Though every form of Corporate Christian worship has the same essential structure and movement, any family that understands itself in Christ and engages in corporate worship develops its own detailed variation on the Christian service of worship out of its own unique history. This corporate office is the family worship of the Christian Faith­and­Life Community as it is scattered now across the world. Lot all who use it remember this family in its prayer of intercession.

The Daily Office

Let there be silence as the Community gathers for the Office. At the appointed hour, the ministers shall enter and kneel In prayer. As the ministers rise, let the Community stand and face the Table. The minister shall then begin the Office by saying,

In the name of the Father and the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

Community: Amen.

The Community having hearkened unto the call to gather to rehearse who they are as the People of God, begin the office in silent prayer.

:ASCRIPTION

The appointed minister greets the Community by reminding them of

which God they have gathered to worship, The Community responds corporately indicating their decision to enact the drama of their salvation before this God.

The Office of Confession

What has gone before is preliminary to the office proper. Beginning there is the first of the three major parts of Christian worship: The

Service of .Confession, The Service of the Word, The Service of Dedication. In the Service of Confession, the People of God self­consciously

choose to become the sinful people they are and to appropriate the word of God's forgiveness in Christ.

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f the i~Ol'Fa5'ctrhipatnudr in th a word s

|­­'the:,Communlly to confoss :'­thelr ­ :

~disloyalty, allanatton and.­raboN...'­..­

:..~lion against God and his creation''.r­SP'

1~3, repeat, the Community collccti~c,..­~

t`;s ly assumcs . rasponsibillty ~ before~

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~peopie who, hide from.'their ctca '1­­

i~sturellnos$. and, utter. dcpendcncc

;~upon,.60d. in confasstng their.rln~

i­2they, are acimowiedging . thelr fall ~

~:ure. In .thatr mission to be'~­the;

~clectin9 to °ddjaintho~tthoryi; Tlhoy arc~

~k­about,themsolves and to their prc­~

~tensions . betora .tha world.­ ­,. ,~,,~,2'

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Then the Community shall face one another as the min Ister reads the penitential sentences for the day after which he shall say,

Beloved in Christ, le' us confess our sins unto Almighty God.

7ho Community shall thon krrool or bow and the ministor shall say,

Lord have mercy upon us!

Community: Chrtst have mercy upon usl

Minister: Lord have mercy upon us!

Then shall tho Communtty repeat the prayer of confes slon appolated for tho day. Following a moment of sl lent moditatlon the minister shall say,

Beloved in Christ, we are free to live, for our God hath had mercy upon us, as Our fathers in the faith and the Holy Scriptures bear Wit~ ness that we are i forgiven people. Hear these words:

OF THE

CHRISTIAN FAITH & LIFE COMMUNITY



~consclously­choo$e­, ­ to: bacoma .tha sinful people they are and to


The minister sha11 then read the sentences of pardon for the day, after which he sail say,

Let us Pray.


Community: Almighty God, our Creator and Redeemer we humbly acknowledge thy love In Jesus Chrlst our Lord. Recelve our thanksgiving for Thy Holy Spirit, whereby we may walk henceforth In true repentance and In newness of life. Amen.

Then the Community shall join In the lord's Prayer as Follows:

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as It Is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not Into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For shine 15 the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

The Office of the Word i :~ ~ : ~ ~ ~

In the second part of the office, the new~born people arise to sinq prarses unto the God before whom they live. the Lord of life end death, the Creator and the Redeemer' the final actor in every his. torical event. The Office of the Word recalls to the Community the mighty acts of God through the reading of the Scriptures, to which theY respond in joy and gratitude by songs of praise and words of

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7­he minister shall then say,

O Lord, open Thou our lips.

Community: And our mouth shall show forth Thy praise.

Then as the minister rises let the Community rise and fare the Table as the minister says,

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

Community: As It was In the beginning, Is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Minister: Praise ye the Lord.

Community: The lord's name be praised.

Then shall the Community, face one another and read In unison the Psalm appolated for the day, after which the Community shall face the Table and sing the Glorla Patri. Pa trl.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as It was In the beginning, Is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Then the Community shall be seatee and the appalnted stripture lesson for the day shall be announced and read, after which the minister shall say,

The Lord bless to us the reading of His Holy Word and to His Name be glory and praise.

Community: Amen.

