Morning Prayer with Daily Office Network Live Community
We are a community of Christians who meet online for morning prayer. This gathering is hosted by Father Tom Roy, the Vicar of the Daily Office Network. It is attended by people from the United States and around the world. We have live prayer M-F at "Dailyoffice.wordpress.com" We have been presenting Morning Prayer online since 2006. All are welcome here.
Morning Prayer with Daily Office Network Live Community
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Good morning and welcome. I'm Father Tom Roy, the vicar of the Daily Office Network. I'm an ordained priest in the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Minnesota. The Daily Office Network is a community of Christians who gather together on a daily basis to pray morning prayer. We use the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer as our guide. We mix in artwork. There's a news story. We come from several different faith traditions in several different countries. All are welcome here, where we do our best to exercise tolerance and decency with one another. Now let's settle in and begin morning prayer. Today is the 20th of August, 2026. In the life of the church, our saint is Bernard of Clairvaux, a monastic and a theologian who died in the year 1153. The Daily Office Network is posting our services to podcast and edited service of this early service. You can find us on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio. Just search Daily Office Network. The Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on earth, a blameless and an upright man who fears God and turns away from evil. Photograph of some baseball fans at the Chicago White Sox game wearing bishop's hats. On a hot August night on the south side of Chicago, Wright Field, home of the White Sox, turned into a church of baseball, filled to capacity with true believers who sang, passed the peace, cheered on a celebratory nun, and of course, wore their Pope hats. Those hats emblazon with the Sox logo were given to every fan who entered the park on Tuesday, August the 11th. It was, according to team officials, the biggest promotional giveaway in White Sox history, with more than 40,000 Pope hats given away. The night was a testimony to the resurgent White Sox who appear to be in playoff bound after three years of losing 100 games a season, as well as to the appeal of Pope Leo XIV, a longtime fan of the team and Chicago native. It doesn't matter your religion or your denomination, said Brooks Boyer, chief revenue and marketing officer for the White Sox. Everyone wisp respects the Pope. For us, it's obviously fun that he's a White Sox fan. And they look like they're having a lot of fun. The Lord is in the Holy Temple, but all the earth keeps silence. And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
SPEAKER_03Glory 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. Hallelujah. Let us think to the Lord. Let us talk to God to the walk of our salvation. Let us come before God. With thanksgiving. For you are of my God. You are God above all God. In your hands, and the heavens, of the earth, and the heights of the heavens are yours also. For you made. And your hands are both. Come. Let us throw down and be bene and kneel before the Lord our Maker. For you are our God. And we are the people of your pastor and the sheep of your hand. Oh, that today we would hearken to your voice.
SPEAKER_01Thank you, Eddie. Our psalms appointed for this morning are Psalm number 131 and 132. I'm going to ask Michael Brown and Jacqueline to lead our psalm. Michael Brown, would you start?
SPEAKER_09Oh Lord, I am not proud. I have no haughty look.
SPEAKER_04I do not occupy myself with great matters or with things that are too hard for me.
SPEAKER_09But I still my soul and make it quiet like a child upon its mother's breast. My soul is quieted within me.
SPEAKER_04O Israel, wait upon the Lord from this time forth forevermore.
SPEAKER_09Lord, remember David and all the hardships he endured.
SPEAKER_04How he swore an oath to the Lord and vowed a vow to the mighty one of Jacob.
SPEAKER_09I will not come under the roof of my house, nor climb up into my bed.
SPEAKER_04I will not allow my eyes to sleep, nor let my eyelids slumber.
SPEAKER_09Until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the mighty one of Jacob.
SPEAKER_04The ark we heard it was in Ephrata, and we found it in the fields of Jereim.
SPEAKER_09Let us go to God's dwelling place. Let us fall upon our knees before God's footstool.
SPEAKER_04Arise, O Lord, into your resting place, you and the ark of your strength.
SPEAKER_09Let your priests be clothed with righteousness. Let your faithful people sing with joy.
SPEAKER_04For your servant, David's sake, do not turn away the face of your anointed.
SPEAKER_09The Lord has sworn an oath to David, and in truth will not break it.
SPEAKER_04A son, the fruit of your body will I set upon your throne.
SPEAKER_09If your children keep my covenant and my testimonies that I shall teach them, their children will sit upon your throne forevermore.
