Why Pope Francis now thinks married men can be priests but women still can’t / Just because Pope John Paul 11 said no, does not mean that Pope Francis has to do so too!

http://www.newsobserver.com/living/religion/article137642668.html

“St. Pope John Paul II had the last clear word on this and it stands,” Francis said during a news conference aboard the papal plane on a flight from Sweden back to Rome. Those words by Pope John Paul II stated the church had “no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women.”

The stark difference in the answers prompted questions.t

Bridget Mary's Response:

Kudos to Francis for opening door to married men, but he also needs to affirm women priests as spiritual equals in an inclusive church. 

This argument is a dodge and laughable if it was not so sad and insulting. It insinuates that somehow the Creator of the cosmos is impotent when it comes to the issue of the ordination of women! In everything else, the male hierarchy has plenty of authority to do whatever it wants, including make rules that impact women's lives without their input. No wonder so many women have rejected the church for its blatant, sinful sexism. 

Jesus treated women as equal disciples. The women were faithful to him to the end. When the men  fled, denied or betrayed Jesus, the women stood by the cross, and were present at the tomb. According to all four Gospels, the women were his faithful companions who walked with him to his execution.  Mary of Magdala was the first to encounter the Risen Christ who commissioned her to "go and tell" the good news, the job description of an apostle. The Fathers of the Church affirmed her as the "apostle to the apostles." Fast forward to the 21st century and all memory of Jesus' egalitarian relationships with the women disciples seems to vanish from the memories of our present popes!

I pray that our beloved Pope Francis will have the courage to treat women as equals like Jesus did, and affirm women priests! No more silly excuses, no more blaming Pope John Paul 11 for second class citizenship for women in the church. 

Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

sofiabmm@aol.com

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/living/religion/article137642668.html#storylink=y

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community Liturgy, Second Sunday of Lent, Presiders: Lee Breyer, Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, Music Minister: Linda Lee Miska, Cantor, Russ Banner

Left to right; Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, Lee Breyer Co-Presider

Theme: Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time

(with thanks to Marcus Borg)

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community, March 11, 2017, 2nd Sunday of Lent

Bob MacMillan read first reading

MMOJ Community Prays Eucharistic Prayer around the Banquet Table

Bob Murray, Bridget Mary and Mary Murray

Elena Garcia ARCWP and Katy Zatsick ARCWP

Gathering Prayer

Presider: Friends, let us pray as we come together to break bread and share in the banquet of love. As we do so, may we always recognize that God is with us, in many different cosmic expressions. Today, in our liturgy, we remember that Jesus, known well by his apostles who followed him during his earthly mission, went with them to a hilltop and showed them “another side” of himself. As we celebrate his transfiguration, let us pray that – as we meet Jesus again for the first time – we are transformed as were Peter, James, and John. And let us do so, as always, in the name of God, our creator, of Jesus Christ, our liberator, and of the Holy Spirit, our sanctifier.

ALL: Amen.


ALL: And we ask, Loving God, that you bless all of us gathered here now and all those of our community who are not with us today.


Presider: We celebrate with joy and we give thanks, O Holy One, for all the blessings that we have received from you. May we open our hearts to everything and everyone with whom we share this universe, with no exceptions. And may we be the light of the world that, through your disciples, you called us to be. ALL: Amen.



Gathering Hymn: “Gather Us In” (Music by Haugen, different lyrics on page 6)


Opening Prayer

ALL: Creator God, as we make our journeys into the heart of compassion, we celebrate your love of us and are grateful for the gifts of your presence, guidance, support and strength. Open our minds and hearts to the message of the Gospel so that your inspiration and peace may guide our lives. You call us to see goodness and beauty everywhere and to live in harmony with creation. You call us to heal, with your grace, the wounds of hatred and violence, discrimination and oppression in our world. You call us to warmly welcome everyone who comes through our doors as your presence among us. Loving God, may we always remember that you have created us as one body – your body – the Body of Jesus, the Christ. Amen.


Community Forgiveness

(raise an arm toward the community as a sign of forgiveness)

Presider: Compassionate God, to you all hearts are open, no desires are unknown and no secrets are hidden. We thank you for sending your Spirit to us so that we may live more fully according to your will for us and we are thankful that you have called us to be your blessed people.


