Opening Prayer
The Flames of Love by Kimi Floyd Reisch,
2021
To stand with and work to create change,
Until all know they are beloved.
We light the flame of survival,
Grateful for our lives,
Remembering in love those lost along the road.
We light the flame of change,
Committing to recenter toward love,
In hearts, in minds, in our world.
We light the flame of hope,
Loving each other, building community,
even when it is uncomfortable.
We light the flame of knowledge,
Following the path of justice,
Justice that is love embodied.
We light this flame of radical love.
To speak out for those who have been silenced.
Those who have been rejected for who they love.
Those who have been persecuted for who they are.
Those who have been bullied for daring to be bold.
Those who have been othered and forced into the margins.
Those who have been lonely.
Those who have been hurt.
Those who are still hurting.
We light this flame as
a people committed,
we are survivors.
we will change the world,
until no one lives without hope,
until no one lives without justice.
We light this flame and pledge that
In love, with love, and through love,
All things are possible. Amen
Opening Song: Whoever You Are by Hal Walker
https://youtu.be/1Tk0eQdsuZg?si=NnalznWDZrZExlSJ
LITURGY OF THE WORD
Reading 1: A reading from
Richard Rohr
Jesus didn’t want his community to have
a social ethic; he wanted it to be a social ethic. Their very way of relating
was to be an affront to the system of dominance and power; it was to name
reality in a new way. They were to live in a new symbolic universe. This radical
idea is given in a simple clue found throughout the Christian Scriptures—one
that biblical scholars overlooked until only recently: Jesus’ presence with
others at table.
That theme is so constant in the
Christian Scriptures that scholars today see it as central to Jesus’ message.
Jesus never appears to be pushing what we call social programs. He is much more
radical. He calls us to a new social order in which we literally share table
differently!
The mystery of sharing food and a common
table takes place on different levels. First, there’s the unifying idea of
sharing the same food. Then, there is the whole symbolism of the table itself:
where we sit at the table and how the table is arranged. Together, the food and
table become a symbol of how our social world is arranged. Once we rearrange
life around the table we begin to change our notions of social life. That, I
believe, was Jesus’ most consistent social action: eating in new ways! In the
midst of that eating, he announced the reign of God and talked in new ways.
It’s necessary to calculate very
carefully what was lost and what was gained as Christianity developed. The
church moved from Jesus’ real meal with open table fellowship to its
continuance in the relatively safe ritual meal that became the Christian Eucharist.
Unfortunately, the meal itself came to redefine social reality in a negative
way, in terms of worthiness and unworthiness.
That is almost exactly the opposite of
Jesus’ intention.
These are inspired words from Richard
Rohr and we affirm them with, Amen.
Reading 2: A reading adapted
from a speech by Rabbi Adam Rosenwasser
One
of the most important teachings of the torah is v’ahavta l’reacha
kamocha, love your neighbor as yourself. There are no ifs ands or
buts. We are commanded to love all members of the fabulous human family.
In the creation account of the Book of Genesis, God creates us betzelem elohim,
in God’s image. That means that all of us, no matter our race, religion,
gender, gender identity, nationality, economic status, disability, or sexual
orientation — are reflections of the Divine Being who created us all.
Therefore, when we act with love and compassion toward one another, we become
holy. But holiness is not enough. Being holy means we become aware
of our task, to fix this broken world. The biblical prophets urge us on
with their words, “Justice, justice shall you pursue.” Pursuing justice means
that we will keep working until our objectives are achieved, until we gain full
civil rights for all, including marriage equality and non-discrimination
protections across our country.
Each
one of us carries the divine spark within, and when these sparks come together,
be they two sparks in marriage, or many more sparks in community, there is that
much more godliness in the world. Bigotry prevents the sparks from
uniting, from joining with other sparks. Bigotry and hatred keep people in
their shells, afraid. Bigotry is the absence of justice. So
pursuing justice means dealing with bigotry head on. It means educating
others about the diversity and beauty of God’s creation. It means not
being afraid of ourselves. It means letting our sparks shine as bright as
they can, for where there is light, there is hope, and justice penetrates the
dark, Baruch atah adonai, elohaynu melech haolam, she’asanu betzelem elohim.
Praised are you our God, ruler of the universe, who has made all of us in
your image, as amazing, awesome, and wonderful creations.
