Good Evening Beloved Community!

Welcom to our first retreat weekend of the Lenten season. Here we are again facing another week where there was loss aplenty. Families have lost dear ones through heinous acts of violence and the scourge of racism, hatred, and discrimination of the least of these looms large. These acts of division have taken us back and certainly not brought us together. We as the Beloved Community must fight this silent apathy, and indifference at all levels. We must come togehter with actvism that is centered on Compassion, Acceptance, Love, and Mercy. We must always speak to the heart of the matter that is dividing us. Not with fear but by being resolute with our new sense of CALM ( Community, Advocacy Listening , and Mindfulness).

Tonight we enter our time of reflection by going back into the wilderness with Jesus. This theme seems to be pervasive in my life these days. Going home after powerful vigils, services, meetings and today's Black History Month Celebration has created a kind of wilderness time of reflection in silence with a lot of introspection going deep into my heart home, heart roots and inner being. Last evening I watched the movie The Shack and discovered that this is a perfect segue into our Lenten discipline that we are doing. If you haven't seen it please do. It is another wilderness themed movie. We now have two movies that are on our playlist for this season The Way and The Shack.

Let us engage in the "The Be Stills"

Be still and know that I am God.

Be still and know that I am.

Be still and know.

Be still.

Be still and know that I am God.

Be still and know that I am.

Be still and know.

Be still.

Be.

Be still and know that I am God.

Be still and know that I am.

Be still and know.

Be still.

Be.

Take time to meditate, reflect upon these passages from John

God is Love

1 John 4: 16

So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.

1 John 4:16

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

John 3:16

⁹God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. ¹⁰In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

1 John 4: 9,10

Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” John 3:17

12 But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:12-13

¹⁸There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.

1 John 4:18

In Meeting Jesus In the Gospel of John we spend six days a week with Saturdays as a rest day and catch up. Here is the link: http://meetingjesusinjohn.org/ (copy and paste into your brower window)

Light in Peace in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Jesus said: “If any of you would come after me, deny yourself and
take up your cross and follow me.” Mark 8:34

Light of the World Phos hilaron

Light of the world, in grace and beauty, Mirror of God’s eternal face, Transparent flame of love’s free duty, You bring salvation to our race.

Now, as we see the lights of evening, We raise our voice in hymns of praise; Worthy are you of endless blessing, Sun of our night, lamp of our days.

Psalm 134 Ecce nunc

Behold now, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, * you that stand by night in the house of the LORD.

Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the LORD; *
the LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion.

Psalm 141:1-3,8ab Domine, clamavi

O LORD, I call to you; come to me quickly; * hear my voice when I cry to you.

Let my prayer be set forth in your sight as incense, * the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

Set a watch before my mouth, O LORD, and guard the door of my lips; *

let not my heart incline to any evil thing. My eyes are turned to you, Lord GOD; *

in you I take refuge.

Luke 4:1-13

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.’ Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone.” ’

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, ‘To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.’ Jesus answered him, ‘It is written,
“Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him.” ’

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written,
“He will command his angels concerning you,
to protect you”,
and
“On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.” ’
Jesus answered him, ‘It is said, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” ’ When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

A Song of the Wilderness

Isaiah 35:1-7,10

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, * the desert shall rejoice and blossom;

It shall blossom abundantly, *and rejoice with joy and singing.

They shall see the glory of the Lord, * the majesty of our God.

Strengthen the weary hands, * and make firm the feeble knees.

Say to the anxious, “Be strong, do not fear! *
Here is your God, coming with judgment to save you.”

Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, * and the ears of the deaf be unstopped.

Then shall the lame leap like a deer, *and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.

For waters shall break forth in the wilderness *and streams in the desert;

The burning sand shall become a pool *and the thirsty ground, springs of water.

The ransomed of God shall return with singing, *with everlasting joy upon their heads.

Joy and gladness shall be theirs, * and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

A Song of God’s Love

1 John 4:7-11

Beloved, let us love one another, * for love is of God.

Whoever does not love does not know God, * for God is Love.

In this the love of God was revealed among us, * that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through Jesus Christ.

In this is love, not that we loved God but that God loved us * and sent his Son that sins might be forgiven.

Beloved, since God loved us so much, * we ought also to love one another.

For if we love one another, God abides in us, * and God’s love will be perfected in us.

A Prayer in Times of Violence

God of all humanity,
In times of violence
We see how inhuman we can be.

We pray for those who, today, are weighed down by grief.
We pray for those who, yesterday, were weighed down by grief.

And the day before,
and all the days before the day before.

We pray, too, for those who help us turn towards justice and peace.

Turn us all towards justice and peace
because we need it.

Amen. - Pádraig Ó Tuama

Let us pray using the prayers from last year's blog.

