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phone-in for (audio only) Phone Number: (646) 558-8656
Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
Surprised by Joy
Welcome: Welcome! We are so happy to have you join us today as we celebrate our liturgy together with some special music from Bruce Springsteen.
Opening Prayer: Let us pray. Holy One, may we be surprised by joy in our lives and may our hungry hearts be nourished by your love. AMEN.
Opening song: Hungry Heart, Bruce Springsteen
LITURGY OF THE WORD
FIRST READING
A Reading from the First Book of Kings 3:5, 7-12
In Gibeon, at a shrine in a high place, where Solomon regularly made burnt offerings, Yahweh appeared to Solomon at night in a dream.
God said, “Whatever you ask I shall give you.”
Solomon answered, “You, my God, have made me, your servant, ruler to succeed David, my father; but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act— I, your servant, among the people you have chosen, a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted! Give your servant, therefore, a listening heart to judge your people and to distinguish between good and evil. For who is able, for this vast people of yours, to judge with justice?”
God was pleased by Solomon’s request. So, God said, “Because you asked for this—you did not ask for a long life for yourself, nor for riches, nor for the life of your enemies—but you asked for discernment to know what is right— I now do as you request. I give you a heart so wise and discerning that there has never been anyone like you until now, nor after you will there be anyone to equal you.
These are the inspired words of a Court Writer in Ancient Israel and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
PSALM Ps 119:18, 20, 24; 72-74a+ 81; 89+165+167
Our Psalm Response is: My soul longs for Your presence.
R: My soul longs for Your presence.
Open my eyes to see clearly
the wonders of Your ways, O Woman Wisdom.
At all times my soul is stirred with longing for Your discernment.
Your declarations are my delight;
they are my counselors.
R: My soul longs for Your presence.
The words of your mouth, O Wisdom, are more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.
In the beginning, You called me forth and fashioned me.
Now, give me understanding that I may know You.
May those who seek You rejoice to see me,
for my soul longs for Your presence,
and I put my hope in Your teachings.
R: My soul longs for Your presence.
Wisdom is one with Creation,
manifest throughout the Cosmos,
as wonderful and vast as the heavens!
Lovers of You, O Wisdom, have great peace;
nothing can make them stumble. May my life bear witness to Your just judgments;
Great is my love for them.
R: My soul longs for Your presence.
SECOND READING
A Reading from Paul’s Letter to the Romans 8:26-27
The Spirit helps us in our weakness because we do not know how to pray as we ought. That very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches human hearts, knows what is the mind of the Spirit. Thus, the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the desire of God’s heart.
These are the inspired words of the Apostle Paul and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
Celtic Alleluia by Christopher Walker
GOSPEL
A Reading from the Gospel attributed to Matthew 13:44-52
Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables: “The reign of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again. Out of joy, the person goes and sells all that they have, and buys that field. Again, the reign of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. Upon finding a pearl of great price, the merchant goes and sells all that they have and buys it. “Again, the reign of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full, they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus, it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the just and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
“Do you understand all these things?” They answered, “Yes.” Jesus replied, “Then every scribe who has been instructed in the reign of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from the storeroom both the new and the old.”
These are the inspired words of the gospel writer we call Matthew, and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
Shared Homily
Can you imagine how exciting it would be to find a buried treasure? Or a giant, beautiful pearl of great price? If Jesus was telling us parables today, there would probably be one about a winning lottery ticket, because we can imagine that better these days. But what Jesus is offering us is even more valuable than treasure. Jesus is offering us the kin-dom of God. And we’re not talking some someday, after you’re dead, up in heaven kin-dom of God either. We’re talking about a kin-dom right here, right now, right exactly where we are.
Wait, what? How is that possible? We’re all starting from pretty much the same place, with hungry hearts like Bruce Springsteen and a whole arena full of people sang about in our opening song. With some small variations, we humans are all hungry for the same basic things—love, belonging, safety—the things that aren’t really things offered by the kin-dom of God.
Okay fine, we all hunger for love and safety and belonging. How do we find those now? Look around, you’re in exactly the right place to start. You’re with a group of likeminded folks who believe in God our creator, our brother Jesus, and our guiding Spirit Woman Wisdom. Our readings today lay out the whole map for us: we start by praying for an understanding heart and the ability to tell right from wrong like Solomon in the first reading. And then we embrace Woman Wisdom as in the psalm. Then we step into our call to love God as Paul recommends in the second reading. So that by the time we discover our own pearl of great price in the kin-dom of God, we’re open to be surprised by the joy that living as Jesus teaches brings us each day. Living as God teaches brings a life of joy and love. Let’s celebrate that today with hearts that aren’t quite so hungry now.
What did you hear today? We would love to hear your insights on the readings.
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.
Intentions
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 the unspoken prayers and blessings held in the silence of our hearts. AMEN.
Pause.
Eucharistic Prayer of Belonging
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
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 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, go and share my love with one another.
(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 joy.
Communion Song: When the Saints Go Marching In, Bruce Springsteen
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:
All: O Holy One, who is within, around, and among us, we celebrate your many names. Your wisdom comes. 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
All: May we continue to be the face of God to each other. May we love compassionately and live fully. May we be surprised by joy today and every day. AMEN.
Closing Song: This Little Light of Mine, Bruce Springsteen
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