These
are inspired words of Rabbi Adam Rosenwasser, and we affirm them with, Amen.
Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia by W. Clifford Petty
https://youtu.be/WYJajwW9Zhc?si=jYBsRQLkEGSULE93
Gospel: A reading from the Gospel attributed to
Mark
One of the religion scholars came up.
Hearing the lively exchanges of question and answer and seeing how sharp Jesus
was in his answers, he put in his question: “Which is most important of all the
commandments?” Jesus said, “The first in importance is, ‘Listen, Israel: The
Lord your God is one; so love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and
intelligence and energy.’ And here is the second: ‘Love others as well as you
love yourself.’ There is no other commandment that ranks with these.” The religion
scholar said, “A wonderful answer, Teacher! So clear-cut and accurate—that God
is one and there is no other. And loving him with all passion and intelligence
and energy, and loving others as well as you love yourself. Why, that’s better
than all offerings and sacrifices put right on the border of God’s kindom.”
We affirm these inspired words from the
Gospel attributed to Mark with, Amen.
Peterson, Eugene H.. The
Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language . The Navigators. Kindle Edition.
Reflections on the Word
Richard
Rohr explains Jesus’ call for a social ethic to “share the table differently”, that it be a table that
is open to all. And Rohr continues that, unfortunately, over the centuries,
even in the early days of the church, that openness became based on whether
someone was worthy or not. It has continued to our current time, with certain
groups being dismissed, and being ostracized for behavior deemed unworthy.
When
we pray our intentions each week, we begin with the words, “I bring to the
table”. This is something that was introduced to us by Diarmuid O’Murchu at a
retreat a number of us attended in the early days of the Upper Room. It seems
to connect very well with the message in Rohr’s reading. It is the table around
which we gather weekly as a community committed to following the way of Jesus.
We share the bread each week, a recognition of the common bond we hold, as we
strive to fulfill Jesus’ command to love one another and to recognize the
sanctity in each of us. In this sharing, we are also strengthened for the work
ahead of us, which we hear of in our second reading.
Rabbi
Rossenwasser, starts with the torah teaching, love your neighbor as
yourself. As we know, Jesus was very
aware of his Jewish scripture, thus his sharing in today’s Gospel of this very
teaching. The Rabbi shares another teaching that we are all made in the image
of the Divine. And as reflections of the Divine we are called to “love and
compassion”, in order to heal the world and seek justice for all those who are
seen as less then, are ostracized, are banished. Our sisters and brothers of
the LGBTQ community are a group that continues to face discrimination and are
now threatened with turning back the gains that have been made to undo
centuries of mistreatment and to deny their dignity and right to live the life
they choose.
The
struggle for justice is a continuous task, and one made difficult by the
bigotry and hate that exists in our world. That can often inhibit us from
stepping forward and speaking out. But
by coming together at the table, recognizing each other’s divine nature
and combining our sparks of the Divine, we are strengthened to stand with our
LGBTQ sisters and brothers, crying out for justice and the recognition of the
dignity and sanctity of every single person.
Corey Herlevsen, a former Mennonite
pastor states, “Everybody knows the phrase, ‘God is love’ but when we really
let that sink in, when we embrace it, when we are real and present to each
other and to God, the sparks of truth within us can catch on fire. We can
become a little freer, then a little freer again. Love can have the run of the
place. And we don’t have to sit around wringing our hands or hiding our face
because we are afraid of being judged and told that we are not enough. We are
enough. We each bear the image of God, and we are in this thing together.
Relax. Because in Christ we are all in the same room and we don’t need to be
afraid.”
Let us, as members of the Upper Room,
continue to make real the meal of Jesus, at the open table, inviting all to
share in the Divine Presence found in the common bond of love of God and love
of neighbor. In doing so we take a step closer to bringing justice and
compassion to the world in which we live.
Please share what spoke to you in
today’s readings or in my reflection, since we also break open the Word while
gathered at table.
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
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 blessings, cares, and concerns held in the silence of our
hearts. AMEN
LITURGY OF
THE EUCHARIST
(Eucharistic
Prayer by Michael Coffey with adaptation by Dennis)
Please join in the praying of the
Eucharistic Prayer:
Holy God of wonder, you created light
that shines through clouds with every color.
