We open our precious time together this evening with a verse from the gospel reading for today: “I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy One, keep those you have given me true to your name, so that they may be one like us.” (John 17:11)May this heartfelt prayer attributed to Jesus remind us that like our dear brother, we too are one with the Divine and with one another.
Reading
The Eternal One has come forth and has taken on form and manifestation in the whole of creation: humans, animals, plants, elements, the galaxies, and all the endless forms and faces that have come forth from God. Everything in creation is the infinite self-emptying of God, and as such has inherent dignity and deserves respect and appreciation. (Richard Rohr, “Just This”)
Prayer of Oneness
Our response will be “In the Holy One we are one.”
As individuals maintaining our own identities, with our own gifts and shadows, our own joys and sorrows, our own dreams and fears…..In the Holy One we are one.
As a living community of human beings, with our discoveries and disasters, our trials and errors, our compassion and cruelty…..In the Holy One we are one.
As the biosphere of planet Earth, with its sun and rain, growth and death, forests and deserts, plants and animals…..In the Holy One we are One.
As an ever-expanding Universe, with its stars and planets, light and dark, creation and destruction…..In the Holy One we are one.
Please join us between 9:30 and 9:55 am via Zoom Here is the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82512159155 phone-in for (audio only).Phone Number: (646) 558-8656 Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
Welcome
Julie: Good morning and welcome to the Upper Room Inclusive Catholic Community. We are so happy that you are here with us this morning. Our theme today is celebrating our mystical oneness in the Cosmic Christ and all the gifts that brings.
Opening Prayer
Mary: Creator God, you have made us from stardust, each of us holy and unique. We all have individual gifts to share. May people everywhere see evidence of our spiritual gifts at work in our everyday lives as we, like the stars, bring light to dark places.
All: Amen.
Julie: Please join in singing our song of peace. Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi by Sinead O'Connor
https://youtu.be/f8pZ6EFlstc
Liturgy of the Word
First Reading
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles:
In my earlier account, Theophilus, I dealt with everything that Jesus had done and taught, from the beginning until the day he was taken up, after he had given instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After the Passion, Jesus appeared alive to the apostles—confirmed through many convincing proofs—over the course of forty days, and spoke to them about the reign of God.
On one occasion, Jesus told them not to leave Jerusalem. “Wait, rather, for what God has promised, of which you have heard me speak,” Jesus said. “John baptized with water, but within a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
While meeting together they asked, “Has the time come, Rabbi? Are you going to restore sovereignty to Israel?”
Jesus replied, “It’s not for you to know the times or dates that Abba God has decided. You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; then you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.”
Having said this, Jesus was lifted up in a cloud before their eyes and taken from their sight. They were still gazing up into the heavens when two messengers dressed in white stood beside them. “You Galileans—why are you standing there looking up at the skies?” they asked. “Jesus, who has been taken from you—this same Jesus will return in the same way you watched him go into heaven.”
These are inspired words from the Acts of the Apostles and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
Second Reading
A reading from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians:
I plead with you, then, in the name of our Redeemer, to lead a life worthy of your calling. Treat one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the peace that binds you together. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called into one hope when you were called. There is one Savior, one faith, one baptism, one God and Creator of all, who is over all, who works through all and is within all.
Each of us has received God’s grace in the measure in which Christ has bestowed it.
And to some, the gift they were given is that they should be apostles; to some, prophets; to some, evangelists; to some, pastors and teachers. These gifts were given to equip fully the holy ones for the work of service, and to build up the body of Christ—until we all attain unity in our faith and in our knowledge of the Only Begotten of God, until we become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
These are the inspired words of the anonymous storyteller we call Paul and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
Alleluia
Gospel
A reading from the gospel of Mark:
Then Jesus told them, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation.
“The one who believes it and is baptized will be saved; the one who refuses to believe it will be condemned. Signs such as these will accompany those who have professed their faith: in my name they will expel demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will be able to handle poisonous snakes; if they drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; and the sick upon whom they lay their hands will recover.”
Then, after speaking to them, the savior was taken up into heaven and seated at God’s right hand. The disciples went forth and preached everywhere. Christ worked with them and confirmed their message through the signs which accompanied them.
These are the inspired words of the anonymous storyteller we call Mark and the community affirms them by saying AMEN.
Shared Homily
Julie: In our first reading, the apostles ask Jesus if this is the time; he’s conquered death so is now when he’s going to restore the sovereignty of Israel? Because after all this time, this is what they thought he was about. Instead, he sends them to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. And he doesn’t stick around to give them a crash course in what that means. He doesn’t need to. Because, as our second and third readings tell us, they were all gifted. We are all gifted. Not gifted in a cookie cutter way but in a rich variety, as individual as the faces on this screen. Teacher, prophet, snake handler (please leave the snakes home when we meet in person again!), healer—there is not a single gift or role that marks a follower of Jesus. Instead, we bring ourselves and our unique gifts to The Way.
