The Feast of the Annunciation of our Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary
Preparation
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry;
hold not your peace at my tears.
Praise
We beseech you, O Lord,
pour your grace into our hearts,
that as we have known the incarnation
of your Son Jesus Christ
by the message of an angel,
so by his cross and passion
we may be brought to the glory of his resurrection;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
Amen.
Psalm 40:5-11
Great are the wonders you have done, O Lord my God.
How great your designs for us!
There is none that can be compared with you.
If I were to proclaim them and tell of them
they would be more than I am able to express.
Sacrifice and offering you do not desire
but my ears you have opened;
Burnt offering and sacrifice for sin you have not required;
then said I: ‘Lo, I come.
‘In the scroll of the book it is written of me
that I should do your will, O my God;
I delight to do it: your law is within my heart.’
I have declared your righteousness in the great congregation;
behold, I did not restrain my lips, and that, O Lord, you know.
Your righteousness I have not hidden in my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your loving-kindness and truth from the great congregation.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now and shall be for ever. Amen.
Reading
Luke 1:26–38
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.
Prayers
You chose the Virgin Mary to be the mother of your Son.
Have mercy on all who wait for your redemption.
We pray for … [the Church throughout the world]
Through your angel Gabriel
you brought a message of peace and joy to Mary.
Give to the world the joy and peace of salvation.
We pray for … [the peace of the world]
By the consent of your handmaid
and the power of the Holy Spirit,
your Word came to dwell among us.
Open our hearts to receive Christ,
as Mary received him.
We pray for … [those in our community]
You look with compassion on the lowly
and fill the hungry with good things.
Encourage the downhearted,
help all those in need and
comfort those near to death.
We pray for … [the sick, the suffering, the helpless]
To you, O God, nothing is impossible,
and you alone do marvellous things;
save us, and bring us on the last day
with all the faithful departed
into your glorious kingdom.
Grant, O Lord, that by the riches of your grace
we may grow up into him who unites our life to yours,
even he who is the first-born of all creation,
your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us,
and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son,
full of grace and truth.
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.
Conclusion
May God bless us and show us compassion and mercy.
Amen.