ALL: We ask you for the grace to realize our continual need to grow in understanding, compassion and caring for ourselves, for others, and for our planet earth. Teach us the virtues of pardon and peace so that we may – in turn – learn to forgive one another. Help us to be Jesus to all those with whom we meet. We ask this of you in the names of Jesus, our brother and of the Holy Spirit, our healer and comforter. Amen.



Gloria
ALL (sing): Glory to God, glory, O praise God, Alleluia. Glory to God, glory. O praise the name of our God. (3X)


Liturgy of the Word

First Reading: Genesis 12: 1-5 ALL: Thanks be to God.

Psalm: 33 Responsorial: Our God fills the earth with love, with love; Our God fills the earth with love. #767


Second Reading: Second letter of Paul to Timothy ALL: Thanks be to God.


Acclamation:


Gospel: Matthew 17: 1-9 ALL: Glory to you, O God.
Homily Starter: Lee Breyer

HOMILY

Second Sunday of Lent

Peter, James, and John had walked and worked, taught and talked with Jesus ….they knew him from their time with him.  They were taken someplace with him to pray…something they probably did many times before.   But this was different — they saw a different Jesus this time as described by Matthew (that we just heard in the gospel) and Mark (from whose writing Matthew got it.) This turned out to be a peak religious experience for all of them. Describing it, as Mark did, was challenging.  How to picture a spiritual experience…?  He used images that were familiar to his readers; the mountain (like Mount Sinai), characters (like the Jewish heroes Moses and Elijah, the only ones who talked with God on Mt. Sinai), outside features (like the cloud from heaven that opened and the voice of God).  This was a major moment for all…Peter, James and John had met Jesus again, for the first time. So much for them.  While we most probably had no such experience, what we might have are what I wrote in the liturgy, namely “passages from Jesus as savior, to Jesus as teacher, then to Jesus as personal friend or some other relationship. What is our transformational story that we’d like to share today?

Shared Homily and Community Reflection


Discussion starter: “Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time.” This might be our passages from Jesus as savior, to Jesus as teacher…then to Jesus as personal friend or some other relationship.. What is our transformational story that we’d like to share today?


Profession of Faith


ALL: We believe in one God, the Creator of the universe, whose divinity infuses all that exists, making everything in the cosmos sacred.


We believe in Jesus, the Christ, a messenger of God’s Word, a carrier of God’s healing and the heart of God’s compassion. Through him, we have become a new and holy people.


We believe in the Spirit, the Breath of God, who strengthens us in our call to follow the example of Jesus as an expression of God’s love, a source of God’s wisdom and truth, and an instrument of God’s peace in the world.

We believe that God’s kin-dom is here and now, spread everywhere around us for those with eyes to see it, hearts to receive it, and hands to make it known to everyone.


Prayers of the Community

Presider: We are a people of faith; we believe in the power of prayer. We are mindful of God’s loving compassion and care for everyone. And so we lift up the needs of the people to our merciful and gracious God. Our response is… ALL: Healing God, hear our prayers.


Presider: That the hungry and homeless receive sufficient bread and shelter, we pray. R.


Presider: That those bound by hatred, hostility, and violence will be set free, we pray. R.


Presider: That the sick may be healed, especially (mention names), we pray. R.


Presider: That all of us may be constant lamplighters of truth and justice, we pray. R.


Presider: That those who have gone ahead of us dwell forever in our heavenly home, we pray. R.


Presider: And for whom or what else do we pray at this time? (Mention other intentions) R.


Presider: We will hold these, and all our unspoken intentions, in our hearts when we gather
around the Banquet Table.



Offertory Procession and Preparation of the Gifts


Offertory Song: “Taste and See” #331


Presider: Blessed are you, God of all creation, through your goodness we have this bread to offer, this grain of the earth that human hands have prepared for us. It will become the bread of life



Presider: Blessed are you, God of all life, through your goodness we have this wine to offer, this fruit of the vine that human hands have prepared for us. It will become our spiritual drink.


Presider: Through this sacred meal may we become messengers of your love for your people. May others see you in us — and find your loving and healing grace through us.


ALL: Namaste

Presider: Jesus, who has often sat at our tables, now invites us to be his guests at this, his family table. Everyone is welcome around the Banquet Table. (the community encircles the table)


Eucharistic Prayer: Gathering of the Gifted.

