Categories
Eucharist

Christmas Day – Monday 25th December 2023 – 11:15

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God has been worshipped in this place through the prayers and praises of countless generations. Worship lies at the heart of our life as Christians and we express our theology and belief through our liturgy. It is through these liturgical patterns of words and actions that we are formed and transformed.

Should you wish to translate this order of service into another language, please choose your language in the bottom right. There is a guest wireless network available within the Cathedral for those without a mobile data connection.

Please note that this service may be live streamed for our online congregation. By participating in this service, you acknowledge that you may be visible or audible. If you are uncomfortable about this possibility, please speak to a steward or verger, who will be able to advise further.

The ministry of Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is made possible entirely through the support of individuals like you. The donations which we receive from people all over the world support our worship and music tradition, education programmes, and community outreach work, as well as contributing towards the vast cost of maintaining this historic building. Should you wish to donate online, please tap the donate button. 

You are invited to say the text in bold in English.

Please stand as the Minister, at the West End of the Cathedral, sings

Let us pray. 

Please remain standing whilst the Choir and Clergy enter the stalls

Please remain standing to sing the

Hymn

1. O come, all ye faithful,
Joyful and triumphant;
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;
Come and behold him
Born the King of angels:

O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord.

2. God of God,
Light of Light,
Lo! he abhors not the Virgin’s womb;
Very God,
Begotten, not created:

3. See how the Shepherds,
Summoned to his cradle,
Leaving their flocks draw nigh with lowly fear;
We too will thither
Bend our joyful footsteps:

4. Sing, choirs of Angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above;
Glory to God
In the highest:

5. Yea, Lord, we greet thee,
Born this happy morning;
Jesu! to thee be glory given;
Word of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing:


Latin, tr. Frederick Oakley (1802–80)

John Wade (1711–1786)

The Celebrant says

The Greeting

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

Please remain standing for the lighting of 

The Christmas Candle

Almighty God, today the long-expected Saviour is born, and those who live in darkness are seeing a great light: help us to live in this light and to share the good news of your love.

Glory to God in the highest!

Glory to God in the highest!

Please remain standing for

The Collect for Purity

Almighty God  to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name: through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Please remain standing for

Kyrie eleison

Lord, you send your eternal light into the world; but so often we choose to remain in darkness.   Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

You show your love for us by sending your Son into the world; but so often we do not love one another.   Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.

You offer us the privilege of becoming your children; but so often we do not recognise Jesus or receive him as Saviour and Lord.   Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

The Celebrant pronounces

The Absolution

Please remain standing whilst the Celebrant intones

Please remain standing whilst the Choir sings

Gloria in excelsis deo

The Collect of the Day

Almighty God, you have given us your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin: grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Please sit for the

Titus 2: 11–14

At the end of the reading

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Please sit whilst the Choir sings

The Gradual

The holly and the ivy When they are both full grown, Of all trees that are in the wood The holly bears the crown: O, the rising of the sun, And the running of the deer; The playing of the merry organ, Sweet singing in the choir. The holly bears a blossom As white as lily flow’r; And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ To be our dear Saviour: The holly bears a berry As red as any blood; And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ To do poor sinners good: The holly bears a prickle As sharp as any thorn; And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ On Christmas Day in the morn: The holly bears a bark As bitter as any gall; And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ For to redeem us all:

Matthew Owens (b.1971)

Please stand for the

The Minister and Choir sing

The Lord be with you.

And also with you.

Hear the Gospel of our Saviour Christ according to Saint Luke, in the twenty-fourth chapter, beginning at the forty-fourth verse.

Glory to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Luke 2: 1–14

Please sit to listen to

The Sermon

The Very Reverend W. W. Morton, B.Th., M.A., Ph.D., M.Mus., D. Litt., Dean and Ordinary

Please stand to say

The Nicene Creed

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 incarnate by the Holy Spirit 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 worshipped and glorified, who 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.

The Prayers of the People

Let us pray.

Please kneel or sit, according to your custom

Each petition ends

Lord, in your mercy:

Hear our prayer.

At the end

Merciful Father, accept these our prayers for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Please stand for

The Peace

The peace of the Lord be always with you.

And also with you.

Please remain standing to sing

The Offertory Hymn

During this hymn, a collection of money is made. Should you wish to donate online, please tap the button below to give securely by card.

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1. God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
Remember Christ our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day,
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray:
O tidings of comfort and joy.

2. From God our heavenly Father
A blessèd angel came,
And unto certain shepherds
Brought tidings of the same,
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by name:
O tidings of comfort and joy.

3. And when they came to Bethlehem,
Where our dear Saviour lay,
They found him in a manger,
Where oxen feed on hay;
His mother, Mary, kneeling down,
Unto the Lord did pray:
O tidings of comfort and joy.

4. Now to the Lord sing praises,
All you within this place,
And with true love and brotherhood
Each other now embrace;
This holy tide of Christmas
All others doth efface:
O tidings of comfort and joy.

Traditional

English traditional carol, arr. David Willcocks (1919-2015)

Please remain standing as the Celebrant and Choir sing

Sursum Corda

The Lord is here.

His Spirit is with us.

Lift up your hearts.

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

The Celebrant intones the Preface, concluding

Therefore with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and singing:

Sanctus & Benedictus

Please remain standing as the Eucharistic Prayer continues, concluding

. . . through Jesus Christ our Lord, with whom and in whom, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship you, Father almighty, in songs of never-ending praise:

Blessing and honour and glory and power are yours for ever and ever. Amen.

Please kneel or be seated for

The Lord’s Prayer

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. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Celebrant breaks the bread and says

The bread which we break is a sharing in the body of Christ.

We, being many, are one body, for we all share in the one bread.

The Celebrant invites the people to receive communion.

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is the National Cathedral of the Church of Ireland, a member Church of the Anglican (Episcopalian) Communion. We welcome members of all Christian Church denominations to receive Holy Communion here. Please follow the stewards’ directions.

Whilst the people receive communion, the Choir sings

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.

(Lamb of God who takes away  the sins of the world, have mercy on us.)

Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

(Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, give us peace.)

The Motet

I saw three ships   Stuart Nicholson (b.1975)

 

Shepherds’ carol   Bob Chilcott (b.1955)

When all have received, the Celebrant says

Let us pray.

A seasonal post-communion prayer is said, followed by

Almighty God,  we thank you for feeding us with the spiritual food of the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ. Through him we offer you our souls and bodies to be a living sacrifice. Send us out in the power of your Spirit to live and work to your praise and glory. Amen.

Please stand to sing the

Hymn

1. Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the new-born King;
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled:
Joyful, all ye nations rise,
Join the triumph of the skies;
With the angelic host proclaim,
Christ is born in Bethlehem:

Hark! the herald angels sing
Glory to the new-born King.

2. Christ by highest heaven adored!
Christ, the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of a Virgin’s womb!
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail, the incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with man to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel:

3. Hail the heaven-born Prince of peace!
Hail, the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
Risen with healing in his wings.
Mild, he lays his glory by,
Born that man no more may die,
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth:

Charles Wesley (1707–88)

Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809–47)

The Celebrant says

The Blessing

The Minister and Choir sing

The Dismissal

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

In the name of Christ. Amen.

Please stand as the Choir and Clergy depart.

Please remain at your seat for the duration of the

Organ Voluntary

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