Sunday School, May 28, 2023 The Day of Pentecost A

 Sunday School, May 28, 2023    The Day of Pentecost  A

Theme:

Pentecost is the Holy Spirit’s Day

Pentecost is also called the Birth Day of the Church

What is the Bible Story about the Spirit?

In the Creation Story of the Book of Genesis, the Hebrew word for Spirit (ruach) means Wind or Breath.  We know that breathing is a sign of life.  

Wind can erode and shape rocks and mountains and cause waves.

In the Creation Story, the Spirit created by moving over unorganized  stuff and began to bring light, darkness, land, sea, plants, animals, human into being.

Something of Spirit life is found in all of creation

In the Bible story, the Spirit is kind of forgotten for many years even though the Spirit was seen as responsible for anointing leaders, kings, judges, prophets and wisdom teachers for teaching about God.

On the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit begins a new era.  We know that we cannot see God and yet God is everywhere.  We may not see the wind but we can see the effects of the wind.  This is what the Holy Spirit is like.  We can’t see the Holy Spirit but we can know the effects of the Holy Spirit.

What are the effects of the Holy Spirit that we can know?  Love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, self-control, faith and justice.

If we know the effects of the Holy Spirit we should spend our entire lives in learning how to gain more of the effects of the Holy Spirit, by knowing love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, self-control, faith and justice.

If we allow the fruits of the Holy Spirit to be expressed in the deeds and words of our lives we will be letting the life and the personality of God the Holy Spirit be known in our lives.

This is what we celebrate on the Day of Pentecost

Sermon (using a harmonica)

Do you know what kind of instrument I have in my hand?    It’s called a harmonica?  And do you know how this instrument is played?    It’s played by putting it up to my mouth and blowing.

  How is this instrument different than a whistle?    A whistle usually makes just one sound, but this harmonica can make many different sounds.

  It is a reed instrument.  If we open up the harmonica, we can find many differ little pieces of thin metal and they are different sizes.  Some are short and some are long.

  When I blow air across the short ones a high sound is made.  When I blow air across the long ones, a lower sound is made.

  So if we blow in the correct way, we can play many different notes and different kinds of music.  A harmonica is not like a whistle because a harmonica can make many different sounds.  And we can play many different songs with the harmonica.  We can even bend the notes and make it cry….or we can make it sound like a train.

  What is it that makes the harmonica play?  It is blown air or wind that comes from the lungs.

  Did you know that one of the ways that we talk about God is to call God, the Holy Spirit.  The Special Spirit.  The Special Wind or Breath.  Can you see Wind or Breath?  Well we can see clouds or we can see our breath when it’s cold.

  But we don’t actually see the Wind or Breath.  We know Wind and Breath are here because we can feel and see the movement that is caused by Wind and Breath.  When you blow on a Wind mill, you can see the wind mill turn.

  So today in when we celebrate the Invisible presence of God who is everywhere, just like wind and breath.  

  And we celebrate the fact that God’s wind or breath is within us blowing us…or playing us, just like I blow air into this harmonica to play the different sounds to make music or noise.

  We cannot see God Spirit…But God’s spirit is blowing through us and playing us as music.

  So we need to see ourselves as God’s musical instruments.  All different sizes and shapes, ages, with different appearances, different abilities and gifts.  God enjoys that we are all so different.  Because we’re different God can play lots of different songs through us.

  And what kind of music does God’s breath or Spirit play through us?  We call that music love, joy, peace, faith, self-control, gentleness, patience and all of the other good things that God wants to do through us.  How many of you want to be God’s instrument today?  Do you want the Wind or Breath of God to be blown through you today?

  Today, we remind ourselves that the Breath or Wind of God, the Holy Spirit is filling us today to help our lives be like a beautiful song for God today.  So today we let God the Spirit play a beautiful song through us.  Amen.

Intergeneration Family Service with Holy Eucharist

May 28, 2023 The Day of Pentecost 

Gathering Songs: Every Time I Feel the Spirit;  We Are One in the Spirit, Lord, Be Glorified

 Liturgist: Alleluia, Christ is Risen.

People: The Lord is Risen Indeed.  Alleluia.

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: Every Time I Feel the Spirit, (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 48)

Refrain: Every time I feel the spirit moving in my heart, I will pray.  O every time I feel the spirit moving in my heart I will pray.

