Upper Room Saturday Liturgy, May 2, 2026 - Presider: Kathie Ryan

Zoom:   https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82512159155  
phone-in for (audio only).Phone Number: (646) 558-865

Welcome: There are over 100 names of God in the Hebrew Scriptures. Christians have litanies of names for God, Muslims have 99 names for God. Other traditions have their specific names for God.  We humans have a need for definition, when in reality the definition is mystery. 

Let us pray: Holy One, you show us who you are in scripture, in nature, in each other and all creation. Every day we question, and ask, have we found you yet?  You must have a big grin across your “face” as you care for us.  Amen.

Opening song: More Light by Christopher Gundy video by MTStreck

https://youtu.be/a8XaUlqb8t0

LITURGY OF THE WORD

First Reading: A Reading from the Book of Exodus (3:13-14) 

Moses asked: “But if they ask me what God’s name is, what am I to tell them?” And God said to Moses, “I Am who I AM. I Am has sent me to you. This is my name forever. This is the name you are to remember for all generations.”

These are the inspired words from the Book of Exodus, and the community affirms with AMEN!

Psalm 46 -10 (adapted for meditation).

Be still and know that I AM God.

Be still and know.

Be still.

Be.

AMEN!

Gospel Acclamation: Celtic Alleluia by Christopher Walker – MTVideo

https://youtu.be/4cs8NDVM3Vk 

Gospel: A Reading from the Gospel of John 

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You have faith in God; and faith in me as well.
In God’s  house there are many dwelling places.
If there were not,
would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
so that where I am you also may be.
Where I am going you know the way."
Thomas said to him,
"Master, we do not know where you are going;
how can we know the way?"
Jesus said to him, I am the way; I am the truth; and I am the life.

These are the inspired words of John a disciple of Jesus.  We affirm these words with AMEN!

Shared Homily This is only a small section of chapter 14 in John, and we could spend all night discovering the truths these verses reveal to each of us. Tonight, I would like to focus on one of the most familiar verses.  

We have heard the verse “I am the Way, I am the Truth, and I am Life” many times. We hear this verse and think of Jesus. Many believe that this is proof Jesus is God. Many have and still say if you do not believe in Jesus as Savior and Lord you are lost and will not be saved.  The words of scripture are used to spread love and unity and unfortunately may also spread hatred and division.  

Jesus never claimed to be God but rather always pointed to God, his Abba God.  The theologians of The Five Gospels, remind us that “I am the way, the truth and life, are actually three I AM statements. I AM being the name of God in Exodus. If you took Latin, French, Spanish or other foreign languages you may remember the verb to be.  The first-person singular in the verb to be is I AM. When we dig deep into translation we can understand how God is the great I AM, The Source of our Being. Be still and know that I Am God.

 Is Jesus saying he is the Way or could this be another reference to: God (I AM) is the way, truth and life. John was writing from his understanding at the time. John’s community had survived the destruction of the temple and needed to focus on Jesus as the Messiah, hope for the one who was to come.  

There is another possible interpretation: “I am the way”, perhaps Jesus is saying I will show you the way. Jesus showed us the way his whole life. Always showing us the way to his Abba God. When Jesus said, “I am the truth”, he could have meant he is telling us the truth about how God wants us to live.  (live justly, love tenderly and walk with God). Finally, “I am Life”.  Jesus showed us how to live, and he showed us the path to life, the purpose to life.  To love one another as God loves us.  We could tease these words out over and over and discover all kinds of interpretations and personal truths.

What did you hear in the readings?  What resonated in your heart?

Statement of Faith 

We believe in the Holy One, 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 the Divine Word,
bringer of healing, heart of Divine compassion,
bright star in the firmament of the Holy One's
prophets, mystics, and saints.

We believe that We are called to follow Jesus
as a vehicle of divine love,
a source of wisdom and truth,
and an instrument of peace in the world.

We believe in the Spirit of the Holy One,
the life that is our innermost life,
the breath moving in our being,
the depth living in each of us.

We believe that the Divine 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.

Prayers of the Community

As we prepare for the sacred meal 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….”

We pray for these and all unspoken prayers and blessings. Amen.

LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST

We are a priestly people. We are anointed. With open hands let us pray our Eucharistic prayer as one voice:

All: O Nurturing, Mothering One, You are always with us. We are grateful for Your constant loving and unconditional presence. At times we forget that You are holding us, attending to us. We fall and You pick us up. You send strangers, friends and family to our aid. We are never without Your Light and Spirit.

