Vatican Event to Highlight key Role of Women in Peace-Building, Time for Decision on Women Deacons

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/vatican-event-to-highlight-key-role-of-women-in-peace-building-44897/

 Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP

Bridget Mary's Response: There is no way of sugar-coating Vatican resistance to the full equality of women in the church.The foot dragging must stop.  A church that preaches justice for all must treat women as equals in all areas including ordination. Women deacons would be a first step.  Now is the time to move ahead!. There are thousands of Catholic women who are ready. 

Our international Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement is leading the way! to a renewed priestly ministry in an inclusive community of equals. Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

..."When it comes to women, she said one of the “signature motivations” for work of the roundtable is to ensure that their daughters and other young women have more of a voice and a stronger place in the future.

However, she said the push for women’s priestly ordination (which continues to be advocated for despite the fact that Pope Francis has already definitively closed the door) can be distracting from other initiatives that actually help women.“The ordination question stops every other creative idea that could be implemented right away and nothing happens,” she said, explaining that “unless we bracket it,” none of the ideas for how to enhance the role of women in the present will be possible.

In her comments, Gotz said that finding ways to highlight the role of women and build them up within the Church is something that everyone should be responsible for, nott just Pope Francis.

“We expect a lot from just from one person, from Pope Francis, and he was calling to all of us to bring in ideas of new initiatives,” she said, and pointed to VoF as an example.

The organization has not only enjoyed strong success, but also has the support of the Pope, she said, stressing that “we have to trust and we can support him in bringing in new ideas and not expecting that he has to change all of it by himself.”

John Chuchman: I year for church that is..."

I yearn for church

    that is not an enclosure for the virtuous,

but more an oasis for the weary and downtrodden;
    not an experience of exclusion and elitism,

but more an encounter of radical love, inclusiveness and solidarity;
    not with an attitude of we are right and you are wrong,

but more with an attitude of openness to truth

wherever and whoever it is to be found;

not a bastion of unchangeable doctrine and dogma,

but a source of inspiration and exploration;
    not with a leadership of control and clericalism,

but more of a humble service exemplified by Jesus;
    not using a language of condemnation,

but more with a language of affirmation and compassion;

and
    not preoccupied with its own maintenance and prestige,

but more with a concern for the People of God,

all of us.

Pope Francis, Women and Ecology

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/pope-francis-electric-car_us_58bd82fbe4b0d2821b4f9826

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/03/06/voices_of_faith_women_and_leadership/1296855

Upper Room Liturgy - March 5, 2017

Kim Panaro, ARCWP, and Lynn Kinlan, ARCWP, led the First Sunday of Lent - liturgical celebration at the Upper Room with the following theme:

“We begin a season of seriously seeking Jesus and inviting Him into our heart of hearts. We accompany him on the dusty journey from a desert experience of temptation and trial all the way through to glorious Easter joy.”

Opening Prayer by Lynn Kinlan:

Dearest Holy One, safe as we are in your infinite love and joyful with the chance to gather in your name, we also find ourselves living through troubled moments and desert experiences. Like Jesus, we see that to be tempted is human. To rely on Your love is Divine. Help us to listen clearly, share openly and always find the better angels of our nature, relying on Your love today and through the Lenten season.

Amen.

A reading of the inspired words of Joyce Rupp

                               I Must Stay at Your House Today

Jesus, this Lent, I am yearning to wear a Zacchaeus heart.

I am wanting to hear you call my name just as you did his.

I am anxious to know that you are inviting yourself to my

home.

I am humbled, amazed, excited and astounded, just as he was.

But that is where the desire to wear a Zacchaeus heart stops.

because I know what happens when you visit someone’s house.

Conversations occur. Choices are presented. Changes happen.

That’s because you look for more than dust when you come to

visit.

And you talk about things more vital than the weather.

You move into the heart’s dimension. You gaze deeply.

You don’t just dwell. You interact. You activate.

You dwell so lovingly that the truth cannot be resisted.

