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Today is the Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle, transferred from yesterday.![]()
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Almighty God, who gave such grace to your apostle Andrew that he readily obeyed the call of your Son Jesus Christ, and brought his brother with him: Give us, who are called by your Holy Word, grace to follow him without delay, and to bring those near to us into his gracious presence; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Photos from The Episcopal Church's post
This Sunday on the First Sunday of Advent and the beginning of the new Church year, we will begin our service of Holy Communion with the Great Litany chanted in procession. The Litany holds a place of honor in Anglican worship, as it was the first vernacular liturgical text of the English Church. Thomas Cranmer compiled/translated it in 1544. This makes it the oldest continuously used English-language rite in the Prayer Book tradition. Its placement at Advent’s opening sets an appropriately penitential and supplicatory tone, calling the gathered community to examine our lives and turn toward God in anticipation of Christ’s coming—both the historical Incarnation and his promised return in glory.![]()
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The tradition of using the Great Litany on Advent I, along with the First Sunday in Lent and Rogation Days, reflects an understanding that certain moments in the liturgical year call for intensified prayer. As the Church enters the season of longing for Emmanuel, the Litany’s ancient petitions for deliverance from sin, error, and calamity take on eschatological resonance. We pray not merely for temporal relief but for the ultimate deliverance that Christ’s Advent promises. In an age of anxiety and uncertainty, processing through the church while chanting these petitions connects us to centuries of Christians who have similarly cried out, “Spare us, good Lord.“![]()
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Join us for the Great Litany and Holy Communion, Sunday, November 30 at 10 am.