Choral Evensong at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is a tiny fragment of something else: it is part of the worship which is offered to God by people every hour of the day and night, in every corner of the world. When you come to Evensong here, it is as if you are dropping in on a conversation already in progress – a conversation between God and his people. So do not be surprised or concerned if there are some parts that you do not understand straight away.
Evensong is drawn almost entirely from the Bible. Much of the language spoken and sung in this service is that spoken by worshippers more than four hundred years ago. It may sound old-fashioned, but its meaning is not out of date. We invite you to allow the music and words to speak to you in the beauty and peace of this place.
You are invited to say the text in bold in English.
Order of Service
Please stand as the Minister sings
Let us pray.
Please remain standing whilst the Choir and Clergy enter the stalls
Please remain standing to sing the
Hymn
1. O Jesus, I have promised
To serve thee to the end;
Be thou for ever near me,
My Master and my Friend;
I shall not fear the battle
If thou art by my side,
Nor wander from the pathway,
If thou wilt be my guide.
2. O let me hear thee speaking
In accents clear and still,
Above the storms of passion,
The murmurs of self-will;
O speak to reassure me,
To hasten or control:
O speak, and make me listen,
Thou guardian of my soul.
3. O Jesus, thou hast promised
To all who follow thee,
That where thou art in glory,
There shall thy servant be;
And, Jesus, I have promised
To serve thee to the end;
O give me grace to follow,
My Master and my Friend.
4. O let me see thy footmarks,
And in them plant mine own;
My hope to follow duly
Is in thy strength alone.
O guide me, call me, draw me,
Uphold me to the end;
And then in heaven receive me,
My Saviour and my Friend.
John Bode (1816–74) William Ferguson (1874–1950)
Please sit
THE INSTALLATION OF THE REVEREND CANON PAUL THOMPSON
AS PREBENDARY OF DONAGHMORE
Please stand.
The Minister and Choir sing the
Preces and Responses
O Lord, open thou our lips.
And our mouth shall show forth thy praise.
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
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.
Praise ye the Lord.
The Lord’s Name be praised.
Robert Ashfield (1911–2006)
Please sit as the Choir sings the
Psalm
PSALM 37 vv 1–11
Noli æmulari.
Fret not thyself because of the ungodly: neither be thou envious against the evil-doers. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass: and be withered even as the green herb. Put thou thy trust in the Lord, and be doing good: dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thou in the Lord: and he shall give thee thy heart’s desire. Commit thy way unto the Lord, and put thy trust in him: and he shall bring it to pass. He shall make thy righteousness as clear as the light: and thy just dealing as the noon-day. Hold thee still in the Lord, and abide patiently upon him: but grieve not thyself at him whose way doth prosper, against the man that doeth after evil counsels. Leave off from wrath, and let go displeasure: fret not thyself, else shalt thou be moved to do evil. Wicked doers shall be rooted out: and they that patiently abide the Lord, those shall inherit the land. Yet a little while, and the ungodly shall be clean gone: thou shalt look after his place, and he shall be away. But the meek-spirited shall possess the earth: and shall be refreshed in the multitude of peace.
Please stand for
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.
Please sit for the
First Lesson
Zechariah 4: 1–10
Please stand as the Choir sings
MAGNIFICAT
My soul doth magnify the Lord: and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded: the lowliness of his hand-maiden. For behold, from henceforth: all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath magnified me: and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him: throughout all generations. He hath shewed strength with his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seat: and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things: and the rich he hath sent empty away. He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel: as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed, for ever.
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.
Magnificat anima mea Dominum; Et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salutari meo, Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae; ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes. Quia fecit mihi magna qui potens est, et sanctum nomen ejus, Et misericordia ejus a progenie in progenies timentibus eum. Fecit potentiam in bracchio suo; Dispersit superbos mente cordis sui. Deposuit potentes de sede, et exaltavit humiles. Esurientes implevit bonis, et divites dimisit inanes. Suscepit Israel, puerum suum, recordatus misericordiae suae, Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros, Abraham et semini ejus in saecula.
Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto; sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula sæculorum. Amen.
Service in E minor; John Lees (b.1950)
Please sit for the
Second Lesson
Luke 2: 25–32
Please stand as the Choir sings
NUNC DIMITTIS
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace: according to thy word. For mine eyes have seen: thy salvation, which thou hast prepared: before the face of all people; to be a light to lighten the Gentiles: and to be the glory of thy people Israel.
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.
Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine, secundum verbum tuum in pace: Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum. Quod parasti ante faciem omnium populorum: Lumen ad revelationem gentium, et gloriam plebis tuae Israel.
Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto; sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula sæculorum. Amen.
Service in E minor; John Lees (b.1950)
Please remain standing to say the
APOSTLES’ CREED
I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth: and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary: suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried: He descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead: He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty: from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost: the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints: the forgiveness of sins: the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Minister and Choir sing the
SUFFRAGES AND RESPONSES
The Lord be with you.
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
Please kneel or sit, according to your custom
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
O Lord, shew thy mercy upon us.
And grant us thy salvation.
O Lord, guide and defend our rulers.
And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee.
Endue thy Ministers with righteousness.
And make thy chosen people joyful.
O Lord, save thy people.
And bless thine inheritance.
Give peace in our time, O Lord.
Because there is none other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God.
O God, make clean our hearts within us.
And take not thy Holy Spirit from us.
The Minister intones the
Collect of the Day
O almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of sinful men; Grant unto thy people, that they may love the thing which thou commandest, and desire that which thou dost promise; that so, among the sundry and manifold changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed, where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Collect for Peace
O God, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed; give unto thy servants that peace which the world cannot give; that both our hearts may be set to obey thy commandments, and also that by thee we being defended from the fear of our enemies may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Amen.
Collect for Aid Against All Perils
Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Robert Ashfield (1911–2006)
Please sit as the Choir sings the
The Anthem
Now the green blade riseth from the buried grain, Wheat that in dark earth many days has lain; Love lives again, that with the dead has been: Love is come again, Like wheat that springeth green. In the grave they laid him, Love whom men had slain, Thinking that never he would wake again, Laid in the earth like grain that sleeps unseeen: Forth he came at Easter, like the risen grain, He that for three days in the grave had lain, Quick from the dead, my risen Lord is seen: When our hearts are wintry, grieving, or in pain, Thy touch can call us back to life again, Fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been:
James Davy (b.1979)
The Sermon
Preacher: The Very Reverend W. W. Morton, B.Th., M.A., Ph.D., M.Mus., D.Litt., Dean and Ordinary
The Minister says
Let us pray.
Please kneel or remain seated for the
PRAYERS
At the end, all say
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all, evermore. Amen.
Please stand to sing
Hymn
During this hymn a collection of money is made. If you would like to donate securely online, tap the button below.
1. Good Christian men, rejoice and sing!
Now is the triumph of your King:
To all the world glad news we bring:
Alleluia!
2. The Lord of Life is risen for aye:
Bring flowers of song to strew his way;
Let all mankind rejoice and say:
Alleluia!
3. Praise we in songs of victory
That Love, that Life, which cannot die,
And sing with hearts uplifted high
Alleluia!
4. Thy name we bless, O risen Lord,
And sing today with one accord
The life laid down, the life restored:
Alleluia!
Cyril Alington (1872–1955) Harm. Henry Ley (1887–1962)
Please remain standing for
The Blessing
Please stand as Members of the Chapter withdraw to Saint Stephen’s Chapel, where the newly-installed Prebend is conferred with a Place and Voice in Chapter.
Please remain at your seat for the duration of the