This Lent help me to welcome you and yearn for your love.

Grant me a Zacchaeus heart that turns around and sees the

truth.

I need the gaze of your love to remind me of my truest self.

I, too, need the strong call to make amends and start anew.

Hurry Jesus, come and stay at my house today.

Response Song: Spirit of the Living God

https://youtu.be/BagH-zTfnsQ

Closing Prayer by Lynn Kinlan:

Beloved One, as we go now into a sometimes troubled world, we ask for Lenten blessings of trust and patience and grateful focus to put aside the turmoil and busyness of everyday life, to "slip the surly bonds of earth...dance the skies on laughter-silvered wings” and touch the face of God.

Amen.

Phrases in this closing prayer are adapted from the poem below, "High Flight" by John Magee, an American pilot in WW II who died in service to the Allied cause. The first line came to mind because I recalled it from President Reagan's eulogy for the astronauts who died in the Challenger Disaster back in the 1980s. The poem seems to reflect the awe and joy present when we feel the intimate bond of love with God.                                                              ​

                            High Flight

​      ​

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air… .

Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

— John Gillespie Magee, Jr​  ​

​

Vatican's Response to Marie Collins Resignation/ My Response- Vatican Curia Needs a Holy Shakeup/ Kudos to Marie Collins for her Resignation!

https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/faith-and-justice/moving-built-our-genes-its-part-us

Bridget Mary's Response: Of course, pastoral care of victims should be done by the local bishop but also by the Vatican. The least the Vatican could do is express deep care to abuse survivors.  Cardinal Muller's defense is lacking in Christ-like compassion toward survivors who have suffered deep wounds. Can you imagine Jesus treating anyone this way?  It reads like a cop-out from sharing responsibility for the tragedy of world-wide abuse. The Vatican needs more women like Marie Collins with major decision-making power  in the CDF and in its major offices. The Vatican Curia  needs a holy shakeup Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

"Collins said her decision to resign was immediately precipitated by one Vatican office's refusal to comply with a request from the commission, approved by the pope, that all letters sent to the Vatican by abuse survivors receive a response.

While Collins did not specify the Vatican dicastery in question in her NCR statement, Muller’s interview seems to make apparent that it was his office that refused the request.

The cardinal also seems to reveal that several Vatican dicasteries resisted implementing a decision by Francis in 2015 to create a new tribunal to judge bishops who act inappropriately in sexual abuse cases.

While that tribunal was announced by Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley, the head of the commission, in June 2015, it was never created. Francis instead signed a new universal law for the church in June 2016 specifying that a bishop's negligence in response to clergy sexual abuse can lead to his removal from office.

https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/cardinal-muller-responds-collins-and-defends-not-responding-survivors-letters

“The congregation has the task of running canonical trials,” Muller said. “Personal contact with the survivors is better done by local shepherds. And when a letter arrives, we always ask the bishop to provide pastoral care to the victims, clarifying to them that the congregation will do everything possible to do justice.”

It’s a misconception, he said, to believe that the office in Rome could take care of all the dioceses and religious orders in the world, because it would not respect the “legitimate autonomy of dioceses and the principle of subsidiarity.”

https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/03/06/drop-cliche-reforming-pope-v-vatican-foes-cardinal-says/

Vatican Mulls Possible Miracle Attributed to Slain Archbishop Oscar Romero

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/el-salvador-vatican-mulls-possible-miracle-by-slain-cleric/2017/03/05/73215a02-01ed-11e7-9d14-9724d48f5666_story.html?utm_term=.28ab3f344f58

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador — Roman Catholic authorities in El Salvador said Sunday that the Vatican is studying a possible miracle attributed to slain Archbishop Oscar Romero that could lead to the once-controversial cleric’s canonization.

