Sunday School, July 12, 2015 7 Pentecost, B proper 10

Sunday School, July 12, 2015  7 Pentecost, B proper 10

Sunday School themes

If you use the passage from the prophet Amos, you can use the metaphor of the plumb line.

Bring a plumb line and show how the lowest point of the pendulum swing creates a vertically straight line.  This can be used by brick layers so they can be sure their wall is straight up and down and not leaning.

So God provides us with plumb lines so that we can live lives which do not topple over.

The Plumb lines of our lives are the laws and rules which give us guidance for our very best behaviors.

You might remind them of some of the famous Plumb Line Rules:  10 Commandments, Golden Rule and the Summary of the Law.

The letter to the Ephesians remind us that we are made for a wonderful purpose.  We are created for higher values and we need to learn to find those highest values as we practice our faith within our community.

Amos was a prophet who had to remind his people that their lives had become like a wall that was built crooked.  They needed a plumb line to correct their leaning wall by rebuilding to be straight up and down.  Amos was to remind them to return to the vows of keeping the commandment of God.

People do not always like to be corrected.  The prophets were sometimes attacked and injured when they tried to correct the bad behavior of people.

John the Baptist was a prophet too who was put in to prison and put to death because he tried to instruct all people including King Herod about what the law of God was for their behavior.  We need to stand up for people who are willing to tell us the truth about wrong behaviors.

Liturgy for the Day

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

July 12, 2015: The Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: Prepare the Way; Peace Before Us; My Jesus I love Thee; Soon and Very Soon

Song: Prepare the Way of the Lord   (Renew!  # 92)  Sing Four times

Prepare the way of the Lord, prepare the way of Lord, and all people will see the salvation of our God.

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and for ever.  Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People: And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Litany Phrase: Alleluia (chanted)

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

A reading from the  Letter  to the Ephesians

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

Or A reading from the Prophet Amos

This is what the Lord God showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the LORD said to me, "Amos, what do you see?" And I said, "A plumb line." Then the Lord said, "See, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by;

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

 

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 85

Truth shall spring up from the earth, * and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

The LORD will indeed grant prosperity, * and our land will yield its increase.

Righteousness shall go before him, * and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.

Birthdays: Betty Baker, Bob Groth, Shawn Oliver, Kevin Purcell, Jane Russell

Anniversaries:    Richard and Aimee Fiorito

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark

People: Glory to you, Lord Christ.

King Herod heard of the demons cast out and the many who were anointed and cured, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old."

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People: Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon:  Fr. Phil

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy. (chanted)

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Liturgist:         The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:            And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering.

Song: Peace Before Us (Wonder Love and Praise, # 791)

Peace before us, peace behind us, peace under our feet.  Peace within us, peace over us, let all around us be peace.

Love before us….  3. Light before us….  4  Christ before us….

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of heaven.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

All may gather around the altar

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat

  the bread and drink the wine, we can  know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as  

  this food and drink  that becomes a part of us.

The Prayer continues with these words

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Bless and anctify us by your Holy Spirit so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory

 is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. Amen.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:        Alleluia! Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia!

Words of Administration

Communion Song: My Jesus, I Love Thee (Renew! # 275)

My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine, for thee all the follies of sin I resign; my gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou; if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, ‘tis now.

I love thee because thou hast first loved me, and purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree; I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow; if ever I loved thee, my Jesus, ‘tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight, I’ll ever adore thee in heaven so bright; I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;  If ever I loved thee, my Jesus ‘tis now.

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: Soon and Very Soon (Renew! # 276)

Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King.  Soon and very soon we are going to see the King.  Soon and very soon, we are going to see the King.  Alleluia, alleluia, we’re going to see the King.

No more dying there, we are going to see the King.  No more dying there, we are going to see the King.  No more dying there we are going to see the King.  Alleluia, alleluia, we are going to see the King.

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ. 

People: Thanks be to God! 

