"Christian Life in Evolution" by Ilia Delio, Visionary Theologian

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDRvaqUjJkI&feature=youtu.be

"God is holding me now" by Michael Hatfield

"Should Barbie Ger Her Feet Washed at Church" by Mary Hunt/Enjoy!

http://religiondispatches.org/should-barbie-get-her-feet-washed-at-church/

"Did it strike anyone else as odd that the Vatican announced that women could have their feet washed on Holy Thursday the same week Mattel announced three new Barbie sizes (and a number of other variations) for its iconic doll? The convergence was nothing short of astonishing in a news cycle when competition for the surreal is keen.

Rome got out ahead with its news on January 21, 2016. Women are now eligible to have our feet washed in the Holy Thursday liturgy, a privilege heretofore reserved officially for men though anatomically it appears that women’s and men’s feet are remarkably similar. Even Pope Francis has been known to wash women’s feet in these ceremonies. Now it is company policy, proving there are some perks to being the pope.

In a clear case of teaching catching up with practice, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued the news signed by its prefect, Cardinal Robert Sarah:

To manifest the full meaning of the rite to those who participate in it, the Holy Father Francis has seen fit to change the rule in the Roman Missal… according to which the chosen men are accompanied by the ministers, which must therefore be modified as follows: … pastors may choose a group of faithful representing the variety and unity of every part of the People of God. This group may consist of men and women, and ideally of the young and the old, healthy and sick, clerics, consecrated persons and lay people.

Note the ease with which a male-only gender rule was erased by the addition of the phrase “and women,” an act that has caused apoplexy among conservative Catholics. They fear that, because the ceremony is based on Jesus’ humble action with his disciples at the Last Supper allowing women to participate (albeit passively), this change will open the door to women’s ordination..."

The Healing Song by Karen Drucker, Beautiful Chant for Healing Prayer

"
Joy fills  every cell in my body.
every cell is alive with love.
I relax into the healing process
I allow Spirit to do what it does.
(peace, God...etc)
Karen Drucker.

"Shaina Noll You Can Relax Now" Music Video, by Wendy Van Der Zee

"You can relax now, I am with you.
You are a child of God 
and that will never change. 
You can relax now....

...you had a dream

you misunderstood, 

you thought we were separate

but now you hear my voice and

You can relax now."

Morning Prayer:" I Will Surrender"

"O Great Love", Beautiful Hymn

Liturgy for Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community, Presiders: Kathrine Shea ARCWP and Lee Breyer, Music Minister Mindy Lou Simmons, Jan. 30, 2016

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community

Interesting, Inviting, Involving, Inspiring

                                      Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

                                    January 30, 2016

                                                   Presiders: Kathryn Shea and Lee Breyer

     Music Minister: Mindy Simmons

T                                  Theme: We are the chosen ones.

Greeting and Gathering Hymn: Music Video-Room At The Table

(music and words by Carrie Newcomer)

                                                                                          

Gathering Prayer

Presider: Let us pray as we come together to break bread and share the blessings we have received on the wings of an angel and the openness of Mary and Joseph.  We thank you, Incarnate God, in the name of Jesus, your Son…our brother.  All: Amen.

Presider:  Wisdom, your grace joins all heaven and earth.  With you we labor, with new life to give birth.  Come now, O Wisdom, you are our peace, open our hearts to your world, one without end.  All: Amen.

Opening Prayer

All: O Lover of All, in this journey into the heart of compassion, we celebrate your love unfolding in the healing and wholeness of everyone and of every living thing.

You call us to see goodness and beauty everywhere and to live in harmony with creation. You call us to heal 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. In communion with Jesus, our brother, and in the power of the Your Spirit, we will live your love poured out each day. Amen.

Penitential Rite and Community Forgiveness

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

All:  Help us to hear Wisdom’s messages, to faithfully understand them, and to receive the compassion to act on them with our brothers and sisters.  Compassionate God, teach us the virtues of pardon and peace so that we may – in turn- learn to forgive our failures to care for one another and for our planet Earth.  We ask this of you in the names of Jesus, our brother and of the Holy Spirit, our healer and comforter.  Amen.

Gloria

All: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to all God’s people on earth.

(Sung):  Glory to God, glory, O praise God, Alleluia.  Glory to God, glory.  O praise the name of our God.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading:  Jeremiah 1: 4-5, 17-19                 All:  Thanks be to God.

