A collection of some the pieces we have written and used as liturgy in Grace services.
A prayer in which the responses are all well-known advertising slogans.
We live after purity
True
In a world of rich and poor, global warming, information overload, cafe direct, nike and gap
You either love it or you hate it
Our life is complex and interlinked not simple and straightforward
It’s as clear as your conscience
Our actions and choices have a knock on effect for others - neighbours near home and far away
Help us in this context to follow you
Always
When our thoughts are filled with dreams of wealth and objects of desire
Think different
When we reach information overload
Have a break
Take some space and time
Everyone needs a place to think
Help us use our withdrawal as a time to learn to love the world more
Stop liking start loving
Make us angry about injustice and determined to make a difference
Just do it
Help us know which concerns to make our own
Because life is complicated enough
When apathy sets in to remember
Every little helps
When individual actions seem too small to count thank you that we are part of your body, the largest global network
Together we are stronger
Give us patience when change is slow
Good things come to those that wait
We long to see your kingdom come
The future’s bright
And your will be done
Whatever it takes
On earth as it is in heaven
A taste of paradise
To the glory of God
Because he’s worth it!
[jonny baker]
“Zechariah, do not be afraid; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will have a son, and you are to call him John. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
“Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you. Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favour with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
"My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
the grace be do service was led with people wearing either red of blue filtered glasses. when it came to the iiturgy written in red and blue. each person could only see one half. to capture that i have pout the liturgy jhere in read and blue as a jpg (which means you'll have to copy out the words if you want to use them)
Bread of Justice
“Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you that have no money, come, buy and eat!”
Isaiah 55:1-2 The Bible
Each human life has equal worth and value. We live in a very unfair world.
In 1992 Nike paid Michael Jordon more for endorsing its trainers ($20million) than the company paid its entire 30,000 strong Indonesian workforce.
Compare the hourly salary of Michael Eisner, CEO of Disney ($9,783) with that of a Haitian worker who stitches Disney merchandise (28 cents).
In 1998 it was calculated that Bill Gates, Helen Walton and Warren Buffet – the world’s three richest people – had a combined wealth of $132 billion. Between them they are richer than 48 of the world’s countries. Add up every penny you can find from Afghanistan and Angola to Madagascar and Malawi to Uganda and Zimbabwe and you still won’t find as much as this loaded American threesome.
In Canada people can expect to live until they are 79.
In Malawi people can expect to live until they are 41.
In the UK 78 in 100 people have their own television.
In Bangladesh it is 1 in a 100.
84 people in our world have combined fortunes worth more than everyone in China which has 1.2 billion people and a gross domestic product of £700 billion.
A child born in Britain, America or France this year will consume, waste and pollute more in a lifetime than 50 children born in developing nations.
The richest fifth of the world’s population will consume nearly half of the world’s meat and fish, use 58% of the energy and 84% of all paper. This richest fifth has three-quarters of all telephone lines and 87% of the world’s vehicles.
In France everyone has access to sanitation – in Malawi only 6% of people do.
70% of the world’s population has never made a phone call.
Every 8 minutes of every day of every week of every year an Iraqi child dies as a consequence of US and Western sanctions.
= = =
Place a star on the map on a place in the world where you think there is a particular need for justice. Reflect on your life in relation to life in the place where you have placed your star. Pray for all those who hunger for the bread of justice.
We hunger for you in a hungry world.
May we be blessed.
As we look to the year ahead, and the year gone by.
As we return to our schools and workplaces and find New rocks and New brambles.
May you be blessed as you engage with others,
as you find the time to participate and give others the chance to do the same.
May you have the courage to create and take risks,
and may you find your rest in God.
May you be blessed, as you show your weaknesses and accept God's Grace.
May others see that you are fragile that they might join in your fragility.
May our broken edges fit together to become one body.
As Christ kept the holes in his hands and feet having rose from the dead,
may we keep our wounds even after we have healed.
May you be blessed as you are healed by Christ's own wounds.
May you become broken in order to become whole.
May you become whole by knowing you are broken.
May you remember your wounds and embrace your hurt.
May you go into the places that scare you.
May you deal with anger and with sadness
And may God be with you all the way.
May you be blessed, that you are perfect in your imperfections -
as you are forgiven, but never forgotten.
May you be blessed, as you are accepted as you are.
As you are broken.
As you are wounded.
As you are hurt.
As you are loved.
Amen.
[this blessing was improvised - i.e. written down in response to the liturgies and prayers of the evening]
Welcome to worship
Make yourself at home
Relax your tense shoulders; shake out your tired arms; rotate your stiff ankles
Breathe deeply; breathe deeper still
Let your thoughts settle in this place; be fully present here
Look around at your companions; we have come to worship together
And everyone is welcome here with all that you carry
So bring your struggle and your success
your joy and your fear
your faith and your doubt
your culture
your sensuality
your whole self
We are here to soak in the presence of God
We are here to listen to the word of God
We are here to be filled with the Spirit of God
We are here to worship
'confession' was written as a prayer for the grace service at reimagining worship in hackney. The service was about the senses, and this prayer about the misuse of the senses. we had linked images, eg advertisements, up whilst it was read.
white lines
blowing through my mind
and all the while i think of you
you said
hello boys are you pleased to see me?
we said
lord, when did we see you naked
and not rewind the video
you said
some people bleed internally
for lack of anyone to touch them
and pronounce them clean
we said
some people are just asking for it
you said
it's a lovely day
come outside and smell the flowers
we said
there was a drunk on the train tonight
we could hardly breathe
don't these people ever wash?
you said
hey baby
we could make beautiful music together
you said
you could at least phone
we said
we're sorry there's no-one here to receive your call at present
please leave your name and telephone number
and we will get back to you as soon as possible
you said
if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off
If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out
with the remaining hand
because you can't, you won't, and you don't stop
you said
take, eat - this is my body
drink it all of you - this is my blood
we said
this product will only aid weight loss
as part of a calorie-controlled diet
you said
the eye cannot say to the hand "i don't need you"
or how are you going to reach out?
you said
the head cannot say to the feet "i don't need you"
or how are you going to dance?
we said
we are the body of christ
but it's not quite nice to talk about bodies
especially in church
if you wanted us to be holy
why did you invent sex?
you said
i gave up my body
to murder and resurrection
to put all this mess right
i can start changing things right now, if you want
we said
yes please
Grace Participate - Do You Turn To Christ?
Let's all gather in close around the table...
We have been exploring the ethos of grace over the last few weeks -
creativity - we love being creative
participation - grace is not something to consume but to get involved in
and engagement - the spirit gives us an outward impulse to engage in mission life, the world, culture and in our local communities.
If you are involved in grace we hope you won't be able to help being creative, involved and engaged - these things will rub off on us all. Or else thy are just empty words.
We began the first service dramatically smashing a mirror and plates to suggest that as God beckons us into the future there may be things that we need to let go of in order to move on. Well here we are. We have explored our values and this is it. We stand on the threshold of the future. God is beckoning us into the future.
We are changing the way we do things and the future is up for shaping. The basic structure is in place on these postcards. Take some if you haven't had them already. At the heart of the change is the opportunity for more involvement and to create space for things other than creating worship. So if you have ideas, passions, interests, mission ideas then get one or two others with you and make them happen.
I have put a few symbolic items on the table.
Bread is the body of christ - this isn't consecrated. but as we move from here i invite you to eat bread as a symbol of your participation in the life of God and God's kingdom.
The cross is the symbol of christ's passion - his self giving love. to follow in the way of christ is to live a passion-ate life. Christ is re-inviting us to be passion-ate, to follow in the way of self giving love. I'm going to pass the cross around - hold it and in your heart recommit to the way of the cross, the way of passion, the way of self giving love.
The candle is the light of the world - Christ has ignited a spark or a fire in us, i invite you to take a candle and light it as a sign that you recommit to being a godbearer, to carry God's light into the world.
We have this nice inward facing circle. This is part of our grace problem. We seem close to God when we are facing inwards. We have fallen for the trap of thinking God is in here. But God is out there. A Great Reversal needs to take place. When we talked about our ethos, one word kept coming up that never made it in to the three but perhaps undergirds them all - risk. Following God is a risk. So finally I'm going to ask you a simple question from the baptism service 'do you turn to Christ?'. As I do respond 'I do' if you'd like to. And as you do turn and face outwards. Then stay for a minute or two in silence facing outwards asking God to lead you and us into the future
Do you turn to Christ? I do
Doors [3] - New Year 06
We will not allow our gifts and talents to be hidden
WE WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM THROUGH THE DOOR MARKED "CREATE".
We will encourage all to contribute. Our ideas are a gift offered to God
WE WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM THROUGH THE DOOR MARKED "PARTICIPATE".
We will be hospitable and supportive to one another, to visitors and to the wider church. We will engage with everyday life and connect with culture:
WE WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM THROUGH THE DOOR MARKED "ENGAGE".
We will not be afraid to fail but will push at our boundaries and try new things:
WE WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM THROUGH THE DOOR MARKED "RISK".
WE WILL GO THROUGH THESE DOORS IN THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT, KNOWING THAT JESUS HAS GONE THROUGH THEM ALL FIRST.
When our thoughtless criticism stifles the creativity of others,
Lord, have mercy
Lord, have mercy
When we keep a tight hold on power and deny others the chance to participate.
Christ, have mercy
Christ, have mercy
When we prefer the safety of our holy huddle to the wideness of God’s world.
Christ, have mercy
Christ, have mercy
When we decline to take risks for fear that we might fail.
Lord, have mercy
Lord, have mercy
But when we praise the gifts of others,
share the power that we are given,
engage with communities beyond the boundaries of our comfort,
and risk everything we have for the sake of others,
then, God rejoices in us.
Almighty God,
who forgives all who truly repent,
Have mercy upon us,
pardon and deliver us from all our sins,
confirm and strengthen us is all goodness,
and keep us in life eternal,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
Text from the order of service for the 1999 Greenbelt communion service.
Before the service begins there will be a chance to learn the new songs in the service.
Words in bold are spoken or sung by all. Words in light are spoken or sung by the leaders.
Welcome to our worship, we're celebrating the eucharist.
God the creator is a gracious, abundant and generous host.
You are invited to be guests at his table
Grace and peace to you from him who was and is and is to come
and from the seven spirits before his throne
and from Jesus Christ who is the faithful witness
the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth
On the Lord's day I was in the Spirit
and there before me was a door standing open in heaven
and a voice like a trumpet said
'Come up here and I will show you what must take place after this'
Eternal God,
fling open the doors of our hearts
to the weather of your Spirit.
Lead us out beneath the dancing sky and wind
across the stumbling ground of our reality
to where the sound of worship never ceases
and the view stretches further than the human eye can see.
Through Christ the faithful witness,
Amen
Relax
God is here
There will be some space and quiet music to prepare our hearts for worship.
