Welcome to Westminster Abbey. Daily prayer has been offered in this place for over a thousand years, and your participation in today's service is warmly welcomed. At choral Evensong most of the service is sung by the choir on our behalf. We participate through our presence and our listening, that the words and the music might become a prayer within us and lift us to contemplate God's beauty and glory.

The service always includes one or more psalms. These ancient prayers, taken from the Old Testament, reflect the full range of human emotions and experiences; from the depths of anger, resentment, and abandonment to the heights of ecstatic joy and praise. They were used by Jesus, and have always been at the heart of the Church's daily prayer.

The canticles Magnificat (Luke 1: 46–55) and Nunc dimittis (Luke 2: 29–32) reflect two responses to the Incarnation (God becoming fully human in Jesus Christ). Both speak of the fulfilment of God's promises, not just to 'Abraham and his seed', but also 'to be a light to lighten the Gentiles' (all nations). With their themes of fulfilment and completion, these texts have been given central place for many centuries in the Church's prayers for the evening and at the end of the day.

Please join in saying the words printed in bold type.

The church is served by a hearing loop. Users should turn their hearing aid to the setting marked T.

Photography, filming, and sound recording are not allowed in the Abbey during services. Please ensure that mobile telephones and other electronic devices are silent.

Following the service, a collection will be taken; the money from today's services will be divided equally between USPG and the work of the Abbey. USPG is the Anglican mission agency that partners with churches and communities worldwide in God's mission to enliven faith, strengthen relationships, unlock potential, and champion justice.

Visiting Choirs

When the Abbey Choirs are on holiday, the Abbey welcomes visiting choirs, upholding the Abbey's pattern of choral services. This is an important aspect of worship at Westminster Abbey, and choirs are received both at the invitation of the Minor Canons and Music Departments and via online applications. More information and details on how to apply can be found here. Today, the Abbey is pleased to welcome the Laurenscantorij, Netherlands, who are singing the choral services from Thursday to Sunday.

Order of Service

All stand as the choir and clergy enter

All remain standing as the officiant introduces the Confession

Beloved, we are come together in the presence of Almighty God and of the whole company of heaven to offer unto him through our Lord Jesus Christ our worship and praise and thanksgiving; to make confession of our sins; to pray, as well for others as for ourselves, that we may know more truly the greatness of God's love and show forth in our lives the fruits of his grace; and to ask on behalf of all people such things as their well-being doth require. Wherefore let us sit or kneel and keep silence, and remember God's presence with us now.

All kneel or sit to say together

O God, our Father,
we have sinned against thee
in thought, word, and deed;
we have not loved thee with all our heart;
we have not loved our neighbour as ourselves.
Have mercy upon us, we beseech thee;
cleanse us from our sins;
and help us to overcome our faults;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The officiant gives the Absolution

May the almighty and merciful Lord grant unto you pardon and remission of all your sins, time for amendment of life, and the grace and comfort of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

All say together the Lord's Prayer

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 thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

All stand. The officiant and choir sing the Responses

Music: Richard Ayleward (1626–69)

All sit. The choir sings Psalm 77

I will cry unto God with my voice : even unto God will I cry with my voice, and he shall hearken unto me.
In the time of my trouble I sought the Lord : my sore ran, and ceased not in the night-season; my soul refused comfort.
When I am in heaviness, I will think upon God : when my heart is vexed, I will complain.
Thou holdest mine eyes waking : I am so feeble, that I cannot speak.
I have considered the days of old : and the years that are past.
I call to remembrance my song : and in the night I commune with mine own heart, and search out my spirits.
Will the Lord absent himself for ever : and will he be no more intreated?
Is his mercy clean gone for ever : and is his promise come utterly to an end for evermore?
Hath God forgotten to be gracious : and will he shut up his loving-kindness in displeasure?
And I said, It is mine own infirmity : but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most Highest.
I will remember the works of the Lord : and call to mind thy wonders of old time.
I will think also of all thy works : and my talking shall be of thy doings.
Thy way, O God, is holy : who is so great a God as our God?
Thou art the God that doeth wonders : and hast declared thy power among the people.
Thou hast mightily delivered thy people : even the sons of Jacob and Joseph.
The waters saw thee, O God, the waters saw thee, and were afraid : the depths also were troubled.
The clouds poured out water, the air thundered : and thine arrows went abroad.
The voice of thy thunder was heard round about : the lightnings shone upon the ground; the earth was moved, and shook withal.
Thy way is in the sea, and thy paths in the great waters : and thy footsteps are not known.
Thou leddest thy people like sheep : by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