Psalm: 71    Responsorial:  Forever I will sing the goodness of our God. (#790)

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13     All:  Thanks be to God.

Gospel:  Luke 4:21-30                                        All:  Glory to you, O God.

Community Reflection and Shared Homily

Profession of Faith

 

(Left side) We believe in a God of extravagant love who dwells within us, rejoices with us in our blessed selves and who weeps with us in our struggles, losses and sufferings.

(Right side) We believe in Jesus, whose life, death and resurrection shows us how to live fully and joyfully and to serve others, especially the outcaste and heavy burdened. 

(Left side) We believe in your Spirit, who works through us for justice and peace and to overcome oppression of all kinds whether based on gender, sexual orientation, race or class.

(Right side) We believe that we are forgiven, healed and whole in the heart of divine mercy.

(Left side) We believe that we are called to live in mutual respect as disciples and equals in inclusive communities of empowerment.

(Right side) We believe that we are united forever with all who have gone before us in the communion of saints.

(Left side) We believe that we are one with all creation great and small in a dynamic, evolving cosmos.   

Prayers of theCommunity

Presider: With hearts filled with loving compassion and mindful of God’s unconditional love and care for everyone, we lift up the needs of our community at this time.

Presider:  That those who suffer abuse, may be healed and empowered, we pray.

All:  God of all compassion, love through us.

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 those who have gone before us may dwell forever in God's presence, we pray. R. 

Presider:  And for what else do we pray at this time?  Other Intentions followed by R.

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

Offertory Procession and Preparation of the Gifts

Offertory Song:  We Are Called (#628)

Presider:  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. 

ALL:  Blessed be God forever.   

 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 One:  Gracious Wisdom, You embrace us with extravagant affection in our blessedness and brokenness. We thank you that in this festive meal, your Spirit continues to be poured out among the circle of disciples gathered here in our giving and receiving forgiveness and sharing the gift of your shalom, our peace. We join with the angels and saints and people of every race, faith and nation to glorify your presence as we sing:

ALL:  We are holy, holy, holy. (Karen Drucker) 

Voice Two:  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 everyone everywhere on our journey into the heart of mercy.

Voice Three: We especially thank you, Nurturing God, for Jesus, your anointed one, who showed us how to love with a peaceful and courageous spirit. In Jesus, you show us how to care for those who face illness and grief and how to help those who experience rejection and marginalization. 

Voice Four: God of tenderness, Jesus showed us the heart of mercy when he preached good news to the poor, release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and healing to the broken. Jesus called all people - men and women - to be apostles and disciples and treated them as equal in his circle of companions.

Voice Five In response to people’s needs, Jesus broke many religious rules and customs – and he violated many religious taboos. He shared meals with women, saved a woman from being stoned and even said that prostitutes would enter heaven before religious leaders. He healed the sick and comforted the lonely. He challenged both the priestly class and political leaders of his time.  In response, they ridiculed him, tortured him, and eventually put him to death. 

Voice Six: In faithful love, you raised the crucified Jesus, radiant and glorious to new life.  Like the holy ones throughout the ages, Moses and Miriam who led their people from oppression to freedom, Jesus’ life, death and resurrection show us how to live freely and joyously in the midst of injustice, darkness, and evil and even death.

(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 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:

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:  Now then, in sacred memory, let us proclaim this mystery of our faith:  

ALL:  In all creation, we see your power.  In every creature that has ever breathed, we see your tenderness.  In every living being we see your compassion.  In every person who has passed on before us, we see your goodness.  And, merciful God, in everything yet to be, we know that Christ will come again!  In our breaking of the bread of the earth, we know that the Christ of the Cosmos is being re-membered!

Voice Seven:  Holy One, your transforming energy is always moving in us and working through us. We give thanks for all holy women and men who have been your face in our lives. They showed us how to forgive ourselves and others, to refrain from judging others and see the good in people who irritate us. Help us to learn the lessons of holy Wisdom.

Voice Eight:  We ask you to bless those who are sick and suffering, those who have no place to turn, especially those who are homeless.  May they be healed and strengthened, may they be gifted with your compassion shown through their brothers and sisters, and may they be filled with every blessing in your loving presence.

ALL:  Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ, all praise and glory are yours, Loving God.   Amen.

The Prayer of Jesus

Presider:  And to whom do we turn when we are in need of support..?

