Sunday School, August 27, 2023 13 Pentecost, A proper 16

  Sunday School, August 27, 2023 13  Pentecost, A proper 16

Theme:

Building a church

How does one build a church building?  From the bottom up.

What is the bottom of the church called?  It is called the foundation.

Old buildings were built with stones, shaped to fit together.

A large anchor stone on the foundation was called a cornerstone.  Other stones were laid next to the corner stone and on top of the cornerstone to build a church building.

But a church is not just a building.  Before we called churches, buildings, the church was the group of people who believed that Jesus was God’s special Son and that he was God’s chosen King for the world.  Another name for God’s chosen King is Messiah or Christ.

Jesus told Peter and the disciples that he would build his church upon a rock.  Peter’s name means rock.  Since he was one of the first followers of Jesus, he was at the foundation of the church.

Jesus is the Big Rock or Cornerstone of the church.  Peter was a smaller rock or stone.  Jesus used people to build the group of people called the church.

Image the church like a great building.  All of us are like stones that fit together to make the large People Church.

How does a building keep standing?  If the bricks and stones are not toppled or pushed off the foundation.

How does the people church keep alive?  By remembering that we are built upon Jesus Christ as our foundation and on Peter and the disciples and on all of the Christians who have come before.  We join with other Christians to form the People Church now that still rests upon the foundation of Jesus and Peter and the apostles.

How do we keep alive and well as the church of people?  We remember that we were founded by Jesus Christ.  We remember to confess him to be the Messiah.  And we remember that Jesus continues to build the church through us as people who share the news about Jesus with other people.

Sermon:

How many of you know about super-heroes?  Does anyone know who Clark Kent is?  Does anyone know who Bruce Wayne is?  Does anyone know who Peter Parker is?

  When Batman does not have his uniform on he is Bruce Wayne.  When Superman is not in his costume he is Clark Kent.  When Spiderman does not have his costume showing, he is Peter Parker.

  Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne and Peter Parker.  Who knows that these ordinary people are superheroes?  Only a few special people, and of course, we do when we watch the movie.  But most people do not know the superheroes unless they have their uniforms on.

  Many people who lived during the time of Jesus did not know that he was a special person like a superhero.  Yes, they knew that he could do wonderful things, but they thought that he was just another prophet, teacher and preacher.

  But there were some people who came to know how special Jesus was.   Peter and the disciples who followed Jesus got to know how special Jesus was.  They got know him as a superhero.

  Peter said to Jesus, “You are the messiah, the son of the living God.”  You are the superhero.

  And Jesus said to him, “Not every one knows this Peter, so you are special to know my true identity.”

  The story of Jesus has been written in a book so that readers can read this story too.  And everyone who hears and reads this story can come to know the identity of Jesus of Nazareth.

  We today confess the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth.  We know that he was not just an ordinary person, he was a superhero.  And so we say today about Jesus.  You are the Christ, the Messiah, the son of the living God.

  And you and I today can feel very happy because we are privileged to know the true identity of Jesus of Nazareth.  He is our superhero, and we know that he is the special son of God.  And we know that he has made us sons and daughters of God too.  He has made us know that we are a part of God’s family.

  Let us be thankful that we have come to know our super hero, Jesus Christ.

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

August 27, 2023: The Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: Shine Jesus Shine; Christ Beside Me; Open Our Eyes; Here I Am, Lord

 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: Shine Jesus Shine, (Renew! # 247)

Refrain: Shine, Jesus shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory, blaze, Spirit blaze, set our hearts on fire; Flow, river flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy, send forth Your word, Lord, and let there be light.

Lord, the light of Your love is shining in the midst of the darkness shining; Jesus, light of the world, shine upon us, set us free by the truth You now bring us. Shine on me, shine on me. Refrain

Lord, I come to your awesome presence from the shadows into your radiance; by the blood I may enter your brightness, search me, try me, consume all my darkness. Shine on me, shine on me.   Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work, and to follow daily in the blessed steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Litany of Praise: Alleluia (chanted)

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

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

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

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

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

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

A reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 124

Blessed be the LORD! * he has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth.

We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; * the snare is broken, and we have escaped.

Our help is in the Name of the LORD, * the maker of heaven and earth.

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 Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

People:            And also with you.

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

 Offertory Song: Christ Beside Me, (Renew! # 164)

Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, King of my heart; Christ within me, Christ, below me, Christ above me, never to part.

Christ on my right hand, Christ on my left hand, Christ all around me, shield in the strife;  Christ in my sleeping, Christ in my sitting, Christ in my rising, light of my life.