"After Nearly a Year, Female Diaconate Still Advanced by Vatican

https://catholiccitizens.org/views/70172/nearly-year-female-diaconate-still-advanced-vatican/

...."Sander now claims, according to katholisch.de, that “there is no dogmatic stipulation that would exclude women from the diaconate.” As Sander told Radio Vatikan: “A diaconal Church needs the deacon, and a diaconal Church needs the women!” He continues, by saying: “In my view, this Church also needs women as deaconesses.”

In June 2016, there was another blip on the radar. A meeting of the group “Women’s Ordination Worldwide” was held in Rome, and the group was granted an audience with the Vatican Secretariat of State. A petition with their concerns was given to the pope, and they were allowed to protest in the gardens of Castel Sant’Angelo on the very same day that the Pope was offering a jubilee mass for priests in St Peter’s Square. Members of the group were also given tickets to attend that papal Mass for priests, a symbolic gesture not lost on their leadership:

“We thought that the Jubilee for Priests was a perfect time to really give an offering and a celebration for all women called to priesthood,” said Kate McElwee, co-executive director of the Women’s Ordination Conference, the U.S.-based member of WOW. “We really wanted to have this as a celebration and a serious conversation of women in the church.”

Homily for Holy Spirit Catholic Community, Second Sunday of Lent A, Beverly Bingle RCWP

Transfiguration.

Biblical anthropologist John Pilch says that

describing the disciples’ experience of Jesus’ transfiguration as a “vision”

is an important piece of information.

Modem psychological anthropology tells us

that the majority of the world’s cultures

do not consider alternative states of consciousness

like visions

to be odd or irrational.

They see them as normal human experiences.

Cultures like ours are the ones that need to take another look.

___________________________________________

In the USA we’re more likely to talk about hallucinations or illusions

instead of visions or transfigurations.

But we do know about change.

We know that people can change, dramatically.

Old dogs can learn new tricks.

People jailed for serious crimes turn their lives around

and become productive citizens,

even role models for youngsters.

The footloose and fancy-free

have been known to shape their idealism

into responsibility and commitment.

These days we see scores of folks

turning out for demonstrations and marches

because they have a better idea—a vision—

of what our country should be.

They have a vision.

___________________________________________

Then there’s the difference that faith makes—

the change in people who live what they believe.

It’s plainly visible.

John’s gospel tells us

that everyone will know that we are Jesus’ disciples

if we love one another.

If we believe that,

and if we begin to act out of that love,

then we will change our lives.

And people will notice.

We will be transfigured.

___________________________________________

The early followers of Jesus saw transfigurations all around them.

Acts 10:38 says that Jesus went about doing good,

and people saw it

and followed him.

Chapter 13 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians

tells us what that love looks like.

You know the passage: Love is patient, love is kind….

If we are not changing,

not acting out of love,

not becoming transformed,

then we cannot call ourselves disciples.

We cannot call ourselves Christians

unless people can see a difference in us.

___________________________________________

The turning point—

that point where the change becomes noticeable—

is transfiguration.

Today’s first reading calls Abram to change.

He goes from being Abram of one tribe

to Abraham for all the tribes,

for all the nations.

Today’s second reading encourages Timothy to change.

Paul tells him to lead a holy life,

to fan to flame the gifts he has,

not with a spirit of fear

but with a spirit of love.

And today’s gospel shows the transfigured Jesus

inspiring Peter, James, and John to follow him.

___________________________________________

We’ll hear about another transfiguration next Sunday

in the story of Jesus and the woman at the well.

The Sunday after that

we’ll hear the story of the transfiguration of the man born blind.

And the Sunday after that

we’ll hear the story of Lazarus untied and set free,

brought to life,

transfigured.

___________________________________________

Something clicked for Peter, James, and John on that mountaintop with Jesus.

They finally understood that he was the real thing;

a leader, like a new Moses;

a prophet, like a new Elijah.

Those three disciples finally learned

that Jesus’ very being

was an expression of the God’s presence,

They had to listen to him.

They were compelled to follow him.

___________________________________________

What changed them?

What made the difference for the woman at the well,

for the blind man, for Lazarus?

