Please join in saying the words and singing the hymns printed in bold type.

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The service is sung by the Choir of Westminster Abbey.

Order of Service

All stand as the choir and clergy enter, and to sing the Hymn

For the beauty of the earth,
   for the beauty of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
   over and around us lies:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For the beauty of each hour,
   of the day and of the night,
hill and vale, and tree and flower,
  sun and moon and stars of light:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For the joy of ear and eye,
   for the heart and brain's delight,
for the mystic harmony
   linking sense to sound and sight:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For the joy of human love,
   brother, sister, parent, child,
friends on earth and friends above,
   for all gentle thoughts and mild:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

For each perfect gift of thine,
   to our race so freely given,
graces human and divine,
   flowers of earth and buds of heaven:
Lord of all, to thee we raise
this our sacrifice of praise.

Words: Folliot Pierpoint (1835–1917)
Tune: England's Lane 285i NEH, Geoffrey Shaw (1879–1943), adapted from a folk song

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Lord be with you
and also with you.

All remain standing. The president introduces the Prayers of Penitence

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son Jesus Christ to save us from our sins, to be our advocate in heaven, and to bring us to eternal life.

Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, firmly resolved to keep God's commandments and to live in love and peace with all.

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, we have sinned against you and against our neighbour in thought and word and deed, through negligence, through weakness, through our own deliberate fault. We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us, forgive us all that is past and grant that we may serve you in newness of life to the glory of your name. Amen.

The president gives the Absolution

Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent, have mercy upon you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The choir sings Gloria in excelsis

Glory be to God on high,

All sit

and in earth peace, good will towards men.

We praise thee, we bless thee, we worship thee, we glorify thee, we give thanks to thee for thy great glory, O Lord God, heavenly King, God the Father almighty.

O Lord, the only-begotten Son Jesu Christ; O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father, have mercy upon us.

For thou only art holy; thou only art the Lord; thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost, art most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

Coronation Gloria, Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924)

All stand for the Collect

Let us pray.

O God, you know us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright: grant to us such strength and protection as may support us in all dangers and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

All sit for the Reading from the Old Testament, Isaiah 6: 1–13

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said:
'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.'
The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said: 'Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!'

Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: 'Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.' Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I; send me!' And he said, 'Go and say to this people:
"Keep listening, but do not comprehend;
keep looking, but do not understand."
Make the mind of this people dull,
   and stop their ears,
   and shut their eyes,
so that they may not look with their eyes,
   and listen with their ears,
and comprehend with their minds,
   and turn and be healed.'
Then I said, 'How long, O Lord?' And he said:
'Until cities lie waste
   without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
   and the land is utterly desolate;
until the Lord sends everyone far away,
   and vast is the emptiness in the midst of the land.
Even if a tenth part remains in it,
   it will be burned again,
like a terebinth or an oak
   whose stump remains standing
   when it is felled.'
The holy seed is its stump.

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

The choir sings Psalm 138

Antiphon Before the gods will I sing praise to you.

I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart;
   before the gods will I sing praise to you.
I will bow down towards your holy temple and praise your name, because of your love and faithfulness;
   for you have glorified your name and your word above all things.
In the day that I called to you, you answered me;
   you put new strength in my soul.
All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord,
   for they have heard the words of your mouth.
They shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
   that great is the glory of the Lord.
Though the Lord be high, he watches over the lowly;
   as for the proud, he regards them from afar.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you will preserve me;
   you will stretch forth your hand against the fury of my enemies; your right hand will save me.
The Lord shall make good his purpose for me;
   your loving-kindness, O Lord, endures for ever; forsake not the work of your hands.

The Epistle, 1 Corinthians 15: 1–11

I should remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain.

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to someone untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace towards me has not been in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them—though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we proclaim and so you have come to believe.

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

All stand for the Procession of the Gospel. The choir sings

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

and all repeat

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

The word of the Lord endures for ever. The word of the Lord is the good news announced to you.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

The reader announces the Gospel, Luke 5: 1–11

The Lord be with you
and also with you.

Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.
Glory to you, O Lord.

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, 'Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.' Simon answered, 'Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.' When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, 'Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!' For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, 'Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.' When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.

The Sermon by The Right Reverend Anthony Ball, Canon of Westminster and Rector of St Margaret's Church

All stand to say the Creed

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

All remain standing for the Prayers of Intercession. At the end of each petition there is said

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

The intercession ends

Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

The president introduces the Peace

We are all one in Christ Jesus. We belong to him through faith, heirs of the promise of the Spirit of peace.