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.  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 Hymn: Open Our Eyes, Lord, (Renew! # 91)

Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus, to reach out and touch him, and say that we love him.

Open our ears, Lord, and help us to listen, open our eyes Lord, we want to see Jesus.

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: Here I Am, Lord, (Renew!  #149)

I the Lord of sea and sky, I have heard my people cry. All who dwell in dark and sin my hand will save.  I who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright.  Who will bear my light to them? Whom shall I send? 

Refrain:  Here I am, Lord.  Is it I, Lord?  I have heard you calling in the night.  I will go, Lord, if you lead me.   I will hold your people in my heart.

Dismissal:   

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

People:      Thanks be to God! 

Being Rhetorically Goaded to Faith

12 Pentecost, A p15, August 20, 2023
Isaiah 56:1,6-8  Psalm 67   
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28

Lectionary Link

Reading the Gospels we are reading the word screens of writers in the Jesus Movement who lived decades after Jesus using a language that was meant for a much larger audience than Jesus had access to when he walked this earth.

The Gospels are spiritual word art presenting Jesus as exemplary in word and deed but who is the cover story for understanding the Risen Christ active within the communities of the Jesus Movement decades after Jesus lived.

What would be the message of today's appointed Gospel for the Gentile reader?  There may be something of a challenge for the Gentile reader?  Are you really sure that you want to be involved with this Jesus and the community of people who follow his teachings?

The Jesus Movement is a mixed-community challenging historic human divisiveness.  Or as St. Paul wrote, "In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek."  Does anyone really believe this?  Does anyone really practice this?  Can I, as a Gentile really believe that I am invited to a faith fellowship which overcomes the long ethnic divisions?  And is this faith fellowship good for my daughter, my family as well as for me?

For the Jews who were a part of the Jesus Movement, this Gospel story presented Jesus as one who gave the salvation of health to an outsider.  Even as Naaman, the foreign general had been cured of his leprosy by Elisha the prophet, so too Jesus represented the universality of health and salvation.  Are we as inheritors of the tradition of the Hebrew Scriptures ready to regard the invitation to salvation as universal?

The Story:  A Canaanite woman comes to Jesus beseeching him for the health of her daughter.  The rhetoric of Jesus plays upon the ethnic divide of their communities.  "Don't you know about the historic rift between us?  It would be like taking bread from one's family and giving it to scavenging dogs.  With such a pronounced rift, are you sure that you know what you are asking?"

The Canaanite woman has a very clever reply: "But don't the dogs even get to clean up the crumbs under the table?"  The implication is that even a little bread crumb is so superb and substantial that it would be enough for me a foreigner.

The Canaanite represented the situation of every Gentile in the Jesus Movement.  They had to give up and leave religious and social situations to join in a very minority movement of people.  The goading questions of Jesus were a challenge, "Are you sure you want this and do you know what you are getting into?"

Indeed, many Gentiles had experienced the small taste of the salvation of the Risen Christ and it involved a faith which overcame the ethnic and cultural barriers between Jews and Gentiles.  This story is about the faith of the Gentiles.

But this story is also about the faith of the Jews who embraced the Jesus Movement.  They came to understand and present Jesus as the one who offered health and salvation to those who were not born into the tradition of the Hebrew Scriptures.  The faith of Jesus for Jewish members of the Jesus Movement, was a sacrificing faith, one which allowed them to give up important community markers so that the greater audience of the Roman Empire might be welcome to this new fellowship of people.

This is still the Gospel for us in our faith communities today.  For those of us who have familiarity with our faith practices, we need to be aware that our exclusive practices are not perceived as welcoming to others.  We need to be attentive to the winsome goodness of the Gospel of love and justice which we have to offer to all.

And we need to remember that for those who are not familiar to us and our faith communities, there are significant barriers for them to overcome to allow them to come to acceptance within a new setting.

Let us accept the goading words of Jesus today as a challenge for us to practice a winsome welcoming faith accessible for everyone.  And let the persistence shown in the words of the Canaanite woman be an encouragement for those who need to challenge the barriers to the salvation of Christ which is offered to all.  Amen

Sunday School, August 20, 2023 12 Pentecost, A proper 15

  Sunday School, August 20, 2023     12 Pentecost, A proper 15

Theme

Rules of the Game

Inviting more people to the Game

What if there is a game, like soccer, that has rules but the rules for the game includes unattainable rules for everyone to participate.  Like, “girls can’t play soccer.”

