Sunday School, October 2, 2022 17 Pentecost, C proper 22

 Sunday School, October 2, 2022    17 Pentecost, C proper 22

Themes

One can use the C proper 22  or themes associate with St. Francis and The Blessing of the Animals

We use the liturgy and the occasion as a time to promote awareness of stewardship role toward our animal friends but also highlight our responsibility to care for our beautiful creation.

The Blessing of the animals and the blessing of the beauty of creation is inspired by our thanksgiving for our animal friends and for the beauty of creation.

Our thanksgiving come enjoyment.  From thanksgiving we move to blessing.  We ask for a joyful relationship with our animal friends and with creation.

But with enjoyment, thanksgiving, blessing joyful relationship we move to our responsibility.  To show our responsibility we make vows to be those who take good care of our animals and the beautiful creation.

In our blessing of the animal liturgy we make vows; we promise to good care of our animal friends.

How do we care for our animals and our beautiful creations?

We take care of our pets.  We treat them with kindness.  We also help with the animal shelters.  We promote the humane treatment of animals.

We promise to take care of our environment.  We recycle.  We pick up trash.  We preserve our water.   We support laws which will make sure that people after us will be able to enjoy the beautiful earth.

Gospel theme

Jesus told parables about mustard seed faith.  What he meant by this is faith is not some superhero act; faith is all of the very small faithful things that we do which collect and they grow to be big and important things.

Do you graduate from college when you start kindergarten?  No.   But when you graduate from college it means that you have faithful to study and learn every day for about 22 years.  Graduating from college is a great achievement but it does not happen overnight with magic.  It happens because all of the small individual faith acts of learning.  So Jesus reminds us that if we want to accomplish big and important things, it starts with each individual “small” act of faith.  This is what Jesus meant by mustard seed faith.

Next Jesus reminds us that we should not expect a reward for doing good?  Why? Because doing good is its own reward.  The reward is that we "get to be good."  Now as young children we might fear punishment if we don't do good things.  We also might expect rewards, surprises and treats for being good.  Jesus is trying to teach us to grow to realize that being good is its own reward and so we should not want something for doing something which is good for us.  As we grow older we can learn that doing good is the best reward itself.

Sermon for the Blessing of the Animals.

Today we celebrate the life of St. Francis.  St. Francis was a man who came from a wealthy family.  But he decided to leave the family business and try to live his life just like Jesus lived his life.

  He decided to live his life with people who were poor.  He decided to take care of people who were sick and poor.

  St. Francis became a friend of animals; the birds used to fly down and rest on his shoulders because they were not afraid of him.

  Today, we are going to honor the life of St. Francis by blessing the animals of our lives.  But we are also going to do something else.  We are going to make promises to God to take good care of our world.  We are going to promise to care for the air, water, plants and trees.  Why?  Because we want all people in the future to be able to enjoy them.  We are going to promise to take care of our pets and animals too. 

  The world of plants and animals provide so much to help us live.  So we need to be good at protecting our world so that our world will continue help people live for a long, long time.

  Today, we thank God for our wonderful world of animals, trees and plants. 

  And the way that we thank God, is to promise to take good care of the world that God has given to us.  And to take care of the pets that we enjoy as our friends.

 

Child-friendly Holy Eucharist

and Blessing of the Animals

October 2, 2022 The Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost

Gathering Songs:

Morning Has Broken, If I Were a Butterfly, Make Me a Channel of Your Peace, All Things Bright and Beautiful

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: Morning Has Broken (Blue Hymnal # 8)

Morning has broken like the first morning; blackbird has spoken like the first bird.  Praise for the singing! Praise for the morning!  Praise for them springing fresh from the word.

Sweet the rain’s new fall sunlit from heaven, like the first dewfall on the first grass.  Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden, sprung in completeness where his feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight!  Mine is the morning born of the one light Eden saw play!  Praise with elation, praise every morning, God’s re-creation of the new day!

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Litany of Praise: Chant: 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

Liturgist:    A reading from the Book of Lamentations

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul that seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord.

