Please join us between 9:30 and 9:55 am via Zoom
Here 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 & Theme:
Lindy: Good morning my friends! Our time together is a great gift to us all! Often we lose hope that we can improve our climate, as well as the chaos and violence going on right now. Today’s Liturgy is a reminder that there is more we can do than we think.
Opening Song: Journey to Your Heart by Marie Dunne CHF
Opening Prayer:
Phillis: Holy One, may a deep love for all of humanity guide our steps. May Jesus’ path of compassion, courage, and welcome inspire us. May your Spirit always move through us and lead us to pursue a more just world where we walk closely with those oppressed and marginalized, where we extend a hand to those rejected, and where our voices join with all voices proclaiming truth and hope.
Ashe. Amen.
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: Phillis “The truth is that the human experience is messy and rich; the ecstatic, joyful, sad, and, yes, even shameful events have their place. Shame has been called “the swampland of the soul.” Why not, as Brene Brown suggests, “walk in and find your way around”?
These are the words of Patricia Rockman and we affirm them by saying Amen.
Second reading: Lindy
"Be the change that you want to see in the world. The day that the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace"
These are the words of a holy man known as Mahatma Gandhi and we affirm them by saying Amen.
Alleluia:
Gospel: Judy Stamp A reading from the Gospel attributed to Luke (Luke 18:9-14)
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed in this manner, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other, for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”
These words were written by a writer known as Luke and we affirm them by saying Amen.
Homily Starter: Phillis and Lindy
Phillis: As I was reflecting on the Gospel for today, I was struck by the narrative in a way I had not read it previously. In my experience, we most generally take note of the Pharisee and his sense that he is righteous in all ways. He is living his life by the book, following all the rules, and even tithing based on all his earnings, and yet, the writer tilts us in the direction of judging him. The Pharisee compares himself to all those he believes have fallen short including the tax collector. In his mind, a tax collector is no different from thieves, rogues, and adulterers–but very different from him. Jesus, however, compares the Pharisee to the tax collector. Jesus redirects our attention and this is where my reflection took me.
The tax collector, rather than identifying himself as righteous, identifies himself as a sinner in need of forgiveness.
The tax collector, we are told, could not come close to those praying around him. Some of this was related to how the community felt about tax collectors working on behalf of the empire’s interests. But the tax collector cannot approach God and the community because of how he feels about himself and yet, he knows he needs God: he beats his breast and cries out, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” The tax collector could not lift his eyes, even when he relegated himself to stand at a distance. Imagine being so desperately in need of God’s mercy, but unable to believe that it is available to you and that your only recourse is to lower your eyes.
This is a red-hot shame. Red-hot shame binds us; twists our inner life and outlife. Our relationships and relationship to God are distorted. We stand back, we close our eyes so that we cannot see ourselves mirrored in the reflection of someone’s glance. We eventually do not know who we are; we are closed off to a realistic self-understanding. Brene Brown, recognizing that this murky inner life is not to be avoided, calls us to walk into shame. But do not walk in alone. We can only bear such a path when we know we need the mercy of God and community and that we already have it. But this will require us to draw close to others and life our eyes even as our being tells us to do otherwise.
Lindy:
Even knowing that we feel unworthy, Mahatma Gandhi suggests that we stretch each day to reach for change within ourselves…to become bit by bit the way we want the whole world to be.
That suggestion feels at first like an overwhelming task doesn’t it? Our red-hot shame paints over the Love we sometimes have seen in the wonders of creation… one spark at a time. We forget that the same Creatrix who made us Loves us just as we are. Know this… our Holy One, our Sofia Wisdom, our Shakeina, our Great Mother, our Ancient One known by many names is close by. She cherishes every tiny step we take! She walks with us. Her silent voice whispers encouragement and support that our heart can hear, if we reach under that red-hot shame, into ourselves and open up… and listen.
Her Love is so great and wide that it will heal us.. a bit at a time. Each time we listen…. healing gratitude springs up a little at a time… like sprigs of herbs within us, flavoring our souls, our hearts, even our minds.. with love. For Her, for our families, for our friends, for neighbors, for everyone around us. For every creature who lives on this earth. For all of Creation. As each of us grow and heal…
“The day that the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace"
( a moment of silence)
If you like please share your thoughts about these readings…
Thank you all for your words of wisdom. With them may we all learn our own worth and pour out our love on everything around us.
Now let us join as we make our Statement of Faith
Statement of Faith
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
Lindy 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.
(put intention book on the table)
Lindy: We bring these, and all deeply held blessings, cares, and concerns to the table of friendship and peace.
Phillis: Please join in praying the Eucharistic prayer together
All: O Holy One, you have birthed us in goodness, gifted us with life and cherished us in love. In the heart of our being, your Spirit dwells; a Spirit of courage and vision, a Spirit of wisdom and truth.
In the power of that same Spirit, we lift our hearts in prayer, invoking anew the gift of wisdom and enlightenment, that we may continue to praise and thank you, in union with all who sing the ancient hymn of praise:
Holy, Holy, Holy: Here in this Place – with lyrics – Christopher Grundy
Lindy: Holy One, we see around us the work of your hands, the fruit of your wisdom and love. The unfolding story of creation witnesses unceasingly to your creative power. We, your creatures, often deviate from that wisdom, thus hindering your creative presence in our midst.
Sending among us Jesus, our brother, you birth afresh in our world the power of Sophia-Wisdom, and in the gift of Your Spirit, your creative goodness blooms anew, amid the variety and wonder of life.
Phillis: Please extend your hands in blessing.
We invoke 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.
Lindy: 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:
Lindy: 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.
All lift their cup and pray the following:
Phillis: He then raised high the cup of the covenant, spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying:
Take and drink.
Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.
(pause)
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.
Lindy: Please consume the bread and drink the cup with the words: Open me to the Power of Love
Communion Song: There is Room at the Table https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92OM5bdQ4N4
Lindy: Let us pray as Jesus taught his friends:
ALL: Holy One, you are 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.
Adapted by Miriam Therese Winter
Closing Blessing
Phillis:Let us raise our hands and pray together our blessing:
Let us revel in the love of the Divine Feminine, the One who reveals that Love is the Way. May we live this Way of Love to enrich our world and the lives of all we meet along the way. Amen
Closing Song: We The People – Empty Hands Music (Nimo Patel)
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