For a long time, it might have been accepted that “girls can’t play soccer.”  Yet girls can definitely play soccer and many of them played even when they were allowed to have “official teams and girls’ leagues.”  Eventually girls began to complain about not being able to play “official” soccer and they grew in number and influence.  And girls have come to be able to play soccer in their own leagues even though they don’t play with boys who have their own soccer league too.  Boys and girls can love soccer even though they may not always play together in the same game.

The biggest Game of life is knowing and loving God.  Our religious life is like a “God Game we play and we follow rules.”  But what is the most important rule in the great “God Game?”  God is for everyone, God loves everyone and God wants everyone to be involved in a “God Game.”

But sometimes people can think that they “own” the God Game.  They think that they can restrict people from being a part of the “God Game.”   When Jesus came, he saw that some people were not allowed to play the God game.  The rules were too restrictive and many people who wanted to play the God Game were not allowed to play.

Jesus showed us that all of us have a tendency to sin and break rules, but he also showed that God invites us to be a part of the God Game even though we are not perfect and even though we are different in our experience.

Jesus believed that God show loved to the people of Israel so that it could spread to all people in the world.  Not everyone wanted to the share “their God” with all people.

Jesus showed that if everyone can have faith, they can play in the great God Game of life.

Can girls play soccer?  Yes, they can and they should be invited to play as much and as many ways a possible.  Is everyone able to play in the great God Game of life?  Yes, indeed, because everyone has the ability to have faith.

Let us exercise our faith in the God Game of life and let us always invite everyone to do the same.

Sermon

How many of you like play games?  What does every game need?  Every game needs rules, right?

  But have you everr played a game with someone when you didn’t know the rules or when suddenly someone changed the rules.

  When you don’t know the rules or when somebody changes the rules, then you cannot win.  And it is very sad and frustrating when you want to play a game and the rules do not allow you to win.

  Have you ever played the game of tag?  When you run and touch someone, then their It, and they have to run and touch someone else.  And they are only safe when they are “at home base.”

  Well, I remember playing tag with a friend when I was young.  I would run and touch him, and say, “you’re it.”  And he would say, “No, I’m not.”   And I would say why not, I caught you and I tagged you?”  And he would say, “I’m standing on one foot, so that means I’m “on base.”  And I said, “Well, I didn’t know that was a rule; if I had known, I could have used that rule and not gotten tagged.”  And then the next time I tagged my friend, he would have another rule for why he was “not it.”  And so I quit playing the game of tag with him, because there was no way of winning.

  When Jesus came, he found some people who had special rules for playing a religious game.  And because they had special rules about what you had to do to be loved by God, there were many people who did not know the rules, and so they were treated like people who were not loved by God.  And Jesus said this was very wrong.

  What kind of rules did they have?  They had rules about cleanliness.  There were special rules about dishes had to be washed and how you bathed your body and how you prepared your food and what kinds of food you could eat.   And if you didn’t follow these rules, then you were a loser with God and you were a loser according to the rules and you didn’t even know the rules.

  Jesus came correct the rules.  He said that it was not rules about cleanliness that made you a good person.  He said it was the condition of your heart.  Do you have love and faith?  Do you act with faith?  And do you act with love?  That is what the rules of God are.  All of these other rules are the changing rules of men and women.

  So, Jesus said you could not call a person a loser, if he or she was not following some special rules.  A person is a winner in God’s eye when they live with faith and love.  Those are the big and important rules in life.  The little rules often make us disagree with each other and dislike each other.  We can all have some special rules for our lives for our family and our church, but let us remember that Jesus only had the big rules, the rule of love and faith.  Those are the important rules which help us to know that we are winning with God.  And we all want to win with God, don’t we?  And we want everybody to know that with love and faith, they too can win with God. 

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

August 20, 2023: The Twelfth Sunday of Pentecost

Gathering Songs: The Lord Is Present, Hosanna, Ubi Caritas, Awesome God

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 Lord Is Present  (Renew!  # 55)

The Lord is present in his sanctuary, let us praise the Lord.  The Lord is present in his people gathered here, let us praise the Lord.  Praise him, praise him, let us praise the Lord.  Praise him, praise him, let us praise Jesus.

The Lord is present in his sanctuary, let us sing to the Lord.  The Lord is present in his people gathered here, let us sing to the Lord.  Sing to him, sing to him!  Let us sing to the Lord.  Sing to him, sing to him!  Let us sing to Jesus.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty God, you have given your only Son to be for us a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life: Give us grace to receive thankfully the fruits of his redeeming work, and to follow daily in the blessed steps of his most holy life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

First Litany of Praise: Alleluia (chanted)

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

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

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

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

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

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

A reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans

I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew.

