A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE I AND INTRODUCTIONS TO THE OTHER FORMS

A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE I
AND INTRODUCTIONS TO THE OTHER FORMS

This service is found in UMH 6-11. A congregation may use this text for the entire service. It is desirable that during the course of the year the prayers in services of Word and Table be varied; see A Service of Word and Table II and III (UMH 12-16), the Great Thanksgivings for various occasions and resources for the Christian year available on this website or in the print or full electronic editions of The United Methodist Book of Worship.

ENTRANCE

GATHERING

GREETING

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

And also with you.

The risen Christ is with us.

Praise the Lord!

HYMN OF PRAISE*

OPENING PRAYER

The following or a prayer of the day is offered:

Almighty God,
to you all hearts are open, all desires known,
and from you no secrets are hidden.
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name,
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

[ACT OF PRAISE]

PROCLAMATION AND RESPONSE

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION*

Lord, open our hearts and minds
by the power of your Holy Spirit,
that, as the Scriptures are read
and your Word proclaimed,
we may hear with joy what you say to us today. Amen.

SCRIPTURE LESSON

[PSALM]*

[SCRIPTURE LESSON]

HYMN OR SONG*

GOSPEL LESSON*

SERMON

RESPONSE TO THE WORD

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by 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,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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.

CONCERNS AND PRAYERS*

Brief intercessions, petitions, and thanksgivings may be prayed by the leader or spontaneously by members of the congregation. To each of these, all may make a common response, such as: Lord, hear our prayer or UMH 485, 487, 488, or 490.

Or a litany of intercession and petition may be prayed.

Or a pastoral prayer may be prayed.

INVITATION

Pastor stands behind the Lord’s table.

Christ our Lord invites to his table all who love him,
who earnestly repent of their sin
and seek to live in peace with one another.
Therefore, let us confess our sin before God and one another.

CONFESSION AND PARDON.

Merciful God,
we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have failed to be an obedient church.
We have not done your will,
we have broken your law,
we have rebelled against your love,
we have not loved our neighbors,
and we have not heard the cry of the needy.
Forgive us, we pray.
Free us for joyful obedience,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

All pray in silence.

Leader to people:

Hear the good news:
Christ died for us while we were yet sinners;
that proves God's love toward us.
In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!

People to leader:

In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!

Leader and people:

Glory to God. Amen.

THE PEACE

Let us offer one another signs of reconciliation and love.

All, including the pastor, exchange signs and words of God's peace.

OFFERING

As forgiven and reconciled people,
Let us offer ourselves and our gifts to God.

A hymn, psalm, or anthem may be sung as the offering is received.

The bread and wine are brought by representatives of the people to the Lord's table with the other gifts, or uncovered if already in place.

A hymn, doxology, or other response may be sung as the gifts are presented.

If a Great Thanksgiving other than that which follows here is to be used, the service proceeds following the order and rubrics of A Service of Word and Table III (UMH 15-16). Otherwise, the service continues as follows:

THANKSGIVING AND COMMUNION

TAKING THE BREAD AND CUP

The pastor, standing if possible behind the Lord's table, facing the people from this time through Breaking the Bread, takes the bread and cup; and the bread and wine are prepared for the meal.

THE GREAT THANKSGIVING*

One of the musical settings may be used, the pastor using the following text:

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts. The pastor may lift hands and keep them raised.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
You formed us in your image
and breathed into us the breath of life.
When we turned away, and our love failed,
your love remained steadfast.
You delivered us from captivity,
made covenant to be our sovereign God,
and spoke to us through the prophets.
And so,
with your people on earth
and all the company of heaven
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

The pastor may lower hands.

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

The pastor may raise hands.

Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ.
Your Spirit anointed him
to preach good news to the poor,
to proclaim release to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
and to announce that the time had come
when you would save your people.
He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and ate with sinners.
By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection
you gave birth to your Church,
delivered us from slavery to sin and death,
and made with us a new covenant
by water and the Spirit.
When the Lord Jesus ascended,
he promised to be with us always,
in the power of your Word and Holy Spirit.