Angel
Seven golden lamps are shining ANGEL
Where the Son of Man goes walking ANGEL
Calling out for us to hear him ANGEL
Calling out to seven churches ANGEL
Sing praise to Christ our God
Sing praise to Christ our God
Sing praise to Christ our God
Sing praise to Christ our God
Eyes that burn like fire flying ANGEL
Words that sound like rushing rivers ANGEL
In his hands are seven bright stars ANGEL
In his face the sun is shining ANGEL
I am Alpha and Omega ANGEL
I was crucified and broken ANGEL
Now I am alive forever ANGEL
Death can never stop my living ANGEL
Do you understand the mystery ANGEL
What is now and what will happen ANGEL
Seven stars are seven angels ANGEL
Seven lamps are seven churches ANGEL
Holy holy holy, Lord God Almighty
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee
Holy holy holy, Merciful and mighty
God in three persons, blessed Trinity
Holy holy holy, all the saints adore thee
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee
Who were and are and evermore shall be
Holy holy holy, though the darkness hide thee
Though the sinful human eye thy glory may not see
Only thou art holy, there is none beside thee
Perfect in power, in love and purity
Holy holy holy, Lord God Almighty
All thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea
Holy holy holy, merciful and mighty
God in three persons, blessed Trinity
(Reginald Herber 1783-1826, tune John Bacchus Dykes 1823-76)
Please sit or kneel.
After each section the following Kyrie is sung:
Kyrie eleison
Christe eleison
Lord have mercy
Christ have mercy
Glory to God in the highest
Glory to God in the highest
God's peace on the earth
God's peace on the earth
Lord God, Heavenly King, Almighty God and Father
We worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory
Lord God, Heavenly King, Almighty God and Father
We worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory
Lord Jesus Christ only Son of God
Lord Jesus Christ only Son of God
Lord God lamb of God
Lord God lamb of God
You take away the sin of the world - have mercy on us all
You sit at God's right hand on high - receive our prayer today
You take away the sin of the world - have mercy on us all
You sit at God's right hand on high - receive our prayer today
For you alone are the holy one
For you alone are the holy one
You are the only Lord
You are the only Lord
You alone are God most high - you are Jesus Christ
You are with the Holy Spirit in the Father's glory
You alone are God most high - you are Jesus Christ
You are with the Holy Spirit in the Father's glory
Glory to God in the highest
Glory to God in the highest
Amen Alleluia
Amen Alleluia
Revelation 21:1-8, Isaiah 25:6-9
We believe in God the Father Almighty
We believe that he made the earth and heavens
We believe in Jesus born of a woman
We believe that he is the Son of God
We believe
We believe We believe We believe We believe We believe
We believe We believe We believe We believe We believe
We believe in Jesus teacher and healer
We believe that his life was poor and simple
We believe he died betrayed and rejected
We believe that he fought the power of evil
We believe the holy life giving Spirit
Is a gift of the Son and Father to us
We believe the three are one and united
We believe in his healing and forgiveness
We believe that Jesus died and was buried
We believe that he rose to life again
We believe that he was taken to heaven
We believe that he reigns at God's right hand
We believe that he will come back in glory
We believe he will judge the dead and living
We believe the resurrection of body
We believe in the life that's everlasting
from 'The Book of God' by Walter Wangerin
The Lord is here
God¹s Spirit is with us
Lift up your hearts
We lift them up to God
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God
It is right to give God thanks and praise
O Lord our God, sustainer of the universe,
at your command all things came to be:
the vast expanse of interstellar space;
galaxies, suns, the planets in their courses,
and this fragile earth, our island home.
By your will they were created and have their being.
Redeemer God, word become flesh,
we remember you in bread and wine;
your body, your blood,
broken so we with all creation may be made perfect.
Through your sacrifice death is nulled.
Through your resurrection we have a future.
Thankyou
Therefore with angels and animals,
microbes and mountains,
and all that lives for you
we proclaim how wonderful you are,
we pour out our thanks to you
in song that never sleeps:
Holy holy holy lord
Holy holy holy lord
God of power and might
God of power and might
Heaven and earth are full of your glory
Heaven and earth are full of your glory
Hosanna in the highest
Hosanna in the highest
And now we ask that by the power of your Holy Spirit
this bread and wine may be to us Christ's body and his blood;
who, on the night that he was handed over to suffering and death,
took bread, thanked you and broke it
He gave it to his friends saying
'Eat this, it is my body given for you. Do this in memory of me.'
Later after supper he took the cup,
thanked you, and gave it to them saying
'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.
Do this whenever you drink it in memory of me.'
Christ has died, Christ is risen
Christ has died, Christ is risen
Christ will come again
Christ will come again
In this place where heaven and earth meet
under the rainbow of God's promise,
in this sharing of bread and wine
future hope becomes reality now
So bring your scorched earth
bring your harvest
bring your open sky
bring your restless guilty waters
bring your swift unbending road
bring your urgent inner city
to the table where your host says
'I make all things new'
Lamb of God you take away the sin of the world
Lamb of God you take away the sin of the world
Have mercy, mercy on us
Have mercy, mercy on us
One person in each group stands to get bread and wine.
Bread and wine is shared in groups.
Come and be here
Steal past my fears
O wounded healer
O humble leader
Show me your hands
Show me your side
O holy victim
O crucified
I will receive you now
I will receive your love
I will believe in you
I will go on with you
Speak to my heart
Bring me your peace
O broken Saviour
O gentle fighter
Breathe on my face
The breath of life
O my Christ let me
Share in your life
Bring to my lips now
Your blood and body
O bread of heaven
O hope of glory
Send me in love
Into the world
O faithful teacher
Wisdom of God
All-saving God,
Thank you for feeding us with the body and blood of your Son Jesus Christ
whose death and resurrection have purchased the future healing of all things
We who have tasted the coming Kingdom
offer ourselves as its bearers and signs in the power of your Spirit
and as lovers and guardians of all that you have made
until you come
Amen. Come Lord Jesus.
Prayers led by Christian Aid with a particular focus on Jubilee 2000
I bind unto myself today
The strong name of the trinity
By invocation of the same
The three in one and one in three
I bind unto myself today
The great love of the living word
The wisdom of my God to teach
His hand to guide his shield to ward
I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the starlit heaven
The glorious sun's life giving ray
The fruits of earth so freely given
I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead
His eye to watch his might to stay
His ear to hearken to my need
I bind unto myself today
The way of Christ in life and death
The call of God to jubilee
In broken chains and cancelled debt
I bind unto myself today
The strong name of the trinity
By invocation of the same
The three in one and one in three
(Words attributed to St Patrick, translation Mrs C F Alexander, 1889, except v.5)
Music and words from Grace, Host, Late Late Service, Third Sunday Service and Sanctuary.
'Eucharist' has been specifically written for Greenbelt 1999.
It is available on CD, from Proost
Thanks to everyone who has specifically written or contributed material to make 'Eucharist' happen.
Where our choice of words has concealed the riches of your character,
has distorted our understanding of your nature
and has kept you hidden from those who seek you
Nurturing God, forgive us
Where we have created you in our own image,
have thought of you in purely human terms,
have used words to tie you down and box you in
Renewing God, forgive us
Where the language we use for each has upheld sinful power structures instead of subverting them,
where our words have excluded women and privileged men,
have silenced the poor and ignored the disadvantaged,
have dishonoured ethnicity and rejected diversity
Energising God, forgive us
Hear now the words of Jesus for all who are truly sorry and who seek to renew their lives and their language:
your sins are forgiven;
go in peace;
come and follow me.
Holy God
open our eyes
expand our vocabulary
broaden our understanding
enrich our worship
so that we can praise you and know you in ways less idolatrous and more liberating
Amen
Generous host, Feast maker,
Help me to accept your hospitality
To realise when my cup is full
and to enjoy drinking it?
Homekeeper,
You welcome me in.
You remove my damp, uncomfortable coat
and draw me in beside the fire.
You invite me to the table
and make me part of your family.
Though i am odd and awkward
you make me feel i am a treasured guest
and there will always be a place for me here.
Jesus is not lord
There, I've said it.
It's been bugging me for years.
Lords are pompous rich people who usually inherit a lot of wealth,
talk funny and think they are better than anyone else.
They even get a say in how to run the country and think it's their right.
They live up to their name and 'lord' it over people.
So thank you that today, at last,
Jesus is not lord.
Creator God
swirling, formless one,
hovering over creation and bringing new things to life
you speak new worlds into being with language that creates and liberates
Eternal God
living, limitless one
inhabiting the vast universe with the rich complexity of your being
you reveal yourself to your creatures and invite us to know you
Friendly God.
nurturing, welcoming one
opening yourself wide to the joy and pain of loving your people
you place us in communities and families that echo your true nature
(pause to think about the language we instinctively use for God)
Holy God
We thank you for the ways in which we have known and understood you;
We thank you for the metaphors that have opened our eyes to more of who you are;
We thank you for the language that has brought the transcendent, timeless, mysterious God within our grasp.
Holy God
We are hungry for more of you
We ask you to reveal more of yourself to us
to take us beyond the confines of familiar habits
to free us from the restrictions and distortions of our language
to expand our understanding of you
so that we can love you whole heartedly
we can communicate you faithfully
and we can reflect your full image to a world that needs you
Amen.
you are not lord - you are lord
you are not father - you are father
you are not friend - you are friend
you are not lover - you are lover
you are not mother - you are mother
you are not god - you are god
you are not saviour - you are saviour
you are not judge - you are judge
you are not king - you are king
you are quantum
the wave and the particle
the fuzzy edge
the paradox
the 'both and' god.
God the rock
solid, enduring, strong and safe
existing through turmoil and peace
awe-inspiring as a mountain range
beautiful as a marble floor
protective like a cathedral wall
a cave in which to shelter
a cool refuge in the heat of the day.
But are you cold and hard?
unmoved and impervious?
impersonal and frightening?
Do you get eroded by wind and weather and the passing of time?
Can you be a rock in some ways and not others?
I need to think some more about this.
Words people ‘parked’
Lord
Father
Father God
Fullness/energy
Loving
God
Love
Spirit
Majesty
Sustaining
Faith
King
Abba
Creator
He
Three persons - trinity
Peacemaker
Judge
Mother
Provider
Forgiveness
Tender
Words people explored
Midwife
Parent Eagle
You sculpted me, inside and out
Watchful Shepherd
Shaper and moulder
I see you
Unconsuming Fire
The one who comes looking for us
Seeker of my heart
Hostess
The undefinable
Rock
Generous Host
Shepherd
Light of the Dawn
Omnipotent
Nothing
Thirst quencher
Your lost sheep needs you
Ocean
Mechanic
Bread of Life
Energy
Cook
Living water
The energy in all things
originally part of 'homecoming', based on a set of slides illustrating rembrandt's painting 'the return of the prodigal'. it had a second life as station 5 of the st. paul's cathedral labyrinth.
on the wall above this station is projected a part of the painting: the prodigal son being embraced by his father.
on a table in front of it is an OS map.
on the map is a map-reading compass, and four or five small magnets.
beside the map is the book 'walking in circles' by richard long, open at the double-page spread 'kicking stones: a 203 mile northward walk in six days'
instructions:
the compass points north
but the coloured magnets, like false norths,
can pull it astray.
play a little with the magnets
bring them close to the compass and see the effect.
the still small voice of true north is there all the time
but the false norths drown it out
if they get too close.
how then will we find our way home
across strange terrain?
what are the false norths in your life?
in addition there is this text:
focus on the figures of the father and the son.
remain in silence for a while.
try to imagine the scene of the encounter between father and son....
the younger son took all his father could give him and left.
he wanted to rule his own life, but stronger forces were pulling the strings. he wanted to be his own new creation, but stronger forces remade him in their own image.
both feast and famine took all he had - even his humanity. he found himself in a world where pigs were worth more than people, because pigs have economic value.
so he returned to his father to sell himself as a commodity.
but his father received him as a son.
notice his shaved head - symbol of loss of humanity. he has become an object to be used and discarded.
he wants to be a hired hand - a partial, conditional humanity that has to be continually earned and can be revoked.
the father receives him in the sonship of full humanity. being someone’s child does not have to be earned or deserved. the father will not allow him to be anything less than a son.
do you feel you have to earn god’s love?
if so, look at the painting and put yourself in the position of the younger son.
feel the embrace of god’s accepting love.