It was Jesus’ compassionate love,

his honesty, his truth,

and his hunger to share all his life—

the length of it and the memory of it,

the quantity and the quality of it—

to share life and love with the likes of them.

The Spirit of God—the divine Spirit—filled Jesus’ soul,

and it changed him

to the point that it became visible.

Jesus taught with his very life,

with what he did with it

and all the ways he lived it

by giving it to God.

The power of his goodness

moves us to be like him,

to imitate him.

We become, like Peter, James, and John, disciples.

We learn how to be good.

Then our goodness becomes contagious.

Others are inspired by us—

by our compassionate love;

the power of our truth;

our freedom to be wholly ourselves,

the selves we are made to be.

We are changed.

Transformed.

Transfigured.

We become more like Jesus.

Thanks be to God!

Public Domain

-- 

Holy Spirit Catholic Community

Saturdays at 4:30 p.m./Sundays at 5:30 p.m.

at 3925 West Central Avenue

Toledo, OH 43606

(Washington Church)

www.holyspirittoledo.org

Rev. Dr. Bev Bingle, Pastor

Mailing address: 3156 Doyle Street, Toledo, OH 43608-2006

Article by Olga Lucia Alvarez Benjumea ARCWP, Colombia, Reflection on Lent

https://evangelizadorasdelosapostoles.wordpress.com/2017/03/04/reflexion-de-cuaresmano-confundir-la-carrera-carabobo-con-un-bobo-a-la-carrera-olga-lucia-alvarez-benjumea-arcwp/

Olga posted a remembrance of Rutilio Grande, the Salvadorean priest whose murder committed blessed Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero to the cause of the poor forever.  

People worry about leftist influences, yet the preferential option for the poor is implicit in our faith and in the coming of this controversial and subversive Palestinian Jew. The preferential option for the poor is a leftist idea, and Jesus was very much a leftist, revolutionary, subversive leader who led us toward a more humane world.  If we accept he is the son of God, why was he born homeless, in a stable, an undocumented alien, a brown-skinned man born to a poor family and who became himself a carpenter?  

Our society punishes people for their poverty, criticizes the poor and deems them irresponsible.  Churches have often sided with the rich and sat at the banquets of the rich, and truly despise the poor.  Jesus or Yeshua or Isa CHOSE to come to this planet the son of a poor woman.  He chose to be born homeless, to have his mother find "no room at the inn" and to be subject to entry requirements as someone who did not have documentation.

My friend Carolyn Scarr years ago wrote a wonderful poem which I will share (when I find it) about the immigration interview for Joseph and Mary (the end result is:  admission denied, of course).

We must not fear the influence of the radical, the subversive, the revolutionary, the left.  As Argentinian revolutionary physician Ernesto Guevara (given the nickname of Ché by the Cubans), who was one of the heroes of the Cuban revolution, once said, "Always be capable of feeling, deeply within, any injustice perpetrated against anyone, in any part of the world.  It is the most beautiful quality of a revolutionary.   Remember that he was a trained physician who chose to involve himself in revolution, because, as he said, "Let me tell you, at the risk of appearing ridiculous, that the true revolutionary is guided by great feelings of love."

So, let us remember Msgr. Rutilio Grande, vilely murdered on his way to give communion to a sick man March 12th almost 40 years ago. It was his death that completely committed Oscar Romero forever.

On September 24, 1972, Father Grande became the parish priest of Aguilares, the same parish where he had spent his childhood and youth. There he was one of the Jesuits responsible for establishing the Grassroots Ecclesial Communities, and training leaders who were called "Delegates of the Word." This movement to organize the peasants was opposed by land owners, who saw it as a threat to their power, and by conservative priests who feared the Catholic Church would be controlled by leftist political forces.

