Sunday readings and prayers

THE THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened, and they recognised Jesus.”

Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory, thou o’er death hast won;
angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave clothes where thy body lay.
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won.

Lo! Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb;
Lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom;
let the Church with gladness, hymns of triumph sing;
for her Lord now liveth, death hath lost its sting.
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won.

No more we doubt thee, glorious Prince of life;
life is naught without thee; aid us in our strife;
make us more than conquerors, through thy deathless love:
bring us safe through Jordan to thy home above.                                                                                                 

Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict’ry, thou o’er death hast won.      Edmond Budry

The collect for the Third Sunday of Easter.

Almighty Father, who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples with the sight of the risen Lord: give us such knowledge of his presence with us, that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life and serve you continually in righteousness and truth; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  CW

First Bible Reading Acts 2.14a,36–41

But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.’

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what should we do?’ Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.’ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.

Psalm 116:1-3, 10-17

I love the Lord, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, *
because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.

The cords of death entangled me;  the grip of the grave took hold of me; *
I came to grief and sorrow.

Then I called upon the Name of the Lord: *
"O Lord, I pray you, save my life."

 How shall I repay the Lord *
for all the good things he has done for me?

I will lift up the cup of salvation *
and call upon the Name of the Lord.

 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord *
in the presence of all his people.

Precious in the sight of the Lord *
is the death of his servants.

O Lord, I am your servant; * I am your servant and the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me from my bonds.

I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving *
and call upon the Name of the Lord.

I will fulfill my vows to the Lord *
in the presence of all his people,

In the courts of the Lord'S  house, in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.  Hallelujah!

The Gospel according to St. Luke  24: 13-35

On that same day, two of the disciples were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognising him. And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ Jesus asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see Jesus.’ Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognised Jesus; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.   NRSV

Emmaus icon painted by  Brother Elia, monk of the Trappist monastery at Latrun in Israel.

The two disciples walking the seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus had seen their hopes in Jesus shattered as he lay dying on the cross.  It was at that time, when they were at rock bottom, that the resurrected Jesus joined them on the road, not that they recognised him at first. As he began to open up the scriptures to them, they began to feel that this was no ordinary fellow traveller but it was not until Jesus took bread, blessed it and broke it that they suddenly realised who it was that had been walking along beside them. Confusion, despair and loss were replaced by reawakened hope and expectation.  What a very appropriate reading for us toda

• We pray for the Church that it may radiate the Love of Christ and give new hope to communities where division and hardship marginalise and isolate.
• We pray for Ukraine and the Middle East & for all whose lives have been shattered by war.
• We pray for those seeking to bring peace to the world.
• We pray for the victims of Climate Change, some losing their home to floods while others face ever reducing harvests due to lack of rainfall. We pray at this time for our farmers.
• We pray for children and young people returning to school and approaching exams.
• We continue to pray for those known to us who are in poor health, thinking especially of .........................................................
• We pray for the repose of the souls of those who have recently departed this life, thinking especially of ………………….. We ask you, Father, to be with the bereaved that they may know the comforting presence of the risen Christ at this time of great sorrow and sadness.