The Gathering

Our worship begins at the sound of the bell, please stand as the sacred ministers enter, during which the introit hymn is sung.

Come down, O Love divine,
seek thou this soul of mine,
and visit it with thine own ardour glowing;
O Comforter, draw near,
within my heart appear,
and kindle it, thy holy flame bestowing.

O let it freely burn,
till earthly passions turn
to dust and ashes in its heat consuming;
and let thy glorious light
shine ever on my sight,
and clothe me round, the while my path illuming.

Let holy charity
mine outward vesture be,
and lowliness become mine inner clothing;
true lowliness of heart,
which takes the humbler part,
and o’er its own shortcomings weeps with loathing.

And so the yearning strong,
with which the soul will long,
shall far outpass the pow’r of human telling;
for none can guess its grace,
till he become the place
wherein the Holy Spirit makes his dwelling.

Words: Italian, Bianco da Siena (d. 1434)
translated by Richard Frederick Littledale (1833-1890)
Music: Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Hymn Tune: DOWN AMPNEY

In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

The Greeting

Grace, mercy and peace
from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ
be with you

and also with you.

Words of Welcome

Invitation to Confession

Jesus said:
Before you offer your gift,
go and be reconciled.
As brothers and sisters in God’s family,
we come together to ask our Father for forgiveness.

Silence is kept.

Almighty God, our heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you,
through our own fault,
in thought, and word, and deed,
and in what we have left undone.
We are heartily sorry,
and repent of all our sins.
For your Son our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake,
forgive us all that is past;
and grant that we may serve you in newness of life
to the glory of your name.
Amen.

May almighty God have mercy on you,
forgive you your sins,
and bring you to everlasting life.

Amen.

Gloria in Excelsis

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.

The Collect

The president introduces a period of silent prayer with the words ‘Let us pray’.

Almighty God,
who sent your Holy Spirit
to be the life and light of your Church:
open our hearts to the riches of your grace,
that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit
in love and joy and peace;
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.

Amen.

The Liturgy of the Word

Please sit.

A reading from the letter of Paul to the Ephesians.

I bow my knees before the Father,from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3.14-end

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Please stand as the gradual hymn is sung. To symbolise our desire to turn to Christ in our daily lives, at the end of the hymn we remain standing and turn to face the place where the Gospel is proclaimed.

How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
in a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
and drives away his fear.

It makes the wounded spirit whole,
and calms the troubled breast;
’tis manna to the hungry soul,
and to the weary rest.

Dear name! the rock on which I build,
my shield and hiding-place,
my never-failing treasury filled
with boundless stores of grace.

Jesus! my shepherd, brother, friend,
my prophet, priest, and king,
my Lord, my life, my way, my end,
accept the praise I bring.

Weak is the effort of my heart,
and cold my warmest thought;
but when I see thee as thou art,
I’ll praise thee as I ought.

Till then I would thy love proclaim
with ev’ry fleeting breath;
and may the music of thy name
refresh my soul in death.

Words: John Newton (1725-1807)
Music: Alexander Robert Reinagle (1799-1877)
Hymn Tune: SAINT PETER

Gospel Reading

Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.

Glory to you, O Lord.

Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, also called the Sea of Tiberias.A large crowd kept following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing for the sick. Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near. When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming towards him, Jesus said to Philip, ‘Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?’ He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, ‘Six months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.’ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Jesus, ‘There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?’ Jesus said, ‘Make the people sit down.’ Now there was a great deal of grass in the place; so they sat down, about five thousand in all. Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, ‘Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.’ So they gathered them up, and from the fragments of the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten, they filled twelve baskets. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they began to say, ‘This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.’

When Jesus realised that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, got into a boat, and started across the lake to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The lake became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the lake and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, ‘It is I; do not be afraid.’ Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land towards which they were going.

John 6.1-21

This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon

Please sit after the preacher leads us in prayer.

Affirmation of faith

Please stand with the president.

Let us declare our faith in God.

We believe in God the Father,
from whom every family
in heaven and on earth is named.

We believe in God the Son,
who lives in our hearts through faith,
and fills us with his love.

We believe in God the Holy Spirit,
who strengthens us
with power from on high.

We believe in one God;
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Prayers of Intercession

Following an invitation to pray from the intercessor we kneel or sit to pray.

The response to the bidding:

Lord, in your mercy.

Hear our prayer.

then at the end:

Merciful Father,

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

The Liturgy of the Sacrament

Please stand with the president.

The Peace

Blessed are the peacemakers:
they shall be called children of God.
We meet in the name of Christ and share his peace.