Voice 1: Gracious God, you embrace us with your extravagant love in our blessedness and our brokenness.. We are united in this sacrament by the love of Jesus who proclaimed your power and mercy for all. We thank you that, in this festive meal, your Spirit continues to be poured out among us gathered here as we share the gift of your shalom, our peace. May we be strengthened by her so that we may live as prophetic witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus and be supported by the vision that directed him. We join with the angels and saints and people of every race, faith and nation in an unending hymn of praise.


ALL (sing): We are holy…You are holy…I am holy… we are holy… (Karen Drucker)

Voice 2: Gracious God, you set your banquet table and invite all of us to a feast of endless delight. Here we celebrate your divine love beyond all that words can express. Here your divine care connects the young and the old, the least and the last, to everyone else, everywhere on their journeys into the heart of mercy.

ALL: We thank you for the gift of Jesus in history – and the gift of Jesus in faith. Through him, you breathe life into us. He was moved by his vision of your everlasting presence in everyone he met, wherever he went. He revealed you in everything he did in his life well lived. He showed us, through his example, not only how we should live, but also what is worth dying for.

Voice 3: When his time on earth had come, Jesus – aware of and accepting his destiny – gave up his life for the values that he deeply believed, lived and taught…his conviction that love is stronger than death. And then, providing an example of this insight for the understanding of ages to come, he opened wide his arms and died. Then the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead, demonstrated to us that life is eternal and love is immortal. Jesus is with us today as he will always be through the end of time.

ALL: O God, let your Spirit of life, healing and wholeness come upon these gifts that we brought from your fields and placed on our table. May she make them holy so that they will become for us the Body and Blood of Jesus, our brother.


(extend an arm as we pray the consecration together.)

Presider: On the night before he was betrayed, Jesus gathered with his friends to share a final Passover meal. And it was at that supper that he took bread, said a blessing, broke the bread and shared it with them saying…


ALL: …take this all of you and eat it. The bread is you; this bread is me. We are one body, the presence of God in the world. Do this in memory of me.

Presider: In the same way after supper, Jesus took a cup of wine, again he said the blessing and gave it to his friends saying…


ALL: …take this all of you and drink from it. This wine is you; this wine is me. We are one blood, the presence of God in the world – in a new and everlasting covenant because of me. Do this in memory of me.


Presider: Jesus, who was with God “in the beginning of the creation of the heavens and the earth,” is with us now in this bread. The Spirit, of whom the prophets spoke in history, is with us now in this cup. Let us proclaim this mystery of faith.

ALL: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ lives in us and through us in the world today.


Voice 4: God of Blessings, we pray for your church throughout the world; help them to grow in love of one another. We remember Francis, our Pope; Bridget Mary, our Bishop; and your whole family everywhere, especially those who live on the margins of church and society. We also remember the communion of saints, both living and dead, who touched our lives and left their footprints on our hearts. We remember especially…(mention names.)

ALL: Through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ, all praise and glory are yours, Loving God, (sing and hold hands) Amen. (x times)

The Prayer of Jesus

ALL (sing): Our Father and Mother ….

The Sign of Peace


Presider: Jesus, you said to your disciples, “My peace I leave you; my peace I give you. Look on the faith of those gathered here today …


ALL: … and grant us your peace. (join hands as we sing “Let There be Peace on Earth” #532) (replacement lyrics: …with God as creator, family all are we… With every breath I take…)



Litany at the Breaking of the Bread
Presider: Loving God….ALL: you call us to Spirit-filled service and to live the Gospel of peace and mercy. So we will live justly.


Presider: Loving God….ALL: you call us to be your presence in the world and to be bearers of understanding and compassion, forgiveness and healing everywhere in your name. So we will love tenderly.

Presider: Loving God….ALL: you call us to speak truth to power. So we will walk humbly with you.

Presider: Loving God.…ALL: you call us to show mercy to our brothers and sisters. So we will be mindful of them and of all your creation.

Presider: This is Jesus, who calls us to open doors that are closed and share our bread on the altar of the world.


ALL: We thank you, God, for creating us as worthy to recognize the presence of Jesus in everyone we meet, wherever we may go. May we reflect to them by our actions your compassion in the world. We are all the Body of Christ.

Presider: Let us share the Body of Christ… with the Body of Christ! ALL: Amen.

Pre-Communion Prayer

Presider: Loving God, as we come to share the richness of your table, we cannot forget the poverty of so many of our brothers and sisters, our families and neighbors.


Men: We cannot eat this bread and forget those who are hungry. O God, your world is one world and we are stewards of its nourishment for all your people.