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 8

You give men and women mastery over the works of your hands; *you put all things under his feet:

All sheep and oxen, * even the wild beasts of the field,

The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, * and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

For our animal friends and pets, past and present. Thanks be to God!

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.

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" The Lord replied, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, `Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – Fr. Cooke:

Collect for the Feast of St. Francis

Most high, omnipotent, good Lord, grant your people grace to renounce gladly the vanities of this world; that, following the way of blessed Francis, we may for love of you delight in your whole creation with perfect joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Vow to Creation

Celebrant:  Will you cherish the beauty of the Good Earth that God has entrusted to you, and will you do all in your power to preserve its beauty for own age and for the people of the future?

Response:  I will with God’s help.

Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Word of God that issued from God’s mouth and created all things and God’s Spirit moved over the deep and made creation happen; you have called creation good, and we celebrate the goodness of creation which you have given to us to enjoy and tend; Bless the Good Earth and its fruits, and us as we commit ourselves to stewardship, in the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Vow to our Animal friends

Celebrant:  Will you promise to love, enjoy, and care for all God’s creatures, and especially for the pet whom you present for a blessing?

Response:  I will, with God’s help.

Blessing:

Lord Jesus Christ, your friends, have brought to you these special friends:  Bless we pray these delightful creatures, and grant that those who tend to their care will take delight in all of God’s creation, in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Song sung during the blessing of each Animal: If I were a Butterfly

1-If I were a butterfly, I’d thank you Lord for giving me wings.  And if I were a robin in a tree, I’d thank you Lord, that I could sing.  And 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.’

Chorus:  For you gave ma a heart and you gave me a smile.  You gave 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.  And if I were a kangaroo, you know I’d hop right up to you.  And if I were an octopus, I’d thank you Lord, for my find looks, but I just thank you Father, for making me, ‘me.’  Chorus

3-If I were a wiggly worm, I’d thank you, Lord that I could squirm.  And If I were a Billy goat, I’d thank you, Lord for my strong throat.  And if I were a fuzzy-wuzzy bear, I’d thank you, Lord, for my fuzzy-wuzzy hair, but I just thank you, Father, for making me ‘me.’  Chorus

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

People:                        And also with you.

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

Offertory Song:  I Sing a Song for the Cat and Dog, Tune (blue hymnal # 293)

1-I sing a song for the dogs and cats

Rabbits and donkeys too,

Their big soft hearts will love us still no matter what we do.

And one is a pony and one is a hen

And one is a pig waiting in a pen.

As I care for these saints and the earth around,

I’m learning to be one too.

2-I sing a song for our furry friends,

loyal and faithful and true,

who bark and mew and fetch and scratch for the love of me and you.

And one was a rabbit and one was a cat

And one was a Schnauzer and one was a rat.

They are all God’s creatures - - great and small

and we honor one and all!!!

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 God.”

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 up 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.

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, 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 may rejoin their parents and take up their instruments)

Our Father (Sung): (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 by 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!

Word of Administration.

Communion Hymn: Prayer of St. Francis

Make me a channel of your peace.  Where there is hatred, let me bring your love.  Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord, And where there’s doubt, true faith in you.  Refrain

Refrain:  Oh, Master, grant I may never seek so much to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love with all my soul.

Make me a channel of your peace.  Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope.  Where there is darkness only light, and where there’s sadness ever joy.  Refrain

Make me a channel of your peace.  It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, in giving to all men that we receive and in dying that we’re born to eternal life.  Refrain.

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: All Things Bright and Beautiful (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 12)

Refrain:  All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.

Each little flower that opens, each little bird that sings, he made their glowing colors, he made their tiny wings.  Refrain

The purple-headed mountain, the river running by, the sunset, and the morning that brightens up the sky.  Refrain

He gave us eyes to see them, and lips that we might tell how great is God Almighty, who has made all things well.  Refrain

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God! 

Ruts to Chasms; Let's Try Bridge Building

16 Pentecost, Cp21, September 25, 2022 

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15 Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16
1 Timothy 6: 11-19 Luke 16:19-31

Lectionary Link

The German philosopher Nietzsche used the metaphor of a "rut" to illustrate things which people came to regard as their social truths.

