Sunday 28th April

Parish Mass for the Fifth Sunday of Easter

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Collect

Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ have

overcome death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: grant that, as

by your grace going before us you put into our minds good desires, so by

your continual help we may bring them to good effect; through Jesus Christ

our risen Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever.

Amen

Reading

Acts 8: 26 - end

Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a wilderness road.) So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to this chariot and join it.” So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this:

“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.”

The eunuch asked Philip, “About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. As they were going along the road, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?” He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Gospel

John 15: 1-8

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He

removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every

branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more

fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that

I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you.

Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it

abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in

me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who

abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because

apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not

abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers;

such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and

burned. If you abide in me and my words abide in you,

ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit

and become my disciples.

Post Communion Prayer

Eternal God, whose Son Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life: grant

us to walk in his way, to rejoice in his truth, and to share his risen life; who is

alive and reigns, now and for ever.

Amen