Go back the way you came
After going through the desert, through discouragement and fear, after receiving refreshment Elijah is told to go back the way he came to finish the task of anointing the next king and prophet. It's a long way back!
(We used this over the movie sequence from Plant Earth of deserts where the desert is suddenly filled with gushing water and where the desert blooms)
Go back the way you came...
The desert and the parched land will be glad
Go back the way you came...
Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert
Go back the way you came...
The burning sand will become a pool and thirsty ground bubbling springs.
Go back the way you came...
You're not the only one
Go back the way you came...
Build in time for rest, food and drink
Go back the way you came...
What are you doing here?
Go back the way you came...
The wilderness will rejoice and blossom, like the crocus it will burst into bloom
Go back the way you came...
Be strong. Do not fear. Your God will come.
Go back the way you came...
May gladness and joy overtake you and sorrow and sighing flee away
Go back the way you came...
God of broken people and broken places
We confess to you our love of comfort,
of the known and predictable,
of the safe and secure.
We recognise that you call us into liminal space
To leave what we know and venture with you into desert and wilderness, into blindness and discomfort
We want to follow you, but it’s hard to leave what we know
Help us to trust you, and to set out.
On the journey of faith,
Far I have come, far I must go
God of broken people and broken places
We thank you for all that Grace has been to us and to many others
We thank you for the space to listen, to grow, to create, to be challenged
We recognise that you are calling us on
To leave what we know and venture with you into new things, into engagement and participation, into creativity and risk, into new structures and opportunities
We want to follow you, but it’s hard to leave what we know and we’re not sure where we’re going
Help us to trust you, and to set out.
On the journey of faith,
Far we have come, far we must go.
God of rebuilt people and rebuilt places
You have plans for deserts and wilderness
‘Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.
The burning sand will become a pool,
The thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
Grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness.’
God of transformation we look forward to what you will do
With our lives and with Grace
On the journey of faith,
Far we have come, far we must go.
God of many names, my name is known to you.
I am held in the hand of your life, and I do not know what you will make of me.
All I know is that I cannot make myself any more than I could in my mother's womb.
But this I can do, this I choose.
To give myself into the hand of your continuing creativity;
my past, with its joys and triumphs, its failures and regrets;
my present, with its struggles and accomplishments, its hopes and setbacks;
my future, with its fears and freedom, its pain and promise.
To loose and to bind, to stretch and to shape, to become what I will,
trusting the hand that made the world
trusting the spirit that breathes life
trusting the love that will not let me go
trusting the promise of the Word made flesh.
Amen
(naming and presentation: a dedication by kathy galloway from the book 'talking to the bones' spck 1996)
[in spite of being a foreigner and a nobody, in spite of being both the agent and the victim of a moral mess, in spite of not being the mother of the chosen one, hagar is one of the few people in the bible to be able to say, "i have seen god!"]
when we are enslaved in a foreign country
you are the god who sees
when we are the victims of domestic strife
you are the god who sees
when we give birth to disputed children
you are the god who sees
when we are thrown out of our homes
you are the god who sees
when we mock other people's sorrows
you are the god who sees
when our familes reject us
you are the god who sees
when we cannot provide for ourselves
you are the god who sees
when we despair of life itself
you are the god who sees
so may the god who sees hagar and ishmael
the god who sees outsiders and mistakes
the god who sees the ones who are not chosen
watch over us and provide for us
through our wanderings, exiles and errors
this lent and always
amen
I am listening to you, honestly,
But I’m also thinking about what I’m going to say next
I hate embarrassed gaps in conversation when no one knows what to say
I want you to think that I’m interesting, funny, witty
So I’m lining up my response, getting it ready
I am listening to you, honestly,
But I hope you don’t go on too long
I want to catch the final scores, to find out how my team has done
And I need to ring my friend before he goes out for the evening
Then ‘I’m a celebrity’ is on TV and I don’t want to miss that
So make it quick and you don’t need to repeat yourself
I am listening to you, honestly,
But I’m also thinking about what happened at work this week
And what I’ve got to do next week
I’m going to be in trouble if I don’t get that report written
And I need to work out why my colleague isn’t talking to me
So it’s quite hard to hear what you’re saying
over all this internal noise
I am listening to you, honestly,
But that group over there looks like they’re having a much better conversation
They’re laughing and joking
I’d really like to get to know some of them
Not that you’re not important – of course you are
I just wish I had the chance to speak to them too
I am listening to you, honestly,
But to be honest, I wish you’d really listen to me
Just for once, to pay attention to what I have to say
without jumping in with your experience and your solutions
I don’t want you to solve my problems
I just want you to hear me
To hear the me behind the words
To really listen
we have had a DIY iconic candle as part of the communion by numbers services (see 2006 | 2007).
in the envelope is...
a night light candle
box of matches
an acetate strip with iconic images printed on it
a paper clip
make the candle by looping the strip and clipping with the paper clip and place over the night light and light the candle. you can get acetates to print on with an ink jet printer from any stationers such as rymans.
you can download a pdf file of the acetate strip we used for the emmaus road communion by numbers (5mb). cut round the strip of images but leave the overlap one end so that you have some blank acetate to fold over when you clip the loop.
Who are you when your job and place in society are taken away - what's left
that can't be taken away? What is the irreducible hardcore you? What is the
you of you?
Is all we have the identities that society has given us - our style tribes,
our clothing labels, our jobs, our cars, our political choices? Are these
like clothes that we pull around our naked selves? Will we shiver and catch
cold without them, or be arrested for indecent exposure of the soul?
So who are you going to be today? We're lost in a world full of choices. In
the past, who you were was given to you by birth and occupation, and few
escaped their place. Now 'who am I?' is a decision we have to make for
ourselves every day, and a lot of the time we don't know where to begin...so
we drift through identities, always acting, reinventing ourselves on the
outside but never able to change ourselves on the inside; or we live and die
by who other people say we are. We don't know how to define ourselves except
by the categories that our society offers us, so we shoehorn ourselves in,
grateful for the security of a label, grateful to belong, even if we have to
cut off bits of our inner selves to fit in the box...
A lot of us are told we're worthless, and that becomes our identity,
tainting everything we do with the stench of failure, making even our
virtues or successes seem provisional and temporary in the face of our
fundamental loserdom.
Those that have success find that it isn't enough to fill a heart, unless
you shrink it...
and when the rest of us find that we don't have the talent for the premier
division, or the head office, or the A-levels, we know that we are failures,
because success is the only success, and we live out our lives knowing that
we were not good enough...
At the beginning of his public ministry, after he had been baptised by John
the Baptist, Jesus went into the desert to find out who he was if he wasn't
going to be a carpenter anymore. Interestingly Luke, in his gospel, puts in
Jesus' genealogy, his family tree, at this point - this is how Jesus' fellow
Jews defined who he was - later, when Jesus starts preaching in the
synagogue in Nazareth, his fellow Nazarenes are outraged at his presumption
- who does he think he is, they say, isn't he just Joseph's son? In their
society, where family defines who you are, they think they know all about
him by knowing his family.
So Jesus goes out into the desert, away from the pigeonholes of job and
family, to ask God who he really is. And by the end of the 40 days, Satan's
repeated question 'if you are the son of God...' tells us that Jesus had
found out.
So who does God think you are?
In the desert all the things that we use to define our identities are
missing, and we are left with nothing except what we have inside. A lot of
us fear that we would find we had nothing inside, or only fear and pain, and
so we never venture into the desert. In the desert there is nowhere to hide,
if God comes to us, as he came to Jesus, as he came to Moses, as he came to
Jacob, to show us who we really are to him. And we clutch our thin rags of
identity to us like armour, and shrink back from his touch - better the
little we have, we say, than risk even that being taken away as well.
But those who try to save their life will lose it all, and God needs to
strip us naked, in spite of our fear and embarrassment - and if we let him
remove these filthy rags, and wash the festering wounds, he will reclothe us
as something we never imagined, or only caught glimpses of in dreams and ran
after down the High Street, but found that the things we bought could never
quite get us there, because we were still wearing the same old stinking
underwear underneath - and when we put on the identity God offers us - the
one he sewed himself, until his hands bled - we will know that we have
become our real selves at last, we have found out who we really are, that we
are free, and need never search, lost, through the world again...
and maybe the desert turns out to be a beach, after all, so we make a
bonfire of those old rags and watch the sun rise over the ocean...
originally part of the slow service a reflection by steve:
reality is a static image, rolling past at 24 frames per second
if we slow the movie down, what will we see?
slow the projector in your head and lose the fluidity
embrace the flicker, the jerkiness
allow the frames of your life to disconnect and stop
now your life lies still in front of your eyes, what do you see?
play 'spot the difference' with each frozen moment
now you have time to examine carefully each corner and shadow
what details are revealed, that you always move too fast to see?
fleeting expressions and imperceptible gestures
betraying a truth not discerned
a turning you didn't take
another universe of futures, vanishing from sight
to us the stars stand still
but ancient eyes could not navigate by our skies
the north point of the sky moves in a circle 28000 years around
the north star we know is not the north star of our ancestors or descendants
they will see other constellations
does god see our lives the way we see the stars?
innumerable slow movements plotted and understood on charts long before the event
constellations drawn that serve for a while and break up
how slow is reality for god?
what do fast and slow mean in eternity
where every tiny moment and endless age are available for detailed inspection
a day like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day
if we slow down do we see more like god sees?
see all the details
creation's crazy minutiae
who would have time to see all that stuff except god?
is that why there's so much of it?
how quickly does salvation come?
if we slowed our lives down would we see every step and progression?
or would its detail still evade us
a blur of motion in the shadows of a static frame
a frozen block in the centre of the movie?
if we slow down will we see what god sees?
will we see what god is doing?
have you ever tried?
Julie Dunstan led grace through an Examen for the January 2005 service.
This is the text of her explantion and mediation.
It is the beginning of a new year and, perhaps, following the tragedy of the Tsunami we might approach it with a sense of gratitude and humility for the privilege of life still before us. How, then, can we be more open to God's invitation to live a wholesome holiness....
Finding God in all things is the catch phrase of Ignatian spirituality... It is a key concept in the return to a more grounded, more experiential faith. And it characterises Ignatian spirituality - from which we get the Examen.
