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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
Theme: Our Soul’s Desire
Welcome: Mary Theresa
Welcome to the Upper Room’s Liturgy for the first Sunday in Lent. As we begin our journey during this season, may we, like Jesus, hear the Beloved calling us to the fullness of life. May we discern our soul’s desires and journey to the place where the Holy One is creating something new. And so we pray….
Opening Prayer: Jim
Holy One, we are aware of the hunger within us and beyond us. We see our own shadows or dark sides and recognize our complicity in creating a world invested in competition and domination. We are called to respond to the cries of the impoverished in our communities and to give of our time and resources. May we know your desires for us and feed not only our own hunger but that of others as well. Amen.
Opening Song: Morning Prayer: I Will Surrender by Karen Drucker
https://youtu.be/Nz2zAY3xcbE
First Reading: A reading from the book of Genesis 3:1-8 (Jean Talbot)
(from the Message Bible)
The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. The serpent spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?”
The Woman said to the serpent, “Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It’s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘Don’t eat from it; don’t even touch it or you’ll die.’”
The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”
When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she’d know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.
Immediately the two of them did “see what’s really going on”—saw themselves naked! They sewed fig leaves together as makeshift clothes for themselves.
When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening breeze, the Man and Woman hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God.
These are the words of the author of Genesis and we respond to them by saying:
Amen.
Root of the Root
Second Reading: “A Hunger Shared” from In the Sanctuary of Women (Tim Perry-Coon)
One of the signs that we’ve found our way to a core desire, something that God desires for us, is that in following it, we feed not only our own hunger but that of others as well. When we pursue God’s longing for our life, it never serves only ourselves.
Vocation is a word that gets at this idea. With ancient roots in the Latin word vocare—to call—vocation isn’t merely about what job we have, but about who God has created us to be in this world. Vocation conveys the notion that God has designs on us and has placed us within this world to work for its flourishing in concert with our own.
In writing about vocation, Frederick Buechner says, “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” So what are you hungry for? What do you desire, and what desire lies beneath that desire—or within it? What does your wanting teach you about yourself; about what you love, what you fear, what is possible? How does your longing meet the world’s longing? How do you pray with your desires? Where the hunger of the world beyond you meets the hunger of the world within you: may you find yourself in this place.
These are the inspired words of Jan Richardson and we respond by saying: Amen.
Gospel Acclamation: Spirit of the Living God by Michael Crawford
https://youtu.be/xoJN0owUoWA
A Reading from the Gospel of Matthew (Mary Brandon)
After Jesus was baptized, he was led by the Spirit into the desert
where he was tempted by the devil.
He fasted for forty days and forty nights,
and afterwards he was hungry.
The Tempter approached and said to him,
"If you are the Son of God,
command that these stones become loaves of bread."
He said in reply,
"It is written:
One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth
from the mouth of God."
Then the Tempter took Jesus to the holy city,
where they stood on the parapet of the temple,
and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.
For it is written:
God will command his angels concerning you
and with their hands they will support you,
lest you dash your foot against a stone."
Jesus answered him,
"Again it is written,
You shall not put the your God, to the test."
Then the Tempter took Jesus up to a very high mountain,
and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence,
and he said to him, "All these I shall give to you,
if you will prostrate yourself and worship me."
At this, Jesus said to him,
"Get away, Tempter!
It is written:
God alone shall you worship
God alone shall you serve."
Then the Tempter left him and
angels came and ministered to him.
These are the inspired words of Matthew and we respond by saying:
Amen.
Homily Starter: Mary Theresa
In the first reading of the first humans, the author is telling an ancient story about the presence of evil in our world. Similar stories span many cultures with different players. You may have heard the story of Pandora’s box. In the Genesis story, the humans in the garden do not listen to the voice of the Guiding Spirit and they give into their desires that ultimately lead to pain and suffering entering the world. Notice in the story that there’s actually nothing about a “fall” in the text. The story describes a rift in their relationship with God, but not an “original sin” or a change in the relationship between God and humans. They think they are as wise as God and they break a trusting relationship.
And what about that Serpent, the Tempter? It is the age-old story of “the devil made me do it!” and blaming someone else for our selfish choices. The Tempter is that small inner voice that urges us to question the voice of the Guiding Spirit.
In the Gospel, Jesus, unlike the first humans, listens to the Guiding Spirit who leads him into the wilderness. He has just experienced his baptism in the Jordan River by his cousin John and He is now going apart from John’s community to discern his next steps. Where from here?
For forty days in the wilderness, alone without distraction, Jesus wrestles with his temptations, with his desires, his longings, his yearnings, his soul’s desires, ultimately, his vocation. He confronts the desires that are so alluring to all humans: power, security, protection from harm, avoidance of pain, fitting in. These desires are not bad. But the point of the story is that Jesus knows that he can only find security, power and belonging through his relationship with His Abba God and in service to his community.
Jesus leaves the wilderness with his integrity intact and chooses his ministry as a humble servant, one who would go so far as to embrace the leper and wash the dirty and dusty feet of his disciples.
In the second reading, we hear the inspired words of Jan Richardson who reminds us that if our desires are aligned with the Holy One’s desires for us then we will feed not only our hungers, but that of others, too. During this Lenten journey of forty days, may we clearly hear the words of the Guiding Spirit spoken by Moses: I set before you life or death, blessing or curse, choose life then that you and your descendants may live. May it be so.
What did you hear in the readings today?
Statement of Faith
Let us pray together our statement of faith. (Phillis)
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
Jim: 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.
pause for intentions
We bring these and all deeply held blessings, cares, and concerns to the table of friendship and peace.
