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Epiphany, January 4th, 2026
Welcome: To all weary travelers, welcome. Rest. Be at Peace. Know that we are all on this road together. Whether you are here in person, online in Zoom, or watching later, we are all together supporting each other and gifting each other with love and attention. And we can be rest assured that God is with us. Welcome travelers to your very own space here at the Upper Room.
Opening Prayer: We see the beauty all around us, whether it is sun and sand, wind and cold, snow and rain, plant, animal, birds, humans, trees swaying – and we thank you Creator for your love for us. Thank you for every goodness that you give us to be here on this planet. And thank you for being with us in this sacred space as we are here. Help us to remember to thank you every day and to listen to each other in kindness, patience and love. Amen.
Opening song: Take us Home By Another Way - Christopher Grundy
https://youtu.be/dkZ1JJlJa14?si=oa4uISVCSZJMYo3c
LITURGY OF THE WORD
First Reading: The Road Ahead by Thomas Merton
My Lord God I have no idea where I am going, I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot see for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore, I will trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Inspired words from Thomas Merton, and we affirm them with, Amen.
Gospel Acclamation: Hallelujah Amen. Handel
https://youtu.be/Fw9R5RJus-Y?list=RDiD826scFVoU
Epiphany Reading: A reading from the anonymous author known as Matthew (Mt 2:1-12)
After the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem in Judea, in the reign of King Herod, some magi from the East arrived in Jerusalem, asking: “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.”
When King Herod heard of this, he was much troubled, and so, too, was all Jerusalem. He called together all the chief priests and teachers of the Law in the nation, and questioned them as to where the Christ was to be born. “At Bethlehem in Judea,” was their answer; “for it is said in the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem in Judah’s land, are in no way least among the chief cities of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler— who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Then Herod secretly sent for the magi, and found out from them the date of the appearance of the star; and, sending them to Bethlehem, he said: “Go and make careful inquiries about the child, and, as soon as you have found him, bring me word so that I, too, can go and worship him.”
The magi heard what the king had to say, and then continued their journey. The star which they had seen in the east led them on, until it reached and stood over the place where the child was.
At the sight of the star they were filled with great joy. Entering the house, they saw the child with his mother, Mary, and fell at his feet and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and offered to the child presents of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
But afterward, having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by another road.
This is a reading from the Writer known as Matthew, and we affirm this story with a resounding, Amen.
(From The New, New Testament by Hal Tausig, et. al.)
Homily starter – Deb Trees
Epiphany is the ultimate awareness of a new idea. The Ah-ha moment. The opening of our minds to what is possible.
We come to this weekend from the beautiful liturgy of last week going in concentric circles of close family to expansive cosmic experience. But here we are intimate with a child and visitors and gifts. And realization. This child is here for All.
Matthew in his gospel writings is one concentrating on the Jewishness of Jesus. Commentary in the New New Testament about the Gospel of Matthew mentions his sharing of Jesus and Jewish practices and rituals. More than the other gospel writers, Matthew highlights these cultural aspects of Jesus’s time. Yet here we have foreign dignitaries honoring this little person and his family. The Holy One brings a sense of heaven to this earth through this beautiful child and his parents, and to the world. There is an intimacy here that zeroes in on the Holy One’s love of humanity and gifts that go beyond gold, incense and myrrh. There is in this Holy story a sense of the Love that is here for each of us.
The Song of God Among Us. This is our closing song, and the words are noted at the end of our liturgy today.
How beautiful, the expansiveness of being in the cosmos, and at the same time being precious in the sight of the Creator. Enough that the Creator is living with us.
May each of us experience the Holy One in our lives this week and bring that sense of Epiphany to each person whose lives we touch.
Our prayer is to remain precious in the sight of the Creator and to know our blessedness and holy nature intimately.
What did you hear, dear friends? Please share your insights and wisdom.
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
Deb: 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….”
Presider 1: We pray for these and all unspoken concerns. Amen.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Steve: 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: 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.
Nita: 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.
Presiders stand at table, Presider lifts 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.
Presider lifts the cup as community prays the following:
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.
All: Bread and wine is 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.
As we celebrate and recognize You in this bread and wine we love and recognize you in each other. We are filled with gratitude and joy. Glory and Praise to you now and forever. Amen
Deb: Please share the bread with the words: You are chosen and loved by the Holy One.
Communion Song: Holy Angels by Sara Thomsen
All:
Through Jesus, we have learned how to live.
Through Jesus, we have learned how to love.
Through Jesus, we have learned how to serve.
Steve: Let us pray our communion prayer together:
All: 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.
Nita: Let us pray together the prayer of Jesus:
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 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
Deb: Please extend your hands and pray our blessing together
May we continue to be the Face of God to each other. May the certainty of our connectedness to one another and all creation ignite us to love more fully. May we, like Jesus be a shining light and a blessing in our time. All: Amen.
Closing song: Song of God Among Us, St. Petronille Contemporary Choir.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM9Tr2F_Bos&authuser=0
Lest the Word be far from us.
God prepared his coming.
One who longed to share our fates.
Made with us his dwelling.
In the midst of you is one you do not know.
Who is everywhere at hand.
Who is wholly human.
One who goes unrecognized.
Silent never spoken.
In the midst of you is one you do not know.
God from god and light from light.
Hope of earth’s sad crying.
Face to face with humankind.
Speaks of love and dying.
Then let patience be your guide.
Walk in ways of justice.
Show each other at all time.
Every kind of goodness.
In the midst of you is one you do not know.
Now is every full Of joy.
God alone who calls us.
Touches all who live on earth.
Makes a home among us.
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