Many of us are no longer satisfied with a God who sits above us, aloof - requiring a radical departure or denial of our everyday realities - inner and outer. Though we must certainly accept that God cannot be reduced to our realities ( he is always also utterly other!) we are it seems, reclaiming the incarnational God - the God revealed in human form - vulnerable, ordinary, desiring, suffering, transformed.
The Examen is a prayer practice, articulated and made popular by a man who came to be known as Ignatius of Loyola - born in the late 15th C in Northern Spain. It is, in short, a way of listening to our selves and to God. It is a practice of listening contemplatively to our own lives. It is a tool for discerning the presence and absence of God in our lives.
God is constantly revealing himself to us in our experience. It is because God is present and available to human experience that we have a divinely inspired story to tell. Someone has called it - reading the scripture of our life...
St Ignatius, in his teaching of the Examen expected that God would speak through our deepest feelings and yearning, what he called consolation and desolation. Consolation is whatever helps us to connect in love to ourselves, others, God and the universe. In his language - whatever leads to an increase in faith, hope and love. Desolation is whatever blocks that connection...
So what follows is this - if we can reflect upon what in our life connects us to Life, love, faith, hope, peace... the qualities of the spirit... we can track where it is God is most available to us - or, more precisely, where we are most available to God. And the opposite - if we can see where it is we are being drained of life - and then think about how we block God in those areas... This is not the same as feeling merely good or bad.
The point is - to discern God's presence and will is no longer a case of looking 'out there' - but inside...
The Examen is traditionally done on a daily basis - but can usefully be applied to all sorts of other times -
I'd like to lead you in an Examen of the last year as a way of entering this New year with more awareness of where God is speaking to you in your life...and where you find yourself being drawn away from God's love.
I invite you, then, to read the scripture of your life...
Examen of the Year
Stillness
Take a moment to find a comfortable position (the great masters of prayer never neglected the body!) Find a position which is relaxed but alert... A simple and longstanding technique at the beginning of meditation is to use the noticing of our breath to gently bring our awareness and focus inwards.
Isaiah 48
(slightly paraphrased)
Come near and listen to this:
from the beginning I have never spoken to you obscurely,
and all the time these things have been happening, I have been present
Thus says Yaweh, your redeemer, the Holy One:
I, your God, teach you what is good for you,
I lead you in the way that you must go.
If only you had been alert...
Become more fully aware now of being in the presence of God: in the presence of love...
You are precious in my eyes and honoured and I love you...
How are you in your body? Let your body be before God
How are you in your mind? Let your mind be before God
How are you in your feelings? Let your feelings be before God
In God we live, and move and have our being...
Thankfulness
Give thanks for the presence of God in our humanity. In our physical, intellectual, emotional realities.
The word became flesh and dwelt among us...
Give thanks for the reality of God loving and living in us and through us...
Light-Seeking
Ask God now to help you to see and to understand how her love has been working within you over the last year. Ask God's spirit to enlighten and guide your thoughts.
Cleanse the thoughts of our heart by the inspiration of your holy spirit...
Reflection
Begin to let yourself remember the last year... don't try too hard... At first, just scan the year and get a sense of it... Christmas and the time leading up to it... Autumn...... Summer...... Spring..... the year beginning 2004.....
Now let come what comes at first when you ask the questions:
When did I feel best able to give and receive love?
What caused in me an increase in faith, hope and love?
Where was I drawn to God?
In fears, in joy, in pain, in creativity?
In prayer, in liturgy, scripture, creation?
In work or leisure?
In family, friend, colleague, church community, neighbour?
Did I feel myself being nudged or prompted in any particular way?
Out of all the year's experiences, is there one experience, that I feel most grateful for?
Relish these moments of consolation - of revelation...
Give thanks.
Sorrow and Regret
Look again back over the year. When was I aware of God's absence?
When did I feel least able to give or receive love?
What caused in me a decrease in faith, hope and love?
When did I fail to respond to His love at work in me?
Without harsh judgement, just let yourself look at that experience.
In the light of God's love - what would you like to say to God about that time, event, experience? What does God want to say to you?
Hope for the Future
And now, coming back into the present:
What insight, revelation, grace do I receive from the experiences of the last year?
Having reviewed the last year - what gift do I hold for the new year?
What would I like to bring into the new year.
Find a word or a phrase or an image to represent what you'd like to bring into the New Year...
Keep that word or phrase or image in your heart over the next year. You might like to adapt this examen for use everyday or weekly.
This is what I shall tell my heart and so recover hope:
The favours of the Lord are not all past,
his kindnesses are not exhausted
his mercies are new every morning
Great is his faithfulness...
Yaweh is good to those who trust him
To the soul that searches for him...
Let's pray for the grace to move into this new year with love, faith and hope... for the grace to bring more of what gives us life... for the grace to continue to recognise God in our daily life...
TS Eliot
The Four Quartets
But to apprehend
The point of intersection of the timeless
With time, is an occupation for the saint -
No occupation either, but something given
And taken, in a lifetime's death in love,
Ardour and selflessness and self-surrender.
For most of us, there is only the unattended
Moment, the moment in and out of time,
The distraction fit, lost is a shaft of sunlight,
The wild thyme unseen, or the winter lightning
Or the waterfall, or music heard so deeply
That it is not heard at all, but you are the music
While the music lasts...
Adapted from a prayer by Doug Gay from Alternative Worship
Jesus of Bethlehem and Nazareth and Calvary
We celebrate your birth
Come and be born in us
Jesus of the manger and the inn
Jesus of the workshop and the temple
Jesus of the lakeside and the city
Jesus of the fireside and the roadside
We celebrate your life
Come and be born in us
Jesus of Mary and Joseph
Jesus of shepherds and angels
Jesus of children and animals
Jesus of fishermen and priests
Jesus of women and men
Jesus of tax collectors and prostitutes
Jesus of all who will receive you
We celebrate your resurrection
Come and be born in us
Luke 24 28-29
Read out the following passage:
As they approached the airport to which they were flying, Jesus acted as if he were going further.
But they urged him strongly, "stay with us, it's half past 11
and your connecting flight's not until 6.45am." So he had to fill in a landing card to stay with them.
Now read out these instructions:
Each person take a landing card.
Get into pairs, preferably with someone you don't know.
Each of you fills in the card for the other person by asking them the questions on it.
There is a spare landing card. if you have time, fill it in for Jesus.
How do you feel when the dark goes out?
Are you afraid of the light?
Does it make your lies water?
Do you screw up your heart and hide under the covers?
The light is a flood that will level your landmarks to a plain,
leaving you no shelter or familiar territory.
It will carry away the house of your comfortable darkness
and give you only holy ground to stand on.
It will fall like stone upon you.
You will be the only thing that casts a shadow,
but your shadow will flee behind you where you cannot see it.
You will grope for definition like a climber in the fog,
your hands will search for edges that tell you what is and what is not,
and you will not find them.
You will cling to frozen certainty for fear of falling.
Your map will be too small.
The light will burn your skin.
The light will bleach your bones.
The light will leave you snowblind.
And you will not be the same.
You will look into the sun, and know the names of clouds.
You will learn 17 words for snow, and discern them all.
You will see the horizon, and not know how to come in.
You will forget how to talk, except too much and ecstatically.
Your speech will be oblique and without explanations.
And you will return to the darkness as a messenger
bearing an endless blazing sky within.
[Steve Collins]
to be read with the 'luxuries and necessities' cards - these were real decks of cards in the service.
What controls us?
How quickly do we allow nonessentials to take precedence in our lives?
Look at the pictures.
Quickly sort them into two piles: essentials and nonessentials.
Consider how many of the things you called ‘essentials’ are really essential. Remember that 70% of the world’s population has never made a phone call, and that electricity has only been available for the last 150 years. But toilets with water flushing were around at least 5000 years ago, and even the most technologically primitive peoples have jewellery. What does this say about human needs?
What is necessary for you to survive? For you to take part in your society? For you to live a life of wholeness as a human? How different are these?
What are you praying for when you say, “Give us this day our daily bread”?
Do we cover up what is inside us with food, drink, friends, computers and other good things? What are ‘good things’? Cigarettes and alcohol? [1 Cor 6:12]
The ‘desert’ of Lent allows us solitude and meditation time to consider our utter dependence on God, but Lent is often also associated with fasting.
Man shall not live [feminist proverb]
Man shall not live by bread alone [the Bible]
Man shall not live by bread alone, but it’ll do for an entrée [contemplative eater]
Some have exalted religious fasting beyond all Scripture and reason; and others have utterly disregarded it [John Wesley]
Is giving up chocolate for Lent a modern day joke or is it a serious attempt at following a Biblical commandment? In the Sermon on the Mount [Matt 6:16-18] is Jesus saying [assuming] that fasting should be a Christian devotion in the same way as giving or praying are?
In a different incident Jesus was asked why the Pharisees fasted but his followers did not. His answer is perhaps the most important statement in the New Testament as to whether Christians should fast today [Matt 9:15]. It seems clear from this passage that Jesus upheld the discipline of fasting and that he anticipated that his followers would do it. Jesus’ apostles understood him for there is reference to them fasting after his ascension [Acts 13:2-3].
Have we become so accustomed to ‘cheap grace’ that we shy away from more demanding calls to obedience? Grace without the cross? Why has the giving of money been unquestionably recognised as an element in Christian devotion and fasting so disputed?
Does fasting or denial of anything we ‘need’ involve a far larger sacrifice than the giving of money?
mike rose & steve collins
Listening to God – what does this mean to me, what does it mean to you?
In Christian circles taking time to listen to God often seems like ‘motherhood and apple pie’ – sign of our obedience and even humility. Something passive and accepting.
Going to take some time now to look at a moment when listening to Christ changed a world – it’s the account of Martha and Mary inviting Jesus into their home – going to spend some time thinking about and imagining that day when Mary listened to Jesus. I am going to run through the passage – let’s try and think what it might have been like to be there as a man or a woman. As we go along I’ll give some questions to think about and also at the end leave some time to think a bit more.
It’s Bethany and you are in the house of a woman called Martha – it’s a bit unusual that – women don’t often own houses and certainly don’t invite men in to be their guests. But Martha seems a pretty generous woman opening up her home to friends and strangers and certainly seems to want to feed us all well as she is busy in the kitchen.
Think for a moment – are you in the living area with Jesus – or are you in the kitchen?
There is something else which is not quite the usual thing – Martha’s sister Mary isn’t giving a hand in the kitchen – instead she is out in the main living area with the men. She isn’t really doing anything - just sitting beside him - listening to him – you can’t hear what he is saying.
What do you think about that?
Although there are some rabbis who think that women should learn the law – there are others who fiercely oppose it. And even those who believe that everyone should know something of the law probably wouldn’t have a woman as a pupil, a disciple … after all that might mean they meant to teach someone else in their turn.
Martha is coming out of the kitchen and she doesn’t look very happy – she is saying something
‘Master, don’t you care that my sister has abandoned the kitchen to me? Tell her to lend me a hand.’
Why do you think she is she so concerned? Is she overloaded with work? Is she resentful of Mary? Is she frightened that Mary is too unconventional? Is she jealous?
Jesus is saying something: ‘Martha, dear Martha, you’re fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential and Mary has chosen it – it’s the main course and won’t be taken from her.’
What does he mean?
What does it mean to you?
