Holy Cross Day

The Collect:

Rite I:
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ was lifted high upon the cross that he might draw the whole world unto himself: Mercifully grant that we, who glory in the mystery of our redemption, may have grace to take up our cross and follow him; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Rite II:
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ was lifted high upon the cross that he might draw the whole world to himself: Mercifully grant that we, who glory in the mystery of our redemption, may have grace to take up our cross and follow him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Old Testament: Isaiah 45:21-25

²¹Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the Lord? There is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is no one besides me. ²²Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. ²³By myself I have sworn, from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: “To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.” ²⁴Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength; all who were incensed against him shall come to him and be ashamed. ²⁵In the Lord all the offspring of Israel shall triumph and glory.

Psalm: Psalm 98 or 98:1-4

¹ Sing to the Lord a new song, *
       for he has done marvelous things.
² With his right hand and his holy arm *
       has he won for himself the victory.
³ The Lord has made known his victory; *
       his righteousness has he openly shown in the sight of the nations.
⁴ He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel, *
       and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
⁵ [Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands; *
       lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
⁶ Sing to the Lord with the harp, *
       with the harp and the voice of song.
⁷ With trumpets and the sound of the horn *
       shout with joy before the King, the Lord.
⁸ Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it, *
       the lands and those who dwell therein.
⁹ Let the rivers clap their hands, *
       and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord,
       when he comes to judge the earth.
¹⁰ In righteousness shall he judge the world *
       and the peoples with equity.]

Epistle: Philippians 2:5-11 or Galatians 6:14-18

⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, ⁷but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, ⁸he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.⁹Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

or

¹⁴May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. ¹⁵For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything! ¹⁶As for those who will follow this rule—peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. ¹⁷From now on, let no one make trouble for me; for I carry the marks of Jesus branded on my body. ¹⁸May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.

Gospel: John 12:31-36a

³¹Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. ³²And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” ³³He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. ³⁴The crowd answered him, “We have heard from the law that the Messiah remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” ³⁵Jesus said to them, “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. If you walk in the darkness, you do not know where you are going. ³⁶While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.”

Printable Lectionary Readings

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