Truth or truths are well-worn metaphors, continually returned to and thus attaining the force of being treated as the "objective"  pattern of things from the beginning.

What might we call a big rut?  It would be a chasm or a grand canyon.  In geology we know that such chasms are formed by countless years of wind and water erosion.  They don't happen overnight.

Jesus told a parable about a rich man and about the truth of his life which became the final truth of his afterlife.

The love of money became the root of the evil of this rich man's life.

As people we are all born as equal people and in our tradition we believe that each person has dignity because the very GPS signal of God's image is upon all people.

We are made for union with God and there is to be no chasm and not even a rut of separation from the love God.

But when humanity becomes inwardly alienation from our divine GPS signal, we live in a separation from God which might be a rut or a canyon.  And we begin to project this rut of division upon our social relationships.

We begin to separate into all kinds of human division into factions of we and they, us and them.

With the practice of the truth of division the small ruts of division can become the long term erosive practices which result in great chasms existing between people.

Jesus was a profound economic philosopher.  He told the parable of Lazarus and the rich man to expound upon his economic philosophy.  He observed that the economic disparity between people can become the everlasting character of separation of people; it can become what people are known for in their afterlives.

Joe McDollar died and what does he become forever known as?  He's the one who built such a financially disparity between himself and the poor, that his greedy reputation will never be erased.  He fixed the chasm between himself and poor Lazarus forever.

There is a further discouraging reality about the experience of the resurrected Christ which is revealed in this parable.  The words of the parable of Jesus suggests that even if a poor man like Lazarus could return from the dead, even such resurrection, would not convince the people of wealth who were busy building their canyons of separation from the poor people of the world.

It may be a shock for us to know that the words of Jesus suggests that even the resurrection would not be irresistible in overcoming the chasm of separation between rich and poor.

The history of humanity shows that the chasm of separation between wealthy and poor has become permanent in human life even in so-called Christian cultures which have freely proclaimed the resurrection.

As we know, from the story of another Lazarus from John's Gospel, who died and who was resuscitated by Jesus, the knowledge of resuscitated life did not prevent the death of Jesus by those builders of the grand canyons separating people from each other.

What should this parable of Jesus teach us?  It should shows us that even such knowledge or promulgation of the resurrection may not be effective in overcoming the great chasms of separation in the human community.

It also should be an invitation to us to be bridge builders.  Where ruts of division have formed through the separating practices of people, we need to be bridge building.  We need to fill the valleys of separation with soil of love and kindness.  We need to resist the tendencies for ruts of division to become the permanent chasms of separation.

Let us respond to the resurrection life of Jesus to be bridge building people of love and justice today as we live respecting the dignity of each person.  Amen.

Sunday School, September 25, 2022 16 Pentecost, C proper 21

 Sunday School, September 25, 2022  16 Pentecost, C proper 21

Themes

Godliness and contentment

Contentment is about learning how to adjust and feel good in every situation of our lives

Sometimes, we might think contentment is about how many things that we have or how much money we have.  Can we only be happy if we own things or have lots of money.

Does a baby smile because the baby knows how many things he or she has?  No, a baby is content because God made us to be content.  We have to learn how to be unhappy. 

One of the ways in which we become unhappy is to learn that owning things will make us happy.  We can compete to own the most things in life.  And when people own much more than they need and they live with people who do not have enough there is a big difference between rich people and poor people.  Why don’t rich people see and help poor people.

Jesus told a parable about a rich man and poor who lived close to each other and yet the rich man neglected to see the poor man in his lifetime.  After they both were dead, they were separated by a great canyon.  The poor man was in a good place and the rich man in a bad place.  And he wanted to be with the poor man in the good place but could not get there.

This story is about what we call character.  Character is what we become and develop by all of the deeds of our lives.  If a person steals all of the time, he becomes a thief.  Being a thief is his character.

A person who does loving and kind deeds has the character of love and kindness.

What do we want the character of our lives to be?   What kind of character do we want to take into our afterlives?

Jesus reminds us that how we are living now forms the character of our lives.

