Worship Resources
The
materials listed below are for use at faith-oriented events--church and prayer
services, vigils, and related gatherings.
For educational materials including prayer cards also see Further Reading and Instructional
Materials and the Links
page. Topics and ideas for March 25
related sermons can also be found in the samples from sermons and commentaries
in various faith traditions included in the An
Ecumenical Celebration page.
General: The Bible--New Testament--Luke 1:13-15, 30-38, 39-44
Anglican/Catholic/Episcopal--The
Angelus
Lutheran--(Bulletin
Insert, Sample Sermon, Worship Service, and other materials)
Roman Catholic--1994 “Catechism of the Catholic
Church”
General: The Bible--New Testament:
Luke 1:13-15 (Annunciation of the Baptist)
But the angel said to him,
“Do not be afraid, Zachary, for thy petition has been heard, and thy wife
Elizabeth shall bear thee a son and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness, and
many will rejoice at his birth. For he
shall be great before the Lord; he shall drink no wine or strong drink, AND
SHALL BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT EVEN FROM HIS MOTHER’S WOMB.
Luke 1:30-38 (Annunciation of the Savior)
Now in the sixth month the
angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a
virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s
name was Mary. And when the angel had
come to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women.” When she had heard him she was troubled at
his word, and kept pondering what manner of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be
afraid, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God. Behold, THOU SHALT CONCEIVE IN THY WOMB AND SHALT BRING FORTH
A SON; AND THOU SHALT CALL HIS NAME JESUS.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the
Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he shall be king
over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no
end.” But Mary said to the angel, “How
shall this happen, since I do not know man?”
And the angel answered and said to her, “THE HOLY SPIRIT SHALL COME
UPON THEE AND THE POWER OF THE MOST HIGH SHALL OVERSHADOW THEE; AND THEREFORE
THE HOLY ONE TO BE BORN SHALL BE CALLED THE SON OF GOD. And behold, Elizabeth thy kinswoman also has
conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is now in her
sixth month; for nothing shall be impossible with God.” But Mary said, “Behold the handmaid of the
Lord; be it done to me according to thy word.”
And the angel departed from her.
Luke
1:39-44 (The Visitation--First Prenatal meeting of Christ & the
Baptist)
Now in those days Mary arose
and went with haste into the hill country, to a town of Juda. And she entered the house of Zachary and
saluted Elizabeth. And it came to pass,
WHEN ELIZABETH HEARD THE GREETING OF MARY, THAT THE BABE IN HER WOMB LEAPT. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy
Spirit, and cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb!
And how have I deserved THAT THE MOTHER OF MY LORD should come to
me? For behold, the moment that the
sound of thy greeting come to my ears, THE BABE IN MY WOMB LEAPT FOR JOY.”
[Note:
New Testament quotations are from the
Confraternity Edition (A Revision of the Challoner-Rheims Version Edited by
Catholic Scholars under the Patronage of the Episcopal Committee of the
Confraternity of Christian Doctrine), 1957, N.Y.: Catholic Book Pub. Co.]
Anglican/Catholic/Episcopal:
The Angelus
The
Angelus is a devotion in memory of the Incarnation. The full text can be read at http://www.stmatthewsanglican.org/angelus.html. Note that in the portion that appears below,
the prayer makes it clear that the appearance of the angel, Mary’s consent, and
the conception by the Holy Spirit are understood together as part of the same
event in which “the Word was made flesh.”
THE
ANGELUS
V.
The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R.
And she conceived by the Holy Spirit. [Recite the Hail Mary]
V.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R.
Be it done unto me according to Thy word. [Recite the Hail Mary]
V.
And the Word was made flesh.
R.
And dwelt among us. [Recite the Hail Mary]
V.
Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.
