Every Sunday and feast day has its own special Collect and readings, and during the year they give us an outline of the Christian Faith, teaching us about Our Lord’s life, death, Resurrection and Ascension, about the founding of the Christian Church and the kind of life we ought to lead as Christians. In this way they help to prepare our minds so that we may be able to worship God with greater knowledge and understanding. The Common Worship (CW) readings follow a three year cycle and the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) a one year cycle. The readings are published annually in the CW and BCP Lectionary.
Readings before the Gospel
There are one or two readings before the Gospel reading. The first reading is usually from the Old Testament. The second is from the New Testament and is taken from the Acts of the Apostles, or from one of the Epistles or letters which were written by St Paul or one of the other Apostles, or from the Book of Revelation. These are usually read by members of the congregation. Today, in many churches a psalm is sung between the readings if there are two. If the congregation repeat a response at intervals during the psalm, it is called a responsorial psalm. The psalm for a particular Sunday or feast day is listed in the Lectionary.
The Gradual and Alleluias
The Gradual used to be a psalm and Alleluias which were a feature of the synagogue service in Our Lord’s day and were taken over by the Christian Church. The psalm was sung by a chanter or chanters, and the Alleluia was the signal for the congregation to join in a refrain. It was called the Gradual because the chanters sang it from the lectern or pulpit step. The Latin word for step is gradus. Alleluia (Hallelujah) is the Hebrew for “Praise the Lord”.
The psalm chant with Alleluias (Gradual) which came down from the synagogues of Jesus’ time was reserved in a place of honour, just before the Gospel. (1) However, today many churches have a hymn which is sung by the whole congregation after the second reading. It is called the Gradual hymn and may be followed by a Gospel acclamation which includes the singing of some words suitable for the season and Alleluias. For example, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. You have the words of eternal life.” (1 Samuel 3:9; John 6:68). (2) Alleluias are sung before the words and repeated after the Gospel reading. Alleluias are not sung during the solemn season of Lent.
The Gospel reading
The Gospel is a passage from one of the four Gospels or Lives of Our Lord, written by St Matthew, St Mark, St Luke and St John. It is read by a priest or a deacon. The reading or singing of the Gospel at the Eucharist has always been treated with special honour because it tells us of the words and actions of Jesus himself. It is for this reason that we stand up in Our Lord’s honour when it is read, and at a Sung Eucharist lighted candles are often held near the book as a sign, not only of honour, but also of joy. Another mark of honour in some churches is the incensing of the book before the Gospel is sung.
When priests or deacons announce the Gospel they make the sign of the Cross with their thumb, first on their forehead, then on their mouth and lastly on their chest, and you do the same when you answer, “Glory be to thee O Lord” (modern language: “Glory to you, O Lord”). This is to show that we believe the Gospel with our mind, that we should make it known with our mouth and must love it with our heart.
The Sermon
At a Sung Eucharist the Gospel is followed by the sermon which teaches us about the Christian Faith and life.
The Creed
We sing or say the Nicene Creed, so called because much of it was drawn up by a great Council of bishops which met in a town named Nicaea in what is now Turkey. The Creed is an act of faith and praise which sums up what we are taught in the course of the Church’s Year. The first paragraph speaks of God the Father, the second of God the Son and the third of God the Holy Spirit.
We stand for the Creed to show we are ready to stand up for our Christian Faith. We bow at the Name of Jesus. There is also another one place half-way through when we bow. This is during the words, “And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary, and was made Man”. The word ‘incarnate’ means ‘in the flesh’, ‘in human form’. So these words tell us how Jesus, “for us men, and for our salvation came down from Heaven”, leaving behind the glory which had been his from all eternity, came down to our level and was made a Human Being for our sakes. As we recite these words we bow in reverence and love and wonder that God should have done all this for people like ourselves.
At the end of the Creed we make the sign of the Cross to show that we believe all that the Creed says and are not ashamed of being Christians.
Prayers of Intercession
The Intercessions are the final part of the Liturgy of the Word. They are led by the priest or, more often, by one or more members of the congregation. We pray for the Church, the world, our country and our local community including people who are ill or distressed and people who have died.
SUMMARY
1. Readings before the Gospel: there are one or two readings. The first reading is usually from the Old Testament. The second is from the New Testament and is usually taken from one of the Epistles or letters which were written by St Paul or one of the other Apostles.
2. The Gradual: this corresponds to the psalm sung in the synagogue in Our Lord’s day. Today, in many churches a Gradual hymn is sung.
3. The Gospel: this is part of one of the four Gospels and tells us about what Jesus did and said. We stand up in his honour.
4. The Nicene Creed: this sums up the teaching of the Church’s Year in an act of faith and praise. We say it standing to show we are ready to stand up for our Christian Faith. We bow in reverence at the words that tell how God became a Human Being.
5. The Prayers of Intercesssion: we pray for the Church, the world, our country and our local community.
References
1. Dix, G. (1945) The shape of the liturgy, Westminster: Dacre Press.
2. Church of England (not dated) Gospel acclamations for Ordinary Time. Available from:
http://www.cofe.anglican.org/worship/liturgy/commonworship/texts/hc/gospelordtime.html (Accessed 12 July 2010) (Internet).