Sunday School, July 31, 2016 C, proper 13

Sunday School, July 31, 2016   11 Pentecost, C proper 13

A lesson about Greed

Jesus taught a lesson about how the things that we own can own us instead.

We can become a slave to the things that we own.

How so?

When we buy something then we are responsible to take care of it.  Anything that we own requires that we spend time to care for it and protect it.

And so we may end up spending more times with things we love rather than spending time with the people we love.

We can end up by taking care of the things of our lives and not taking care of people in this life who are more important.

There is a judgment that will happen to everyone to test whether their life treasure will die or whether their life treasure will live on forever.

If a person teaches someone to read, the student will also grow to teach another person to read, and each person who teaches someone to read is giving an eternal gift forever.  So teaching someone is a gift which lasts forever.

If someone gives money or a car to someone, these things get spent or wear out or just take more time to store and attend to.  Things require our time and devotion and care.  And it is easy to take care of things that give us pleasure right now, but do not give anything to other people.

Being rich and having treasure toward God happens when we love our neighbor as ourselves.  When we love, we created domino effect into the future.  With love, we inspire others to love too and so the future becomes “rich” with love.

Let us remember not to be a slave to the things we own.  Let us see that what we own, we are truly in control of so that we can use all of our lives to love God and our neighbors.  This is how we create everlasting treasure which will never end.

Sermon on being rich toward God

  Once upon a time there were two brothers, Mark and John;  and they both grew up wanting to be great builders.  They studied architecture; they studied how to build houses.  And so they set out to become great builders.

  Mark decided that he wanted to build the perfect house that he could live in.

So he began to build this perfect house.  This house was built in the mountains where very few people could come.  It was very hard to get to and it took many, many years to build.  In fact, Mark was quite old when he finally finished building his perfect house.  And it had cost him all of his money to build this perfect house.  And after finishing his perfect house, Mark died, and he had only been able to live but a few months in this perfect house.

  And when Mark died, his family did not want to live in the house because it was so far away from everything, so Mark’s perfect house, remained empty, unused, and unseen.  And no one even wanted to buy the house.

  John, his brother also became a builder.  And John did not build a big perfect house.  John went to poor neighborhoods and poor countries and he taught many people how to build houses that they could live in.  And when John would finish teaching poor people to build houses for them selves in one country, he would go to another poor country and help people learn to build houses for the homeless.

  And one day, John too died. But when he died, he had built hundreds and thousands of houses.  And the people whom he taught to build, kept building more houses, and they also taught other people to build houses.  And so even though John was dead, he was still building houses.

  Mark built one perfect house that was not worth much.

  And John built lots of houses for lots of people.  And he taught people how to build houses and taught them how to teach others to built houses.

  Between Mark and John, who was the best builder?  Which builder was best for this world.

  When Jesus taught us how to be rich toward God, he meant that when we love and give to others, we are building things that will last forever and ever.  If we teach someone who teaches someone who teaches someone…then in some way, what we do will last forever.  That is how we can be rich toward God and that is how we help our world survive and be a better place.  Let us learn how we can make our lives good and useful for God and each other.  Amen.

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

July 31, 2016: The Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs:The Butterfly Song,If You’re Happy, Father I Adore You,  How Great Thou Art

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

People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and forever.  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.

Song: The Butterfly Song,  (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 9)

1. If I were a butterfly, I’d thank you Lord for giving me wings.  If I were a robin in the tree, I’d thank you Lord that I could sing.  If I were a fish in the sea, I’d wiggle my tail and I’d giggle with glee.  But I just thank you Father, for making me, me. 

Refrain: For you gave me a heart and you gave me a smile.  You gave me Jesus and you made me your child, and I just thank you Father for making me, me.

2. If I were an elephant, I’d thank you Lord by raising my trunk.  If I were a kangaroo, you know I’d hop right up to you.  If I were an octapus, I’d thank you Lord for my fine looks.  And I just thank you Father for making me, me.  Refrain

3. If I were a wiggly worm, I’d thank you Lord that I could squirm.  If I were a billy goat, I’d thank you Lord for my strong throat.  If I were a fuzzy wuzzy bear, I’d thank you Lord for my fuzzy wuzzy hair, and I just thank you Father for making me, me.  Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without your help, protect and govern it always by your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Litany of Praise: Alleluia

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 Colossians

So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 107

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his mercy * and the wonders he does for his children.

For he satisfies the thirsty * and fills the hungry with good things.

Whoever is wise will ponder these things, * and consider well the mercies of the LORD.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God!

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 Luke

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me." But he said to him, "Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?" And he said to them, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions." Then he told them a parable: "The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, `What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?' Then he said, `I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, `Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' But God said to him, `You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God."

