Listen to or read a short service of Prayer for Thursday 11 June 2020, the Festival of Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi is the last of the major festivals of the Church’s year in the sequence which leads from Advent through Christmas to Easter, the Ascension and Pentecost. The Festival of Corpus Christi is the day on which the Church offers specific thanks for the institution of the sacrament of Holy Communion. Like Pentecost, Corpus Christi (which follows ten days later) is a reminder that, although Jesus returned to his Father in heaven, God still lives on earth.
Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Praise
Holy God,
faithful and unchanging:
enlarge our minds with the knowledge of your truth,
and draw us more deeply into the mystery of your love,
that we may truly worship you,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Psalm 116.10-17
How shall I repay the Lord
for all the benefits he has given to me?
I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call upon the name of the Lord.
I will fulfil my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his faithful servants.
O Lord, I am your servant,
your servant, the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me from my bonds.
I will offer to you a sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call upon the name of the Lord.
I will fulfil my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the Lord,
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Alleluia.
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
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’ So Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live for ever.’
John 6.51-58
This is the word of the Lord.
Prayers
Let us pray with thanksgiving to God, the giver of our spiritual food and of all grace.
Grant to your Church the continual grace of the sacraments. Keep all Christian people faithful to your command of remembrance, recalling the price of our redemption and the source of our life. Teach us to serve you in others, bringing to them the bread of life and the message of salvation.
Give to all nations hunger and thirst for righteousness through your living word. Make all men and women understand the fellowship which they share in their common humanity, so that all life becomes a sacrament of your presence.
In the strength of the holy communion, send us out to make your power known to our friends and neighbours and colleagues. Supply us with our bodily needs, and with the spiritual food and drink that makes us one with Christ.
We pray for all who are starving in the midst of plenty. Bring new hope for the relief of their suffering. Move the hearts of the rich and powerful to relieve the poor and weak.
We give thanks for all who have died sustained by the comfort of holy communion. May they rejoice for ever int he heavenly banquet where the forms of bread and wine give way to the full revelation of Christ.
We offer our prayers, rejoicing in the communion that unites us with Christ.
Almighty and eternal God,
you have revealed yourself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
and live and reign in the perfect unity of love:
hold us firm in this faith,
that we may know you in all your ways
and evermore rejoice in your eternal glory,
who are three Persons yet one God,
now and for ever.
Amen.
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.
The Conclusion
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.
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