Opening Sentence

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:2

Confession

Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

Invitatory

O God, make speed to save us.

O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

O Gracious Light Phos hilaron

O gracious light,
pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of Life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.

Psalm 124 Nisi quia Dominus

1

If the LORD had not been on our side, *
let Israel now say;

2

If the LORD had not been on our side, *
when enemies rose up against us;

3

Then would they have swallowed us up alive *
in their fierce anger toward us;

4

Then would the waters have overwhelmed us *
and the torrent gone over us;

5

Then would the raging waters *
have gone right over us.

6

Blessed be the LORD! *
he has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth.

7

We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; *
the snare is broken, and we have escaped.

8

Our help is in the Name of the LORD, *
the maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 125 Qui confidunt

1

Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, *
which cannot be moved, but stands fast for ever.

2

The hills stand about Jerusalem; *
so does the LORD stand round about his people,
from this time forth for evermore.

3

The scepter of the wicked shall not hold sway over the land allotted to the just, *
so that the just shall not put their hands to evil.

4

Show your goodness, O LORD, to those who are good *
and to those who are true of heart.

5

As for those who turn aside to crooked ways,
the LORD will lead them away with the evildoers; *
but peace be upon Israel.

Psalm 126 In convertendo

1

When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, *
then were we like those who dream.

2

Then was our mouth filled with laughter, *
and our tongue with shouts of joy.

3

Then they said among the nations, *
"The LORD has done great things for them."

4

The LORD has done great things for us, *
and we are glad indeed.

5

Restore our fortunes, O LORD, *
like the watercourses of the Negev.

6

Those who sowed with tears *
will reap with songs of joy.

7

Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed, *
will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.

Gloria Patri

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Gospel

Luke 18: 31- 43 (NRSV)

31 Then he took the twelve aside and said to them, "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. 32 For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon. 33 After they have flogged him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again." 34 But they understood nothing about all these things; in fact, what he said was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said. 35 As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth Ý is passing by." 38 Then he shouted, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" 39 Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet; but he shouted even more loudly, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" 40 Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, 41 "What do you want me to do for you?" He said, "Lord, let me see again." 42 Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has saved you." 43 Immediately he regained his sight and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Canticle 17 The Song of Simeon
Nunc Dimittis Luke 2:29-32

Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in peace as you have promised;

For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom you have prepared for all the world to see:

A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of your people Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

His mother Euphemia had no children. One day she went to church on the festival of our Lady the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, at Attrib. She saw the children in the church wearing their beautiful apparels with their parents. She heaved a sigh and wept before the icon of St. Mary, entreating her to intercede for her before her beloved Son in order that He would give her a son. A voice came from the icon saying "Amen". She rejoiced in what she had heard and realized that the Lord had heard her prayers.

When she returned to her home and told her husband, he replied, "May God's will be done". The Lord gave them this saint and they called him Mina, from the word "Amen" which his mother heard coming out of the icon. Later on, his parents got another son and a daughter.

When he was growing up, his parents taught him how to write and they reared him in a Christian manner. When he was eleven years old, his father departed after a good old age and his mother died three years later. St. Mina devoted his life to fasting, prayer and a Christian way of life.

He was placed him in his father's position because everyone loved him and his father. In spite of that, he did not forsake his worship.

When Diocletian had renounced Christianity and issued orders to worship idols, many were martyred for the name of the Lord Jesus. The Saint left his position and went to the desert, where he stayed and worshipped God with all his heart.

One day he saw the heavens open and the martyrs crowned with beautiful crowns. He heard a voice saying: "He who toils for the name of the Lord Jesus shall receive these crowns". He returned to the city over which he was Governor and confessed the name of the Lord Jesus. Knowing that he belonged to a noble family, they tried to dissuade him from his faith and promised him honor and precious gifts. When he did not change his mind, they threatened him and the Governor ordered him to be tortured. When the Governor failed to turn him away from his faith, he sent him to his brother so that he might influence him but he also failed. Finally, the Governor ordered his head to be cut off, his body be cast into a fire and his ashes be scattered in the wind.

The body remained in the fire for three days and three nights, but it was not damaged. His sister came and gave the soldiers a lot of money and they let her take the body. She put it in a sack and intended to take it to Alexandria, as her brother had previously advised her. She embarked with her brother's body on one of the ships to Alexandria. On the trip sea beasts came out of the water and attacked the passengers abroad the ship. They were frightened and screamed with fear. The Saint's sister prayed to the Lord and asked for the intercession of her brother. While the passengers were in fear and confusion, fire went forth from her brother's body and burned the faces of the beasts. They dove immediately into the water and as they reappeared the fire burned them again. They finally dove and did not reappear.

