let us humbly confess our sins to Almighty God.
All kneeling, this general Confession or another authorized General Confession is said by the whole congregation with the minister.
Heavenly Father, you have loved us with an everlasting love, but we have gone our own way. We have broken your holy laws and have left undone what we ought to have done. We are sorry for our sins and turn away from them. For the sake of your Son who died for us, forgive us, cleanse us, and change us. By your Holy Spirit enable us to live for you and to please you more and more each day; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
This Absolution or another authorized Absolution, or declaration of forgiveness, is pronounced by the priest alone standing; the congregation still kneeling.
God desires that none should perish but all should turn to Christ and live. In response to his call we acknowledge our sins. He pardons those who humbly repent and truly believe the gospel. Therefore we have peace, through Jesus Christ to whom be blessing and honor for ever.
The congregation answer AMEN.
Or instead of the Absolution the minister may say this prayer
Merciful God, grant to your faithful people pardon and peace; that we may be cleansed from all our sins and serve you with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
Or this Word of Assurance may be said.
If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the perfect offering for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:1,2
Or a short period of silence may be kept.PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING TO GOD
All stand, and the minister says
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good
His steadfast love endures for ever.
This thanksgiving or another suitable thanksgiving may be said here or after the time of praise.
Most merciful Father, we humbly thank you for all your gifts so freely bestowed on us. For life and health and safety, for power to work and leisure to rest, and for all that is beautiful in creation and in human lives, we praise and glorify your holy name. But above all, we thank you for your spiritual mercies in Christ Jesus our Lord, for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. Fill our hearts with all joy and peace in believing; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
A time of praise follows, including suitable hymns, songs, and prayers.THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD
One of the following prayers or a suitable alternative is said in preparation for the reading and teaching of the Scriptures.
Thank you, Father, for making yourself known to us and showing the way of salvation through faith in your Son. We ask you now to teach and encourage us through your word, so that we may be ready to serve you; for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. AMEN.
or
Heavenly Father, give us wisdom and understanding. As we listen to your Word, may we know you better, love you more, and learn to please you in all we do; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
or
We thank you, heavenly Father, for inspiring all Scripture by the Holy Spirit. By your Spirit, help us so to hear your holy word that we might be equipped for every good work, through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
The First Reading from the Old Testament
The readings are announced, The First/Second Reading from…, chapter…, beginning at verse….
After each reading, the reader may say
Hear the word of the Lord,
thanks be to God
A psalm, hymn or song may follow the First Reading.
The Second Reading from the New Testament
A New Testament Canticle (see pages 47-59), hymn or song may follow the Second Reading.
The sermon may be preached here, after the Apostles’ Creed, or later.
A time of congregational reflection may follow, involving questions and discussion and mutual encouragement based on the sermon and the readings.
A hymn or song may be sung after the sermon. The offerings of the people may be received and presented at the Lord’s Table during this hymn or song or during the final hymn or song of the service.
The Apostles’ Creed is said or sung by all standing.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from there he will 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 body,
and the life everlasting. AMEN.THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER
The Lord’s Prayer is said here or after the Prayers.
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. AMEN.
or
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, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. AMEN.
Prayers may be offered
for the world
for the community
for the work of the Church,
for the needs of individuals
See pages 79-86 and pages 140-141 for suitable patterns of prayer
The sermon is preached here if it has not been preached earlier in the service, and may be preceded by a hymn or song.THE SENDING OUT OF GOD’S PEOPLE
One of these prayers or another suitable prayer may be said.
Loving God, we thank you for hearing our prayers, feeding us with your word, and encouraging us in our meeting together, take us and use us to love and serve you and all people, in the power of your Spirit and in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
God of wisdom, grant, we pray, that the words we have heard today may be grafted in our hearts so that they may bring forth in us the fruit of good works to the honor and praise of your name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
Almighty God, we thank you for your holy word. May it be a lantern to our feet, a light to our paths, and strength to our lives, in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
Eternal God and Father, by whose power we are created, and by whose love we are redeemed: Guide and strengthen us by your Spirit, that we may give ourselves to your service, and live this day in love to one another and to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
or
Lord Jesus Christ, send us out with confidence in your word to tell the world of your saving acts, and bring glory to your name. Amen.
The service may conclude with a hymn or song and one of the endings on pages 113-114, one of the blessings on pages 111-112, or the Grace.
The Grace
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. AMEN. 2 Corinthians 13:14.
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In editing the HTML for this post, I inadvertently deleted a comment in response to the post and my own response to the comment. I have reproduced the comment and my response.
Matthias wrote:
I am a Catholic however I have discovered my Anglican heritage both in A PRAYER BOOK FOR AUSTRALIA and the BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER. My Mum use to quote it to me verbatim. I was talking to a local Vicar and was was saying there are quite a few Anglican Churches of the Evangelical /Low Church branch who do not use any Prayer book. Are they still entitled to be called Anglican if they do not use the Prayer Book? (Oh and I still go to Mass and do worship at the Anglican church of the above said Vicar intermittently- )
I wrote:
Matthias, You raise an interesting question. Is Anglican identity tied to the use of prescribed forms of service? From what I gather, there is considerable latitude in the Anglican Church of Australia in how a congregation may worship on Sunday and at other times. The ACA has three authorized service books, The Book of Common Prayer (1662), An Australian Prayer Book (1978), and A Prayer Book for Australia (1995). A diocese may also produce its own service book as have the Anglo-Catholic diocese of Ballarat and the evangelical diocese of Sydney. I further gather this latitude extends to the use of local patterns of worship that do not involve prescribed forms of service. In the Church of England there is also considerable latitude in how a congregation may worship. The C of E has two service books, The Book of Common Prayer (1662) and Common Worship (2000). Common Worship includes most of the services of 1928 Proposed English Prayer Book and New Patterns of Worship, a guide to developing local patterns of worship and texts for use in these local worship patterns. The GAFCON Theological Resource Group in its commentary on The Jerusalem Declaration, Being Faithful: The Shape of Historic Anglicanism Today, notes, "The Jerusalem Declaration affirms the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, while recognizing that many parts of the Anglican Communion have other forms of liturgy." It further notes,"the Anglican church in many places have developed informal patterns of corporate worship, with less obvious patterns than those found in the Prayer Book." Earlier it notes that acceptance of the authority of the Thirty-Nine Articles is "constitutive of Anglican identity." The GAFCON position would appear to be is that Anglican identity is not tied to the use of a particular liturgy but to adherence to the doctrine of the classic Anglican formularies. Its answer to your question would appear to be is that as long as a congregation adheres to the doctrine of the classic Anglican formularies, it is Anglican. It appears to take the position that Anglicanism is confessional, not a particular way of worshiping.
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