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – Father 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.

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.

Youth 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

Offertory Song:

            If You’re Happy and You Know It, (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 124)

If you’re happy  and you know it clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.  If you’re happy and you know it then your face should surely show it.  If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.

If you’re happy and you know it stomp your feet.  If you’re happy and you know it stomp your feet.  If you’re happy and you know it, then your face should surely show it.  If you’re happy and you know it stomp your feet.

If you’re happy and you know it, shout, Amen!  Amen!  If you’re happy and you know it shout, Amen!  Amen!   If you’re happy and you know it, then your face should surely show it, if you’re happy and you know it, shout, Amen!  Amen!

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)

The Celebrant now praises God for the salvation of the world through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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 sanctify 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,

(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:       Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast. 

Words of Administration

Communion Song:  Father, I Adore You (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 56)

Father, I adore you, lay my life before you, how I love you.

Jesus….

Spirit…

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: How Great Thou Art, (Renew!  # 250)

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder.  Considered all the worlds thy hands have made.  I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, thy power throughout, the universe display. 

Refrain:  Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee.  How great thou art!  How great thou art!  Then sings my soul, my savior God to thee.  How great thou art!  How great thou art!

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God! 

Prayer: You Can't Always Get What You Want?

10 Pentecost, Cp12, July 24, 2016  

Gen. 18:20-33     Ps.85:7-13  

Col. 2:6-15   Luke 11:1-13 

   What is your belief about prayer?  Do the lines of the Rolling Stones express your philosophy of prayer?  "You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes you might find You get what you need."  You can't always get what you pray for, but if you keep on praying you might get what you need.

  Our scripture readings today provide for us some insights about communication with God, the communication called prayer.  Prayer is a discourse which is common to people around the world.  I suspect that atheists do some accidental praying as well.  It is amazing how non-observant religious people often use the name of God in uncommon evocative ways eveb more than believers do.
  I would like to begin a presentation on prayer insight by highlighting the most important precursor to prayer.  Listening.  What did the psalmist write?  I will listen to what the Lord God is saying, *  for he is speaking peace to his faithful people  and to those who turn their hearts to him.
  The best way to start prayer is to listen, to be still and to hear God speaking peace to us.  If we don't listen, then we don't understand prayer to be an interchange between two parties.  If we rush into our petitions and requests wanting God simply to be our personal interventionist then prayer becomes not about a relationship but about me, and my needs.  If you want to fail at friendship, demand the time and attention of someone all of the time and barrage them with non-stop requests and opinions.  This is the way we drive potential friends away.  Remember prayer is primarily about relationship with God, ourselves and each other.  Relationships are about trust; good parents don't give their children snakes and scorpions when they ask for bread and an egg.  Prayer is based upon simply knowing that one has the freedom to ask God about and for anything. But petitions and requests are only a small part of our overall relationship with God.
  The prayer of Abraham involves a coming to acceptance about the probable and the inevitable.  One of the phases of the grief process is called "bargaining."  God, if I do this can I make the sad event of loss disappear?  Abraham suspected the worst about Sodom where his nephew Lot lived.  He knew it was a rotten city but he wanted to save his nephew.  Abraham bargained for God's protection of the city of Sodom because he wanted to save Lot and his family, bute he was suspicious that even Lot's family had become corrupted and compromised by the sins of Sodom.  The exchange between Abraham and God represent the bargaining dialogue of prayer.  We often have to engage in bargaining language as our coming to acceptance that we are not exempt from many of the losses which can come to us.  Why is bargaining valid prayer discourse?  Because we are haunted by the ideal of hope and the perfect.  We bargain because we believe that what is hopeful and ideal is the best option.  Yet, we adjust our bargaining offers gradually and in incremental stages because we keep adjusting our desire to what the best scenario is based upon the actual condition of freedom.  We bargain because we always want the best case scenario given the conditions on the ground.  Isn't that what we do as the church now in the midst all of the violent acts of terror in our world?  Lord, will you keep your people safe, given the probability of the conditions of freedom which allows hateful and deranged behaviors?
  For St. Paul, he believed that the mystical experience of Christ gave us an access to the interior invisible and heavenly world of perceiving a more perfect way of existence.  This mystical experience of spiritual rebirth is the experience of the Holy Spirit and by actualizing one's interior spiritual life, one celebrates the original heritage of one's life, as being sons and daughters of God with spiritual DNA to prove it.
  St. Paul wrote his letters before the Gospel writings and the prayer prescriptions of Jesus Christ illustrate the teaching of St. Paul and the early church.
  The Gospel of Luke gives us one of the version of the famous Lord's prayer for his disciples.  In this prayer we are taught to know ourselves as children of God.  We address God as "Our Father."   As children of the heavenly Father, we have access to the inner and heavenly realm of the perfect and the ideal.  And the great challenge is to make the great ideals which we know, actual in this world.  Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
  What is basic about earthly life?  Provision of life necessities.  Give us this day our daily bread.  Notice the plural pronoun?  "Give us."   We should be always asking for the general common good when we pray.
  In observation of community behavior there is a great barrier.  It is hatred, anger and retaliation which destroys community.  The problem is that we have access to what is perfect and ideal.  Sometimes we hold other people to a higher standard than we do ourselves.  So what do we need to survive and live together?  Forgiveness.  Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  Forgiveness is difficult because of what is ideal and perfect, but that is why we pray over and over again for the dynamic of forgiveness to prevail in our lives and community.
  What is perhaps the worst scenario for anyone of us?  We do not want to be given a life situation for which we are not prepared.  We do not want to have an experience which will destroy our faith, our hope and our beliefs in what is good, perfect and ideal.  And so, the words of Jesus tell us to request of God:  Lead us not into temptation and deliver us from the situations of freedom when conflicting systems could catch us in harm's way.
  So us conclude about prayer:  Prayer begins by listening to God.  By listening we will most often find that the answers to our prayer have already been given to us.  Next, accept our primary identity as children of God and speak often to God as our heavenly parent.  Prayer is first of all about a loving relationship with God. Third, ask for the basic necessities for all of the people of this world.  Fourth, Ask for forgiveness and receive it as the reciprocal grace of practice in the forgiveness of others.  And finally, ask for protection for the evil that can happen because of the freedom in this world.  Ask to have the conditions which will support a life of faith and hope for everyone.
  My fellow Christians, if you don't believe that you are ordained to ministry, you are wrong.  Each and everyone of us is ordained to the ministry of prayer.  And I hope that you will continue to pray and to expand the time which you give to the completely portable ministry of prayer.  Today each of us have been given the cabinet position in God's kingdom: Minister of the Interior. Amen.

