Morning Prayer for Monday 3.23.26

Today in Morning Prayer we recognize the Saint Gregory the Illuminator. A Bishop and Missionary who died in 332. Here is a link to our liturgy: Morning Prayer 3.23.26, Gregory the Illuminator, Bishop and Missionary, 332 | Daily Office Network

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:02

Good morning and welcome. I'm Father Tom Roy, the vicar of the Daily Office Network. The Daily Office Network is a community of Christians who gather together on a daily basis to pray morning prayer. We come from several different faith traditions in several different countries. We use the 1979 Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer as our guide. We mix an artwork and a news story. We have music at the end. All are welcome here, where we do our best to exercise tolerance and decency with one another. Now let's begin morning prayer. Today is the 23rd of March, 2026. In the life of the church, our saint is Gregory the Illuminator, a bishop and a missionary who died in the year 332. If you're looking for our podcast, search for Daily Office Network on Apple or Spotify, or there's also links here that will take you to it. Let's begin. All things are lawful, but not all things are beneficial. All things are lawful, but not all things build up. The Episcopal Church, after struggling for years to support Haitian Episcopalians amid international diocesan divisions, as well as the country's ongoing civil unrest and humanitarian crises, is taking steps to strengthen communication with diocesan leaders and to assist local ministries. The church also recently sent a shipment of 1,500 French-language copies of the Book of Common Prayer in response to a request from the Diocese of Haiti Standing Committee. The Daily Office Network also recently reported on our efforts to help support the Haiti Nursing Foundation. In the photograph above, a young boy pushes a wheelbarrow of trash at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on February the 13th. That's a mountain of trash there in the background. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I'll lead us in the confession of sin, offer absolution, and then ask Addy to lead us in the invitatory and the Psalter. First our confession of sin. 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 you, forgive you all of your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen. Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall proclaim your praise.

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Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Come, let us sing to the Lord. Let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before God's presence with thanksgiving and raise to the Lord a shout with psalms. For you are a great God. You are great above all gods. In your hand are the caverns of the earth, and the heights of the hills are yours also. The sea is yours, for you made it, and your hands have molded the dry land. Come, let us bow down and bend the knee and kneel before the Lord our Maker. For you are our God, and we are the people of your pasture and the sheep of your hand. Oh, that today we would hearken to your voice.

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Thank you, Eddie. Our psalm appointed for this morning is Psalm number 31. I'm going to ask Marcia, who is back in Barbados, and Martha to lead our psalm. Marcia, would you start?

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In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge. Let me never be put to shame. Deliver me in your righteousness.

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Incline your ear to me. Make haste to deliver me.

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Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe, for you are my cry and my stronghold. For the sake of your name, lead me and guide me.

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Take me out of the net that ye have secretly set for me. For you are my tower of strength.

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Into your hands I command my spirit. For you have redeemed me, O Lord, O God of truth.

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I hate those who cling to worthless idols. And I put my trust in the Lord.

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I will rejoice and be glad because of your mercy. For you have seen my affliction, you know my distress.

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You have not shut me up in the power of the enemy. You have set my feet in an open place.

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Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am in trouble. My eye is consumed with sorrow and also my throat and my belly.

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For my life is whisted with grief and my ears with sighing. My strength fills me because of affliction, and my bones are consumed.

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I have become a reproach to all my enemies and even to my neighbors, a dismay to those of my acquaintance. When they see me in the street, they avoid me.

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I am as useless as a broken part.

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For I have heard the whispering of the crowd, fear is all around. They put their heads together against me, they plot to take my life.

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But as for me, I have trusted in you, Lord. I have said, You are my God.

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My times are in your hand. Rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.

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Make your face to shine upon yourself. And in your loving kindness, save me.

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Lord, let me not be ashamed for having called upon you. Rather, let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in the grave.

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Let the lying lips be silenced, which speak against the righteous, utterly, disdainfully, and with contempt.

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How great is your goodness, O Lord! Which you have laid up for those who fear you, which you have done in the sight of all for those who put their trust in you.

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You hide them in the covet of your presence from those who slander them. You keep them in your shelter from the strife of thumbs.

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Blessed be the Lord. For you have shown me the wonders of your love in a besieged city.

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Yet I said in my lamb, I have been cut off from the sight of your eyes. Nevertheless, you heard the sign of my entreaty when I cried out to you.