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95. ~jASSURANCE OF PARDON

.~.~. The minister now, on behalf of the

,.­, whole Church of Jesu$ Chrlst,~an;~

f~ nounces God's forgivenes$ and ac~ ceptanec of man by declaringtthe{i

.­­ Word of Christ that in dyTnq we a

· ~ live, of ~r~ng thereby to the Com. munity once again the ~possibility ~. of a new future. ­­ ~ ­­1 ­

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LORD'S PRAYER ~­ ~­i

Raised anew from the death of ~

their unfaith, the Community ca n i

now join together In addressing ~

the One who receives their past .t

and opens the future as "Our Fa­ ­

ther" through whom they become 1

what they are: the Body of Christ ­

for whom all other fellow crea­ .

turas are brothers. . ~ .

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~VERSICLE ~ ­ ­; i. ~5; B~] t. sThe transition from­thc~Ofitcc90f~ Confession to the Offtce of­ the ­g;1

'. ­ Word Is an cxchangc of qreeting~ ~ P t n the rriood of joy and thanxful­~' i ness between minTste r and Com~ ~­ munity who ~ are now ­ new ~ betagi: ­In Chrlst. ­n­ ­ .~ 7 S. ' ....

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PSALTER ~ ­ ~­ ~ ~­: The Community ioins with ­ the ­. saints of all ages in repeating to­gether an Old Testament Psalm E which acknowledges God as Lord, ~ bursting forth at the close into.­) the Gloria Patrt, a doxology which ~ from the earliest days, served to i~J make the Psalms Into Chrlstian oru­t Trinitarian hymns. ­ ­ ­­s

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~.­­ SCRIPTURE LESSON ,­ s ~ i~,The minister recalls to the" memoryi~j ~of the Community the mSqhty jactsi~.

~,Cof. God particularlY,the­citmactick ~ict~of ~God tn.~ the. redemption. ~wrought in Jesus by­­reading from ~the Testaments~,~ ~sf' ~. ~ 4~7. .~:''~


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Then an appointed minister shal1 oper a u~itness to the Word, after which he shall say,

Praise the Lord all nations; extol him all peoples; for great is his kindness toward us; and the faithfulness of the Lord is everlasting. Hallelu jah!

.d Community: Amen.

The Community shall then rise, fare the Table, and ret peat together the Apostles' Creed.

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ His only Son our iord; Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost; born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended Into heaven; and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to 1uJge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Office of Dedication

The People who have become forgiven stnncrs and who dare to . stand in praise and thanxsqlving before the activity of the Lord ot

'Nature and thc Lord of History now' in the final part of the

office, wax bold to dedicate themselves to this world, es it con.;crctoly: comes to' them as & gift of the Father, and to take upon

~thcmselvcs the­ burden of rasponsibilitY to bc the People of God in,

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­ WORD OF WITNESS

One appointed from the midst of

~ the Community bears witness as a ­ ls representative of God's Peoplo to: what it means to be God's Peopic .: in cverY situation of fife.

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APOSTLES' CREED

The whole Community now joins

with the minister in bearing testi

mony as to who they are by utter.

ing together the great creedal

hymn from the second century

which glorifies God the Father

Son, and Holy Ghost.

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The salutation betwacn thc mmi$

`~ ~ ter and the CommunitY indicates ';

~ ' a passing into the third pert of

1­ the worship scrVicc wTth its dc.

;­; smand for responsible affirmation

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Then shall the minister say,

The Lord be with you.

Community: And with thy spirit.

The Community shall then kneel or bow and the minister shall say,

Let us pray.

Then shall the minister read a collect appointed for the lacred season, after u~hsch he shall say,

Beloved in Christ, in communion with the saints of all ages, let us make bold to offer our prayers of intercession unto Almighty Cod our Heavenly Father.

The Community shall then offer together the appolated prayer of Interresslon for the orders, after which any so moved by the Spirit of God may make known the particular concern of his heart and lead the Community In special prayers for the Church and the world. At the close of the common prayers, the minister shall say,

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Let us pray especially for those who are in the midst of tribulation.

Then the Community shall loin In the appointed prayer of Intercesslon for the sulferlag.


'In this prayer, the minister of the Community acknowledges the de. pendence of the Community upon the God who gives them their cv. erY future surrendering their daily cares into his hands.