Youth Dialogue Sermon

Connor: I was rather interested to find out in reading today’s Gospel that one of the images of the afterlife fits the biggest attraction in the State of Arizona.

Kalum: Are you speaking about 120 degrees in the shade in the summertime?  And are you implying that parts of Arizona resemble Hades in summertime?

Connor: That is not what I had in mind.  But the New Testament was written in Greek….and so it is all Greek to me but there are two Greek words in our Gospel lesson which refer to the main attraction of Arizona.  Can you say, Mega Chasma.

Kalum: Mega Chasma.  They both are retained in the English…Mega means very big.  Chasma means Chasm.  But how does that refer to Arizona?

Connor: Mega Chasma can mean Grand Canyon.  The image that Jesus uses for the afterlife is a Grand Canyon.

Kalum: Well, the Grand Canyon is a magnificent work of water and wind erosion that has been created over many, many years.  But do you think that this Grand Canyon of the afterlife is an attractive tourist site to visit?

Connor: Well, I think the point of the parable of Jesus is this: The attraction of the Grand Canyon of the afterlife depends upon which side of the Canyon you are stuck on.

Kalum: The good side to be on is with Abraham and Lazarus the leper.

Connor: The bad side to be on is the side of the rich man.

Kalum: This parable uses the story theme of “trading places” as a way for people to learn about empathy; learning how to walk in other people’s shoes.

Connor:  Do you think that this means if we have it good in our current life, then as way of cosmic balance, we will have to have it bad in the afterlife?  Does justice mean that the afterlife is a way of balancing out the experience of good things and bad things among all people?

Kalum: I guess it could mean that.  But the parable is a story about giving insights on how to live now.  It really is not about the afterlife.

Connor: What do you mean?

Kalum: It could be that each of us find ourselves in this life on one side and there are people whom we neglect, don’t see, don’t care about who live on the other side of the canyons of our lives.

Connor: So, like water and wind erode over time, we can with small habits of prejudicial thinking slowly separate people from our lives until we complete ignore them and don’t see them, or worse, mistreat them.

Kalum : Yes, Lazarus was very close to the rich man when they were alive; Lazarus sat out his gate and for the rich man, he was one of those irritating members of the “welfare” class.  The rich man saw Lazarus every day, but he really did not see him in a way that acknowledged his human dignity, his worth and his needs.

Connor: So even though the rich man was close to Lazarus he slowly built a Grand Canyon with his habits of neglect and by the end of his life, the Grand Canyon was what he took with him to the grave.  It became the character of his life.

Kalum: In the parable, the rich man found out too late about this Grand Canyon of separation and he wanted to warn his family not to make the same mistake.

Connor:  In the parable of Jesus, Jesus was not very hopeful about messages from the afterlife.  It is not like Ghosts of Christmas Past can visit Scrooges and frighten them into charity and kindness.   Father Abraham said that if they did not listen to Moses and the prophets, they would not even believe a person who came back from the dead.

Kalum: Does this contradict the main teaching of Christianity?

Connor: What do you mean?

Kalum: Well, Christianity is based upon people believing that Jesus came back to life in some significant way to comfort his disciple and give birth to the church. 

Connor: Perhaps, the church was dealing with the fact that many people were not convinced about the resurrection.

Kalum:  The writer of the Gospel of John obviously knew about the parable of Lazarus and the rich man.

Connor: Why do you say that?

Kalum: In the Gospel of John, the story about a man who is brought back to life is about a man named Lazarus.  And we are told that after Lazarus came back to life, many people still did not believe in Christ.  So this story in the Gospel of John complemented the parable told by Jesus that is recorded in the Gospel of Luke.

Connor: I believe the main point of the parable is to warn us about the slow formation of separation between people that can come because of wealth and poverty, race and gender, national origin or any other form of prejudice.

Kalum: Well, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Connor: What do you mean?

Kalum: Seems like the division between the wealthy and the poor is a very ancient problem.

Connor: It still is a problem today; one wonders if the message of Jesus has been successful at all in this world.

