phone-in for (audio only) Phone Number: (646) 558-8656
Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
Earth Day Liturgy – April 21, 2024
Introduction of Theme:
Dennis: Welcome to all here present. We gather this day to celebrate Earth Day, reminding ourselves that we are a part of creation and have been provided the opportunity to care for this planet we call home. We reflect today on our role as co-creators and care-givers of the Earth, and the call to bring harmony to all that we touch with the love and beauty with which the Holy One graces Her creation.
Let us celebrate with joy the indwelling of our God among us and among all of creation. Welcome, sisters and brothers, to the table where the broken word and bread and cup of life nourish us and feed our spirit, calling us to care for this home we call Earth.
Opening Song: I Am the Earth by Glyn Lehmann
https://youtu.be/FyM7XK5WCfQ?si=N5c9OOucP9ITUKRM
Opening Prayer:
Creator, Source of all that we are, we gather to honor your Creation as an integrated and holy system of plant, animal and human life placed lovingly side by side with water, air, wind, and earth. We pray for the imagination and resolve to establish a supportive ecology so that all of Creation may not just survive but thrive as a continuing sign of your wondrous love. Amen.
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: Reading from Susan Drake
As Americans, we have become comfortable with our environment of concrete, steel, plastics, and artificial fibers, colors, and flavorings to such a degree that many question whether or not we even need to focus on a relationship with the creation. We have lost the desire to seek God and the ability to see God in all things. And perhaps, we have closed our eyes to the importance of Divine creation as expressed through the forests because we have substituted the wonders of human creation for the wonders of God's creation. This form of idolatry should concern us.
These are the inspired words of Susan Drake and the community affirms them by saying, Amen.
Second Reading: A reading from Ilia Delio
Where is this risen Christ? Everywhere and all around us—in you, your neighbor, the dogwood tree outside, the budding grape vine, the ants popping up through the cracks. The whole world is filled with God, who is shining through even the darkest places of our lives. To “go to church” is to awaken to this divine presence in our midst and respond in love with a yes: Your life, O God, is my life and the life of the planet….
We have an invitation to go to church in a new way, by praying before the new leaves budding through dormant trees or the wobbly flowers by the side of the road pushing through the solid earth…. [Like Francis of Assisi,] we too can sing with the air we breathe, the sun that shines upon us, the rain that pours down to water the earth. And we can cry with those who are mourning, with the forgotten, with those who are suffering from disease or illness, with the weak, with the imprisoned. We can mourn in the solidarity of compassion but we must live in the hope of new life. For we are Easter people, and we are called to celebrate the whole earth as the body of Christ. Every act done in love gives glory to God: a pause of thanksgiving, a laugh, a gaze at the sun, or just raising a toast to your friends at your virtual gathering. The good news? “He is not here!” Christ is everywhere, and love will make us whole.
These are inspired words of Ilia Delio and the community affirms them by saying, Amen.
Gospel: A Reading from the Hebrew Scriptures - Genesis
Humankind was created as God’s reflection:
in the divine image God created them;
female and male, God made them.
God blessed them and said, “Bear fruit, increase your numbers, and fill the earth—and be responsible for it! Watch over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things on the earth!” God then told them, “Look! I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the earth, and every tree whose fruit carries its seed inside itself: they will be your food; and to all the animals of the earth and the birds of the air and things that crawl on the ground—everything that has a living soul in it—I give all the green plants for food.” So it was. God looked at all of this creation, and proclaimed that this was good—very good.
These are the inspired words of the anonymous author of Genesis, and the community affirms them by saying, Amen.
Homily Starter:
Our opening song ask the questions, Are we listening to Mother Earth? Are we listening to the message being sent by way of storms, fires, floods, etc.? Are we listening to the animals, the plants, as we watch and learn of the demise of various species? Can we feel the heartbeat beneath our feet?
Our first reading, from Susan Drake, reinforces this message much more strongly, questioning if we have lost our way in seeking God, and our ability to see the Divine in all things, in all of creation. Are we so captured by the ways of the world of commerce, of progress, of development that we lose sight of their impact on the future of the planet.
The photo chosen for today’s liturgy shows hands holding the earth, and it might recall for us the song, He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands, but if we ponder our readings today, that is a misnomer for the song. In reality, if we truly believe what we often say here in the Upper Room that we are co-creators with the Divine, then the photo reflects that it is we who hold the world in our hands, and what we do or don’t do has an impact on our future and the future of the planet.
Our reading from Genesis reminds us that we are created in the divine image as a reflection of the Creative Force of the Universe, and are charged with being responsible for creation, to be stewards of all that lives and breathes. St. Theresa of Avila says it this way, “Christ has no body but yours, no hands, no feet on earth but yours.
Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassionately on this world.
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good.
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.”
