Collect of the Day: Almighty and everlasting God, who hast it 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 me, the Trinity is a holy mystery that cannot be understood by mere mortals but accepted through faith; such that we worship one God in unity, comprised of three distinct persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, but consubstantial (being of the same substance), co-equal in glory, and co-eternal in majesty.
The Pentecost Window, Cathedral Church of All Saints, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Whitsunday and Embertide: The love of God hath been shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto us. -Romans 5. 5.
Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem and in all Judæa, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. -Acts 1. 8.
🕊🔥“And there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it rested upon each of them: and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” -Acts 2. 3-4
✝️“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” -John 14. 27
Psalms: 145
1st Lesson: Joel 2. 28-end
2nd Lesson: Romans 8. 1-17
Collect of the Day: 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.
Seeing that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. -Hebrews 4. 14, 16.
Psalms: 20, 21
1st Lesson: Isaiah 65. 17-end
2nd Lesson: Luke 24. 36-end
Collect of the Day: 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.
Don’t forget next Sunday is Whitsunday or Pentecost Sunday, being 50 days after Easter Day.
The Feast of the Ascension commemorates the ascension of Jesus into heaven forty days after the Resurrection.
Of the seven Principal Feasts of the Anglican Church of Canada, the Feast of the Ascension is one that is no longer commonly observed (the other Principal Feasts being Easter, Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, All Saints, Christmas, and Epiphany).
Seeing that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. -Hebrews 4. 14, 16.
Collect: 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 continually dwell; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Ascension Day illustration by Enid M. Chadwick from My Book of the Church’s Year (1948)
Today is Rogation Monday. The Rogation Days being the three days before Ascension Day.
For many centuries the Rogation Days have been designated as days of special prayer and supplication (“rogare”) for the “seeds sown.”
The Collect: Assist us mercifully, O Lord, in these our supplications and prayers, and dispose the way of thy servants towards the attainment of everlasting salvation; that, among all the changes and chances of this mortal life, they may ever be defended by thy most gracious and ready help; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
🌾 Prayer for Agriculture: Almighty and merciful God, from whom cometh every good and perfect gift: Bless, we beseech thee, the labours of thy people, and cause the earth to bring forth her fruits abundantly in their season, that we may with grateful hearts again give thanks to thee for the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
🐟 Prayer for Fisheries: O Almighty God, who hast made the sea, and all that move therein: Bestow thy blessing on the harvest of the waters, that it may be abundant in its season, and on our sailors and fishermen, that they may be safe in every peril of the deep; so that we all with thankful hearts may acknowledge thee, who art Lord of the sea and of the dry land; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
🌤 Prayer for Seasonable Weather: O God, heavenly Father, who through thy Son Jesus Christ hast promised to them that seek first thy kingdom and righteousness all things necessary to their bodily sustenance: Send us, we beseech thee, such seasonable weather that we may receive the fruits of the earth to our comfort and to thy honour; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Rogationtide illustration by Enid M. Chadwick from My Book of the Church’s Year (1948)
Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. -1 Corinthians 15. 57.
Rogation Days are the three days preceding Ascension Day, especially devoted to asking for God’s blessing on agriculture and industry. The Sunday preceding the Rogation Days is known as Rogation Sunday.
Psalms: 46, 63
1st Lesson: Deuteronomy 34
2nd Lesson: Acts 13. 26-43
Collect of the Day: 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 our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. -1 Corinthians 15. 57.
Psalms: 126, 127, 128
1st Lesson: Exodus 34. 1-10
2nd Lesson: 1 Peter 3. 8-end
Collect of the Day: 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 Battle of the Atlantic was the longest continuous battle of the Second World War, of which the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force played an essential part. Convoys laden with essential supplies crossed the Atlantic escorted by corvettes, frigates, and destroyers. The U-boat threat was all-around and waiting to pick off valuable ships by torpedoes. But this was a no-fail task; if the convoys failed to get through, the war effort would grind to a halt. There were several dark moments during the Battle of the Atlantic, but in the end, the Allied effort prevailed and victory was achieved.
Mariners of all nations have one common foe at sea, not that of fellow man, but of storms and the raging seas, which never gives up the dead. Today, we humbly pray as many sailors have done before us. We ask for God’s blessing when we proceed to sea, that families and friends do not worry for those at sea, that we may be granted favourable weather, and a safe return to home port. Grant us peace from our enemies, and within ourselves, free from fear, suffering, and worry; a peace that only God can grant us. Amen.
Psalm 107:23-31 They that go down to the sea in ships, / and occupy their business on the great waters; These men see the works of the Lord, / and his wonders in the deep. For at his word the stormy wind ariseth, / which lifteth up the waves thereof. They are carried up to the heaven, and down again to the deep: / their soul melteth away because of the trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, / and are at their wits’ end. So they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, / and he delivereth them from their distress. For he maketh the storm to cease, / so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad, because they are at rest; / and so he bringeth them unto the haven where they would be. O that men would therefore praise the Lord for his goodness, / and declare the wonders that he doeth for the children of men!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, / and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, / world without end. Amen.
We pray all sailors lost at sea in the line of duty, at and in war. Grant them peace and rest eternal, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them. We also pray for their families and loved ones of the departed, may they find peace in the absence of the lost.
⚓️ The Naval Prayer: O Eternal Lord God, who alone spreadest out the heavens, and rulest the raging of the sea; who hast compassed the waters with bounds until day and night come to an end: Be pleased to receive into thy Almighty and most gracious protection the persons of us thy servants, and the Fleet in which we serve. Preserve us from the dangers of the sea, and from the violence of the enemy; that we may be a safeguard unto our most gracious Sovereign Lady, Queen Elizabeth, and her Dominions, and a security for such as pass on the seas upon their lawful occasions; that the inhabitants of our Commonwealth may in peace and quietness serve thee our God; and that we may return in safety to enjoy the blessings of the land, with the fruits of our labours; and with a thankful remembrance of thy mercies to praise and glorify thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
High Anglican Haligonian 