Women: We cannot drink this wine and forget those who are thirsty. O God, the very earth and all its people cry out for environmental justice.


All: We cannot listen to your words of peace and not grieve for the world at war’s door.

Communion Song: An instrumental medley


Communion Reflection Song: “You Are The Face of God”


Prayer of Thanksgiving after Communion


Presider: O God of Compassion, Jesus showed us how to love one another and care for one another’s needs. Through the power of your liberating Spirit at work within us, may we learn how to give and receive forgiveness, live joyously and work for the healing of our society and the earth.


ALL: Amen


Prayers of Gratitude, Introductions, Anouncements


Closing Community Blessing (extend an arm in mutual blessing)

Presider: Our God is with you. ALL: and also with you.

ALL: May our gracious God, bless All of us gathered here, in the name of God our Creator, in the name of Jesus our Liberator, and in the name of the Holy Spirit, our Sanctifier as we care and minister in love to one another and to all those whom we meet on our journeys. Be with us as we continue on our paths and follow in the footsteps of Jesus — for we are the face of God to the world. Amen.


Commissioning

Presider: May we all go in the peace of Christ. Let our service continue in all that we do and say. And let us be the people that God created us to be. ALL: Thanks be to God. Let it be so!


Concluding Hymn: “The Summons” #384, verses 1, 4 and 5

Orthodox Church Debate Over Women Deacons Moves One Step Closer to Reality

http://religionnews.com/2017/03/09/orthodox-church-debate-over-women-deacons-moves-one-step-closer-to-reality/

..."That prospect may now be a giant step closer to reality, since the Patriarch of Alexandria, who presides over the entire Orthodox Church in Africa, followed up on his 2016 decision to reintroduce women deacons and last month appointed six nuns to be subdeaconesses within the church.

In a symbolic ceremony, the patriarch blessed the women and used other religious symbols to effectively restore women’s ordination within Orthodoxy. The move follows years of discussions within different branches of Orthodoxy on whether to reinstitute women deacons, and it comes at a time of growing interest around the issue within the Greek Orthodox Church, the largest Orthodox denomination in the U.S.

James Skedros, dean of Holy Cross seminary and professor of Orthodox history, believes appointing female deacons will have a positive impact by showing people that “there are plenty of ministries in the church that women can and should participate in.”

At the Vatican, Sister Simone Campbell blasts ‘male power’ By Josephine McKenna | March 7, 2017

VATICAN CITY (RNS) "Catholic activist Sister Simone Campbell has suggested that senior clergy at the Vatican are more preoccupied with power than confronting issues that affect the faithful, like clerical sexual abuse.

The U.S. nun, leader of the “Nuns on the Bus” campaign that has toured America during recent election cycles, spoke frankly in an interview ahead of a conference being held at the Vatican on Wednesday (March 8) to celebrate women’s contributions to peace.

“The institution and the structure is frightened of change,” Campbell told Religion News Service. “These men worry more about the form and the institution than about real people.”

Referring to Marie Collins, who last week resigned from the panel appointed by Pope Francis to look into allegations of past Vatican obstruction of child sex abuse investigations, Campbell said: “Blocked by men. Isn’t this the real problem within the church?”

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community (MMOJ) at Sun City Center: Liturgy on First Thursday of Lent, March 9, 2017

Katy Zatsick ARCWP and Paddy Cooney, Co-Presiders at MMOJ Sun City

What do you keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking for during this Lenten Season? 

Presider:  In the name of God our Creator, and of Jesus our brother, and of

the Holy Spirit, our Healer we begin our worship together All:  Amen

Gathering Prayer All:  My sisters and brothers, in Lent, we fast from all

that holds us from living fully as the beloved of God, and feast on Infinite

love moving through us as we do justice and live equality in our world. This

is a time of transformation; a time to look inward, to reflect, to

contemplate. The Holy One is with us and with all creation. Amen

Opening Prayer (adapted from today's collect)

All:  Bestow on us, we pray loving God a spirit of always pondering on what

is right and of hastening to carry out your will and, since without you we

cannot exist, may we be enabled to live according to your desires for us.

We pray through our Brother Jesus Christ, your Son who lives and reigns with

you in the unity of Sofia, One God the Divine Dance of Creation, for ever

and ever Amen. 