1-On Pentecost day, the Spirit came.  The people praised with joyous tongues.  The Spirit came to everyone.  Jews and Gentiles, all the same. Refrain

2-God’s Spirit lives, within the church.  He gives us gifts to build us up.  God’s Spirit fills us with his love.  O blessed Spirit, heavenly dove.  Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty God, on this day you opened the way of eternal life to every race and nation by the promised gift of your Holy Spirit: Shed abroad this gift throughout the world by the preaching of the Gospel, that it may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of 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

A reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 104

You send forth your Spirit, and they are created; * and so you renew the face of the earth. 

May the glory of the LORD endure for ever; * may the LORD rejoice in all his works.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

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

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

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

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

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

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

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

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

   Thanks be to God!

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

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, `Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

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: They’ll Know We Are Christians,  Worship and Rejoice, # 595

1-We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord.  We are one in the Spirit; we are one in the Lord.  And we pray that all unity may one day be restored.  Refrain: And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love.  Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

2-We will walk with each other; we will walk hand in hand.  We will walk with each other; we will walk hand in hand. And together we’ll spread the news that God is in our land.  Refrain

3-We will work with each other; we will work side by side.  We will work with each other; we will work side by side.  And we’ll guard each one’s dignity and save each other’s pride. Refrain

4-All praise to the Father, from whom all things come.  And praise to Christ Jesus, his only Son.  And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one.  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 our 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.

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, 

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 Shall Reign,   arr. Linda Lamb

                                        Divine Joy Handbell Choir

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: Lord, Be Glorified (Renew!  # 172)

1- In our lives, Lord, be glorified, be glorified, in our lives, Lord, be glorified today.

2- In our homes, Lord, be glorified, be glorified, in our homes, Lord, be glorified today.

3- In our church, Lord, be glorified, be glorified, in our church, Lord, be glorified today.

4- In your world, Lord, be glorified, be glorified, in your world, Lord, be glorified today 

Dismissal:    

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

People: Thanks be to God!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!

The Prayer of Jesus as His Last Will and Testament

7 Easter Cycle A   May 21, 2023
Acts 1:6-14 Ps. 68
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 John 17:1-11

Lectionary Link

The reading of a will is something that is done after a person dies, but the writing of the will happened while the person was still living.

When a person does not write a will then the community through the state will probate an estate to expedite an unknown, namely, what would the deceased have wanted for the dispositions of one's earthly goods.

When we read the Gospels we involve ourselves in a time confusion.  How so?  Were the Gospels written by and for the people in the specific time of Jesus, or were the Gospels written by and for the people of the Jesus Movement who had already attained significant community identity in last third portion of the first century?

The community which generated the Gospel of John were interested in their own success in continuing to exist as a continuing community.  Imagine, in the year 90, this community is still vibrant even though Jesus of Nazareth has been dead for more than fifty five years.  What can account for the viability of our community?  Why are we so hopeful about the future of the Movement?  How is it that we have such a winsome message that it self-generates and perpetuates itself into the future?

The writer of the Gospel of John is writing about the legacy of Jesus Christ to the community.  The Gospel is written because the Jesus Movement is already successfully instituting itself within the cities of the Roman Empire.  The Gospels are written because the writers themselves are trying to understand and explain something of the ironic mystery of their own success and hope for future promulgation of the values of their Movement.

The chief writings of the church are called the New Testament.  The writers of the Gospel did not know they were writing such a testament.  They believed that they were expanding the testament, the results of the spiritual inheritance of their lives, namely, the Hebrew Scriptures with the Torah, the prophets and the various writings.

The writer of John's Gospel believed the success of the Jesus Movement was because of a legacy, a will which conveyed the spiritual estate of Jesus into their hands.  It was such a rich and vital estate that it provided the sustenance for the continuity of a community into the future.

Might we not read the famous prayer of Jesus in John's Gospel as the writer's understanding of Jesus as transaction between Jesus and his heavenly parent?

How might we re-compose this transaction prayer with some different phrasing? 

 "My Father, who I can only locate as being heavenly because you encompass the horizon of everything.  You gave me the legacy of being your unique child in this time and place, but not just to be a unique child, but to convince human beings of their own unique "made in the image of God" status.  And this I have done Father, in such a way as to be able to winsomely persuade my friends of their status as beloved children God.  I have shared with them the secret of my relationship with you, so that they too know the oneness of the family of God deriving from the dynamics of this personal familial relationship.  I have given them the essence of our relationship, even the Spirit of truth, and I have taught them how to promulgate this holy family tradition to the many of people in this world who need to know the intimacy of the love of God.  And as I remove my physical presence, I am leaving them eternal and self-perpetuating spiritual presence.  And this spiritual presence will be able to be replicated endlessly into their future."

Yes, I take liberties with what I perceive as the transaction of the last will and testament of Jesus as it was probated in a prayer with his heavenly parent.

I do so to try to impart how the writer of John's Gospel was trying to show to the Gospel community the secret of their own success.

And there are insights for us as well.  How has the Jesus Movement survived for so many years in so many manifestations in so many places?  What is the secret of our own constitution as a community who believe in the love of Christ as the hope of our lives and as hope for people in the future?

Let us be mystified by the mystery of the success of Christ in our lives and our community.  Let us not forget to leave the legacy in our world of the prayer of Jesus to his Father, namely, that each and every person is a beloved child of God who can be one with the Plenitude of God.  Let us continue to perpetuate the legacy of Jesus, namely, that God's love is continuous application of health and healing for our world.  There is so much in our world which resists health and healing and with us as human beings, being the most willful of all creatures, we need to know the healing of our willful beings so that we can promote general healing to the world at large.

Let us be thankful for the last will and testament of Jesus, whose will has been probated by God the Father and Mother of all.  Amen.

Sunday School, May 21, 2021 7 Easter A

 Sunday School, May 21, 2021     7 Easter A

Theme:

Jesus Prayed

Have a discussion about what prayer means.  Discuss communication and relationship.

The longest prayer of Jesus in the Gospel is found in the 17 chapter of John.

Who did Jesus pray to?

His Father

Why did Jesus pray?

Prayer is talking and we talk to the people that we want to know.  Talking is how we express our relationship.

What did Jesus pray about?

He prayed for his disciple.  He prayed that his disciples might have the same close relationship with God as Father as he did.

What is prayer?

Prayer is an important indication of our belief in God.  We talk to those whom we believe to exist.  And we have special conversation with our friends.

Jesus prayed and so should we.

What does the Ascension mean?

The Ascension means that we believe that after Jesus Rose again, he went to the parallel place of heaven.  This this place we believe that Christ still prays for us and with us.  When we pray we want to join our prayers with the prayers that Jesus offers for us.

Sermon

  What are some of most important things that happen in a baby’s that let us know that the baby is growing up?  What about when the baby starts eating cereal and vegetables?  What about when the baby starts to shows some teeth?  What about when a baby starts to crawl? What about when a baby starts to walk?  And one of the most special things is when a baby starts to talk.  And what is the first word that a baby says?  Well all fathers know…a baby’s first word is Da Da.  Or at least that is what we hear.  Moms and brothers and sisters and grandparents may hear something else.

  And why is it important that a baby talks?  Because we can know our baby and our children better when they talk.  When a baby cannot talk and is just crying; we don’t always know why a baby is crying?  Is a baby tired, or hungry, or sick or does he need his diaper changed or is the baby just sad?

  But when a baby and child can talk, we can ask the baby what she wants.  We can ask her if she has a tummy ache.  And when a child can talk we can know more about a child.  So when a child talks to us

it is a great thing for us.

  Did you know that God likes us to talk too?  And when we talk to God, we call that prayer.

  Jesus was God’s Son.  And Jesus talked to God, his Father.  And we have read a part of the prayer of Jesus to his Father today.

  Jesus talked with his Father about things that made him happy.  He thanked his Father.  And he asked for some special favors from God for his friends.

  Your mom and dad and family are very happy when you talk to them.  When you tell them how you feel.  When you tell them that you love them.  When you ask for help.  When you thank them.  When you tell them about the fun you are having.  When you tell them why you are sad.

  God is our Father too.  And God likes for us to talk to him.  When we talk to God with our prayers, we a growing up in the big family of God.  When we talk to God with our prayers, we are showing that we are a part of this large family of God.  And if we act like we are member of this big family of God, then we will treat everyone as a special brother and sister.

  Just as our parents are happy when we first started talking to them.  So God is happy when we talk to him.  That is what Jesus showed when he prayed to God his Father.

  We come to church on Sunday to prayer together and talk to God.  And we do this to remember that we can talk to God anywhere.  We don’t have to be in church to prayer.  We come to church to remember to pray.

  Can you remember to prayer?  Talk to God.  If you do that you can be sure that God is very happy to hear and listen to you.  Amen.