Prayers for Sanctuary!

God we pray this night that wherever we maybe we may find sacred space. May this be such a time a and place as this is.

God we pray that when we don't feel safe that we may look inwardly and find our heart homes a place of sacred space and safety.

God we pray that we may be a soft place in which to fall for all of our family members.

God we take this time to be together as one family where we can truly pray and feel the love we have for one another.

God we pray for all who are lonely, lost, and afraid that we may extend a loving hand and prayer towards them.

God we pray for peace in this fragile and broken world that we may seek to be peace makers, hope bringers, love givers, and radiate joy to all.

God we pray to be in harmony with nature and all living things and for the protection and conservation of your Cathedral of Life.

God we pray for all who are ill and in pain that their suffering may be relieved and given you healing balm.

God we pray for an end to all division and hatred that we all may be one and learn from each other.

God we lift up these our prayers in your holy and life giving name. Amen.

We also pray this Modern Day Litany of the Saints.

God of love we pray and remember and speak these names and any of those we would like to add in the course of this time of remembrance.

"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER." African Proverb
We pray for :

Festo Kivengere and Janani Luwum
May there be peace in Africa and Uganda

Nelson Mandela
May there continue to be an end to apartheid in places where there is ethnic division and hatred.

Anne Frank and Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We pray and remember those who have died in the Holocaust and pray that these actions may never happen again.

Raoul Wallenberg
We remember and pray for all who are rescuers from oppression and danger of any kind and especially those who saved our brothers and sisters during the Holocaust.

Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Wilberforce, John Newton, Alex Haley, ROOTS
We pray and remember all those who were slaves, abolitionists, those who established the Underground Railroad, and those who told the stories of slavery.

Oskar Schindler
We continue to pray for risk takers to save people from genocide, and those who seek to remind us of ethnic cleansing and religious imprisonment and the need to always remember.

Elie Wiesel,The Albanian Muslims who Saved the Jews in World War II
May we always remember and never forget.

Martin Luther King Jr., Johnathan Myrick Daniels, Medgar Evers,

James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner

We lift up all those who fought for the civil and voting rights for African Americans and especially those who lost their lives in seeking liberty, and justice for all.

Florence Li Tim Oi
We pray and give thanks for all women who answered the call to ministry in their churches and may we remember and support those who continue to struggle with God's call in oppressive religious bodies.

Harvey Milk
We pray for all who in the LGBT community who have lost their lives not only in the struggle for human rights but in service to the larger community.

Mahatma Gandhi
We pray and gift thanks for all who have practiced and modeled peaceful non violent protest and civil disobedience.

Oscar Romero
We pray for all who fought for the rights of people in Latin American Countries and who modeled the preferential option for the poor and liberation theology.

Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin
We give thanks and pray for all members of the Abrahamic household that we may continue to seek to be united in the bonds of peace and mercy.

Those who walked Trail of Tears, Black Elk, Chief Seattle, The Dakota 38
We pray and remember all Native Americans who were taken from their lands, denied the provisions of the treaties, and who continue to struggle at Standing Rock.

Madame C.J. Walker
We pray and give thanks for bold African American women who were trailblazers in business, religion, politics, and everywhere.

Margaret Sanger
We pray and give thanks for women and men who helped to give women access to health care and reproductive freedom.

The Orlando 49
We pray and remember all who perished in Pulse and speak their names*

Stonewall
We pray and remember those who were early fighters seeking LGBT rights and the courage to live authentically.

Ryan White
We pray and remember all who have died from A.I.D.S. and those who continue to struggle.

Matthew Shepherd
We pray and remember all LGBTQ youth who have died at the hands of bullies and who have been victims of hate crimes.

Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Humayun Khan
We pray and remember all Muslims in this country who exemplified what it means to follow their faith and blaze trails for people to follow in the ways of justice, liberty, and peace. We pray that we may learn tolerance and respect for one another.

Cesar Chavez
We pray and give thanks for all who have helped to keep our farm workers safe and make our food safe from pesticides.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Lee Bates, Marie Curie, Seneca Falls Conference.
We pray and give thanks for all who were trail blazers for women's rights and sought the right to vote and have full participation in their lives with men.

Christine Jorgenson, Billy Tipton, Renee Richards
We pray and remember our Trans brothers and sisters who valiantly lived out their truth. May we continue to educate all people about gender identity and support our trans community who need us.

Dorothy Day and Jane Addams
We pray for all who have made a difference in the lives of the poor, marginalized, women, children and all who are needy.

Your heroes of social justice.
May we name them before you now.

*We speak the names of those who have died by any kind of violence as we remember and pray these our family members:

We light out candles in loving memory of all your children who have lost their lives to any kind of violence remembering these beloved ones:

Montrell Jackson, Matthew Gerald and Brad Garafola, of Baton Rouge who were killed today.