After the expulsion of Colombian priest Mario Bernal Londoño by the church, (after being kidnapped at Apopa), Grande pronounced what became known as the Sermon in Apopa: "Dear brothers and friends, I realize quite clearly that soon the Bible and the Gospel will not be able to cross the borders. We will only receive the covers, as all the pages are subversive - against sin, let it be understood. So if Jesus crosses the border near Chalatenango, he won't be allowed to enter. He, the man-God, would be accused of being an agitator, a Jewish foreigner, who confuses the people with exotic and foreign ideas, ideas against democracy, that is, against the minority. Ideas against God, because it is a clan made of up Cains. Brothers and sisters, there is no doubt that he would be crucified once again. And so they have proclaimed."

"Our people have a hunger for the true God, and they hunger for bread."

We say, as later his good friend and defender, the blessed Oscar Arnulfo Romero said, "In the name of God, then, and in the name of this suffering people, whose lamentations rise to heaven in turmoil, I entreat you, I beg of you, I order you in the name of God: stop the repression."

For Rutilio Grande, and for all the martyrs in El Salvador and the rest of the planet, we say: PRESENTE!

En español:

Olga publicó un recordatorio de Rutilio Grande, el presbítero salvadoreño cuyo asesinato comprometió al beato Ar zobisp o Oscar Arnulfo Romero 

a la caus a de los pobres para siempre.

  

La gente se preocupa por las influencias izquierdistas, pero la opción preferencial por los pobres está implícita en nuestra fe y en la llegada de este judío palestino controversial y subversivo. La opción preferencial por los pobres es una idea izquierdista, y Jesús de hecho fue un líder izquierdista, revolucionario y subversivo que nos llevó hacia un mundo más humano.  Si aceptamos que es el hijo de Dios, ¿por qué nació sin vivienda, desamparado, en un establo, un inmigrante indocumentado de piel oscura, que nació en una familia pobre y que fue carpintero?  

Nuestra sociedad castiga a las personas por su pobreza, critica a los pobres y los considera irresponsables.  Las iglesias a menudo se han puesto del lado de los ricos y se han sentado en los banquetes de los ricos, y despreciado a los pobres.  Jesús o Yeshuá o Isa escogió llegar a este planeta como el hijo de una mujer pobre.   Decidió nacer sin vivienda, y que se madre no pudiera encontrar “sitio en la posada” y verse sujeto a los requisitos de entrada como alguien que no tenía documentación.

Mi amiga Carolyn Scarr hace algunos años escribió un poema hermoso que compartiré en cuanto lo encuentre, sobre la entrevista de María y José con los oficiales de inmigración (el resultado final es: entrada denegada).

No debemos temer la influencia de lo radical, de lo subversivo, de lo  revolucionario, de la izquierda.  Como dijera alguna vez el médico argentino revolucionario Ernesto Guevara (apodado el Ché por los cubanos), que fue uno de los héroes de la revolución cubana, “Sean capaces siempre de sentir, en lo más hondo, cualquier injusticia realizada contra cualquiera, en cualquier parte del mundo. Es la cualidad más linda del revolucionario”.

Recuerden que fue un médico formado que decidió involucrarse en la revolución porque, como dijera, “Déjeme decirle, a riesgo de parecer ridículo, que el revolucionario verdadero está guiado por grandes sentimientos de amor”.

Entonces, recordemos a Monseñor Rutilio Grande, vilmente asesinado en camino a darle la comunión a un enfermo un 12 de marzo hace casi 40 años. Fue su muerte la que comprometió a Oscar Romero para siempre.

El 24 de septiembre de 1972, el padre Grande se convirtió en párroco de Aguilares, la misma parroquia en que él había pasado su niñez y juventud. Allí fue uno de los jesuitas responsables de establecer las Comunidades Eclesiales de Base (CEB) y de entrenar a los líderes, llamados "Delegados de la Palabra". Este movimiento de organización campesina encontró oposición entre los terratenientes, que lo veían como una amenaza a su poder, y también entre sacerdotes conservadores quienes temían que la iglesia católica llegara a ser controlada por fuerzas políticas izquierdistas.