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

May 21, 2023: The Seventh Sunday of Easter

Gathering Songs: Hallelu, Hallelujah!;  Majesty!, Father, I Adore You; Awesome God   

Liturgist: Alleluia, Christ is Risen.

People: The Lord is Risen Indeed.  Alleluia.

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, Halleluah  (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 King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting.  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

A reading from the First Letter of Peter

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Discipline yourselves, keep alert.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 68

But let the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; * let them also be merry and joyful.

Sing to God, sing praises to his Name; exalt him who rides upon the heavens; * YAHWEH is his Name, rejoice before him!

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

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

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

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

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

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

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

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

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

   Thanks be to God!

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

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.  "I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. "

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: Majesty, (Renew # 63)

Majesty, worship His majesty.  Unto Jesus be all glory, honor, and praise. 

Majesty, kingdom authority flow from His throne unto His own;

His anthem raise. 

So, exalt, lift up on high the name of Jesus. 

Magnify, come glorify Christ Jesus the King. 

Majesty, worship His Majesty; Jesus who died,

now glorified, King of all kings.

                           

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 our 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

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

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

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

Breaking of the Bread

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

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia!

Words of Administration

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

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

Jesus, I adore you, lay my life before you.  How I love you.

Spirit, I adore you, lay my life before you. How I love you.

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: Awesome God (Renew! # 245).

Our God is an awesome God, he reigns from heaven above. 

With wisdom, power and love, our God is an awesome God.

(Sing three times)

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Being and Becoming within the Womb of God

6 Easter A May 14, 2023
Acts 17:22-31 Ps. Ps. 66
1 Peter 3:13-22 John 14:15-21

Lectionary Link

The only person about whom it can be said that we have lived in, is one's mother.  In our pre-birth state, we lived and moved and had our being within our mothers.  That is a physical and spatial fact.

About God, it is reported in the Acts of the Apostles, that "we live and move and have our being in God."  This means that we are contained in God.  God is the environment of our being and becoming in whom we continue to expand the number of occasions of our lives.

When St. Paul reportedly went to Mars Hill in Athens, he knew that Greeks had many gods and goddesses.  He knew that Romans had conquered territories and had taken  the gods and goddesses of foreign places into their pantheon.  Apparently the Greeks were open to knowing about other gods to also join the pantheon since there was an altar with an inscription which read, "to an unknown God."

St. Paul was trying to bring another paradigm about God to the Athenians.  The God that St. Paul had come to know was the "Mother of all, the container of All."  We live and move and have our being within this Mothering Container of All.  This great Container God is also the very condition for humanity to even be able to designate other divine beings as god and goddesses, or even Emperors as divinized being.

The Great Mothering God, in whom we live and have our being and becoming, has given us permission to be designated as God's offsprings.

And so we arrive at the use of the familial terms of God as our Parent God.  To name God as Father and Mother and to know ourselves as God's children is to introduce the language of personal intimacy and mutual knowability between God and humanity.

St. Paul was introducing the Athenians to a personal and knowable God, but also an infinite and expanding, creating, God who contains all that has been and yet will be.

The paradigm for God that St. Paul proposed came from his experience of the Risen Christ, whom he connected with historical person of Jesus.  St. Paul learned the traditions of Jesus from persons who had been with Jesus in his earthly life.

The Gospel of John presents some the traditions of Jesus which were written to serve the Jesus Movement, in the post-resurrection and ascension phase of the life of Christ.

The Gospel of John presents a Jesus tradition of preparing his disciples for his departure when they would not see him or have the same sensorial accessibility with him.

In the tradition of Jesus preparing his disciples for his departure, he offers them some comforting promises.

He said that he would send them an advocate, even the Spirit of truth who would be in them.  He was promising that the same familial Spirit which was in him, would be in them as well, verifying that they too were children of God.  He would reveal the truth of their identity as children of God.

Jesus doubled down on this by saying, "I will not leave you as orphans."  You will not be without a parent.  The heavenly parent will alway be with you, in you, and all around you as the omnipresent sustaining of life itself.

And so the Gospel for us today is this: We live and move and have our being and becoming within God.  And further, we can know that God lives and moves and has the divine becoming within each of us, which can be realized in deeply personal ways tailored to the specific circumstances of each of our lives.

Let us accept the fact that we are contained by such great Plenitude today.  We cannot get outside of the Plenitude.  Let us also accept that the Plentitude is morphed and funneled to be known within us and we can know this as we surrender to the Spirit of peace, love, kindness, and justice in our lives.  Amen.