Welcome to the Upper Room two days after All Saints Day. Today we will celebrate All Saints Day with our opening song and connect that to a theme of the “Kindom of God.” As we think about our connection to those who have died along with how we are connected to each other in the Source of All Being, may we be filled with reverence and awe. May this be a celebration of Eternal Oneness.
Opening Prayer:
Gracious and Loving God,
As we join together today, we seek
to remain open to how we can bring love, healing and unity to whomever is in
need. We ask for the grace to see with the eyes of Jesus, touch with the hands
of Jesus and heal with the heart of Jesus. We pray that we will awaken to the
Kindom of God within and around each of us.
Opening Song: All Saints Day by
Carrie Newcomer
https://youtu.be/8BNa6C775bM?si=TvHKTqq_WLUajpAQ
First Reading: Excerpts from Wisdom
Jesus by Cynthia Bourgeault.
Jesus
uses one particular phrase repeatedly: “the Kingdom of Heaven.” You can easily
confirm this yourself by a quick browse through the gospels; the words jump out
at you from everywhere. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like this,” “The Kingdom of
Heaven is like that,” “The Kingdom of Heaven is within you,” “The Kingdom of
Heaven is at hand.” Whatever this Kingdom of Heaven is, it’s of foundational
importance to what Jesus is trying to teach.
So,
what do we take it to be? Biblical scholars have debated this question for
almost as long as there have been biblical scholars. A lot of Christians,
particularly of a more evangelical persuasion, assume that the Kingdom of
Heaven means the place where you go when you die—if you’ve been good.
Jesus
himself specifically contradicts it when he says, “The Kingdom of Heaven is
within you” (that is, here) and “at hand” (that is, now). It’s not later, but
lighter—some more subtle quality or dimension of experience accessible to you
right in the moment. You don’t die into it; you awaken into it.
Jim
Marion’s wonderfully insightful and contemporary suggestion is that the Kingdom
of Heaven is really a metaphor for a state of consciousness; it is not a place
you go to, but a place you come from. It is a whole new way of looking at the
world, a transformed awareness that literally turns this world into a different
place. Marion suggests specifically that the Kingdom of Heaven is Jesus’s own
favorite way of describing a state we would nowadays call a “nondual
consciousness” or “unitive consciousness.”
The
hallmark of this awareness is that it sees no separation—not between God and
humans, not between humans and other humans. And these are indeed Jesus’s two
core teachings, underlying everything he says and does.
These are the inspired words from
Wisdom Jesus by Cynthia Bourgeault and the community affirms them by saying:
Amen.
Gospel Acclamation
https://youtu.be/IC4nbwmQDVw?si=fHu4W4F7Em69XSrM
Gospel: Mark 12:28-34
One of the religious scholars who had listened to them debating and had
observed how well Jesus had answered them, now came up and put a question to
him: “Which is the foremost of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, “This is the foremost: ‘Hear, O Israel, God, our God is
one. You must love the Most High God with all your heart, with all your soul,
with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You must
love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
The scholar said to Jesus, “Well spoken, Teacher! What you have said is
true: the Most High is one and there is no other. To love God with all your
heart, with all your understanding and strength, and to love your neighbor as
your self-this is far more important than any burnt offering or sacrifice.”
Jesus, seeing how wisely this scholar had spoken, said, “You are not far
from the kindom of God.” And after that no one dared to question Jesus anymore.
These are the inspired words from the gospel writer known as Mark and
the community affirms them by saying: Amen.
Shared Homily
Throughout
the gospel of Mark Jesus’s disciples are pictured as not understanding what he
is teaching. In the reading, we hear today, we meet a scribe who does
understand and is seen by Jesus as one who is not far from the Kingdom of God
due to what he understands. To appreciate this passage, we must hear this story
in context. Just before the scribe
speaks about his insights, he witnesses several people questioning Jesus. The
questions are intended to trick Jesus into saying something that is blasphemous
or against the religious laws of the time. The scribe is quite impressed with
the way Jesus handles these questions. In fact, I would say the scribe
experiences profound admiration and inspiration from Jesus’s answers and
message. When Jesus acknowledges the
scribe’s deep understanding he points out how close the scribe is to the
Kingdom of God.
