Please join us between 4:30 and 4:55 pm via ZoomHere is the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82512159155
phone-in for (audio only).Phone Number: (646) 558-8656
Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
Welcome: Our theme tonight is the Holy One, as our shepherd. We often think of Jesus as the shepherd, but our psalm was written long before Jesus was born. Also Jesus was not talking about himself in the Parable of the Lost Sheep, but he was again speaking of the Holy One. Much to think about.
Let us pray: Holy One, you sent your son Jesus, to show us your love. Everything Jesus did, everything he taught, was for one reason and one reason only. Jesus was showing us how much You love us, and how much we are loved and cared for. May our awareness of that love increase so we may love others as You love us. Amen.
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Opening song: Oh, My Children
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: A Reading from Psalms for Praying
O my Beloved, You are my shepherd, I shall not want; You bring me to green pastures for rest and lead me beside still waters renewing my spirit.
You restore my soul, You lead me in the path of goodness to follow Love’s way.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow and of death, I am not afraid; For You are ever with me; your rod and your staff they guide me, they give me strength and comfort.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of all my fears; you bless me with oil, my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the heart of the Beloved forever. Amen.
These are the inspired words Nan Merrill, a daughter of the Holy One. The community affirms these words. Amen.
Celtic Alleluia
https://youtu.be/o1rc7ojQtJU
Gospel: A Gospel from a writer known as Luke
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus. Jesus addressed them with this parable.
“Who among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture
and go after the lost one until it’s found?
And finding it, you put the sheep on your shoulders in jubilation.
Once home, you invite your friends and neighbors in and say to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.
These are the inspired words of Luke, a disciple of Jesus. The community affirms these words. AMEN
Shared Homily:
The story of the lost sheep is one of those stories we have heard over and over again. It is in part a sweet story. We hear how valued that one lost sheep is, and we do our best to believe that we each are valued the same way. Personally, I always had a problem with this story. What about the 99 who did not stray? Who was watching over those left behind?
Unfortunately we hear this story with 21st Century ears. We have little to no true knowledge of shepherds and sheep. But those who gathered to hear Jesus understood this on a deeper level then we do. It turns out that shepherds rarely if ever herded their sheep alone. Two or three shepherds from the same village would tend their flocks together. Those who were listening to Jesus knew this and they never thought, hey, what about the 99? They knew the drill, they knew how shepherds would go about finding a lost one. One shepherd would go off and look for the lost sheep, while the other two would take the sheep back to the village. When the lone shepherd returned with the lost sheep the whole village came out rejoicing, not just for the return of the lost sheep but also for the return of the lone shepherd. When Jesus shared the parable of the Lost Sheep, he is talking about the Holy One as shepherd. This parable and the psalm tell us exactly what Jesus wants all of us to know. The Holy One is our shepherd. No matter how lost we think we are, we will be found. When we are found, we are loved and cared for and all of heaven rejoices.
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 in the Holy Spirit,
The life of God that is our innermost life,
the breath of God moving in our being.
The depth of God living in each of us.
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.
Eucharistic Prayer of Belonging
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.
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:
Here in this Place – Holy Holy Holy by Christopher Grundy
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
All: 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)
All: 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.
(All lift the cup)
ALL: 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 unconditionally loved.
Communion Song: Shepherd me, O God
https://youtu.be/T0kxWXHETlU
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 interpreted 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
Dance Then Wherever You May Be by John Ogrodowczyk https://youtu.be/L6R6_Qz6_dU
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