Until I got ordained, people rarely asked me theological questions.
Now it's
different.
Almost every day
somebody wants to get into some God-talk with
me.
And I love it!
Does God exist?
Did Jesus really rise from the
dead?
Is there really life after this
life?
______________________________________
I don't KNOW the
answers.
But I have faith.
And my faith, like the faith of those disciples
heading to Emmaus,
comes from a lifetime of asking myself those very
questions
and coming up with answers
that led to more and more
questions.
It's been a lifetime of seeing and thinking
and praying and
feeling
and loving and doing,
with points of serious awe and wonder at the
Holy Mystery
we call God.
______________________________________
I have
faith that God is.
Along the way I have learned some things that God is
NOT,
and that every idea or description or concept of God
that I am able
to form
is way too small.
And I have faith that Jesus rose from the
dead.
I have learned some things that does NOT mean,
but, again, any words
I use
fall short of the experience
of his continuous and unending presence
among us.
And I have faith that there's life after life.
I have learned
some things that does NOT mean,
and I have found my idea of what it does
mean
grows more and more expansive
with every discovery of science
and
every experience of the impact of people I have known,
even after they
died.
______________________________________
One useful thing I've
learned
is that it's important to explore
the definitions that give rise
to these God-talk questions.
We're bombarded by assertions of atheists like
Richard Dawkins
who say there's no God…
and of course there isn't, not a
God like Dawson has in mind,
that white-bearded ancient male
sitting on a
throne somewhere up there in the clouds.
It's easy for Dawson—or for that
matter, any eighth grader—
to debunk literal interpretations
of
descriptions of spiritual experiences of people
who lived thousands of years
ago in another culture.
It's not so easy to jump into the process
of
understanding the meaning of those experiences
for us
today.
______________________________________
Those disciples on the road
to Emmaus,
those followers in the Upper Room,
and each of us make a leap
of faith,
just like those other leaps we make
every time we jump into the
unknown.
We leap (or stumble) out of bed in the morning
with faith that
our feet will land on a floor that will hold us up.
We reach out for that
morning cup of coffee
with faith that our eyes are telling us the
truth
about it being right there on the table.
We take a leap of faith
when we confide in a friend,
choose a vocation,
get
married.
______________________________________
And sometimes we find
ourselves
hanging out there on a shaky limb,
flapping in the
breeze,
finding our secrets laid bare to the world
on our friend's
Facebook,
hating the job we thought would be good for us,
finding our
spouse in an affair or abandoning us and the kids.
Whether it's a personal
catastrophe or a crisis of faith,
we usually reel around for a
while
before we are able to grab onto the hope
that leads us to action and
change.
We eventually find that we still believe
that true friendship is a
good thing
and that it exists.
We still believe that we can find a
job
that will really fit our skills and preferences.
We still believe that
good relationships exist
and that we will get through this
to enjoy the
company of many people
whom we can love and who will love
us.
______________________________________
The longer we live,
the more
we see that, over and over again,
we need to re-define ourselves and our
world,
our experiences and our hopes,
especially when it comes to the most
important things,
like love and God.
Sixteen hundred years
ago
Augustine of Hippo talked about
how human beings grow in
God-consciousness.
He said, “What wonder is it that you do not
understand?
If you do understand, then it is not God.”
So even though we
don't have the answers, it's okay.
We rest in confidence that the Holy
Mystery is always beyond,
always more than anything we could have
imagined.
______________________________________________
We have all been
on that road to Emmaus many times in our lives,
heading in the wrong
direction out of fear and disappointment.
Then the Spirit breaks in and we
get turned around.
We find Jesus alive,
with us on the way,
making
God's word clear to us once more.
And we give thanks
and celebrate that we
once again
come to recognize him
in the breaking of the bread.
--
Holy Spirit Catholic Community
Saturdays at 4:30 p.m./Sundays at 5:30
p.m.
Holy Thursday, March 24, 5:30 p.m.
