Opening Prayer: Here we are at the mid -point of summer. It is a good place to stop and take stock. Are we letting the days drift by in a haze or noticing our Mysterious God of summer inviting us to a deeper seeing?
There is a wildness in your Divine Mystery, my God,
a seeming randomness in the beauty of this world
as well as in every frightening disaster,
an oddness and awesome violence in the process of evolution,
an originality in creation-that outflanks all our expectations.
We would tame you, Free and Holy One, and domesticate you
but the effort fails.
The world you’ve put us into is inexhaustibly awesome and surprising and it speaks of creative forces ever more unknown and unintelligible to us. Wild, Fascinating Artist Creator of everything,
guide our hearts and heads as we speak of you and to you:
we know not who you are, where you are, how you can be what-and whatever-you are.
Rather than seek to break our idols from the past,
give us evermore meaningful bridges of imagination.
True, we will never know you clearly in idols or icons
but we seem to have no other path:
our minds reach out for images,
seeing your “words” everywhere,
spoken in what you have created.
Guide our hearts, Holy Mystery, that they may not be overly grave or compulsively serious.
We would harmonize with your own freedom and randomness,
trusting our future to your perfect care.
You are our God.
ALL: Free Creative Wisdom, guiding, freeing
in you we live and move and have our being.
Summer Petitions (abridged)
May you breathe in the beauty of summer with its power of transformation.
May this beauty permeate all that feels un-beautiful in you.
ALL: May the God of summer give us beauty.
May you seek and find spaces of repose during these summer months.
May these moments refresh and restore the tired places within you.
ALL: May the God of summer give us rest.
May you feel the energy of summer rains penetrating thirsty gardens, golf courses, lawns and farmlands. May these rains remind you that your inner thirst needs quenching. May your inner self be refreshed, restored and renewed,
All: May the God of summer give us what we need for healing.
May you enjoy the unexpected and find surprises of beauty and happiness as you travel the roads on summer vacation.
All: May the God of summer lead us to amazing discoveries as we travel the inner roads of our soul as well.
Petitions: For whom or what would you like to pray?
Leader: We gather these prayers, spoken and unspoken and lift them to the Holy One.
Today is actually the feast day of St Ignatius of Loyola. He was instrumental in showing Ignatian spiritual directors how to invite people to discern the movement of the Spirit within. The closing song is rather reflective and so I invite you to spend a couple minutes allowing yourself sit in the Holy after we say good bye to each other. Ponder your day. Where did you reflect Gods love to yourself or others? Where are there feelings, buttons, or anxiety which needs to be explored?
As evening shadows begin to lengthen and night approaches, we surrender to Holy Mystery who holds us in love.
Closing Song: God Beyond All Names by Bernadette Farrell
Mary Theresa: Last Sunday, we celebrated Mary Magdalene, our Tower of
Strength. Today we continue that celebration focusing on Mary Magdalene’s legacy as first apostle, her lost Gospel and powerful teachings. We welcome our guests, Lisa Ling, Shannon Luibrand and the filming crew from CBS. We also welcome Bridget Mary Meehan who will be leading us in our homily.
And so we pray:
Opening Prayer
Deven: Like Mary Magdalene, we rejoice that our spiritual power to live the Gospel is rooted in the presence of Spirit within each and all of us. Like Mary Magdalene, we rejoice that our oneness with Christ frees us from rules, projections and expectations that limit our ability be a radiant reflection of the Holy One’s love and compassion. Like Mary, our call is to walk with Christ and to love as Christ. All: Amen
Gathering Song: I am willing by Holly Near, video by Donna Panaro, ARCWP
Then Mary arose, embraced them all, and began to speak to her brothers:
“Do not remain in sorrow and doubt, for his Grace will guide you and comfort you.
Instead, let us praise his greatness, for he has prepared us for this.
He is calling upon us to become fully human .
Thus Mary turned their hearts toward the Good, and they began to discuss the meaning of the Teacher’s words.
Peter said "how is it possible that the Teacher talked in this manner with a woman about secrets of which we ourselves are ignorant? Must we change our customs and listen to this woman? Did he really chose her and prefer her to us?"
Then Mary wept, and answered him:
“My brother Peter, what can you be thinking?
Do you believe that this is just my own imagination, that I invented this vision?
Or do you believe that I would lie about our Teacher?”
At this, Levi spoke up: “Peter, you have always been hot-tempered, and now we see you repudiating a woman, just as our adversaries do.
Yet if the Teacher held her worthy, who are you to reject her?
Surely the Teacher knew her very well, for he loved her more than us.
Therefore let us atone, and become fully human so that the Teacher can take root in us.
Let us grow as he demanded of us, and walk forth to spread the gospel, without trying to lay down any rules and laws other than those he witnessed.”
These are passages from the Gospel of Mary and we affirm with, Amen.
Homily: Bridget Mary MeehanHer Legacy is our Legacy
Let us rejoice todayas we celebrate the powerful legacy of Mary Magdalene, our companion on the journey to the full equality of women.
We remember:
Mary’s legacy as Prominent Leader among Jesus’ followers
In Luke 8:1-3 Mary Magdalene heads a list of women who funded Jesus’ mission and who accompanied him around Galilee to his death in Jerusalem.
Even though, Pope Gregory the Great portrayed Mary Magdalene as a sinner in 591, and this false label lasted for centuries, the New Testament never identifies her as a fallen woman.
According to the canonical Gospels, Mary’s legacy was one of accompaniment- being present -taking initiative- participating in- partnership in Jesus ministry.
In the Gospel of Mary, a sacred text discovered in the 19th century, which scholars believe was written around the same time as the Gospel of John, women were teaching and leading in faith communities. Until the discovery of the Gospel of Mary there was no known gospel ascribed to a woman.