ALL:  Sing: Our Father and Mother who is in heaven, blessed is your name….

The Sign of Peace

Presider:  God, grant us peace and unity beyond all words can express.  Join hands in a circle of love and sing “Let there be peace on earth.”

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 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.  We are the Body of Christ. 

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

Communion Music:  Instrumental led by Mindy: There Is Only Love  (by Karen Drucker)

Communion Song: (after all are seated) There Is Only Love (by Karen Drucker)

Verse: In this moment in this place
I remember who I am
Letting fear and worry fall away from me
I open my eyes and see
Chorus: 
There is only love, There Is only Love,
Love that heals, love that sets us free
There is only, only,  love
Verse: When I lose myself
When it seems I’ve lost my way
When I go inside and quiet my mind
I can hear Spirit gently say..

Chorus 

Prayer of Thanksgiving after Communion

Presider:  O God of Compassion, Jesus showed us how to love one another and heal our hearts.  Through the power of your liberating Spirit at work within us, we will give and receive forgiveness, live joyously, and work for healing, justice and equality for our earth and for all your holy people.   ALL:  Amen

Concluding Rite

Presider:  Our God is with you.

ALL:  and also with you. 

Blessing

(Everyone extends a hand in mutual blessing)

ALL:  May the God of Abraham and Sarah, the Blessed One of Jacob and Rachel,

Sophia, Holy Wisdom, walk with us and all creation on our journey into the heart of compassion!   Amen.

Commissioning

Presiders:   May we all go in the peace of Christ.  Let our service continue!

ALL:   Thanks be to God.

Concluding Hymn :  Room At The Table (Verse 1 and Chorus)

(See song sheet)

Bridget Mary Meehan, Bishop

Association of Roman Catholic Woman Priests

http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/

www.arcwp.org

HOMILY by Bridget Mary Meehan: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests Ordination of 3 Priests in Orlando Area, Florida on January 30, 2016

ARCWP Ordination in Altamonte Florida on January 30, 2016

Today the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests rejoices as we ordain three women priests: Lorraine Sharpe Meyer, Renee (Ronnie) Dubignon, and Joan Throm. 

Lorraine Sharpe Meyer, Bridget Mary Meehan and Joan Trom celebrating liturgy

Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP

Bridget Mary Meehan ordains Ronnie Dubignon at Ordination 

Bridget Mary Meehan ordains Lorraine Sharpe Meyer

Bridget Mary Meehan ordains Joan Throm

Sheila Carey::Liturgical Dance to Ave Maria

Ronnie Dubignon, Lorraine Sharpe Meyer, and Joan Throm

 
As modern day apostles and midwives of grace, they will preside at liturgies in inclusive communities. They will be instruments of healing and justice-making, reflections of God's extravagant love for all. Like Mary Mother of Jesus, their lives loudly proclaim spiritual empowerment for the excluded and marginalized, including women in the Roman Catholic Church.

Left to right: Ronnie Dubignon, Lorraine Sharpe Meyer, Joan Thro

In her teen years, Lorraine Sharpe Meyer worked as a nurses' aide, caring mostly for poor and sometimes demented patients where she first experienced God's unbridled love for "the least of these." As a Daughter of Charity she continued to experience that love as it was given to people with leprosy and to the villagers in poor rural towns of Tennessee, Louisiana and Thailand. In the following years she found that love in people With AIDS, with dementia and even in other critters, the horses and dogs who needed help. "What I hope for as a Catholic priest," writes Lorraine "is to gather a community of equals of any and all faith traditions or no faith, around a eucharistic table and a eucharistic life, in which we are all open to the divine in the world that is gifted to us "

Renee Ronnie Dubignon ministers at the Spirit of Life Metropolitan Community Church in New Port Richey, Florida. The church members have a long history of serving the LGBTQI community. As a contemporary mystic, Ronnie Sees her ministry as a priest within a vibrant, inclusive community which incorporates contemplative prayer and spiritual development-through music, prayer and healing. Ronnie said: "We believe God is calling us to continue to be a place where all are welcome and to engage in spiritual connectedness with our creator as we move forward on our journey."

Joan Throm is a grief support minister in an independent living facility in Merritt Island Florida where she facilitates grief support groups for those who have suffered loss. Joan leads an ecumenical service every Sunday morning at Courtney Springs for those who are unable to attend a church of choice because they are too ill to travel, or are unable to drive. As a priest she plans to preside at a Catholic liturgy and minister to the spiritual needs of elders in this area.

