Trinity 12 Collect sermon 26th August 2012

I want this morning to savour the collect for the 12th Sunday after Trinity so you may find it helpful to look back at the text of it.

It’s dated, like most of our liturgical prayers, before the 7th century so it’s been said or sung in this Church throughout its history. At the Reformation Archbishop Cranmer retained the traditional prayers seeing them as a key element of the continuity of the Church, as was the case in the more extreme Lutheran Reformation. The result is Anglicans, Roman Catholics and Lutherans pray today with the same words Sunday by Sunday. Following their Latin originals the Collects have a flow suitable to their being sung as well as being said.

At St Giles our current selection from Common Worship employs all three traditional liturgical prayers: the Prayer Book Collect and the prayer over the gifts and postcommunion prayer we supplement from the new Roman Catholic translation of their Latin originals.

Like the prayer over the gifts and postcommunion prayers the collects are pretty meaty and run counter to the soundbite culture of 140 character tweets. We need patience to gain from their depth and meaning. That’s why we’re encouraged to take our news sheet home to reflect further on their beauty and challenge as well as that of the Sunday scripture readings.

The Collect is always on the front page of our news sheet. It’s used, at all services during the week, at daily Morning and Evening Prayer and midweek eucharists, unless there’s a Saint’s Day with collect provided. The Collect is preceded by the invitation ‘let us pray’ and a brief silence beforehand so it can truly ‘collect’ our individual prayer aspirations

I’ve said before, to worship here is to stand like dwarves on the giant shoulders of Christian tradition. This tradition is allied to the Holy Spirit only as we own it, and enter into its depths, otherwise it can be emply ritual that goes over our heads. This is why I’m giving a wake up call in specifically speaking to the collect today. I’ve got to admit a certain self-interest however. The different scripture readings in use at 8am and 10am on the last Sunday of the month - Prayer Book Sunday - were a motivator! I’m able to prepare one sermon instead of two!

So let’s read again the Collect for Trinity 12.

Almighty and everlasting God, (who art/you are) always more ready to hear than we to pray and (art wont) to give more than either we desire or deserve: pour down upon us the abundance of (thy/your) mercy, forgiving us those things (whereof/of which) our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ (thy/your) Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

The original Latin opening runs: Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui abundantia pietatis tuae: et merita supplicum excedis et vota which is literally translated: Almighty everliving God, who in the abundance of your kindness, surpass the merits and desires of those who entreat you.(RC 27th Sunday). Or, as in Cranmer, art always more ready to hear than we to pray and (art wont) to give more than either we desire or deserve:

The structure of collects is generally fivefold – first addressing God, second describing God in a way that relates to the forthcoming request, third making the request, fourth in some prayers, though not here, the expected result of the request and fifth the Christian conclusion or doxology. The collect structure is as such a very good guide to making our own individual prayers so they are our teachers.

Trinity 12’s collect addresses God as exceedingly generous: always more ready to hear than we to pray and (art wont) to give more than either we desire or deserve:

That’s a wondrous thought - we could spend the whole week reflecting upon it. The kindness and solicitousness of the best parent or friend is but pale reflection of God’s concern for our good.

After this great affirmation the collect continues with a big ask. Pour down upon us the abundance of (thy/your) mercy, forgiving us those things (whereof/of which) our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask

As Christians we either under or overestimate the miracle of forgiveness.

Some of us, maybe out of knowledge of psychology, minimize our evil traits as being not altogether our own fault. We’re not as struck by the miracle of forgiveness as we should be since we’ve been taught, wrongly, to doubt we need it.

Others are so aware of their accountability they find it hard to ask for forgiveness and end up wallowing in wounded pride, whilst looking a gift horse in the face.

Yet – and this is the miracle - through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our sins, once confessed, are no longer our business before God, save the little business of making restitution to one’s neighbour where that’s necessary.

This miracle of forgiveness links with the resurrection itself.

The One who rose from the dead brought a new beginning that serves new beginnings, day by day, hour by hour, for those who bring him their shortcomings.

It’s no coincidence that collects end with praise to the Trinity starting with a resurrection affirmation Jesus Christ (thy/your) Son our Lord, who is alive and reign(eth)s with (thee/you), in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

I conclude with a quotation from Bishop Wand’s commentary on the end of the Trinity 12 Collect:

If we are conscious of needs that have not been met, there is every reason why we should bring them before God. Certainly we cannot plead our own deserts, but we can plead the merits and mediation of Christ.

Christ, the all-perfect Saviour, takes us by the hand and leads us up the altar-stairs to the great throne of God. God sees us thus in the company of his Son, and seeing there the promise of what we shall be he adopts us not only for his Son’s sake but also for our own. Then he showers his richest blessings on his adopted children.

So be it – Amen!