So
that brings us to our theme. In my reflection today I would like to propose the
idea that loving God, loving others, and loving ourselves are not separate
actions. When we let go of the allusions of separation from one another and an
“out there” separate God we experience the Kindom of God. Instead of saying
Kingdom of God we drop the g in Kingdom to change it to Kindom. This is a way
of expanding what we believe Jesus is teaching. Jesus continually turns ideas
of his time upside down. With many years of theological study thousands of
years after Jesus was living on the earth, we drop the g in Kingdom to make a
point that is congruent with the two greatest commandments. Loving God and and
loving your neighbor as yourself means there are no Kings of Israel who defeat
the enemies of the chosen people. Kindom means we all are connected to each
other in the Source of all Being. We experience kinship because we are all
brothers and sisters. The way we connect with God and each other is when we
open fearlessly to love, awe and reverence. It is when we see all people as our
equals. We are a discipleship of equals not a select group of people ruled by a
protector King.
We
like the scribe in the story can be “not far from the Kindom” and I would say
we can even experience the Kindom. Cynthia Bourgeault in our first reading
points to Jim Marion’s description of the Kindom of God being a metaphor for a
state of consciousness. She says this state is not something we die to achieve;
it is something we awaken to. I believe we each have experienced this awakening
from time to time. The awakening is what mystics describe using the word
“oneness.” I think when we experience moments of deep joy, deep connection,
deep reverence or awe, we are experiencing this awakening. We are glimpsing the
Kindom of God. To me our purpose is to awaken and live more and more in this
state of consciousness. I believe that is what we are designed to do and what
it means to be enlightened. We have the capacity to experience and bring the
Kindom of God into being. I think this is where we came from when we were born,
and it is how we fully live as our highest selves. As followers of Jesus, we
have the capacity to awaken to the reality that there is no separateness. There
is only One.
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 compa+ssion,
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
Presider: We now
invite you to share your intentions beginning them with the words: I bring to
the table…
Presider: We pray for these and all unspoken concerns
of our hearts. Amen.
Presider: Let
us join with open hands to pray our Eucharistic prayer together:
All: Source of Love and Light, we join in unity of
Spirit, love and purpose with Your people everywhere, living and crossed over.
With all of creation across billions of galaxies, we open our hearts and souls
to become One.
In your loving embrace we are liberated from division,
fear, conflict, pride and injustice. We are transformed into wholeness which we
resolve to bring to all whose lives we touch. With gratitude, we meld ourselves
Your Divine Presence which knows all, shelters all and transforms all into
love, abundant and eternal.
In one voice, we praise Your loving, healing ways and the
glory of all You have created:
Here in This Place by Christopher Grundy
https://youtu.be/sgkWXOSGmOQ?si=6btL1YI3xAoYmVIi
All: We thank you, Holy One, for Jesus, a man of courage
whose exquisite balance of human and Divine points our way and who strives with
us in our time of need. We yearn with passion to live as Jesus, one with you
and your Spirit, in peace and justice.
May our desire to be one with You join us to all living
things. We seek to heal the differences that isolate us so that we may live in
healthful unity with all people, of every ethnicity, skin color, gender
orientation or class. May we have the imaginative sympathy and love of Your
Spirit to move with courage beyond the confines of bias, miscommunication,
ignorance and hurt and into the healing place where Divine light and love
abide.
Presider: Please extend your hands in blessing
of bread and wine.
All: Together, we call on Your Spirit, present in these
gifts - bread that satisfies our hunger and wine that quenches our thirst – to
make us more deeply One, living in the fullness of holy compassion and Sophia
wisdom.
Anticipating the likelihood of betrayal, arrest and pain,
Jesus wanted more than anything to be with his friends, to share a meal,
exchange stories and create fond memories. To strengthen the bonds of
friendship that evening, Jesus washed the feet of his friends in an act of love
and humility.
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, this is my
very self.
Lift their cups.
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. (pause)
Please receive communion with the
words: We are One
Communion Song: It’s not Far to
Another Heart
https://youtu.be/qQ8kXEtlKhQ?si=z5kz5Jo5A7DGIyr2
Presider: Let us join with disciples of all ages to
pray together:
O Holy One, who is 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 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 (Miriam Therese
Winter)
Closing Blessing: Presider: Please raise your hands in
blessing and join together in our closing prayer:
Through Sophia Wisdom make us
instruments of peace. Where there is hate let us bring love. Where there is
injury let us bring pardon. Where there is discord let us bring union. Where
there is error let us bring truth. Where there is doubt let us bring faith. And
where there is despair let us bring hope. Amen.
Closing Song: We
Shall Overcome: Love Will Rise Again
https://youtu.be/S6FN0EmK87c?si=j8Yq4_0xDs6memg3
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