In this season of Easter, of New Life, of the Risen Christ, our reading from Ilia Delio reminds us that the Christ, existing from the beginning of time, is “everywhere and all around us”, and invites us to go to church in a new way. This new way is to see church beyond the confines of four walls, entering into and engaging with creation in all its joys and sorrows. Once again, she reminds us to be the Body of Christ in the world. We are an Easter People, we are not waiting for the return of the Christ, we are divinely created with a mission today to watch over and care for this home of ours, this evolving planet. We are called to feel the heartbeat beneath our feet.
Pope Francis in June 2013 said, “I would like us all to make a serious commitment to respect and protect creation, to be attentive to every person, to counter the culture of waste and disposable, to promote a culture of solidarity and of encounter.”
Are you in tune with the Earth? Do you feel/sense the heartbeat? Is it strong or fading? How might you counter the culture of waste and disposable? How can we live as Christ’s body as responsible stewards of the Earth?
Shared Homily
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.
Prayers of the Community
Dennis: 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 read
We bring these and all deeply held blessings, cares, and concerns to the table of friendship and peace.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Dennis: Please join us, with arms raised, in the praying of the Eucharistic Prayer.
Great Mystery surrounding us, we lift up our hearts to understand that our spirits are one. You are with us, and we live. Everything lives because of you, and everything is one.
Your wisdom moves among us like the wind, and we are blessed.
So now we enter into the oneness of creation, attune ourselves to join in the harmony, let ourselves embrace that oneness with thankfulness and joy. And so, we join with all of creation and sing in glory for the beauty that encircles us.
Holy, Holy, Holy: Here in This Place by Christopher Grundy
https://youtu.be/uXyu57tR2gk?si=lF8UEluHJgyAuxbZ
All: Creator of the whole universe, we glory in the environment, especially forests, that surround us. May we have the vision and strength to protect all forest ecosystems and the whole of Your creation, which have been corrupted by human exploitation, pollution, and destruction, so that the whole of creation may be renewed and made whole,
We join with the earth and with each other, to bring new life to the land, to restore the waters, to refresh the air.
We join with the earth and with each other to renew the forests, to care for the plants, to protect the creatures.
We join with the earth and with each other to celebrate the seas, to rejoice in the sunlight, to sing the song of the stars.
We join together as many and diverse expressions of one loving mystery: for the healing of the earth and the renewal of life.
We join together and call the Spirit upon the gifts of the earth, bread and wine, as we bless them and remember our call to be the Body of Christ in the world.
On the night before he died, he sat at a table with friends and relived with them his work, his teaching and wisdom of the universe. Then he went among them as servant, washing their feet, touching their hearts.
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, the bread of life for all who hunger. (pause)
Then he took the cup of blessing, spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying:
Take and drink, the Cup of Compassion for a broken world.
Whenever you remember me like this,
I am among you.
What we have heard with our ears, we will live with our lives. As we receive communion we will become communion, both love’s nourishment and love’s challenge.
Please receive communion saying: I am in communion with all of Creation.
Communion Meditation Song: Ode to Earth
All: Mystery of Life present in the whole universe and in the smallest of your creatures, embrace with tenderness all that exists. May the power of divine love pour upon us, that we may protect life and beauty. Help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction. Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards divine light and love. We are thankful for the pulse of life that fills us each day. May we be encouraged and strengthened for our struggle for justice, love, and peace in the world.
Dennis: Let us pray the prayer of Jesus with an eye toward our connection to creation:
Generous Creator, the intricate and elegant biodiversity of our world is your hallowed autograph on our lives, on our souls and in our hearts.
We yearn for the wholeness of being in harmony with Your will and with all living things.
Each day we draw on your creative, life-giving energy with gratitude and awe as we find nourishment in, seed and field, river and forest.
May we be stewards and co-creators with you in caring for the gifts of Your Creation.
We acknowledge our shortcomings, especially our neglect of the environment as we mark Earth Day. We seek to be reconciled with those we have hurt and we resolve to do better.
With your unfailing wisdom and the wind of Your Spirit, inspire us that we may reach out and love one another and care for the world, our home.
Strengthen us to work for local and global justice so that we may one day reap a harvest of equality and fairness as if they were wildflowers, propagating spontaneously, unerringly and in surprising abundance. Amen. Lynn Kinlan
BLESSING
Let us raise our hands and pray our closing blessing:
Let us pray for an end to the
Waste and desecration of God's creation
For access to the fruits of creation
To be shared equally among all people
And for communities and nations to find sustenance
In the fruits of the earth and the water God has given us.
Almighty God, you created the world and gave it
Into our care so that, in obedience to you,
We might serve all people:
Inspire us to use the riches of creation with wisdom,
and to ensure that their blessings are shared by all;
That, trusting in your bounty, all people may be
Empowered to seek freedom from poverty, famine, and oppression. Amen.
- Author Unknown
Closing Song: Mother Earth by Karliene
https://youtu.be/caIo1UGSDgw?si=pxZiUGW_yBuZcrt1
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