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September 25, 2022 A Liturgy For Worship and Meditation Open our lips, O God. And our mouth shall declare your praise! Make haste, O God, to deliver me; make haste to help me, O God. Prayer For Worship Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires, known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy Name. Amen. Song (Click Here For Music) Author: Carl P. Daw (1989 Tune: ABERYSTWYTH (Parry) echoes through the desert still, calling us to make a choice, bidding us to do God's will: "Turn from sin and be baptized; cleanse your heart and mind and soul. Quitting all the sins you prized, yield your life to God's control. 2 "Bear the fruit repentance sows: lives of justice, truth, and love. Trust no other claim than those; set your heart on things above. Soon the Lord will come in power, burning clean the threshing floor: then will flames the chaff devour; wheat alone shall fill God's store." 3 With such preaching, stark and bold, John proclaimed salvation near, and his timeless warnings hold words of hope to all who hear. So we dare to journey on, led by faith through ways untrod, till we come at last like John to behold the Lamb of God. Prayer For the Day God Eternal, you inspired Jeremiah to buy a piece of land when no one could see a future in it. Grant us such commitment to the future of your people, that you will always have workers for your vineyard and harvesters for your fields. Amen. Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15 32:1 The word that came to Jeremiah from God in the tenth year of King Zedekiah of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar. 32:2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and the prophet Jeremiah was confined in the court of the guard that was in the palace of the king of Judah, 32:3a where King Zedekiah of Judah had confined him. 32:6 Jeremiah said, The word of God came to me: 32:7 Hanamel son of your uncle Shallum is going to come to you and say, "Buy my field that is at Anathoth, for the right of redemption by purchase is yours." 32:8 Then my cousin Hanamel came to me in the court of the guard, in accordance with the word of God, and said to me, "Buy my field that is at Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and redemption is yours; buy it for yourself." Then I knew that this was the word of God. 32:9 And I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, and weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. 32:10 I signed the deed, sealed it, got witnesses, and weighed the money on scales. 32:11 Then I took the sealed deed of purchase, containing the terms and conditions, and the open copy; 32:12 and I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel, in the presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of all the Judeans who were sitting in the court of the guard. 32:13 In their presence I charged Baruch, saying, 32:14 Thus says the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware jar, in order that they may last for a long time. 32:15 For thus says the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land. Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16 91:1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, 91:2 will say to God, "My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust." 91:3 For God will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence; 91:4 God will cover you with pinions, and under God's wings you will find refuge; God's faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 91:5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day, 91:6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday. 91:14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name. 91:15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them. 91:16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation. 1 Timothy 6:6-19 6:6 Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment; 6:7 for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it; 6:8 but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. 6:9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. 6:11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. 6:12 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. 6:13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of the Anointed and Chosen One, Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you 6:14 to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 6:15 which he will bring about at the right time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the Ruler of rulers and Govenor of governors. 6:16 It is Jesus alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to Jesus be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. 6:17 As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 6:18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, 6:19 thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life. Luke 16:19-31 16:19 "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 16:20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 16:21 who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 16:22 The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 16:23 In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. 16:24 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.' 16:25 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. 16:26 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.' 16:27 He said, 'Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house— 16:28 for I have five brothers--that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.' 16:29 Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.' 16:30 He said, 'No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' 16:31 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.'" Prayer Of Dedication Holy God, you reach out in love through Jesus Christ to save us so that we may live as faithful servants of you alone. Unchain us from our desire for wealth and power so that we may, in turn, release others from the prisons of poverty, hunger, and oppression. Amen. Prayers of the People Holy God, you have invited us into your presence, calling us to prayer for ourselves and one another. In Beloved and Anointed One, Jesus, the great high priest, you have given us an intercessor. It is with the assurance that Jesus himself gives us that we draw near to you, knowing we will be heard, knowing that you will listen, knowing that you want to hear our prayers. We pray for your world, believing that you who created it and sustain it by your spirit, love it still. Where there continues to be violence and bloodshed, year after year, we pray your presence and peace. We pray for all victims of violence, particularly gun violence. For leaders striving for peace and justice, we pray your blessing and your sustenance. We pray for those whom society has forgotten. We pray for those whom we have forgotten: for those experiencing homelessness, the sick, the outcast and marginalized, those who suffer from mental and emotional illness. Open our eyes week after week and disturb us to action in order that we might live lives worthy of the calling to which we have been called. Let us not be complacent. Stir our compassion. We pray for ourselves, merciful God. Where we harbor secret fears, we pray you will grant us relief. Where we are anxious over matters within our control and without, we ask for peace. Where we too are plagued by the same demons we identify in others, we ask for healing. Where we have allowed lesser gods to usurp your claim upon us and our lives, we pray for forgiveness. We pray for those whose troubles are known only to you, O God, that you would guide us to offer a hand of grace in your name to them. We pray for your church, O God, and we ask your blessing. Call us once more and give us a vision to be a light to all people. Make us the community of faith you would have us be. Blessed are You and blessed is Your Kin-dom, now and forevermore. Amen. Song (Click Here For Music) Author: George Croly (1854, alt.) Tune: MORECAMBE, Frederick C. Atkinson (1870) wean it from earth, through all its pulses move; stoop to my weakness, strength to me impart, and make me love you as I ought to love. 2 Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh, Teach me the struggles of the soul to bear. To check the rising doubt, the rebel's sigh, Teach me the patience of unanswered prayer. 3 Teach me to love you as your angels love, one holy passion filling all my frame, the baptism of the heaven-descended Dove, my heart an altar and your love the flame. Dismissal with Blessing The bridging of the chasm is too much for us to do. The good news of the Gospel is that God has already bridged the abyss of our brokenness to bring us into the Kin-Dom's loving embrace. What remains is for us live in the fullness of our humanity to the glory of God. Now may the love, grace, and communion of the triune God be and abide with us all, for this day and forevermore. Amen. |
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WORSHIP IN INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE AND PROGRESSIVE THOUGHT
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WHY A BLOG?
As a clergyperson with a disability now retired, this is my humble attempt to provide a ministry that some will find helpful. I have always focused on be inclusive and have struggled with the church's tradition of referring to God and humankind with masculine names and pronouns. Since the 1970's, thanks to my dear sister-in-law, I have been aware of the discrimination of women and have worked in the parish and community for equal rights with an equity of access to the resources that add blessing to life. I hope this site is of meaning to those who read it and worship with me and others within it. Peace.