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I join with all who are praying *
to the Father, through the Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening Prayer
Gracious Father,
we pray to you for your holy Church.
Fill it with your truth.
Keep it in your peace.*
Where it is corrupt, reform it.
Where it is in error, correct it. *
Where it is in right, defend it.
Where it is in want, provide for it. *
Where it is divided, reunite it,
For the sake of your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.
- Paulist Prayer Book
Observe a time of silence before the Lord
(1 – 5 minutes)
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Scriptural Theme
Do everything you can to protect and maintain the unity of the Holy Spirit.
Sing to the Lord a song of praise
(acapella, or accompanied by instruments / recorded music)
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Praying Ephesians 4:1-6 (International English Bible)
As a prisoner in Rome for serving the Lord, I encourage you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received from God. *
Live a life of humility and gentleness with patience, bearing with one another in love.
Do everything you can to protect and maintain the unity of the Holy Spirit in the relational bond of peace, which holds us together. *
There is one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope to which God has called us.
There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all!
Response to the Scripture
Where love and charity abide, that is where God dwells.
Draw near God’s throne of grace
with the thanksgivings, prayers, & intercessions that are on your heart
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The Spirit and the Bride say *
“Come!”
Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly. *
Do everything you can to protect and maintain the unity of the Holy Spirit.
Praise / prayer / silence / sing a new song
(follow the leading of the Holy Spirit)
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Ending Prayer
O Lord our God, our merciful father,
On the evening before his suffering your son,
Our saviour Jesus Christ prayed
That believers in him would be one
So that the world would believe.*
But often we have not conformed to his will,
But have fostered opposition to each other
And caused division, have harboured contempt for each other,
Judged and fought against one another.
As we remember the year 2017 we are once more aware
That we must repent and ask for forgiveness
For our failures in our history and in our present.*
So we urgently cry out for your mercy and plead with you,
Send us, and all Christians, a heart of remorse and repentance.
Send us the grace we need to reconcile with each other
And, unified in body and spirit, once again
Experience the joy of complete fellowship.
We ask this through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
- Ottmaring Prayer for the 500th Anniversary in 2017
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
( Adapted by Christ the Reconciler from Season 7: Reconciliation Bridge Prayer – “Entering into the Unity of the Trinity” )