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Preparation
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Praise
God, our refuge and strength,
bring near the day when wars shall cease
and poverty and pain shall end,
that earth may know the peace of heaven
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 82
God has taken his stand in the council of heaven;
in the midst of the gods he gives judgement:
‘How long will you judge unjustly
and show such favour to the wicked?
‘You were to judge the weak and the orphan;
defend the right of the humble and needy;
‘Rescue the weak and the poor;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
‘They have no knowledge or wisdom;
they walk on still in darkness:
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
‘Therefore I say that though you are gods
and all of you children of the Most High,
‘Nevertheless, you shall die like mortals
and fall like one of their princes.’
Arise, O God and judge the earth,
for it is you that shall take all nations for your possession.
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 17.11-19
On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’ When he saw them, he said to them, ‘Go and show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, ‘Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?’ Then he said to him, ‘Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.’
Reflection
In the service of ordination into the priesthood there is a moment when the one to be ordained is invited to prostrate themselves. This is an invitation to lie face down on the ground in a posture of total submission. This moment comes as prayers of intercession are offered and as the Holy Spirit is invoked. It comes before the bishop lays on his hands and anoints the one to be admitted into the priesthood.
This act of prostration also comes at the beginning of the Good Friday liturgy. As those who are to lead their congregations in prayer as we recall Jesus’ humiliating and tortuous death on the cross enter the sanctuary, they are called to prostrate themselves before that cross as they silently offer prayer for fallen humanity.
The act of prostration is one of total submission. As we prostrate ourselves, whether physically or mentally, we are adopting a posture of vulnerability; we are showing that we are ready to unconditionally humble ourselves before the God who loved us so much that he sent his Son to earth to bring about our redemption.
This act of self-humbling is counter-cultural to our normal way of conducting our day-to-day lives. It flies in the face of our natural instinct to be the ‘top dog’ or ‘queen bee’. We like to get our own way in all things. We certainly do not like placing ourselves at the back of the queue in meek and humble submission to another, even when that other is God himself.
In Jesus’ final moments of earthly life he showed us how we might prostrate ourselves in humility and thanksgiving for all that he has done for us. At the Last Supper, the King of kings knelt in the place of the servant and washed the feet of his disciples. That act of humble prostration is one we are called to emulate as we demonstrate our commitment to loving God and neighbour with every fibre of our being. Then, on the Friday we call ‘Good’, Jesus prostrated himself once again. This time is was to have the nails hammered into his hands and feet before he was lifted up for all to see as he died for us.
When we reflect on Jesus’ final moments we are called to ask ourselves what right we have to ‘stand on our dignity’, to pursue our own selfish ends, to ignore the model we are given by the Son of God himself? We are reminded that we are all called to prostrate ourselves at Jesus’ feet and offer him thanks!
Prayers of intercession
Let us pray with thanksgiving to God for all the blessings of this life.
Empower the Church to be a refuge for all people, a beacon to all the nations. Keep her ministers always ready to receive and comfort those who come to them for any kind of help.
Bring reconciliation wherever there is conflict between faiths and races. Grant the spirit of peace, that none may be despised for their status or condition but all may be drawn into a single harmony of life.
We pray for our families, friends and neighbours, for shared sympathy and mutual help. Make us duly thankful for all the benefits we have received. Bless and strengthen all who work for the abandoned and homeless in our community.
Grant healing to the sick and skill to those who work for them. We pray particularly for those suffering from chronic illness and for those who are shunned because of their affliction.
We pray for those who have come through tribulation and suffering in this world, to be made whole in heaven. Give to them and to all the departed the eternal life of the faithful.
May our prayers be accepted in the name of Christ, the merciful Healer.
Prayer for the week
Lord Jesus,
you have shown us how great is the price of freedom
by giving your life to deliver us from evil.
Teach us to give to the uttermost;
to respect that which others have secured for us;
and to pursue peace in obedience to your will,
until all the kingdoms of this world come to you
as Lord and Saviour of all.
Amen.
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 Grace
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.