The peace of the Lord be always with you

and also with you.

Let us offer one another a sign of peace.

This is usually a handshake shared with those near you.

Preparation of the Table

The table is prepared and bread and wine are placed upon it.

A hymn is sung. During this hymn a collection, our financial offering in support of the work of the Church both at St. Mary’s and across our diocese, is taken.

You can place cash or giving envelopes in the collection plates as they are passed around. If you would prefer, or if you miss the plate, you can also give by tapping your contactless card or device on the giving kiosk by the door as you leave, or on our donations page.

Lord, enthroned in heav’nly splendour,
first begotten from the dead,
thou alone, our strong defender,
liftest up thy people’s head.
Alleluia, alleluia,
Jesu, true and living bread.

Here our humblest homage pay we,
here in loving rev’rence bow;
here for faith’s discernment pray we,
lest we fail to know thee now.
Alleluia, alleluia,
thou art here, we ask not how.

Though the lowliest form doth veil thee
as of old in Bethlehem,
here as there thine angels hail thee,
branch and Flow’r of Jesse’s Stem.
Alleluia, alleluia,
we in worship join with them.

Paschal Lamb, thine off’ring, finished
once for all when thou wast slain,
in its fullness undiminished
shall for evermore remain.
Alleluia, alleluia,
cleansing souls from ev’ry stain.

Life-imparting heav’nly manna,
stricken rock with streaming side,
heav’n and earth with loud hosanna
worship thee, the Lamb who died.
Alleluia, alleluia,
ris’n, ascended, glorified!

Words: George Hugh Bourne (1840-1925)
Music: George Clement Martin (1844-1916)
Hymn Tune: SAINT HELEN

Taking of the Bread and Wine

Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation:
through your goodness we have this bread to set before you,
which earth has given and human hands have made.
It will become for us the bread of life.

Blessed be God for ever.

Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation:
through your goodness we have this wine to set before you,
fruit of the vine and work of human hands.
It will become for us the cup of salvation.

Blessed be God for ever.

The Eucharistic Prayer (E)

Please kneel or sit.

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 thanks and praise.

It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
holy Father, almighty and eternal God.
From sunrise to sunset this day is holy,
for Christ has risen from the tomb
and scattered the darkness of death
with light that will not fade.

This day the risen Lord walks with your gathered people,
unfolds for us your word,
and makes himself known in the breaking of the bread.
And though the night will overtake this day
you summon us to live in endless light,
the never-ceasing sabbath of the Lord.

And so, with choirs of angels
and with all the heavenly host,
we proclaim your glory
and join their unending song of praise:

Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of pow’r and might.
Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessèd is he, O blessèd is he
who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest, hosanna in the highest.

We praise and bless you, loving Father,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord;
and as we obey his command,
send your Holy Spirit,
that broken bread and wine outpoured
may be for us the body and blood of your dear Son.
On the night before he died he had supper with his friends
and, taking bread, he praised you.
He broke the bread, gave it to them and said:
Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you;
do this in remembrance of me.
When supper was ended he took the cup of wine.
Again he praised you, gave it to them and said:
Drink this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.
So, Father, we remember all that Jesus did,
in him we plead with confidence his sacrifice
made once for all upon the cross.
Bringing before you the bread of life and cup of salvation,
we proclaim his death and resurrection
until he comes in glory.

Great is the mystery of faith:

Christ has died:
Christ is risen:
Christ will come again.

Lord of all life,
help us to work together for that day
when your kingdom comes
and justice and mercy will be seen in all the earth.
Look with favour on your people,
gather us in your loving arms
and bring us with Blessed Mary and all the saints
to feast at your table in heaven.
Through Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours, O loving Father,
for ever and ever.

Amen.

Silence is kept.

The Lord’s Prayer

United with Christian people everywhere
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught 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.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Breaking of the Bread

The president breaks the consecrated bread.

We break this bread
to share in the body of Christ.

Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.

The Agnus Dei is sung as the bread is broken for distribution.

Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.

Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.

Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world,
grant us peace.

Invitation to Communion

Draw near with faith.
Receive the body of our Lord Jesus Christ
which he gave for you,
and his blood which he shed for you.
Eat and drink
in remembrance that he died for you,
and feed on him in your hearts
by faith with thanksgiving.

The president and people receive communion. All baptised Christians are welcome to receive the sacrament. Please follow the guidance offered by the stewards.

If you are not baptised, or would prefer to not receive, then do still come forward for a blessing bringing this book with you so the president knows your intention.