SPEAKER_04For the Lord has chosen Zion and desired it for the holy habitation.
SPEAKER_09This shall be my resting place forever. Here will I dwell, for in Zion I delight.
SPEAKER_04I will surely bless the provisions of Zion and satisfy its poor with bread. There will I make the horn of David flourish. I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
SPEAKER_09As for his enemies, I will clothe them with shame, but as for him, his crown will shine.
SPEAKER_04Glory 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_01Thank you, Michael and Jacqueline. That was a great reading. It's the title page of Blake's illustrations of the Book of Job from 1823, and he did the engraving himself. Chad, would you lead this?
SPEAKER_00There was once a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job. That man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. He had seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five thousand yoke of oxen, five hundred donkeys, and a very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. His sons used to go and hold feasts in one another's houses in turn, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. And when the feast days had run their course, Job would always send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, It may be that my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. This is what Job always did. One day the heavenly beings came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them, and the Lord said to Satan, Where have you come from? And Satan answered the Lord, From going to and fro on the earth and walking up and down on it. And the Lord said to Satan, Well have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and turns away from evil. Then Satan answered the Lord, Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not put a fence around him and his house and all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But if you stretch out your hand now and touch all that he has, he will curse you to your face. And the Lord said to Satan, Very well, all that he has is in your power, only do not stretch out your hand against him. So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. One day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the eldest brother's house, a messenger came to Job and said, The oxen were ploughing and the donkeys were feeding beside them, and the Sabians fell on them, and carried them off, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword. I alone have escaped to tell you. And while he was still speaking another came and said, The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them. I alone have escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another man came and said, The Chaldeans formed three columns and made a raid against the camels and carried them off and killed the servants with the edge of the sword. I alone have escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another came and said, Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house, and suddenly a great wind came across the desert, struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they are dead. I alone have escaped to tell you. Then Job arose, tore his robes, shaved his head, and fell on the ground and worshiped. He said, Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrongdoing. The word of the Lord.
SPEAKER_01Thanks be to God. Thank you, Chad. Our first canticle is the song of Moses. Mother Angel, would you lead this?
SPEAKER_06I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted. The horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my refuge. The Lord has become my savior. This is my God, and I will praise him. The God of my people and I will exalt him. The Lord is a mighty warrior. Yahweh is his name. The chariots of Pharaoh and his army as he hurled into the sea. The finest of those who bear armor have been tramped in the Red Sea. The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them. They sank into the depths like a stone. Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might. Your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy. Who can be compared with you, O Lord among the gods? Who is like you, glorious in holiness, awesome in renown, and worker of wonders? You stretched forth your right hand, the earth swallowed them up. With your constant love, you let the people you retained. With your might you want them in safety to your holy twenty. You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your possession. The resting place you have made for yourself, O Lord, the sanctuary, O Lord, that your right hand has established the lodge forever and forever. 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_01Thank you, Mother Angel. Saint Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. Paul, would you lead this?
SPEAKER_08Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is a wilderness road. So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home. Seated in his chariot he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the spirit said to Philip, Go over to this chariot and join it. So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, Do you understand what you are reading? He replied How can I unless someone guides me? And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth. And the eunuch asked Philip, About whom may I ask, does the prophet say this about himself or about someone else? Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, Look, here is water. What is to prevent me from being baptized? He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Atz Azatus, and as he was passing through the region he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Cesarea. The word of the Lord.
SPEAKER_01Thanks be to God. Thank you, Paul. Our second canticle is Glory to God, glory in Excelsus. Mother Angel.
SPEAKER_06Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, Heavenly King, Almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, love God, you take away the sin of the world. Have mercy on us. You are seated at the right hand of the Father. Receive prayer, for you alone are the Holy One. You alone the Lord. You alone the most Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
SPEAKER_01Thank you, Mother Angel. Jesus walking on the water. Our reading is from John chapter six, verses sixteen through twenty seven. Jill, would you lead this?
SPEAKER_07When evening came, Jesus' disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea of Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because the strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, It is I do not be afraid. And they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they had been going. The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberius came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, Rabbi, when did you come here? And Jesus answered them, Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal. The word of the Lord.
SPEAKER_01Thanks be to God. Thank you, Jill. And now the apostles' creed. Robert, would you lead us in the creed?
SPEAKER_05I 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, and 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.