Just think for a moment – what does listening to God mean to you?
Is it a duty?
Is it something that has changed your life?
Is it something that has changed your whole way of thinking?
Could it change the world?
I love this part of the gospels –for me it isn’t a tale of quiet contemplative Mary – but of bold Mary wanting desperately to learn all she can by listening to Jesus so that she can play her part in the kingdom. We don’t even know what Jesus was talking about – all we do know is the listening was important and that everyone is welcome.
this liturgy concluded a series of two services looking at miracles. written by jen:
Lord God,
You spoke into darkness and chaos and then there was light;
You imagined this earth in its complexity and beauty and called it into being
You created humanity in your own image and gave us a home to live in
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord God,
You walked with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego through the fiery furnace
You shut the mouths of hungry lions and kept Daniel safe until morning
You gave Hannah a family when she despaired of ever having a child
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord God,
You changed water into wine so the wedding party could continue
You calmed a storm and your disciples with words of quiet authority
You transformed a boy's picnic into a meal for a multitude with plenty left over
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord God,
You healed a woman from 12 years of bleeding and rejection
You asked Bartimaeus what he wanted and then restored his sight
You watched a paralysed man being lowered through the roof and helped him to his feet
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord God,
You called Lazarus from the tomb and restored him to life
You walked past the mourners at Jairus' house and gave his daughter back to him
You suffered a horrendous crucifixion in order to defeat sin and death and give us life
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord God,
You told your disciples that they would do greater things than you had done
We hear and read stories of miracles in our world - of you healing the sick,
setting prisoners free, releasing drug addicts from their addiction,
providing the right amount of money at just the right time
We believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
And yet, Lord, we don't see many miracles happening around us
We have friends with cancer, and we pray, and they are not healed
We have friends who long for children, and we pray, and they do not conceive
Our doubt is mixed with faith
Our trust is accompanied by questions
We acknowledge the mystery of faith and prayer, and the ways in which they are connected
We acknowledge that you often do things differently to the way we would do them
We long to know you better, to understand more of your ways
And we believe you can do miracles
But even if you don't, you are still God
Lord we believe.
Help our unbelief
And then for three years, an abundance of words from God,
spoken by the Word, Jesus.
The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
"Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
Come and follow me
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Your sins are forgiven
Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing.
Mary do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
noise is unwanted sound
which is whyyour parents call the music you like noise
but noise isn't just about sound
it's about information
noise is whatever drowns out or interferes with or conceals meaningful information
sound engineers, radio engineers speak of two things, signal and noise.
the signal is the message, the meaningful part of the transmission
the noise is all the unwanted stuff that interferes with your ability to hear
or decipher the signal.
our lives are full of noisetoo much information
too many messages that don't add up to any coherent whole
all competing for our attentionwe can't find the signal
or make anysense of ourlives
and so we gointo the desert to escape the noise
but then we can hear our internal noise
some of which is very grossespecially during silent prayer
and some of which is subtle but more deeply disturbing
like tinnitus
which is nerve damage to the inner ear resulting in a permanent whistling or
hissing noise inside your head that you can neverescape
for someone like me who suffers from it there is no longer any such thingas silence
if i am in a silent place what i hear is the high-pitched whistle inside my own head
and that's just the physical noise inside us
but our heads are full of mental noise.
the thoughts that won'tstop chattering that stupidsong that you can't get
out of your headthat nagging worry about somethingyou said or didn't say
that hurt and anger thatyou can't let go of, churninginside you when
you're supposed to be concentratingon work that dumb
joke that keeps making you giggleon the bus so that people lookat you strangely...
andwhen you're alone you can't pretend any more that any of these were necessary
so you try and put them aside topray
and now you become aware of spiritual noise
all those things that compete with god
distracting your attentiontowards selfish or worldly concerns
drowning out your attempts to hear god's voicedistorting the message
or making youlose bitsli e a mobile ph ne pasng under a bridg
sin is a kind of spiritual tinnitus
thecloser we get togod's silence
themoreweareawareoftheunceasingwhineinsideourselves
ofwantandneedandhurtandself
trouble iswe've lost the volume knoband anyway we're scared of silence
because without all the activity and distractions
we'll have to face ourselves and godand we are frightenedof what we might find
but god longs to heal us
to still the oscilloscopes of our souls
turn the noise off
and give us peace
because only then
will we be able to hear
the music of heaven
Throughout the story of God’s interactions with people in the Old Testament are glimpses of a different future, a redeemed creation, and a messiah who will make it happen.
In Genesis, comes the first hint:
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.
Isaiah talked about the birth of a baby:
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.
Micah saw where that child would be born:
"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times."
And Malachi foretold someone who would prepare the way for this messiah:
For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. 3 Then you will trample on the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act," says the LORD Almighty.
"See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction."
Middle English : from Old French compaignon, literally ‘one who breaks bread with another,’ based on Latin com- ‘together with’ + panis ‘bread.’
On the night of his betrayal
Jesus our companion
Took bread
Broke it
Gave it to his followers
Eat
My body is broken for you
We break this bread with those who:
hunger for justice,
dream of a land free from occupation,
long to live life free from fear,
search for food and water each day,
long for companionship.
ORIGIN mid 16th cent.(in the sense [deliver, rescue] ): from Latin vindicat- ‘claimed, avenged,’ from the verb vindicare, from vindex, vindic- ‘claimant, avenger.’
On the night of his betrayal
Jesus our vindicator
Took wine
Gave it to his followers
Remember
My blood is poured out for you
Drink
This is a new promise
All who come to me will have life
We drink this wine with those who:
see too much blood flow,
watch loved ones die,
are judged by their race or skin colour,
carry in their blood the stigma of HIV/AIDS,
long for someone to dry their tears.
Come, eat, drink, you who hunger and thirst,
For a deeper faith, for a better life, for a fairer world,
For healing and wholeness – Come.
thanks to Chris Rose
Genesis 18
While Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day, near the great trees of Mamre, he looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground. He said, "If I have found favour in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. Let me get you something to eat, so that you can be refreshed and then go on your way - now that you have come to your servant." "Very well," they answered, "do as you say."
Middle Eastern hospitality, offered to passing strangers. When Abraham says "my lord", "your servant", he hasn't guessed their identity - it's just the polite way to address strangers that one is offering hospitality to. They just appear to be three men - no wonder Sarah laughs when they tell her that she will bear a child within the year - what can they know, she thinks.
But Abraham, who had met God before, had guessed the identity of at least one of them. Sometimes it has been thought that these three men are the three persons of the Trinity; but the text doesn't bear that out - verse 22 states that the men went away to Sodom, while the LORD stayed behind and bargained with Abraham for the fate of the city; and when the men arrive at Sodom they are described as two angels. Neither Lot nor the people of Sodom realise at any point that the visitors are angels - the angels have great difficulty convincing Lot and his family that they are in danger, and end up having to grab them by the hands and drag them out of the doomed city by force.
In Judges 13 another childless couple have a mysterious visitor. In the words of the woman, "A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn't ask him where he came from, and he didn't tell me his name. But he said to me, 'You will conceive and give birth to a son.'" Manoah, her husband, prays for the man to return, and he does so; Manoah treats him with the hospitality and reverence due to a prophet or holy man, but, the Bible comments, Manoah did not realise that it was the angel of the LORD. He asked the stranger his name, but the man replied, "Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding." The stranger politely refuses to eat their food, but suggests they offer it to the LORD. It is only when they set fire to the offering and the angel flies up to heaven in the flames that they realise that their visitor was not, perhaps, human! The child, incidentally, was Samson.
In several places in the Old Testament it is not clear whether 'the angel of the LORD' is an angel or the LORD himself. In Genesis 16:7 onwards, Hagar, Sarah's maidservant, is running away from her mistress, who has ill-treated her; and she is met by 'the angel of the LORD', who comforts and looks after her. Although the mysterious person is called throughout 'the angel of the LORD' and not simply 'the LORD', Hagar reacts as if she had actually seen and spoken to God. In Judges 6, the stranger who visits Gideon is sometimes referred to as 'the angel of the LORD' and sometimes as simply 'the LORD'; neither the writer of this passage, nor Gideon, seem to be able to make up their minds. A traditional Christian interpretation of this ambiguity is that this particular angel was a manifestation of Christ before the Incarnation, as God's Messenger Servant. It may be, however, that as the LORD's personal representative the angel could speak as if he were God. The angel is, so to speak, transparent; you look at the angel, but all you can see is God shining through him. The angel speaks, but you hear God's voice.
The inability of Lot and the people of Sodom to perceive the angelic nature of their visitors suggests that the ability to see through an angel's disguise is related to spiritual sensitivity. It almost seems like a rule in the Bible, that the closer a person is to God, the more immediately they recognise His messengers. Manoah and especially his wife immediately sense something special about their visitor; Gideon is a bit suspicious and takes about five minutes; and if you want a contrast to Lot, consider the Virgin Mary, who spotted that her visitor was an angel straight away!
On the other hand - on the morning of the Resurrection, Mary Magdalene, standing outside Jesus' empty tomb, doesn't appear to notice that the two men sitting in the tomb dressed in white are angels; she is, I suppose, too busy crying over her loss to take much notice of them, except perhaps to turn away embarrassed that someone has caught her crying. Her mind is on other things.
Which inevitably leads to the question: How often have we failed to perceive angels? The Bible narratives suggest that they don't always look extraordinary, especially when meeting people in public places.
Disturb us, Lord, when We are too well pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we have dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.
Disturb us, Lord, when
With the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.
Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas
Where storms will show your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.
We ask You to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push into the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.
sometimes
maybe you choose not to know
what we are about to do
because you want us to surprise you
with our imagination and creativity
you made us in your image
with the power to create something new
unlike anything done before
and, just as the angels were astonished and delighted
when you created this universe
seeing something they could begin to experience, but not explain beforehand,
because it was itself the words of its own explanation
which could only be spoken by living them
so you want us to bring you the same delight and astonishment
as our gift back to you
and so we offer ourselves and our works
our worship and our anger
our best moments and our worst moments
our songs and our silences
our tears and our laughter
in surprise and delight at finding ourselves loved
as you hesitate at the door in anticipation
wondering
whatever next?
This is a small ritual to help us think together about what we can do towards the establishment of God’s Promised Land.
Ingredients:
Numerous cakes, minimum 8in/200mm diameter or birthday size, with undecorated icing - such as the kind you can buy to decorate yourself. The cake itself can be any sort. Buy or make your own.
Writing icing - it comes in tubes with special nozzles, get several different colours.
Recipe:
Discuss in small groups around each cake what you intend to do to bring about the ‘promised land’ for others. Then write words or draw symbols on the cake with the writing icing to symbolise your intentions. Since there isn’t a lot of room on the cake, and the writing icing isn’t easy to use delicately, your words or symbols will have to be simple - so choose carefully.
Then bring the cakes together so everyone can see. Someone from each group should explain how their symbols and words came about.
Then slice and eat the cakes together as a pledge to do the things symbolised.