Janalea, music minister and Elena Garcia ARCWP 

Healing our souls and spirit

Presider:  As we pray and fast against injustices and give alms, may we be

the face of God in our world by living Gospel compassion and justice. Jesus,

you are compassion. All:  Jesus, we will live compassion and do justice.

Presider: Jesus, your death reminds us that must be willing to suffer the

consequences of living truth to power. Jesus, you walk with us in our

courage. All: Jesus, we will walk with others in their challenges and stand

against systemic injustice in our communities, nation and world.

Presider: Jesus, in your rising, you show us the path to liberation from

structures of domination, Jesus, you are liberator. All: Jesus, we will live

your vision of liberation and justice, one with your peoples, your planet

and all creation. 

Presider:  Let us pause now for reflection.  Place your hand over your heart

and breathe in God's compassionate love for you...be aware that God

forgives, frees and heals us...Let us let go of guilt, live justly, and love

tenderly. We are the face of God in our world... (Extend hands and recite

prayer of General Absolution and prayer for healing) 

Elena Garcia ARCWP and Roman Rodriguez

All:  God, Mother-Father of mercies who through the life, death and

resurrection of Jesus, have reconciled the world and sent Sofia your Holy

Spirit among us so that we might live and be Jesus in our time and place.

May we live to bring to its fruition the kindom of God on Earth. God give us

pardon and peace always; we only need to be open to God's reconciliation and

peace. We forgive ourselves for the times when we were closed to your

healing and we forgive others when they were not, as well.  Amen. 

First Reading: Esther 14   Esther sought strength in the Most High as she

looked death in the face...She called out to the Most High God of Israel

with these words: My God, our only Sovereign, come to my aid, for I am alone

and have no other relief but you. Remember us, O God, and show yourself at

this time of our need. As for me give me courage, Sovereign God of supreme

power.  As for our people, liberate us by your mighty hand and come to my

aid, for I am alone and can rely on no one but you, O God.  Hear my plea and

have mercy on your chosen people.  Turn our tears into laughter that we may

live to sing your Name, O God. All: Thanks be to God.

Psalm: #138 Response All: "Loving God, on the day I called for help, you

answered me" 

I give You thanks, O Blessed One, with my whole heart: before all the people

I sing your praise; I was humbled when I came to see that you dwell in me,

in the Sacred Chapel of all souls; my gratitude knows no bounds. All:

"Loving God, on the day I called for help, you answered me" 

For you are the Holy One, the Life of our life. On the day that I called,

You answered me; the strength of my soul You increased.  Though I am in the

midst of trouble, You preserve my life; You are a very Presence as I face my

fears and doubts; your strength upholds me. All: "Loving God, on the day I

called for help, you answered me" 

You guide me as I pray to fulfill my purpose on earth; You do not forsake

those who call upon You.  Your steadfast Love and Truth endure forever. All:

"Loving God, on the day I called for help, you answered me"

(from Nan Merrill "Psalms for Praying-an Invitation to Wholeness) 

Gospel: Matthew 7:7-12  Jesus said to his disciples and to us, "Ask and keep

asking, and you will receive.  Seek and keep seeking and you will find.

Knock and keep knocking and the door will be opened to you.  For the one who

keeps asking, receives.  The one who keeps seeking, finds. And one who keeps

knocking, enters. Is there any among you who would hand your daughter a

stone when she asked for bread?  Would one of you hand your son a snake when

he asked for a fish?  

If you, with all your faults, know how to give your children what is good,

how much more will you Abba God in heaven give good things to those who ask!

Therefore, treat others as you would have them treat you. This is the whole

meaning of the Law and the prophets. This is the Good News of our Brother

Jesus. All: Glory and Praise to you our Savior Jesus the Christ 

Shared Homily 

When have you asked, sought, knocked on a door and have been answered?

What are you asking, seeking, or knocking on God's door for this Lent? For

yourself, family, country, world? 

When have you experienced Jesus asking you, seeking you or knocking on the

door of your soul? 

How and do I make ample time to nurture my relationship with God?  

Profession of Faith All:  We believe in God who calls us to be the

compassion of God in our world. We believe in Jesus, whose death and

resurrection reveals that God's liberating love overcomes all oppression

including death and evil. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the breath of

Wisdom Sophia, who energizes and guides us to live Gospel equality in

inclusive communities where all are welcome everywhere in our nation and

world. We believe in the communion of saints our heavenly friends who

inspire us to live holy lives. We believe in the love that does justice and

heals our world. Amen

Prayers of the Community

Presider:  That we may live compassion and mutuality, letting go of all

selfishness and self-interest we pray.  Response: God of all ages, hear us!

