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phone-in for (audio only).Phone Number: (646) 558-8656
Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
Celebrating Our Kin-ship in Christ
Welcome and Theme: Welcome to the Upper Room Community’s celebration of Our Kin-ship in Christ. If Christ is the eternal presence of the Divine in all things and beings then we truly are all one. Let us begin with our opening prayer.
Opening Prayer: (Ann)
Divine love, you are always sending us messages in this ever changing and evolving universe. As we gather today to contemplate Jesus’ radical message , that we are all one, that the Kingdom is the kin-dom, guide us to openness to embrace the paradox of his message.
Opening Song: Behold Now the Kingdom
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: Judy
A reading from Siobhan Kukolic
A teacher was teaching math to a class of six-year-olds, a number of whom were recently-arrived refugees from other countries. The topic was fractions. She defined what a half and a quarter were, and then asked the children to write down whether they would prefer a half or a quarter of a chocolate bar. As she walked around the room, she noticed that some of the new students wrote they would prefer a quarter of the chocolate bar. The teacher thought she would have to re-teach the lesson, as they didn’t appear to understand that a half was bigger than a quarter. She asked the students why they would prefer a quarter of the chocolate bar and one little girl replied, “So that more people could have a piece of chocolate.”
These are the inspired words of Siobhan Kukolic, author, speaker, and life coach from Toronto, Canada, and the community affirms them by saying, “Amen.”
Second Reading: Susan H.
A reading from “Field of Compassion: How the New Cosmology is Transforming Spiritual Life” by Judy Cannato
The realm of God that Jesus preached and died for was one that was known for its kindness and generosity, its compassion and healing. There was no one deemed outside the love of the Holy One. No one was excluded from fellowship, not the rich or poor, male or female, slave or free. Jesus went beyond superficial divisions and called for a culture of compassion.
Compassion changes everything. Compassion heals. Compassion mends the broken and restores what has been lost. Compassion draws together those who have been estranged or never even dreamed they were connected. Compassion pulls us out of ourselves and into the heart of another, placing us on holy ground where we instinctively take off our shoes and walk in reverence. Compassion springs out of vulnerability and triumphs in unity.
These are the inspired words by Judy Cannato, and we affirm them by saying “Amen.”
Alleluia
Psalm: Jean
God's True Cloak
We must not portray you in king's robes,
you drifting mist that brought forth the morning.
Once again from the old paintboxes
we take the same gold for scepter and crown
that has disguised you through the ages.
Piously we produce our images of you
till they stand around you like a thousand walls.
And when our hearts would simply open,
our fervent hands hide you.
This inspired poem by Rainer Maria Rilke was translated by Joanna Macy and is affirmed by us today as we say “Amen.”
Alleluia
Gospel: Connie
A reading by the Gospel writer known as John
18: 33-37 (Message Bible)
Pilate went back into the palace and called for Jesus. He said, “Are you the ‘King of the Jews’?”
Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own, or did others tell you this about me?”
Pilate said, “Do I look like a Jew? Your people and your high priests turned you over to me. What did you do?”
“My kingdom,” said Jesus “doesn’t consist of what you see around you. If it did, my followers would fight so that I wouldn’t be handed over. But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.”
Then Pilate said, “So, are you a king or not?”
Jesus answered, “You tell me. I was born and entered the world so that I could witness to the truth. Everyone who cares for truth, who has any feeling for the truth, recognizes my voice.
This inspired account of Jesus on trial is given to us by the Gospel writer known as John, and we affirm it by saying, “Amen.”
Homily Starter: Denise
Hauled out of the garden, interrogated all night by Annas and then Caiphas, slapped around by their guards, Jesus stands before Pilate, and must not be looking very kingly at the moment. Pilate himself seems confused and unsure of what to make of this upstart healer and storyteller with the large following. But some see him as a threat to Roman occupation, so the governor asks Jesus outright: “Are you a king?” And I like to imagine Jesus, who so frequently answers a question with another question, looking directly into the eyes of the man who will decide his fate and answering with a challenge: “You tell me.”