Mary Theresa: With open hearts and hands let us pray our Eucharistic prayer in one voice:
O Great Love, thank you for living and loving in us and through us. May all that we do flow from our deep connection with you and all creation. We pray for the courage to awaken to greater truth, greater humility and greater care for one another. Trusting in your love and your presence, we place our hope in what matters and what lasts and we sing:
Holy, Holy: Here in This Place by Christopher Grundy
Joan: Guiding Spirit, when opposing forces in us tug and pull and we are caught in the tension of desires and choices, inspire us to make wise decisions for the greater good.
Like Jesus, may the longings of our hearts deepen our desire to walk the sacred path to which You call us.
We thank you for our brother, Jesus, and for all our sisters and brothers who have modeled for us a way to live and love in challenging times. Inspired by them, we choose life over death, we choose to be light in dark times.
Jim: We are ever aware of your Spirit in us and among us at this Eucharistic table and we are grateful for this bread and wine which reminds us of our call to be the body of Christ in the world.
On the night before he faced his own death, Jesus sat at supper with his companions and friends. He reminded them of all that he taught them, and to fix that memory clearly with them, he bent down and washed their feet.
All lift the plate and pray:
When he returned to his place at the table, he lifted the bread, spoke the blessing, broke the bread and offered it to them saying:
Take and eat, this is my very self.
(pause)
All lift the cup and pray:
Then he took 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)
We share this bread and cup to proclaim and live the gospel of justice and peace. We choose to live justly, love tenderly, and walk with integrity.
Please receive communion saying: Listen to the Guiding Spirit.
Communion Song: Something New by Jan Novotka
Prayer after Communion:
Mary Theresa: Holy One, your transforming energy is within us and we join our hearts with all who are working for a just world. We pray for wise leaders in our religious communities. We pray for courageous and compassionate leaders in our world communities.
We pray for all of us gathered here and like Jesus, we open ourselves up to your Spirit, for it is through living as he lived that we awaken to your Spirit within, moving us to glorify you, at this time and all ways.
Amen.
Joan: Let us pray as Jesus taught us:
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
Blessing
Jim: Please extend your hands and pray our blessing:
May the Holy One, who created us from words and dust
and called us good,
inhabit our every hunger,
dwell in each desire
and encompass us in all the choosing that lies ahead.
May our longings lead us far and farther still
toward the place where what we desire
can be met only by the Holy One within us.
On this day of all days, may we go in the company
of the One who calls us to love everyone with an open heart. Amen.
Closing Song: My Souls’ Desire- Carmel Boyle
(This liturgy was created by Bridget Mary Meehan and Mary Theresa Streck. We are grateful to Jan Richardson for the second reading and for the adaptation of blessings and prayers published In the Sanctuary of Women)
Homily: Bridget Mary Meehan (February 25, 2023)
In this homily starter, I will share a few interpretations of the story of Eve in Genesis according to contemporary scholarship that offer a new, perspective and invite us to walk with her and with Jesus into the depths of Divine Wisdom and Love beyond imagination.
Early Christian writers failed to depict Eve as the giver of life and the seeker of wisdom and knowledge. They depicted Eve as subordinate and inferior to Adam -- because she was created after and from him -- and as weak, seductive and evil, the cause of Adam's disobedience. This misogynist interpretation of Eve in the book of Genesis has been used to justify violence against women, and contributed to the role of religion in their oppression for centuries.
But the story of Eve was reinterpreted in 1895 by pioneers like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, in the "Woman's Bible," "It is amazing," she wrote, "that any set of men ever claimed that the dogma of the inferiority of woman is here set forth. The conduct of Eve from the beginning to the end is so superior to that of Adam."
Phyllis Trible writes: “The text itself does not say why the serpent speaks to the woman. Why not speculate instead that the serpent questions her because she is the more intelligent of the two? Or because she has a better understanding of the divine command? Or because she is more independent?"
Jan L. Richardson believes the significance of Eve is that her story invites
us to reflect on how we have hidden our longings from the Holy and from one another. Like Eve, we may live with bodies and souls whose desires have left us snake-bitten, but, like Eve, we can journey also with a wholeness of vision that will bring forth new worlds. “
(In the Sanctuary of Women, p. 33)
Scripture scholar, Dianne Bergant states that the choice of Eve reflects the strong wisdom tradition in the story. Wisdom is associated with the Divine feminine in the biblical texts Proverbs1:7-9 , Wisdom 1:7-10 and Sirach 24. She writes that “wisdom was the treasure most desired by this people, and that it is reasonable in a male centered society, that was what was most treasured would be personified by a woman.” The snake is described as the most cunning or astute of all animals, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil refers to how to acquire wisdom, and the dialogue between Eve and the snake leads to an unwise choice.
" I dream of a church,” writes Pastor Dawn Hutchins, “in which Chavah, Eve, Mother of All Living, walks with Jesus breathing life into our quest for wisdom.”
In a PCS Course on “The Spiritual Awakening of Jesus,” Dr. Lizzie Berne DeGear points out that in the ancient Jewish understanding, there was not a single powerful Devil, but rather, one of many messengers of God whose role was to set up obstacles for humans in order to challenge them.
Both Adam and Eve, and Jesus experienced obstacles that challenged them and led to make different choices that took them away from or closer to the Holy One.
How do we discern God’s desires for us? How do we know what to do when our choices appear to be good, but may not be wise?
As we pray, fast and give alms this Lenten season, may we discern in our desires the place where the Holy One is doing something new in us and through us to walk into the fullness of love with Jesus.
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