Holy Saturday, March 26, 5:30
p.m.
at 3925 West Central Avenue (Washington
Church)
www.holyspirittoledo.org
Rev. Dr. Bev Bingle,
Pastor
Mailing address: 3156 Doyle Street, Toledo, OH 43608-2006
Living Gospel Inclusivity and Empowerment Now- https://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2025/10/rev-dr-bridget-mary-meehan-arcwp-chat.html
Saturday, March 26, 2016
Friday, March 25, 2016
Good Friday Way of Compassion at the Upper Room Inclusive Catholic Community - Albany, NY
Good Friday:
Way of Compassion - 2016
Upper Room Inclusive Catholic Community of Albany, NY
Centering
prayer: Litany of Peace
Welcome
Presider 1: Welcome to our
Way of Compassion. Today our service combines the story of Jesus and his
courageous pathway to resurrection with the suffering we encounter in our
present day. Suffering is never an
end in and of itself and should not be glorified. As followers of Jesus, we are
called to live lives that alleviate suffering by working for justice and peace in our time. Today we
focus on five areas of concern: The innocent victims of war, violence against
women and girls, poverty, the plight of the immigrants, and global warming. Between
the readings, we are using the song Who Will Speak if You Don’t by Marty Haugen
throughout the service.
Opening
prayer:
Presider 2: O
Holy One, in the nighttime of our fears, and in the time of questioning, we
know that you are ever present. May those camped out in the fields of
hopelessness, with refugees and homeless, those who live lives of quiet
desperation, feel your presence until the desert places blossom like the rose and
hope is born again.
Adapted from a prayer by Kate McIlhagga
Opening song: Who Will
Speak If You Don’t?
by Marty Haugen
(The words at the beginning are of the late Archbishop Oscar Romero, El Salvador)
by Marty Haugen
(The words at the beginning are of the late Archbishop Oscar Romero, El Salvador)
Who will speak for the poor and the broken?
Who will speak for the peoples oppressed?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Refrain
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Reader
1: This is the Gospel about Jesus, written
by his disciple, John.
(Jn 18:1-13)
STATION 1: MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX
Reader 3: Who will speak for the innocent victims of war if you don’t?
In
January 1961, US President Dwight D Eisenhower used his farewell address to
warn the nation of what he viewed as one of its greatest threats: the
military-industrial complex composed of military contractors and lobbyists
perpetuating war.
Eisenhower warned
that "an immense military establishment and a large arms industry"
had emerged as a hidden force in US politics and that citizens "must not
fail to comprehend its grave implications". The speech may have been
Eisenhower's most courageous and prophetic moment. Fifty years and some later,
Americans find themselves in what seems like perpetual war. No sooner do we
draw down on operations in Iraq than leaders demand an intervention in Libya or
Syria or Iran. While perpetual war constitutes perpetual losses for families,
and ever expanding budgets,
In January 2016, the current administration was
working to win approval for the Air Force's request to build up to 1,100
new-generation, nuclear-capable, air-launched cruise missiles, nearly double
the size of the existing arsenal. The price tag: $30 billion.
These nuclear plans are troubling for at least two reasons.
First, the spending spree is an unconscionable squandering of national resources. These billions of dollars could be better used on any number of programs that would benefit the nation and world, funding projects that would truly make people safer and better-off.
More spending on early childhood development programs, research into preventable diseases like malaria, and investments in renewable energy sources are just three examples of under supported programs that could improve people's lives and increase security.
Second, these newer-smaller-better nuclear weapons aren't safer. They are, in fact, more dangerous than the weapons they replace. The weapons become more tempting to use, not just in retaliation, but as first-strike weapons.
Eliminating weapons programs and trimming defense budgets are always tough political fights, but it has been done in the past. May it can be done now. Who will speak for the innocent victims of war you don’t?
First, the spending spree is an unconscionable squandering of national resources. These billions of dollars could be better used on any number of programs that would benefit the nation and world, funding projects that would truly make people safer and better-off.
More spending on early childhood development programs, research into preventable diseases like malaria, and investments in renewable energy sources are just three examples of under supported programs that could improve people's lives and increase security.
Second, these newer-smaller-better nuclear weapons aren't safer. They are, in fact, more dangerous than the weapons they replace. The weapons become more tempting to use, not just in retaliation, but as first-strike weapons.
Eliminating weapons programs and trimming defense budgets are always tough political fights, but it has been done in the past. May it can be done now. Who will speak for the innocent victims of war you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Song:
Who will speak for the
ones who are voiceless?
Speak the truth in the places of power?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Speak the truth in the places of power?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Refrain
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
(pause to light first candle)
STATION 2: VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND
GIRLS
Reader 5: Who will speak to end violence against
women and girls if you don’t?