We experience great joy and we experience great pain and suffering. You are with us in the joy and the pain and suffering. When we experience Your presence we long to sing our hymn of praise: 

Holy, Holy, Holy: Here in this Place by Christopher Grundy

https://youtu.be/cVWY9ourooI

All: Creator and Lover of all beings, we cannot grow in the darkness of this world without Your Light. Our desire to be in Your light is a gift from You. Help us keep our hearts and minds open to You through our love and care for each other and all creation

Please extend your hands in blessing

This bread and wine is a sign of Your nourishment and a sign of Your great love. Your Spirit is upon us and we belong to You and one another.

We thank you for Jesus, simple servant, lifting up the lowly, revealing you as God-With-Us, revealing us as one with you, and all creation.

On the night before he died, Jesus gathered for the supper with the people closest to him. Like the least of household servants, he washed their feet. Once again he showed us how to love one another.

(All lift the bread)

Back at the table, he took the bread, spoke the grace, broke the bread and offered it to them saying, Take and eat, share, go and love one another.

(All lift the cup) 

Then he took the cup of blessing, spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying:

Take and drink of the covenant

Made new again through my life in you.

Whenever you remember me like this,

I am among you.

Bread and wine are transformed by Your Spirit, and we are transformed when we open ourselves to Your Spirit. Every time we share this bread and wine we choose to be transformed. We choose to love as You love us.

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. 

Please receive the bread and cup with the words: I AM is in me, around and among us.

Communion Song: Learning to Sit with Not knowing – Carrie Newcomer

https://youtu.be/I_t8WqgKL3I

Communion prayer:

Loving Source of our being, You call us to live the Gospel of peace and justice. We live justly, we love tenderly, we walk with integrity in Your Presence Amen.

Let us pray together the prayer of Jesus:

O Holy One, who is within, around, and among us, we celebrate your many names. Your wisdom come. Your will be done, unfolding from the depths within us. Each day you give us all that we need. You remind us of our limits, and we let go. You support us in our power, and we act with courage. For you are the dwelling place within us, the empowerment around us, and the celebration among us, now and forever. Amen.

The Prayer of Jesus as adapted by Miriam Therese Winter

BLESSING

Please extend your hands and pray our blessing together:

May we continue to be the Face of God to each other. May the certainty of our connectedness to one another and all creation ignite us to love more fully. May we continuously try again and again to let go and live as children of the Holy One. And like Jesus be a shining light and a blessing for all.  

All: Amen.

Closing Song: The House That Love is Building

https://youtu.be/dM69BAgvuXw

Moment of Oneness, April 29, 2026 - Prepared by Sharon Beneteau, Suzanne De Froy, Kathy Worotny

 

Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81507551772
Meeting ID: 815 0755 1772
To connect by phone dial: 1-301-715-8592

Contemplating our Sacred Worth

Opening Song:  Be Still by John McCutcheon – Video by Denise Hackert-Stoner 

https://youtu.be/ic3LlVs0bjY?si=OsLBOKBA9dyC3axE

Opening Prayer:  A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans 8:25-28

Hoping for what we cannot see, means awaiting with patient endurance.  The Spirit, too, comes to help us in our weakness for we do not know how to pray as we should, and that very Spirit expresses our petitions with groanings too deep for words. And God who knows everything in our heart, knows perfectly well what the Spirit is saying, because her intercessions are made according to the Creator’s purpose. [1]

First Reading: from the writings of Theologian Dr. Barbara Holmes [2,3]

This is how Howard Thurman describes the embodied locus of contemplation:  There is in every person an inward sea, and in that sea is an island and, on that island, there is an altar and standing guard before that altar is the ‘angel with the flaming sword. Nothing can get by that angel to be placed upon that altar unless it has the mark of your inner authority. Nothing passes . . . unless it be a part of the fluid area of your consent’ [4].  This is your crucial link with the Eternal. 