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Love the Lord, all you who are faithful. The Lord protects the pious, but repays to those who are taunting.

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Be strong and let your heart take courage. All you wait for the Lord.

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Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.

SPEAKER_01 9:50

Thank you, Martha and Marcia. That was a great reading. Painting by James J. Tussaud from 1902. Our first lesson is from Exodus chapter four, verses ten through twenty and twenty-seven through thirty-one. Chad, would you lead this?

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But Moses said to the Lord, O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor now that you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue. And the Lord said to him, Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I the Lord? Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak. But he said, Oh my Lord, please send someone else. Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, What of your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he can speak fluently. Even now he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you his heart will be glad. You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. He indeed shall speak for you to the people, he shall serve as a mouth for you, and you shall serve as God for him. Take in your hand the staff with which you shall perform the signs. Then Moses went back to his father in law Jethro and said to him, Please let me go back to my kindred in Egypt to see whether they are still living. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. The Lord said to Moses and Midian, Go back to Egypt, for all those who were seeking your life are dead. So Moses took his wife and his sons, put them on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt, and Moses carried the staff of God in his hand. The Lord said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness and meet Moses. So he went and he met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord which he had sent him and all the signs with which he had charged him. Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the Israelites. Aaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and performed the signs in the sight of the people. The people believed, and when they heard that the Lord had given heed to the Israelites and that he had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshipped.

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Thanks be to God. Thank you, Chad. Our first canticle is the first song of Isaiah. Mother Angel, would you lead this?

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Sing the praises of the Lord, for he has done great things. Surely it is God who saves me. I will trust in him and not be afraid, for the Lord is my stronghold and my sure defense, and he will be my Savior. Therefore you shall draw water with rejoicing from the springs of salvation, and on that day you shall ascend, give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name. Make his deeds known among the peoples. See that they remember that his name is exalted. Sing the praises of the Lord, for he has done great things, and this is known in all the world. Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy, for the great one in the midst of you is the holy one of 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 forever. Amen. Sing the praises of the Lord, for he has done great things.

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Thank you, Mother Unjo. These are people speaking in tongues. Saint Paul writes that this practice fills up the individual, but it does nothing for the church. Paul, would you read this?

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Pursue love and strive for the spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy. For those who speak in a tongue do not speak to other people, but to God, for nobody understands them, since they are speaking mysteries in the spirit. On the other hand, those who prophesy speak to other people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. Those who speak in a tongue build up themselves, but those who prophesy build up the church. Now I would like all of you to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. One who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up. Now, brothers and sisters, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I speak to you in some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? It is the same way with lifeless instruments that produce sound, such as the flute or the harp. If they do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is being played? And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? So with yourselves, if in a tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is being said? For you will be speaking into the air. There are doubtless many different kinds of sounds in the world, and nothing is without sound. If then I do not know the meaning of a sound, I will be a foreigner to the speaker, and the speaker too foreigner to me. So with yourselves, since you are eager for spiritual gifts, strive to excel in them for building up the church. Therefore, one who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret. For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unproductive. What should I do then? I will pray with the spirit, but I will pray with the mind also. I will sing praise with the spirit, but I will sing praise with the mind also. Otherwise, if you say a blessing with the spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say the amen to your thanksgiving? Since the outsider does not know what you are saying, or you may give thanks well enough, but the other person is not built up. I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others also than ten thousand words in a tongue. The word of the Lord.

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Thanks be to God. Thank you, Paul. Our next canticle is Song of the Redeemed. Mother Angel, would you lead this one as well?

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All nations will draw near and fall down before you because your just and holy works have been revealed. O ruler of the universe, Lord God, great deeds are there that you have done, surpassing human understanding. Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, O King of all the ages. Who can fail to do you homage, Lord, and sing the praises of your name? For you only are the holy one. All nations will draw near and fall down before you because your just and holy works have been revealed. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. All nations will draw near and fall down before you because your just and holy works have been revealed.

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Thank you, Mother Angel. Jesus and a young girl with dark hair. If you search for Jesus and child artwork, nearly all of the choices show blonde kids, mostly boys, but we managed to find a dark-haired girl. Our reading is from Mark chapter 9, verses 30 through 41. Deacon Diana, would you lead this?

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They went on from there and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know it, for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed he will rise again. But they did not understand what he was saying, and were afraid to ask him. Then they came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house, he asked them, What were you arguing about on the way? But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down and called the twelve and said to them, Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.