All stand

Chants: Arthur Mann (1850–1929) and Thomas Attwood (1765–1838)

All sit for the first Lesson, Jeremiah 14: 1–9

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
Judah mourns
   and her gates languish;
they lie in gloom on the ground,
   and the cry of Jerusalem goes up.
Her nobles send their servants for water;
   they come to the cisterns,
they find no water,
   they return with their vessels empty.
They are ashamed and dismayed
   and cover their heads,
because the ground is cracked.
   Because there has been no rain on the land
the farmers are dismayed;
   they cover their heads.
Even the doe in the field forsakes her newborn fawn
   because there is no grass.
The wild asses stand on the bare heights,
   they pant for air like jackals;
their eyes fail
   because there is no herbage.

Although our iniquities testify against us,
   act, O Lord, for your name's sake;
our apostasies indeed are many,
   and we have sinned against you.
O hope of Israel,
   its saviour in time of trouble,
why should you be like a stranger in the land,
   like a traveller turning aside for the night?
Why should you be like someone confused,
   like a mighty warrior who cannot give help?
Yet you, O Lord, are in the midst of us,
   and we are called by your name;
   do not forsake us!

Here ends the first lesson.

All stand. The choir sings Magnificat

The Short Service, Orlando Gibbons (1583–1625) Organist and Master of the Choristers 1623–25

All sit for the second Lesson, Luke 8: 4–15

When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to Jesus, he said in a parable: 'A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.' As he said this, he called out, 'Let anyone with ears to hear listen!'

Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. He said, 'To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that
"looking they may not perceive,
   and listening they may not understand."

'Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.'

Here ends the second lesson.

All stand. The choir sings Nunc dimittis

The Short Service, Orlando Gibbons

All face east to say together the Apostles' Creed

I believe in God the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth:
and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord,
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 judge 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 officiant and choir sing the Lesser Litany; the Lord's Prayer and the Responses

Let us pray.

All kneel or sit

Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Amen.

The officiant sings the Collects; of the day, for peace, and for aid against all perils

O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; we humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O God, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed; give unto thy servants that peace which the world cannot give; that both, our hearts may be set to obey thy commandments, and also that, by thee, we being defended from the fear of our enemies may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Music: Richard Ayleward

All sit. The choir sings the Anthem

Hear my prayer, O Lord;
   and let my crying come unto thee.

Words: Psalm 102: 1
Music: Henry Purcell (1659–95) Organist and Master of the Choristers 1679–95

All kneel or remain seated for the Intercessions

The officiant says the Prayers; for the Royal Family, and for the Members of the Order of the Bath

Almighty God, the fountain of all goodness, we humbly beseech thee to bless our most gracious Sovereign Lord King Charles, Queen Camilla, William Prince of Wales, the Princess of Wales, and all the Royal Family: endue them with thy Holy Spirit; enrich them with thy heavenly grace; prosper them with all happiness; and bring them to thine everlasting kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

God save our Gracious Sovereign, and all the Members of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath living and departed. Amen.

All say

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore.
Amen.

All stand as the choir and clergy depart

Those who wish to may sit for the remainder of the organ voluntary

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Common Worship (Church House Publishing, 2000), material from which is included in this service, is copyright © The Archbishops' Council. Scripture Readings are from the New Revised Standard Version.