. . . As I see it, the human task is threefold. First, the human spirit must connect to the Eternal by turning toward God’s immanence and ineffability with yearning. Second, each person must explore the inner reality of his or her humanity, facing unmet potential and catastrophic failure with unmitigated honesty and grace. Finally, each one of us must face the unlovable neighbor, the enemy outside of our embrace, and the shadow skulking in the recesses of our own hearts. Only then can we declare God’s perplexing and unlikely peace on earth. These tasks require a knowledge of self and others that only comes from the centering down that Thurman advocates. It is not an escape from the din of daily life; rather, it requires full entry into the fray but on different terms. . . 

Always, contemplation requires attentiveness to the Spirit of God. It is a spiritual practice that has the potential to heal, instruct, and connect us to the source of our being. Thomas Keating describes the shift in reality structures that may occur during contemplative prayer in this way: “Our private, self-made worlds come to an end; a new world appears within and around us and the impossible becomes an everyday experience” [5].

Second Reading:  The Sacred Soulful Self - A Refection by Theologian Dr. Norman King

We certainly live in a dark time, one that has been described as malignant narcissism, an age of deep-seated and unacknowledged anxiety that expresses itself as hostility.  I wonder if there are two possible responses, personal and social, captured in an expression I heard many years ago: “hope amid the ruins.”   

On a personal note, despite the world conditions, I can ask myself, “Am I safe right here and now? Am I right now in a good place, physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually?” No matter what is going on, we may be able to answer yes when we turn to the social dimension in our lives and contemplate on these two questions:  What am I doing now that is helpful to our world? What can I do today? 

It may be something as simple as a smile or a gesture of kindness to someone we meet casually today while getting groceries or another routine activity.  It may be donating our time or funds to a charity that is doing ‘good work’. It can be any intentional act in which we reach out beyond ourselves in compassion or justice.

I came across a reference to the crucial importance of music. “Whenever human beings are thinking about their place in the world and their relationship to the Divine, there is always music.” (George Corbett). [6]

Prayers of Petition

We pray that we may find the way to our inner scaredness, where the pure light that is within can guide our way to quell the conflict that surfaces in our lives.

God of peace and gentleness, Hear our prayer.

We pray for continued blessings on all peacemakers, that their wisdom may bear influence during times of turmoil among our sisters and brothers.

God of peace and gentleness, Hear our prayer.

We pray for all leaders who have a voice at negotiating tables, that they may hear the call of the Spirit to find a way to peace and the end of all wars.

God of peace and gentleness, Hear our prayer.

We pray that the Creator’s light from the ‘longtime sun’ will shine upon the darkness and surround us all with love.

God of peace and gentleness, Hear our prayer.

Personal petitions, please share.

A Song for a Closing Blessing: May the Longtime Sun Shine Upon You by Sara Thomsen - Photos by Scott Stoner and Denise Hackert-Stoner 

https://youtu.be/Zgf6CzjAx40

References:

[1] Priests for Equality.  (2007).  The Inclusive Bible: The First Egalitarian Translation. Sheed & Ward.

[2] Barbara Holmes. (2018, Dec 19). Connecting to the Eternal. Center for Action and Contemplation.  

[3] Barbara Holmes.  (2017).  Joy Unspeakable: Contemplative Practices of the Black Church, 2^ndedition. Fortress Press.

[4] Howard Thurman, Meditations of the Heart (Friends United: 1976), 28.

[5] Thomas Keating.  (1994) Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel. Bloomsbury Publishing.

[6] Norman King. (2024, Jul 29).  The Sacred Soulful Self.  Personal Correspondence. 

Upper Room Sunday Liturgy for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, April 26, 2026 - Presiders: Mary Ann Matthys and Juanita Cordero (Zoom) and Denise Hackert-Stoner (Upper Room)

 

Zoom:   https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82512159155  
phone-in for (audio only).Phone Number: (646) 558-865

Welcome

Welcome, beloved community to this sacred space where we come just as we are—with full hearts, weary hearts, hopeful hearts, and searching hearts.

Today we gather in the presence of the Holy One,
who meets us not in perfection, but in tenderness…
not in certainty, but in companionship.

Here, we are reminded that we are known by name,
held in love, and gently guided by the voice of the Good Shepherd—
the One who invites us, above all else,
to pause… to breathe… and to be.

As we begin, may we allow ourselves to slow down,
to catch our breath, and to trust that in this moment, we are already home.

Opening Prayer

Loving and Gentle Shepherd, Breath of Life within us, You meet us in the quiet spaces, in the places where words fall short and all we can offer is our breath.