Después de la expulsión del presbítero colombiano Mario Bernal Londoño por la iglesia (después de haber sido secuestrado en Apopa), Grande pronunció lo que se conoció como el sermón de Apopa: “Queridos hermanos y amigos, me doy perfecta cuenta que muy pronto la Biblia y el Evangelio no podrán cruzar las fronteras. Sólo nos llegarán las cubiertas, ya que todas las páginas son subversivas—contra el pecado, se entiende. De manera que si Jesús cruza la frontera cerca de Chalatenango, no lo dejarán entrar. Le acusarían al Hombre-Dios... de agitador, de forastero judío, que confunde al pueblo con ideas exóticas y foráneas, ideas contra la democracia, esto es, contra las minoría. Ideas contra Dios, porque es un clan de Caínes. Hermanos, no hay duda que lo volverían a crucificar. Y lo han proclamado."

“Nuestro pueblo tiene hambre del Dios verdadero, y hambre de pan”.

Decimos, como dijera luego su gran amigo y defensor, el beato Oscar Arnulfo Romero, "En nombre de Dios, pues, y en nombre de este sufrido pueblo, cuyos lamentos suben hasta el cielo cada día más tumultuosos, les suplico, les ruego, les ordeno en el nombre de Dios: paren la represión.”

Por Rutilio Grande, y todos los mártires de El Salvador y del resto del mundo, decimos ¡PRESENTE!

Archbishop of Tuam, Galway, Ireland Horrified by Discovery of Unmarked Graves of Infants/ My Response

Archbishop of Tuam ‘horrifie

“This points to a time of great suffering and pain for the little ones and their mothers. Albeit not unexpected, I was very upset as I read the commission’s findings made public on Friday,” he continued.

“I can only begin to imagine the huge emotional wrench which the mothers suffered in giving up their babies for adoption or by witnessing their death,” Dr Neary said.

Bridget Mary's Response:

I was born in Ireland and my relatives have shared sad stories of abuse  n these homes. I think we need to look at the role of the church in its teachings and practices.  

The Irish hierarchy was complicit in the horrific treatment of women who suffered in these abusive homes where babies died. Dr. Neary should have expressed sorrow for the bishops' failures to reflect Christ's compassion, and acknowledged the role that sexism played in this tragedy in Tuam.

Until the Vatican treats women as equals at the altar and in decision-making in the church, and until there is a healthy, life-giving theology of human sexuality, the people of God will continue to suffer. Theologians, like  Margaret Farley, Dominic Crossan, Elizabeth Johnson, and Mary Maloney have charted blessed new paths for growth in relationships that reflect Gospel values. 

Let us challenge our resistant hierarchy to follow the example of Jesus, and to hold the institutional church accountable for its  long history of patriarchal oppression. United in love and mutual respect, we the people, can transform our beloved community of faith, the Catholic church. 

Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, www.arcwp.org

Homily: "Giving Up Sin for Lent" by Dick Vosko

https://richardsvosko.wordpress.com/

"Through our faith, our hope and our social action we can appreciate and celebrate that, fundamentally, we are really good people who occasionally make bad decisions." (Priest, Diocese of Albany)

Catholic Women Preach: Sister Diane Bergant, First Sunday of Lent, "Loving Kindness and Mercy of God"

http://www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/03052017

God's Compassion is womb-love. God's merciful "hesed" steadfast love can be translated to mean:  "there is nothing you can do that will make me stop loving you."

Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community First Sunday of Lent March 4, 2017 , Presiders: Kathryn Shea, ARCWP and Sally Brochu, ARCWP Music Minister: Mindy Lou Simmons, Cantor: Russ Banner

Sally Brochu ARCWP and Kathryn Shea ARCWP, Co-Presiders at Liturgy

                Theme: In the Wilderness

Greeting and Gathering Hymn: Gather Us In # 302 (vs. 1,3,4)

Gathering Prayer

Presider:  In the name of God, our Creator, and of Jesus our brother, and of the Holy Spirit, our Liberator.

