Liturgical Moment of the Week: That Funny Word: Collect

By Fr. Brian+

Collect, it’s a funny word. When I first heard it (say it: KOWL-LECT), I had no idea what it meant. It is simply a prayer with which we begin our service.

The collect tends to shape the rest of the service. Often it is a seasonal tone, or some special observance. When the collect is prayed, note the words highlighted, the emphasis, the differences.

You may find the list of collects that we use in the Book of Common Prayer: https://www.bcponline.org/ Click on the link to Collects.

A collect has five parts to it, and to demonstrate the parts, I will break down this Sunday’s collect into the five parts.

Here is the collect (prayer) I will pray on Sunday:

Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the

human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to

take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross,

giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant

that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share

in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives

and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever

and ever. Amen.

Here is the collect broken into each of the five parts:

Invocation Addressed to God

Almighty and everliving God,

Acknowledgement of an Attribute or Action of God

in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ 

to take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross,

giving us the example of his great humility:

Prayer Request Made of God

Mercifully grant that we may walk in the way of his suffering,

Suggested Outcome of the Prayer

and also share in his resurrection;

Concluding Praise to God

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

In this case, the request and outcome are linked closely. Each collect has been crafted for a special purpose.

Why would we ask God to enable us to suffer like Jesus? So that we will share in his resurrection, and gain eternal life.

That’s Christianity, folks. We suffer. We will die. We will be raised to life. And that truth gives us joy today! 

I trust you will experience the joy of Jesus this Easter season.

Thanks be to God.