This Week's Readings and Prayers

1st November: All Saints and All Souls Day

online Morning Prayer from St.Oswald’s.

Morning Services

Revelation 7.9-17

This last book in the Bible, also known as the ‘Apocalypse’ from the Geek word ‘to reveal’ was written when Christians were in danger, under Roman rule. The author is probably not the Gospel writer. He records his vision of ‘the end of time’ and it is full of Old Testament imagery.

After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. They cried out in a loud voice, saying,

‘Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!’

And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God, singing,

‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honour
and power and might
be to our God for ever and ever! Amen.’

Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, ‘Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?’ I said to him, ‘Sir, you are the one that knows.’ Then he said to me, ‘These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they are before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the centre of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’

1 John 3.1-3

The three letters of John, again (probably not by the Gospel writer) reminds his readers of God’s gifts to them, both now and in times to come.

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he[a] is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

Matthew 5.1-12

A key feature of Jesus’s ministry was his gifts as a teacher. The ‘Beatitudes’, the blessings, taught his followers that the way of life of Jesus and his followers must be the opposite of the standards accepted in everyday life. It must be centred round care for others. They would be rewarded.

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Collect

God of holiness, your glory is proclaimed in every age:

as we rejoice in the faith of your saints,

inspire us to follow their example with boldness and joy;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Post Communion

God, the source of all holiness and giver of all good things:

may we who have shared at this table

as strangers and pilgrims here on earth

be welcomed with all your saints to the heavenly feast

on the day of your kingdom;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Next Sunday’s (8th) Morning Readings:

Traditionally: Micah 4:1-4 and John 15:12-15

1st November: All Saints and All Souls Day

Evening Services

All Souls Service - There are no readings

Next Sunday (8th November)

Amos 5.18-24

Matthew 25.1-13

Please remember in your prayers this week:

Those who are unable to be with us in church.

Those who are ill.

The recently bereaved

Areas of conflict: the Ukraine, the Middle East, the Sudan and too many others.

People in areas of the World afflicted by natural disasters.

Our local churches.

Our Ministry Team: Dwayne, Maggie, Nigel, Rachel, Anne, Ash & Lynda.

October Readings Notes

Sunday 4 October – (18th Sunday after Trinity - Continuous)

Exodus 20.1-4, 7-9, 12-20

When Moses tells the people of what God expects from them in how they respond both to God himself and to their neighbours, they are afraid. Mose reassures them that they need not fear.

Philippians 3.4b-14

Paul reminds the Christians at Philippi that he is proud of his Jewish upbringing, but now his faith in Jesus Christ is of the highest importance to him.

Matthew 21.33-46

Jesus said to the chief priests and elders

As was his custom , like the Rabbis of his day, Jesus told parables -stories set in everyday life which had an underlying meaning. Vineyards and how they were tended were important to their owners and the tenants. In the Old Testament, Isaiah had described Israel as being God’s vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7). The Jewish leaders would have recognised Jesus’s criticism of themselves!

Sunday 11 October – (19th Sunday after Trinity - Continuous)

St.Oswald’s will celebrate Disability Sunday & may use different readings. See parish website.

Exodus 32.1-14

When Moses does not return from speaking with God on Mt. Sinai, the people persuade Aaron to make them a golden image which they can worship instead. Moses pleads with God to forgive their faithlessness.

Philippians 4.1-9

Paul concludes his letter to the Philippian Christians by encouraging them all to work together and to reojoice in God’s loving presence with them.

Matthew 22.1-14

Weddings were important social occasions in Jewish society with recognised etiquettes of behaviour. Invitations were accepted and new clothes bought. In the story, one man failed on both counts and so was coast out. Kingdom standards were important! Luke’s version of the story is less judgemental (Lk.14:12-24)

Sunday 18 October – (Feast Day of Luke the Evangelist)

Isaiah 25.3-6

Writing during the Jewish exile in Babylon, the prophet reassures the people that God will strengthen them and will restore them to their own land.

2 Timothy 4.5-17

Writing, possibly on his way to prison in Rome, Paul expresses his appreciation of having Luke with him.

Luke 10.1-9

For the Jews, the number 70 (or sometimes72) represented the number of nations in the world. Part way through his ministry, Jesus appointed 70 ther disciple, in addition to the original 12, to take the message of the coming of God’s Rule to the wider world.

Sunday 25 October – (Bible Sunday)

Nehemiah 8.1-4a, 8-12

Back in Jerusalem after the return from exile in Babylon, Ezra the priest calls the people together and reads the words of the Law to them. Then Ezra and Nehemiah the Governor reassure them that now is a time for rejoicing.

Psalm 119, 9-16

The book of Psalms is a book of Jewish poetry written in for use in worship in the Temple; it covers a wide range of subjects and emotions. Jewish poetry is distinctive, relying on ‘parallelism’, where either the two lines of each verse mirror each other, or make a contrast. This long poem delights in the joys of God’s Word.

Matthew 24.30-35

As he approached Jerusalem with his disciples, Jesus warned them of what lay ahead. Looking further into the future, he described the signs of the end of time when God’s rule would be finally established on earth. He used ‘apocalyptic’ language - a word meaning ‘hidden.’ The hearer would understand the ‘coded message’ and it was used in times of great danger, eg. when invasion by Rome in Jesus’s day threatened the country. It can also be found in the book of Daniel e.g Dan.7:7-14 when Babylon was the enemy.