Kalum: Well, one could also say, what would the world be like if we did not have these warnings and the efforts to correct patterns of prejudice?  The world could be a much worse place if we did not have people who reminded us about our responsibility for the care of all people.

Connor: The Gospel is supposed to be good news.  And the poor need good news.  And God has left it up to all of us to learn how to practice good news with each other.

Kalum: Well, we could really be depressed about the poor conditions for many people in this world.

Connor: Or we can know that we still have work to do in learning how to live together.  Good news would cease to be good news if the conditions were perfect, and we are not there yet, so we have lots to do to bring good news to people.

Kalum: We begin by not letting Grand Canyon of separation build between us and other people.

Connor: The Gospel of Jesus encourages us to accept love and empathy as the greatest calling in our lives, no matter how we earn our living.

Kalum: And if we recognize that Grand Canyons exist between people in this life; if we have inherited Grand Canyons of separation then we have another calling to do some major engineering.

Connor: What kind of engineering?

Kalum: Bridge building.  We need to join people who are separated by building bridges of contact and recognition and empathy.

Connor: So we have lots of work to do.

Kalum: We have preventive work to do.  We need to respect the dignity of each person so that we don’t get separated from each other.

Connor: But we also have to be bridge builders.  We need to be honest about the Grand Canyons that exist between people.  And from honesty we need to build bridges of connection.

Kalum: There’s lots of work to do and I’m tired already.

Connor: But there is good news?

Kalum: What’s the good news?

Connor: The good news is that the Gospel is never going to leave us unemployed.  So let’s get to work.  Let’s work to prevent separation among people.  And where separation exists between people, let us build bridges of connection.

Kalum: Let’s make sure that the Grand Canyon is  but a beautiful place to visit  in Arizona and   not a Grand Canyon of separation that we take to our afterlife.   Let us learn from Christ to build bridges with each other in this life.  Amen.

  When we come to a river, how do we get across a river if the water is too deep?

  When we come to a deep and narrow valley how do we get from one side to the other?

  We build a bridge, don’t we?

  Has anyone heard about a place called the Grand Canyon?

  What is a canyon?

   It is a big and long hole in the earth that is caused by flooding water and by strong winds that dig and carry away the soil.

  Just imagine if you were standing on one side of the Grand Canyon and you saw someone on the other side of the Grand Canyon, and you wanted to be with them, but you couldn’t jump across.  That would be sad wouldn’t it?

  Jesus told a story about a Grand Canyon.  On one side of the Canyon, there was a poor man name Lazarus who was living with the great man Abraham.  On the other side of the Canyon, there was a very rich man who wanted to get to the other side and be with Abraham and the poor man Lazarus.

   Jesus told this story to remind us that it is better to build bridges in our life than to make big canyons of separation.

  By building bridges, I mean that we should learn how to love everyone.  We should treat everyone with kindness.  And we should not shun or separate ourselves from people who are different that we are.

  There are many differences in life: Rich and poor.  Hungry and fed.  Short and Tall.  Big and small.  Old and young.  Black and white.  Sick and healthy.  And when we separate ourselves from people we begin to build a grand canyon….we begin to push people far away from us.  So at the end of our lives, we might find our selves on the wrong side of the grand canyon of separation that we built in our lives.

  That is why Jesus wants us to build bridges of friendship, not canyons of separation.  God made the people of this world a little bit different so that we could be together and be beautiful like the different colors of the rainbow.

  So let us be bridge builders today.  And we do this by learning how to make friends with as many people as we can.

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

September 25, 2022: The Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: On Eagle’s Wings; Rock-A-My Soul; Jesus Remember Me; Shalom, My Friends

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: On Eagle’s Wings   (Renew! # 112)

You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord, who abide in his shadow for life, say to the Lord, My refuge, my rock in whom I trust. 

Refrain: And he will raise you up on eagle’s wings, bear you on the breath on dawn, make you to shine like the sun, and hold you in the palm of his hand.

The snare of the fowler will never capture you, and famine will bring you no fear: under his wings your refuge, his faithfulness your shield.  Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; 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 First Letter to Timothy

But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will bring about at the right time-- he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords. It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, * abides under the shadow of the Almighty.

