Athanasian Creed

Athanasian Creed:

For use at Morning Prayer upon these Feasts:

Christmas Day, the Epiphany, Saint Matthias, Easter Day, Ascension Day, Whitsunday, Saint John Baptist, Saint James, Saint Bartholomew, Saint Matthew, Saint Simon and Saint Jude, Saint Andrew, and upon Trinity Sunday, shall be sung or said at Morning Prayer, instead of the Apostles' Creed, this Confession of our Christian Faith, commonly called the Creed of Athanasius, by the Minister and people standing.

Quicunque vult

WHOSOEVER will be saved : before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholick Faith.

      Which Faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled : without doubt he shall perish

       everlastingly.

      And the Catholick Faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity;

      Neither confounding the Persons : nor dividing the Substance.

      For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son : and another of the Holy Ghost.

      But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is all one : the Glory equal,

      the Majesty co-eternal.

      Such as the Father is, such is the Son : and such is the Holy Ghost.

      The Father uncreate, the Son uncreate : and the Holy Ghost uncreate.

      The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible : and the Holy Ghost

      incomprehensible.

      The Father eternal, the Son eternal : and the Holy Ghost eternal.

      And yet they are not three eternals : but one eternal.

      As also there are not three incomprehensibles, nor three uncreated : but one uncreated, and

      one incomprehensible.

      So likewise the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty : and the Holy Ghost Almighty.

      And yet they are not three Almighties : but one Almighty.

      So the Father is God, the Son is God : and the Holy Ghost is God.

      And yet they are not three Gods : but one God.

      So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord : and the Holy Ghost Lord.

      And yet not three Lords : but one Lord.

      For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by himself

      to be both God and Lord;

      So are we forbidden by the Catholick Religion : to say, There be three Gods, or three Lords.

      The Father is made of none : neither created, nor begotten.

      The Son is of the Father alone : not made, nor created, but begotten.

      The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son : neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but

      proceeding. So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons : one Holy

      Ghost, not three Holy Ghosts.

      And in this Trinity none is afore, or after other : none is greater, or less than another;

      But the whole three Persons are co-eternal together : and co-equal.

      So that in all things, as is aforesaid : the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be

      worshipped.

      He therefore that will be saved : must think thus of the Trinity.

      Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation : that he also believe rightly the

      Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

      For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess : that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of

      God, is God and Man;

      God, of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds : and Man of the substance of

      His Mother, born in the world;

      Perfect God and perfect Man : of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.

      Equal to the Father, as touching his Godhead : and inferior to the Father, as touching his

      manhood;

      Who, although he be God and Man : yet he is not two, but one Christ;

      One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh : but by taking of the Manhood into God;

      One altogether; not by confusion of Substance : but by unity of Person.

      For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man : so God and Man is one Christ;

      Who suffered for our salvation : descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead.

      He ascended into heaven, he sitteth at the right hand of the Father, God Almighty : from

      whence he will come to judge the quick and the dead.

      At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies : and shall give account for their   

      own works.

      And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting : and they that have done evil into

      everlasting fire.

      This is the Catholick Faith : which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be saved.

      Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;.

      As it was in the beginning, is now, and every shall be: world without end. Amen.

Creed link: http://www.churchsociety.org/issues_new/doctrine/bcp/text/iss_doctrine_bcp_text_athanasiancreed.asp



About the Athanasian Creed:

The Athanasian Creed

Damned if you don't

Article originally printed in Cross†Way Summer 2004 No.93

You could be excused for forgetting that the Church of England receives and believes three Creeds.  The third, the Athanasian Creed, has been virtually erased from most churches and dropped from modern liturgy books (except of course An English Prayer Book - Church Society/OUP 1994).
This third creed has faced many problems. First, because, despite its name it has long been accepted that it does not seem to have been produced by Athanasius. Secondly, it is rather too long and even when all churches used the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) most did not use the Athanasian Creed on the 13 Sundays which the rubrics require. Thirdly, it is too definite in its pronouncements and finally because of its language of damnation.

This last problem, surrounding the statements made about salvation, is a major stumbling block and not simply to theological liberals.

At the beginning, twice in the middle and once at the end the Creed makes assertions of what it is necessary to believe in order to be saved. If we assert that salvation comes through faith in Christ alone then surely this Creed is going too far. It seems to be saying that unless you hold particular
views about particular doctrines, such as the Trinity, then you cannot be saved. This seems to make our knowledge rather than Christ the grounds of our salvation.

The problem is compounded by the fact that the Creed seems to require us to accept truths which are far more detailed than we read straight from the pages of Scripture. How can we expect to say that we fully accept and believe what is said in this Creed? Should we send all enquirers to do a
theology degree in order that they can fully hold this faith?

One solution to this problem is to draw attention to the fact the Creed does not say that we must believe this faith, but rather that we must hold it. C.S. Lewis no less in his introduction to a translation of Athansius' Incarnation of the Word sought to defend the statement:

The operative word is keep; not acquire, or even believe, but keep. The author, in fact, is not talking about unbelievers, but about deserters, not about those who have never heard of Christ, nor even those who have misunderstood and refused to accept him, but of those who having really
understood and really believed, then allow themselves, under the sway of sloth or of fashion or any other invited confusion to be drawn away into sub-Christian modes of thought. They are a warning against the curious modern assumption that all changes of belief however brought about, are necessarily exempt from blame.

The problem with this position is that the Creed does in fact use the word believe, twice. The difficult clauses from the BCP translation are as follows:

WHOSOEVER will be saved : before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholick Faith.  He therefore that will be saved : must think thus of the Trinity.  Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation : that he also believe rightly the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is the Catholick Faith : which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be saved.

A further argument that has been advanced concerns translation. Our BCP is based on a Latin text. The argument is that this particular Latin text was a translation of a Greek text by people who thought that the Greek was original (Athanasius wrote in Greek) whereas it appears that the oldest
form of the Creed was in fact Latin, a different Latin version. Confused? I have not been able to confirm the details of this argument. Nevertheless, it does not help greatly since as Anglicans we have been bold to affirm that this Creed 'may be proved from by most certain warrants of holy
Scripture'. Is Article 8 wrong? Should we change it?

Saving faith
The Creed is certainly difficult at first sight but it is worth reflecting on the nature of saving faith. Reformed Christians has always distinguished three dimensions to saving faith; Knowledge (noticia), Assent (assensus) and Fiducia (faith=trust).

These three aspects of faith are illustrated in John chapter 14. There we find Jesus speaking to His disciples about who He is. That is, He is speaking about the facts of our faith, the knowledge that underlies saving faith. Jesus then asks Philip directly if he believes this (Jn 14.10). This is when knowledge becomes personal. I as an individual must own these facts; I must assent to them. But Jesus begins the discourse by telling the disciples, do not be troubled, 'believe also in me'. Some modern translations do render this 'trust also in me'. This is where saving faith goes beyond mere assent, it involves us actually casting ourself on the Saviour, clinging to Him as the sole grounds of salvation. It is a relationship of trust and dependence, like little children (Mk 10.15).

Saving faith is only saving faith when it is owned and turns into a real relationship of trust and dependence. But underlying it is a bedrock of facts. Sadly, there are people who believe it is possible to have faith without facts. Faith becomes some abstract virtue, the opposite of doubt, but they would see the attempt to tie faith to facts as a contradiction. This is not biblical faith. True saving faith is based on facts.

The Creeds are concerned primarily with knowledge. In liturgical useage they are to be assented to (for which reason the 'I believe' format is far more appropriate) but they are first and foremost statements of the grounds of our faith.

The act of believing is simple, it involves assent and trusting in Christ. But should the facts of our faith also be plain and simple. Do the Creeds actually create a barrier to real faith? Consider one of the key facts with which the Lord Jesus confronted Philip. Do you not believe that I am in the
Father, and the Father in Me?