On February 10 and 11, Brenda
Myers-Powell Co-Founder
and Executive Director of the Dreamcatcher Foundation visited
area colleges to tell her personal story about human trafficking. Brenda was a product of human trafficking at the age of 14
when she escaped an abusive home life and learned to navigate the streets of
Chicago. Living through physical, mental, and sexual abuse not only made her
numb to the adversities she faced, they also equipped her to survive as a
testament for the young women she was to mentor out prostitution. With 25 years
as a teenage and adult prostitute, Brenda now speaks for those who are
dismissed by society as damaged goods and helps them to change their lives and
successfully live their dreams. We honor her today for her courage to break the
chains of oppression for herself and other. Thank you Brenda for speaking out!
Song:
Who will speak for the
children of violence
Who will speak for the women abused
Who will speak so their voice will be heard
Oh, who will speak if you don’t
Who will speak for the women abused
Who will speak so their voice will be heard
Oh, who will speak if you don’t
(pause to light second candle)
Reader 6 -7:Jn 18: 28-40
STATION 3: POVERTY
Reader 8: Who
will speak for the victims of poverty if you don’t?
Two True Stories of Poverty in our Neighborhood
Mrs. Jackson received
a note from Kyle’s mother. The note said:
I am sending Kyle to school today without a lunch. Last night while we
were sleeping Kyle got up and ate the whole package of hotdogs in the
refrigerator. Now his brother and two sisters have nothing to eat tonight for
supper. Please do not give Kyle anything to eat today I want him to understand
what he did wrong. Kyle is only 6
years old.
Last summer we were
grilling hamburgers on Memorial Day.
The grill is on the side of the house in view of the road. A young boy
was riding his bike up and down the street. He rode by our house several times
finally pulling into the driveway. He got off his bike and slowly walked up to
us. We smiled and said hello. He
quietly said he was hungry. He ate
two hamburgers, thanked us and rode off on his bike, we never saw him again.
Who will feed them if you don’t?
Song:
Who will speak for the shunned and outcasts?
Who will speak for all people with AIDS?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak for all people with AIDS?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Refrain
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
(pause to light third candle)
Reader 9-10: Jn 19:1-16
Reader
10:
STATION 4: IMMIGRANTS
Reader
11: Who will speak for the immigrants if you don’t?
Sana Mustafa completed a six-week U.S. State
Department leadership program in Washington and was preparing to return home to
Syria when her father, Ali Mustafa, an anti-government activist was kidnapped
by police in July 2013 during a crackdown by President Bashar al-Assad’s
regime. He has not been heard from
since.
Mustafa’s mother and two sisters fled to Turkey
where they struggled to pay rent on a cramped studio apartment and eke out a
living with her sister’s meager wages as an online journalist covering the war.
“I was not allowed to go back because it was
unsafe and I had to stay here, with nothing. I was so sad and it was a big struggle that first year, just
trying to survive with so much uncertainty.” She taught herself English and
learned a new culture in two years.
I’m coming to Albany to put a human face on
refugees and to show we are not terrorists, we are not statistics, we exist and
we could end up living next door to you.”
Mustafa, whose
first name means “the brightest star in the sky” is hopeful that her mother and
sisters will be given asylum and will join her and make the Hudson Valley their
home.
(Selected
sections of an Article by Paul Grondahl in Times Union, 3-16-16)
Who will speak if you don’t?
Reader 12: Antonio remembers leaving Mexico: We ran
out of water and food. The only thing we found was an irrigation canal in the
middle of the desert. Three days later we arrived in Arizona, dehydrated and
with our feet full of sores. “I
can still remember the last time I saw my brother. I thought I would see him again but I haven’t seen him in
nine years.
Who will speak if you don’t?
Song:
Who will work for the thousands of homeless?
Who will work in the ghettos and streets?
Who will work so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will work if you don’t?
Who will work if you don’t?
Who will work if you don’t?
Who will work so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will work if you don’t?
Who will work in the ghettos and streets?
Who will work so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will work if you don’t?
Who will work if you don’t?
Who will work if you don’t?
Who will work so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will work if you don’t?
(pause to light fourth candle)
Reader
13: Jn 19:17-18 and Jn 19:25-30
STATION 5: CARE OF PLANET EARCH
Reader 14: Who will speak for all
us affected by global warming if you don’t?
Do any search for Global Warming, climate
change and caring for our Home Planet, and it is easy to find hits on the internet.