Sunday School, July 24, 2016 C proper 12

Sunday School, July 24, 2016      10 Pentecost, C proper 12

Theme Prayer

The disciples like us wanted to know how to pray and so they asked Jesus to teach them.  And we have the famous Lord’s Prayer, which is really the disciple’s prayer.

What did Jesus teach us in this prayer?

He said we are to address God as “Our Father.”  This means that we are to be like Jesus in that we know and accept ourselves as God’s children.

He taught us about God’s realm of heaven where perfection is to be found.  Inside us, we have access to the perfect values of God; we ask God to bring the will of God known in the invisible world of heaven to the visible world of earth.

He said we should ask for daily bread.  We ask for the things that we need.  “Give us this day our daily bread.”  We say, “Give us” and not “Give me.”  This means that we are always asking enough for all people to live with what is necessary for their lives.

Jesus also taught us that the only way that we can be successful in family, church and community is through the practice of forgiveness.  Since no one is perfect, it means we have to forgive each other to survive as people living together.

Jesus also told us to ask God our Father, to spare us from the difficult challenges of our lives which would destroy our faith and confidence in God and God’s love.

The Lord’s Prayer gives us a model of how we can pray in our lives.

Sermon

  What is the most famous prayer of all?  What is it called?

  It’s called the Lord’s Prayer and it begins with the words, “Our Father.”

  Jesus taught us to call God, “our father” because he was the Son of God, and he invited us to be sons and daughters of God.

  And we celebrate being sons and daughters of God by being a member of our second family; the family of our church.

  And since God is our Father and creator, we are to treat God and God’s name with great politeness and respect.  That’s why we say “hallowed is your name.”

  Jesus said that God the Father lives in heaven and that we are to ask him to let something of the perfect life of heaven happen upon earth.  Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

  And what would be perfect life on earth?

  It would be perfect if everyone had enough food to eat.  That’s why we pray, “Give us in this world this day, our daily bread.”  So we should help answer this prayer and work for everyone to have enough to eat.

  And what else would be heaven on earth?

  To practice forgiveness.  Forgiveness is learning how to say that we’re sorry and learning to give people another chance.

  What else would be heaven on earth?  To live our lives in such a way to avoid the things that cause us to lose hope and joy.  So we say, “save us from the time of trial.”  Or deliver us from temptation.  That means even if some bad things happen to us, if we live together as a family of care, then we will not lose our hope and joy when those bad things happen.

  So let us remember the famous prayer, the Our Father.