If Jesus said this to you would you assent to it? If not then you do not truly believe in Him. But if you do assent to it, can you say that you really understand it? Certainly you can say the words, you might even have a decent shot at explaining it, but do you really understand its depths? We accept its truth because this is what Jesus actually taught and demonstrated. But, surely we can do no more than scratch the surface of what this incredible truth means, and yet, if this statement were not
true our faith would be futile, built on sand. More importantly for our purpose if we refuse to believe and hold onto this truth, no matter how much beyond our understanding it may be, our salvation actually crumbles. It was for this reason that Athansius and others fought hard to uphold the Nicene Creed and indeed the truths which are reflected in the Creed that bears Athansius' name.

Trinity
What does it mean to say Jesus is in the Father and the Father in Him? The Scriptures reveal and the church came to accept and to teach that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one, and yet distinct. The first half of the Athanasian Creed sets this out in elaborate (almost painful) detail. It
is possible to fall from this path in many places.

Some err by asserting that Christ is not divine. This makes Christianity idolatrous as many have accused it of being. But also it means that Jesus is simply one of us, He is no more able to save than we are. He could be a good example (but, since in this case he had decieved people, he would
not be a very good example). He could certainly not be the Saviour.

Or, suppose you assert that there are three deities; three Gods called Father, Son and Spirit. (This is Arianism.) If this were so, how can the Son be the Saviour? The Saviour must be one with the Father because 'none other could create anew the likeness of God's image for me except the Image of the Father, none could render the mortal immortal except the Lord Jesus Christ who is Life itself' (Athanasius : The Incarnation 20.1)

Suppose, in contrast, you assert that God is One and that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, are merely manifestations of the One God. (There are many variations on this theme including Monarchianism and Sabellianism.) This view makes a mockery of the language of scripture and
was condemned in the early Church because it means that God suffered and died on the cross. But it also presents us with a God who we cannot truly know because He is first one thing and then another. Each encounter is with a character, a persona, not with the real thing. Moreover, the love
of the Father for the Son becomes simply love of self.

The Athanasian Creed teaches forcefully and at great length that we worship one God in three Persons.

Two naturesWhat are we then to conclude about Jesus, if He is truly divine, the Son of God, in what way is He human? This is dealt with in the second half of the Athanasian Creed.

If Jesus is not human at all then how can He save us?  Since He cannot represent us, He is not the second Adam. If Jesus is human and divine in what way do the human and divine come together in Him?

Perhaps the eternal Son takes over and replaces part of the human being in the union. The chief theory in this camp being that the divine mind replaced the human one (Appolinarianism). But the resulting being is less than human, He is not one of us. How can the divine mind have truly known
temptation? He cannot save us. Moreover, this view encourages people to think that the human mind is not important in salvation.

A further view is that in the incarnation the divine and human nature become merely one nature (Eutychianism). However, this means that salvation does not involve the saving of human nature, but its destruction. This view rears its head in many forms of mysticism both ancient and modern.

Through this minefield the Athanasian Creed treads upholding that there is in Christ 'perfect God, and perfect Man', 'yet he is not two, but one Christ.'

The only Saviour
The argument of the Christians in the early centuries was that all these alternative views were not just inadequate, but that they were contrary to Scripture and that they changed the nature and fact of salvation. Therefore, to assert some of the alternatives is to actually trust in a being who is not able to save and, in fact, does not exist.

If the Lord Jesus Christ is not God, the eternal Son of God, fully man and fully divine, as the catholic faith asserts Him to be, then He is not able to save us. To deny and to turn away from this truth is therefore to deny the very grounds of our salvation and so we cannot be saved.

Therefore, although the language of the Creed is strong and perhaps unpalatable to modern Christians, the Creeds reminds us of truths which we must not forget; we can only be saved because our faith rests on a Saviour who is able to save; the Lord Jesus Christ who is in the Father,
and the Father in Him.

Article Link: http://www.churchsociety.org/issues_new/doctrine/creeds/iss_doctrine_creeds_athanasianabout.asp

The Athanasian Creed

This creed is named after Athanasius (A.D. 293-373), the champion of orthodoxy against Arian attacks on the doctrine of the trinity. Although Athanasius did not write this creed and it is improperly named after him, the name persists because until the seventeenth century it was commonly ascribed to him. It is not from Greek (Eastern), but from Latin (Western) origin, and is not recognized by the Eastern Orthodox Church today. Apart from the opening and closing sentences, this creed consists of two parts, the first setting forth the orthodox doctrine of the trinity, and the second dealing chiefly with the incarnation and the two-natures doctrine. The translation above was adopted by the CRC Synod of 1988.

Link: http://www.crcna.org/pages/athanasian_creed.cfm

One of the symbols of the Faith approved by the Church and given a place in her liturgy, is a short, clear exposition of the doctrines of the Trinity and the Incarnation, with a passing reference to several other dogmas. Unlike most of the other creeds, or symbols, it deals almost exclusively with these two fundamental truths, which it states and restates in terse and varied forms so as to bring out unmistakably the trinity of the Persons of God, and the twofold nature in the one Divine Person of Jesus Christ. At various points the author calls attention to the penalty incurred by those who refuse to accept any of the articles therein set down.

Link: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02033b.htm

About the Creed

This creed takes its name from Athanasius, the great theologian of the fourth century who defended Trinitarian teaching. However, the creed’s origin is uncertain, and many scholars believe that it comes from the fifth or sixth centuries because of its Western character.

The Athanasian Creed expresses two essential elements of Christian teaching: that God's Son and the Holy Spirit are of one being with the Father; and that Jesus Christ is true God and a true human being in one person. Traditionally it is considered the "Trinitarian Creed." In many congregations it is read aloud in corporate worship on Trinity Sunday, the Sunday after Pentecost.

Link: http://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Statements-of-Belief/The-Athanasian-Creed.aspx

ATHANASIAN CREED

This creed is named after St. Athanasius, a staunch defender of the Christian faith in the fourth century. It was prepared to assist the Church in combating two errors that undermined Bible teaching. One error denied that God's Son and the Holy Spirit are of one being or Godhead with the Father. The other error denied that Jesus Christ is true God and true man in one person. The Athanasian Creed continues to serve the Christian Church as a standard of the truth. It declares that whoever rejects the doctrine of the Trinity and the doctrine of Christ is without the saving faith.

Link: http://www.wels.net/what-we-believe/statements-beliefs/athanasian-creed

The Athanasian Creed

Quicumque: A Profession of Faith

By Scott P. Richert
The Athanasian Creed is traditionally ascribed to Saint Athanasius (296-373), from whom it takes its name. (It is also called the "Quicumque," which is the first word of the creed in Latin.) Like other creeds, such as the Apostles' Creed, it is a profession of the Christian faith; but it is also a full-fledged theology lesson, which is why it is the longest of the standard Christian creeds.

Saint Athanasius spent his life combating the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Christ by denying that there are three Persons in one God. Thus, the Athanasian Creed is very much concerned with the doctrine of the Trinity. Traditionally, it has been recited in churches on Trinity Sunday, the Sunday after Pentecost Sunday, though it is rarely read today.

Reading the Athanasian Creed privately or with your family is a good way to bring the celebration of Trinity Sunday home and to gain a deeper understanding of the mystery of the Blessed Trinity.

Link: http://catholicism.about.com/od/beliefsteachings/qt/Athanasia_Creed.htm



Athanasian Creed:

History

The origin of the Athanasian Creed is unknown. As the name suggests, the Creed was originally ascribed to Athanasius—the great “father of Nicene orthodoxy”—as early as the ninth century. However, since the seventeenth century, the document has been regarded as conclusively non- Athanasian for several reasons:

1. Athanasius never mentioned the Creed anywhere in his writings. 
2. The councils of Constantinople (381), Ephesus (431), and Chalcedon (451) do not refer to the document. 
3. Athanasius died in 373, so it is very likely that it would have been written before then.