Origins of Christianity: Accepting a Different Mission than the Mission of Judaism

6 Pentecost Cycle B Proper 9 July 5, 2015
Ez. 2:1-7 Ps.123
2 Cor.12:1-10 Mark 6:1-13

Lectionary Link

  When one gets so many different sorts of topics and themes given in the appointed readings from the Bible for the Eucharist, it sometimes is difficult for a preacher to force a unity on such diverse readings.  One tries to find a harmony in the intuitions of faith in the Bible readings even while one tries to understand the different contexts, context often separated by hundreds and hundreds of years.
  I think it is important to recognize biblical writings as evidence of social forces at work among the people who wrote the biblical literature.  Human behavioral patterns and community practice tend to repeat themselves over and over again and that is why ancient literature can provide insight on our own behaviors today.
  If we are honest about the writings of the New Testament, we must admit that they record the origins of religious disagreements within Judaism in the ministry of Jesus which grew into the separation of the followers of Christ from the synagogue communities.
  So here we are today in a country which was founded upon honoring religious freedom and we can still be tempted to read the religious disputes between Christians and Jews as represented in the New Testament to be the basis for continuing religious disputes between Christians, Jews and all other people of other faiths in our world today.
  Rather than making absolute the details of ancient disputes, let us endeavor to look at why disputes happen. People explore within their life situations the freedom of creative advance beyond what they once knew and practiced  in how they articulate their faith in their lives.
  The Bible includes a record of the loudest religious complainers, the prophets and the reformers. The prophet Ezekiel felt like he was called by God to his own people whom he believed were misbehaving and unfaithful to his God.  He felt he was called by God to a losing cause because lots of his fellow country people would refuse to take his free and enlightened advice to repent and change their ways.
  Jesus came to people as a reformer within Judaism just as the prophets before him were reformers and he was in the succession of John the Baptist who was also such a reformer.  But the reality is and was that not everyone is wanting reform or can even see the need for reform.
  Part of the reason reform cannot happen is because people are comfortable with what they know.  Also people can be so familiar with the personal lives of the reformers that they cannot accept their reforming advice.  In our families, how many of us want to think of brothers and sisters as reformers of enlightened change?  What my brother?  If you knew him like I knew him, why would anyone listen to him? 
  Reform from within often produces the behavior expressed in the cliche, "familiarity breeds contempt."  Jesus had a hometown reunion and they had him speak at the synagogue.  "Wow!  Joe and Mary's boy has become quite a big talker; why should we listen to him?  He's gone and built himself a reputation outside of his hometown.  That doesn't mean that we have to buy what he's saying."
  The New Testament writings are evidence of the separation of Christianity from Judaism and so this hometown reunion story of Jesus highlights his early rejection by those who were most familiar with him.  New Testament writers were trying to inform their communities about the troubled relationship with Judaism.  They are presenting the source of this troubled relationship going as far back as the hometown of Jesus rejecting his message.
  So what happens if one's message is not received in one's hometown?  If Eskimos are not buying ice cubes; you find a way to sell the ice cubes in other places, places where ice is not so available.  So, hometown rejection results in spreading the message to other villages. The early evangelists were to travel light and fast and they were not to get bogged down when they did not find a receptive audience.  They were to keep on moving to find the people who were ready for the relevance of the message to their lives.
  They were to go to the people who wanted the message; those who would find the message as a event of creative advance in their lives.  And what was the end result of this mission strategy?  Gentile Christianity.  The Gospel message moved on from the Jews who remained in their synagogues still looking for the messiah who was not Jesus.  The Gentiles who were living in the cities of the Roman Empire found the message of Christ to be the reason to form universal fellowships not limited to ethnic religious and liturgical customs of Judaism.
  More than any known person within the Christian tradition, St. Paul's faith identity was formed by living on the border between Judaism and Christianity.  But for St. Paul, the border area between Judaism and the Gentiles became the new country of Christianity.  That border area was receptive of all people.  But St. Paul was also involved in many border disputes because of this attempt to blend Jews and Gentiles within this new community of Christ.
  He suffered in his missionary efforts to blend aspects of his Judaism with the acceptance of Gentiles who were not required to conform to the purity rituals of Judaism.  What kept Paul going was his own spiritual experience; he confessed that he had an out of the body experience.  It could be that he had this experience of "walking towards the light" when he was nearly stoned to death in Lystra.
  Reforms and the births of new communities are often accompanied with persecutions by those who have the power to persecute.  If we as Christians know that in our histories there has been persecutions, and if we know that in our Christian past, Christians have persecuted other Christians for believing differently, we should have the freedom today to advance beyond making differences justification for acts of violence, hatred and prejudice.
  We celebrate this weekend the birth of our country which has given this world one of the greatest efforts of human government: Inviting so many different people from so many different parts of the world to live together and experience a Oneness arising from diversity, e pluribus unum, from the many one.
  We have inherited in our religious tradition the record of people who do not take the rejection of their teaching well, who even threaten people with hell for not agreeing with them.  It is so easy to deify one's own understanding and interpretation of God and Jesus that one is falsely compelled to threaten with eternal punishment those who are not persuaded by us in how one believes.
  We should express the insights of the founders of our country as being revelation which can transcends how biblical people often dealt with their disputes and disagreements.  God does new things in new times.  And let's face it; all religious traditions have expressions of narrow chauvinism because people's most dear beliefs can be rejected by others.  "There must be something terribly wrong with those who don't agree with something which has been life changing for me."  So, religious traditions often have very harsh language for their opponents because it really hurts when people reject or even deride one's dearest beliefs.  And it hurts if one's religious opponent has the political power to limit one's freedom.    America has been a experiment for people to have different beliefs and yet have a system of law which respects justice to allow people of contrasting differences to live together without excommunicating another from the citizen's rights of  our country.
  One of the reasons that I became Episcopalian is because I feel that I have the freedom to be not just Episcopalian but to be open to all insights which enrich my life of growing in faith.  Just as I accept the fact that my faith as a child was expressed differently than my faith now, I accept that others will have different faith expressions and that I will continue to work at the articulation of my expressions of faith as I hope to be further informed and understand what love and justice means in the teaching of Jesus Christ.
  Today, I pray that all of us will have many "out of the body experiences" of the love and justice of Jesus Christ but not stay out of the body in that state of utopia, rather, let us come back into our bodies do the work, often the messy work to build an inclusive community of love and justice informed by the example of Jesus Christ.  Let us not get bogged down in disputes and end up perpetually feeling hurt by people who don't agree with us.  Let us always be  going to the people who want what we have to offer in how we understand the Good News of the love of God in Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Sunday School, July 5, 2015 6 Pentecost B proper 9