  Let us accept our selves as son and daughters of God and just like we talk we our moms and dads because we love them, let us learn to talk to God as our heavenly parent. 

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

July 24, 2016: The Tenth Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs:Hallelu, Hallelujah, Sing a New Song, O Lord, Hear My Prayer,  He’s Got the Whole World

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

People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and forever.  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.

Song: Hallelu, Hallelujah,  (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 84)

Hallelu, hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah!  Praise ye the Lord!  Hallelu, hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah!  Praise ye the Lord!  Praise ye the Lord!  Hallelujah!  Praise ye the Lord!  Hallelujah!  Praise ye the Lord!  Hallelujah!  Praise ye the Lord!

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Liturgy Leader: In our prayers we first praise God, chanting the praise word: Alleluia

Litany of Praise: Alleluia

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 Colossians

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 138

Though the LORD be high, he cares for the lowly; * he perceives the haughty from afar.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you keep me safe; * you stretch forth your hand against the fury of my enemies; your right hand shall save me.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God!

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!

Birthdays:     

Anniversaries:  

(Sing Birthday blessings or wedding blessings to those present who are celebrating)

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

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them, "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name.  Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial."  And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.  "So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – Father 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.

Liturgy Leader: Next in our prayers, we remember people who have special needs.  As we pray let us chant:  Christ Have Mercy

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

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.

Youth 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

Offertory Song: Sing a New Song, (Renew!, # 21)

Refrain: sing a new song unto the Lord; let your song be sung from mountains high.  Sing a new song unto the Lord, singing, Alleluia.

1-Yahweh’s people dance for joy; O come before the Lord.  And play for him on glad tambourines, and let your trumpet sound.  Refrain

2-Rise, O children from your sleep; your savior now has come.  He has turned your sorrow to joy, and fill your soul with song.  Refrain

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.  Bless and sanctify 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,

(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:       Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast. 

Words of Administration

Communion Song: O Lord, Hear My Prayer, (Renew! # 173)

O Lord hear my prayer, O Lord hear my prayer:  when I call answer me.  O lord hear my prayer, O lord hear my prayer.  Come and listen to me.

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: He’s Got the Whole World, (Christian Children’s Songbook,   # 90)

He’s got the whole world, in his hands.  He’s got the whole wide world, in his hands, he’s got the whole world, in his hands.  He got the whole world in his hands.

He’s got the little tiny babies….

He’s got the brothers and the sisters…

He’s got the mommies and the daddies….

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God! 

Get with the Mystery!

9 Pentecost, Cp11, July 21, 2013   

Gen. 18:1-14    Ps.15  

Col. 1:21-29  Luke 10:38-42 

Lectionary Link

  The word mystery has various meanings for us today.  When we think of literature and cinema, Mystery is a genre which sometimes is synonymous with detective stories; the mystery is "Who dunnit?"  And the detective is the one who, if successful, solves the crime.  Of course there are many other varieties of the genre of Mystery in literature and cinema and television.

  In the study of religion, there is a classification of the Greco-Hellenistic religions as "Mystery Religions."  In various Temple based communities, initiates were initiated into the particular "mysteries" or secrets about the life of the gods and goddesses.

  Christianity was born within the crucible of the various expressions of Judaism at the time of Jesus and the many kinds of Mystery Religions which was part of the Roman Occupation of Palestine and the cities of Asia Minor. 

  Mystery religious were regarded to be false religions or competitors to the message of Christ since they centered upon the gods and goddess of the Greco-Roman religions and the Roman army also integrated Mithraism from Persian into the pantheon of Greco-Roman gods and goddesses.

  In Greco-Roman society, a person could have three religious perspectives; one was the civil religion in the cult of the Emperor, the other was a more philosophical religion and the third a more secretive Mystery Religion participation.  There were secrets and secret rites involved in the practice of a Mystery Religion.  We know about Mystery Religions from Christian writers who wrote against their practice and how they had come to influence those Christians who were regarded as heretics.  The success of Christianity meant that many of the writings of the Mystery Religions were destroyed.  One of the sad facts of human history is that doctrinal and ideological winners usually destroyed the writings of the losers.

  Tarsus where St. Paul was born was a prominent center for Mystery Religion.  The early Christian Movement could have a mystery and secretive status within the Roman societies, though the Christians were often persecuted because they refused to participate in the Roman civil religion, the cult of the Emperor.

  The Christian movement shared common language use with the people in the places where it grew and blossomed.  It is not surprising that things which are common to Mystery Religions are also found in the Christian movement.  All of the Mystery religions had sacred meals,  ritual baths as part of initiation and Divine human beings who had died and had rebirths, and who had goddess consorts or mothers.