Because it was original attributed to Athanasius, the Athanasian Creed had considerable influence. The Creed was used by the Lutheran Churches and and many of the Reformed Churches, and was mentioned in the Augsburg Confession, the Formula of Concord, the Thirty- nine Articles, the Second Helvetic Confession, the Belgic Confession, and the Bohemian Confession (Philip Schaff, Creeds of Christendom).

According to Martin Luther (Works). the Athanasian Creed was “the most important and glorious composition since the days of the apostles.” However, it must also be noted that this Creed never achieved ecumenical status as the Greek Church rejected its assertion of the double procession of the spirit (filioque).

Content

The Athanasian Creed consists of forty-four articles, which are divided into three parts. The first part is about the doctrine of the Trinity, while the second defends a Chalcedonian Christology. The third part of the Creed consists of a set of damnatory clauses, asserting that any who will be saved must adhere to the teachings of the Creed.

The Athanasian Creed reads like a summary of the first four ecumenical councils (Nicaea, Constantinople, Ephesus, and Chalcedon).

This creed is an example of how the church, throughout history, has a concern for the great truths of the faith.

Regarding the Trinity, the Athanasian Creed sets out a strict metaphysical formula that leaves no room for any subordination of the Son to the Father or the Holy Spirit to either the Father or the Son. The Creed makes use of the language of “person” in a way that avoids Sabellianism on the one hand and Tritheism on the other.

The Athanasian Creed avoids Apollinarianism by stating that Christ has a rational soul, and sets forth the relationship between the human and divine nature of Christ in such a way as to avoid Nestorianism, Eutychianism, and Monophysitism.

It is likely that the Athanasian Creed was originally intended to be set to music, making it an impressive teaching tool for new converts. During the Middle Ages it is likely that this Creed was used almost daily in morning devotions among those in the Latin Church.

Contemporary Relevance

A statement like the Athanasian Creed should cause us to consider how robust our own denominational or church-based statements of faith are or are not. This creed is an example of how the church, throughout history, has a concern for the great truths of the faith. The Athanasian Creed was not merely an add-on to the appendix of a church constitution. Instead, the church connected the theology of the Creed to the daily life of faith. As such, the Athanasian Creed provides us with a beautiful example of the interplay between theology and worship.

Link: http://theresurgence.com/2011/07/16/the-athanasian-creed

Athanasian Creed (500 A.D.)

This creed is attributed to Athanasius, the fourth century bishop of Alexandria who was the strongest defender of the doctrines of the Trinity and the divinity of Christ.  It defines the doctrines of the Trinity and the nature of Christ in very concise language.

Please note that the term "catholic" with the lower case 'c' is not a reference to the Roman Catholic Church, but is a reference to the universal Christian faith, since that is how the term was originally used.

Link: http://carm.org/christianity/creeds-and-confessions/athanasian-creed-500-ad

Quicumque
Athanasian Creed

The Athanasian Creed, also know as the "Quicumque vult", was formerly recited at the office of Prime on Sundays. It is one of the four authoritative Creeds of the Catholic Church. The Anglican Church and some Protestant Churches also hold it to be authoritative. While the Creed has always been attributed to St. Athanasius (d 373 AD), it was unknown in the Eastern Churches until the 12th century and thus it is unlikely he is the author. St. Ambrose is one suggested author, but many authors have been proposed with no conclusive agreements reached. Current theory suggests it was composed in southern France in the 5th century. In 1940, the lost 'Excerpta' of St. Vincent of Lerins (flourished in 440: "quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus creditum est") was discovered, and this work contains much of the language of the Creed. Thus, either St. Vincent, or an admirer have been suggested as the author. The earliest known copy of the creed was included in a prefix to a collection of homilies by Caesarius of Arles (died 542).

Link: http://www.creeds.net/ancient/Quicumque.html

Project Canterbury

 

The "Damnatory Clauses" of the Athanasian Creed Rationally Explained In a Letter to the Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P.

 

By the Rev. Malcolm MacColl, M.A.Rector of St. George, Botolph Lane, with St. Botolph by Billingsgate

 

London: Rivingtons, 1872.

 

See the full text of the letter at the site below:

 

Letter text site link: http://anglicanhistory.org/scotland/maccoll/athanasian1872.html

Latin Version

Latin Version

S. ATHANASIUS / SYMBOLON QUICUMQUE

Quicumque vult salvus esse, ante omnia opus est, ut teneat catholicam fidem:
Quam nisi quisque integram inviolatamque servaverit, absque dubio in aeternam peribit.
Fides autem catholica haec est: ut unum Deum in Trinitate, et Trinitatem in unitate veneremur.
Neque confundentes personas, neque substantiam seperantes.
Alia est enim persona Patris alia Filii, alia Spiritus Sancti:
Sed Patris, et Fili, et Spiritus Sancti una est divinitas, aequalis gloria, coeterna maiestas.
Qualis Pater, talis Filius, talis Spiritus Sanctus. Increatus Pater, increatus Filius, increatus Spiritus Sanctus.
Immensus Pater, immensus Filius, immensus Spiritus Sanctus.
Aeternus Pater, aeternus Filius, aeternus Spiritus Sanctus.
Et tamen non tres aeterni, sed unus aeternus.
Sicut non tres increati, nec tres immensi, sed unus increatus, et unus immensus.
Similiter omnipotens Pater, omnipotens Filius, omnipotens Spiritus Sanctus.
Et tamen non tres omnipotentes, sed unus omnipotens.
Ita Deus Pater, Deus Filius, Deus Spiritus Sanctus.
Et tamen non tres dii, sed unus est Deus.
Ita Dominus Pater, Dominus Filius, Dominus Spiritus Sanctus.
Et tamen non tres Domini, sed unus est Dominus.
Quia, sicut singillatim unamquamque personam Deum ac Dominum confiteri christiana veritate compelimur: ita tres Deos aut Dominos dicere catholica religione prohibemur.
Pater a nullo est factus: nec creatus, nec genitus.
Filius a Patre solo est: non factus, nec creatus, sed genitus.
Spiritus Sanctus a Patre et Filio: non factus, nec creatus, nec genitus, sed procedens.
Unus ergo Pater, non tres Patres: unus Filius, non tres Filii: unus Spiritus Sanctus, non tres Spiritus Sancti.
Et in hac Trinitate nihil prius aut posterius, nihil maius aut minus: sed totae tres personae coaeternae sibi sunt et coaequales.
Ita ut per omnia, sicut iam supra dictum est, et unitas in Trinitate, et Trinitas in unitate veneranda sit.
Qui vult ergo salvus esse, ita de Trinitate sentiat.
Sed necessarium est ad aeternam salutem, ut incarnationem quoque Domini nostri Iesu Christi fideliter credat.
Est ergo fides recta ut credamus et confiteamur, quia Dominus noster Iesus Christus, Dei Filius, Deus et homo est.
Deus est ex substantia Patris ante saecula genitus: et homo est ex substantia matris in saeculo natus.
Perfectus Deus, perfectus homo: ex anima rationali et humana carne subsistens.
Aequalis Patri secundum divinitatem: minor Patre secundum humanitatem.
Qui licet Deus sit et homo, non duo tamen, sed unus est Christus.
Unus autem non conversione divinitatis in carnem, sed assumptione humanitatis in Deum.
Unus omnino, non confusione substantiae, sed unitate personae.
Nam sicut anima rationalis et caro unus est homo: ita Deus et homo unus est Christus.
Qui passus est pro salute nostra: descendit ad inferos: tertia die resurrexit a mortuis.
Ascendit ad caelos, sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis: inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos.
Ad cuius adventum omnes homines resurgere habent cum corporibus suis: et reddituri sunt de factis propriis rationem.
Et qui bona egerunt, ibunt in vitam aeternam: qui vero mala, in ignem aeternum.
Haec est fides catholica, quam nisi quisque fideliter firmiterque crediderit, salvus esse non poterit. Amen.

