06 December 2008

A Christmas Eve/Dawn Compromise

Christmas is the only day in our liturgical calendar where three Masses are assigned to a single day. At St. Paul's, we don't celebrate the Dawn Divine Service, but we do celebrate the Midnight and the Christmas Day service. As a bit of a compromise, we'll do the following. The collect from the Dawn service (Most merciful God, You gave Your eternal Word to become incarnate of the pure Virgin...) will replace the collect for the Midnight so that the Midnight collect can be used as a post-communion collect. We light candles after the distribution and then follows Nunc Dimittis (a light to lighten the Gentiles), the collect "You made this most holy night to shine with the brightness of the true Light. Grant that as we have known the mysteries of that Light on earth we may also come to the fullness of His joys in heaven," then the salutation, benedicamus and benediction with "Silent Night" to close the Divine Service.

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