Last evening, I posted a Morning Prayer for Thanksgiving Day. After we have all napped after the afternoon turkey meal and all its delicious wonder, here is an Evening Prayer for Thanksgiving Day. Like the Morning Prayer, I have used my favorite inclusive language Bible, The Inclusive Bible for the Psalms, Canticles, and other scriptural texts. There is a beautiful text by Fred Prat Green which the liturgical music composer David Haas set to music a number of years ago. Acknowledgements for both the Inclusive Bible and the hymn text Now It Is Evening follow the prayer below.
THANKSGIVING EVENING PRAYER
INTRODUCTORY VERSE
O Adonai, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me. Glory to God our Abba, to Jesus the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.
HYMN
Now It Is Evening[1]
Now it is evening: Lights of the city
Bid us remember Christ is our Light.
Many are lonely, Who will be neighbor?
Where there is caring Christ is our Light.
Now it is evening: Little ones sleeping
Bid us remember Christ is our Peace.
Some are neglected, Who will be neighbor?
Where there is caring Christ is our Peace.
Now it is evening: Food on the table
Bid us remember Christ is our Life.
Many are hungry, Who will be neighbor?
Where there is sharing Christ is our Life.
Now it is evening: Here in our meeting
May us remember Christ is our Friend.
Some may be strangers, Who will be neighbor?
Where there’s a welcome Christ is our Friend.
Fred Prat Green
PSALMODY[2]
Antiphon 1: Let us come before God with thanksgiving and extol God with music and song.
Psalm 23
Yahweh, you are my shepherd—
I want nothing more.
You let me lie down in green meadows;
you lead me beside restful waters:
you refresh my soul.
You guide me to lush pastures
for the sake of your Name.
Even if I’m surrounded by shadows of Death,
I fear no danger, for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff—
they give me courage.
You spread a table for me
in the presence of my enemies,
and you anoint my head with oil—
my cup overflows!
Only goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life, all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in your house, Yahweh,
for days without end.
Glory to God our Abba, to Jesus the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen.
Antiphon 1: Let us come before God with thanksgiving and extol God with music and song.
Silent prayer
Antiphon 2: I will give thanks to you, my God, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
Psalm 117
Praise Yahweh, all you nations;
extol God, all you mighty ones.
For God’s love toward us is great,
God’s faithfulness, eternal.
Alleluia!
Glory to God our Abba, to Jesus the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen.
Antiphon 2: I will give thanks to you, my God, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
Silent prayer
Antiphon 3: Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Canticle – Ephesians 1: 3-10
Praised be the Maker
of our Savior Jesus Christ,
who has bestowed on us in Christ
every spiritual blessing in the heavens!
Before the world began,
God chose us in Christ
to be holy and blameless
and to be full of love;
God likewise predestined us
through Christ Jesus to be adopted children—
such was God’s pleasure and will—
that everyone might praise the glory of God’s grace
which was freely bestowed on us in God’s beloved, Jesus Christ.
It is in Christ and through the blood of Christ
that we have been redeemed
and our sins forgiven,
so immeasurably generous is God’s favor
given to us with perfect wisdom and understanding.
God has taken pleasure in revealing the mystery
mystery of the plan through Christ,
to be carried out in the fullness of time;
namely, to bring all things
in heaven and on earth
together in Christ.
“We give thanks to you, Sovereign God Almighty,
the One who is and who was,
for using your great power
and establishing your reign.
The nations raged,
but now it is time for your own anger,
and time for judging the dead,
and for rewarding your faithful and your prophets,
and your holy ones and those who revere your
Name—
both great and small
and for destroying those
who destroy the earth.”
“Now have come salvation and power,
and the reign of God,
and all authority for God’s Anointed.
For the accuser of our sisters and brothers,
who accused them before our God night and day,
has been brought down.
They triumphed over the accuser
by the blood of the Lamb,
and by the word of their testimony;
their love of life did not dissuade them from death. Let the heavens rejoice
and all who dwell in them;
Glory to God our Abba, to Jesus the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen.
Antiphon 3: Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Silent Prayer
SCRIPTURE READING – Matthew 11:25-30
Then Jesus prayed, “Abba God, Creator of heaven and earth, to you I offer praise; for what you have hidden from the learned and the clever, you have revealed to the youngest children. Yes, Abba, everything is as you want it to be.” Jesus continued, “Everything has been handed over to me by Abba God. No one knows the Only Begotten except Abba God, and no one knows Abba God except the Only Begotten— and those to whom the Only Begotten
wants to give that revelation. Come to me, all you who labor and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon your shoulders
wand learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Here you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
RESPONSORY
Lord, you have given us food, bread of the finest wheat.
Lord, you have given us food, bread of the finest wheat.
Honey from the rock to our heart’s content,
Bread of the finest wheat.
Glory to God our Abba, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
Lord, you have given us food, bread of the finest wheat.
CANTICLE OF MARY
Antiphon: We give thanks to you, O God, for you satisfy the thirsty and fill the hungry with good things.
My soul proclaims your greatness, O God,
and my spirit rejoices in you, my Savior.
For you have looked with favor upon your lowly servant,
and from this day forward all generations will call me blessed.
For you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,
and holy is your Name.
Your mercy reaches from age to age
for those who fear you.
You have shown strength with your arm;
You have scattered the proud in their conceit;
you have deposed the mighty from their thrones
and raised the lowly to high places.
You have filled the hungry with good things,
while you have sent the rich away empty.
You have come to the aid of Israel your servant,
mindful of your mercy –
the promise you made to our ancestors –
to Abraham and his descendants forever.
Glory to God our Abba, to Jesus the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen.
Antiphon: We give thanks to you, O God, for you satisfy the thirsty and fill the hungry with good things.
INTERCESSIONS
Our hope is in God, who gives us help. In thanksgiving to our God we call upon God and say: Look kindly on your children, Lord.
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for your loving care of our Church, may you guide us all as disciples of Jesus Christ.
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for earth, our home, may we protect our home from all that would harm all living things.
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for the change of seasons, may our hearts be open to the beauty and splendor of you present in Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter.
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for our family and our friends, may you bless them and watch over them.
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for our community of faith, who rejoice with us in good times, and support us in time of sorrow.
In thanksgiving for the gifts which you have given us, O God, may we use our gifts to build up your Reign on earth .
In thanksgiving to you, O God, for the lives of all those who have gone before us, may they now rest in the peace and joy of heaven.
THE PRAYER OF JESUS
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come, Your 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 the Kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Loving God,
you are the true light and creator of all that is good. At morning, noon, and evening you watch over us and provide all which we need. May we ever live in the splendor of your presence, till that time we take our place around the table of your heavenly feast. We pray this through Jesus Christ, our Savior and brother, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
DISMISSAL
May God bless us, protect us from all evil
and bring us into everlasting life.
Amen.
[1] Now It Is Evening, by Fred Prat Green, © 1974, Hope Publishing Co.
[2] All Psalms and scripture passages from The Inclusive Bible: the first egalitarian translation , © 2007 by Priests for Equality, The Rowan & Littlefield Publishing Group Inc, Lathan, Maryland, 20706, USA