---

Latin Creed link: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/quicumque.asp

Whitsunday (Pentecost)

Whitsunday, often called 'White Sunday', falls on the 7th Sunday after Easter, or the 50th day.
Traditionally, it was associated with the white worn by those seeking baptism on this day. It has also been linked to white, the colour of purity, associated with the coming (purifying power) of the Holy Spirit over the Apostles on that Jewish Feast of Pentecost.

It has been called various things: the Birthday of the Church, as it was the completion (fulfillment) of Christ's commissioning of the Apostles; also, one of the 'bookends' of the Church, the other being the Annunciation.

Image link: http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2010/05/confusion-of-babel-and-unity-of.html



What is Pentecost? Whitsunday?

"You have heard of Passover.  That was the time of the founding of the Hebrew People as a nation.  This time called Pentecost is an elaboration on Passover and the Exodus.  It was very significant to the Hebrew people in the time of Jesus.  It was a holy time that had grown up from their roots in Egypt more than 1200 years before.

The Pentecost was also known as the Feast of the Ingathering from Exodus 23:16 and the Day of the First Fruits from Numbers 28:26.  It is also associated with the Giving of the Torah and the revelation at Sinai.  The timing was deduced from Exodus 19:1-2.  So there is a lot of history and tradition included in the Feast of Weeks that is seven weeks and a day, the beginning argued about for centuries in the Sanhedrin with the Pharisees saying that the “morrow of the Sabbath” was the second day after the first day of Passover and the Sadducees saying that it was the first Sunday after the first day of Passover.  Generally the Jews accepted the Pharisees’ interpretation in Jesus time.

In our calendar you can see the run of weeks and counting Easter Sunday, until the end of the seven weeks it is 49 days through the Saturday and then the 50^th day is the Sunday we call Pentecost today. In Christian history the timing has had some variation since there were several interpretations of when Easter was to be celebrated.  Some of that variation is due to when the Spring Full Moon occurs.  The several ancient ecclesiastical calendars used to find that day are not exactly the same as the astronomic tables used today.  But they are close enough.  There is still, today, a difference in timing in Eastern Rite Churches and Western Rite.

But it is still the fifty days.

In Britain the day was long known as Whitsunday.  That was due to the celebration of baptisms on that Sunday from time dimly perceived in Christian history from about 350.  The day was more closely observed after the arrival in Kent of Augustine in 597.  Kentish King Ethelbert had married a Christian Frank and he tolerated these new Romans and allowed Augustine and his monks to use a church on the east of Canterbury, Saint Martin’s.  That church is the earliest place of Christian worship in Britain still in use, dating from the Roman occupation.  At the time there was dissension in the church in Britain and Augustine saw it as a major field for mission to bring the British Church into a union of form and practice.

The celebration of Whitsunday was at various times in the land as were Easter and Epiphany.  Each cult within the church saw its way as being the true way.  The Celtic Church calculated Easter its way and that was not in line with Canterbury.  There were many other disagreements so that finally in 664, King Oswy persuaded the leaders of the churches to come together at a council in Whitby and under his guidance they hammered out agreement in many things that affected the churches in the island.  One of the agreements set the date of Easter according to that used at Canterbury to be used throughout the island.

Whitsunday then was celebrated in all of Britain on the same day and as in the past it was the day for baptisms in all the land.  That the catechumens wore white that day, and the churches were decorated with white on that day, that day came to be known as White Sunday, Whitsunday.

From Holy Scripture that takes note of this day in the Book of Acts chapter 2, we receive the story of the beginning of the Church.  Remember that the ascended Lord sent the Spirit (in accord with the prophecy of Joel) as told us in Acts 2:16-21 and the crowds witnessed the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the apostles and some 120 disciples.  Just as at Sinai, God Addressed Moses from the midst of fire, so the Spirit of the Lord was made manifest in the tongues of fire.  Luke, who wrote the book, saw the universality of the Christian message and the truth of the Spirit forming the Church among all peoples through the discourse of Peter which was understood by men of different nationalities.

This year we celebrate Pentecost on May 27.  Wear red."

Thomas J. Mowlam, Wednesday of Rogation Week, 2012

Information site link: http://www.stpeterslv.org/what_is_pentecost.htm

 

St. Paul's Cathedral Choir sings Come Holy Ghost Our Souls Inspire.

Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQI-Lnx_7-Q




Scriptural Readings:

INTROIT.  Ps 68:1-6 
LET God arise, and let his enemies be scattered: / let them also that hate him flee before him.
2 Like as the smoke vanisheth, so shalt thou drive them away; / and like as wax melteth at the fire, so let the ungodly perish at the presence of God.
3 But let the righteous be glad and rejoice before God: / let them also be merry and joyful.
Ant.   O sing unto God, and sing praises unto his Name: / magnify him that rideth upon the heavens; praise him in his Name JAH, and rejoice before him.
5 He is a Father of the fatherless, and defendeth the cause of the widows: / even God in his holy habitation.
6 He is the God that giveth the desolate a home to dwell in, and bringeth the prisoners out of captivity; / but the rebellious dwell in scarceness.
Glory be. Repeat Antiphon.

GRADUAL.  Ps 68:7-10*    
7 O God, when thou wentest forth before the people, / when thou wentest through the wilderness,
8 The earth shook, and the heavens poured down rain at the presence of God: / Sinai also quaked at the presence of God, who is the God of Israel.
9 Thou, O God, sentest a gracious rain upon thine inheritance, / and refreshedst it when it was weary.
10 Thy congregation shall dwell therein; / for thou, O God, of thy goodness didst provide for the poor.
* During Eastertide, Alleluia is said twice before the psalm portion, and once after the last verse.  It may be said after each verse.

THE ANTHEM.  
O SING unto the Lord a new song; / for he hath done marvellous things.                                                                            Psalm 98.1
Christ, being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, / hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.               Acts 2.33
And because ye are sons, / God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father.           Galatians 4.6
We all, with open face / beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord,
Are changed into the same image from glory to glory, / even as by the Spirit of the Lord.                                2 Corinthians 3.18
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
 

THE COLLECT.  
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.

The Collect of Pentecost is to be used daily until Trinity Sunday.    

The following additional Collect may be used on Whitsunday and the six days following.
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.

THE LESSON.   Acts 2. 1.
WHEN the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.  And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.  Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.  And they were all amazed, and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans?  And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?  Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.

THE GOSPEL.  S. John 14. 15. 
JESUS said unto his disciples, If ye love me, keep my commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.  I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you.  Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.  Judas saith unto him, (not Iscariot,) Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.  He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.  These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.  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.
The Canadian BCP Gospel ends here, but the BCP 1662 continues... 
Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you.  If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.  Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.  But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.

Readings Link: http://www.lectionarycentral.com/pentecost/pentecost.html

Sermon:

Sermon 20: The Visible Templeby John Henry Newman

"Whether is greater, the gold, or the Temple that sanctifieth the gold?" Mark xxiii. 17.A TEMPLE there has been upon earth, a spiritual Temple, made up of living stones, a Temple, as I may say, composed of souls; a Temple with God for its Light, and Christ for the High Priest, with wings of Angels for its arches, with Saints and Teachers for its pillars, and with worshippers for its pavement; such a Temple has been on earth ever since the Gospel was first preached. This unseen, secret, mysterious, spiritual Temple exists every where, throughout the kingdom of Christ, in all places, as perfect in one place as if it were not in another. Wherever there is faith and love, this Temple is; faith and love, with the Name of Christ, are as heavenly charms and spells, to make present to us this Divine Temple, in every part of Christ's kingdom. This Temple is invisible, but it is perfect and real because it is invisible, and gains nothing in perfection by possessing visible tokens. There needs no outward building to meet the eye, in order to make it more of a Temple than it already is in itself. God, and Christ, and Angels, and souls, are not these a heavenly court, all perfect, to which this world can add nothing? Though faithful Christians worship without splendour, without show, in a homely and rude way, still their worship is as acceptable to God, as excellent, as holy, as though they worshipped in the public view of men, and with all the glory and riches of the world.

