Give thanks with joy to the Father, * who has made you fit

to have your share * in the holy community of light.

    He rescued us from the power of darkness, * and brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son

    who redeemed us, * forgiving our sins.

       Christ is the visible likeness * of the invisible God, * the firstborn of all creation.

           Through him all things were made, * in heaven and on earth, * visible and invisible,

               including spiritual powers * lords, rulers and authorities.

           All things were created * through him and for him.

       Before anything came to be, he was, * and the universe is held together by him.

    He is the head of his body, the Church, * its beginning,

    the firstborn from the dead * with primacy in all things.

He has in himself, by God's good pleasure * the full measure of power,

and through him God reconciles * all things to himself,

making peace by the blood of his cross * to encompass everything on earth and in heaven.