Fifth Sunday after Easter

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Celebrant ✠ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
People Amen.

Celebrant The grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
People And also with you.

(On major feasts, the Celebrant may introduce the service with a sentence of praise or a seasonal anthem.)

2. Penitential Act

Celebrant Brothers and sisters, let us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to enter these holy mysteries.
(Silence is kept.)

All
Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you and our neighbour, in thought, word, and deed: by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. We humbly repent and seek your forgiveness. Renew us, strengthen us, and guide us to walk in your ways and delight in your will, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Celebrant May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
People Amen.

(A Kyrie or Trisagion may be sung or said.)

3. Gloria in Excelsis

Omitted in Advent and Lent; a hymn of praise may replace it on weekdays.

Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world: have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

4. Collect of the Day

Celebrant The Lord be with you.
People And also with you.
Celebrant Let us pray.
(Proper Collect is prayed; people respond “Amen.”)

The Collect

Almighty and ever-living God,

who by the rising of your Son have begun to make all things new,

and by your Spirit shattered the walls that name your children unclean:

pour into our hearts that cruciform love by which the world will know we belong to Christ;

that, with every creature in heaven and on earth,

we may join the unending hymn of praise to your glory;

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Liturgy of the Word

1. First Reading

Reader: A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.

Now the apostles and the believers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him, saying, “Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?” Then Peter began to explain it to them, step by step, saying, “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven, being lowered by its four corners; and it came close to me. As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals, beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air. I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’ But I replied, ‘By no means, Lord; for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ But a second time the voice answered from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call profane.’ This happened three times; then everything was pulled up again to heaven. At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter; he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.’ And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?” When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, “Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.”

At its conclusion:
Reader: The Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.

Psalm 148

Hallelujah!

Praise the Lord from the heavens; *

praise him in the heights.

Praise him, all you angels of his; *

praise him, all his host.

Praise him, sun and moon; *

praise him, all you shining stars.

Praise him, heaven of heavens, *

and you waters above the heavens.

Let them praise the Name of the Lord; *

for he commanded, and they were created.

He made them stand fast for ever and ever; *

he gave them a law which shall not pass away.

Praise the Lord from the earth, *

you sea-monsters and all deeps;

Fire and hail, snow and fog, *

tempestuous wind, doing his will;

Mountains and all hills, *

fruit trees and all cedars;

Wild beasts and all cattle, *

creeping things and wingèd birds;

Kings of the earth and all peoples, *

princes and all rulers of the world;

Young men and maidens, *

old and young together.

Let them praise the Name of the Lord, *

for his Name only is exalted,

his splendor is over earth and heaven.

He has raised up strength for his people

and praise for all his loyal servants, *

the children of Israel, a people who are near him.

Hallelujah!

Psalm 148 

2. Second Reading

Reader: A reading from the Revelation to John
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

At its conclusion:
Reader: The Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.

3. Gospel Acclamation

(All stand.)
People: Alleluia, alleluia!
Celebrant: Lord Jesus, open the Scriptures to us;
make our hearts burn within us while you speak.
All: Alleluia, alleluia!*

4. Gospel

Celebrant: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.
Celebrant: ✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to John.
People: Glory to you, O Lord.

When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Celebrant: The Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise to you, Lord Christ.

(A brief moment of silent reflection follows.)

5. Homily

6. The Nicene Creed

Celebrant: Let us affirm our faith.
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father [and the Son], who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, he has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

7. Prayers of the People

Celebrant/Deacon Let us place before God the needs of the Church and the world, saying, Lord, in your mercy.

I. The Gospel and the Church

Leader: Holy God, let the Good News of Jesus take root in every heart. Open ears that have grown weary of empty promises, awaken imaginations dulled by fear, and plant courage where apathy has settled. May the story of the cross and empty tomb spark movements of justice, reconciliation, and joy in every land.

We pray for Brandon, our Presiding Bishop; N.N., our diocesan bishop; and for all who shepherd your people: grant wisdom rooted in humility, vision shaped by the prophets, and hearts wide enough to hold both tradition and fresh wind. Knit every congregation into one body, that the world may glimpse your radiant light in our common life.