Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity: We beseech thee, that this holy faith may evermore be our defence against all adversities; who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.

For the Epistle: Revelation 4:1-11
The Gospel: St John 3:1-15

Artwork: Masaccio, The Holy Trinity with the Virgin, St. John and Two Donors, c. 1427. Fresco, Santa Maria Novella, Florence.

O God our redeemer,
who didst call thy servant Boniface
to preach the gospel among the German people
and to build up thy Church in holiness:
grant that we may hold fast in our hearts
that faith which he taught with his words
and sealed with his blood,
and profess it in lives dedicated to thy Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

For the Epistle: Acts 20:17-28
The Gospel: St Luke 24:44-53

O God our redeemer,
who through the folly of the cross
didst teach thy martyr Justin
the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ:
free us, we beseech thee, from every kind of error,
that we, like him, may be firmly grounded in the faith,
and make thy name known to all peoples;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Epistle: 1 Corinthians 1:18-30
The Gospel: St Luke 12:1-8

God, who as at this time didst teach the hearts of thy faithful people, by the sending to them the light of thy Holy Spirit: Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgement in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through the merits of Christ Jesus our Saviour, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the same Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.

O God, who makest us glad with the yearly remembrance of the coming of the Holy Spirit upon thy disciples in Jerusalem: Grant that we who celebrate before thee the Feast of Pentecost may continue thine for ever, and daily increase in thy Holy Spirit, until we come to thine eternal kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For the Epistle: Acts 2:1-11

The Gospel: St John 14:15-27

Artwork: Titian (Tiziano Vecelli), The Descent of the Holy Ghost, c. 1545. Oil on canvas, Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute, Venice.

Almighty God, maker of all things,
whose Son Jesus Christ gave to thy servant Bede
grace to drink in with joy
the word which leadeth us to know thee and to love thee:
in thy goodness
grant that we also may come at length to thee,
the source of all wisdom,
and stand before thy face;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

For The Epistle: Wisdom 7:15-22
The Gospel: St Matthew 13:47-52

St Bede was born and, as far as we know, lived his entire life in the north of England, yet he became perhaps the most learned scholar in all of Europe. At the age of 7, he was sent to Wearmouth Abbey for his education; at age 11, he continued his education at the new monastery at Jarrow, eventually becoming a monk and remaining there until his death. He lived a routine and outwardly uneventful life of prayer, devotion, study, writing, and teaching.

Bede’s writings cover a very wide range of interests, including natural history, orthography, chronology, and biblical translation and exposition. He was the first to translate the Bible into Old English. He considered his 25 volumes of Scripture commentary to be his most important writings. His best-known book is Ecclesiastical History of the English People, completed in 731. This work earned him the popular title “Father of English History”, and not just because it was the first attempt to write a history of England. His historical research was thorough and far-reaching. For example, he asked friends traveling to Rome to bring him copies of documents relevant to English history, and he made use of oral traditions when written materials were not available. The book provides much historical information that can be found in no other source.

His pupil Cuthbert, later Abbot of Jarrow, has left a moving eyewitness account of St Bede’s last hours. Bede fell ill shortly before Easter 735, when he was in the midst of translating the Gospel of John into the Anglo-Saxon language. Everyone realised that the end was near, but he was determined to complete the translation. Between Easter and Ascension Day, he persisted in the task while continuing to teach his students at his bedside.

After a restless night, he resumed dictating the translation on the morning before the Ascension. That afternoon he called the priests of the monastery to him to distribute his remaining earthly possessions. Seeing they were overcome with grief, he comforted them with these words:

“If it be the will of my Maker, the time has come when I shall be freed from the body and return to Him Who created me out of nothing when I had no being. I have had a long life, and the merciful Judge has ordered it graciously. The time of my departure is at hand, and my soul longs to see Christ my King in His beauty.”

The young man who had been writing down the translation said there was still one sentence remaining, and Bede dictated the final words.

After a short while the lad said, “Now it is finished.”

“You have spoken truly,” he replied. “It is well finished. Now raise my head in your hands, for it would give me great joy to sit facing the holy place where I used to pray, so that I may sit and call on my Father.”

And thus, on the floor of his cell, he chanted, “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit” to its ending, and breathed his last.

