Praying at Home Today: Monday 30 August 2021
Praying at home today:
That our lives will be signs to others, pointing to Jesus Christ
A warm welcome to PrayingAtHome.com, where you can find worship resources for praying at home today or wherever you are.
We hope these readings, prayers, music and the short reflection will help you stay in touch with the Church and to sustain you on your journey through life.
If this is your first visit to this website, then you might like to read about the common elements and the suggested structure for each day’s prayer.
Everything’s optional!
Opening to the Word
You can spend a few moments in silence,
focussing on your breathing
to become more mindful of the present moment
and to open yourself more fully
to God’s presence within you.
Short reading
Happy are those who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times.Beati qui custodiunt judicium,
et faciunt justitiam in omni tempore.Heureux ceux qui respectent le droit,
qui pratiquent la justice en tout temps!
Psalm 105(106):3
The Liturgy of the Word
Here are today’s Bible readings.
You can read just one, or all three if you have time.
One link to all three readings
Separate links to each reading
Short Reflection
There’s no doubt that John the Baptist had a tough life.
Born to elderly parents, his father Zechariah hadn’t believed that they could possibly have a child and was struck dumb until he gave him his true name, John.
Zechariah’s Song, the Benedictus, predicts that this little child will be called the prophet of the Most High:
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
by the forgiveness of their sins.
By the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Luke 1:76-79
As the child grew up, maturing in spirit, he lived a hidden life in the wilderness until the time for him to begin his ministry in c. 29 CE.
From the wilderness he went through the Jordan valley proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
Possible a difficult character (he was no charmer), John challenged people’s complacency and insisted on justice and equity.
When people suggested that he might be the longed-for Messiah, he pointed to one who was to come after him, one who would baptise with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
In due course, he paid the ultimate price for criticising Herod Antipas for unlawfully marrying his brother’s wife, Herodias.
Herod was weak, made a rash promises and was outmanoeuvred by Herodias.
John witnessed to Jesus, pointing the way to him.
…my joy has been fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease.
He wasn’t the first Christian martyr, that privilege went to the Holy innocents slaughtered by Herod the Great, but he was the faithful one who prepared the way of the Lord.
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Music for reflection
Prayer Suggestions
As the Church commemorates the Beheading of John the Baptist,
we continue our journey in faith today:
- for those infected by SARS-CoV-2
and all who care for them - for a fairer distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine
- for the people of Afghanistan
- for those taking part in the Tokyo Paralympics
- for all who inspire us.
(In Holy Trinity, Stirling, we invite you to pray today
to be on guard against making rash promises.)
For all who have asked for our prayers.
a moment of silence
Pray for us all
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
We can say the Lord’s Prayer in any language or version we choose.
Here it is, in English, Latin and French.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
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.
Pater noster, qui es in cælis;
sanctificetur nomen tuum:
adveniat regnum tuum;
fiat voluntas tua,
sicut in cælo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie:
et dimitte nobis debita nostra,
sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris:
et ne nos inducas in tentationem:
sed libera nos a malo.
Quia tuum est regnum,
et potestas, et gloria, in saecula.
Amen.
Notre Père, qui es aux cieux,
que ton nom soit sanctifié,
que ton règne vienne,
que ta volonté soit faite sur la terre comme au ciel.
Donne-nous aujourd’hui notre pain de ce jour.
Pardonne-nous nos offenses,
comme nous pardonnons aussi à ceux qui nous ont offensés.
Et ne nous laisse pas entrer en tentation
mais délivre-nous du Mal.
Car c’est à toi qu’appartiennent le règne,
la puissance et la gloire
pour les siècles des siècles. Amen.
Concluding prayer
Almighty and merciful God,
by whose grace alone your faithful people offer you service and praise:
grant that we may hasten without stumbling towards the things that you promise;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
ever one God, world without end.
Amen.
Pentecost 14
Returning to the world
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Benedicamus Domino.
Deo gratias.
Thank you for joining us in praying at home.
Oremus pro invicem.
In these strange times, we are called to trust
* You can find more organ music from Holy Trinity Church, Stirling
on Alistair Warwick‘s website and on SoundCloud
There are several books by Brother Roger of the Taizé Community from many booksellers.
You can buy The Complete Chronicles of Narnia at Bookshop.org
Other worship resources
- Worship resources from Holy Trinity Church, Stirling, Scotland
- Music for reflection
- RSCM: Hymn for the Day and Sunday Self-Service
- Liturgy resources from New Zealand – Aotearoa
- Prayer live from Taizé
- CCC – Christ, Covid, Community (Facebook Group)
- Live-streamed liturgy from Pluscarden Abbey, Scotland
Praying at Home Today: Acknowledgements
The lectionary for weekdays is taken from the Vanderbilt Divinity Library.
In that lectionary, the readings are in the following order: Old Testament reading, Psalm, New Testament reading; we have changed the order to the more usual OT, Psalm and NT.
English Bible texts are usually from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Latin Bible texts are from Biblia Sacra Vulgata, and are in the Public Domain.
French Bible texts are usually from Version Segond 21, copyright © 2007 Société Biblique de Genève by Société Biblique de Genève.
Images, unless otherwise stated, are from lockdown in Scotland, by Alistair Warwick.
Music engraved by The Art of Music.
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