Sunday School, July 5, 2015   6 Pentecost Cycle B Proper  9

Sunday School Themes

Dealing with the riddle of St. Paul: , “for power is made perfect in weakness." So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”

You might discuss the meaning of this riddle.  When we try to rely only upon ourselves and don’t ask Christ or anyone for help, we can find that we are not strong in all of our abilities and so we need other people to be strong in the areas of our weakness.

Remind them about one of the mottos of our country on Fourth of July weekend:  e pluribus unum:  Out of the many, One.  When we unite to do things together we are no longer weak as individual persons.

The Gospel lesson is about how Jesus chose to share the good news.  He wanted to get his message of love out really quickly and so he sent his disciples out two by two.  He told them to pack very light since if they took too many things they could not keep moving from village to village to share the good news.

How do advertisers get people to buy their products?

We are not selling the Gospel.  How can we get people to accept something which is free and wonderful?  How can we get teach and live the Gospel so that people will be able to accept something which can make their lives better?

Explain to children the saying: Familiarity breed contempt.  It means some time when people close to us are very good and marvelous people, we get so use their goodness that we don’t appreciate it anymore and we don’t understand how good it was until we find out that everyone is not as good as the wonderful people in our lives.

Jesus was not accepted by everyone in his family or in his hometown of Nazareth.  People in his family and in his hometown maybe were jealous of his success and because they were jealous of him, they would not accept him and the good things that he wanted to do for them.

We know that things are wrong when we cannot accept the good things that are being given to us because of our pride and jealousy.


A children’s sermon


  When Jesus was a boy, he lived in a town called Nazareth.  His father Joseph was a carpenter, and so he probably helped his father in the carpenter shop.
  But Jesus was a very bright young boy;  he liked to learn and he like to speak.  When he was a young boy, he was arguing with the smartest teachers in the religious law in the temple.  So his parent knew that he was going to have a different career than most boys.
  Soon the work of Jesus took him away from Nazareth.  He became a traveling preacher.  Jesus looked at people and he felt love for them.  He saw that many people needed to have encouragement and hope.  Many people needed to know that God cared for them.  Jesus knew that he was sent to this world to preach a message about God’s love and care.  He also knew that he was supposed to help people who were sick.  He knew that he was to invite forgotten people into the community of faith.
  One day Jesus went back to his home town.  He had become very famous, and he went home, probably to see his Mother Mary and Joseph.
  And Jesus wanted to help people in his own home town.  But they wouldn’t let him.  They said, “We know Jesus, he’s Joe and Mary’s son.  We were raised with him.  Who does he think he is coming here and preaching to us?    They were so jealous and so unfriendly, Jesus just had to leave town without doing something wonderful for them.
  He was very surprised about their unbelief.  Why wouldn’t they let him do good things for them?
  He was too familiar to them.  And they were jealous, so they would not receive any from him.
  Did you ever want to do something good for someone, but they won’t let you?  It hurts when you want to give something good to someone but they won’t take it.
  What about when your parents fix you a wonderful meal and they are so happy to take good care of you, but what you say, “No, I don’t want it.”  Aren’t you glad that your parents don’t stop giving things to you, even if you refuse to receive everything that they offer?
   Sometimes we treat God this way.  God wants us to receive good things…love, forgiveness and kindness, but sometimes we refuse to take God gifts.  And it really hurts us when we don’t receive God’s gifts.
  When Jesus went to his home town, he was very surprised that the people in his town would not let him do some good things for them, because he was so familiar.
  Did you know the best things that happen to us happen to us through the familiar people in our lives.  Friends, family, parents….   So we should not let our jealousy keep us from receiving good things from the people who are familiar to us.
  Remember your parents want to give some very good things to you and sometimes you don’t see how they are good.  But you need to trust your parents.
  So too, God has some very good things for us, and we might not see why they are good for us…..like learning to follow rules and laws.  But if we receive the gifts of God, some day we will see how good they are for us.  Let us always be ready to receive the good things that God wants to give us.  Amen.