When he received word of the great scholar’s death, St Boniface, who had used Bede’s Bible commentaries, said, “The candle of the Church, lit by the Holy Spirit, has been extinguished”. Within a generation or two, St Bede was being called “Venerable”. His bones were translated from Jarrow to Durham Cathedral in the mid-11th century; in 1370 they were placed in the cathedral’s Galilee Chapel. (A photo of the tomb can be seen about halfway down this page).

These are the final words of the Ecclesiastical History:

I implore you, good Jesus, that as in your mercy you have given me to drink in with delight the words of your knowledge, so of your loving kindness you will also grant me one day to come to you, the fountain of all wisdom, and to stand for ever before your face.

St Bede is the only Englishman named in Dante’s Paradise. He is also the only English Doctor of the Church.

(Most of the above is a slightly revised version of a post of 9 October 2006.)

O Lord our God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst call thine apostles and send them forth to preach the Gospel to the nations: We bless thy holy name for thy servant Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury, whose labors in propagating thy Church among the English people we commemorate today; and we pray that all whom thou dost call and send may do thy will, and bide thy time, and see thy glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

The Epistle: 2 Corinthians 5:17-20a
The Gospel: St Luke 5:1-11

More on St Augustine of Canterbury here and here.

This morning’s recessional hymn on The Sunday after Ascension Day at Christ Church, Windsor. Hymn #178 in The Book of Common Praise (1938), official hymn book for the whole of The Church of England in Canada (later Anglican Church of Canada).

O Christ, thou hast ascended
Triumphantly on high,
By cherub guards attended
And armies of the sky:
Let earth tell forth the story,—
Our very flesh and bone,
Emmanuel, in glory,
Ascends his Father’s throne.

Heaven’s gates unfold above thee,
But canst thou, Lord, forget
The little band who love thee
And gaze from Olivet?
Nay, on thy breast engraven
Thou bearest every name,
Our Priest in earth and heaven
Eternally the same.

There, there thou standest pleading
The virtue of thy Blood,
For sinners interceding,
Our Advocate with God;
And every changeful fashion
Of our brief joys and cares
Finds thought in thy compassion
And echo in thy prayers.

O for the priceless merit
Of thy redeeming Cross!
Vouchsafe thy sevenfold Spirit
And turn to gain our loss;
Till we by strong endeavour
In heart and mind ascend,
And dwell with thee for ever
In glories without end.

Words: Bishop Edward Henry Bickersteth, 1872
Music: “Lancashire”

O God, the King of glory, who hast exalted thine only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph unto thy kingdom in heaven; We beseech thee, leave us not comfortless; but send to us thine Holy Ghost to comfort us, and exalt us unto the same place whither our Saviour Christ is gone before, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.

The Epistle: 1 St Peter 4:7-11
The Gospel: St John 15:26-16:4a

Grant, we beseech thee, Almighty God, that like as we do believe thy only-begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into the heavens; so we may also in heart and mind thither ascend, and with him continuously dwell, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.

For the Epistle: Acts 1:1-11
The Gospel: St Mark 16:14-20

Artwork: Donatello, Ascension of Christ, 1465.  Bronze, Detail of the North Pulpit, Basilica di San Lorenzo, Florence.

O Lord, from whom all good things do come; Grant to us thy humble servants, that by thy holy inspiration we may think those things that be good, and by thy merciful guiding may perform the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle: St James 1:22-27
The Gospel: St John 16:23-33

O Almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of sinful men: Grant unto thy people, that they may love the thing which thou commandest, and desire that which thou dost promise; that so, among the sundry and manifold changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed, where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle: St James 1:17-21
The Gospel: St John 16:5-15

Almighty God, who hast revealed to thy Church thine eternal Being of glorious majesty and perfect love as one God in Trinity of Persons: Give us grace that, like thy bishop Gregory of Nazianzus, we may continue steadfast in the confession of this faith, and constant in our worship of thee, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who livest and reignest for ever and ever.