Global Warming and Climate Change is real, and has an effect on every one of
us.
Scientists who have pointed to the reality of
Global Warming, have been attacked, and many whom attack science are
religiously oriented. Evidence exists that many who deny the dangers of global
warming do so out of religious conviction. Droughts, hurricanes, wildfires, extinction
of endangered species, melting of polar ice caps, storms and migrations of
people and wildlife are all effects of humans making choices that do not
support the planet.
Around 100 million people live within 3
feet of sea level and many cities of the world are located near such vulnerable
coastal areas.
Melting of glaciers will cause sea levels to rise
on one hand and water shortages in areas that depend on natural sources of
water.
More than 1 million species have become
extinct due to disappearing habitats, ecosystems and acidic oceans all caused
due to global warming.
Even though Ninety-seven percent of climate
scientists agree that climate-warming trends over the past century are very
likely due to human activities, and most of the leading scientific
organizations worldwide have issued public statements endorsing this position,
Scientists continue to be ignored and even condemned.
Can we remove our blinders and realize that our
planet is precious and we must do everything we can to protect it? What are we
doing to support our scientists? What are we doing to face the challenges of
global warming and protection of the Earth?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Song:
Who will care for the plants and the creatures
Who will care for the land and sea
Who will work so their voice will be heard
Oh, who will work if you don’t
Refrain
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
Who will care for the land and sea
Who will work so their voice will be heard
Oh, who will work if you don’t
Refrain
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak if you don’t?
Who will speak so their voice will be heard?
Oh, who will speak if you don’t?
(pause to light fifth candle)
Presider 1: Blessing and Commissioning
May God bless
you with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths, and superficial
relationships, so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.
May God bless
you with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so
that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom and peace among all people.
Presider 2: May God bless
you with the gift of tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection,
starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may reach out
your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.
May God bless
you with enough foolishness to believe that you really can make a difference in
this world, so that you are able, with God’s grace, to do what others claim
cannot be done.
Let it be so!
Amen!
A Franciscan blessing
Another Demonstration for Women Priests at Cathedral of the Assumption in Louisville in solidarity with Occupy Vatican Embassy Steps by Janice Sevre Duszynska, Jane Via and Roy Bourgeois, The Holy Shakeup Is Here!
http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/religion/2016/03/28/louisville-cathedral-protester-ordain-women/82336602/=
A Louisville man, Bob Eiden, walked to the front of the Cathedral of the Assumption in downtown Louisville during the Holy Thursday service yesterday and held up a sign reading "Ordain Women." (Pics attached)
A Louisville man, Bob Eiden, walked to the front of the Cathedral of the Assumption in downtown Louisville during the Holy Thursday service yesterday and held up a sign reading "Ordain Women." (Pics attached)
The text below are Bob's words from his Facebook
post about his demonstration. Bob took a lead role in bringing Roy to Louisville
in February. His words reveal the power that Roy's message about Catholic Church
exclusion of women from orders had on him. Mary Sue Barnett, ARCWP, Louisville,Kentucky
 |
| Bob Eiden demonstrates for women priests at Assumption Cathedral in Louisville, KY. |
 |
| Bob Eiden demonstrates for women priests at Assumption Cathedral in Louisville, KY. |
 |
| Roman Catholic Priests Witness for Women Priests and Gay Equality: Jane Via, Janice Sevre Duszynska, Roy Bourgeois at Vatican Embassy, March 24th, overnight vigil |
Thank you, Bob, for your courage and solidarity with our movement for gender justice and equality for all in our church. You are an inspiration to me and to all. Let's bring a holy shakeup to our beloved Catholic Church!
Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP, www.arcwp.org
Roman Catholic Priests Dialogue with Vatican Nuncio at Embassy in DC During Vigil for Women Priests and Equality for Gays in the Roman Catholic Church
 | ||
| Roman Catholic Priests: Jane Via, Janice Sevre Duszynska, and Roy Bourgeois prepare for All Night Vigil for justice for women and gays in the Roman Catholic Church at Vatican Embassy. After completing their all night vigil of prayer and fasting Janice Sevre Duszynska, Jance Via and Roy Bourgeois left the Vatican Embassy on Good Friday morning. The Nuncio, who represents Pope Francis in the U.S., met twice with them during their Vigil. They occupied the Vatican steps in a non-violent witness for women priests and equality. During their encounter with the papal representative, they discussed the issue of women's ordination. It is interesting that the Archbishop did not request that the priests be arrested. Perhaps, he too was spiritually touched by their prophetic witness for gender justice and equality in our church. I hope this encounter with the Vatican ambassador reflects Pope Francis' more open attitude toward dialogue on women priests and equality for gays. In addition, the Vatican refused to arrest Janice in Rome on two previous occasions when she witnessed for women priests there. The Vatican apparently does not want to have women priests arrested! The good news is that there was an openness to conversation at the Vatican Embassy in DC. This is something I give thanks for on this Good Friday. Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP, www.arcwp.org
|
After a Holy Thursday foot washing ceremony, three Roman Catholic priests Janice Sevre Duszynska, ARCWP, Jane Via, RCWP and Roy Bourgeois delivered a statement to the Papal Nuncio for Pope Francis calling for women's ordination and justice for women and gays in the Roman Catholic Church. They are fasting and occupying the steps of the Vatican Embassy in Washington, DC. until they get a response from Pope Francis. See the attached statement below:
 |
Stole and Statement placed on Vatican Embassy Door by Roman Catholic Priests
Read statement below to Pope Francis |
On Holy Thursday, March 24th at 10 a.m., people from around the country gathered for a foot washing ceremony and protest in front of the Vatican Embassy, 3339 Massachusetts Ave. NW in Washington, D.C.
 |
Janice Sevre Duszynska, ARCWP in front of Vatican Embassy on Holy Thursday, March 24, 2016
|
 |
Roy Bourgeois, Former Maryknoll Priest
|
Link to Photos by Bob Cooke:
TO POPE FRANCIS AND THE CATHOLIC CHURCH:
“Where there is injustice, silence is complicity. We have come to the Vatican Embassy in Washington, D.C., to speak out against the grave injustice being done to women and gay people by the Catholic Church.
1. WOMEN IN THE CHURCH: God created women and men equal: ‘There is neither male nor female. In Christ you are one.’ (Galatians 3:28) God calls both men and women to the priesthood, but Catholic women who are called are rejected because of their gender. Who are men to say that their call from God is authentic, but God’s call to women is not?
The ordination of women is not a problem with God, but with an all-male clerical culture that views women as inferior to men. The problem is sexism and sexism, like racism, is a sin.
2. GAYS IN THE CHURCH: The official teaching of the Catholic Church states that homosexuals are ‘objectively disordered.’ For millions of gay people, this teaching instills shame and self-hatred. It has contributed to gay people being rejected by their families, fired from their jobs, bullied and even killed. This teaching has also contributed to suicides, especially among teenagers.
God does not make mistakes in creation. Our all-loving God created everyone of equal worth and dignity: gay and straight. Our Church’s teaching on homosexuality is cruel and is based on a theology inconsistent with the teaching of Jesus.
We are here today to call upon Pope Francis and the Catholic Church to ordain women and start treating LGBT people as equals.”
Jane Via, Ph.D., J.D. is a former professor of theology, a retired county prosecutor and an ordained Roman Catholic Woman Priest. In 2005, she founded an independent Catholic parish in the Roman Catholic tradition which thrives in San Diego, CA. She is married and has two adult, feminist sons."
Janice Sevre-Duszynska, D.Min., a retired teacher and journalist, is an activist priest in the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests and an international leader for women's equality in the Roman Catholic Church. Her journey is explored in the award-winning documentary, "Pink Smoke Over the Vatican."
Roy Bourgeois served as a Catholic priest for 40 years. He is a Purple Heart recipient and a Nobel Peace Prize nominee. In 2012, he was expelled from the priesthood and the Maryknoll Fathers because of his public support for the ordination of women.
For decades the Roman Catholic Church only washed men's feet on Holy Thursday, Pope Francis has ordered a change in the law. However, Pope Francis must go further, the full equality of women including ordination is the will of God because women are created in God's image, Jesus called women and men to be disciples and equals and the church ordained women during the first 1200 years of its history.