I NTERCESSORY PRAY ERS Having entrusted their own anxieties, past and future, to God, the Body of Christ turns to the needs of the neighbor in the prcsent moment. In the intercessory . prayer, the Community assumes responsibility for the whole world. Together theY become a free and

"responsible people in the midst i ­ 'of the orders of life as they pray ' ;i­^ first for the Church and our na­.~ 'tional life, for our homes and theR

­ economic order, and for all ~ thc

;~'­^'mations of the ,world, Secondly,'~

.: prayers are offered for those who~ d re separated from the human communities for thc 'poor and the i slclt and th; homcicss and for all +..'.who:suffer tribulation. c ­~;~­a;

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Let the minister then say,

Beloved in Christ, let us offer our gifts unto Almighty God.

Then while the gifts of the Community are gathered and, brought to the Table, the minister shall read the offertory sentences appointed for the day, after which he shall say,

Let us pray.

7hen the Community shall rise facing one another and join In the following prayer:

Almighty God, Thou who cost give us all things, receive now the gifts of thy people. Help us to render unto Thee all that we have and all that we are that we may praise Thee with our whole Itves through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Community shall then face the Table and sing the Doxology.

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him all creatures here below;

Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

The minister shall then sag,

Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Community: Grace and peace be unto you.

Here the Community shall remain standing facing the Table while the Peace, as an offering of our communion In Chrlst Jesus, Is passed from one to another. The min. Ister of the service shall first give the Peace to the other ministers officiating, who In turn shall pass the Peace to members In the pews. The minister shall then read the following grace after which the Community shall kneel or bow In silence, each departing as he Is led of the Spirit of God.

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore.

Community: Amen.

OFFERTORY SENTENCES

The offering in a Christian service h~ of worship is the climax of the :~; third part of the office. The min. ister by use of Scripture sentences, calls upon the Community to bring forth their gifts as tokens that all they have and are belongs to the God who forgives them and lays upon them the burden of compas~sion for the world. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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PRESENTATION OF OFFERING ~ As the offering is placed upon the table, the Community unites in the prayer through which they dedicate all they have and all they are for the service of the world to the glory of God.

DOXOLOGY ~ :~ ~ At the peak moment in the gathering of the gifts, the Community rises in a final doxology to God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth

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THE PEACE ~

The Peace is an ancient custom that was observed when the Body of Christ gathered as the Body In this final act of the service, where one member receives from one and passes to another the word that we are forgiven people as a preparation for our task in the world, the whole Body is offering up its fellowship in Mission unto God the Almighty, in the name of Christ.

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BENEDICTION ;~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ This is the farewell exchange of ~i~: peace and grace between min­ ~ : ister and Community as they scatter into the world as the People ~: ~ of (iod to enact the drama ot ^~: their salvation in every given­ness ~: of life. The office ends ~with~lthe ~: Community in silent prayer. ­ ~ i ::

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The People of God who have assembled themselves to declare unto one another the word of (;od in Christ through enacting this drama of their salvation by which they are enabled to live before God in every life­situation as forgiven, free, and responsible persons, are now to go forth and live this Word and drama: This is to honor and glorify God, this is to Worship Christianly.

THE SHORTENED FORM OF THE DAILY OFFICE

THE AscR'PTron-Let the worsbipper begin this office on behalf of tht Church by saying: "In thc name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Chost. Amcn." . ~

The Offico of Confasslon

I~IIE CONFESSION-Then let the worshipper read the appointed prayer of confession for the day, acknowledging before God the sins of His people, after which he shall observe a moment of silence.

THE LORD'S PRAYER-The worshipper shall then repeat on beha]f ol the Church the Lord s Prayer, in the awareness that the Church is the people who by God's forriveness Is enabled commonly to address God as 'ath~r

T:ho Office of tho Word

THE PRAISE-I3et the worshipper then offer the praise of the Church to Cod by the reading of a psalm appointed for the day concluding with the Gloria Patri.

THE LESSON-The worshi'pper shall then read the daily lesson from the scriptures of the Christian Community after which he shall engage in a season of reRerriYP m~odit~t;^n

TIIE CREED-Then shall the worshipper repeat, as a representative of all who name the name of Christ, either the Apostle's Creed or the Gloria Patri.

The Offico of Dodication

THE OFFERING-Here the worshipper shall oR'er unto the Lord the Church with all her needs relating to her mission in the world, through reading a collect appointed for the appropriate sacred season.

THE INTERCESSION-Then shall the worshipper in 'communion with the saints of all ages, read the appointed intercessory prayers and offer his own prayers of intercession for the world, giving particular attention to those who suffer outside of the orders of life, followed by a moment of quiet.

TI!E CRACK-The worshipper shall then say, on behalf of the Church, "The grace of our lord Jesus Christ and the love of Cod and the fellowship of the Holy Chost, 15e.with us all evermore. Amen."