For the Epistle: Wisdom 7:7-14
The Gospel: St John 8:25-32

Almighty God, who showest to them that be in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all them that are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s religion, that they may forsake those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Epistle: 1 St Peter 2:11-17
The Gospel: St John 16:16-22

Ever-living God,
whose servant Athanasius bore witness
to the mystery of the Word made flesh for our salvation:
give us grace, with all thy saints,
to contend for the truth
and to grow into the likeness of thy Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Epistle: 1 St John 5:1-5
The Gospel: St Matthew 10:22-32

Artwork: St Athanasius holding the New Testament, Fresco, c. 1192-93, Monastery chapel at Mar Musa (source).

More on St Athanasius here.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor

O Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life: Grant us perfectly to know thy Son Jesus Christ to be the way, the truth, and the life; that, following the steps of thy holy Apostles, Saint Philip and Saint James, we may stedfastly walk in the way that leadeth to eternal life; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle: St James 1:1-12
The Gospel: St John 14:1-14

Artwork:
(left) Peter Paul Rubens, St Philip, c. 1610-1612. Prado, Madrid.
(right) El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos), St James the Less, c. 1586-1590. Art Institute of Chicago.

More on St Philip and St James here.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor

This morning’s recessional hymn on The Second Sunday after Easter at Christ Church, Windsor. Hymn #515 in The Book of Common Praise (1938), official hymn book for the whole of The Church of England in Canada (later Anglican Church of Canada).

I know that my Redeemer lives;
O the sweet joy this sentence gives!
He lives, he lives, who once was dead;
He lives, my everliving Head.

He lives to bless me with his love,
And still he pleads for me above;
He lives to raise me from the grave,
And me eternally to save.

He lives, my kind, wise, constant Friend;
Who still will keep me to the end;
He lives, and while he lives I’ll sing,
Jesus, my Prophet, Priest, and King.

He lives my mansion to prepare;
And he will bring me safely there;
He lives, all glory to his Name,
Jesus, unchangeably the same.

Words: Rev Samuel Medley, 1775.
Music: “Duke Street”, John Hatton, 1793.

(The words posted here are copied from the hymn book and do not exactly match those posted at the link.)

Almighty God, who hast given thine only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life; Give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that his inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavour ourselves to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle: 1 St Peter 2:19-25
The Gospel: St John 10:11-16

Artwork: The Good Shepherd, 5th century. Mosaic, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor

O Almighty God, who hast instructed thy holy Church with the heavenly doctrines of thy Evangelist Saint Mark; Give us grace, that, being not like children carried away with every blast of vain doctrine, we may be established in the truth of thy holy Gospel; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle: Ephesians 4:11-16
The Gospel: St Mark 13:1-10

Artwork: Domenico Ghirlandaio, St Mark the Evangelist, 1486-90.  Fresco, right wall of Cappella Tornabuoni, Santa Maria Novella, Florence.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor

O God of hosts,
who didst so kindle the flame of love
in the heart of thy servant George
that he bore witness to the risen Lord
by his life and by his death:
grant us the same faith and power of love
that we, who rejoice in his triumphs,
may come to share with him the fullness of the resurrection;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Epistle: 2 St Timothy 2:8-10, 3:10-12
The Gospel: St John 15:1-7

Artwork: Vittore Carpaccio, St George and the Dragon, 1502-08. Oil on canvas, Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni, Venice.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor

O everlasting God,
who gavest to thy servant Anselm
singular gifts as a pastor and teacher:
grant that we, like him,
may desire thee with our whole heart
and, so desiring, may seek thee
and, seeking, may find thee;
through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Epistle: Romans 5:1-11
The Gospel: St Matthew 11:25-30

A prayer of St Anselm

Lord Jesus Christ; Let me seek you by desiring you,
and let me desire you by seeking you;
let me find you by loving you,
and love you in finding you.

I confess, Lord, with thanksgiving,
that you have made me in your image,
so that I can remember you, think of you, and love you.

But that image is so worn and blotted out by faults,
and darkened by the smoke of sin,
that it cannot do that for which it was made,
unless you renew and refashion it.

Lord, I am not trying to make my way to your height,
for my understanding is in no way equal to that,
but I do desire to understand a little of your truth
which my heart already believes and loves.

I do not seek to understand so that I can believe,
but I believe so that I may understand;
and what is more,
I believe that unless I do believe, I shall not understand.

Source: The Oxford Book of Prayer, George Appleton (gen. ed.), 1985, 2002.

c/p: Christ Church, Windsor