Even though, scholars conclude that the story of the Visitation and Mary's prayer, the Magnificat was a later addition to Luke's Gospel, the deeper truth is that in Luke chapter 1 and 2 we meet our sister Mary, who shows us how to be a passionate mystic of God's boundless love, a courageous prophet for justice and a disciple, serving the needs of others.


In Luke's story we encounter Mary as a woman of faith, a real person with a loving heart, a listening ear and a helping hand who cares for her pregnant cousin, Elizabeth. Many of us, including our ordinands, have been care-givers to the older or younger generation. Like Mary, we live compassionate love every time we serve those in need.

In her prayer of praise, the Magnificat, divine love and joy flows from Mary's lips: "My soul rejoices in God." Here we meet a mystic, filled with the Spirit, who has first- hand experience of Holy Mystery as overflowing joy and abundant hospitality. The Holy One has done great things for her. The Holy One is doing great things for us.

Award-winning theologian Elizabeth Johnson shares that Mary's prayer, the Magnificat, proclaims God's liberating action as an extravagant feast where all are welcome: "God Protects the poor, noticing their tears, while challenging the comfortable and the proud to conversion, to genuine discipleship, even at the loss of their own comfort. The divine intent is not to take revenge and so create a new order of injustice but to build up a community of sisters and brothers marked by human dignity and mutual regard ... Imagine the world according to the defiant Mary's Magnificat, invites African writer Peter Daino, 'a heavenly banquet and all the children fed.' "(Elizabeth Johnson, Truly Our Sister , New York, Continuum, 2009, 269-271)

Like the prophets of old, Deborah, Hannah, Isaiah and Jeremiah, Mary is enflamed with divine love and passion for justice. Out of her mouth comes a holy shakeup that echoes through the centuries down to our times. No more domination, no more oppression!

So too, the international Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement is a holy shakeup, a prophetic movement for justice and equality today!

The laws and policies of the Vatican have a devastating impact on women's lives around the globe. One example is the interconnection between the Roman Catholic Church's prohibition of artificial birth control, overpopulation and environmental destruction in developing nations.

If the church discriminates against women and excludes them from serving at the altar and in decision making in the governance structures of the church, then a it perpetuates the abuse, rape and exploitation of women throughout the world.

Over two-thirds of the world's poor are marginalized women Who struggle to feed, house and clothe their children in desperate situations. Our sisters face pregnancy crises alone or with little support, sometimes in war torn areas, Often without a partner, without medical, housing or food. Our sisters need food, clean water, education, housing, medical care, the basic necessities of life.

Sexist beliefs and teachings that state that men are more like God than women are idolatry and violate the integrity of women as equal spiritual images of God. The current argument Vatican against women's ordination is rooted in the biased teaching that men resemble the image of Christ more than women. A priest must bear a physical resemblance to Jesus, Therefore, only men can be priests! Really !!

The bottom line is men are not superior and women are not inferior. Both women and men are created in God's image as spiritual equals. In Galations 3:28 we read that in Christ, there is neither male nor female, all are one. So, all ministries should be open to women, including priesthood, in an empowered community of equals and partners in the Gospel.

Jesus did not ordain anyone at the Last Supper. It was the women who were the faithful disciples at the cross and the first witnesses to encounter the Risen Christ. According to all four Gospels, Mary of Magdala was the only person present at both the cross and tomb. The Risen Christ appeared to Mary of Magdala first and called her to be the apostle to the apostles, to go and tell the good news of the resurrection.

The good news is that today our movement is working to develop a more inclusive church where all are welcome in grassroots faith communities. No one is excluded from reception of Sacraments including the divorced and remarried, LGBT, and all those who have been alienated or hurt by the institutional church.

In contrast to your local Catholic parish, in our liturgies, we often invite the community to share in dialogue homilies. I have often been inspired and challenged by the Spirit of God speaking through the people of God in my MMOJ local community in Sarasota. When was the last time you were asked your perspective on the Gospel at Mass?

In our liturgies, we invite everyone to pray the words of Jesus at the Consecration.

In our liturgies, we use a variety of images to refer to God that come from the Bible including masculine and feminine metaphors. For example, God is like a loving Father and a nurturing mother, but God is incomprehensible Mystery beyond all images.