R.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Lutheran:
Lutherans For Life:
As
the feast date approaches the Lutherans
For Life home page features
a link to its Annunciation Web Page (click here for direct access). The
web page features many worship resources including materials that can be
downloaded or ordered free of charge:
Bulletin Insert — (“The Miracle of the Annunciation”)
— Read the text here — complimentary copies can be ordered on-line
Sample Sermon — Rev. Dr. James I. Lamb’s
sermon “Pregnant with God” (based on Luke 1:26-38) uses Scripture, Reformation
Era writings, the Lutheran Confessions, and quotes from more recent scholars
and theologians (Dr. Edward Koehler, Francis Pieper) to highlight the
Incarnational and pro-life significance of Christ’s conception. The sermon can be read/downloaded in PDF, Word, Rich Text, and Plain Text formats.
(If a box appears asking for a network password and
user name just click "Cancel" and it should continue downloading, or
you can just right click the format you desire and save directly to your hard
drive.)
Worship Service — A sample worship service
that can be read read/downloaded in PDF, Word, Rich Text, and Plain Text formats.
(If a box appears asking for a network password and
user name just click "Cancel" and it should continue downloading, or
you can just right click the format you desire and save directly to your hard
drive.)
Brochure — (“The Annunciation and
Abortion”) by Rev. Edward Fehskens — offers a historical review and addresses
the pro-life implications of the Annunciation and Visitation of Mary and the Incarnation
of Jesus Christ. The text of the
brochure can be read here.
Brochures can be ordered on-line.
Article — (“Womb and Tomb”) by Rev. Dr. James I. Lamb — The text of the article can be read here.
Roman Catholic:
Relevant Passages from the ‘94 “Catechism of the Catholic Church” (Liguori
Pub.):
Passage 717 on the prenatal meeting of Jesus and John
the Baptist: "John was filled
with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb (Lk 1:,15, 41) by Christ
himself, whom the Virgin Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. Mary's visitation to Elizabeth thus became a
visit from God to his people."
Passage 495 highlights the fact that Elizabeth calls
Mary "the mother of my Lord" even before Jesus was born--just shortly
after his conception in fact--meaning that even as a tiny, barely visible newly
conceived embryo--Jesus was Lord.
Passage 486 explains that Jesus was the
"Christ" from His conception in Mary's womb, but that the revelation
or manifestation of this to the world took place gradually--and this
progressive manifestation to the world is what we celebrate in remembering and
celebrating these important events that took place after Christ's
conception--from the Visitation revealing the presence of the Word made Flesh
to Elizabeth and the unborn John, to the birth in Bethlehem when God incarnate
was unveiled, to the visit of the shepherds who saw God face to face for the
first time, to Epiphany when Christ was revealed to representatives of the
nations.
“The Feast of the Annunciation Church/School Program: Jesus’ Journey In The Womb Teaches The Sanctity Of All Preborn Children”--by the Diocese of Peoria Respect Life Board. Churches of many denominations have used this program focused on Spiritual Adoption since its launch in 2006. To order the Annunciation Church/School Program booklet, or the companion Lenten Reflection (described below) on conception as the start of Christ’s earthly Passion, contact the Family Resources Center at 309-637-1713
“A Lenten Reflection On The Beginning of the Passion Of Christ”--by the Diocese of Peoria Respect Life Board. This companion piece to the Annunciation Church/School Program described above stresses the sacrificial nature of Christ’s entire earthly life from conception. To order the booklet, contact the Family Resources Center at 309-637-1713.
“Life Is a Miracle: Families Celebrate March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation,” by the Diocese of Peoria Respect Life Board. This booklet is a collection of ideas, reflections and suggestions for celebrating the feast. It includes books, songs, videos, prayers and more. The booklet can be ordered on-line here or call the Family Resources Center at 309-637-1713.
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities has developed an “Annunciation Novena” to promote “openness to life”
The text of the pro-life Annunciation novena can be found at http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/nfp/AnnunciationNovena.pdf
The Spanish text for the Annunciation novena is available at http://www.usccb.org/prolife/programs/rlp/LitGuideSp.pdf
Hard copies can be purchased by calling their toll free number: 1-866-582-0943
Multilingual Prayer to “Jesus in Mary’s Tabernacle” from www.rioporlavida.net
Read the text of the prayer in English, Spanish (Español), German (Deutsch), or Portuguese