The sacrament is available in both kinds, however if you wish to only receive the bread please do so and then return to your place. Receiving in one kind is still considered to be full communion by the Church of England. Please do not dip bread in the wine (sometimes called ‘intincting’).

It might be helpful to use this prayer during the distribution:

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you
for all the benefits you have won for us,
for all the pains and insults you have borne for us.
Most merciful redeemer,
friend and brother,
may we know you more clearly,
love you more dearly,
and follow you more nearly day by day.
Amen.

Words: St. Richard of Chichester

Anthem

Sung by the Choir.

Jesu, joyaunce of my heart, blessèd Jesu;
bliss unto my soul thou art, holy Jesu;
sure defence from Satan’s dart, sweetest Jesu;
Jesu, sweetest Jesu.

Thousand times I think of thee, my Redeemer;
only yearn thy face to see, my Redeemer;
longing for thy company, my Redeemer;
Jesu, my Redeemer.

Feed me, every want supply, bread of heaven;
slake my thirst, or else I die, from thy fountain;
let me in thy blessing lie, gentle Jesu;
Jesu, sweetest Jesu.

Words: Johann Flittner (1618-1678)
translated by George Ratcliffe Woodward (1848-1934)
Music: Chorale melody by Johann Rudolph Ahle (1625-1673)
harmonised by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
arranged by Simon Geoffrey Lindley (b. 1948)

The following communion hymns may be sung during the distribution as time allows. Please remain seated.

Let us build a house where love can dwell
and all can safely live,
a place where saints and children tell
how hearts learn to forgive.
Built of hopes and dreams and visions,
rock of faith and vault of grace;
here the love of Christ shall end divisions:
all are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where prophets speak,
and words are strong and true,
where all God’s children dare to seek
to dream God’s reign anew.
Here the cross shall stand as witness
and as symbol of God’s grace;
here as one we claim the faith of Jesus:
all are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where love is found
in water, wine and wheat:
a banquet hall on holy ground,
where peace and justice meet.
Here the love of God, through Jesus,
is revealed in time and space;
as we share in Christ the feast that frees us:
all are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where hands will reach
beyond the wood and stone
to heal and strengthen, serve and teach,
and live the Word they’ve known.
Here the outcast and the stranger
bear the image of God’s face
let us bring an end to fear and danger
all are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Let us build a house where all are named,
their songs and visions heard,
and loved and treasured, taught and claimed
as words within the Word.
Built of tears and cries and laughter,
prayers of faith and songs of grace,
let this house proclaim from floor to rafter:
all are welcome, all are welcome
all are welcome in this place.

Words & Music: Marty Haugen (b. 1950)

Gracious Spirit, Holy Ghost,
taught by thee we covet most
of thy gifts at Pentecost,
holy, heav’nly love.

Love is kind, and suffers long,
love is meek, and thinks no wrong,
love than death itself more strong;
therefore, give us love.

Prophecy will fade away,
melting in the light of day,
love will ever with us stay;
therefore, give us love.

Faith will vanish into sight;
hope be emptied in delight;
love in heav’n will shine more bright;
therefore, give us love.

Faith and hope and love we see
joining hand in hand agree;
but the greatest of the three,
and the best, is love.

From the overshadowing
of thy gold and silver wing
shed on us, who to thee sing,
holy, heav’nly love.

Words: Christopher Wordsworth (1807-1885)
based on 1 Corinthians 13 & Psalm 68 verse 13
Music: John Stainer (1840-1901)
Hymn Tune: CHARITY

The Post Communion Prayer

Please stand with the president who introduces a time of silent prayer with the words ‘Let us pray’.

Holy Father,
who gathered us here around the table of your Son
to share this meal with the whole household of God:
in that new world where you reveal
the fullness of your peace,
gather people of every race and language
to share in the eternal banquet of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Almighty God,
we thank you for feeding us
with 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.

A hymn is sung.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee;
holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessèd Trinity!

Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore thee,
casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,
which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.

Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide thee,
though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
only thou art holy, there is none beside thee,
perfect in pow’r, in love, and purity.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name,
in earth, and sky, and sea;
holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
God in three persons, blessèd Trinity!

Words: Reginald Heber (1783-1826)
Music: John Bacchus Dykes (1823-1876)
Hymn Tune: NICAEA

The Dismissal

The Blessing

The peace of God,
which passes all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds
in the knowledge and love of God,
and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always.

Amen.

The Dismissal

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

In the name of Christ. Amen.