The peace of the Lord be always with you
and also with you.

All may greet one another with the words Peace be with you. Please be sensitive to those who might not wish to shake hands

All remain standing to sing the Hymn

Songs of praise the angels sang,
heaven with alleluias rang,
when creation was begun,
when God spake and it was done.

Songs of praise awoke the morn
when the Prince of Peace was born;
songs of praise arose when he
captive led captivity.

Heaven and earth must pass away,
songs of praise shall crown that day;
God will make new heavens and earth,
songs of praise shall hail their birth.

And will man alone be dumb
till that glorious kingdom come?
No, the Church delights to raise
psalms and hymns and songs of praise.

Saints below, with heart and voice,
still in songs of praise rejoice;
learning here, by faith and love,
songs of praise to sing above.

Hymns of glory, songs of praise,
Father, unto thee we raise,
Jesu, glory unto thee,
ever with the Spirit be. Amen.

Words: James Montgomery (1771–1854)
Tune: Northampton 451 NEH, Charles King (1859–1934)

All remain standing for the Eucharistic Prayer. The president says

The Lord be with you
and also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give thanks and praise.

Father, we give you thanks and praise through your beloved Son Jesus Christ, your living Word, through whom you have created all things; who was sent by you in your great goodness to be our Saviour.

By the power of the Holy Spirit he took flesh; as your Son, born of the blessed Virgin, he lived on earth and went about among us; he opened wide his arms for us on the cross; he put an end to death by dying for us; and revealed the resurrection by rising to new life; so he fulfilled your will and won for you a holy people.

Therefore with angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying:

The choir sings Sanctus

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of hosts, heaven and earth are full of thy glory: glory be to thee, O Lord most high. Amen.

Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

The president continues the Eucharist Prayer

Lord, you are holy indeed, the source of all holiness; grant that by the power of your Holy Spirit, and according to your holy will, these gifts of bread and wine may be to us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ;

who, in the same night that he was betrayed, took bread and gave you thanks; he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.

In the same way, after supper he took the cup and gave you thanks; he gave it to them, saying: Drink this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.

Great is the mystery of faith:
Christ has died: Christ is risen: Christ will come again.

The president continues the Eucharist Prayer

And so, Father, calling to mind his death on the cross, his perfect sacrifice made once for the sins of the whole world; rejoicing in his mighty resurrection and glorious ascension, and looking for his coming in glory, we celebrate this memorial of our redemption. As we offer you this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, we bring before you this bread and this cup and we thank you for counting us worthy to stand in your presence and serve you.

Send the Holy Spirit on your people and gather into one in your kingdom all who share this one bread and one cup, so that we, in the company of [N and] all the saints, may praise and glorify you for ever, through Jesus Christ our Lord; by whom, and with whom, and in whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honour and glory be yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever. Amen.

All remain standing. The president introduces the Lord's Prayer

As we join our prayers with those of the Church Universal, so we say, each in our own language, the prayer that Jesus Christ has taught us,

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 remain standing for the Breaking of the Bread

We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.
Though we are many, we are one body, because we all share in one bread.

Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Blessed are those who are called to his supper.
Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and I shall be healed.

Holy Communion is offered in one kind (bread only). Gluten-free wafers are available. The wearing of face-coverings is encouraged unless you are exempt, and hand-sanitiser is provided. Please receive the bread into the palm of your hand. The minster says to each communicant

The body of Christ. Amen.

During the giving of communion, the choir sings Agnus Dei and the Motet

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world; have mercy upon us.

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world; grant us thy peace.

O Lord, make thy servant Elizabeth our Queen to rejoice in thy strength; give her her heart's desire, and deny not the request of her lips; but prevent her with thine everlasting blessing, and give her a long life, even for ever and ever. Amen.

Words: after Psalm 21
Music: William Byrd (c 1540–1623)

Let us pray.

All stand. The president says the Prayer after Communion

Go before us, Lord, in all we do with your most gracious favour, and guide us with your continual help, that in all our works begun, continued, and ended in you, we may glorify your holy name, and finally by your mercy receive everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Lord be with you
and also with you.

The president pronounces the Blessing

The peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

Go in the peace of Christ.
Thanks be to God.

Music after the service

Pomp and Circumstance March III, Edward Elgar (1857–1934), transcribed by Iain Farrington (b 1977)

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Hymns covered by Christian Copyright Licensing (International) Ltd are reproduced under CCL no 1040271 and MRL no 1040288. 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.