 St. John the Divine Episcopal Church
17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037
Family Service with Holy Eucharist
July 5, 2015: The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: My Country Tis of Thee; I’ve Got Peace, Eat This Bread, I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light

Song: My Country ‘Tis of Thee   (blue hymnal, # 717)
My country ‘tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing; land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim’s pride, from every mountain side let freedom ring.

Our fathers’ God, to thee, author of liberty, to thee we sing; long may our land be bright with freedom’s holy light; protect us by thy might, great God, our King.

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and for ever.  Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.
And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.
Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray
O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Lord God Almighty, in whose Name the founders of this country won liberty for themselves and for us, and lit the torch of freedom for nations then unborn: Grant that we and all the people of this land may have grace to maintain our liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Litany Phrase: Alleluia (chanted)

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia
O God, you have made us! Alleluia
O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia
O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia
O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia
O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia
O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

A reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians
Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness." So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
Liturgist: The Word of the Lord
People: Thanks be to God
 
Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 123

To you I lift up my eyes, * to you enthroned in the heavens.
As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, * and the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
So our eyes look to the LORD our God, * until he show us his mercy.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:
For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!
For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!
For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!
For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!
For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!
For work and for play. Thanks be to God!
For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!
For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!
For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.
Thanks be to God!
For our Country and for all of the liberties that we enjoy.   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark
People: Glory to you, Lord Christ.
Jesus left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, "Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house." And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief. Then he went about among the villages teaching. He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, "Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them." So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon:  Fr. Phil

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.
Since God is so great and we are so small,
We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.
We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and
     resurrection of Jesus Christ.
We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.
We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is
     welcome.
We believe that Christ is kind and fair.
We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.
And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy. (chanted)

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.
For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.
For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.
For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.
For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.
For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.
For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.
For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.
For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.
For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Liturgist:         The Peace of the Lord be always with you.
People:            And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering.

Song: I’ve Got Peace Like a River (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 122)
I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river in my soul.  I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river in my soul..
I’ve got love like a river, I’ve got love like a river, I’ve got love like a river in my soul.  I’ve got love like a river, I’ve got love like a river, I’ve got love like a river in my soul.

Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist
Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of heaven.”
All become members of a family by birth or adoption.
Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.
A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.
The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you
And also with you.

Lift up your hearts
We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.
It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 
Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

Children may gather around the altar

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;
You have made us in your image
And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:
Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.
And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph
And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.
Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat
  the bread and drink the wine, we can  know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as  
  this food and drink  that becomes a part of us.

The Prayer continues with these words

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Sanctify us by your Spirit that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory
 is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,
(Children rejoin their parents and take up their instruments)

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)
Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.
Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.
As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.
But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.
Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.
Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread


Celebrant:        Alleluia! Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.
People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia!

Words of Administration

Communion Song: Eat This Bread  (Renew!, # 228)
Eat this bread, drink this cup, come to me and never be hungry. 
Eat this bread, drink this cup, trust in me and you will not thirst.

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;
We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.
And His Presence has been known to us.
We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers
    and sisters in Christ.
Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the
     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,
As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: I Want to Walk As a Child of the Light, (Renew # 152)

1-I want to walk as a child of the light; I want to follow Jesus.  God set the stars to bring light to the world; the star of my life is Jesus.  Refrain: In Him there is no darkness at all, the night and the day are both alike.  The Lamb is the light of the city of God: Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus.

2-I want to see the brightness of God; I want to look at Jesus.  Clear Sun of righteousness, shine on my path, and show me the way to the Father.     Refrain

Dismissal:   
Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ. 
People: Thanks be to God!