Such was the Church in its beginnings; "built upon the foundation of Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone," "builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." In the Apostles' lifetime it was poor and persecuted, and the holy Temple was all but invisible. There were no edifying rites, no various ceremonies, no rich music, no high Cathedrals, no mystic vestments, no solemn altars, no stone, or marble, or metals, or jewels, or woods of cost, or fine linen, to signify outwardly, and to honour duly, the heavenly Temple in which we stand and serve. The place where our Lord and Saviour first celebrated the holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, was the upper room of a house, hired too or used for the occasion [Note 2]; that in which the Apostles and the holy women waited for the promised coming of the Comforter, was also "an upper room;" [Note 3] and that also in which St. Paul preached at Troas, was an "upper chamber, where they were gathered together." [Note 4] What other places of worship do we hear of? The water side, out in the open air; as at Philippi, where, we are told, "on the Sabbath," St. Paul and his companions "went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made." [Acts xvi. 13.] And the sea shore; "They all brought us on our way with wives and children, till we were out of the city; and we kneeled down on the shore and prayed." [Acts xxi. 5.] And St. Peter was in prayer on the house-top; and St. Paul and St. Silas sang their hymns and psalms in prison with their feet in the stocks; and St. Philip baptized the Ethiopian eunuch in the desert. Yet, wherever they were, whether in prison, or on the house-top, or in the wilderness, or by the river side, or on the sea shore, or in a private room, God and Christ were with them. The Spirit of Grace was there, the Temple of God was around them. They were come unto the mystical Sion, and to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of Angels, and to the spirits of the Just. There needed not gold, nor jewels, nor costly array for those, who had, what according to the text was greater, who had the Temple. It might be right and fitting, if possible, to have these precious things also, but it was not necessary; for which was the greater? Such things did not make the temple more holy, but became themselves holy by being used for the Temple; the gold did not sanctify the Temple, but the Temple was greater, and sanctified the gold. Gold is a thing of nought without Christ's presence; and with His Presence, as in the days of His earthly ministry, it might be dispensed with.

The case is the same as regards the immediate successors of the Apostles, who were in still more forlorn circumstances, as regards worship, than the Apostles themselves. The Christians who came after them, were obliged to worship in graves and tombs to save their lives from the persecutor. In the eastern and southern parts, where the Apostles and the first converts lived, before the glad sound of the Gospel had reached these northern and distant countries, they were accustomed to bury in caves dug out of the rock. Long galleries there are still remaining, in some places for miles underground, on each side of which the dead were placed. There the poor persecuted Christians met for worship, and that by night. Or the great people of the time built for themselves high and stately tombs above ground, as large as houses for the living; here too, in the darkness and solitude of night, did the Saints worship. Or in the depth of some wood, perhaps, where no one was likely to discover them. Such were the places in which the Invisible Temple manifested itself in times of heathenism; and who shall say that it wanted aught of outward show to make it perfect?

This is true and ever to be borne in mind; and yet no one can deny, on the other hand, that a great object of Christ's coming was to subdue this world, to claim it as His own, to assert His rights as its Master, to destroy the usurped dominion of the enemy, to show Himself to all men, and to take possession. He is that Mustard-tree which was destined silently to spread and overshadow all lands; He is that Leaven which was secretly to make its way through the mass of human opinion and institutions till the whole was leavened. Heaven and earth had hitherto been separate. His gracious purpose was to make them one, and that by making earth like heaven. He was in the world from the beginning, and man worshipped other gods; He came into the world in the flesh, and the world knew Him not; He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But He came in order to make them receive Him, know Him, worship Him. He came to absorb this world into Himself; that, as He was light, so it might be light also. When He came, He had not a place to lay His head; but He came to make Himself a place, to make Himself a home, to make Himself houses, to fashion for Himself a glorious dwelling out of this whole world, which the powers of evil had taken captive. He came in the dark, in the dark night was He born, in a cave underground; in a cave where cattle were stabled, there was He housed; in a rude manger was He laid. There first He laid His head; but He meant not, blessed be His Name! He meant not there to remain for ever. He did not resign Himself to that obscurity; He came into that cave to leave it. The King of the Jews was born to claim the kingdom;—yea, rather, the Hope of all nations and the King of the whole earth, the King of kings and Lord of lords; and He gave not "sleep to His eyes or slumber to His eyelids," till He had changed His manger for a royal throne, and His grot for high palaces. Lift up your eyes, my brethren, and look around, for it is fulfilled at this day; yea, long ago, for many ages, and in many countries. "Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars." Where is the grot? where the stall for cattle? where the manger? where the grass and straw? where the unseemly furniture of that despised place? Is it possible that the Eternal Son should have been born in a hole of the earth? was the great miracle there wrought, whereby a pure and spotless Virgin brought forth God? Strange condescension undergone to secure a strange triumph! He purposed to change the earth, and He began "in the lowest pit, in a place of darkness, and in the deep." All was to be by Him renewed, and He availed Himself of nothing that was, that out of nothing He might make all things. He was not born in the Temple of Jerusalem; He abhorred the palace of David; He laid Himself on the damp earth in the cold night, a light shining in a dark place, till by the virtue that went out of Him, He should create a Temple worthy of His Name.

And lo, in omen of the future, even in His cradle, the rich and wise of the earth seek Him with gold, and frankincense, and myrrh, as an offering. And He puts aside the swaddling clothes, and takes instead "a coat without seam, woven from the top throughout." And He changes water into wine; and Levi feasts Him; and Zacchaeus receives Him; and Mary anoints His head. Pass a few generations, and the whole face of things is changed; the earth is covered with His Temples; as it has been for ages. Go where you will, you find the eternal mountains hewn and fashioned into shrines where He may dwell, who was an outcast in the days of His flesh. Rivers and mines pay tribute of their richest, jewels; forests are searched for their choicest woods; the skill of man is put to task to use what nature furnishes. Go through the countries where His name is known, and you will find all that is rarest and most wonderful in nature or art has been consecrated to Him. King's palaces are poor, whether in architecture or in decoration, compared with the shrines which have been reared to Him. The Invisible Temple has become visible. As on a misty day, the gloom gradually melts and the sun brightens, so have the glories of the spiritual world lit up this world below. The dull and cold earth is penetrated by the rays. All around we see glimpses or reflections of those heavenly things, which the elect of God shall one day see face to face. The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; "the Temple has sanctified the gold," and the prophecies made to the Church have been fulfilled to the letter. "The glory of Lebanon" has been "given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon." "The glory of Lebanon, the fir-tree, the pine-tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of His sanctuary, and to make the place of His feet glorious. The multitude of camels have covered it, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba have come; they have brought gold and incense, and shown forth the praises of the Lord." "The labour of Egypt, and merchandize of Ethiopia, and of the Sabeans, men of stature, have come over to it, in chains have they come over; they have fallen down, they have made supplication." [Isa. xxxv. 2; lx. 6, 13; xlv. 14.]

And He has made Him a Temple, not only out of inanimate things, but of men also as parts of it. Not gold and silver, jewels and fine linen, and skill of man to use them, make the House of God, but worshippers, the souls and bodies of men, whom He has redeemed. Not souls alone, He takes possession of the whole man, body as well as soul; for St. Paul says, "I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." [Rom. xii. 1.] And He claims us as His own, not one by one, but altogether, as one great company; for St. Peter says, that we "as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ." [1 Pet. ii. 5.] All of us, and every one, and every part of every one, must go to make up His mystical body; for the Psalmist says, "O God, my heart is ready; I will sing and give praise with the best member that I have. Awake thou, lute and harp, I myself will awake right early. I will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, among the people; I will sing praises unto Thee among the nations." [Psa. cviii. 1-3.] Our tongues must preach Him, and our voices sing of Him, and our knees adore Him, and our hands supplicate Him, and our heads bow before Him, and our countenances beam of Him, and our gait herald Him. And hence arise joint worship, forms of prayer, ceremonies of devotion, the course of services, orders of ministers, holy vestments, solemn music, and other things of a like nature; all which are, as it were, the incoming into this world of the Invisible Kingdom of Christ, the fruit of its influence, the sample of its power, the earnest of its victories, the means of its manifestation.

