The Gathering

Our worship begins at the sound of the bell, please stand as the sacred ministers enter, during which the introit hymn is sung.

We have a gospel to proclaim,
Good news for all throughout the earth;
The gospel of a Saviour’s name:
We sing his glory, tell his worth.

Tell of his birth at Bethlehem,
Not in a royal house or hall,
But in a stable dark and dim,
The Word made flesh, a light for all.

Tell of his death at Calvary,
Hated by those he came to save;
In lonely suff’ring on the cross:
For all he loved, his life he gave.

Tell of that glorious Easter morn,
Empty the tomb, for he was free;
He broke the pow’r of death and hell
That we might share his victory.

Tell of his reign at God’s right hand,
By all creation glorified.
He send his Spirit on his Church
To live for him, the Lamb who died.

Now we rejoice to name him King:
Jesus is Lord of all the earth.
This gospel-message we proclaim:
We sing his glory, tell his worth.

Words: Edward Joseph Burns (b. 1938)
Music: from William Gardiner’s ‘Sacred Melodies’ (1815)
Hymn Tune: FULDA

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

Amen.

The Greeting

Grace, mercy and peace
from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ
be with you

and also with you.

Words of Welcome

Invitation to Confession

Jesus said:
Before you offer your gift,
go and be reconciled.
As brothers and sisters in God’s family,
we come together to ask our Father for forgiveness.

Silence is kept.

Father eternal, giver of light and grace,
we have sinned against you and against our neighbour,
in what we have thought,
in what we have said and done,
through ignorance, through weakness,
through our own deliberate fault.
We have wounded your love,
and marred your image in us.
We are sorry and ashamed,
and repent of all our sins.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
who died for us,
forgive us all that is past;
and lead us out from darkness
to walk as children of light.
Amen.

May almighty God have mercy on you,
forgive you your sins,
and bring you to everlasting life.

Amen.

Gloria in Excelsis

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.

The Collect

The president introduces a period of silent prayer with the words ‘Let us pray’.

Faithful Lord,
whose steadfast love never ceases
and whose mercies never come to an end:
grant us the grace to trust you
and to receive the gifts of your love,
new every morning,
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

The Liturgy of the Word

Please sit.

A reading from the book of Exodus.

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron. He took these from them, formed them in a mould, and cast an image of a calf, and they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it, and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.” They rose early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being, and the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to revel.

The Lord said to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’ ” The Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, and of you I will make a great nation.”

But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.

Exodus 32.1-14

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Please stand as the gradual hymn is sung. During the hymn a procession will make its way to the centre of the nave from where the Gospel for the day is read. To symbolise our desire to turn to Christ in our daily lives, at the end of the hymn we remain standing and turn to face the place where the Gospel is proclaimed.

Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with thee;
Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
As thou hast been thou for ever wilt be.

Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed thy hand hath provided,
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!

Sumer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
In thy great faithfulness, mercy and love

Great is thy faithfulness…

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is thy faithfulness…

Words: Thomas Obadiah Chisholm (1866-1960)
Music: William Marion Runyan (1870-1957)
Hymn Tune: FAITHFULNESS (RUNYAN)

Gospel Reading

Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.

Glory to you, O Lord.

Once more Jesus spoke to the chief priests and Pharisees in parables, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, “Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.” But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, maltreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, “The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.” Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, “Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen.’

Matthew 22.1-14

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon

Please sit after the preacher leads us in prayer.

The Nicene Creed

Please stand with the president.

Let us declare our faith in God.

We believe in God the Father,
from whom every family
in heaven and on earth is named.

We believe in God the Son,
who lives in our hearts through faith,
and fills us with his love.

We believe in God the Holy Spirit,
who strengthens us
with power from on high.

We believe in one God;
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Prayers of Intercession

Following an invitation to pray from the intercessor we kneel or sit to pray.

The response to the bidding:

Lord, in your mercy.

Hear our prayer.

then at the end:

Merciful Father,

accept these prayers
for the sake of your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.

The Liturgy of the Sacrament

Please stand with the president.

The Peace

We are the body of Christ.
In the one Spirit we were all baptised into one body.
Let us then pursue all that makes for peace
and builds up our common life.

The peace of the Lord be always with you

and also with you.

Let us offer one another a sign of peace.

This is usually a handshake shared with those near you.

Preparation of the Table

The table is prepared and bread and wine are placed upon it.

A hymn is sung. During this hymn a collection, our financial offering in support of the work of the Church both at St. Mary’s and across our diocese, is taken.

You can place cash or giving envelopes in the collection plates as they are passed around. If you would prefer, or if you miss the plate, you can also give by tapping your contactless card or device on the giving kiosk by the door as you leave, or on our donations page.

The King of love my shepherd is,
Whose goodness faileth never;
I nothing lack if I am his
And he is mine for ever.

Where streams of living waters flow
My ransomed soul he leadeth,
And where the verdant pastures grow
With food celestial feedeth.

Perverse and foolish oft I strayed,
But yet in love he sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.

In death’s dark vale I fear no ill
With thee, dear Lord, beside me;
Thy rod and staff my comfort still,
Thy cross before to guide me.

Thou spread’st a table in my sight,
Thy unction grace bestoweth:
And O what transport of delight
From thy pure chalice floweth.

And so through all the length of days
Thy goodness faileth never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing thy praise
Within thy house for ever.

Words: Henry Williams Baker (1821-1877)
based on Psalm 23
Music: John Bacchus Dykes (1823-1876)
Hymn Tune: DOMINUS REGIT ME

Taking of the Bread and Wine

As the grain once scattered in the fields
and the grapes once dispersed on the hillside
are now united on this table in bread and wine,
so, Lord, may your whole Church soon be gathered together
from the corners of the earth
into your kingdom.