When we are lost, you call us by name. When we are weary, you lead us to rest.
When we are afraid, you stay.

Be with us now in this gathering. Still our racing thoughts.
Soften what is tense within us. Open our hearts to your presence.

Feed us with your love, renew us with your compassion, and guide us in your way, that we may not only hear your voice, but become your voice in the world.

Teach us to be shepherds for one another: to listen deeply, to love gently, to remain when others are in need.

We ask this in the name of Jesus, our brother, Amen.

Opening Song: Catch Your Breath by Rachel Kohrs

https://youtu.be/fDrxT6nFtfQ?si=NkbRFAH4E-f0gmhf

Reading 1: Psalm 23: a meditation by Steve Garnaas-Holmes

Love, you shepherd me;
            generously, you place my life in my hands.

You rest me in the meadow of your presence,
            I drink from the gentle brook of your peace.

You are my next breath, and the next.
            You are my path, my steps.

The way to life leads through death;
            you go there, and I willingly follow you,

your presence beside me,
            your wisdom before me.

Despite my fears and doubts this life is a feast.
            You embrace me with such love,
            feed me with such delight.

Your goodness and mercy shadow me;
         and with every breath
         I am returned again and again to you.

 

Gospel Acclamation: I am the Good Shepherd by John Michael Talbot

https://youtu.be/sFRcyFcyesA?si=idT_HppUJ-iiEinV

Gospel:  Our Gospel reading is from the Gospel writer known as John.

John 10:1-18 MSG

“Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he’s up to no good—a sheep rustler! The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won’t follow a stranger’s voice but will scatter because they aren’t used to the sound of it.”

Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep rustlers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.

“I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep before himself, sacrifices himself if necessary. A hired man is not a real shepherd. The sheep mean nothing to him. He sees a wolf come and runs for it, leaving the sheep to be ravaged and scattered by the wolf. He’s only in it for the money. The sheep don’t matter to him.

“I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They’ll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd. This is why the Father loves me: because I freely lay down my life. And so I am free to take it up again. No one takes it from me. I lay it down of my own free will. I have the right to lay it down; I also have the right to take it up again. I received this authority personally from my Father.”

Shared Homily – Mary Ann Matthys

There is a moment most of us know well. It is not a dramatic moment. It is not the kind that makes the evening news. It is quieter than that — and far more personal. It is the moment when life has pressed in so hard, from so many directions, that you simply cannot find your footing. You cannot find your next step. You can barely find your breath. Maybe it came in the middle of the night. Maybe it came in a doctor's office, or at a graveside, or in the silence after a door closed for the last time. Maybe it is with you even now, sitting in this very place.

Rachel Kohrs sings to us from that exact moment. When you can't seem to find your step — just hold me and tell me, you just have to catch your breath. No fixing. No rushing. No demand that you pull yourself together. Just presence. Just the quiet promise: I'll be there to stay with you, cry with you, hold you until it's day.

That is not just a love song. That is a theology, a reminder that Jesus our brother, our friend, our Good Shepherd is present with us. He carries us so we can rest as restoration begins. He shows us the path that leads to abundance and nurtures us as we walk it. As we draw near to the Good Shepherd, the Shepherd draws near to us, holding us gently, fully present, loving us in our tender moments.  

Jesus, knows each sheep by name…He is a radical balance of human and divine who walks ahead of us and strives with us in our time of need. There is something powerful about being fully known and accepted just as we are.  It is when we are known in this way that we are free to soar, to be and become the person we are meant to be.  

The story of the Good Shepherd is meant to comfort but more than that it is an invitation to a ministry of presence, compassion and kindness.  We are invited to be the Good Shepherd with those we encounter each day.  Not only in the easy times but in the gut wrenching times when life is a mess and the person in front of us wonders how much longer they can go on. 

 

In those moments, we have a choice.  Do we accept the person where they are knowing this is not where they will stay, and love them with compassion, as Jesus did? Do we bring peace and presence? Or do we stare and walk away? 

It is in those moments we can speak the quiet promise from Rachel’s song…”I’ll be there to stay with you, cry with you, hold you until it’s day.”

Amen

Statement of Faith

We believe in the Holy One, 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 the Divine Word, 
bringer of healing, heart of Divine compassion, 
bright star in the firmament of the Holy One's 
prophets, mystics, and saints. 
 
We believe that We are called to follow Jesus 
as a vehicle of divine love, 
a source of wisdom and truth, 
and an instrument of peace in the world. 
 
We believe in the Spirit of the Holy One, 
the life that is our innermost life, 
the breath moving in our being, 
the depth living in each of us. 
 
We believe that the Divine 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. 

Prayers of the Community

As we gather at this sacred table, we are held in the care of Jesus, our Good Shepherd, who knows each of us by name and leads us beside still waters. Please state your intentions beginning with "I bring to the table…"

We bring these and all deeply held blessings, cares, and concerns to the table of the Good Shepherd, where no one is lost and all are welcomed home.

Liturgy of the Eucharist

Eucharistic Prayer

Holy One, we come together in unity of heart, compassion, and shared purpose with people everywhere—those here and those we remember. With all living beings across this Earth, we open our hearts to connection, understanding, and care. In your tender care, we are freed from division, fear, conflict, pride, and injustice. We are made whole through your love and mercy. With gratitude, we offer ourselves to the work of healing, growing, and supporting one another. Together, we speak with one voice, honoring the beauty of life and our shared responsibility to nurture it, with these words of thanks and praise.

Holy, Holy, Holy:  Here In This Place by Christopher Grundy
https://youtu.be/uXyu57tR2gk

Please extend your hands in blessing. 

All: Holy One you have set before us a banquet of love. Together, we call on Your Spirit, present in these gifts-bread that satisfies our hunger and wine that quenches our thirst–to make us more deeply One, living in the fullness of holy compassion and Sophia wisdom.

 
All: We recognize Your Spirit upon the gifts of this Eucharistic table, bread of the grain and wine of the grape, that they may become gifts of wisdom, light and truth which remind us of our call to be the body of Christ to the world. 

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, he bent down and washed their feet.

All lift their plate and pray the following:

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. 

Do this in memory of me.

All lift their cup and pray the following:

Then he took the cup of blessing, spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying: 

Take and drink of the covenant, made new again through my life in you.

Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.

Please receive communion with the words: I rest in the arms of the Shepherd.

What we have heard with our ears, we will live with our lives,  As we share communion, we become communion, both Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge.

Please receive communion with the words: I rest in the arms of the Shepherd.

Communion Song: Shepherd Me, O God by Marty Haugen

https://youtu.be/MODUEB_NW-U?si=9I3q6_2xaWBP5P9G

Post Communion Prayer

Knowing that the Good Shepherd leaves the comfort of the flock to seek out the lost, the wounded, and the forgotten, we seek to be alert to how we can bring the love and unity of the Body of Christ to wherever and with whomever is in need. We ask for the grace to search as Jesus searches, to carry as Jesus carries, and to heal with the tender heart of the Good Shepherd. Amen.

We will open up wide all that has been closed about us, and our small circles. Like Jesus, in all openness, we will be filled with your own Spirit and renew the face of the earth.

For it is through learning to live as he lived,

And why he lived,

And for whom he lived,

That we awaken to your Spirit within,

Moving us to worship you truly,

O Holy One,

At this time and all time and in all ways.

And we say yes to You!

Presider: Let us pray together the prayer of Jesus:

All:  O Holy One, who is within, around and among us,

We celebrate your many names.

Your Wisdom come.

Your will be done, unfolding from the depths within us,

Each day you give us all we need;

You remind us of our limits, and we let go.

You support us in our power, and we act with courage.

     For you are the dwelling place within us, 

the empowerment around us,
      and the celebration among us, now and forever.  Amen  

(Miriam Therese Winter)   

Closing Blessing

May you go forth as one led beside still waters, restored in soul, and strengthened in your commitment to walk humbly and love deeply. 

May you be guided along right paths, blessed with courage and compassion to choose active hope when all feels dark and uncertain, trusting that the Good Shepherd walks with you even through the valley of shadows.

May you live as one whose cup overflows, sharing from what you have to nourish and sustain, spreading the love of the One who prepares a table before you.

May you have the imaginative sympathy and love of Wisdom Sophia to follow where the Shepherd leads and co-create a world where Love abides. 

May goodness and mercy follow you all the days of your life, as you dwell in the presence of the Good Shepherd, now and forever. Amen.

Closing song: Psalm 23 by Bobby McFerrin

https://youtu.be/000AuO_lBJk?si=smr1-u8jxF9lSnkG