[in the preceding section we have written our dreams for the future on pieces of paper]
the bold text is what we all say together
[each person take the 'dream' of the person on your left]
our dreams of the promised land are in one another's hands
i have a dream tonight
i have a dream of a faster car
i have a dream of a bigger house
i have a dream of a beautiful lover
you may not get there with me - but i want you to know tonight that i as an individual will get to the promised land
i have a dream of profitable investments
i have a dream of celebrity
i have a dream of another beautiful lover
you may not get there with me - but i want you to know tonight that i as an individual will get to the promised land
i have a dream of political influence
i have a dream of new markets
i have a dream of a level playing field
you may not get there with me - but i want you to know tonight that i as an individual will get to the promised land
one more won't make any difference
why should my standard of living suffer
i can do what i like with my own money
you may not get there with me - but i want you to know tonight that i as an individual will get to the promised land
this land belonged to my ancestors
they come here and take our jobs
this development will bring benefits to everyone
you may not get there with me - but i want you to know tonight that i as an individual will get to the promised land
[tear the dream that you hold in half]
our dreams of the promised land are in one another's hands
pause, then confession:
we have trampled one another's dreams
in the race to seize our own
we have built our promised lands
on the ruins of other people's homes
we have pursued short-term paradises
at the cost of an ancient beauty
jesus said,
"you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. you do not enter yourselves, nor will you let those enter who are trying to."
in the pursuit of our own promised lands
we deny others the greatest promised land of all
that of your kingdom
we shut the door of your kingdom in other people's faces when we construct our own empires
we rob them of the knowledge of its existence when we fail to embody it in our lives
we condemn others to promised lands that can't deliver and don't endure
we conceal or forget the promised land that gives wholeness for ever
have pity on us, for we have torn one another
and in tearing one another we tore you
but your tearing is our mending
we give up our self-centered visions
and ask you to bind us into your mysterious dream
the promised land whose pattern we have barely caught
amen
Grace listen...
I have no complaint about your sacrifices -
you certainly put the creative effort in to your worship.
But I do not need your art installations, stations, movie loops, ambient tunes, apple macs, ipods
gas masks, photography, font selection, stories, good taste, creative liturgies and new technologies.
All the silicon in the valley is mine
I know all the art in the whole world
The creation is my gallery
I made imagination!
Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God
out of friendship and not obligation
That's what it's about...
The elements of psalms are shown on the Twister board. Can you find which one is not present in real psalms? Can you say why?
Psalms of Lament
(3, 22, 31, 39, 42, 57, 71, 120, 139, 142, 12, 44, 80, 94, 137...)
Most common type. Both individual and corporate laments expressing fear, distress, anger at circumstances and adversaries
Hymns of Praise
(8, 19, 33, 103, 104, 111, 114, 117, 145-149...)
According to God his worth for who he is: Creator, protector and benefactor, Lord of history
Salvation History
(78, 105, 106, 135, 136)
These psalms review God's work historically, and often include biting commentary on Israel's spiritual state and God's faithfulness
Wisdom Psalms
(1, 36, 37, 49, 73, 112, 127, 128, 133 (cf. Prov. 8 is a psalm)
Much like the proverbs, these psalms address practical life issues from the perspective of trust in God. Themes center on the righteous/wicked, wise/fool in terms of aphorisms.
Celebration and Affirmation
Liturgy for corporate celebrations relating to:
Enthronement Psalms, celebrating the new king and God as King (24, 29, 47, 93, 95-99);
Reaffirmation of the Davidic Covenant (eg 132);
Royal Psalms addressing both David and messiah (2, 18, 20, 21, 45, 72, 89, 101, 110, 144);
Songs of Zion, Psalms celebrating the place where God is present and where his kings reign (46, 48, 76, 84, 87, 122)
Grace's sevice on Exile (Febuary 2001) invited the people there to write a psalm of exile, with Psalm 137 as an example. Ranging from personal experience to trying to understand the exile of others, some of the authors were kind enough to leave their psalms to be published on the website.
A Psalm of David - Selah!
from the arranger of music on the anniversary of the death of his niece.
Lord I am so angry!
You let us down so badly
How could you?
I am so hurt
I thought you wanted to heal
Why didn't you?
I am so disappointed in you
You could have answered my prayer
are my prayers so worthless?
Lord why did you cast us adrift
and have us lost in the blackness?
Even now after all this time I am still sad.
Will I live with sadness forever?
Did you allow this to happen so I would grow as a person?
was life not important
Does my sister just get on with life
The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away - Ha!
Is that the best you can do?
But Lord - there is no-one else who can comfort.
In the end I guess there is only you.
So - Here I am again - Selah!
Christ's piece is you,
Christ's piece is me,
It is those that do,
And it is those that be,
Without one another we can't cover 360 degrees,
Because we don't need 'I's to see, we need We.
As every image that we see of ourselves is reflected,
Every image that we see of the world is subjective,
We need two points of view to gain some perspective,
And the ability and humility to accept this.
Because in our vision lies division,
A polarised view of action and pacifism,
But contradiction doesn't mean fact and fiction,
more like discordant harmonies in the melody of wisdom.
I need you, like red needs blue,
You need me, like do needs be,
And life shouldn't be binary,
Our eyes shouldn't be primary,
We need to trade in reds and blues for indigos and violets see:
We need to try and be purple.
Not just protest march bruises as we go out and do,
Or blood filled cheeks as we hold our breath and be,
I mean purple.
Full circle.
The hares and the rabbits,
the tortoises and turtles,
Purple.
So let us be moved to be mauve,
Maroon and mulberry,
Lilac, plum and lavender,
May the red and blue poles of our souls and our minds combine to be magnets of magenta,
Purple.
May we take the opposites and make the composite,
As every image has its limits
And every picture could be richer,
If we have someone else to see that we are in it,
We need to be purple.
[by Harry Baker aka Dubb]
Music: Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves (Nabucco)
The Kingdoms of Judah and Israel were tiny compared with the Empires that surounded them; Egypt to the SW, and Assyria to the East.
In 586BC the Assyrian ruler Nebuchadnezzar conquered the people of Judah, and exiled them to Babylon.
However, big empires can be conquered too – Cyrus the Great, the Persian ruler, conquered the Assyrians, and in 535BC he pemitted 50,000 of the people of Judah to return home to Jerusalem. Eighty years later, in 456BC, another 5000 returned, led by Ezra and Nehemiah, and rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem.
Temple worship was restored, and there were prophets in the land. The last canonical prophet was Malachi, around 400BC, who chided Israel for cheating on their tithes, and not serving God in their hearts; he foretold both wrath to come, and another prophet.
But the Kingdom of Judah sat on some important trade-routes, and it wasn’t long before another conquerer came by to try his luck.
Map of the Conquests of Alexander the Great
In 333BC Alexander the Great conquered the Persians. He attacked first Tyre, then Gaza: after capturing the cities he killed all men of military age and sold all the women and children into slavery. Jerusalem was wiser: it opened its gates and welcomed him.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
Alexander conquers territory as far as present-day Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. He only turns back when his soldiers threaten to desert him. He gets a reputation for ruthless slaughter – even today, in Afghanistan, mothers will threaten their children with: “If you don’t behave, Sikandar will get you”. He establishes Greek Cities all the way through Asia Minor, linked by good roads; promotes Greek language and culture… and then dies.
Map of the Seleucid Empire
When Alexander died, his four generals divvid the lands up between themselves.
Map of the Seleucid Empire with: Tutankhamen “Up Pompeii”, and Armless Apollo
Ptolemy got Egypt, someone else got Greece, another the area we now call Turkey, and the commander-in-chief, Seleucus, got the lion’s share – and established a dynasty to run what became the Seleucid Empire.
So there are now three Power blocs – Egypt, Seleucid Greeks, and a small upstart Empire in Italy – Rome – but they’re busy fighting Carthage – we don’t have to worry about them for a bit.
There was civil war for 40 years between the Greek generals, and between 319 and 302 BC, Jerusalem changed hands seven times.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
Picture of Greek wrestlers
The Seleucid Empire attempted to “Hellenize” the Near East – by encouraging Greeks to settle in the area, establishing Greek Cities as focal points for trade and transport. Many of the existing cities began — or were compelled by force — to adopt Hellenized philosophic thought, religious sentiments, and politics.
Picture of Greek Discus thrower
At this time Jewish society started to divide into the “hellenised” Jews – speaking Greek – and those who tried to resist Hellenisation. In 175 BC The high priest Jason converted Jerusalem into a Greek polis replete with gymnasium. Some Jews are known to have engaged in non-surgical foreskin restoration in order to join the dominant cultural practice of socializing naked in the gymnasium, where their circumcision would have been a social stigma.
The Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV killed 40,000 Jews after a failed revolt, then sold another 40,000 into slavery. Then he tried to outlaw the Jewish religion; banning the Sabbath, killing people who circumcised their children, banning temple or synagogue worship; when people met to worship secretly in caves, he burnt them alive. People were even afraid to admit to being a Jew.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
However, there was a freedom movement. A rural priest, Mattathias, and his sons, the Maccabees, rebelled.
Picture of Che Guevara
Judah Maccabee freed Jerusalem in 164 BC, and cleansed the Temple. Only enough sacred oil could be found to fuel the Temple lamps for one day – but miraculously, the oil lasted for eight days – giving rise to the festival of Hannukah. Judah sought an alliance with the Republic of Rome, but was then defeated and killed by the Seleucid Greeks.
Picture of Greeks running
Judah’s brothers, Jonathon and Simon, continued the guerilla warfare against the Seleucids and the Hellenised Jews, and after several years of living in swamps and caves and launching raids on cities they won.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
Picture of Che Guevara (again)
They established the Hasmodian Kingdom of Judea, and after Jonathon’s assassination, Simon reached an accomodation with the Seleucids: you leave us alone, and we sit as a semi-autonomous part of your empire.
Now we start to get the division of Jewish religious thinkers into Pharisees and Saducees… the pharisees thought no-one should be king unless they were of the line of David (the Maccabees weren’t) and wanted to get rid of Greek (Hellenistic) influence. The Saduccees were more Hellenised, more worldy. The Maccabees were mostly Saduccees, even though they’d been fighting against Greek political control. The Maccabean leaders tended to take both the roles of King and High Priest.
Picture of oil slick bird
But after Simon was assassinated, it all began to go wrong again.
When the Seleucids started having civil wars between themselves, they forgot all about Judea. John Hyrcanus, son of Simon the Maccabee, was able to hire mercenaries and start conquering the surrounding territory – Samaria, Edom – places that had substantial Jewish populations who needed liberating – but then, when he ‘liberated’ them… he forced conversion and circumsicion on the Edomites, destroyed the Samaritan places of worship and enslaved the Greek settlers.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
John’s son Jannaeus continued using mercenaries to expand Judean territory. He was a Saduccee, and when High Priest, he deliberately got one of the laws of Succot wrong – the crowd pelted him with lemons – which was what he wanted them to do – it gave him an excuse to set the troops on them. 6000 were killed.
This led to a six-year civil war between the Pharisees and Saducees. The Pharisees did so badly that they were reduced to asking for help from the Seleucid Greeks – but still lost. Jannaeus crucified 800 of the rebel leaders, having their wives and children’s throats cut in front of them while they died – whilst he dined with his concubines.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
Picture of tug of war
After Jannaeus… his sons Hyrcanus II (pro-Pharissee) and Aristobulus II (pro-saduccee) battled over the Hasmodean crown.