In our liturgies, we invite everyone to receive Communion at the Banquet Table of God's love. Who ever heard of inviting people to a dinner party and refusing to serve them food? The word Catholic Irish writer James Joyce once said, means, "here comes everybody!"

Our international Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement began in July 2002 When 7 women were ordained as priests on the Danube River. Our Holy Orders are valid because our first women bishops, Christine Mayr Were Lumetzberger and Gisela Forster were ordained by a male bishop with apostolic succession in the Roman Catholic Church.

Even though the Vatican tried everything to stop us including the penalty of automatic excommunication, we persisted and flourished.

Our movement spread to North America in 2005 with the ordination of nine women on the St. Lawrence River and in 2006 with the ordination of twelve women in Pittsburgh, PA.

In 2016 our international movement has grown to 215, in 13 Countries around the world.

The Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests, one of two branches in the United States, ordained 25 in 2014 and 30 in 2015. There is no shortage of vocations. Women are being called and they are here with us today!

Like the suffragettes in the 20th century, the Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement in the 21 st century is paving the way toward women's equality in spite of the resistance of the hierarchy.

The Vatican's official position is that by our choice of ordination we have separated ourselves from the church. On the contrary, we are not leaving the church, we are leading the church !!

I have received so many excommunications from bishops that I lost count! They are badges of honor.

In my view, When Pope Benedict canonized two formerly excommunicated nuns, Mother Theodore Guerin and Mother Mary Mackillop, he made excommunication the new fast track to canonization!

On Dec. 8, 2015, Pope Francis formally swung open the holy door in St. Peter's Basilica, launching the Jubilee Year of Mercy. In His overall weekly audience in St. Peter's Square the next day, Francis warned that if the church forgets mercy , it would become slaves to the church's institutions and structures. He said:

"If we were to forget, even just for a moment, that mercy is 'that which God likes most,' every one of our labors would be useless because we would become slaves of our institutions and our structures, however renewed they might be, we would always be slaves.."

In this Holy Year of Mercy, Pope Francis has a major opportunity to apologize to all who have suffered spiritual or physical violence at the hands of the institutional church. He can help free the institutional church (the Vatican and hierarchy) from the grip of domination, intimidation and cruel penalites, and extreme punishments like excommunications.

It is a sad reality that bishops have refused sacraments to Catholics who dissent from church teaching. Theologians have been fired for positions that contradict church teaching. Fr. Roy Bourgeois was forced out of Maryknoll, his religious order for His attendance at one of our women priests , Janice Sevre Duszynska's ordination.

I pray that Pope Francis affirms primacy of conscience for all Catholics and lifts all punishments including excommunication against women priests and our supporters. This action would honor the Spirit of God moving in diverse ways to birth a renewed church of partnership and empowerment in the 21 st century.

The heart of God is mercy, compassion and love. This is who we are and who the church must always be!

I believe that nothing will stop our movement for the full equality of women in the Roman Catholic Church because nothing is impossible with God. Like our sister Mary, mother of Jesus, we can do all things in the Living God Who is speaking, acting and loving through us!

Now we ordain our beloved Sisters. Lorraine, Ronnie and Joan. May they be mystics, prophets and presiders at sacramental liturgical celebrations that create a more compassionate and just church. Like Mary Mother of Jesus and Elizabeth, may they be midwives of grace bringing new life to our church in Florida and beyond.


Bridget Mary Meehan, D. Min., For Sister Christian Community, was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on July 31, 2006. She was ordained a bishop on April 19, 2009. Currently Dr. Meehan is Dean of the Doctor of Ministry Program for Global Ministries University, and is the author of 20 books, Including Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God, The Healing Power of Prayer and Praying with Women of the Bible . She preside at liturgies in Mary, Mother of Jesus even Catholic Community in Sarasota, Florida. Dr. Meehan Can Be Reached at sofiabmm@aol.com and www.arcwp.org

"God is Everyone's God and Love is Everyone's Call" by Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP

Two doves nested on my window ledge the other day. In the coming weeks, if all goes well, a baby dove will emerge!

The glory of God is often right in front of us.  

Our loving God lives in us, moves through us and loves through us, and our loving God lives in every dove, every flower, and in all earth's creatures. Everything is sacred.  

We walk on holy ground every single day! 

Let us smell the perfume of the  roses, gaze at the fluffy, white clouds, feel the raindrops cleanse our skin, and enjoy the warmth of sunshine caress our bodies.