Through Noah you made your promise to love all humanity no matter what by
revealing your expansive rainbow. Through your people you revealed your will that
loving you alone leads us to love our neighbors. When some of our neighbors
were rejected and neglected you sent prophets to call us back to full inclusion
of all persons at blessed tables of bread, wine, and friendship. We join prophets today with
a song of thanksgiving and praise:
Holy, Holy, Holy by Karen Drucker video by Denise Hackert-Stoner
https://youtu.be/u5E5f38w0K0
You revealed the
fullness of your love in Jesus of Nazareth, who loved all persons in their
human dignity, who forgave us for our failure to see your image in all genders,
all sexualities, all colors, who suffered in solidarity with all the rejected, who
inspires us now to celebrate love in all its wonderful forms, who fills us with
pride and gratitude for being born this way, and for being made new in endless
grace.
Please raise your hands in blessing
Send
now your life-giving Spirit upon this gathering of queer and straight, wondering
and wonderful. Let the fire of your love reveal once again your rainbow of love
in our lives.
Bless this bread and wine so that as we are loved in Christ here and now, we
have courage and strength to embrace those feeling unloved, to advocate for
those still facing rejection, seeking justice, reconciliation, and healing in
families, in churches, in societies, in governments. Unite us at this table of
grace, so that each of us knows we are cherished by you, and we love each of
your beloved.
We
ask you to awaken anew in our hearts the empowering grace of your abundant
Spirit, who infuses these gifts of bread and wine with the transforming energy
of life,
to nourish and sustain us in our time of need.
(lift bread as community prays the following:)
Jesus took the bread
and broke it, to restore the unity of our broken world. Jesus blessed you, God
of healing and hope, then Jesus shared the bread with those at table saying:
Take
and eat, the bread of life for all who hunger for peace and justice.
lift the cup as community prays the following
After
the meal, he then raised the cup of blessing poured in a spirit of solidarity
and empowerment, spoke the grace, and offered them the wine 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 share communion, we become communion,
both Love’s nourishment and love’s challenge.
Today,
I am going to ask those who are able to come to the table to receive communion,
as a sign of our common bond of love and the invitation that all are welcome.
Receive
the Bread of Life and the Cup of Compassion with the words,
I
am made in the image of the Divine.
Communion Song: For Everyone Born - Shirley Erena
Murray - Communion
https://youtu.be/cdOvOXEiss0?si=NCDr7CQeMZQgSAXe
Post-Communion Prayer
God of stunning diversity,
receive our thanksgiving
as Jesus receives each of us in his embrace, that we can say:
This my body:
Passionate, struggling
Broken, healing
Tempted, steadfast
This is my body:
Alive in the margins
Black, brown, yellow, pink
Lesbian, gay, bi
Male, female, trans, queer
Rich, poor, hungry, lost
This is my body:
Loving, laughing
Aging, newborn
Thirsty, satisfied
Aching, strong
Feed us with hope now
so that we may continue our journey
of loving who we love
and seeking your just society
until all creation shines with your praise,
O God, through Christ, by your Spirit,
in the beloved community
now and forever.
Amen.
Carol Wise, Executive
Director, BMC (Brethren Mennonite Council for LGBT Interests), All Along the
Arc: Worship and Ritual for Welcoming Communities (Minneapolis: BMC, 2017),
9-10.
FINAL
BLESSING
Loving God, You made humanity in your
likeness. Each and every human identity, in all our sexual and gender
diversity, in all our racial and cultural diversity – we
bear Your sacred image. Press us, compel
us, inspire us to fully live the power and
beauty of this truth every day.
We marvel in awe of the expansiveness of
your creation. Your margins of diversity are boundless, and for that, we thank
you. Every Queer and Trans sibling, and every sibling of color are beautifully
and wonderfully made, all in Your image. Teach us to love people, just as they
are, and embrace their identity fully, as you have embraced us. In the name of
the extravagantly loving, table turning, disruptive One we call Jesus, we pray.
Amen.
Proud Anglicans of
Huron: Pride Liturgical Resources 2022
Closing Song: Draw the Circle Wide by Gordon Light,
Mark Miller – Closing Song
https://youtu.be/PcIQrWOYug8?si=io_cFxRICBmCH_vk
