The Apostles’ Creed – The Anglican Church of Canada
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He 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.
The Nicene Creed – The Anglican Church of Canada
The Nicene Creed
This creed arose from the Council of Nicaea, held in 325 CE. The council sought to address the heresy of Arianism, which asserted that the Son of God was not eternal, but created by the Father.
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:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from 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.
With the Father and the Son
he is worshipped and glorified.
He 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
October 4, 2026 – 19th Sunday after Pentecost
Exodus 20: 1-4, 7-9, 12-20 Psalm 19 Philippians 3: 4b-14 Matthew 21: 33-46
A Reading from Exodus (20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20)
Then God spoke all these words, 2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3 you shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above or that is on the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me 6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 10 But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it. 12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 13 “You shall not murder. 14 “You shall not commit adultery. 15 “You shall not steal. 16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female slave, ox, donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 18 When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, they were afraid and trembled and stood at a distance 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen, but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid, for God has come only to test you and to put the fear of him upon you so that you do not sin.”
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to Go
Psalm 19 (page 725)
The heavens declare the glory of God, * and the firmament shows his handiwork.
One day tells its tale to another, * and one night imparts knowledge to another.
Although they have no words or language, * and their voices are not heard,
Their sound has gone out into all lands, * and their message to the ends of the world.
In the deep has he set a pavilion for the sun; * it comes forth like a bridegroom out of his chamber; it rejoices like a champion to run its course.
It goes forth from the uttermost edge of the heavens and runs about to the end of it again; * nothing is hidden from its burning heat.
The law of the Lord is perfect and revives the soul; * the testimony of the Lord is sure and gives wisdom to the innocent.
The statutes of the Lord are just and rejoice the heart; * the commandment of the Lord is clear and gives light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean and endures for ever; * the judgements of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, more than much fine gold, * sweeter far than honey, than honey in the comb.
By them also is your servant enlightened, * and in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can tell how often he offends? * cleanse me from my secret faults.
Above all, keep your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not get dominion over me; * then shall I be whole and sound, and innocent of a great offense.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, * O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.
Gracious creator of heaven and earth, your Word has come among us as the true Sun of righteousness, and the good news of his birth has gone out to the ends of the world. Open our eyes to the light of your law, that we may be purified from sin and serve you without reproach for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Light and our Life.
A Reading from the Letter of Paul to the Philippians (3:4b-14)
4 even though I, too, have reason for confidence in the flesh.
If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
7 Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law but one that comes through faith in Christ,[a] the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 I want to know Christ[b] and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, 11 if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal,[c] but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ[d] has laid hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have laid hold[e] of it, but one thing I have laid hold of: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly[f] call of God in Christ Jesus.
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to God
The Gospel (Matthew 21:33-46)
The Lord be with you
(All) And also with you
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
(All) Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ
33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went away. 34 When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 35 But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36 Again he sent other slaves, more than the first, and they treated them in the same way. 37 Then he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ 39 So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41 They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”
42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? 43 “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces its fruits. 44 The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”[b] 45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 46 They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.
The Gospel of Christ
(All) Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
September 27, 2026 – 18th Sunday after Pentecost
Exodus 17: 1-7 Psalm 78: 1-4, 12-16 Philippians 2: 1-13 Matthew 21: 23-32
A Reading from Exodus (17:1-7)
1. From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2The people quarrelled with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water to drink.’ Moses said to them, ‘Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?’ 3But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?’ 4So Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.’ 5The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.’ Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarrelled and tested the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to Go
Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16 (page 806, prayer, p.811)
1 Hear my teaching, O my people; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.
3 That which we have heard and known, and what our forefathers have told us, * we will not hide from their children.
4 We will recount to generations to come the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord, * and the wonderful works he has done.
12 He worked marvels in the sight of their forefathers, * in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.
13 He split open the sea and let them pass through; * he made the waters stand up like walls.
14 He led them with a cloud by day, * and all the night through with a glow of fire.
15 He split the hard rocks in the wilderness * and gave them drink as from the great deep.
16 He brought streams out of the cliff, * and the waters gushed out like rivers.
God of pilgrims, strengthen our faith, we pray. Guide us through the uncertainties of our journey, and hold before us the vision of your eternal kingdom, made known to us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A Reading from the Letter of Paul to the Philippians (2:1-13)
If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, 2make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. 4Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 5Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death-even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to God
The Gospel (Matthew 21:23-32)
The Lord be with you
(All) And also with you
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
(All) Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ
23 When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, ‘By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?’ 24Jesus said to them, ‘I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?’ And they argued with one another, ‘If we say, “From heaven”, he will say to us, “Why then did you not believe him?” 26But if we say, “Of human origin”, we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.’ 27So they answered Jesus, ‘We do not know.’ And he said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
28 ‘What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, “Son, go and work in the vineyard today.” 29He answered, “I will not”; but later he changed his mind and went. 30The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, “I go, sir”; but he did not go. 31Which of the two did the will of his father?’ They said, ‘The first.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax-collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax-collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
The Gospel of Christ
(All) Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
September 20, 2026 – 17th Sunday after Pentecost
Exodus 16: 2-15 Psalm 105: 1-6, 37-45 Philippians 1: 21-30 Matthew 20: 1-16
A Reading from Exodus (16:2-15)
2The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3The Israelites said to them, ‘If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.’
4 Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not. 5On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days.’ 6So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, ‘In the evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your complaining against the Lord. For what are we, that you complain against us?’ 8And Moses said, ‘When the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, because the Lord has heard the complaining that you utter against him—what are we? Your complaining is not against us but against the Lord.’
9 Then Moses said to Aaron, ‘Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, “Draw near to the Lord, for he has heard your complaining.” ’ 10And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked towards the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11The Lord spoke to Moses and said, 12‘I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, “At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.” ’
13 In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, ‘What is it?’ For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, ‘It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to Go
Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45 (page 845)
1 Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his name; * make known his deeds among the peoples.
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him, * and speak of all his marvellous works.
3 Glory in his holy name; * let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4 Search for the Lord and his strength; * continually seek his face.
5 Remember the marvels he has done, * his wonders and the judgements of his mouth,
6 O offspring of Abraham his servant, * O children of Jacob his chosen.
37 He led out his people with silver and gold; * in all their tribes there was not one that stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad of their going, * because they were afraid of them.
39 He spread out a cloud for a covering * and a fire to give light in the night season.
40 They asked, and quails appeared, * and he satisfied them with bread from heaven.
41 He opened the rock, and water flowed, * so the river ran in the dry places.
42 For God remembered his holy word * and Abraham his servant.
43 So he led forth his people with gladness, * his chosen with shouts of joy.
44 He gave his people the lands of the nations, * and they took the fruit of others’ toil,
45 That they might keep his statutes * and observe his laws. Hallelujah!
God of our salvation, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, you have fulfilled your promise to our ancestors in the faith to redeem the world from slavery and to lead us into the promised land. Grant us living water from the rock and bread from heaven, that we may survive our desert pilgrimage and praise you for ever, through Jesus Christ our Redeemer
A Reading from the Letter of Paul to the Philippians (1:21-30)
For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.
Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well— since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.
Hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church
(All) Thanks be to God
The Gospel (Matthew 20:1-16)
The Lord be with you
(All) And also with you
The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew
(All) Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ
‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the labourers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the market-place; and he said to them, “You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.” So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why are you standing here idle all day?” They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into the vineyard.” When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the labourers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” So the last will be first, and the first will be last.’
The Gospel of Christ
(All) Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