We remember:
Mary’s Legacy as Apostle to the Apostles.:
In John’s Gospel, the Risen Christ chose Mary as the apostle to the apostles- to “go and tell” the good news to the other disciples.(John 20:11-18)
St. Thomas Aquinas , Doctor of the Church, called Mary Magdalene a prophet and said that she had the office of an apostle because shewas the first one to see the Risen Christ.
In Eastern Christianity, Mary Magdalene has always been identified “as equal to the apostles. “
In 2016, Pope Francis affirmed St. Mary Magdalene as a "true and authentic evangelizer,"and declared July 22 a feast day on the church's liturgical calendar.
We remember:
Mary’s Legacy as Teacher of Apostles and Theologian in Residence.
In the Gospel of Mary, Mary sharesa vision in which Jesus praises her for her faithfulness and insightful understanding of his teaching.Mary Magdalene offers a legacy of spiritual leadership in which women reshape religious thought and experience with wisdom and creativity.
Scholar Dr. Jane Schaberg writes: “Mary Magdalene can be considered a -or the- founder of Christianity, if one wants to use such a term; that she was a ‘creator of the Christian belief in the resurrection,’ and has a better claim than Paul to the title ‘the first great interpreter of Jesus.’” (Jane Schaberg,The Resurrection of Mary Magdalene, 303)
Mary’s teaching affirmsthe heart of Christ’s teaching is to clothe ourselves with the perfect human. We are human, divine and spiritual equals.
This gospel conveys the idea that direct access to God by anyone is possible through the Spirit. Her theology emphasizes the meaning of the Risen Christ and his role as teacher rather than judge and ruler. No hierarchical order of power, rule -making or enforcing is found in this Gospel.
So today, we carry her legacy as we teach and preach the Gospel of Jesus’ loveand compassion. Our purpose is to experience the infinite love within us in our humanity and divinity that make us whole and transforms our lives. There is no spiritual power outside of us than the voice of the Spirit within us. We are all spiritual equals.
In this Gospel, we see the tension that arises from Peter’s words that still echo in patriarchal power and domination over women in the Church today:
Peter said "how is it possible that the Teacher talked in this manner with a woman about secrets of which we ourselves are ignorant? Must we change our customs and listen to this woman? Did he really chose her and prefer her to us?"
In her book The Resurrection of Mary Magdalene,Dr. Schaberg argues that Mary Magdalene is a successor to Jesus and a challenge to the primacy of Peter. She maintains that it was Peter’s jealousy that blocked Mary’s ascendancy and that a Magdalene Christianity would have been more inclusive and egalitarian and less hierarchical than the 2000 year history of patriarchal domination.
I agree.
We rejoice that Mary Magdalene’s legacy appears in books, films social mediaacross the world. There are thousands of celebrations this week -like Magdalene Rising- occurring this week. Her energy is rising up in the hearts of people everywhere!
We experience her energy when:
- we affirm women’s moral agency and primacy of conscience.
-we ordain women deacons, priests and bishops to serve God’s people in inclusive communities in the Catholic Church!
-we live Jesus’ teachings as spiritual equals- fully human and divine- God’s holy people.
So today, let’s celebrate Mary Magdalene’s legacy in our mutual trust and partnership in Jesus’ mission of promoting God’s inclusive, extravagant love.
May Mary Magdalene’s energy rise up in us and inspire us to create a renewed model of Church, promote justice, the flourishing of humanity, andthe healing of Earth!
Community Sharing: What did you hear in our liturgy today?
Statement of Faith
Mary Theresa: Let us pray our 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
Deven: As we prepare for the sacred meal, we bring to the table our prayers and intentions, beginning with the words I bring to the table.
Deven: We pray for these and all unspoken intentions. Amen.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Mary Theresa: With open hearts and hands let us pray our Eucharistic prayer in one voice.
All: Nurturing One, we are united in this sacrament by Your Love, whose presence we are as we proclaim the liberating power of your Spirit through our humanity and divinity. Your Spirit is rising up in all who work for humanity’s healing and well-being. With thankful hearts, and in the company of all holy women and men, we sing:
Holy, Holy, Holy (adapted from Holy, Holy, Holy by Karen Drucker)
We are Holy, Holy, Holy…3x , You are Holy, Holy, Holy, I am Holy, Holy, Holy, We are Holy, Holy, Holy
All: O Heart of Love, Your Spirit moved through Mary Magdalene as she taught us that we are unified and undivided and in continuous communion with You. Your Spirit moves through the love within us, expanding out in widening circles to embrace all people and creation in our evolving universe.
Mary Theresa: Please extend your hands in blessing.
All: You pour out Your Spirit Sophia anew upon this bread and wine and upon us as we become more deeply the Christ Presence in our 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.
(Lift plate)
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.
(Lift cup)
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.
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.
Mary Theresa: Please receive communion with the words: Go share the Good News!
Communion Song: Beauty of the Dancer by Sara Thomsen
All: O Divine Love, your transforming energy is within us and just as you called Mary Magdalene, you also call us to go forth and to share the good newsrising up within us. May Mary Magdalene, Tower of Strength, accompany us on our journey to live the fullness of our humanity and divinity in every moment of our lives.
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.
Deven: 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
Mary Theresa: Please extend Your hands as we pray our final blessing.
May our lives radiate the love of the Holy One.
May we live justice and equality in our church and world.
May Mary Magdalene be our model of courage and faithful service.
We go forth in the spirit of Mary Magdalene, first apostle,
rejoicing that Love is within us.
celebrating Love outside of us.
We go forth, called to action, to move mountains!
Please join in singing our closing song: Standing on the Shoulders.
Closing Song: Standing on the Shoulders by Earth Mama