He shall say to the LORD, "You are my refuge and my stronghold, * my God in whom I put my trust."

He shall deliver you from the snare of the hunter * and from the deadly pestilence.

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.

Jesus said, "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, `Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.' But Abraham said, `Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.' He said, `Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house-- for I have five brothers-- that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.' Abraham replied, `They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.' He said, `No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' He said to him, `If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'"

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: Rock-A- My Soul (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 200)

Refrain: Oh Rock-a-my soul in the bosom of Abraham, rock-a-my soul in the bosom of Abraham, rock-a-my soul in the bosom of Abraham, oh, rock-a-my soul.

So high you can’t get over it, so low, you can’t get under it.  So wide you can’t get around it, Oh, rock-a-my soul.   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 God.”

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 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:       Alleluia, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia.

Words of Administration

Communion Song: Jesus Remember Me (Renew! # 227)

Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. 

Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom

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: Shalom, My Friends, Shalom (Renew! # 294)

Shalom, my friends, shalom, my friends, shalom, shalom.  Shalom, my friends, shalom, my friends, shalom, shalom.

Share peace, dear friends, share peace dear friends, God’s peace, God’s peace.  Share peace, dear friends, share peace, dear friends, God’s peace, God’s peace.

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God! 

The "Success" of Greed As a Negative Example

15 Pentecost, C p 20, September 18, 2022
Amos 8:4-7. Psalm 1131

Timothy 2:1-7 Luke 16:1-13

Lectionary Link

Jesus had a very wistful observation.  He in effect wished that good people could be as good with as much zeal and intensity as bad people were intense in their badness.

He told a parable about a very corrupt business manager who was embezzling the funds of his boss.  He knew that he was going to be caught, and so he started giving the customers of his boss bargains so that he might have future employment in one of their businesses.

And Jesus wished out loud:  I wish the children of light were as diligent about good stewardship as the greedy were selfish and miserly about their wealth.

We see people who are successful at greed today in serving their wealth first.  Their wealth has become their master.  They have built up so much excess and they can't possible use all their wealth.  So why don't they down-size their wealth?  Because the wealth itself has become their goal.

Jesus is amazed at the natural tendency of the greedy to be so devoted and passionate about serving their own wealth.

And the point that Jesus is making is a stewardship point.  If wealth becomes personified, it becomes a god and a master.  Something like in our day when corporations are made into persons with unalienable legal rights declared by our Supreme Court.  Corporations are based primarily on the "profit motive," and that means Wealth has become a personal god, when it is declared to a personal entity.

When wealth has become a personal motivating entity, then it is a master.

Hence we have the declaration of Jesus: You can't serve God and wealth.

How does one dethrone wealth as a personal god and master?

The implied answer of Jesus is that we need to convert our zealousness of service for wealth into an equal zealousness of service of God.

If we can put the great personal God above wealth, we can depersonalize wealth and convert it into the gift of resources for grateful living as we learn to distribute wealth to help everyone have enough.

What has capitalism become?  It has become permission for the greedy to enthrone wealth as a god, one which is served well by a very few people who have come to control the majority of wealth in the world.

Like Jesus was, we can be amazed at the success of greed in our world today.

Does this mean that Jesus was giving up on humanity?  Does this mean that we should give up because the wealthy and greedy are very successful at what they do?

No, because the point is that if humanity has the capacity for evil, humanity has an equal and even surpassing capacity for goodness, kindness, sharing, and good stewardship with the resources of life.

So how do we fulfill the positive capacities of our lives?

We dethrone wealth from being a personal god whom we worship.  In so doing, we treat wealth as something less than divine and less than human so that we can attain a stewardship control of both our lives and the resources of our lives.

And how do we do that?  By submitting to God as the one we serve and by offering gratitude for the gift of the good resources of life for our sustenance, enjoyment, and sharing 

Let us learn to serve God with our wealth as we acknowledge God as creator and owner of all life who shares with us the abundance of life for the common good and benefit of all.

We need to know God as the power who is a greater motivator than the lure of wealth.  This is the secret to a truly free market, where we treat all with the dignity of Christ.  Amen.