Things temporal have their visible establishment. Kings' courts and palaces, councils and armies, have dazzled the multitude, and blinded them, till they worshipped them as idols. Such is our nature, we must have something to look up to. We cannot help admiring something; and if there is nothing good to admire, we admire what is bad. When then men see proud Babel set up on high with all her show and pomp, when they see or hear of great cities, with their stately mansions, the streets swarming with chariots and horses innumerable, and the shops filled with splendid wares, and great men and women richly dressed, with many attendants, and men crying, Bow the knee, and soldiers in bright array, with the sound of the trumpet, and other military music, and other things which one could mention, were it reverent to be particular,—simple men are tempted to look up to all this as the summit of perfection and blessedness, nay, as I have said, to worship what seems to them, though they do not so express it, the presence of the Unseen. Hence come in servility, coveting, jealousy, ambition; men wish to be great in this world, and try to be great; they aim at riches, or they lie in wait for promotion. Christ, then, in order to counteract this evil, has mercifully set up His own court and His own polity, that men might have something to fix their eyes upon of a more Divine and holy character than the world can supply; that poverty might at least divide men's admiration with riches; that meekness might be set up on high as well as pride, and sanctity become our ambition as well as luxury. Saintly bishops with their clergy, officials of all kinds, religious bodies, austere Nazarites, prayer and praise without ceasing,—all this hath Christ mercifully set up, to outshine the fascinations of the world. So ran the promise: "I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night." "Sing unto the Lord a new song, and His praise from the end of the earth; ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein ... Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit; let the inhabitants of the rock sing; let them shout from the top of the mountains. Let them give glory unto the Lord, and declare His praise in the islands." [Iisa. lxii. 6; xlii. 10-12.] And these words began to have their fulfilment even from the time that Christ came; for, as I said when I began, St. Paul and St. Silas sang in the prison; and when he and his party left Tyre, the men, women, and children, who accompanied them out, kneeled down on the shore with them, and prayed. Such were the forms of worship in the beginning; till, as time went on, the Church, like some fair tree, put out her branches and foliage, and stood complete in all manner of holy symbols and spiritual ordinances, an outward sign of that unseen Temple in which Christ had dwelt from the first. And now, in conclusion, let me observe, that such a view as has been taken of the connexion of the ritual of religion with its spiritual and invisible power, will enable as to form a right estimate of things external, and keep us both from a curious and superstitions use, and an arrogant neglect of them. The Temple is greater than the gold; therefore care not though the gold be away:—it sanctifies it; therefore cherish the gold while it is present. Christ is with us, though there be no outward show; suppose all the comely appendages of our worship stripped off, yet where two or three are gathered together in His Name, He is in the midst of them. Be it a cottage, or the open fields, or even a prison or a dungeon, Christ can be there, and will be there, if His servants are there. You will ask whether this does not countenance persons who hold meetings apart from the Church, or who preach in the streets? No, it does not; because, in such cases, men do not meet together "in the Name of Christ." He says, "Where two or three are gathered together in My Name." Now, it does not follow that men are met in His Name because they say or think they are; for He warns us, "Many shall come in My Name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many." Many a man thinks he is speaking in Christ's Name, when he is preaching his own doctrine. Christ did not send such men, yet they have run; and He owns them not, though they even worship in Church. In Church, or in the fields, would be the same in this matter. Stone walls do not make a Church. Though they were in the vastest, noblest, richest building on earth, still Christ would not be with those who preach another gospel than that which He delivered once for all. This is the very point I am insisting on. It is the Temple which sanctifieth the gold; it is nothing but the invisible and heavenly Presence which sanctifieth any place or any thing. Magnificent or mean, costly or common, it alone sanctities either worshippers or building. As it avails not to have sumptuous Churches without the Spirit of Christ, so it is but a mockery to have large congregations, eloquent preachers, and much excitement, if that gracious Spirit is away. But where He really places His Name, there, be the spot a palace or a cottage, it is sacred and glorious. He who once lay in a manger, will still condescend to manifest Himself any where, as He did in primitive times. No indignities can he done to Him who inhabiteth eternity. "Heaven is His throne, and earth His footstool;" "the very heaven of heavens cannot contain Him;" much less any house which we can build. High or low is alike to Him.

This is an obvious and very comfortable reflection, when we think of the great irreverences and profanations which sometimes take place in Church. Men come in lightly and thoughtlessly; they care not to uncover their heads; they talk, and laugh, and even sing, as if they were in a common building; or, when there is any needful work to be done in it, and tools and other implements are brought in, they seem to think as if, all of a sudden, it were turned into an unconsecrated place, because it is necessary to exercise a trade in it. Or, perhaps, if it so happen, they turn aside into it at other times, and think that God is not there, because man is not there to see them. And so again, when we go into certain Churches, and see the neglected state in which they are left, the font cast aside, or, if not, used as a place to keep any sort of litter in; and the Holy Table mean and unsightly, with a miserable covering, and the pavement defiled and broken, and the whole building in a state of neglect, of which any neat person would be ashamed even in his own cottage (to say nothing what wealthy people would feel, if their rooms were left in such a condition); I say, when these and such like sights meet us, perhaps, for an instant, we are tempted to say, Can Christ be here? Can the Holy Spirit deign to sanctify water for the washing away of sins, brought in, as it is, with such irreverence of manner, and in so mean a vessel? Or, can the life-giving Presence and the sacrificial power of Christ be upon that Altar? nay, can it be an Altar, which is so wretched to look upon? But, I ask, or rather, any one will ask himself, on second thoughts, Could Christ be in a manger? Doubtless then He, whom the Angels of God worshipped as the Only-begotten, when brought into the world in a place for cattle, can be manifested, can be worshipped, in the most neglected Church. No; our distress must not be at all for Him; such would be superstitious and carnal; our distress must be for the insult offered Him, and so far as there is insult. If the state of neglect I am speaking of is no one's fault, then distress there must be none. But if there be blame, then we may and must feel distress, that our Lord should be insulted by His own servants; and yet more on their account, that they should insult Him. They who profane His Presence who treat its resting-place as a common house, and make free with it, these men do not hurt Christ, but they hurt themselves. The Temple is greater than the gold.

And, while He is displeased with the profane, He accepts such offerings as are made in faith, whether they be greater or less. He accepts our gold and our silver, not to honour Himself thereby, but in mercy to us. When Mary poured the ointment upon His head, it was her advantage, not His: He praised her, and said, "She hath done what she could." Every one must do his best; he must pray his best, he must sing his best, he must attend his best. If we did all, it would be little, not worthy of Him; if we do little, it may suffice to show our faith, and He in His mercy will accept whatever we can offer. He will accept, what we prefer giving to Him to giving to ourselves. When, instead of spending money on our own homes, we spend it on His house, when we prefer that He should have the gold and silver to our having it, we do not make our worship more spiritual, but we bring Christ nearer to us; we show that we are in earnest, we evidence our faith. It requires very little of true faith and love, to feel an unwillingness to spend money on one's self. Fine dresses, fine houses, fine furniture, fine establishments, are painful to a true Christian; they create misgivings in his mind whether his portion is with the Saints or with the world. Rather he will feel it suitable to lay out his money in God's service, to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to educate the young, to spread the knowledge of the truth; and, among other pious objects, to build and to decorate the visible House of God.

"Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God, and for the offices thereof." [Neh. xiii. 14.] Such was Nehemiah's prayer, when he had been stirred up to cleanse the sanctuary. May God remember us also, if in any measure His grace has moved us to similar acts of zeal for His glory! And, O may He in His mercy grant that our outward show does not outstrip our inward progress; that whatever gift, rare or beautiful, we introduce here, may be but a figure of inward beauty and unseen sanctity ornamenting our hearts! Hearts are the true shrine wherein Christ must dwell. "The King's daughter is all-glorious within;" and when we are repenting of past sin, and cleansing ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, and perfecting holiness in the fear of the Lord, then, and then only, may we safely employ ourselves in brightening, embellishing, and making glorious the dwelling-place of His invisible Presence, doing it with that severity, gravity, and awe, which a chastened heart and sober thoughts will teach.
Notes
1. Whitsuntide [Pentecost].
2. Mark xiv. 15.
3. Acts i. 13.
4. Acts xx. 8.
 
Copyright © 2000 by Bob Elder. All rights reserved.   
Used with permission.  See the Newman website:   
http://www.newmanreader.org/index.html 

Sermon Link: http://www.lectionarycentral.com/pentecost/NewmanPent2.html

The Christian Year

by Blessed John Keble 

WHITSUNDAY.

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting: and there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.                                                                             Acts ii. 2,3.

WHEN God of old came down from Heaven,

In power and wrath he came;
Before his feet the clouds were riven,
Half darkness and half flame:

Around the trembling mountain’s base
The prostrate people lay,
Convinc’d of sin, but not of grace;
It was a dreadful day.

But when He came the second time,
He came in power and love,
Softer than gale at morning prime
Hover’d his holy Dove.

The fires that rush’d on Sinai down
In sudden torrents dread,
Now gently light, a glorious crown,
On every sainted head.

Like arrows went those lightnings forth,
Wing’d with the sinner’s doom,
But these, like tongues, o’er all the earth
Proclaiming life to come:

And as on Israel’s awe-struck ear
The voice exceeding loud,
The trump, that angels quake to hear,
Thrill’d from the deep, dark cloud,

So, when the Spirit of our God
Came down his flock to find,
A voice from heaven was heard abroad,
A rushing, mighty wind.

Nor doth the outward ear alone
At that high warning start;
Conscience gives back th’ appalling tone;
'Tis echoed in the heart.

It fills the Church of God; it fills
The sinful world around;
Only in stubborn hearts and wills
No place for it is found.

To other strains our souls are set:
A giddy whirl of sin
Fills ear and brain, and will not let
Heaven’s harmonies come in.

Come, Lord, come, Wisdom, Love, and Power,
Open our ears to hear;
Let us not miss th’ accepted hour;
Save, Lord, by Love or Fear.


Used with permission from the Canterbury Project website.  Transcribed by Julia Beth Bruskin AD 1999

Poetry Link: http://www.lectionarycentral.com/pentecost/Keblepoem.html

The Family

In the coming of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, as the babe of Bethlehem, God the Father blessed and sanctified the Family as a special Christian institution. It was God who made for Adam a helper and soul mate, Eve, so that the two might become one, and the family was born. God also chose as Jesus'Mother, Mary, blessed among women, and Joseph, as surrogate earthly father, a most chaste spouse. Jesus was cared for, loved, and brought up in his faith by his family. His Mother was an ongoing part of his life throughout his life on earth. She carried on after his death and resurrection with John in Ephesus. By tradition, Joseph was older than Mary and had died before the beginning of Jesus' ministry. In one of his final acts from the Cross, Jesus gave his mother a son - John, and he, a mother in Mary.

The Holy Family,

Convent of the Sisters of Nazareth.

Nazareth, Galilee area, Israel.

A Christmas Prayer


Lord God Almighty, Father of every family, against whom no door can be shut; Enter ino the homes of our land, we beseech thee, with the angel of thy presence, to hallow them in pureness and beauty of love; and by thy dear Son, born in a stable, move our hearts to hear the cry of the homeless, and to convert all sordid and bitter dwellings into households of thine: through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.






Prayer of a Parent


Father of mankind, you have given me these children, and entrusted them to my charge, to bring them up for you and to prepare them for everlasting life. Help me with your heavenly grace to fulfill this sacred duty. Teach me what to give, and what to withhold; when to reprove and when to forbear. Make me gentle, yet firm; considerate and watchful. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen
Pope John Paul II's Family Prayer Book.








Hail Mary


Hail Mary, full of grace, blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy wombs, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.






On the Birth of a Child


O Lord God, in Whose hands are the issues of life, we thank Thee for Thy gifts to us at this time. We thank Thee for the life given, and the life preserved. And as Thou hast knit together life and love in one fellowship, so we pray Thee to grant that with this fresh gift of life to us, there may be given an increase of love one to another. Grant that the presence of weakness may awaken our tenderness, enable us to minister to the little one that has been given to us in all lovingness, wisdom, and fidelity; and grant that he/she may live as Thy child, and may serve this generation according to Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.






Eternal and everblessed God, you have taught us to call you Father, and you have surrounded us all our lives by your fatherly love and care. Help us so to live that we may be sons and daughters who bring joy and not sorrow to their Father's heart: through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.






Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour, Master and example of the true and good life, send the Holy Spirit to every member of our family. Help protest and guide us. Keep far from us anything that would hurt our fellowship or divide us. Keep us in your love. Banish from us
The irritable temper:
The selfish ambition:
The desire to dominate:
The arrogant intolerance:
The false disloyalty.
And draw us, by your grace, day by day, to come closer to you and to one another. Cleanse us of our sin, and of your mercy bring us to the heavenly Father's kindgom.
Amen.

 

A Litany on Behalf of Children

O God, The Father,
Bless them.

O God, the Son,
Bless them.

O God, the Holy Ghost,
Bless them.

O Holy Mother of God,
Nurture them.

O Blessed Saint Joseph,
Protest them.

For all children conceived this day,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children born this day,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children baptized this day,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children confirmed this day,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children entering school,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children enrolled in school,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children in a united and loving family,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children who persevere in a worthwhile project,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all children who know true love and are loving,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.

For all organizations and groups organized to protect life,
We thank Thee and ask Thy Blessing.


Lord,
have mercy upon them.

Christ,
have mercy upon them.

Holy Ghost, Spirit of Life,
Inspire them.


From the holocaust of abortion,
Protect them.

From the danger of extermination faced by handicapped babies,
Protect them.

From afflictions of mind and body,
Protect them.

From physical and sexula abuse,
Protect them.

From the clutches of child pornographers,
Protect them.

From family strife and violence,
Protect them.

From family division and divorce,
Protect them.

From nations in strife or at war,
Protect them.

From feelings of low esteem or self-hatred,
Protect them.

From Extraordinary peer pressure,
Protect them.

From bodily abuse by alcohol or narcotics,
Protect them.

From worry of acceptance and the fear of failure,
Protect them.

From the dangers faced by runaways,
Protect them.

From the horrors faced by street children,
Protect them.

From sexual licentiousness,
Protect them.

From despair and the contemplation of suicide,
Protect them.

From Satan and his human helpers, who attempt to cajole, detract, diminish or destroy our children,
Protect them.


O Most Glorious Trinity,
Protect little children and those yet unborn.

O Holy Saint Michael and All Angels,
pray unceasingly for little children and those yet unborn.

All Martyrs and Saints before us,
pray unceasingly for little children and those yet unborn.

All Bishops, Priests and Deacons,
pray unceasingly for little children and those yet unborn.

All Lay People in the Holy Faith,
pray unceasingly for little children and those yet unborn.


Let us pray:

O God, our Father, Who hast made heaven and Earth, and Who hast made of one blood all people who dwell upon the face of the earth, restore to us the sacredness of all life, reflecting Thy love in all of our thoughts, words, and deeds. And finally, may those conceived and born grow by Thy Grace into that stature and fulfillment which Thou hast ordained from the beginning, unto their lives' end.
Amen.

A Selection of Prayers for all Occasions.

Prayer

Prayer is a conversation that we have with God. In this conversation we incorporate four actions. The small book, In His Presence. Canadian Liturgy, written by Denis E. Taylor and published in Canada in 1964 by Cox & Wyman Limited, London, Reading and Fakenenham, explains it in this way, that our private prayers should include ACTS.