St. Theresa of Avila, a sixteenth century mystic, reformer and Doctor of the Church reminds us that our call is to live life fully and be in love!

"Remember if you want to make progress on the path  and ascend to the places you have longed for, the important thing is not to think much but to love much and to do whatever best awakens you to love.'

While learning can open us wonderful insights, deep knowledge and lead us to wisdom and understanding, love can guide us into the embrace of God where all are one and all belong. 

God is everyone's God and love is everyone's call. 
Let us celebrate the beauty of life before our eyes each day!

Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

Homily for Holy Spirit Catholic Community, 4th OT, Jan 31, 2016 by Beverly Bingle, RCWP

What is it that makes Jesus' neighbors so mad at him
that they want to throw him over the hill?
Some are truly amazed at the truth of his insights into the scripture,
but others complain
that he isn't working those miracles for them
like he did in Capernaum.
He responds by telling them that miracles require faith,
and he gives them two examples, neither of them Jews.
His friends and neighbors recognize the truth of what Jesus says,
knowing that those despised foreigners,
the Canaanites and the Syrians,
have the deep faith they themselves lack.
They reject his message.
But he knew his mission,
so he stood up, told the truth,
and went on his way doing what he was called to do.
_____________________________________________
Religion can bring out the worst in people.
They think their dogma and their ritual makes them better.
They exclude people
and begin to think that God wants them
to hate the “other”
and kill the “foreigner.”
_____________________________________________
It still happens.
Just as the citizens of Nazareth forgot the commands of the Torah
to “love the alien as yourself;
for you too were once aliens in the land of Egypt,”
people today can forget the Great Commandment of love.
Religion can get distorted into fanaticism and bigotry.
_____________________________________________
On the other hand,
we know that religion can also bring out the best in people,
helping them to become more tolerant and loving.
We each have to ask ourselves what religion brings out in us.
Our first reading, that stirring passage from Jeremiah,
tells us that God has a mission for each one of us
that is only ours to do.
Jeremiah also tells us that It won't be easy
but that we will bear fruit.
_____________________________________________
We are fortunate here in Northwest Ohio
to be able to see the good that religion can bring out in others.
We are blessed with many prophets among us.
Some of you know Paul and Kathleen from Liberty Center,
who have left the snowy north for the winter,
but not to vacation.
They are trekking through the southwestern desert
to leave caches of water and food
for desperate refugees from South American terrorism
who cross into the United States at the risk of their lives.
And some of you know Sandy and Lin in West Toledo,
adopting and fostering so many special needs kids
that I've lost count.
And there's Sister Ginny
putting together an alternative to suspension for school kids
at the Padua Center.
And Marcia and Rose and hundreds of others
lobbying to get the lead poisoning
out of the homes of the poorest kids among us.
And Karen Shepler bringing our community together
in an ongoing dialogue to combat racism.
And Woody and Judy creating a way for followers of every faith
to work together as a community of justice and peace.
And, there's our own Tree Toledo,
scores of people planting trees
so future generations will have breathable air.
And then there's you,
prophets anointed by God
to bear the good news everywhere you go.
You're out there in the food pantries and the soup kitchens,
visiting people in the hospitals and nursing homes
and at home and at Hospice.
You're at the funeral home
comforting your friends when they lose a loved one,
tutoring and coaching and cheering for your grandkids,
donating to Rahab's Heart and disaster relief,
racing for the cure,
and praying in the quiet of the morning
and the still of the night.
_____________________________________________
Like Jeremiah, like Jesus, you
have been anointed by God to prophesy to the nations.
You look at the world and speak out,
sometimes with words but more often with action,
and with that patient, kind love that Paul preached about.
Sometimes you suffer rejection for standing up and speaking out.
The rejection can take different forms;
it can be personal or situational or social or cultural.
You could be passed over for promotion or fired,
you could be bullied or beat up,
betrayed by the people you trust the most,
or just plain ignored
when you try to do what's right
or speak up about something that's wrong.
But you do it anyway.
_____________________________________________
God has given each of us,
as the poet Mary Oliver describes it,
this “one wild and precious life”
and charged each of us with a unique mission.
It's unique because we each have different gifts to bring to it;
but it's the same for all of us:
we are all sent to love:
love God,
love neighbor,
love one another.
Amen!

