The Season of Lent – Liturgical Text – 56.1

Call to Confession

At the baptismal font:
In the name of Christ, I urge you:
Be reconciled to God.

Trusting in God’s grace, let us confess our sin.
The prayer of confession is included here.

Call to Confession

At the baptismal font:
Being fully human,
Jesus was tempted as we are.
Being fully divine,
Jesus knew the way out of the wilderness
through which we still wander.
Trusting that Christ will lead us,
we repent of our waywardness,
confess our sins,
and turn back to the path of God’s mercy.
The prayer of confession is included here.

Declaration of Forgiveness

Lifting water from the font:
Listen, the time has come at last.
Look, now is the day of salvation!

In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
Thanks be to God.

Declaration of Forgiveness

Lifting water from the font:
In the shadow of the Almighty,
we take shelter.
As a hen gathers her chicks
under protective wings,
God gathers us in love.
From this place of motherly mercy,
we are forgiven.
Thanks be to God!

Thanksgiving for Baptism

At the baptismal font:
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
O Lord our God, we give you thanks
for the mercy you so freely offer us
through the grace of our baptism—
safe passage through the sea,
justice rolling down like water,
deliverance from sin and death forever.
By the power of your Holy Spirit,
poured out upon us in baptism,
teach us to love and serve you faithfully
and reconcile us to you and to one another
as members of one, living body;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Thanksgiving for Baptism

At the baptismal font:
God of ancient covenants,
who never breaks trust,
we thank you for baptismal waters
that pour out your steadfast love
for all creation.
Thank you for the salvation promise
you have kept.
In the name of Jesus,
the Living Water, we pray. Amen.

Prayer for Illumination

At the lectern or pulpit:
Season of Lent, Ash Wednesday
Merciful God,
your Word is our way of truth and life.
Create in us hearts that are clean
and put your Holy Spirit within us,
so that we may receive your grace
and declare your praise forever;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Season of Lent
Gracious God, our way in the wilderness,
guide us by your Word through these forty days,
and minister to us with your Holy Spirit,
so that we may be reformed,
restored, and renewed;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Season of Lent
O Lord of light and salvation,
let these words of Scripture
live not only in our mouths,
but in our hearts,
that we will embody your truth
and confess with our lives
that Jesus is Lord. Amen.

Season of Lent, Maundy Thursday
Eternal God, by your Word and Spirit,
you have given us a new commandment:
to love and serve one another in Jesus’ name.
Let the good news of your liberating love
be sealed in our hearts and shown in our lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Season of Lent, Good Friday
Holy One, our strength in suffering
and our hope for salvation,
lift up your Word of life
and pour out your Spirit of grace
so that we may follow faithfully
all the way to the cross;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Before the readings:
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Psalm 51:15

After the readings:
We proclaim Christ crucified—
the wisdom and power of God.
Thanks be to God.
1 Corinthians 1:23–25

Ascription of Praise

After the sermon:
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
we bend our knees and lift up our hearts,
giving glory to God forever. Amen.
Philippians 2:9–11

Affirmation of Faith

Season of Lent, Ash Wednesday
The reconciling act of God in Jesus Christ
exposes the evil in people
as sin in the sight of God.
In sin, people claim mastery of their own lives,
turn against God and each other,
and become exploiters
and despoilers of the world.
They lose their humanity in futile striving
and are left in rebellion, despair, and isolation.
But God’s love never changes.
Against all who oppose the divine will,
God expresses love in wrath.
In the same love, God bore judgment
and shameful death in Jesus Christ,
to bring all people to repentance and new life.
Adapted from the Confession of 1967, 9.12, 9.14

Season of Lent
The reconciling work of Jesus
was the supreme crisis in the life of humankind.
His cross and resurrection become personal crisis
and present hope for women and men
when the gospel is proclaimed and believed.
In this experience,
the Spirit brings God’s forgiveness to all,
moves people to respond in faith,
repentance, and obedience,
and initiates the new life in Christ.
Adapted from the Confession of 1967, 9.21

Season of Lent
To be reconciled to God
is to be sent into the world
as God’s reconciling community.
This community, the church universal,
is entrusted with God’s message of reconciliation
and shares God’s labor of healing the enmities
which separate people from God
and from each other.
Christ has called the church to this mission
and given it the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The church maintains continuity
with the apostles and with Israel
by faithful obedience to his call.
Adapted from the Confession of 1967, 9.31

Season of Lent, Palm/Passion Sunday, Good Friday
God’s reconciling act in Jesus Christ is a mystery
which the Scriptures describe in various ways.
It is called the sacrifice of a lamb,
a shepherd’s life given for his sheep,
atonement by a priest;
again it is ransom of a slave, payment of debt,
vicarious satisfaction of a legal penalty,
and victory over the powers of evil.
These are expressions of a truth
which remains beyond the reach of all theory
in the depths of God’s love for humankind.
They reveal the gravity, cost,
and sure achievement of God’s reconciling work.
Adapted from the Confession of 1967, 9.09