Let us pray (in silence) [that God will make us one in mind and heart]
pause
O God,
you inspire the hearts of the faithful with a single longing,
grant your people to love what you command
and to desire what you promise,
so that in all the changes and chances
of this uncertain world,
our hearts may surely there be fixed
where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ
who is alive with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
Many have moved this ancient collect to another Sunday. You can find a commentary on it here, or below.
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Reflection on the Collect
The above is my reworking for my Book of Prayers in Common in which I seek to provide a set of collects with history and commentary.
The earliest we have traced this collect is to the Gelasian Sacramentary. Through the Sarum Missal and Books of Common Prayer to the 1962 RC Missal it was the collect for the (equivalent of the) Fifth Sunday of Easter. In 1975, the Vatican moved it to the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time and Monday in the fifth week of Lent. In 2002 it was removed from the latter. It is used in many Anglican revisions (TEC’s BCP has it for Lent 5):
Deus, qui fidelium mentes unius efficis voluntatis, da populis tuis id amare quod præcipis, id desiderare quod promittis, ut inter mundanas varietates ibi nostra fixa sint corda ubi vera sunt gaudia.
Literally:
O God, who make the minds of the faithful to be of one will, grant unto Your people to love that thing which You command, to desire that which You promise, so that, amidst the vicissitudes of this world, our hearts may there be fixed where true joys are.
Cranmer for the 1549 BCP translated it as:
ALMIGHTIE God, whiche doest make the myndes of all faythfull men to be of one wil; graunt unto thy people, that they maye love the thyng, whiche thou commaundest, and desyre, that whiche thou doest promes [promise]; that emong the sondery [sundry] and manifold chaunges of the worlde, oure heartes maye surely there bee fixed, whereas true joyes are to be founde; through Christe our Lorde.
1662 changed the relative clause to
“O ALMIGHTY God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of sinful men”
this changes the stress from unity to a contrast with loving and desiring what God commands and promises.
I still remember vividly a conversation many years ago with someone increasingly irritated with the Christian ideas she was exploring. For her, particularly annoying was the idea that whilst the bad was due to her, the good she did was sourced in God. For many people, the goal of life is to be nice; to be good. And God might help us to achieve this goal. Pelagius taught whilst we might do this on our own we could seek some help from God (see ICEL below). This collect above can be used to reflect a quite different orientation – union with God as the goal of life; the constant work of God’s grace achieving this union through God’s commands and promises. This perspective may be quite different to believing one might find “lasting joy in this changing world” – though that too can be understood from a perspective of union with God as one’s goal.
Deus – God
Mentes – minds, hearts, souls
voluntatis – free will, desire, inclination
efficis… mentes – you bring about, you form… the hearts of the faithful may be of one desire
da populis tuis – grant to your people
id amare quod praecipis – to love that which you command
praecipis – you take beforehand; you give precepts, enjoin; this connects to mentes
id desiderare quod promittis – to desire that which you promise
desiderare connects to voluntatis – free will
promittis – you say beforehand, hold out
varietas means “difference, diversity, variety.”
mundanus – of or belonging to the world
ut … ibi nostra fixa sint corda – our hearts, our desiring, our loving is fixed, immovable
inter mundanas varietates – among worldly changes
varietates – fickleness, vicissitudes; contrasts with fixa, unius, vera.
gaudia – delights, inner joys, things that cause joy.
Efficio (formed from facio) – to make out, work out; hence, to bring to pass, to effect, execute, complete, accomplish, make, form
Voluntas – will (but it can also mean things like “freewill, wish, choice, desire, inclination” and even “disposition towards a thing or person”)
(RC) ICEL 1973
Father, help us to seek the values that will bring us lasting joy in this changing world. In our desire for what you promise make us one in mind and heart.
In the failed 1998 English Missal translation:
O God,
you inspire the hearts of the faithful
with a single longing.
Grant that your people
may love what you command
and desire what you promise,
so that, amid the uncertain things of this world, our hearts may be fixed where true joys are found.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever.
ICEL 2011:
O God, who cause the minds of the faithful to unite in a single purpose, grant your people to love what you command and to desire what you promise, that, amid the uncertainties of this world, our hearts may be fixed on that place where true gladness is found.
See NZPB p. 640b
Almighty God, you alone can bring order
to our unruly wills and affections;
give us grace to love what you command
and desire what you promise,
that in all the changes and chances
of this uncertain world,
our hearts may surely there be fixed
where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ our Lord…
Common Worship (CofE) Third Sunday before Lent:
Almighty God,
who alone can bring order
to the unruly wills and passions of sinful humanity:
give your people grace
so to love what you command
and to desire what you promise,
that, among the many changes of this world,
our hearts may surely there be fixed
where true joys are to be found;
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.
or BCP (TEC p. 219) Fifth Sunday in Lent:
Almighty God,
you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners:
Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise;
that, among the swift and varied changes of the world,
our hearts may surely there be fixed
where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Also used by Anglicans in South Africa, Australia, Ireland,…
Reflection on Another Collect
Let us pray (in silence) [that we may know the risen Christ]
pause
Eternal God,
your Son Jesus Christ
is the way, the truth and the life for all creation;
grant us grace to walk in his way,
to rejoice in his truth,
and to share his risen life;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God now and for ever.
Amen.
History
This collect (NZPB p.599) is assigned to the Fifth Sunday of Easter (p.703).
This is a new collect for ASB (Ninth Sunday before Easter) prepared by the Liturgical Commission of the Church of England. Clearly, based on John 14:6 (the set gospel, Year A) with allusions to 1 Cor 13:6; Col 2:6, 12. [Thanks to A Companion to the Alternative Service Book, RCD Jasper and Paul F. Bradshaw]
Reflection
The ASB version has “…whose Son Jesus Christ is for all mankind the way…” This has been dropped in Common Worship (Church of England – post communion prayer Fifth Sunday of Easter) to become “…whose Son Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life…” The uninclusive language of “mankind” now sounds odd to those whose ears have “popped”. For those whose ears have not “popped”, the omission of “mankind” is not noticed. For some now the use of “Son”, “his”, and “reigns” are also part of the discussion.
Those alert to these nuances, may have noticed that the material in Celebrating Eucharist is attentive to these issues and uses complementary and inclusive images and language except where NZPB requires otherwise. That those for whom this is less of an issue do not find this attentiveness grating highlights the possibility of writing material where all can be nourished and included.
A bigger issue, theologically, is highlighted by NZ’s extension from “mankind” to “for all creation”. How can we affirm the uniqueness and significance of Jesus and at the same time not condemn and denigrate, in a way that Jesus would not, those on a different spiritual journey? This question is implicit in any intelligent reflection on John 14:6. Brian McLaren in his book a Generous Orthodoxy is an excellent current exploration of this issue. He also clearly highlights our need to move beyond “Son of God” as a gender statement (and certainly is well beyond seeing it as a biological declaration).
Although this collect fits with the gospel in Year A, the attempt to tie the collect too closely to the readings (in other years) is problematic. It fails to understand the way the Revised Common Lectionary readings are organised. Themes are covered in Celebrating Eucharist Chapter 1, page 10; collects are covered in Chapter 6, page 42. That it is prayed on the Fifth Sunday of Easter in England and in New Zealand, in Australia (in Year A), and elsewhere on the same day is worthy of reflection.
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