For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 133

Oh, how good and pleasant it is, * when God’s people live together in unity!

It is like fine oil upon the head *  that runs down upon the beard,

Upon the beard of Aaron, * and runs down upon the collar of his robe.

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 Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles." Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?" He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit." But Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us." Then he said, "Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon –   

Children’s Creed

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

Since God is so great and we are so small,

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

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

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

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

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

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

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

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

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy. (chanted)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

People:            And also with you.

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

Offertory Song: Hosanna (Renew! # 71)

Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest!  Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in highest!  Lord we lift up your name with hearts full of praise; be exalted, oh Lord my God!  Hosanna in highest!

Glory, Glory, Glory to the King of kings!  Glory, Glory, Glory to King of kings!  Lord we lift up you name with hearts full of praise; Be exalted, oh Lord my God!  Glory to the King of 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.  Bless and sanctify us by your Holy 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: Ubi Caritas (Renew!  # 226)

Ubi caritas et amor, ubi caritas, Deus ibi est.

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:    Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.

People:      Thanks be to God! 

Jesus, Why Aren't You My Superhero Interventionist?

11  Pentecost, A p 14, August 13, 2023
1 Kings 19:9-18 Psalm 85:8-13
Romans 10:5-15,  Matthew 14:22-33

Lectionary Link

Can we agree that the Bible readings are "textual events?"  Can you and I agree that we are "word events" too?  I means that you and are are constituted, made up in our insides by the words that have come to order the details of our lives.  And to change our lives, we need to do some serious re-ordering of our interior word life in hopes that such re-ordering will help our body language lives behave different toward more excellent actions.

We get involved with the words of the Bible because we look for biblical words to interact with our worded lives so that we might be advanced in creative excellence in our lives.

When people say, "it's only words," they cheapen and limit the meaning of words.  Our entire existence is ordered because of words and so there is nothing "cheap" about words.

The Gospel writers were so certain that words re-create our lives that the writer of John called the pre-existent Jesus Christ, the Word from the beginning who is God.  That makes Word a powerful co-extensive entity with God.

The Gospel writers were wordsmiths of their eras.  They used language within the styles and forms of their times.  Bible mis-readers in our times like to think that Gospel writers were writing exact eye-witness journalistic reports about Jesus.  How could this be so when the Gospels were not written in Aramaic and were written in an Greek style of educated scribes who were writing decades after Jesus had left this world?

Versions of the reality of the Risen Christ were placed into teaching parable narratives of Jesus, which of course, had remnants of oral traditions which had been passed on to them.

The Gospel writers understood the spiritual codes of their contexts; they understood the hero types of the Hebrew Scriptures and so Jesus as the Risen Christ for the Gospel writers used narratives of Jesus to portray the reality of the effects of knowing the presence of the Risen Christ.

If Jesus walking on the water and calming the storm was an actual event and not an allegorical visionary presentation, then it should be the normal practice for followers of Jesus to expect such miraculous interventions within the actual storms of wind, earthquake, floods, and fire.  And seeing that such interventions are not regular, but perhaps very rarely uncanny, it betrays the purpose of the Gospel writer to set this story up as the normative expectations of deliverance from every event of harm that is faced in nature.

However, to understand the visionary intent of the Matthew writer to present Jesus as the one has a special place within nature, even with the worst storms of nature, is to present the Risen Christ as the All and in All accompaniment to our lives who can help us survive, thrive, and ultimately live beyond the harming events of nature, including death itself as the supposed terminus of life.

Please don't literalize what is meant to be figurative, unless you know in your life of faith the consistent intervention in the laws of nature to exempt you from all of the forms of harm which can happen in life.  To literalize Jesus as some kind of super hero then means that such a super hero is drastically missing in our lives today where we are subject to the obvious conditions of weal and woe in our everyday lives.

I believe that the purpose of the Gospel writer is to help us live with our lives as they are not exempt from the probabilities of what might befall us, including the harms from natural events of winds, earthquakes, floods, and fire.  In our lives subject to human probable events, we can know the accompanying presence of the Risen Christ, surfing over and within the storms that face us.

The Risen Christ always already accompanies as the always already intervention before bad things happen, when bad things happen, before good things happen, when good things happen, and even when death happens.

You and I can subscribe to a disappointing magical Christianity of perpetual disappointment about the lack of super hero interventions in our lives; Or we can experience the Risen Christ whose presence accompanies us always already and who is as Paul wrote, "All and in All.  Amen.