Hyrcanus beseiged Aristobulus in Jerusalem; at passover the inhabitants paid 1000 dinar for a sacrifical lamb, but he gave them a pig instead. He stoned to death a holy man for refusing to pray for the destrauction of Jerusalem . The civil war between the two brothers was stirred by Hyrcanus’ advisor, Antipater the Idumean (Edomite), a sort of Peter Mandleson figure who quietly got his own sons, Phasael and Herod, made governors of Jerusalem and Galilee.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
Picture of Frankie Howerd going “Oooo!”
Rome saw a chance to expand, and backed Hyrcanus – as the stupider of the two, he would be more malleable by Rome.
But in the end it was Herod – the Edomite – not even a “proper” Jew – whom Rome established as a client-King. Herod married the last maccabean princess… then had her brother drowned at a party. Then he killed her, then her mother, then three of his own sons.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
By 4bc, knowing he was dying, and fearing that no-one would mourn him, Herod ordered that when he died, a group of prominent Israelites would be murdered, so that at least there would be some crying for someone.
Picture either of “burning building” or “fire”
So it all went horribly wrong. Judea got her freedom from the Greeks – the son of the freedom-fighters then oppressed her neighbours, then the grandson of the freedom-fighters oppressed the pharisees, then the great-grandsons of the freedom-fighters fought between themselves, and Rome took the opportunity to seize power.
But there was no word of prophecy in this time.
So – for the pillaged and beleaguered populace – who’ve seen all their hopes betrayed, and their leaders become more interested in their own power than in their people – the question is
How do you wait when heaven is silent?
How do you believe when hope has died?
Fade out of slide
SILENCE
blesing used as part of the slow service written by anna:
God the creator, who rested on the seventh day after the work was done, show you how to balance the slow and the fast, the work and the rest.
God the redeemer, who lived his life at walking pace,
strengthen you to go slow when the world is going fast.
God the sustainer, who came at Pentecost like a rushing wind, give you hope in the day when there will be freedom from the limitations of time.
Go into a world of speed and live at God’s pace.
Amen.
confession prayer as part of slow service - written by anna:
O God, you are slow to anger and swift to have mercy;
Forgive us when we treat time as a commodity or an enemy,
when we abuse your gift of time.
In our fastness and our slowness,
help us to keep pace with you.
Free us to live in your time, a new time,
in which there is a time for everything under heaven,
and slow is not too slow, and fast is not too fast.
Transform us into people who see time as a gift and a friend,
who live as if we have time,
because we know that your time will never cease.
Through Jesus we pray, Amen.
may the god who is community
be with us as we seek to be a community
may god bless our dreams
and may god shatter our dreams
may god help us to be real
and to find depth in weakness and brokenness
may god help us to face and grow through conflict
rather than pretend by being nice
may we look at each other through soft eyes
and truly respect each other as human beings
may god help us let go of control
and the need to fix one another
may god help us discover we are needy in our own souls
and give attention to our own hearts
may god grant us the gift of an extraordinary love that flows from the heart of god
that covers a multitude of wrongs
spirit of life
your breath of life fills the whole world and holds all things together.
if you withdraw your breath everything turns to dust
breathe on me breath of god
you are the source of life that brings life to the world, whole life, full life, unhindered, indestructible everlasting life
fill me with life anew
the life of your spirit which christ sends into the world is the power of the resurrection which brings us new life
breathe on me breath of god
the sending of your spirit is the revelation of god's indestructible affirmation of life and marvelous joy in life
fill me with life anew
jesus where you are there is life. where you are sick people are healed, sad people are comforted, marginalised people are accepted and the demons of death are driven out
breathe on me breath of god
where your holy spirit is present there is life.
the powers and energies of eternal life are experienced.
fill me with life anew
the mission of your spirit is a movement for life and a movement for healing which spreads consolation and the courage to live and raises up what wants to die.
breathe on me breath of god
we affirm and love life so much that we protest against death and all the powers that disseminate death.
fill me with life anew
help us to join with your comforting of the sad, healing of the sick, welcoming of strangers, and forgiving of sins.
breathe on me breath of god
send your spirit so that this world should not perish but live
fill me with life anew
spirit of the new creation break into the here and now bringing foretastes of the age to come when all things are made new, and creation is set free from the powers of death
breathe on me breath of god
spirit of god renew the face of the earth
fill me with life anew
give us hearts of flesh for hearts of stone
that we may love as you would love
and do what you would do
amen
Shall I abandon, O King of mysteries, the soft comforts of home? Shall I turn my back on my native land, and turn my face towards the sea?
Shall I put myself wholly at your mercy, without silver, without a horse, without fame, without honour? Shall I throw myself wholly upon You, without sword and shield, without food and drink, without a bed to lie on? Shall I say farewell to my beautiful land, placing myself under Your yoke?
Shall I pour out my heart to You, confessing my manifold sins and begging forgiveness, tears streaming down my cheeks? Shall I leave the prints of my knees on the sandy beach, a record of my final prayer in my native land?
Shall I then suffer every kind of wound that the sea can inflict? Shall I take my tiny boat across the wide sparkling ocean? O King of the Glorious Heaven, shall I go of my own choice upon the sea?
O Christ, will You help me on the wild waves?
The Starlit Darkness
[Jonny Baker]
(Give people time to follow this meditation, time to settle and then time to visualise – the pace should be gentle and unhurried, with plenty of pauses in which people can imagine.)
• St John of the Cross spoke of the dark night of the soul
• Karl Rahner said ‘All clear understanding is grounded in the darkness of God’
• Helen Waddell describes Christianity as ‘the starlit darkness’
• Annie Dillard says:
‘You do not have to sit outside in the dark. If however you want to look at the stars you will find that darkness is required. The stars neither require it nor demand it.’
We are going to take time to think about darkness in relation to God
Take a few deep breaths to relax ...... and settle into a rhythm of steady breathing… Ask God to lead your imagination….
When you hear the word darkness what does it conjure up in your mind?
What images do you recall?
What places do you remember?
What feelings does it evoke in you?
What might it mean to speak of the darkness of God?
Just for a moment:
Imagine you are in a house in the country
all the lights are on, artificial light, electric light.
It’s time to leave;
You collect your coat and say your farewells and step outside.
It’s not like the city - there are no streetlights.
As you step into the darkness everything goes pitch black.
You are dizzy with darkness,
You can’t focus on anything.
You walk hesitantly down the path, feel for the gate and get through it.
Now you stand and wait and look around.
Gradually what seemed pitch black becomes less so.
Slowly, your eyes adjust - now you can make out the shapes of trees and houses, and hills on the horizon.
You feel the ground beneath your feet, solid and firm.
You look up.
Above you is the vast expanse of the heavens.
What at first seemed to be only darkness you now see is starlit
and incredibly beautiful.
Galaxies, stars, planets, a crescent moon...this is the starlit darkness.
The breathtaking darkness of God
The mystery of God
God is a starlit darkness - breath-taking...
God is a starlit darkness.
summer is over - new year 06
summer is over
an end to sitting on the fence
a voice beneath your certainties
shakes the settled patterns
like a colder breeze that heralds distant winter
strange lands lie waiting
beyond your southern horizon
summer is over,
and you must go or perish
here in a world no longer yours
or on the way, but in hope
your star and compass often dark
glimpsed briefly between clouds
at journey's end,
another summer not like the first one
new seeds,
new fruit to refresh the migrant
burnt by life between summers
warmed for a season
until the north calls again
like the inner call of the migrating bird, where does god call you?
where is your bird migrating to?
what do you want to do for god?
what do you need along the way?
take one of the sheets of paper and write your hopes and prayers for
the journey ahead on the reverse side, the side without the
instructions. then we're going to fold them to make origami birds...
May the blessings released through your hands
cause windows to open in darkened minds
May the suffering your calling brings
be but winter before the spring
May the companionship of your doubt
Restore what your beliefs leave out
May the secret hungers of your heart
harvest from emptiness its secret fruit
May your solitude be a voyage
into the wilderness and wonder of God
May your words have the prophetic edge
to enable the heart to hear itself
May the silence where your calling dwells
foster your freedom in all you do and feel
May you find words full of divine warmth
to clothe others in the language of dawn
May your potentiality be released
to explore new horizons of what’s possible
May your becoming bring gentle surprises
as you remember you’ve not arrived
Adapted from Benedictus by John O'Donohue
Jesus said – Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Matt 6:13
What are your plans for next year or next week? Or even tomorrow? Do you struggle to know what the right direction is or how to choose between different paths? Have you tried praying about your future plans or choices? Or even asked God what his direction for your life would be? Jesus showed that trust in God is crucial but along with that trust comes a freedom from worry and a deep peace. To keep in touch with God’s voice directing his steps Jesus regularly prayed and listened for direction.
Then he went up on a mountain where he could be alone and pray. Later that evening, he was still there. Matt 14:23
Stay awake and pray that you won’t be tested. You want to do what is right, but you are weak. Matt 26:41
Again Jesus went to pray and said, “My Father, if there is no other way, and I must suffer, I will still do what you want.” Matt 26:42
But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.
Don’t worry about tomorrow. It will take care of itself. You have enough to worry about today. Matt 6:33
Breathe out empty yourself: of hate, of fear, of anxiety
Breathe in fill yourself with love, with life, with mercy
Breathe out empty yourself of busyness, of selfishness of greed
Breathe in fill yourself with peace, with joy, with hope
Breathe out empty yourself of idolatry, of self worship, of false gods
Breathe in fill yourself with God, with Christ, with the Holy Spirit
Consider praying this powerful prayer called
The Methodist Covenant Prayer.
I am no longer my own but yours.
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you or laid aside for you,
exalted for you or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty,
let me have all things, let me have nothing;
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. So be it.
And the covenant made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen
Welcome to the table. This table is open and accepting, we invite you to share who you are as part of that continuing exploration of who we are as Grace. The only rule; MODESTY is banned.
----------------
entree
This course includes ANGER, with a large amount of PASSION on a bed of TALENT!
Share with the others on your table what ANGERS you, what your PASSIONS are and where your TALENTS lie... Think about 5-8 words or phrases that describe these for you:
ANGER: What gets you thumping the table or shouting at the TV?
PASSION: What do you love to experience, that you would miss if you were unable to?
TALENT: What are you talented at, what are your gifts?
(jot your thoughts down on the tablecloth)
-----------------
main
The main course brings together the best bits of your starter - distilled, reduced, concentrated, purified...
Summarise the lists under each heading into a word or phrase - perhaps try to find a common factor in those things you are ANGRY about. Then do it for PASSION and TALENT.
-----------------
dessert
The word comes originally from the old French language desservir, meaning "to clear the table" and "to serve." So clear your table, grab a pudding and serve up a sentence that draws together how your anger and passion, combined with your talent describes who you are... that’s the cherry on the cake!
