Andrew Knowles, Votive candles in Salisbury Cathedral, 2009, photograph, from Flickr (license: CC-BY-2.0)
Penitential Rite
Tim will serve as “all.”
Officiant:
Friends, it is in vain that we rise up so early, and go so late to rest, and eat the bread of anxiety: for God gives sleep to his beloved.
Dear God,
thank you for all that is good,
for our creation and for our humanity,
for the stewardship you have given us of this planet Earth,
for the gifts of life and of one another,
for your love, which is unbounded and eternal.
Let us come to God as one from whom no secrets are hidden, to ask for forgiveness and peace.
A moment of silence is kept.
Officiant:
God, the maker and redeemer of all,
grant thou remission of all sins to the souls of thy family,
that they through piteous prayers together take
the forgiveness which they have ever desired,
and further cause them to be made partners with thy saints;
who livest and reignest God through all worlds of worlds.
All:
So be it.
Officiant:
Rest them in peace.
All:
So be it.
Officiant:
The souls of all faithful dead by the mercy of God
rest in the peace of Jesus Christ.
All:
So be it.
Officiant:
Bless ye.
All:
The Lord bless.
Officiant:
God give grace to the living,
and to the dead rest,
and forgiveness to the church,
and to the country peace and concord,
and to us sinners life and endless glory.
All:
Amen
Opening Sentences
Philip will serve as “all.”
Those designated sing the Compline hymn:
Te Lucis ante Terminum
(Sarum Rite Plainchant, Festal Tone)
Philip will sing verse 1, Luke will sing verse 2, and Stacy will sing verse 3.
Before the end of the light,
we beg you, creator of all,
that you, with familiar mercy,
might be the leader of our care.
Let troubled dreams withdraw to the distance.
Silence our enemy
and all deceptions of the night,
that our bodies may rest secure.
Be present, omnipotent father,
through the Lord, Jesus Christ,
who with you forever
reigns with the Holy Spirit.
Psalmody
The psalms are sung antiphonally. You are invited to join either the “leader” or the “responder” part (with your microphone muted).
Stacy will sing the opening antiphon.
Antiphon: Have mercy on me, Lord, and hear my prayer.
Psalm 121 (KJV)
Stacy will serve as leader and Philip will serve as responder.
Leader:
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, *
Responder:
from whence co-meth my help.
Leader:
My help cometh from the Lord, *
Responder:
which made hea-ven and earth.
Leader:
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: *
Responder:
he that keepeth thee will not slum-ber.
Leader:
Behold, he that keepeth Is-rael *
Responder:
shall neither slum-ber nor sleep.
Leader:
The Lord is thy keep-er: *
Responder:
the Lord is thy shade up-on thy right hand.
Leader:
The sun shall not smite thee by day, *
Responder:
no--or the moon by night.
Leader:
The Lord shall preserve thee from all e-vil: *
Responder:
he shall pre-serve thy soul.
Leader:
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in *
Responder:
from this time forth, and e-ven for e-vermore.
Leader:
Réquiem ae-tér-nam *
Responder:
dóna é-is, Dó-mine,
Leader:
Et lux per-pé-tua *
Responder:
lú-ce-at é-is.
Psalm 133 (NZPB)
Stacy will serve as leader and Luke will serve as responder.
Leader:
How good and pleasant a thing it is *
Responder:
when God′s people live toge-ther in u-nity.
Leader:
It is like the precious oil on Aaron′s ◊ head, which ran down on to his beard *
Responder:
and over the collar of his vest-ment.
Leader:
It is like the dew of Hermon *
Responder:
falling upon the hill of Zi-on.
Leader:
For there the Lord promised the bless-ing *
Responder:
which is life for e-vermore.
Leader:
Réquiem ae-tér-nam *
Responder:
dóna é-is, Dó-mine,
Leader:
Et lux per-pé-tua *
Responder:
lú-ce-at é-is.
Luke will sing the ending antiphon.
Antiphon: Have mercy on me, Lord, and hear my prayer.
❦
Those designated sing a hymn:
I Sing a Song of the Saints of God
The Hymnal 1982 #293
by Lesbia Scott (1898–1986), alt.
Tune: Grand Isle, John Henry Hopkins (1861–1945)
The verses will be sung by:
- Stacy
- Tim
- Philip
Short Reading
Philip will serve as leader and Tim will serve as “all.”
The leader chants the reading:
Sirach 44:1–9a, 10, 13–15 (Anchor, adapted)
I will now praise those godly people,
our ancestors, each in their own time—
The Most High’s portion, great in glory,
reserved to himself from ancient days:
Rulers of the earth, of royal rank,
persons renowned for their valor,
Or counselors with their shrewd advice,
or seers of all things in prophecy;
Resolute governors of the folk,
or lawgivers with their rules;
Sages with their literary discourse,
or framers of proverbs and pointed maxims;
Composers of melodious psalms,
or authors with lyric themes;
Stalwart, self-reliant persons,
at peace in their own estates—
All these were glorious in their time,
each illustrious in their day.