SPEAKER_01Amen. Thank you, Robert. And now the prayers begin with our Lord's Prayer. Martha, would you lead us in the Lord's Prayer and then we'll read the suffrages?
SPEAKER_10The Lord be with you.
SPEAKER_01And also with you.
SPEAKER_10Let us pray. Our Father in heaven. Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done. On all us 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. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours. Now and forever. Amen.
SPEAKER_01Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance.
SPEAKER_10Govern and uphold them now and always.
SPEAKER_01Day by day we bless you.
SPEAKER_10We praise your name forever.
SPEAKER_01Lord, keep us from all sin today.
SPEAKER_10Have mercy on us, Lord. Have mercy.
SPEAKER_01Lord, show us your love and mercy.
SPEAKER_10For we put our trust in you.
SPEAKER_01In you, Lord, is our hope.
SPEAKER_10And we shall never hope in vain.
SPEAKER_01Thank you, Martha. Stained glass window of our saint of the day, Bernard of Clairvaux. The writings of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, made him one of the most influential figures in Christendom, opponent of controversies, troubleshooter to the Pope. His sponsorship of the Second Crusade, however, ended in a disaster. Now, two prayers. The collect of the day for Bernard, an abbot of Clairvaux, who died in 1153, and a collect for guidance. Deacon Elizabeth, would you lead us in these two prayers?
SPEAKER_12Sure. Became a burning and a shining light in your church. Grant that we also may be aflame with the spirit of love and discipline, and walk before you as children of light, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being. We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life, we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever working in your sight through Jesus Christ our Lord.
SPEAKER_01Amen. Amen. Thank you, Deacon. And now it's time to take a look at America's gun toll. We'll look at how many people got shot or killed in the United States this last week with all the guns that we have lying around. We pull our stats on Monday, the 17th, and it was not a good weekend. There were 10 mass shootings over the weekend. 10. One in Georgia, Missouri, Ohio, Connecticut, Virginia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, and there were two mass shootings in Texas. A total of 33 people were injured. Eight people were killed, and two suspects were injured. We look at our totals from this last week. Those killed by gunfire in the United States, 280. It went up a little bit, but those are also people. And it brings our total year-to-date kill to 8,155 people. Those injured by gunfire in the United States, 449. That only went up by three. It brings our total year-to-date injured to 15,172. And so we pray a prayer to end gun violence. Patricia, would you lead us in this prayer?
SPEAKER_11Oh Lord our God, we pray for the victims who are impacted by our access and use of the guns in the United States. Gun violence ravages our homes, our streets, our businesses, schools, and houses of worship. We pray that the children killed and injured, for their families, classmates, and school employees. We pray for teenagers gunned down before their lives have really started. We pray for police officers who keep fighting a never-ending battle while trying to keep themselves and everyone else safe. And we pray for an end to racial profiling in law enforcement. We pray for all who are depressed or mentally ill, wanting to hurt themselves or others in a nation where guns are everywhere. We pray for the victims of crime who are forced to defend themselves and their loved ones. We pray for anti-violence activists and community leaders in a time when new methods of protest and reform must be created. Let your demands for justice and cries for peace be heard. O Lord, in our legislative chambers and in our hearts, may your healing grace overtake this land through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
SPEAKER_01Amen. Thank you, Patricia.
SPEAKER_02Almighty God, you sent your son Jesus Christ to reconcile the world to yourself. We praise and bless you for those whom you have sent in the power of the Spirit to preach the gospel to all nations. We thank you that in all parts of the earth a community of love has been gathered together by their praise and labors, and that in every place your servants call upon your name. For the kingdom and the power and the glory are yours forever. Amen.
SPEAKER_01Let us bless the Lord.
SPEAKER_02Thanks be to God.
SPEAKER_01Now go in safety, for you cannot go where God is not. Go in love, for love alone endures, and go in peace, for that is God's gift to those whose hearts and minds are in his Son Jesus. God's blessing be with you. Christ's peace be with you. The Spirit's outpouring be with you now and always. Amen. And that is morning prayer on this Thursday. Thank you for coming to pray today. Wherever you go, take that love of Jesus that lives inside of you, the Jesus that you carry in your heart. Share that Jesus with the world. Show that Jesus to the world. Hope to see you back with us tomorrow, safe and sound.