When the ship arrived at the port of Alexandria, most of the people in Alexandria went out with the Patriarch to meet it. They carried the sacred body with honor and reverence and entered the city with a venerable celebration and placed it in the church, after they shrouded it in expensive shrouds.

When the time of persecution ended, the angel of the Lord appeared to the honorable Patriarch, Abba Athanasius the Apostolic. The Lord's command was to place the body of St. Mina on a camel and to take it out of the City without letting anyone lead it but to follow it from a distance until it stopped at a place that the Lord had designated.

They walked behind the camel until they arrived at a place called Lake Bayad, in the district of Marriot. There they heard a voice saying: "This is the place where the Lord wishes the body of his beloved Mina to rest". They lowered the body and placed it in a coffin, and situated it in a beautiful garden and many miracles happened through the body.

After a while, the people of Pentapolis (the five cities) rose against the cities around Alexandria. The people were getting ready to face the Barbarians and the Governor decided to take the body of St. Mina with him as his strong protector. He took the body secretly and through the blessings of this Saint, he overcame the Barbarians and returned victoriously.

The Governor decided not to return the body of the Saint to its original place and wanted to take it to Alexandria. On the way back, they passed by Lake Bayad, St. Mina's original place. The camel carrying the body knelt down and would not move, in spite of frequent beatings. They moved the body over another camel, but again this second camel did not move from its place. The Governor finally realised that this was the Lord's will. He made a coffin from decay-resistant wood and placed the silver coffin in it. He then returned it to its place, invoked St. Mina's blessings, and returned to his city.

When the Lord wanted to disclose the location of St. Mina's body, He did it in this manner. There was a shepherd in the desert who had a lamb with mange. It slipped down into the water of a well near the place of the Saint's body, then came out of the water and rolled over in the sand of that place, and instantly the lamb was healed. When the shepherd saw this miracle, he was amazed. He started to take from the sand, mix it with water and smear with it every lamb with mange or any other disease, and immediately, they were healed.

The news of these miracles spread in all the countries until the Emperor of Constantinople heard of them. He had an only daughter and she was leprous. Her father sent her to the place where the Saint's body was and enquired from the shepherd how these miracles were happening. She took from the sand, moistened it with water, smeared it on her body and slept the night in that place. In her sleep she saw St. Mina saying to her: "Arise early and dig in this place and you will find my body". When she woke up, she was cured. As she began digging she found the body of the Saint. She sent a word to her father who rejoiced greatly, thanked and glorified God.

The Emperor then sent men and money and built a Church in that place and it was consecrated on the fifteenth day of the Coptic month of Baounah.

When the Roman Emperors Arcadius and Honorius reigned, they ordered a city to be built there. Multitudes of people came to that church asking for the intercession of the blessed St. Mina. The Lord had honoured him with many signs and wonders that appeared from his body. When the Arabs came to Egypt, some of them attacked the city and the church was destroyed, only its ruins remained.

When His Holiness the late Pope Abba Kyrillos VI was ordained Patriarch, he took interest in building a large monastery in this area of Marriot in the name of St. Mina. He spent a great deal of money in building it. There are two churches in the monastery, visited by many Coptic worshippers for blessings and for praying. He also bought one hundred acres of land and built a fence around it. He ordained a number of monks who had high degrees of academic and religious education.

Apostles' Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. 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,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

Suffrages A

Show us your mercy, O Lord;

And grant us your salvation.

Clothe your ministers with righteousness;

Let your people sing with joy.

Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;

For only in you can we live in safety.

Lord, keep this nation under your care;

And guide us in the way of justice and truth.

Let your way be known upon earth;

Your saving health among all nations.

Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;

Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.

Create in us clean hearts, O God;

And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

Collect of the Day: Pentecost, proper 29

Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Protection

Be our light in the darkness, O Lord, and in your great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of your only Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

For Mission

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.

World Cycle of Prayer

We pray for the people of Uruguay.

CIA World Factbook: Uruguay

Ecumenical Cycle of Prayer

We pray for our sisters and brothers, members of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches.

The National Association of Congregational Christian Churches

For Agriculture

For Those We Love

For Quiet Confidence

O God of peace, who has taught us that in returning and rest we will be saved, in quietness and confidence will be our strength: By the might of your Spirit lift us, we pray, to your presence, where we may be still and know that you are God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer Attributed to St. Francis

Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

General Thanksgiving

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.

Benediction

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia. Alleluia.

Thanks be to God. Alleluia. Alleluia.