Morning Prayer

Easter 5

Sunday, 3rd May 2026

Preparation

O Lord, open our lips

All and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.

In your resurrection, O Christ,

All let heaven and earth rejoice. Alleluia.

Blessed are you, Lord God of our salvation, to you be praise and glory for ever.

As once you ransomed your people from Egypt and led them to freedom in the promised land, so now you have delivered us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of your risen Son.

May we, the first fruits of your new creation, rejoice in this new day you have made, and praise you for your mighty acts.

Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

All Blessed be God for ever.

This opening prayer may be said

The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;

let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you; now and for ever.

All Amen.

The Word of God

Psalmody

Psalm 31:1-5

Prayer and Praise for Deliverance from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

¹ In you, O Lord, I seek refuge;
    do not let me ever be put to shame;
    in your righteousness deliver me.
² Incline your ear to me;
    rescue me speedily.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
    a strong fortress to save me.

³ You are indeed my rock and my fortress;
    for your name’s sake lead me and guide me,
⁴ take me out of the net that is hidden for me,
    for you are my refuge.
⁵ Into your hand I commit my spirit;
    you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.

All 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.

 Readings

Acts 7:55-60

⁵⁵ But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ⁵⁶ ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’ ⁵⁷ But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. ⁵⁸ Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ ⁶⁰ Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he died.

1 Peter 2:2-10

² Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

⁴ Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and ⁵ like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For it stands in scripture:

‘See, I am laying in Zion a stone,
    a cornerstone chosen and precious;
and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’

⁷ To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe,

‘The stone that the builders rejected
    has become the very head of the corner’,

⁸ and

‘A stone that makes them stumble,
    and a rock that makes them fall.’

They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.

⁹ But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.

¹⁰ Once you were not a people,
    but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
    but now you have received mercy.

Canticle

Refrain:

All In your unfailing love, O Lord, you lead the people whom you have redeemed. Alleluia.

1I will sing to the Lord, who has triumphed gloriously, ♦

the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.

2The Lord is my strength and my song ♦

and has become my salvation.

3This is my God whom I will praise, ♦

the God of my forebears whom I will exalt.

4The Lord is a warrior, ♦

the Lord is his name.

5Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power: ♦

your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy.

6At the blast of your nostrils, the sea covered them; ♦

they sank as lead in the mighty waters.

7In your unfailing love, O Lord, ♦ you lead the people whom you have redeemed.

8And by your invincible strength ♦

you will guide them to your holy dwelling.

9You will bring them in and plant them, O Lord, ♦

in the sanctuary which your hands have established.

Exodus 15.1b-3, 6, 10, 13, 17

All 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.

All In your unfailing love, O Lord, you lead the people whom you have redeemed. Alleluia.

Gospel Reading

John 14:1-14

Jesus the Way to the Father

14 ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way to the place where I am going.’^[c] 5 Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ ⁶ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’

⁸ Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ ⁹ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? ¹⁰ Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. ¹¹ Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. ¹² Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. ¹³ I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.

Death is swallowed up in victory.

All Where, O death, is your sting?

Christ is risen from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

All Death is swallowed up in victory.

The trumpet will sound and the dead shall be raised.

All Where, O death, is your sting?

We shall not all sleep,but we shall be changed.

AllDeath is swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your sting?

from 1 Corinthians 15

Gospel Canticle

Refrain:

All The Lord is risen from the tomb who for our sakes hung upon the tree. Alleluia.

1Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, ♦

who has come to his people and set them free.

2He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour, ♦

born of the house of his servant David.

3Through his holy prophets God promised of old ♦

to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all that hate us,

4To show mercy to our ancestors, ♦

and to remember his holy covenant.

5This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham: ♦

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

6Free to worship him without fear, ♦

holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.

7And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, ♦

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

8To give his people knowledge of salvation ♦

by the forgiveness of all their sins.

9In the tender compassion of our God ♦

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

10To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, ♦

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Luke 1.68-79

All 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.

Refrain:

All The Lord is risen from the tomb who for our sakes hung upon the tree. Alleluia.

Prayers