Bridget Mary Meehan,
bishop of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests, email sofiabmm@aol.com,
phone 703-505-0004
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Holy Thursday in Cleveland Area: Mary Eileen Collingwood, ARCWP Shares Liturgy with Community of St. Bridget and Brecksville United Church of Christ
Community of St. Bridget and Brecksville United Church of Christ join soup and bread supper, washing of feet, and ecumenical communion service. After the
service there was a holy hour with bread consecrated for the Good Friday
service.
 |
| Bishop Mary Eileen Collingwood at liturgy at St. Bridget's Community in Cleveland area on Holy Thursday, March 24, 2016 |
Holy Thursday: Eucharist as Re-membrance: A Living Presence - Upper Room Community - Albany NY
Holy Thursday: Eucharist as Re-membrance: A Living Presence - 2016
Receiving the Stole:
“We, your community, call you forth and bless
you as you lead us in today’s liturgy.”
Welcome and Theme
Presider
1:
We,
the Inclusive Catholic Community of Albany, NY, welcome you to our liturgical
gathering. We gather together on this journey of Good News for those who long
for the fullness of the Body of Christ for the life of the world. Our
liturgical style is highly inclusive and you are invited to participate in the
words of consecration. We are happy you are here with us today. All are welcome
to share in our simple Eucharistic meal of re-membrance
around this friendship table.
Opening Prayer
Presider 2: O
Holy One, throughout his life,
Jesus revealed that nothing can separate us from Your infinite love. He lived a
life of apparent joy in sharing meals with the people of the Galilean
countryside. The open table of his public life challenged the discriminatory
social code of his time and taught us that all people are to be included as
equals in Your kin-dom. May we, like Jesus, continue to open our table, and our
lives to all, especially those in need.
Amen.
Please join in
singing our Opening Song: We Are
Many Parts – by Marty Haugen
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: On
Being a Eucharistic Community
On Being a Eucharistic
Community
Meals are the most
frequent settings for Gospel stories. They range from informal picnics on
hillsides to banquets given by dignitaries. They introduce us to some of the
most of diverse and colorful of Gospel characters: a woman with long hair who
washes Jesus’ feet, a little boy who has loaves and fishes hidden in the folds
of his robe, and a short man, named Zacchaeus, who is about to have an
unexpected dinner guest. Meals transport us from the wedding in Cana to a quiet
dinner at a little house in Emmaus. They invited us to a party for a prodigal
and let a share of a Passover supper with a carpenter’s son.
This theme of
inclusivity is one of the benchmark of Jesus’ teaching. Everyone ought to have
a place at the table, especially those who have been marginalized. Obviously,
this includes many who do not qualify for the guest list–people who have been
relegated to the back roads and slums of the towns. When we give a luncheon, we
need to make sure that no one who wants to be there is left out. Inclusivity is
a Gospel mandate. It is not separate from Sabbath observance, but essential
part of it.
These are the
inspired words of Fran Ferder & John Heagle
Alleluia: Servant
of God, lowly and humble
Show us the way to
live a life of love
Gospel according to
John:
While
they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it
to his disciples said, "Take and eat; this is my body."
He then raised high the cup of blessing, spoke the grace,
and offered them the wine saying:
Take and drink of the covenant made new again through my
life,
for you and for everyone,
for liberation from every oppression.
Whenever you do this, Re-member me!
These are the inspired words from the Gospel of John.
Homily
Washing of Hands
Presider 1: We are washing one another hands as a gesture in
imitation of what Jesus did in washing the disciples’ feet. It is a symbol of our willingness to
serve one another and meet one another’s needs.
Song during ritual:
The Servant Song by David Haas
Presider 2: Closing
prayer for ritual
Leader: God of life, help us to
remember,
that, for some, the earth is parched.
that, for some, the earth is parched.
We lift to you
those for whom clean water is
not a basic right but a luxury,
We cry out, O God,
against conflict and violence
that leaves crops to wither
and drives families from their homes
to lands where fresh, clean water is only a dream.
those for whom clean water is
not a basic right but a luxury,
We cry out, O God,
against conflict and violence
that leaves crops to wither
and drives families from their homes
to lands where fresh, clean water is only a dream.
All: In this season of rebirth,
may we heed your call
to hunger and thirst
for righteousness —
and may your justice and righteousness
roll down as an ever-flowing stream.
may we heed your call
to hunger and thirst
for righteousness —
and may your justice and righteousness
roll down as an ever-flowing stream.
Statement of Faith
Presider 1: Please
join in praying our Statement of Faith:
All: We believe in
one God, a divine mystery
beyond all definition
and rational understanding,
the heart of all that
has ever existed,
that exists now, or
that ever will exist.