Some of them have left behind a name
so that people recount their praises;
But of others no memory remains,
for when they perished, they perished completely,
Yet these also were godly people
whose virtues will not be forgotten;
For all time their progeny will last,
their glory will never be blotted out.
Their bodies are buried in peace,
but their name lives on and on;
At gatherings their wisdom is retold,
and the assembly declares their praises.
Responsories
Those designated sing a responsory:
Job 19:25–27
Music: John Merbecke, The Book of Common Prayer Noted (1550)
Stacy will sing part A, Philip will sing part B, and Luke will sing part C.
Philip will serve as leader and Luke will serve as “all.”
All sing an aleatoric responsory:
Epitaph
Text by Sarah Williams; music by F.J. Haydn (details)
- Philip sings the melody once, ending on “oo.”
- All join in the unison “oo” while Luke repeats the melody, ending on “oo.”
- Everyone sings the melody, starting at different times and moving at different speeds, ending by returning to “oo.”
- Once everyone is singing “oo,” gradually fade into silence.
Prayers
Stacy will serve as leader and Tim will serve as “all.”
The leader begins the Lord’s Prayer:
All continue silently until “and lead us not …”:
… 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 then conclude:
A moment of silence is kept.
Tim will serve as leader and Luke will serve as “all.”
The leader begins the collects:
Stacy will serve as leader and Philip will serve as “all.”
Leader:
Leader:
O most mighty and merciful God,
in this time of grievous sickness,
we flee unto thee for succour.
Deliver us, we beseech thee, from our peril;
give strength and skill to all those who minister to the sick;
prosper the means made use of for their cure;
and grant that, perceiving how frail and uncertain our life is,
we may apply our hearts unto that heavenly wisdom
which leadeth to eternal life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All:
Leader:
God of all comfort,
we pray to you for those we love but see no longer:
Grant them your peace;
let light perpetual shine upon them;
and, in your loving wisdom and almighty power,
work in them the good purpose of your perfect will,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All:
Leader:
Keep watch, dear Lord,
with those who work, or watch, or weep this night,
and give your angels charge over those who sleep.
Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary,
bless the dying, soothe the suffering,
pity the afflicted, shield the joyous;
and all for your love’s sake.
All:
Leader:
Almighty God,
which hast knit together thine elect
in one Communion and fellowship,
in the mystical body of thy Son Christ our Lord:
Grant us grace so to follow thy holy Saints
in all virtuous and godly living,
that we may come to those unspeakable joys
which thou hast preparéd
for them that unfeignedly love thee,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All:
After the collects, we will keep a moment of silence to call to mind our concerns, reflections, intentions, and reasons for thankfulness. Those who wish to share them aloud will be invited to do so.
❦
Those designated sing a carol:
For All Souls
Adapted from BL Add. MS 5665 (“Ritson Manuscript”, DIAMM 796), ff. 51v–52, and the edition by John E. Stevens in Mediaeval Carols, Musica Britannica 4 (London: Strainer & Bell, 1952), 108
Tim will sing the burden, Philip will sing the verses, and Luke will sing the refrain.
Burden
For all Christen soulës pray we:
requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.
[Give them eternal rest, Lord.]
Verse 1
O God, we pray to thee in special
for all the souls that sufferred pain infernal;
now, Jesu, for thy mercy grant them life eternal.
Refrain
Et lux perpetua luceat eis.
[And let perpetual light shine on them.]
Burden
Verse 2
In especial for the souls that [have] most need,
abiding in the pains of darkëness,
which [have] no succour but almësdeed
[whose only subsistance is gifts of alms].
Refrain
Burden
Verse 3
Now God, in heaven that art so high,
these soulës thou grant joy and bliss,
For whom this day we sing and cry.
Refrain
Canticle
The canticle is sung antiphonally. You are invited to join either the “leader” or the “responder” part (with your microphone muted).
Stacy will serve as leader and Luke will serve as responder.
Nunc Dimittis: Luke 2:29–32
Leader:
Lord, you now have set your ser-vant free *
Responder:
to go in peace as you have pro-mised,
Leader:
For with my eyes I have seen *
Responder:
your sal-va-tion,
Leader:
→ which you have pre-pared *
Responder:
before the sight of all peo-ple:
Leader:
A light to shine through all na -tions *
Responder:
and the glory of your peo-ple,Isra-el.
Leader:
Glo -ry be to the Fa-ther, and to the Son, *
Responder:
and to the Ho-ly Spi-rit,
Leader:
As it was in the be-gin-ning, is now, *
Responder:
and will be fore-ver. A-men.
Benediction
Tim will serve as “all.”
Those designated sing the Marian antiphon:
Salve, Regina
(Gregorian Chant, Simple Tone)
Philip will sing part A; Luke will sing part B.
Hail, Queen, mother of mercy;
Our light, our sweetness, and our hope, hail!
We cry out to you, we exiles, children of Eve.
We sigh for you, groaning and weeping, in this valley of tears.
Ah! Therefore, our advocate,
those merciful eyes of yours—turn them to us.
And Jesus, the blessed fruit of your womb—after this exile,
point him out to us.
O gentle, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
It is traditional to end Compline with a few moments for silent reflection.