--
Holy Spirit Catholic Community
Saturdays at 4:30 p.m.
Sundays at 5:30 p.m.
at 3925 West Central Avenue (Washington Church)

"Irish American Cardinal Raymond Burke Blames Women for Church’s Problems" by Dara Kelly/ /"Cardinal Burke Excommunicated Women Priests and Banned My Books" by Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP

http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Irish-American-Cardinal-Raymond-Burke-blames-women-for-churchs-problems.html
by  Dara Kelly @irishcentral  January 27,2016 01:19 AM

"Burke, 66, the firebrand conservative who was recently demoted by Pope Francis to the ceremonial post as patron of the Order of Malta, pointed to the introduction of altar girls as an example.

Serving mass is a “manly” job argues the Irish American Cardinal, and so the participation of women and girls in the daily life of the church has had a chilling effect that has led to a drop in morale and priestly vocations.

“Apart from the priest, the sanctuary has become full of women. The activities in the parish and even the liturgy have been influenced by women and have become so feminine in many places that men do not want to get involved."

Bishop Patricia Fresen Ordains Ree  Hudson and Elsie McGrath priests in St. Louis in Nov. 2007

Not only do boys not want to share altar time with the girls, they resent how much better girls do their jobs apparently...."

Bridget Mary's Response:

 I find Irish American Cardinal Raymond Burke's comments blaming women for Church's problems an example of extreme misogyny. Full disclosure, I am Irish born as most of my readers know. What you may not know is that my books were banned by him after I was ordained. 

 And though I have never met the former Cardinal of the St. Louis Missouri diocese, I believe that Cardinal Burke and his brother bishops have been the gift that keeps on giving! Every time they condemn or excommunicate women priests, our movement grows.  And in one sense, you could say that the Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement is a holy shakeup rocking the church! Now, in my view,  this is a real good thing, and should not be a red flag of impending doom and gloom, as Cardinal Buke fears. As we grow, we are changing the church, one inclusive community at a time. www.arcwp.org

After my ordination as a Roman Catholic Women Priest in Pittsburgh in 2006, Cardinal Burke ordered Liguori Publications to drop my books. At that time I had published six books which had over 100,000 in sales with Liguori, Many of my books even had imprimaturs:The Healing Power of Prayer, Nine Ways to Reach God, Affirmations from the Heart of God, Praying with a Passionate Heart, Praying with Women of the Bible and Praying with Celtic Holy Women. So, I put them on amazon.com and they are available there to this day. See sidebar on blog if you want to see the entire list of 20.

In 2007, Patricia Fresen ordained Elsie McGrath and Ree Hudson in St. Louis, Missouri.  Weeks before the ordination, Cardinal Burke sent an emissary with several warning letters of interdict and excommunication. Ree informed me that much of the letter was written in Latin! At the same time, Cardinal Burke went so far to stop the ordination that he contacted a high ranking Jewish Rabbi who lived in Rome. Rabbi Susan Talve and her congregation welcomed us with open arms at their Synagogue.  At that time, I was doing media for RCWP and a "media frenzy was created because of the Cardinal's opposition. 

Read the story here:

http://nihilobstat.info/2008/03/30/the-excommunication-of-three-women-priests/

"The area women, Rose Marie Hudson, 68 ,of Festus, and Elsie Hainz McGrath, 69, of St. Louis, were ordained as priests in November 2007.   They currently co-pastor a faith community and hold a worship service for about 35 people Sunday evenings at the first Unitarian Church of St. Louis.

Bridget Mary Meehan, a spokesperson for Womenpriests, said Burke is not authorized to excommunicate Fresen because she lives outside the Diocese of St. Louis.   Monsignor John Shamleffer, the archdiocese’s chief canon lawyer, said Burke is within his right to respond to disobedience within his geographic jurisdiction, regardless of Fresen’s residence outside the U.S. “Excommunication is not meant to be a penalty,” he said, but a “wakeup call” aimed at helping the women “see the error of their ways and return to full communion with the church.”

A total of 10 women priests  have been excommunicated since ordinations began in 2002.  The original “Danube Seven” were excommunicated within weeks of their ordination on the Danube River in Germany. Meehan indicated there are  53 women candidates for priesthood, deacons and priests in North America and elsewhere around the world.

In a statement on March 13, Hudson and McGrath said that they “and all Roman Catholic Womenpriests, reject the penalties of excommunication, interdict, and any other punitive actions from church officials. We are loyal daughters of the church, and we stand in the prophetic tradition of holy disobedience to an unjust man-made law that disciminates against women.”