We believe in Jesus,
messenger of God's Word,
bringer of God's
healing, heart of God's compassion,
bright star in the
firmament of God's
prophets, mystics,
and saints.
We believe that we
are called to follow Jesus
as a vehicle 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,
stretched out all
around us for those
with eyes to see it,
hearts to receive it,
and hands to make it
happen.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Presider 1:
As we prepare for the sacred meal, we lay our stoles upon the table as a sign
that just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us. And, we bring to this table our blessings, cares, and
concerns. Please feel free to voice your concerns beginning with the words, “I
bring to the table…”(Presider - at conclusion) We pray for these and all unspoken
concerns. Amen.
Presider 2: O Holy One, you
have been called by many names by many people in the centuries of our planet’s
life. Yet, no name truly defines you or describes you. We celebrate you as the marvelous,
loving energy of life who caused us and our world to be. We celebrate you as
the Source of light and life and love, and we celebrate your presence and
all-ways care.
Presider 1: Please join in praying the
Eucharistic prayer together: (written by Jay Murnane)
All: Great Spirit of the wonder-ful expansion and evolution
of creation, we come together with joy and amazement in this season of grace and
rebirth.
We join together in an open, hopeful circle of life, to
bring courage out of the heart of our fear, to bring a gentle acknowledgement
of communion out of the alienation of the illusion of our separations.
Joined consciously with the fire and wind of your Spirit,
with the emerging buds of spring’s regeneration, with the laughter of children
this precious world ‘round, we sing out a simple song of thanksgiving:
Holy, holy holy…. (by
Karen Drucker)
We thank you for Jesus, our way to the truth about living.
On the night before he faced his own death and for the sake
of living fully, Jesus sat at the Seder supper with his companions and
friends. He reminded them of all
that he taught them, and to fix that memory clearly within them, be bent down
and washed their feet.
When he returned to his place at the table, he lifted the
Passover bread, spoke the blessing, broke the bread and offered it to them
saying:
Take and eat; this is
my very self.
(pause)
He then raised high the cup of blessing, spoke the grace,
and offered them the wine saying:
for you and for
everyone,
for liberation from
every oppression.
Whenever you do this,
Re-member me!
(pause)
Since you for-ever breathe forth your Spirit, we will, like
Jesus, be opened up wide and filled and given in love.
For it is through learning to live as he lived,
and why he lived,
that we awaken to your Spirit within, moving us to worship
you truly, life-giving God, at this time and at all time, and in all ways.
And we say yes to you!
Presider 1: Let
us pray as Jesus taught us
(written by the Monks of
Weston Priory)
Creator of all,
You are with us.
Holy is your name.
May Your kin-dom come,
Your will be done
by all who share the work of your creation.
Give us bread for the world’s hunger
And forgiveness in your mercy
As we forgive those who are in debt to us
For You are compassion, justice and love
Forevermore.
Amen, amen, amen!
Presider 2: In the beginning,
Your Spirit was poured into the void, and there came to be universes. We,
people of your Spirit, can be poured into the chaos of our world’s blindness,
for the sake of life. This is the springtime of the earth that we work for.
All: Glory be to
God! As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Amen.
Presider 1:
Let us pray our communion prayer together. (presiders hold up bread and wine)
All: What we have heard with our
ears, we will live with our lives; as we share communion, we will become
communion, both Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge.
Presider 2: All are
welcome to receive at this friendship table.
Communion Song: Companions on the Journey by Carey
Landry
BLESSING
Presider 1:
Know that the God of all creation
Is here with us,
Understanding our hearts.
From those hearts,
We speak a blessing:
Presider 2:
The richness of the promise
Of light and water be yours
The light that call you
To continue in hope
The water that flows
In renewal and generosity.
Presider 1:
The healing of the promise
Of love be yours
The love which has formed you
And called you
And makes of you creators of a world.
Presider 2:
Strong vision be yours
Strong and gentle hearts
And resilient spirits.
May God’s own peace
The peace born in justice
And shared in tenderness and cherishing
Be with you always.
Amen.
Presider 1:
Let us sing our concluding song and offer each other a blessing of peace
as we continue this re-membrance meal with good food and
amazing companions on the journey.
Closing Song: Blessing Song by Jan Phillips
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTVrbEbjqZ8
Pictures courtesy of Helen Blanchette, Lynn Kinlan, and Mary Theresa Streck
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