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  • Home
  • About Us
    • History >
      • Priests & Vicars of Holy Trinity
      • Wardens of Holy Trinity
    • What is Anglican?
    • What is our vision?
    • Clergy and Staff
  • Get Involved
    • Pastoral Care Team
    • What are Lectors? (Readers)
    • Confirmation & Reception
    • What is the Vestry? >
      • Duties of the Laity
  • Resources
    • A vision for Point Loma
    • Sunday Scripture Readings
    • Understanding the Anglican Standard Text
    • Mind Maps
    • Holy Trinity By-Laws
  • Sermons
  • Contact
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The Comfortable Words

6/22/2019

1 Comment

 
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Immediately following the absolution the celebrant may say one or more of the sentences of scripture that make up the comfortable words.
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Thomas Cranmer included these sentences from scripture in his original prayer book and they have become a part of the Anglican liturgical tradition ever since. They act as a scriptural warrant and guarantee of the forgiveness of sins. They reaffirm the absolution through biblical authority. What the priest says about our sins being forgiven is backed up by the scriptures. You don’t have to take the priest’s word for it but you can also “hear the word of God” spoken to you. Those who turn to Jesus are loved and forgiven.

Although these sentences may be said independently from each other they are written as a whole. They follow the biblical narrative of God and man. Our sin has caused us to be heavy laden. (Matthew 11:28) The Genesis account talks about the difficult labor that comes after the fall. (Genesis 3) When we try to live life without God we find that we are burdened and have no life in us. God does not leave us in this state. He loves us. He loves all that He created. (John 3:16) Jesus the only-begotten Son came to save sinners. He came to save those who want life back. (1 Timothy 1:15) Trusting and following the way of Jesus brings us back into a right relationship with the Father. Jesus is the propitiation for our sins. He is the relationship fixer. (1 John 2:1-2) Once we understand what Jesus has done for us we realize that He has done this for the whole world. We become people who proclaim the way of Jesus to the heavy laden of the world.
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When read together these sentences encapsulate the Gospel message in a beautiful way. I hear these words and am reminded that Jesus is indeed good news! A tradition that I learned from my time at Trinity School for Ministry is to walk down the center aisle while reading the comfortable words. This is reminiscent of the way we read our Gospel accounts. We do this because the good news is always moving to reach the people. In the great commission Jesus tells his disciples to go to the people of the world and proclaim the Gospel. (Mark 16:15) The Gospel, the good news of Jesus, is always going forward.    

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THE COMFORTABLE WORDS

The Celebrant may then say one or more of the following sentences, first saying

Hear the Word of God to all who truly turn to him.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.    MATTHEW 11:28
                                                                                         
God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.     JOHN 3:16
                                                                                                   
The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.    1 TIMOTHY 1:15
                                                                                          

If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.     1 JOHN 2:1-2
                                                                                            

1 Comment
Carolyn Huggett
2/1/2022 01:25:01 pm

One of my favorite parts of the Communion service as it was.

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    2019 BCP
    Anglican Standard Text

    1. 2019 BCP Introduction
    2. Opening Acclamation
    ​
    3. Collect of Purity
    4. Summery of the Law
    ​
    5. The Kyrie & Trisagion
    6. The Gloria in Excelsis
    7. The Collect of the Day
    8. The Lessons
    9. The Sermon
    10. The Nicene Creed
    11. Prayers of the People
    ​
    12. The Confession
    ​
    13. Comfortable Words
    ​
    14. The Peace
    ​
    15. The Offertory
    ​
    16. The Sursum Corda
    ​
    17. The Proper Preface
    ​
    18. The Sanctus
    ​
    19. Consecration Part 1
    ​
    20. Consecration Part 2
    21. Consecration Part 3
    ​
    22. The Lord's Prayer
    23. The Fraction
    ​
    24. Humble Access
    25. Post Communion Pryr
    26. Blessing & Dismissal 

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