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread, or touch the bread, or lift the bread.

On the night in which he gave himself up for us,
he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the cup, or touch the cup, or lift the cup.

When the supper was over, he took the cup,
gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me."

The pastor may raise hands.

And so,
in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a holy and living sacrifice,
in union with Christ's offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of faith.

Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.

The pastor may hold hands, palms down, over the bread and cup.

Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here,
and on these gifts of bread and wine.
Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ,
that we may be for the world the body of Christ,
redeemed by his blood.

The pastor may raise hands.

By your Spirit make us one with Christ,
one with each other,
and one in ministry to all the world,
until Christ comes in final victory
and we feast at his heavenly banquet.

Through your Son Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit in your holy Church,
all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father,
now and forever. Amen.

THE LORD'S PRAYER*

The pastor's hands may be extended in open invitation.

And now, with the confidence of children of God, let us pray:

The pastor may raise hands.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as 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 for ever. Amen.

BREAKING THE BREAD

The pastor, still standing behind the Lord's table and facing the people, breaks the bread in silence, or while saying:

Because there is one loaf,
we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.
The bread which we break is a sharing in the body of Christ.

The pastor lifts the cup in silence, or while saying:

The cup over which we give thanks is a sharing in the blood of Christ.

GIVING THE BREAD AND CUP

The bread and wine are given to the people, with these or other words being exchanged:

The body of Christ, given for you. Amen.
The blood of Christ, given for you. Amen.

The congregation may sing hymns while the bread and cup are given. Many hymns, songs, and choruses in UMH in addition to 612–41 and others listed under Holy Communion (943) are effective in expressing the people's loving communion with God and with one another. The day or season of the Christian year and the people's knowledge and love of particular hymns are important considerations in the selection of appropriate hymns. It is particularly effective if the people can sing from memory.

When all have received, the Lord's table is put in order.

The following prayer is then offered by the pastor or by all:

Eternal God, we give you thanks for this holy mystery
in which you have given yourself to us.
Grant that we may go into the world
in the strength of your Spirit,
to give ourselves for others,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

SENDING FORTH

HYMN OR SONG*

DISMISSAL WITH BLESSING*

Go forth in peace.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all. Amen.

GOING FORTH*

INTRODUCTION TO
A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE II

This service is found in UMH 12–15 and is designed for those wishing a brief text beginning with the Invitation to the Lord's table. The parts of the service preceding the text in UMH are guided by a bulletin or by announcement. The text beginning with the Invitation is read by pastor and people from the hymnal.

Words appropriate to the day, season, or occasion may be added to the Great Thanksgiving at points marked *. These may be words of the pastor's own composition or selection; or the pastor may use one of the seasonal Great Thanksgivings on 54-79, all of which are designed to be used while the people follow A Service of Word and Table II or one of the musical settings in UMH 17–25.

INTRODUCTION TO
A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE III

This service is found in UMH 15–16 and provides only spoken congregational responses for Holy Communion. It is designed to give those who design and lead the service a high degree of flexibility and freedom. The service through the Entrance and the Proclamation and Response is guided by a bulletin or by announcement.

The people are then directed by bulletin or announcement to UMH 15–16 for the Thanksgiving and Communion, which they follow while the pastor prays the Great Thanksgiving in one of the following forms:

1) The Great Thanksgiving in A Service of Word and Table I or II (see UMH 13–14)

2) One of the seasonal or alternate Great Thanksgivings

3) The Great Thanksgiving for A Service of Christian Marriage or for A Service of Death and Resurrection

4) A Great Thanksgiving composed by the pastor or taken from another source

INTRODUCTION TO
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING: MUSICAL SETTINGS

Musical settings of the Great Thanksgiving are found in UMH 17–25. They are for those congregations who wish to sing the responses to the Great Thanksgiving. They may be used with A Service of Word and Table I or II or with the rest of the service printed in a bulletin or announced. At the Great Thanksgiving, the congregation turns to the desired musical setting, while the pastor prays the Great Thanksgiving in one of the four forms indicated above.

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A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE I AND INTRODUCTIONS TO THE OTHER FORMS