In modern times, the gifts that enrich our community may be a little different— webmaster, musician, Zoom host, singer, vetting committee member, Board officer, deacon, crafter, priest, community member to name but a few—but each adds to the beauty of our Sunday morning mosaic and to the richness of our community. No one person has all the answers today any more than those Galileans staring up into the sky long after Jesus was gone. So how do we do it? How are we his witnesses to the ends of the earth? How do we live out The Way of Jesus using the gifts we have?
We would love for you to share your gifts and insights with us this morning. Please unmute yourself to share briefly on this morning’s readings. What did you hear? What will you do? What will it cost you?
Mary: Thank you for sharing your wisdom and insights with us this morning.
Please join in proclaiming our Statement of Faith.
Lynn and Bernie: 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.
Dennis: As we prepare for this sacred meal we remember that just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us. We bring to this table our blessings, our gratitude and our cares and concerns.
We bring to the table…..
Dennis: We pray for these and all unspoken prayers and blessings. Amen.
Liturgy of the Eucharist
Presider 2: Please join in praying the Eucharist prayer together:
Ever gentle God, as co-creators of our planet, we offer you the gifts of bread, wine and our lives. May we celebrate our oneness with all creatures great and small in your precious family.
As one with You, we gather as a community to celebrate your gift of life pulsating within and around us and in the glories of nature everywhere.
O Birthing God, you stirred the waters of creation; you dwell on earth, and in every living being. We lift up our hearts to you and with thanks and praise we sing:
Holy, Holy, Holy
Here in This Place by Christopher Grundy
https://youtu.be/sgkWXOSGmOQ
Julie: We thank you for our brother, Jesus, who showed us so simply, so tenderly, how the world is in our hands. He had nothing in this world but your love, companions on the journey, and his very self. Together, that was more than enough, and that remains our clarity in the midst of confusion: the miracle of healing, new hope, nurturance, nourishment, liberation and life.
Please extend your hands in blessing.
All: We invoke Your Spirit upon the gifts of this Eucharistic table, bread of the grain and wine of the grape, that they may become gifts of wisdom, light and truth which remind us of our call to be the body of Christ to the world.
On the night before he faced his own death and for the sake of living fully, Jesus sat at the Seder supper with his companions and friends. He reminded them of all that he taught them, and to fix that memory clearly within them, he bent down and washed their feet.
All lift their plate and pray the following:
On the night before he died, while at supper with his friends, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to them saying,
Take and eat; this is my very self.
All lift their cup and pray the following:
Mary: He then raised high 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 become communion
Both Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge.
Please receive communion with the words: You are the face of God.
Communion Meditation: The Face of God by Karen Drucker
https://youtu.be/OPT7687_yko
Mary: Christ of the Cosmos, we thank you that there are 18 galaxies for every person, that our bodies are made of stardust. Every place we turn, you are present, loving us. You call us, “beloved” and invite us to join the dance of creation in a mystical celebration of our oneness with all living things in your divine love.
Christ of the Cosmos, we rejoice that You, who are more than we can imagine or dream of, dwell in mystery beyond all comprehension. We remember that it was you, who said: “Anything I have done in the name of the Holy One, you can do, too…and even more.”
Christ of the Cosmos, we remember Mary, mother of Jesus, faithful disciple and St. Francis who sang canticles to brother sun and sister moon. We remember our sisters and brothers, the great cloud of witnesses who have cared for earth’s creatures and have blessed our world with their loving service to God’s people.
We praise you in union with them
we awaken to your Spirit within,
Moving us to worship you truly,
O Holy One,
At this time and all time and in all ways.
Amen.
Christina: Let us pray together the prayer of Jesus:
Adapted from Miriam Therese Winter
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.
Oh, 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. Blessed be!"
Concluding Rite
Julie: Lover of the Universe, we are full of awe at your extravagant love flowing through all living things. We immerse ourselves in the beauty of nature that surrounds us each day. We are one with our brother Jesus, in union with the Holy Spirit.
ALL: Amen
Mary: Christ of the Cosmos is with us.
ALL: And loves through us.
Mary: Please extend your hands in praying the blessing:
ALL: The blessing of God is upon us as we go in the peace of the Cosmic Christ to live justice! May the gift of miracles find us living in appreciation of God's miraculous power and purpose in daily life. Help us to apply our gifts where they will have the greatest impact. Thanks be to God.
Opening prayer: Holy One, we celebrated Easter just 6 weeks ago and yet our wonderful celebration seems far away. We go about our daily routine, perhaps forgetting, perhaps living unaware, distracted and worried about everyday life. We gather tonight to remember and encourage each other to live as followers of The Way.
Two of Jesus’ disciples were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus, and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred. And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you discussing as you walk along?” They stopped, looking downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?” And he replied to them, “What sort of things?” They said to him, “The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over to a sentence of death and crucified him. But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel; and besides all this, it is now the third day since this took place. Some women from our group, however, have astounded us: they were at the tomb early in the morning and did not find his Body; they came back and reported that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who announced that he was alive. Then some of those with us went to the tomb and found things just as the women had described, but him they did not see.” And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Anointed One should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures. As they approached the village to which they were going, he gave the impression that he was going on farther. But they urged him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. And it happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?” So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem.
Reflection
Intentions
Brother Jesus you walk every path of life with us.
We recognize you in the nurse, in the doctor, in the medical staff.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize you in the visitor, in our family, in our friends.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize you in the grocery store worker and all essential workers.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize you in the school bus driver and the teaching staff.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize you in our love for one another.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize you in those who hurt us, in those who cannot love us.
Amen, let it be so.
Even if you are hidden under the disguise of fear and pain we recognize you.
Amen, let it be so.
We recognize and are always grateful for your presence.
Emmaus always happens.Amen, let it be so.
Closing prayer:Let us remember and be aware that we are each a disciple of Jesus.“Were not our hearts burning within us”.He lived and died so we may know the Way. Amen.
Judy: Today we celebrate Mother’s Day on this 6th Sunday of Easter. Let’s us remember our mothers and anyone who nurtured us on the way.Our readings today remind us of the many ways we love and care for one another.
Kathie: Let us pray:Holy One, we are in awe of the birthing and mothering that occurs in all of nature. We experience your love as we care for one another.May we always be aware of how you taught us to love.Amen.
Barb P: A reading from The Monastic Way by Joan Chittister
It is the spirituality of creation—our affinity, our care, for the rest of creation—that really stretches us to the wholeness of ourselves and to the wholeness of God, as well.
Only when we see ourselves, humans, as part of creation, rather than as the crown of creation, will we ever be able to come anywhere close to really grasping the greatness of God and God’s gifts to us. Only then will we begin to see the glowing face of God everywhere. Only then will we begin to understand that we are all meant to come to fullness of life together—plants, animals, planet, and humans in one great reciprocal circle of a common creation. Until we do, all of us will go on living life with spiritual blinders.
These are the inspired words of Joan Chittister, a daughter of the Holy One.The community affirms these words by saying AMEN.
Mary B: A reading from Meister Eckhart: Love Does That
All day long a little burro labors, sometimes with heavy loads on her back, sometimes just with worries about things that bother only burros.
And worries, as we know, can be more exhausting them physical labor.
Once in a while a kind monk comes to her stable and brings a pear, but more than that, he looks into the burro’s eyes and touches her ears and for a few seconds the burro is free and even seems to laugh, because love does that.Love frees.
These are in the inspired words of Meister Eckhart, a son of the Holy One.The community affirms these words by saying AMEN!
Dennis: Alleluia
Eleanor: A reading from the Gospel of John
“As my Abba loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.
And you will live on in my love if you keep my commandments, just as I live in Abba God’s love and have kept God’s commandments. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Abba God. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask of Abba God in my name God may give you. This I command you: love one another.”
These are the inspired words of John, a disciple of the Holy One. The community affirms these words by saying AMEN!
Shared Homily - Kathleen Ryan
Our gospel reading today is another very familiar reading, sometimes known as ‘The Last Discourse.”It is the last time the disciples are gathered together in a room with Jesus.Jesus sums up his life and ministry with two familiar phrases: Remain in my love and love one another.So easy to remember and so easily said. Thephrase, “remain in my love” struck me. How do I remain in love? A few translations of this scripture passage said, “live in my love”.The best translation for me was “persist in my love”.Persist says, keep trying, don’t give up, commit and walk the path one step, one loving act at a time.
The Meister Eckhart and Joan Chittister readings put some ‘meat on those bones’ the ‘how’ we remain or persist in his love and love one another.
Joan Chittister describes the spirituality of creation as the path to love. When we acknowledge we are each “part of creation”, not the crown of creation, we begin to grasp “the greatness of God” and we see the “glowing face of God everywhere.” When we share communion at liturgy we frequently say the prayer “you are the face of God.” This prayer is even more meaningful if we recognize and remember we are talking about ourselves as well. Together with the plants, animals, the planet we “come to the fullness of life.”To come to the fullness of life we need everything, everyone, every part of creation.
Meister Eckhart makes it even more simple.At times we are the burros, laboring, worrying, and exhausted.Then someone brings us a gift of love: looks in our eyes, touches us and for a few moments we know we are loved.Sometimes we are the monks.We bring food to the pantries, help our neighbor, listen to a friend who is suffering. We protest and stand in solidarity with the marginalized, pray for one another,and gather at liturgy to be a community of love. To come to the fullness of life we must be the monk while never forgetting we are also the burro.
We are here for each other, we need each other. Remain in his love and love one another.
What resonated for you in these readings? Please remember to unmute to share.
Santa: Let us pray our Statement of Faith together
All: We believe in one God, 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 God's Word, bringer of God's healing, heart of God's compassion, bright star in the firmament of God's prophets, mystics, and saints.
We believe that We are called to follow Jesus as a vehicle of God's love, a source of God's wisdom and truth, and an instrument of God's peace in the world.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
The life of God that is our innermost life,
the breath of God moving in our being.
The depth of God living in each of us.
We believe that God's 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.
Eucharistic Prayer of Belonging
Dennis: As we prepare for the sacred meal, we bring to this table our blessings, cares and concerns.
We pray for these and all unspoken intentions. Amen.
Judy:We are a priestly people. We are anointed. With open hands let us pray our Eucharistic prayer as one voice:
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:
Kathie: 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.
Kathie: 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.
Judy: On the night before he died, Jesus gathered for the Seder 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.
All lift the plate and pray:
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.
(Pause)
All lift the cup and pray:
Kathie: Then he took the cup of blessing, spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying:
Take and drink.
Whenever you remember me like this,
I am among you.
By Your Spirit we are transformed.Every time we share this bread and wine we choose to be transformed. We choose to love as You love us.
Through him, we have learned how to live.
Through him, we have learned how to love.
Through him, we have learned how to serve.
AMEN.
Please receive communion saying: I will remain in Your Love.
Judy: Loving Source of our being, You call us to live the Gospel of peace and justice. We live justly, we love tenderly, we walk with integrity in Your Presence.
Lynn W: 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
Judy: Closing Prayer
Nurturing one
We thank you for the earth’s vegetation enfolded in your warmth.
We thank you for earth’s creatures encircled in your loving arms.
We thank you for all those women and men who mothered us.
May we always remain in your everlasting community of love. Amen
BLESSING
Judy: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 those who nurtured us be remembered with love today and always.May we, like Jesus, persist in love and be a blessing for all.
A Litany of Women for the Church by Joan Chittister
Holy One, creator of women in your own image, born of a woman in the midst of a world half women, carried by women to mission fields around the globe, made known by women to all the children of the earth, give to the women of our time the strength to persevere, the courage to speak out, the faith to believe in you beyond all systems and institutions so that your face on earth may be seen in all its beauty, so that men and women become whole, so that the church may be converted to your will in everything and in all ways.
We call on the holy women who went before us, channels of Your Word in testaments old and new, to intercede for us so that we might be given the grace to become what they have been for Your honor and glory.
Saint Esther, who pleaded against power for the liberation of the people, –Pray for us.
Saint Judith, who routed the plans of men and saved the community,
Saint Deborah, laywoman and judge, who led the people of God,
Saint Elizabeth of Judea, who recognized the value of another woman,
Saint Mary Magdalene, minister of Jesus, the first evangelist of the Christ,
Saint Scholastica, who taught her brother Benedict to honor the spirit above the system,
Saint Hildegard, who suffered interdict for the doing of right,
Saint Joan of Arc, who put no law above the law of God,
Saint Clare of Assisi, who confronted the pope with the image of woman as equal,
Saint Julian of Norwich, who proclaimed for all of us the motherhood of God,
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, who knew the call to priesthood in herself,
Saint Catherine of Siena, to whom the pope listened,
Saint Teresa of Avila, who brought women’s gifts to the reform of the church,
Saint Edith Stein, who brought fearlessness to faith,
Saint Elizabeth Seton, who broke down boundaries between lay women and religious by wedding motherhood and religious life,
Saint Dorothy Day, who led the church in a new sense of justice,
Mary, mother of Jesus, who heard the call of God and answered,
Mary, mother of Jesus, who drew strength from the woman Elizabeth,
Mary, mother of Jesus, who underwent hardship bearing Christ,
Mary, mother of Jesus, who ministered at Cana,
Mary, mother of Jesus, inspirited at Pentecost,
Mary mother of Jesus, who turned the Spirit of God into the body and blood of Christ, pray for us. Amen.
Prayers for the Community
(adapted from Prayers for the Community by Richard Rohr)
Holy One, You fill all things with a fullness and hope that we can never comprehend. You give us the courage to awaken to greater truth, greater humility, and greater care for one another. We place our hope in what matters and what lasts, trusting in your eternal presence and love. You listen to our hearts’ longings for the healing of our suffering world.
Please add your own intentions . . .
Knowing you are hearing us better than we are speaking, we offer these prayers in love and gratitude. Amen.