A Prayer Book and guide to

Confirmation, Communion

and Church teaching.



'A' stands for ADORATION. "First - love, adore, and praise God in whom we live and move, and have our being. Praise him for his noble acts, praise him for his excellent greatness. Adore him for Jesus Christ. Love him because he first loved us and gave himself for us."

'C' stands for CONFESSION. "A sense of all that God is and all he does for us at once brings home our own unworthyness, how often we fail to live up even to our own ideals, how poor our fight against temptation, how weak our efforts to pray better, how uncostly our work for others and for our Lord. So we confess these our sins to God, and ask forgiveness."

'T' stands for THANKSGIVING. "The knowledge that when we are truely sorry and really mean to do better, we are forgiven, makes thankfulness well up in our hearts, and we set ourselves to remember our many blessings - health, home, food, work, friends, play, our church, all the joy of being alive - and we return thanks to God our Father."

'S' stands for SUPPLICATION. "Having adored God, having confessed him for all his goodness and loving -kindness, then and then only we ask for more blessings. We make our supplications first for the needs of others, for great causes, for friends and for enemies. These are our Intercessions. Afterwards we pray for ourselves - we tell God our hopes, our joys, our fears, our desires, our needs. These are our Petitions."

"Such prayers are A-C-T-S indeed, true ACTS of worship."



PRAYERS:


The "Jesus" Prayer


O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner.






Anima Christi


Soul of Christ, sanctify me,
Body of Christ, save me,
Blood of Christ, refresh me,
Water from the Side of Christ,wash me,
Passion of Christ, strengthen me.
O Good Jesu, hear me,
Within Thy wounds hide me,
Suffer me not to be separated from Thee,
From the malicious enemy defend me,
In the hour of my death call me,
And bid me come to Thee,
That with Thy Saints I may praise Thee forever.
Amen.
St. Ignatius Loyola






God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes, and in my looking;
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at mine end - and at my departing.

Source: Sarum Primer, 16th century

From Epilogues & Prayers - William Barclay


Eternal God, whom to know is life eternal and whom to serve is fulness of joy, help us to know you with our minds, to love you with our hearts, to serve you with our lives, so that our lives may be garrisoned with your peace and radiant with your glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen






Prayer of Sir Francis Drake


O Lord God, when thou givest to thy to endeavour any great matter, grant us also to know that it is not the beginning, but the continuing of the same unto the end, until it be thoroughly finished, which yieldeth the true glory: through him who for the finishing of thy work laid down his life, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
Amen.




An Ancient Prayer


O heavenly Father, in whom we live and move and have our being, we humbly pray thee so to govern and guide us by thy Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our daily life we may never forget thee, but remember that we are ever walking in thy sight: through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.




A Prayer of Erasmus


O Lord Jesus Christ, who are the Way, the Truth, and the Life, we pray thee suffer us not to distrust thee, who art the Truth, not to rest in any other thing than thee, who art the Life. Teach us by the Holy Spirit, what to believe, what to do, and wherein to take our rest.
Amen.




May God bless us, keep us faithful and defend us this day from sin and wickedness, for the sake of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour.
Amen.




Prayer For Holy Living


     Grant me, I beseech Thee, almighty and all-merciful God, that I may ardently desire the grace to investigate wisely, and perfectly fulfil whatever may be pleasing to Thee. Guide my course in this world unto the honour of Thy name.
     Vouchsafe to me the proper inspiration, will and talent for all that Thou demandest from me, that I may fulfil it as I should, and may my path to Thee, I beseech Thee, remain straight and clear to the end.
     Give me, O Lord, a steadfast heart which no unworthy passion can degrade; give me an unconquerable heart which no sorrow can cast down; give me an upright heart which no lowly ambition can lead astray.
     Fill me, O Lord, with understanding, that I may know Thee as Thou art; with zeal that I may seek Thee; with wisdom that I may find Thee; and with perseverance that I may finally embrace Thee.
Amen.
St. Thomas Aquinas




O God of Peace, I turn aside from an unquiet world, seeking rest for my spirit, and light for my thoughts. I bring my work to be sanctified, my wounds to be healed, my sins to be forgiven, my hopes to be renewed, my better self to be quickened. O Thou, in whom there is harmony, draw me to Thyself and silence the discords of my wasteful life. Thou who art one in all, and in whom all are one, take me out of the loneliness of self, and fill me with the fulness of Thy truth and love. Thou whose greatness is beyond my highest praise, life me above my common littleness and my daily imperfections; send me visions of the love that is in Thee and of the good that may be in me.
Amen.
St. Augustine




The Breastplate of St. Patrick


I arise to-day with the power of God to guide me, the might of God to uphold me, the wisdom of God to uphold me, the wisdom of God to teach me, the eye of God to watch over me, the ear of God to hear me, the word of Godto give me speech, the hand of God to protect me, the way of God to prevent me, the shield of God to shelter me, the host of God to defend me; against the snares of devils, against the temptations of vices, against the lusts of nature, against every man who meditates injury to me, whether far or near, with few or with many.
St. Patrick




Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ above me;
Christ at my right,
Chroist at my left;
Christ in my lying down,
Christ in my sitting,
Christ in my rising up;
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks to me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
May Thy salvation, O Lorsd,
be ever with us.
St. Patrick




At All Times


Grant us, Lord, to know in weakness the strength of Thy Incarnation: in pain the triumph of Thy Passion: in poverty the riches of Thy Godhead: in reproach the satisfaction of Thy sympathy: in loneliness the comfort of Thy continual presence: in difficulty the efficacy of Thy intercession: in perplexity the guidance of Thy wisdom; and by Thy glorious death and resurrection brin us at last to the joy of seeing Thee face to face.
Unknown




Prayer for Peace


Lord,
Make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred,
Let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.


O Divine Master,
Grant that I may seek
Not so much to be consoled,
As to console;
To be understood,
As to understand;
To be loved,
As to love;
For it is in giving
That we receive;
It is in pardoning
That we are pardoned;
It is in dying
That we are born to eternal life.
St. Francis




Strength and Inspiration


Inspire and strengthen us, O Lord God, by Thy Holy Spirit, to seek Thy will and uphold Thine honour in all things; in the purity and joy of our homes, in the trust and fellowship of our common life, in daily service of the good; after the pattern and in the power of Thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ.
E. Milner-White




Faith


O Holy Jesus, meek Lamb of God; Bread that came down from heaven; light and life of all holy souls: help me to a true and living faith in Thee. O do Thou open Thyself within me with all Thy holy nature, spirit, tempers, and inclinations, that I may be born again of Thee, in Thee a new creature, quickened and revived, led and governed by Thy Holy Spirit.
William Law




Freedom From Self


O God, set our hearts at liberty from the service of ourselves, and let it be our meat and drink to do Thy will.




Inward Peace


Set free, O Lord, the souls of Thy servants from restlessness and anxiety: give us the peace and power which flow from Thee; and keep us in perplexity and distress, in griefs and grievances, from fear or faithlessness; that so, upheld by Thy power and stayed upon the rock of Thy faithfulness, through storm and stress we may abide in Thee.




Morning


Into Thy hands, O heavenly Father, I commit myself, body and soul. Let Thy holy angel be with me, that the evil one may have no power over me. Help and bless Thy Church; hold Thy protecting hand over this land and people; have pity upon those who are in distress and need. O God, let the light of Thy truth shine upon us, and bring us at last to Thy heavenly Kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Luther




O Lord, support us all the day long of this troublous life, until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes, the busy world is hushed, the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then, Lord, in thy mercy, grant us a safe lodging, a holy rest, and peace at the last; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.




Be present, O merciful God, and protest us through the silent hours of this night, so that we who are wearied by the changes and chances of this fleeting world, may repose upon Thy eternal changelessness, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.




Visit, O Lord, we beseech Thee, our homes, and drive far from them all snares of the enemy. Let Thy holy Angels dwell in them to preserve us in peace, and may Thy blessing be upon us evermore, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.