March 2020 – St. Stephen's Episcopal Church

Stations of the Cross

Since we cannot offer in-person Stations of the Cross this year, we are offering a filmed version. You can find it below. The text is also available for download here.

And here is a version with music throughout.

Morning Prayer for 3/29/2020

Morning Prayer: Rite II

Sunday, March 29, 2020 at 10 am (Mountain Time)

Observing the Fifth Sunday of Lent – Second Sunday of the Quarantine

Opening Sentence BCP 76

Confession of Sin and Absolution BCP 79

Invitatory and Psalter BCP 80

Jubilate BCP 82

Psalm 130 BCP 784

Canticle 17 – The Song of Simeon BCP 93

Gospel – John 11:1 – 45

Homily

The Apostles Creed BCP 96

The Prayers BCP 97

Suffrages A BCP 97

Collect of the Day BCP 219

Collect(s) BCP 99

Prayer for Mission BCP 100

Invitation for Prayers BCP 101

General Thanksgiving BCP 101

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom BCP 102

Closing BCP 102

Evening Prayer for 3/28/2020

Evening Prayer: Rite I

Saturday, March 28, 2020 at 5 pm (Mountain Time)

Observing the Fifth Sunday of Lent – Second Sunday of the Quarantine

Opening Sentence(s) BCP 61

Confession of Sin and Absolution BCP 62

Invitatory and Psalter BCP 63

Psalm 130 BCP 784

Gospel – John 11:1 – 45

Homily

The Apostles Creed BCP 66

The Prayers BCP 67

Suffrages B BCP 68

Collect of the Day BCP 167

Collect(s) BCP 69

Prayer for Mission BCP 70

Invitation for Prayers BCP 71

General Thanksgiving BCP 71

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom BCP 72

Closing BCP 73

Readings for the Fifth Sunday of Lent – 2020

“The Raising of Lazarus” by *by John August Swanson*

The Fifth Sunday of Lent

The Second Sunday of the Coronavirus Lockdown

Psalm 130

1 Out of the depths have I called to you, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice; *
let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication.

2 If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, *
O Lord, who could stand?

3 For there is forgiveness with you; *
therefore you shall be feared.

4 I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; *
in his word is my hope.

5 My soul waits for the Lord,
more than watchmen for the morning, *
more than watchmen for the morning.

6 O Israel, wait for the Lord, *
for with the Lord there is mercy;

7 With him there is plenteous redemption, *
and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins.

John 11:1-45

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.

Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.” After saying this, he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.” Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”

When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.

Compline for March 23, 2020

Update from Diocese – March 23, 2020

Below is an update from the Diocese of Montana shared today via email.

Bishop Marty has ordered all Episcopal churches in Montana to cease regular worship in person until May 10^th at this point. This is to comply with both our various county public health authorities and the national call for no group gatherings of ten or greater in number. If the pandemic abates beforehand, the restart date may be moved to sooner. Many of our churches are either broadcasting, livestreaming or otherwise recording services so that people can worship remotely. The clergy had a Zoom meeting with Bishop Marty this last Friday, and several strategies are being developed to help congregations maintain their spiritual health.

Funerals will be family-only to keep the attendance below ten people at this point in time. Clergy have already been advised of this. It is hoped that larger memorial services will be offered after the pandemic is over.

Montana is beginning its epidemic curve, please help our medical profession out by assuming you could be infected and follow social distancing recommendations to reduce other people’s exposure. To model this, all meetings with diocesan personnel will be done by phone, GoTo Meeting, Zoom or social media. All clergy are also requested to follow this example, except for pastoral emergencies outside of hospital settings. Most hospitals are ceasing in-person visitations, including clergy. Please remember to notify your clergy if you go to the hospital: they may not be able to visit in person, but can keep in contact and pray for you.

Because of all the closures of businesses, there are many people who are in financial straits. Clergy expenditures to help people in need is rising rapidly. Please give generously to the clergy discretionary accounts and other non-profits so that people can continue to eat, have a roof over their heads, and have heat. And please do not forget to continue your church pledges and contributions.

For those whose visitations have been cancelled, Bishop Marty will start looking at new dates, based on projections on when the pandemic will be behind us. Lambeth has been postposed until 2021, so the later summer Sundays will be opening up.

Here is the current CDC information for the faith community: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/organizations/index.html

Below are some at-home and small gathering worship and study resources. Please share with the diocesan office other resources you have found helpful: