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Meeting ID: 825 1215 9155
The Feast of Mary Magdalene
Welcome to this evening’s liturgy. Tonight we meditate on the presence of the Divine in creation and within each of us. Yesterday was the feast day of Mary Magdalene. Tonight we will proclaim the Word from her Gospel.
Opening Prayer: Holy One, you are the source of all life, the creator of all good things. Help us to renew this world, our common dwelling place, in love and justice. Amen.
Opening Song: Be More Kind, Frank Turner https://youtu.be/bawrY7Jrf5o
Liturgy of the Word
First Reading: Jeremiah 7:1-7
The following message came to Jeremiah from the Divine One:
Stand at the gate of the house of God, and there proclaim this message: Hear the word of the Holy One, all you of Judah who enter these gates to worship!
Thus says the God of Israel: Reform your ways and your deeds, so that I may remain with you in this place.
Put not your trust in the deceitful words: “This is the temple of the Holy One! The temple of the Holy One! The temple of the Holy One!”
Only if you thoroughly reform your ways and your deeds; if each of you deals justly with your neighbor;
If you no longer oppress the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow; if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place, or follow strange gods to your own harm, will I remain with you in this place, in the land I gave your fathers long ago and forever.
These ancient and inspiring words are from the prophet Jeremiah. Let us affirm them by saying Amen.
Second Reading: From Becca Stevens, “Practically Divine”
My mother’s example of showing love through practical means gave me the wherewithal to open a home for women survivors of trafficking, prostitution, and addiction more than twenty-five years ago in Nashville, Tennessee. It was a small house for five women. I said: “Come live free for two years with no authority living with you. Live free.” . . . I figured that’s what I would want if I were coming in off the streets or out of prison. . . . I did it because sanctuary is the most practical ideal of all.
From its humble beginning, Thistle Farms now has thirty global partners that employ more than 1,600 women. . . . The mission to be a global movement for women’s freedom is broad and is growing exponentially.
Initially, it seemed a bit ridiculous to me to think that by starting a small community, we could somehow change the world, but now, it seems more ridiculous to me to think that somehow the world will change if we don’t do something.
These words are from the modern prophet Becca Stevens. Let us be inspired by them and affirm them by saying Amen.
Gospel: The Gospel of Mary Magdalene 4:1-8
When the Blessed One had said these things, he greeted them all, saying, “Peace be with you! Bear my peace within yourselves! Beware that no one lead you astray saying, ‘Look over here!’ or ‘Look over there!’ For the Child of Humanity is within you! Follow it! Those who seek it will find it. Go then and proclaim the good news of the realm.”
These words are attributed to Mary Magdalene, the first apostle of Christ. We are inspired by them and affirm them by saying, Amen.
Homily Starter:
In many biblical translations the first words that God orders Jeremiah to proclaim at the temple gates are these: “Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place” (from the New International Version). What a difference changing a few words can make! Tonight’s translation is from the New American Version, the one used in the Roman Catholic lectionary. Here God instructs Jeremiah to say “Reform your ways and your deeds, so that I may remain with you in this place.” Here we see that we are the gatekeepers. The Holy One is present in this world only insofar as we allow. We are the speakers. We are the actors. We are the decision-makers. We often hear the phrase “we are the hands and feet of Christ.” This ancient reading informs us that indeed, we are the hands and feet of God in the world. The Holy One can only act through us. If our actions aren’t rooted in Love then the Holy One cannot dwell here. It’s that simple.
In my favorite reading from the Gospel of Mary, Jesus reminds us again of our power. “The Child of Humanity is within you. Follow it!” Yes, it is our humanity that will change the world. Through love in action. No need to wait for the Divine Arm to reach down from the sky. We have the power, here and now.
Becca Stevens, whose work is reflected in today’s second reading, is an Episcopal priest, worker for social justice, and author. She founded Thistle Farms, which is today a global movement run by survivors of trafficking, addiction, prostitution and sexual abuse. She didn’t just dream of creating the Kin-dom on earth. She used her mind, heart, and hands to make it happen.
What is the challenge for us, in the corner of the world in which we find ourselves at this moment? Are we creating a world in which God can dwell? What evidence do we see and experience of the Child of Humanity living in each of us? How are we, or how can we, grow the Kin-dom here and now?
Please share your thoughts on these questions, or on any ways you were moved by today’s readings.
Shared Homily
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.
Liturgy of the Eucharist
(Written by Jay Murnane)
As we prepare for this sacred meal we are aware of our call to serve, and just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us. We bring to this table our prayers for the community.
Prayers For the Community.
We pray for these and all unspoken intentions. Amen.
Presider: Please join in praying the Eucharistic prayer together.
Blessed are you, Holy One, source of all creation. Through your goodness you made this world and called us to be Your co-creators. We give thanks for the diversity and beauty of life around us and within us.
We open our awareness to the goodness of all of creation and we remember our responsibility to serve. You invite us to build the earth into a community of love rooted in justice. You placed confidence in us, for you made us and you know that we are good.
In joy and in thanksgiving we join with all the faithful servants who have gone before us and we sing:
Holy, Holy, Holy, Karen Drucker https://youtu.be/kl7vmiZ1YuI
We thank you for Jesus, simple servant, lifting up the lowly, revealing you as God-With-Us, and revealing us as one with you and all of creation.
He lived among us to show us who we are and challenged us to know you. He taught us the strength of compassionate love.
Please extend your hands in blessing.
We are grateful for your Spirit at our Eucharistic Table and for this bread and wine which reminds us of our call to be the body of Christ in the world.
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, so that they would re-member him.
All lift their plates and pray the following:
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 their cups and pray the following:
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.
(pause)
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. You are called, consecrated and chosen to serve.
Please receive Communion with the words “My actions will help grow the Kin-dom.”
Communion Meditation: Writing a Better Story, Carrie Newcomer
https://youtu.be/bOsE845bVIc
Prayer After Communion:
Holy One, we are willing to do everything Jesus did, to re-create the living presence of a love that does justice, of a compassion that heals and liberates, of a joy that generates hope, of a light that illumines people and confronts the darkness of every injustice and inequity.
We trust you to continue to share with us your own spirit, the spirit that animated Jesus, for it is through his life and teaching, all honor and glory is yours, O Holy One, forever and ever. Amen.
All: Amen.
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
Presider: Let us raise our hands in blessing pray together:
Blessing: Holy One, hold us, envelop us in compassion because we are not yet who you made us to be. When we are tempted to fill up the empty spaces with things that create a deeper emptiness, lead us into the fullness of your grace. Let us walk with you today and every day, and if we stray along byways of our own choosing, turn us around and bring us home.
Amen.
Closing Song: Somewhere to Begin, Sara Thomsen https://youtu.be/ei54clvS1m4