Presider:  That those bound by hatred, hostility, and violence will be set

free especially immigrants from Central and South America and Muslims from

six countries in the Middle East, we pray.  Response: God of all ages, hear

us!

Presider:  That the sick may be healed, especially Mary Prouty, Tish Rawles

ARCWP, Bob Murray MMOJ-Sarasota (mention names), we pray.  Response: God of

all ages, hear us!

Presider: For what else shall we pray?

Presider: O Holy One, we walk in faith that nothing is impossible and we can

care for others.  May we ask for others, seek justice for others, knock on

doors for others in need through the power of your Spirit Sophia working in

us to heal each other and the world. All: Amen 

PREPARATION OF THE GIFTS

Presider:  Blessed are you, O God, Seeker of all.  This bread is your MMOJ

community seeking for and knocking on the door to your Presence asking to be

your Compassion for all throughout our country. Through your divine

providence, we have this bread to offer, it will become for us the Bread of

Life.   ALL:  Blessed be God forever.

Presider:  Blessed are you, O God, Creator of all.  This wine is our asking

and seeking to be justice makers for all those who suffer in our country and

our planet. Through your divine providence, we have this wine to offer, it

will become our spiritual drink.  ALL:  Blessed be God forever.

Presider: Divine Presence, we are united in this sacrament by the love of

our Brother Jesus Christ in communion with all who seek to be the

Compassionate presence of God in our world ALL:  Amen.

All: Blessed are you, God of all life, through your goodness we have this

bread and this wine, the whole of creation, and our own lives to offer.

Through this sacred meal may we become your new creation. Amen. 

Presider: God is with us, loving and healing through us. All: Namaste

Presider: Lift up your hearts. All: We lift them up in tender love, open to

serve.

Presider: Let us give thanks to our God. All: It is our joy to give God

thanks and praise. 

Eucharistic Prayer

Voice: Life-giving Love, You have called us to be midwives of grace, radiant

reflections of your holy presence on earth. United with You, we are one with

all beings in the community of creation as we celebrate the new life

occurring in our expanding cosmos. And so we join the angels and saints as

we sing:  

All: We are holy, holy, holy. You are holy,... I am holy,... We are

holy...(3 times -Karen Drucker)  

Voice: Gracious God, you set the banquet table and invite all to the feast

of unending delight. Here we celebrate divine love beyond what all that

words can describe in our evolving cosmos. Here your divine compassion

connects us to the young and the old, the least and the last, to all who

ask, who seek, who knock,  to everyone everywhere on our journey into the

heart of mercy. 

Voice: Gracious God, you set the banquet table and invite all to the feast

that celebrates your boundless love in the universe.  As mystics and

prophets we are Your hands, lifting up those who suffer, the vulnerable and

excluded in our world today. We especially thank you, Holy One, for Jesus,

the Compassion of God, who came to show us a new vision of community where

every person is loved and all relate with mutual respect. As midwives of

grace we welcome all God's family into the Circle of Life at Your Banquet of

Love. 

Voice: Jesus threatened the religious and political leaders of his time and

so they put him to death.  Like Jesus, the holy ones throughout the ages

have been executed for their prophetic witness by the oppressive systems

they challenged.  As God's beloved, we speak truth to power and work for

justice and equality, no matter what the cost. 

(Please extend hands as we recite the consecration together)  

All: May your Spirit, present in these humble gifts, fill us with a new

outpouring of love that makes us more deeply one Body in the Cosmic Christ

living the fullness of your compassion.

Presider: On the night before he was betrayed, Jesus gathered with his

friends including us for a meal. He took bread, broke it and said: All: Take

this all of you. This is my body. Every time you eat it, remember me. 

Presider: In the same way after supper, Jesus took the cup, and raising it

with love beyond all telling, he gave thanks and shared the cup with those

at table and said to us: All: Take this all of you and drink from it. This

is the cup of my life blood, the making of a new and everlasting covenant.

Every time you drink of it, remember me. 

Presider: Jesus, who was with God "in the beginning of the creation of the

heavens and the earth," is with us now in this bread. Jesus' Spirit, of whom

the prophets spoke in history, is with us now in this cup. Let us proclaim

this mystery of faith.   All: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ lives

in us and through us in the world today. 

