Greetings > kyries & confessions > responses > blessings

WEEKLY AND SEASONAL PRAYERS (COLLECTS AND POST-COMMUNION PRAYERS)

There is a (now dying) generation of church goers who love to tell stories of their childhood and how they were expected to learn the Collect each week, so they could recite it out loud on command. This often happened in Sunday School or the Church School. Usually you seemed to have a week to learn it off by heart. If you were good at learning things off by heart, then no doubt it was a delight. If you were not, then it probably ruined every week. People who tell the stories usually seem to fall into the latter category. However, there are still people around who still know many of these prayers by heart, though their childhoods are tucked away in the realms of history. Why did adults think children should learn these prayers? And was it a good thing or not?

This brings us to the question of what a collect is. The collect, and it s very close relation, the post communion prayer, are ancient forms which can be traced back as far as the fifth century. They have a distinctive shape. They begin by addressing God (usually as the Father but occasionally as the Son). This is followed by a short description of something about the nature of God or of God’s actions. Then the prayer asks for something, often with a reason for the request. The prayer closes by asking Jesus to offer this prayer to the Father. Each Sunday of the church year has its own collect and post-communion prayer and the prayers therefore reflect the seasonal nature of the church year very closely. Sometimes they make reference to the Sunday’s Bible reading.

Whether or not we think there is any value in making children learn prayers so that they can recite them back for marks or approval (and probably most of us would not consider that to be a valuable exercise) the fact that people learnt these prayers did give them a vocabulary upon which to draw when they wished to come close to God, in times of joy or sorrow, pain or pleasure, fear or rejoicing. Learning of this kind can also take place informally however. People who worship regularly using set forms of words can usually recite prayers and offerings to God simply through familiarity over a sustained period. All Christians would know the Lord’s Prayer in their own language, for example. Children brought up in a Jewish family will know daily and weekly prayers from a very young age, simply from hearing them recited by their family on a daily or weekly basis. The travelling Muslim who stops beside the road to pray in the middle of the day does not need a book; he or she knows both the physical movements of prayer and the words.

And so we offer a limited number of collects here. We have not included a collect each week, but rather collects which can be used throughout a season, so that in hearing it several times each year, children will develop a familiarity with its words and images, and draw upon it almost without realising they have learned it.

HARVEST AND CREATION
Creator God,
you made the goodness of the land,
the riches of the sea
and the rhythm of the seasons;
as we thank you for the harvest,
may we cherish and respect
this planet and its peoples,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

ADVENT
Almighty God,
as we prepare with joy
to celebrate the gift of the Christ-child,
embrace the earth with your glory
and be for us a living hope
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

EPIPHANY
Eternal Lord,
our beginning and our end:
bring us with the whole creation
to your glory, hidden through past ages
and made known
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

LENT
God of love,
passionate and strong,
tender and careful:
watch over us and hold us
all the days of our life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

PASSIONTIDE
Lord Jesus Christ,
you have taught us
that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters
we do also for you:
give us the will to be the servant of others
as you were the servant of all,
and gave up your life and died for us,
but are alive and reign, now and for ever.
Amen

EASTER
Risen Christ,
faithful shepherd of your Father's sheep:
teach us to hear your voice
and to follow your command,
that all your people may be gathered into one flock,
to the glory of God the Father.
Amen

PENTECOST

Holy Spirit, sent by the Father,
ignite in us your holy fire;
strengthen your children with the gift of faith,
revive your Church with the breath of love,
and renew the face of the earth,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

TRINITY

God of our pilgrimage,
you have led us to the living water:
refresh and sustain us
as we go forward on our journey,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen