But I refused to believe that it would go as far as war. Written by Rev. Just before my blow connected with its victim, I realized that I was doomed. We are free to imagine the grace of the MYSTERY capable of exquisite intricacy, unrelenting intimacy, magnanimous generosity, and evolutionary complexity; a MYSTERY which is the very embodiment of LOVE, the LOVE which is eternally becoming. Repent from the Greek word metanoia made up of two Greek words: meta which means, beyond and noos which means mind. Metanoia is an invitation to move beyond your current way of thinking. I had to confess right then and there, in my twentieth year of life, I struggled to believe that any GOD who sent His only Child to die, on a cross, is worth getting up on a Sunday morning for. The Earth was flat. Disappointed I resigned myself to abandoning our plans to camp on the hillsides which envelope the port of Narvik. What is the anonymous gospel-storyteller we know as Luke trying to tell his community with these parables? My own desire to resist the urge to respond to violence with violence weakens with every report of the injustices perpetrated as innocent lives are lost. 3:7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Many of the pages are "decorative" but material can simply be cut and pasted into a word-processing program. Send us your: ResourceEventNewsIdeasnow Maybe Jesus was wrong about justice as the only way to peace. We are sent out with these words Non-violent resistance is dangerous. Imagining the horizons of my ancient ancestors, I could see in my minds eye a familiar worldview, a three-tiered universe, complete with an omnipotent god smiling and then frowning down at me. Today, we celebrate this earth-shaking love of Jesus a love that sent him to the cross and a love that lives eternally with us, encouraging us to live a resurrected life. Prayer of Thanksgiving Robert Solon Jr. }); Evening Prayer Service Bulletin which is to be printed double-sided. Father's Day Video "Foster Kid Father's Day". Hosanna in the highest. For: Only a fool. He rose again in victory because the powers of death cannot overcome the Divine power of Life. jQuery.noConflict(); The seed you sow does not germinate unless it dies. As we enter this season of Easter, we ask that the warm winds of the Spirit encircle this table and accompany us on our journey. And swim we did all the way back to shore. And we who listen to the stars, or walk the dusty grade Follow Michelle L. Torigian on WordPress.com, musings about liturgical adventures, poetic journeys and such, Wednesday Prayer Searching for Gratitude. For a very long time, the story of Jesus appearance in the upper room where his followers were huddled in fear, conditioned me to focus my attention upon Jesus wounds, Thomas doubts, and back again to Jesus wounds, and then to Thomas belief. The congregation is encouraged to move around the sanctuary. We lift them up to God. The writings of the Apostle Paul contain the earliest writings that we have on the subject of the Resurrection. By the way, theres much more in Chapter 15 of Pauls letter to the followers of Jesus Way in Corinth. sermon 4 Giving Up God for Lent John 3:16, GOD IS DEAD! For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Nor were they trying to teach us to live as reckless fools. Holy Mystery that is Wholly Love, you are beyond complete knowledge, above perfect description. In an instant I wiggled free, spun around and connected with what I figured would be a fatal blow. Only a foolWould sweep and sweep and sweep, leaving her purse unguarded, to search for one lone coin. . What matters is that LOVE rises. But because I had been forced to grapple with something I could not at the time reconcile with the person of Jesus whom I loved. Excuse me if I sound a little too indignant but jockeying for a seat during a global pandemic is more than a little tone deaf, when according to the United Nations, yet another 150 million or so people will be plunged into poverty this year, swelling the ranks of the global poor to over one and a half-billion people, over half of which are children. In my bleakest moments, I could imagine the worst. He was teaching in the Galilean synagogues, and all were loud in their praise. Repent: Metanoia: to think new thoughts. 2023 ProgressiveChristianity.org, Common Prayers: Faith, Family, and a Christians Journey Through the Jewish Year, A Joyful Path, Childrens Curriculum Sample Lessons for Years One, Two and Three, Find Faith Communities Using A Joyful Path, The Core Values of Progressive Christianity, Bishop Spong Newsletter Progressing Spirit, Advertising on ProgressiveChristianity.org. Enjoy! The SPIRIT of DIVINITY is BEYOND Creation, BEYOND the Cosmos, even as it is in, and with, and through, all of Creation, all of the Cosmos. At Easter all the themes of the Christian Gospel are held together in one great burst of life. For us, Jesus can be the medium through which the Mystery we call God can be imagined. This dear friends is what it means for you and me to sit at Jesus side. Your resurrection we affirm with joy. and proclaim the Resurrected Christ who offers life to all. None of these parables is the stuff of everyday loss. Perhaps photographers of old avoided them, maybe people back then were better had holding those tears back. Alas, if only. I can also hear the voice of reason condemning me as a fool. Gone are the vestments, the prescribed lectionary readings, and the familiar words. Perfect! Let us be resurrection by practicing resurrection, that is by resisting violence, resisting injustice, so that the Reign of LOVE ushers in the peace we long for the SHALOM which is abundant living. Can, will, or indeed, should the Church Survive?. 2 0 obj I find the stories of the empty tomb hard to take in. } They were concerned for my mortal soul. Times when we must leave all that we have, all that we know, in order to seek, to find and to restore the lost, the abandoned, the wayward, and yes even the self-righteous religious types. The injustice of it all explodes into our living rooms day after day. If we fix our gaze upon the surface, we limit the power of these parables to do what parables are designed to do, to turn worlds and lives upside down and inside out. For we have been blessed with the ability to grasp so many more details about the Cosmos in which we live and move and have our being, than our ancestors could ever have imagined. Risk it all for the sake of LOVE. People: It is right for us to give thanks,It is our joy and peaceat all times and in all placesto give thanks to you, almighty, everlasting God,through Christ, our Lord. Just when I thought I had God under control the wild wind of the spirit blew me away. This story provides the raw material for the idol that we have created to serve as our god. And we give you thanks. In LOVE, we are ransomed from our fear, ransomed from our arrogance and ransomed from our self-centredness, set free to trust the MYSTERY which is LOVE so that we to might live the way of LOVE, so that we might be LOVE in the world, here on this planet. } else { Prayers. Easter Grace Blessing May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us this day. We accept you into our bodies, into our lives. Lets extend our hands over one another for a final blessing: May you have the power to live life fully. The sermon is broken up into three short homilies. Thats the thing with stories, one story, if it is even remotely engaging, that one story will inevitably lead to many more stories. <>/XObject<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/MediaBox[ 0 0 594.96 842.04] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S/StructParents 0>> Infused, inspired, and incarnating as CHRISTs body, as LOVE here and now in this place and in this time, we are anointed to this bring Good News to the poor and to free the captives! Too, many Hollywood movies, inspired me to flirt with violence as I yearned for some secret agents to take him out. What can Jesus teach us about God? Let us metanoia Let us think new thoughts about who Jesus was and why Jesus died. Among the passages was the text which is assigned for this very Sunday from Pauls letter to the church in Corinth. According to the story, paralyzed by their fear, hiding behind a locked door, something happened that gave them the strength to burst forth from their own tomb and change the world. Only a foolWould search and look and scour and puzzle, bend and peer, lift and move everything, to find a single coin. For Paul, like Jesus, lived as a Jew in Palestine under the oppression of Roman Empire, which insisted that peace could only be established and maintained through violence. So, the next morning I rose early, and as the mist was rising over the water I paddled out toward the mouth of the bay and waited. The SPIRIT of DIVINITY is within all Creation, permeating all of the Cosmos! Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window). History should have taught us by now that that justice and not violence is the way to peace. There werent many of us who made the effort. These tears will wash away our illusions of a quick fix and wipe away our delusions that by violently enforcing the status quo we can create peace. Many Christians understand the sacrament of Holy Communion as a means of grace that nourishes and strengthens our faith for life and ministry in the world. 1 0 obj I could feel the temptations to violence rising in me. Through this meal which has stood the test of time, we covenant to love you, God. (1 Kings 19:1-12) It is about a prophet named Elijah, who was struggling to understand the will of the they knew as YHWH, the HEBREW name for the MYSTERY we call God, which can be translated as I AM, WHO AM or I WILL BE WHO I WILL BE or the GREAT I AM. Frame 3: Stop and smell the roses everyday. to be for us the way, the truth, and the life. How dare I posit a GOD who is LOVE? Whenever the news became more than I thought I could bear, I just switched it off. Let us be LOVE. Galileo recanted, but the Earth is moving still Remember, should you have to choose between them in the strife, Easter is the eternal moment that supersedes all time;the vision that puts into perspective all visionless living. Great is the mystery of faith: Well, like, this egg falls off the wall and if you study biology or physics, you know you can never put an egg back together again. and for the mystery of life beyond death. Traditionally, the season of Lent is a time of repentance. Do you still have a hold of that candy? Mmm humm. So, I will not presume to answer for Jesus hometown congregations murderous intentions. 2014-04-20 liturgy [Easter sunrise] Author: Mike Farley If we look at the stories that have been told about Jesus, the stories that have contributed so much to the creation of the idol that masquerades as the Mystery we call God, we discover a narrative that seems preoccupied with Jesus death. Lent & Holy Week BEYOND Atonement! We have technology and access to wisdom. To experience the liveliness of the resurrection is something quite different. They were never meant to be followed in their entirety. Whenever you drink it, do this in remembrance of me.]. When we say that we believe in the resurrection of the dead, we are proclaiming that no matter how dead someone may appear to be, no matter how dead we may feel, new life is always possible. Or perhaps it is that both are dead. The LOVE which is the SACRED MYSTERY which is the LOVE that we call GOD. We thank you, God, for all the love You've given us and for the gift of Jesus. What shalom there will be as SHALOM is restored through justice. It was Solon's Feb. 1 post that drew the Facebook group's attention to the Washington resolution. For there is no division within the divine. The distortion of maps deceived me into believing that it would be a short trip from Bergen to Narvik. Alleluia! Resources for planning and leading worship, Lift Up Your Heartsand Voices: Involving the congregation in the Communion liturgy through song, The Three Days: Celebrating the summit of Holy Week with four services and two sacraments. When the peace which is lost breaks out and the lost, the forsaken, and the forlorn greet one another with open arms and go into the feast to celebrate, for what once was lost is found. A neighbour suggested Vaseline. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountain apart and shattered the rocks by YHWEHs powerbut YHWH was not in the whirlwind. Occasionally, I was able to hear Jesus say, Have you believed because you have seen me? Forget about the rude remarks. Whilst many were written for specific purposes or occasions, many are adaptable to suit others. Crystal was very upset and still very stuck. I cant begin to tell you how often well-meaning and not so well-meaning Christians quote to me the 15thchapter of Pauls first letter to the followers of Jesus Way in Corinth. What can we learn from Jesus life about who, or what the MYSTERY we call God is? Like each flourishing branch of the vine, we, too, blossom in our connection to God and neighbor. When you sow, you do not sow the full-blown plant but a kernel of wheat or some other grain. Support our mission with a tax-deductible donation! When all the rhetoric is said, and done, I lean in close to the beloved ones who have gathered, and I proclaim the same truth which Paul proclaimed, and the science of REALITY confirms to us: Listen, I will tell you a mystery! For years I reigned as the champion of our little world! Ive got to say that even though we shared the same weight class for most of our childhood, when it came to world class wrestling holds, I had him beat. Said the sons of Zebedee, See to it that we sit next to you, one at your right and one at your left, when you come into your glory! Jesus warned them, You do not know what you are asking. I was prepared to move out on my terms, but not on some jumped up pastors terms. Continue reading . Easter offers meaning and hope to all people. On this Easter, we pray in Your name. But we do know that whatever happened it transformed a people hiding from the endless violence into courageous followers of a Way of Being in the world which death could not destroy. Father's Day Service Outline and Ideas. ], [The Communion elements are distributed. Revealing your love, radiating your life, Jesus taught those who listened to him, var thisact = jQuery('#submission-action').val(); Fosdick Dr. NW #80 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body.". And there was no official campsite back then. To feed the hungry? Breathe in the goodness of that space. What we all missed is what was there all along, Humpty Dumpty you see was a cannon. These days hikers on the Pacific Rim trail often begin or end their hike by camping at Pachena Bay. Easter Communion Liturgy Inspired by A Song of Faith. Creator of Our Earth: We celebrate the shifting of seasons from one to the next. Bert Polman (bdp5@calvin.edu) is a hymnologist who is a professor and chair of the music department at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ready: Perhaps some will ask, How are the dead to be raised up? Easter is the amazing wow of cosmic love. But it cannot be like that with you. How dare I flirt with new ways of understanding REALITY, new discoveries about the Cosmos, new theories about the nature of human consciousness? The sequence of death and resurrection is the pattern of all creating and of all loving. For he is risen! Resist the illusion that finding what we have lost will be a sweet, harmless, story. Easter is the eternal moment that supersedes all time; the vision that puts into perspective all visionless living. delivered us from slavery to sin and death, and made us a new people. So, today Im inviting you to stop trying to identify the DIVINE MYSTERY as an individual person in these parables. Metanoia is an invitation to think new thoughts. Do this in remembrance of me. Church that is. The Risen One comes with hands full of love. If you are looking for an Affirmation of Faith for a specific season or celebration (e.g. On this her Feast Day, let us commemorate Julian of Norwich, who is perhaps one of the greatest English Mystics. But by the free gift of Gods grace all are put right with him through Christ Jesus, who sets them free. Im a child of my times. Still no luck. Apparently, some Lutherans are in this Pentecostal pastors opinion, a bit losey-goosey when it comes to atonement theories. window.location.replace('https://progressivechristianity.org/paupress/?rel=contact&pau_form=contact_form'); All risings of the human spirit are preceded by brokenness, loss or rejection. Are we prepared to make sacrifices in order to ransom those who suffer the indignities of the hell we have created here on Earth for the one and a half billion people held in the captivity of poverty? So, I waved and was gifted by their own energetic response. He . Jesus called them together and said, You know how among the Gentiles those who exercise authority are domineering and arrogant; those great ones know how to make their own importance felt. Dying you destroyed our death, If it doesnt is it my heart or is it the worship that is dead? Practicing resurrection requires that we gather sharing our gifts, talents and treasure for the good of all. Amen. :+FI_!+zh}&7 qdhe'{p [&xQJX/nf69. Human beings have one kind, animals have another, birds another, and fish another. read more More Poetry Week of February 5, 2023 "Less is more." Second Sunday of Advent. We proclaim and celebrate this Easter season because it links Jesus with all life, with transformation, and with possibility of life beyond our imagining. Practicing resurrection happens when we empower one another to rise.Practicing resurrection happens when we build communities of compassion that live fully, love extravagantly, and empower people to be all that they were created to be. Glory be to you, Lord Jesus. If our hopes in Christ are limited to this life only, we are the most pitiful of all the human race. Easter is the festival of the irrepressible God whom not even death can contain. We turn Easter back into Good Friday when we worship ugliness, sterility and unthinking conformity. Now, talk of the mid-night sun always took me back to my childhood memories of my Dad reciting the Robert Service poem, the Cremation of Sam McGee. Sunday between November 27 and December 3. This week, two events stand in stark contrast to one another. }); As frightened as I was, I was determined to get close to these magnificent beasts. *Leader: Now the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord! For those of you preaching on the text fromGenesis 32:3-31: You may not be able to tell from looking at me. Reformed Worship 2023 by Worship Ministries of the Christian Reformed Church. Leader: Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord has prepared this table for all who love him and trust in him alone for their salvation. . Alleluia! When we forgo our obsession with Jesus death and open ourselves to the passions of Jesus life, we begin to see new ways to understand the new images of the HOLY ONE that Jesus encouraged his followers to see. You and I are the wealthiest followers of Jesus who have ever walked the Earth. Can we now look beyond what we have been conditioned to see, and see the wounded CHRIST standing in the middle of fearful followers, a vision of the impact of violence, saying, SHALOM, Peace be with you! Can we look beyond what we have been conditioned to see the ONE wounded by violence bidding us peace? In my mind, I saw old black and white faded images of other little families. Thousands of rotting corpses were left nailed to crosses in order to terrify the masses into submission. Jesus existed within time whereas the CHRIST exists in and beyond time. I can certainly identify with the disciples in the story who became angry with the sons of Zebedee for jockeying for seats alongside Jesus in the next world, when the forces of Empire in this world continue to suck the life out of the poor. Furthermore, I suspect that you do to. Welcome to Contemporary Liturgy website. Christianitys morbid preoccupation with Jesus violent death will not usher in the Kin-dom of DIVINITY which Jesus lived for. This service is found in UMH 12-15 and is designed for those wishing a brief text beginning with the Invitation to the Lord's table. Having this "catch-cry" as a . If that means violence, well maybe Im not the pacifist I claim to be. Others, they looked confused and terrified as they are loaded on board trains. If the sacrament is not to be celebrated, the service may conclude with PartV.). It is long past time for the followers of Jesus Way of being in the world, to repent. 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