(write it on this menu or a piece of the tablecloth and rip it off and bring it with you for the last part of grace tonight)
inspired by Anger Passion Talent
created by vaux for their service 'the great reversal' october 2000 - this explanation from my ship of fools column:
'we line up across the church facing the rear, to be asked a series of questions. If our answer is yes, we are to take a step forward; if our answer is no, we are to take a step back; if we are unsure or unwilling to make a statement, we are to remain where we are. The questions begin. "Have you had a holiday this year? Do you have a loving family? Do you have a rewarding love life? [most people step back] Do you feel you have a special gift?" And so on.
By the end, some twelve questions, the line has become a spread pattern of spiritual states, the fortunate out in front, the less fortunate left behind. And now the coup. Everybody turn around to face the altar. For God has decreed the great reversal - and suddenly, the fortunate first are at the back, and the last are out in front.
these are the questions used at grace:
Have you had a holiday this year?
Do you have a loving family?
Do you feel you have a special gift?
Do you feel close to God?
Have you plenty of food in your kitchen?
Do you know your neighbours?
Is your car less than five years old?
Do you have someone to share your secrets with?
Do you feel valued at work?
Do you get enough rest?
Do you own your home?
Are you at peace with all your friends?
Do you have a rewarding love life?
Do you give something up for lent?
Are you at peace with yourself?
Have you seen something beautiful recently?
Are you financially secure?
Do you have good memories of childhood?
Do you have good health?
Has anyone ever bought you flowers?
Welcome to the table!
The table,
eating and drinking,
sharing stories,
laughter and tears,
honest conversation,
being real,
finding a place of acceptance
amongst friends and family
has been at the heart of community and the Christian faith for as long as we know.
Jesus kick started the whole thing when he broke bread and drank wine with his friends.
Thank you for coming to share in this meal, this table today.
September is the start of a new season for Grace.
It's a time when we pause as a community -
pause to consider and commit ourselves afresh to God
pause to consider and commit ourselves afresh to one another
pause to consider and commit ourselves afresh to the ethos which is at the heart of our life together.
What better way to do that than in the context of a community meal?
So close your eyes
take a deep breath and pause...
God we invite you to be present at the table with us
Our companion
Companion means friend but the root of the word 'com panis' means one who breaks bread with another.
You are our companion and bread breaker.
And we gather as friends, companions to break bread with one another.
Thank you for your friendship,
thank you for one another
thank you for Grace
thank you for this food and drink
Be in our midst
In the name of Christ
Amen
Eat, drink, you who hunger and thirst,
For a deeper faith, for a better life, for a fairer world,
For healing and wholeness
The table is ready!
At this station take some time out to think about waiting and death.
The Colour of Death
In Asian culture the colour of death is white, people wear white to funerals and not black. What is the colour you associate with death?
Cut a piece of fabric from the station and use it to help you focus your thoughts, then read the below meditation slowly.
Take the piece of fabric home as a reminder.
Waiting to die
Have you ever sat and waited for someone to die?
Waited longing for the moment to come quickly?
Or waited hoping that it would never arrive?
We are all waiting to die.
Some wait knowing that they have cancer, or HIV or another terminal disease,
living in the face of death with every day that passes.
Others wait as if death will never come to them, as if tomorrow never dies,
but they too are simply waiting to die.
Some wait not wanting to die.
Perhaps out of fear of what lies beyond,
fear of leaving so much behind,
with dreams unfulfilled, so little achieved.
Some die, not wanting to wait.
They cannot wait, they cannot bear the pain any longer,
they cannot wait to die.
One thing is certain,
we are all going to die.
So the question is,
how are we going to wait?
In faith or in fear?
Hopeful or hopeless?
Feeling grateful or feeling cheated?
Aware of being loved or feeling rejected?
Seeing beauty or seeing despair?
The question is,
how are we going to wait?
_____
The Waiting
2/10/84 by Linda Contento Schmidt
Prune-like
only
resembling something sweeter.
Years
eroded into deep crevices
indicating where smiles have danced.
A road map of wisdom.
Knowing much
Saying little.
Reduced to a spectator.
All given
Not enough returned.
Tired now and sad.
Remembering much
of youthful years,
only wisps of this morning.
Caring still
Too old to make a difference.
Alive
but not living...
Nothing left
only
the waiting.
We are creatures of comfort.
We like to be safe and secure
to be surrounded by what we know
to be in control
to order our lives in the way that suits us.
We want our journeys mapped out for us
itinerary decided, tickets booked
time of arrival guaranteed
refreshment breaks at regular intervals
and a credit card for unforeseen circumstances.
But Jesus said ‘follow me’ without saying where he was going
just promising transformation along the way.
The Israelites in the desert, rescued from slavery and oppression,
were tired and homeless, hungry and thirsty, insecure and unsettled.
And their minds went back to what they had known.
They yearned for the structure of predictable slavery rather than the broken walls of unknown freedom.
Liminal space is the place of inbetweenness, of insecurity.
It is the Israelites in the wilderness,
it is Paul blind in Damascus waiting for Ananias.
Liminal space is emptiness and nowhere,
it is uncertainty and chaos,
it is a place of discomfort and unrest.
Liminality is a place of dying and rebirth, of metamorphosis, the place where the caterpillar spins its cocoon and disappears from view.
Nothing good or creative emerges from business as usual. Much of the work of God is to get people into liminal space and to keep them there long enough so they can learn something essential.
This is the invitation of God, to move
- from comfort to insecurity
- from what we know to what we have yet to discover
- from what we are good at to what we might fail at
- from safety to a place of risk
We hang our lives upon your mercy
measured out in miles
your boundaries and pathways,
coordinates and charts
that guide our steps
along roads you travelled before us
We will make time for you and your word
We will practice your ways until they are part of us
We will rest and play in you
We will be your people
We are not complete without one another
We cannot run the race alone
We will support one another
encourage one another
wait for the weak
pick up the fallen
through your strength and love
When we are together we will remember what it is like to travel alone
When we are alone we will remember what it is like to travel together
Wherever we are we will remember God who always goes with us
Go with us now, Lord, this night and always
Amen
What are we waiting for now?
So where are we now – the end of 2009 –Jesus said
‘‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’
But in 2009 do we believe or feel or act as if the kingdom of heaven is truly near.
Between the headlines and daily life – where is the kingdom of heaven?
Baghdad security chief sacked over bombs that killed 127 people
‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; 25but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. 26So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. 27And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” 28He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” 29But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. 30Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’
Copenhagen climate change summit in deadlock over rival texts
The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.’
Big fall in Christmas spending predicted
‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Christmas recipes – how to make perfect canapes
The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with* three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’
So now we’re going to have another 15 minutes of silence –and there are two questions you might like to think about during that time
What is it I am really waiting for?
How do I need to live now for hope of the kingdom of heaven to come near?
At some point in the 15 minutes you might like to come to the middle and light a candle to hold as a sign of your desire to live in light rather than darkness.
Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it. Revelation 2:17
These small, worn pebbles apparently had several uses.
They were used in elections. Voters were given white stones and black stones. A white stone was a vote of acceptance, and a black stone was a vote of rejection.
In courts of justice, a black stone meant a vote for condemnation, for death. A white stone meant a vote for acquittal, for life.
A white stone might have served as a ticket for admission to some event, like a special banquet.
The winner of an athletic event might receive a white stone – perhaps even with the name of the event or the victor inscribed on it.
Collect a white stone
As I play with the stone, I ponder this name, the name that only I will know.
What will it be? Perhaps a pet name, an endearing name, an intimate name that He calls nobody else? Something that signifies our special relationship?
I think it might be the name of the person I could have been.
lift up your hearts
we lift them up to god
lift up your heads
we lift them up to god
lift up your voices
we lift them up to god
lift up your hearts
we lift them up to god
we praise you for your unswerving love for us
though we are fragile
though we are wounded
though we are broken
you have never stopped loving us
and you have never forsaken us
greater love has no one than this that they lay down their life for their friends
you take what is broken and transform it through your death and love
what once was hurt
what once was friction
what left a mark
no longer stings
because grace makes beauty
out of ugly things
so we join with the angels singing
holy holy holy
holy holy holy
lord god almighty
lord god almighty
heaven and earth are full of your glory
heaven and earth are full of your glory
hosanna in the highest
hosanna in the highest
in your last meal with your friends
before your betrayal
you took the bread and gave thanks
you broket is and shared it saying 'take and eat. this is my body broken for you'
christ's body is broken
we are christ's body, we are broken
may christ's broken body nourish you in all the right places
you took the cup of wine, gave thanks and shared it saying
'drink this, my blood shed for you'
christ's body is wounded
we are christ's body, we are wounded
may the blood that flowed from christ's wounds heal you in all the right places
send your holy spirit on us
heal our brokenness
by showing us our place in your community of faith
great is the mystery of faith
christ has died
christ is risen
christ will come again
this is the table of christ
today it is literally made of our brokenness
a sign that christ welcomes us all as we are
there is no need to pretend and no need to hide
so gather at this table
not because you are whole
but because you recognise your need for healing
not because you are good enough
but because you recognise these gifts of god
may the extravagant love of god the father
fill your hearts and minds and his embrace hold you
when you feel unworthy to be called his son or daughter
may the friendship of jesus christ your brother
rid you of any notion that you are only a slave
and you find your home in and with him in his kingdom
may the spirit of god release you
from a world of duty
so that a new joy and freedom wells up in your life
go and reconfigure the world as on order of embrace
in your friendships
in your work place
in your families
in your street
and in your churches
and the blessing of god the father, the son and the holy spirit be among you and remain with you always
amen
lift up your hearts
we lift them up to god
lift up your heads
we lift them up to god
lift up your voices
we lift them up to god
lift up your hearts
we lift them up to god
god of watching thank you
You gave us life, love and freedom
your watchfulness is steady
your love is unfair
thank you that when we reject your friendship
leave home
spend our inheritance
find ourselves in exile
are weak and broken, with lives full of regret
your watchfulness is steady
your love is unfair
thank you that when we reject your generosity
resent your welcome of sinners,
find that home is not the place we thought it was
ask you when you have ever thrown a party for us.
your watchfulness is steady
your love is unfair
thank you that you reconfigure the world as an order of embrace
where mercy triumphs over judgement,
so we join with the angels singing
holy holy holy
lord god almighty
heaven and earth are full of your glory
hosanna in the highest
the answer is in a story
and the story is unfolding…
on the night he was betrayed christ took bread, broke is and gave it to his friends saying take eat this is my body which is broken for you.
after supper he took the cup saying drink this all of you. this is my blood which is shed for the forgiveness of sins. do this to remember me. send down your spirit on these gifts of bread and wine that they may be to us christ’s body and blood.
the answer is in a story and the story is being told...
christ has died
christ is risen
christ will come again
through his rising again the world is reconfigured
tucked between the atoms of the places where we walk
the kingdom of god is at hand
the kingdom of god is here
the kingdom of god is home.
so come to the table of christ.
you who see the younger son in you,
who feel confined by home
you who are in exile
you who have fucked it up
you who yearn for home
come to this table, where home is welcoming and home is freedom.
come to the one whose watchfulness is steady and whose arms are open wide
you who see the elder son in you,
who have stayed at home
you who find it all very unfair
you who resent god’s justice,
you who have done your duty, and feel undervalued,
you who wish you’d run away, and somehow never managed it
come to this table, where home is generosity and home keeps no record of wrongs
come to the one who is always near, who would always kill the fatted calf for you.