Easter Communion

The Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
L:    The God of every morning be with you.
P:    And also with you.
L:    People of Easter morning, lift up your hearts!
P:    We lift them to the One
who has raised Jesus from the grave.
L:    People of Easter’s joy, give thanks
to the One who raises us to new life.
P:    We sing our hallelujahs
to the God of everlasting love.

On this day of joy and hope,
Redeemer of the lost,
we sing our praise to you.
Very early in the morning,
your Word shattered the silence of chaos,
and grace flowed forth like a river.
You reached down
and gathered up the dust of creation,
forming us into your image,
and breathing life into us.
Yet the day came
when we chose to turn from you
believing our wisdom was superior
to your will for us.
You sent us the prophets,
to speak of your gracious hope,
but we refused to listen.
When you could have let us remain
in the clutches of sin and death,
you sent Jesus to be one of us,
so we could come home to you.

Therefore, we join our voices this morning
with those who stood at the empty tomb,
as well as those of every time and place,
singing our Easter joy to you:

P:    Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of the empty grave.
Glad songs of resurrection joy are offered to you.
Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is the One who comes bearing your steadfast love.
Hosanna in the highest!

Holy are you, God of every day,
and blessed is Jesus Christ,
Bright Morning Star.
Creator of all that is good,
he entered the shadows of hell
to lead us into hope’s light;
Beloved of your Heart,
he embraced our sin
so we could be forgiven;
Glory beyond imagination,
he welcomed death
so we could enter life eternal.

Even as we believe
what we may not understand,
we trust that mystery we call faith:

P:    On the first day, Christ shaped all that
is good and beautiful;
on the first day of the week, Christ
swallowed up death forever;
on the last day, Christ will call us
to the Table of the Lamb.

It is here at this Table,
Resurrecting God,
that we are fed by your love.
As you pour out your Spirit
upon the Bread and the Cup,
fill us with the spirit of Jesus,
so we may go forth to be your people.
Feed us with the Bread of Heaven,
so we can fill the hunger of the world.
Touch our lips with salvation’s cup,
so we can proclaim the good news
of this day to everyone we meet.

And when the morning comes
when we are united with all the saints
gathered around heaven’s Table,
we will lift our voices to you,
God in Community, Holy in One,
forever and ever.  Amen.

Submitted by Rev. Thom Shuman, author of Lectionary Liturgies.