Jesus goes on to say that his whole reason for being is to witness to the truth. If he is any kind of king he is the king of truth. That’s what he confesses to Pilate. That’s his statement, his testimony, and the only explanation he is willing to offer. In the very next verse of this gospel, not included in today’s reading, Pilate comes back with his own retort: “What is truth?” And it’s sad, isn’t it, that Pilate can’t see the truth standing right in front of him. That the truth this man Jesus lives by and embodies is simply that we are all connected in this holy and messy web of divine life. We are all kin. This is the truth he lived. In his inclusion of women, of outcasts, of sinners, of the poor and yes, as Judy Cannato points out in the second reading, the rich, Jesus has revealed not so much a kingdom on earth, but a kin-dom. This simple truth, so difficult for Pilate and the empire he represents to understand is a complete no-brainer for the six-year-old child in today’s first reading. Of course she would take less chocolate, so that more children could share in it. This kind of kin-dom turns the notions of empire, kingdom, power systems, on their heads. There is no throne here. No scepter. It’s time to pack away the gold paint into its paint box. Time to open our hearts and hands to the Christ we meet every day, in every human encounter, in every phenomenon of nature. This is our feast day, the Kinship of Christ.
Ann and I invite you to share your thoughts on today’s readings. What does kin-ship mean to you?
Shared Homily
Homily conclusion and thanks, introduction to Statement of Faith (Denise)
Statement of Faith (Denise and All)
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.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Ann: As we prepare for this sacred meal, we are aware of our call to serve, and just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us. We bring to this table our blessings, cares and concerns:
Intentions are brought to the table by the community.
Ann: We pray for these and all unspoken concerns of our hearts. Amen.
Ann: Let us join with open hands to pray our Eucharistic prayer together:
Ann and All: Source of Love and Light, we join in unity of Spirit, love and purpose with your people everywhere, those who are living and those who have gone before. With all of creation across billions of galaxies, we open our hearts and souls to become One.
In your loving embrace we are liberated from division, fear, conflict, pride and injustice. We are transformed into wholeness which we resolve to bring to all whose lives we touch. With gratitude, we meld ourselves Your Divine Presence which knows all, shelters all and transforms all into love, abundant and eternal.
Ann and All: In one voice, we praise your loving, healing ways and the glory of all you have Created:
Holy, Holy, Holy https://youtu.be/kl7vmiZ1YuI
Ann: We thank you, Holy One, for Jesus, a man of courage whose exquisite balance of human and Divine points our way and who strives with us in our time of need. We yearn with passion to live as Jesus, one with you and your Spirit, in peace and justice.
Ann: May our desire to be one with you join us to all living things. We seek to heal the differences that isolate us so that we may live in healthful unity with all people, of every ethnicity, skin color, gender orientation or class. May we have the imaginative sympathy and love of your Spirit to move with courage beyond the confines of bias, miscommunication, ignorance and hurt and into the healing place where Divine light and love abide.
Presiders approach table
Denise: Please extend your hands in the blessing of bread and wine.
Denise and All: 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.
Anticipating the likelihood of betrayal, arrest and pain, Jesus wanted more than anything to be with his friends, to share a meal, exchange stories and create fond memories. To strengthen the bonds of friendship that evening, Jesus washed the feet of his friends in an act of love and humility.
Consecration of the bread:
Denise: Back at the table, he took the bread, spoke the grace, broke the bread and offered it to them saying, Take and eat, this is my very self.
Consecration of the Wine:
Ann: 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. (pause)
Denise: Please receive communion with the words “We are one in the Kin-dom.”
Communion Meditation: By Breath, Sara Thomsen
Denise: As we celebrate and recognize you in this bread and wine, we recognize you in each other. Sharing the bread of life and wine transforms us and opens us to your Spirit. Knowing that Jesus spent his time with the lowly and hurting, the needy and shunned, we seek to remain open to how we can bring love, healing and unity to whomever is in need. We ask for the grace to see with the eyes of Jesus, touch with the hands of Jesus and heal with the heart of Jesus. Amen.
Denise: Let us join with disciples of all ages to pray together:
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: (Ann): Please raise your hands and join together as we go forth as blessed and blessing:
Jesus signaled a new consciousness, a new way of looking at God, self and others. We are the kin-dom here and now. May we be mindful that our spirit impacts each and every person we meet. As we are blessed, let us be a blessing.
Closing Song: Water is Life, by Sara Thomsen
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