All:  Amen

Presider:  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.

All:  And with all.

Opening Prayer

Presider:  God of Love, during Lent you call us to renew our bodies, minds and spirits.  You call us to be mystics and prophets, unafraid to speak truth to power. May we experience your grace filling us with spiritual energy to live justly, love tenderly and work for justice in our world. We ask this, one with our brother Jesus, through the power of your Spirit. 

All: Amen. 

Penitential Rite

Presider:  As we pray, 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 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 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 live your vision of liberation and justice, one with your people 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)

All:  God, the Mother-Father of mercies through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, God has reconciled the world and sent the Holy Spirit among us so that we might live and be like Jesus and bring the kindom of God on Earth. God gives us pardon and peace always; we only need to be open to God’s pardon and peace. We forgive ourselves for the times when we were not open, and we forgive others when they were not, as well.  

First Reading: Inviting the Mystic and Supporting the Prophet. All: Thanks be to God.

Psalm: 51   Responsorial: Create in me a clean heart, O God, a clean heart, O God, create in me. (#779)

Second Reading: Do You Want To Fast This Lent?                 All: Thanks be to God.

Gospel: Matthew 4:1-11          All: Glory to you, O God.

Kathryn Shea ARCWP

Homily Starter by Kathryn Shea, ARCWP

I have never been thrilled with the season of Lent, not even as a small child; totally emerged in Roman Catholic religion.  Something inside of me said, “I really don’t think God or Jesus wants us to feel awful about ourselves because Jesus died on the cross for our sins.”  So, when Bridget Mary reminded me last week, that this was the First Sunday of Lent, I internally thought, Oy vey. 

But then, as often happens when I struggle with what to write, and how it will be heard, a beautiful Lenten Reading came to me written by Rev. Dawn Hutchings, who identifies herself as a 21^st Century Progressive Christian Pastor.  Her Lenten Reading is titled: “Giving Up Theories of Atonement for Lent in Favour of Listening to God’s Laughter.”  Right up my alley. 

To paraphrase her writing, she talks about the tradition of Lent being a mournful time filled with calls to repentance and self-examination as we follow Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted and then the long walk to Jerusalem where he will die on the cross for our sins.  Our liturgies take on a mournful tone as we confess our sinfulness, beg forgiveness, and realize even then, we are never truly free of sin.  She imagines us saying,

“Woe is me.  Woe is me for I am sinful. My sins are too numerous to count.  There are all the things I have done and all the things I have left undone.  Thank God Jesus died for me.  Somebody had to pay the price for my sinfulness.  Jesus died for a reason, and you and I dear sisters and brothers are the reason.  A blood sacrifice had to be paid.  God’s justice demanded it and Jesus paid the price with his very own blood.  Jesus took our place up there on that cross and the least you and I can do to say thank you, is to spend some time shouldering our own crosses as we retrace Jesus steps to Jerusalem.”  Does this sound all too familiar?

But, we no longer accept the theology of atonement.  We accept and live the theology of original blessing, knowing our Creator walks with us always in love and joy for who we are and who we will yet become.  So, now our journey into the wilderness if different.  We journey within ourselves to contemplate; to be in silence as Jesus was and “to look to the life and witness of Jesus of Nazareth to see what we can learn about who we are and whose we are.”

I now invite you to wander off into the wilderness for a short time.  Be not afraid, for we are not alone.  Jesus goes before us to lead us.  We will take the Mystics along with us to help us see the wisdom of the centuries in new ways. 

Get comfortable.  Close your eyes.  Take in a very deep breath and let yourselves focus inward.  Pay attention to your breathing.  With each breath in, breathe in all that is good and peaceful, and breathe out all negative thoughts, feelings, fear, and quilt.  And as we begin on our journey into the wilderness, pay attention to all that surrounds you.  What do you hear, see, feel, smell.  If there’s anything that frightens you, let it go, and focus on Jesus walking ahead of you.  