They cited the words of Pope Benedict XVI, who, as Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, wrote that Catholics must obey their own conscience, “if necessary even against the requirement of ecclesiastical authority.”

Salon reported the Womenpriest movement “is the most flamboyant and incendiary challenge to the Roman Catholic Church’s unrelenting discrimination against women.” “They are asking, Is Sexism a sin? How does the Church reconcile its teaching that women and men are created in God’s image, that once baptized, there is ‘no male or female’ and ‘all are one in Christ Jesus,’ with its contention that women cannot represent the ultimate sacred or hold ultimate power through ordination because they are, literally, the wrong ‘substance’?”

Burke Lecture: An Ecological Inquiry; Jesus and the Cosmos by Dr. Elizabeth Johnson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf8-L3i1eF0

Feminist Interpretation of Bible :Link Wisdom Commentary introduces feminist interpretation of every Bible book

http://globalsistersreport.org/news/spirituality/wisdom-commentary-introduces-feminist-interpretation-every-bible-book-36811

Jan. 25, 2016 in 

• Spirituality

Reid pitched her idea to editors at Liturgical Press, who were excited and gave her the green light. 

Reid assembled an eight-woman board of feminist scholars to help her coordinate the project, and in November, the first three of what will ultimately be a 58-volume series of feminist biblical commentary were published: Hebrews, Haggai and Malachi, and Micah.

Titled the Wisdom Commentary — a nod to both the figure of Woman Wisdom as portrayed in the Bible and to the oft-ignored wisdom of female biblical interpreters — the series features authors from a diverse array of religious, racial and cultural backgrounds, including Korean United Church minister HyeRan Kim-Cragg and International Council of Christians and Jews past-president Deborah Weissman.

It's an effort, Reid said, to mirror the very same inclusive society that mendacious structural powers have historically used the Bible to suppress.

"We want to illustrate that there's no one feminist way of interpreting the Scripture and that, just like other biblical scholars, feminist biblical scholars have more than one way of understanding the text as well," she said, adding that in some instances, a single volume of the Wisdom Commentary will highlight dissenting viewpoints.

The Wisdom Commentary isn't introducing a new way of understanding Scripture. In fact, Reid is keenly aware that the series is carrying a torch lit almost two millennia ago: In her editor's introduction to the Wisdom Commentary, Reid notes that one of the first women to openly question the use of Scriptures to support patriarchal structures was a second-century consecrated virgin named Helie who refused to accept that Paul's first letter to the Corinthians made marriage compulsory.

More recently, Reid told GSR, women like Sharon Ringe, Carol Newsom, Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza and Athalya Brenner-Idanhave greatly advanced the field of feminist hermeneutics.

However, Reid hopes that by its unprecedented scope, the Wisdom Commentary will showcase the best of current feminist biblical scholarship and inspire more people to join the ongoing conversation. Schüssler Fiorenza and Brenner-Idan both serve as editorial consultants for the project, and Schüssler Fiorenza is penning the volume on Ephesians.

Reid said she hopes this series will prove to skeptics that looking at the Bible through a feminist lens isn't a fringe activity.

"Feminist biblical interpretation is not something far out and strange," she said. "It has now become so widely a part of how we do biblical interpretation that I had no trouble finding enough authors to do these volumes. It's really taken its place at the academy, and newer biblical scholars are very familiar with it and know how to do it."

That being said, Reid knows that feminist theology is still relatively new and that, as a result, much more work will need to be done to advance a Scripture-based vision of inclusive dignity and equality even after her series. In the meantime, however, she said she's felt the Holy Spirit at work throughout Wisdom Commentary's creation process.

"I think one of the things the Spirit does is bring newness to birth," Reid said. "She's a creative Spirit who brings joy and delight. And I've felt that very strongly throughout this project — the creativity that she is inspiring and the delight that she is unleashing in being able to share more widely these very important perspectives that are being put forth in this commentary series."

The fourth volume of the Wisdom Commentary series, a study of Baruch and Jeremiah, comes out next month. Afterward, Reid expects six to eight volumes to be published every year until the series is complete.

[Dawn Araujo-Hawkins is Global Sisters Report staff writer. Her email address isdaraujo@ncronline.org. Follow her on Twitter: @dawn_cherie.]