  St. Paul had come into an experience of a mystery; he had been knocked to the ground by a mystical experience.  In this experience, he found that the physical Jesus of Nazareth could now be experienced the Risen Christ as a new and particular personal presence of God in his life.  After this experience, he coupled his study of Judaism with the religious vocabulary of his learning context and he gave birth to Gentile Christianity.

  St. Paul received a mystery that could compete with the mysteries of the Mystery Religions of his time.  The experience of St. Paul could be replicated by others who Paul found could also have an experience of the Risen Christ.  The entire Christian Movement became constituted by people who had this experience and shared it and were fascinated to see that they had the ability to transmit this experience in a communal way.  What the church did was to encode this Risen Christ Mystery experience within secretive writings which were shared only with the initiated members of the body of Christ.  Those who were in the body of Christ, understood themselves to be under the directed guidance of Christ as their head.  They were excited to witness the replication of the experience of the Risen Christ through what they called the receiving of the Holy Spirit.

  The writings of the church initially were secretive and they were coded.  How did a person have the life of Christ born within oneself?  They had this experience of being inundated, surrounded, cleansed and bathed by the Holy Spirit.  They were over-shadowed by the Holy Spirit.  So one can easily see how the early Christians coded this experience in the life of the Virgin Mary.  The Virgin Mary was every Christian whose life had been miraculously over-shadowed by the Holy Spirit and the life of Christ was born within a person who was initiated and began the life process of spiritual transformation.

  So, in the Epistle that we have read today, one finds that Paul is touting to fellow initiates this secret Mystery.  What is the mystery?  Christ in you, the hope of glory.  If one lived in Roman Society, one would be tempted to want the benefits of participating in their civil religion, the cult of the Emperor.  One could come to public recognition through participation in the Roman Civil religion.  But Paul said, to know the birth of Christ in oneself was to know such a particular presence of God in such a personal way that one had the fame and glory of being known and recognized by Christ.  One did not need the civil religion of Roman society because of the experience of being profoundly known and loved by Christ.

  The early Christian community also practiced the continual event of the reception of the Risen Christ into one's life.  This was the communal meal of the Holy Eucharist.  This is a mystery tradition of believing that the words Jesus used to associate the essence of his life with bread and wine, recited again and again could renew each recipient into the knowledge of the closeness of Christ to one's life.  In the Eucharistic meal, the church encoded in a liturgy the Mystery of how the Risen Christ was a real presence within the bread and wine.  Not surprisingly, the Latin word for the Greek "mysterion" is sacramentum.  A sacrament is the ritual way of perceiving the grace of the presence of Christ.

Why did the church practice rituals?  Why did the church publish the mysteries within the Epistles and Gospels which became the New Testament?  Paul and others knew that if the Mystery of the Risen Christ was not preached, practiced and renewed, it could be neglected and forgotten.  In fact, Paul wrote about people who had experienced the joys of the Risen Christ but lost the reality through non-observance and by refusing to share the experience so it could be replicated in the lives of others.

  The mystery of Christ in us can become neglected and forgotten, when our active and busy lives express the priority of earning a living and taking care of the ordinary issues of the life.

  The Mary and Martha story in the Gospel is not about Martha the worrywart worker who is troubled by her navel gazing space cadet sister who gets approved by Jesus for being able to neglect the practical work of hospitality by being on a perpetual religious retreat.

  Some would like to reduce this story to: Martha bad.  Mary good.

  This is not the purpose of the Gospel story at all.  The purpose of the Gospel story is to reveal that the Risen Christ is known and attended to by taking the time to spend in devoted contemplation of the Mystery of the personal presence of Christ to us.  The mistake of Martha is the human mistake to think that all of the other tasks of our lives are incompatible with and competing with the vocation that we have to contemplate the Risen Christ in our lives.

  It is not an either/or matter; it is both/and.  Yes the practical work needs to be done and should be done, but each person needs to know how and when to attend to moments of contemplation when the personal presence of the Risen Christ is being known in some telling way.

  The message of Mary choosing the better part is this:  Don't neglect contemplation of the Risen Christ in life.  Don't miss the continual replication of Christ in you, the hope of Glory.

  Today, we are invited to complement our active lives of work with the intentional practice of contemplation.  It was not difficult for Mary to tune into Christ.  In contemplation one learns to retreat into one's interior life as a retreat of being constituted and refreshed to go forth into the work and busyness of one's life.

  The Gospel Today:  Christ in you, the hope of glory.  Don't miss the glory.  Don't miss the experience of being personally recognized by God.  And don't neglect contemplation of the Risen Christ.  Amen.