Imagine yourself walking toward a clearing and the stream. Stepping stones make an easy path across the stream and toward the edge of the mountain. Step on each large flat stone to easily cross the small, shallow stream.

Up ahead is a large, smooth rock... like a chair waiting for you to rest. The rock is placed perfectly, high up on this beautiful vantage point.

Sit or lie down on the rock if you wish. It is very comfortable. You feel very comfortable and at ease. The sun shines down on you.

Stay with this feeling of warmth and love for three deep slow breaths.....

Feel the healing light go down into your hips.....

Feel it continue traveling down your legs all the way down to your toes.....

Your whole body is now filled with Divine Healing Light and Energy.....

Allow that Healing Energy to completely fill all physical areas that need healing energy.....

Feel it warming, healing and expanding through the areas......

Now bring your awareness to any emotional or spiritual difficulties, any unresolved grief and allow the Divine Healing Light to bring peace and healing to any these issues ….

Bring your awareness to any intentions or desires that you may have.....

Hold the thoughts of those intentions or desires as you allow the Holy One to bring your deepest desires to life and your intentions into reality.....

Feel your connection to Divine, and know that all is ONE....

Keep this deep, relaxing, peaceful feeling of bliss.  Leave behind all that is not spiritually healthy for your soul, and take all that feeds your soul. And now slowly begin your journey out of the wilderness with Jesus walking beside you, holding your hand. And now slowly, come back to all that surrounds you, but keep this vision inside of you. 

Take a deep breath and when you’re ready, slowly open your eyes, knowing all is well. 

“Just these two words God spoke changed my life.  ‘Enjoy me’.

What a burden I thought I was to carry- a crucifix, as did Christ.

Love once said to me, ‘I know a song, would you like to hear it?’

And laughter came from every brick in the street

And from every pore in the sky.

After a night of prayer, God changed my life when

God sang, ‘Enjoy Me’.”

St. Teresa of Avila

Shared Homily

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.

Prayers of the Community

Presider:  That we may live compassion and mutuality, letting go of all patterns of domination we pray.

Response: God of all ages, hear 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 the dead may dwell forever in God’s presence, we pray. R.

Presider: And for what else shall we pray?

Presider: O Holy One, we walk in faith that nothing is impossible and we can care for others in need through the power of your Spirit working in us.

All: Amen

Offertory Procession and Preparation of the Gifts

Offertory Song: Be Not Afraid #430, all verses

Kathryn Shea ARCWP and Sally Brochu ARCWP

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. (join around the banquet table)

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. (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 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 the 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 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: 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: We honor the holy women and men who have revealed your compassion and justice in our world.  We thank you for ordinary people 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 those who are sick and suffering.  May they be healed and comforted.  We remember Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary Magdala, Peter, Paul, Junia, our patron saints and all the saints and angels who surround 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: 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. Let us share the Body of Christ with the Body of Christ.  

All: Amen.

Communion Music: Instrumental  

Communion Meditation Song: May the Longtime Sun Shine Upon You – Sara Thomsen ~ In honor and memory of #Benjithebrave

Mindy Lou Simmons

Benji

Benji with family

Prayer of Thanksgiving after Communion

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

Introductions/Announcements

Concluding Rite

Presider: Our God is with you.

ALL: and also with you.

Closing Community 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 Creator, in the name of Jesus our Liberator, in the name of the Holy Spirit, our Sanctifier as we care and minister to one another, and all those we meet, in love. Be with us as we continue on our path and follow in the footsteps of Jesus, for we are the face of God to the world. Amen.

Commissioning

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

ALL:   Thanks be to God.

Concluding Hymn: God’s Plea – Mindy Simmons

Adapted from a liturgy by Bridget Mary Meehan,

Association of Roman Catholic Woman Priests

http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/www.arcwp.org

Theresa and Roman Rodriguez

Mindy Lou Simmons and Kathryn Shea ARCWP

Mary Al and Janet in MMOJ spiritual library

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Sally and Bridget Mary

Marie