Voice: We honor the holy women and men who have revealed your compassion and

justice in our world.  We honor those who asked for, who sought you and

knocked on the door to your Presence in their lives. We thank you for

friends, family, neighbors, and communities in our lives who show us how to

love tenderly and have revealed the Heart of our God, especially  (pause to

remember and name some of these holy women and men) 

Voice: And so, liberating God, Midwife of Grace, we hold our religious

ministers and political leaders in the light of Christ Sophia, Holy Wisdom.

We pray for our pope and bishops, the young and the elders, and all God's

holy people.  We remember Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary Magdala, Peter, Paul,

Junia, our patron saints and all the saints and angels who hold us with

loving prayer each day.   We remember our loved ones and all those who have

died, that they may experience the fullness of life in the embrace of our

compassionate God.  

ALL: Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ, all praise and glory are yours,

Loving God.  Amen.

The Prayer of Jesus All: Our Father and Mother who is in heaven, blessed is

your name....

The Sign of Peace;  Presider: God, we ask you to grant us Your peace and

unity beyond all words and imagination can express. 

Join hands in a circle of love and sing Peace...Love...Joy is flowing like a

river...

Litany at the Breaking of the Bread

All: Loving God, You call us to live mercy, we will do so. 

Loving God, You call us to live justice, we will do so. 

Loving God, You call us to live equality, we will do so. 

Presider: This is Jesus, who calls us to open doors that are closed and to

share our bread on the altar of the world. All are invited to eat and drink

at this sacred banquet of love. 

All: Jesus we are worthy to receive you and to be your compassion in our

world. Let us share the Body of Christ with the Body of Christ: all who are

asking, are seeking, and knocking on the door of the Sacred. Amen. 

Prayers of Thanksgiving 

Presider:  Life-giving God, Jesus showed the way to overcome all oppression

through his death and resurrection. Through the power of the liberating

Spirit at work within us, and our world, we will comfort the afflicted and

afflict the comfortable by living as the Compassion of God and the Gospel

values of justice, peace and equality in our lives and communities. All:

Amen

Community Prayers of Gratitude 

Concluding Rite  Presider: Our God is with you.  All: and also with you.  

Closing Blessing (Everyone please extend your hands in mutual blessing.)

ALL: May our gracious God, bless us all gathered here, in the name of God

our Loving Creator, in the name of Jesus our Healer and in the name of Sofia

Holy Spirit our Sanctifier as we care and minister to one another and all

those we meet with love. Be with us as we continue on our path and follow in

the footsteps of Jesus for we are the face of God in our world. Amen.

Closing Blessing:  Presiders: May we all go in the peace of Christ who

continues to seek us in relationship with him as Beloved brothers and

sisters. Let our service continue! ALL:   Thanks be to God.   

Adapted from a liturgy by Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP

<http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/> http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/

<http://www.arcwp.org/> www.arcwp.org

Women Risk All for Justice and Peace

http://voicesoffaith.org/she-persisted-women-risk-justice-peace/

Vatican Presents First Women Consultation Group Composed of 37 Women

http://www.romereports.com/2017/03/07/vatican-presents-first-women-consultation-group-composed-of-37-women

“This idea of men and women working together for the good of the Church and society” is key, she said, adding that she’s “very pleased that the focus isn’t just on women and women’s issues.”

Council president Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi said that like many other Vatican departments, “inside of my dicastery, I didn't have any women at the management level. They were only there in an administrative sense as secretaries.”

And while the women who are part of the consultative group aren’t necessarily department managers, the presence of the group serves as a response to “this lack of the presence of women in the Roman Curia.”

Ravasi said he didn’t form the group to recriminate those who were angry about the lack of women, and nor did he want the women to be “a ‘cosmetic’ element in the sense that they were (only) a symbolic presence” or a mere viewpoint on “an only male horizon.”

Instead, the cardinal said he simply wanted “a feminine perspective” over every activity the dicastery does, including official documents.

Happy International Women's Day! Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests are Living Dream of Gospel Equality Now in Inclusive Communities Where All Are Welcome

Sally Brochu ARCWP and Kathryn Shea ARCWP -Co-Presiders at Liturgy at Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community in Sarasota, Florida

from left to right, Janice Sevre Duszynska ARCWP, Miriam Dugan, WOW, Roy Bourgeois at the Vatican