Amen.

The Eucharistic Prayer (E)

Please kneel or sit.

The Lord is here.

His Spirit is with us.

Lift up your hearts.

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give thanks and praise.

Father, you made the world and love your creation.
You gave your Son Jesus Christ to be our Saviour.
His dying and rising have set us free from sin and death.
And so we gladly thank you,
with saints and angels praising you, and singing:

Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

We praise and bless you, loving Father,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord;
and as we obey his command,
send your Holy Spirit,
that broken bread and wine outpoured
may be for us the body and blood of your dear Son.
On the night before he died he had supper with his friends
and, taking bread, he praised you.
He broke the bread, gave it to them and said:
Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you;
do this in remembrance of me.
When supper was ended he took the cup of wine.
Again he praised you, gave it to them and said:
Drink this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.
So, Father, we remember all that Jesus did,
in him we plead with confidence his sacrifice
made once for all upon the cross.
Bringing before you the bread of life and cup of salvation,
we proclaim his death and resurrection
until he comes in glory.

Great is the mystery of faith;

Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.

Lord of all life,
help us to work together for that day
when your kingdom comes
and justice and mercy will be seen in all the earth.
Look with favour on your people,
gather us in your loving arms
and bring us with Blessed Mary.
Nichols Ridley, Hugh Latimer, Ignatius, Luke, Henry Martin
and all the saints
to feast at your table in heaven.
Through Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours, O loving Father,
for ever and ever.

Amen.

Silence is kept.

The Lord’s Prayer

Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us.

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,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Breaking of the Bread

The president breaks the consecrated bread.

We break this bread
to share in the body of Christ.

Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.

The Agnus Dei is sung as the bread is broken for distribution.

Jesus, Lamb of God,
have mercy on us.

Jesus, bearer of our sins,
have mercy on us.

Jesus, redeemer of the world,
grant us peace.

Invitation to Communion

God’s holy gifts
for God’s holy people.

Jesus Christ is holy,
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

The president and people receive communion. All baptised Christians are welcome to receive the sacrament. Please follow the guidance offered by the stewards.

If you are not baptised, or would prefer to not receive, then do still come forward for a blessing bringing this book with you so the president knows your intention.

The sacrament is available in both kinds, however if you wish to only receive the bread please do so and then return to your place. Receiving in one kind is still considered to be full communion by the Church of England. Please do not dip bread in the wine (sometimes called ‘intincting’).

For those at home it might be helpful to use this prayer during the distribution:

Beyond our understanding
you alone are God;
you speak to a world of brutal rule
and shallow indifference,
of arms fairs and reality shows:
may the one who came to sit at table
with the victimised and excluded
disturb our barren peace
and call us to another feast
where only love may rule;
through Jesus Christ, the bridegroom.
Amen.

Choir Anthem

‘The Lord is my shepherd’

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want;
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want;
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil:
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil:
For you are with me, you will comfort me,
You are with me, you will comfort me, comfort me.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life:
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Words: Psalm 23 from ‘The Scottish Psalter’ (1650)
Music: Howard Lindsay Goodall (b. 1958)

The following communion hymns may be sung during the distribution as time allows. Please remain seated.

Faithful Shepherd, feed me
In the pastures green;
Faithful Shepherd, lead me
Where thy steps are seen.

Hold me fast, and guide me
In the narrow way;
So, with thee beside me,
I shall never stray.

Daily bring me nearer
To the heav’nly shore;
May my faith grow clearer,
May I love thee more.

Hallow ev’ry pleasure,
Ev’ry gift and pain;
Be thyself my treasure,
Though none else I gain.

Day by day prepare me
As thou seest best,
Then let angels bear me
To thy promised rest. 

Words: Thomas Benson Pollock (1836-1696)
Music: Friedrich Silcher (1789-1860)
Hymn Tune: PASTOR PASTORUM

Abba, Father, let me be
Yours and yours alone.
May my will for ever be
More and more your own.
Never let my heart grow cold,
Never let me go.
Abba, Father, let me be
Yours and yours alone.

Words & Music: David Bilbrough (b. 1965)
Music arrangement: Christopher Tambling (1964-2015)

May the grace of Christ our Saviour,
And the Father’s boundless love,
With the Holy Spirit’s favour,
Rest upon us from above.

Thus may we abide in union
With each other and the Lord,
And possess, in sweet communion,
Joys which earth cannot afford.

Words: John Newton (1725-1807)
based on 2 Corinthians 13:14
Music: melody by Heinrich Albert (1604-1651)
adapted by Charles Steggall (1826-1905)
Hymn Tune: WALTHAM

The Post Communion Prayer

Please stand with the president who introduces a time of silent prayer with the words ‘Let us pray’.

Holy and blessed God,
you have fed us with the body and blood of your Son
and filled us with your Holy Spirit:

may we honour you,
not only with our lips
but in lives dedicated to the service
of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A hymn is sung.

Guide me, O thou great Redeemer,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
Hold me with thy pow’rful hand:
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more,
Feed me till I want no more.

Open now the crystal fountain
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through:
Strong deliv’rer, strong deliv’rer,
Be thou still my strength and shield,
Be thou still my strength and shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell’s destruction
Land me safe on Canaan’s side:
Songs of praises, songs of praises
I will ever give to thee,
I will ever give to thee.

Words: William Williams (1717-1791)
translated by Peter Williams (1727-1796) and others
 Music: John Hughes (1873-1932)
Hymn Tune: CWM RHONDDA

The Dismissal

The Blessing

God the Father,
by whose glory Christ was raised from the dead,
strengthen you to walk with him in his risen life;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always.

Amen.

The Dismissal

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

In the name of Christ. Amen.