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Then he

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Took a little child and put it among them, and taking it in his arms, he said to them, Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me, but the one who sent me. John said to him, Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he was not following us. But Jesus said, Do not stop him, for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward. The word of the Lord.

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Thanks be to God. Thank you, Deacon. And now the Apostles' Creed. Michael Brown, would you lead us in the creed?

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I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, 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, he 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. Amen. Thank you, Michael.

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And now the prayers begin with our Lord's Prayer. Jill, would you lead us in the Lord's Prayer and then we'll read the suffrages.

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The Lord be with you.

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And also with you.

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Let us pray. 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. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. But the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.

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Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.

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Govern and uphold them now and always.

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Day by day we bless you.

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We praise your name forever.

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Lord, keep us from all sin today.

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Have mercy on us, Lord. Have mercy.

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Lord, show us your love and mercy.

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We put our trust in you.

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In you, Lord, is our hope.

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And we shall never hope in vain.

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Thank you, Jill. Our saint of the day, Gregory the Illuminator. Gregory's success in converting Armenia was by no means assured. His father had assassinated the previous king years before, and Gregory returned from exile to atone for his father's crime. And the old king's son, now on the throne himself, threw him in a pit for a dozen years. Later they reconciled, teaching the king how to do that is what led to his conversion. Gregory, our saint of the day. And now three prayers. Gregory, our collect of the day for Gregory the Illuminator, an apostle to Armenia who died in 332, a collect for the renewal of life, and the Anglican Rosary Prayer. Deacon Elizabeth, would you lead us in these three prayers?

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Sure. Almighty God, who raised up your seven Gregory to be a light in the world and to preach the gospel to the people of Armenia. Illuminate our hearts that we also in our generation may show forth your praise, who called us out of darkness and into your marvelous light, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Drive far from us all wrong desires. Incline our hearts to keep your law and guide our feet into the way of peace. That having done your will with cheerfulness during the day, we may then, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Dear Lord Jesus, help me do the things I should to be to others kind and good, and in all I do or say, grow more loving every day.

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Amen. Thank you, Deacon. And now our Monday morning prayer list, our most recent. On Mondays, we pray for the continued health and well-being of the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, Sean Rowe. We're praying for the primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Shane Parker. Also for the Archbishop of the province of the West Indies, Philip Wright of Belize. We're also praying for the Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, who will be install this week on uh the uh the Annunciation Day on the 25th. Sarah also just completed her pilgrimage over the weekend. Pray for those immigrants to our country who are being pursued and persecuted by ICE. Prayers for Josh Thomas in a skilled nursing facility for his continued improvement from a stroke. Pray for Danielle. She is a 30-something girl with stage four breast cancer that is metastasized to other parts of her body. She started radiation last week and is working through that process. Ian is struggling with his mental health. Continue to pray for Ian's well-being and the well-being of those around him. Prayers for Dawn, who has herniated discs and severe pain in her back. Reverend Elaine, who's undergone multiple surgeries. We're praying in Thanksgiving for Bishop Gretchen, who received a double lung transplant, is recovering from that surgery just a couple weeks ago. Louise is experiencing change of life circumstances, and she's going into an independent living community after a hurricane destroyed her home. She reached out this weekend and asked us to put her back on the prayer lift. She said she's reliant on the system now to help her as she has sold her property and the state will govern what happens to her now. She asked for our prayers. Maria has experienced three brain aneurysms recently. She is slowly recovering, but it'll take months. Pray for Maria's restoration to health. Pray for Patricia for relief and healing of her pain. And can continue to pray for Yvonne, our Yvonne, who's been fighting cancer for seven plus years. I'm going to ask Patricia to lead us in the prayer for the mission of the church, and then I'll bless the Lord and bless us.

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Ever living God, whose will it is that all should come to you through your Son Jesus Christ. Inspire our witness to him, that all may know the power of his forgiveness and the hope of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

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Let us bless the Lord. Thanks be to God. Glory to God, whose power working in us can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Glory to God from generation to generation to church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever. And the blessing of God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit be with you now and remain with you always. Amen.

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Amen.

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That is morning prayer on this Monday. Thank you for coming to pray today. Wherever you go, take that love of Jesus that lives inside of you. That Jesus that is about to walk a really difficult path here in just a week when we start Holy Week. That Jesus. Hope to see you back with us safe and sound tomorrow.