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The First Sunday of Advent

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    The Collect of the Day

    First Sunday of Advent

    Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

    Psalms

    146

    Lauda, anima meaBCP p. 803

    1Hallelujah! Praise the Lord, O my soul! *I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

    2Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth, *for there is no help in them.

    3When they breathe their last, they return to earth, *and in that day their thoughts perish.

    4Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help! *whose hope is in the Lord their God;

    5Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; *who keeps his promise for ever;

    6Who gives justice to those who are oppressed, *and food to those who hunger.

    7The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind; *the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;

    8The Lord loves the righteous; the Lord cares for the stranger; *he sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way of the wicked.

    9The Lord shall reign for ever, *your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Hallelujah!

    147

    Laudate DominumBCP p. 804

    1Hallelujah! How good it is to sing praises to our God! *how pleasant it is to honor him with praise!

    2The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; *he gathers the exiles of Israel.

    3He heals the brokenhearted *and binds up their wounds.

    4He counts the number of the stars *and calls them all by their names.

    5Great is our Lord and mighty in power; *there is no limit to his wisdom.

    6The Lord lifts up the lowly, *but casts the wicked to the ground.

    7Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; *make music to our God upon the harp.

    8He covers the heavens with clouds *and prepares rain for the earth;

    9He makes grass to grow upon the mountains *and green plants to serve mankind.

    10He provides food for flocks and herds *and for the young ravens when they cry.

    11He is not impressed by the might of a horse; *he has no pleasure in the strength of a man;

    12But the Lord has pleasure in those who fear him, *in those who await his gracious favor.

    13Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem; *praise your God, O Zion;

    14For he has strengthened the bars of your gates; *he has blessed your children within you.

    15He has established peace on your borders; *he satisfies you with the finest wheat.

    16He sends out his command to the earth, *and his word runs very swiftly.

    17He gives snow like wool; *he scatters hoarfrost like ashes.

    18He scatters his hail like bread crumbs; *who can stand against his cold?

    19He sends forth his word and melts them; *he blows with his wind, and the waters flow.

    20He declares his word to Jacob, *his statutes and his judgments to Israel.

    21He has not done so to any other nation; *to them he has not revealed his judgments. Hallelujah!

    Daily Office Readings

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    1 Thess. 5:1-11

    1 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! 4 But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; 5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. 6 So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; 7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

    Luke 21:5-19

    5 When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, 6 “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.” 7 They asked him, “Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” 8 And he said, “Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is near!’ Do not go after them. 9 “When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.” 10 Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; 11 there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven. 12 “But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. 13 This will give you an opportunity to testify. 14 So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; 15 for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. 17 You will be hated by all because of my name. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By your endurance you will gain your souls.

    Amos 1:1-5,13-2:8

    1 The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of King Uzziah of Judah and in the days of King Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel, two years before the earthquake. 2 And he said: The Lord roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem; the pastures of the shepherds wither, and the top of Carmel dries up. 3 Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing sledges of iron. 4 So I will send a fire on the house of Hazael, and it shall devour the strongholds of Ben-hadad. 5 I will break the gate bars of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitants from the Valley of Aven, and the one who holds the scepter from Beth-eden; and the people of Aram shall go into exile to Kir, says the Lord. 13 Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of the Ammonites, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they have ripped open pregnant women in Gilead in order to enlarge their territory. 14 So I will kindle a fire against the wall of Rabbah, fire that shall devour its strongholds, with shouting on the day of battle, with a storm on the day of the whirlwind; 15 then their king shall go into exile, he and his officials together, says the Lord. 1 Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because he burned to lime the bones of the king of Edom. 2 So I will send a fire on Moab, and it shall devour the strongholds of Kerioth, and Moab shall die amid uproar, amid shouting and the sound of the trumpet; 3 I will cut off the ruler from its midst, and will kill all its officials with him, says the Lord. 4 Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they have rejected the law of the Lord, and have not kept his statutes, but they have been led astray by the same lies after which their ancestors walked. 5 So I will send a fire on Judah, and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem. 6 Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals— 7 they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth, and push the afflicted out of the way; father and son go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; 8 they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink wine bought with fines they imposed.