ADVENT: The Bidding Prayer

 

I LOVE ! The Biddings ! and the one at Advent is a stunner, we heard it at the top of the service yesterday. 

I was reminded this morning, reading a quote from John Henry Newman, just how BAD humans are at "being," how bad we are when it comes to +waiting, and just the idea of +change, especially in light of the fact that our sacred writings talk a lot about both those things. And now here we are with an entire season dedicated to both ... 

"Advent is a time of waiting, it is a time of joy ! because the coming of Christ is not only a gift of grace and salvation, but the coming of Christ is also a time of commitment, because it motivates us to 

live the present 

as a time of responsibility and vigilance."

... . The grace and peace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you ...

THE BIDDING PRAYER:

"It is time for us to wake out of sleep !

for deliverance is nearer to us now than it was when first we believed.

It is far on in the night; day is near !

Let us therefore cast off the deeds of darkness

and put on our armor as soldiers of the light !

... My sisters and brothers, we enter today the solemn season of Advent in which the Church bids us prepare to celebrate the coming of Christ;

a coming that we recall in the Child of Bethlehem;

a coming that we experience in the gift of his Spirit, in the bread of the Eucharist, in the joy of human lives that are shared;

a coming we wait for when God gathers up all things in Christ.

Let us in this holy season reflect on the coming of Christ who brings light to the world.

Let us leave behind the darkness of sin,

walk in the light that shines on our path,

and renew within ourselves the hope of glory to which he beckons us.

And as we turn towards the light,

let us have on our hearts all those who see no light,

for whom all is darkness and despair.

Let us pray that they too may be illumined by Christ who is our light."

The Book of Occasional Services • 2003 
Conforming to General Convention 2003
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