We pray and remember the 4000+ persons who have died by acts of lynching in our country as we speak the name of Moses York who was lynched . We remember and pray for those who have been victims of violence at the hands of law enforcement officers as we speak the names of Philando Castile, Alton Sterling, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, and all others. We pray and speak the names of the the Dallas 5 BRENT THOMPSON, PATRICK ZAMARRIPA,MICHAEL KROL,MICHAEL SMITH,LORNE AHRENS We pray and remember the Orlando 49 and speak their names: Stanley Almodovar III,Amanda Alvear,Oscar A Aracena-Montero, Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala, Antonio Davon Brown, Darryl Roman Burt II, Angel L. Candelario-Padro,Juan Chevez-Martinez, Luis Daniel Conde, Cory James Connell, Tevin Eugene Crosby, Deonka Deidra Drayton, Simon Adrian Carrillo Fernandez, Leroy Valentin Fernandez, Mercedez Marisol Flores,Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, Juan Ramon Guerrero, Paul Terrell Henry,Frank Hernandez, Miguel Angel Honorato, Javier Jorge-Reyes, Jason Benjamin Josaphat, Eddie Jamoldroy Justice, Anthony Luis Laureanodisla, Christopher Andrew Leinonen, Alejandro Barrios Martinez, Brenda Lee Marquez McCool, Gilberto Ramon Silva Menendez, Kimberly Morris, Akyra Monet Murray, Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, Geraldo A. Ortiz-Jimenez, Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, Joel Rayon Paniagua, Jean Carlos Mendez Perez, Enrique L. Rios, Jr., Jean C. Nives Rodriguez,Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado,Christopher Joseph Sanfeliz, Yilmary Rodriguez Solivan, Edward Sotomayor Jr., Shane Evan Tomlinson,Martin Benitez Torres, Jonathan Antonio Camuy Vega, Juan P. Rivera Velazquez, Luis S. Vielma,Franky Jimmy Dejesus Velazquez, Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, Jerald Arthur Wright. We pray and speak the name of Ulises Garcia, Bernardino de Jesus, Adrian Velazquez, Leo Navarro, and all those who have died at the hands of gang violence.

We Speak the Names of those who lost their lives in Parkland.

Alyssa Alhadef Scott Beigel, Martin Duque, Aaron Feis, Jaime Guttenberg, Chris Hixon, Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, Alaina PettyfMeadow Pollack, Helena Ramsey, Alex Schachter, Carmen Schentrup, Peter Wang

Psalm 23 -Bobby McFerrin Version

The Lord is my Shepherd, I have all I need,

She makes me lie down in green meadows,

Beside the still waters, She will lead.

She restores my soul, She rights my wrongs,

She leads me in a path of good things,

And fills my heart with songs.

Even though I walk, through a dark & dreary land,

There is nothing that can shake me,

She has said She won't forsake me,

I'm in her hand.

She sets a table before me, in the presence of my foes,

She anoints my head with oil,

And my cup overflows.

Surely, surely goodness & kindness will follow me,

All the days of my life,

And I will live in her house,

Forever, forever & ever.

Glory be to our Mother, & Daughter,

And to the Holy of Holies,

As it was in the beginning, is now & ever shall be,

World, without end. Amen

Let us remember and pray the words of In Lak 'Ech

Tú eres mi otro yo.

You are my other me.

Si te hago daño a ti,

If I do harm to you,

Me hago daño a mi mismo.

I do harm to myself.

Si te amo y respeto,

If I love and respect you,

Me amo y respeto yo.

I love and respect myself.

Luis Valdez

A Prayer attributed to St. Francis

Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is

hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where

there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where

there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where

there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to

be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;

to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is

in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we

are born to eternal life. Amen.

The Song of Simeon Nunc dimittis

Luke 2:29-32

Lord, you now have set your servant free *

to go in peace as you have promised;

For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *

whom you have prepared for all the world to see:

A Light to enlighten the nations, *

and the glory of your people Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *

as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Live without fear: your Creator has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Go in peace to follow the good road and may God’s blessing be with you always. Amen.

(source: from Saint Clare)

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Good Night Dear Ones May we find comfort, rest, and peace for our souls.

With love and blessings,

Sara

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Bonus Prayers

For the Human Family
O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.

For Peace
Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn
but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the
strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that
all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of
Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and
glory, now and for ever. Amen.

CALM Prayers

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy drive far from us all temptations that keep us from you and serving the least of these.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we thank you for times in the wilderness so that we may be more fully united with you and spend time hearing your still small voice.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy, we pray for peace in our hearts and in this world.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy may we be united as one in your big wonderful and loving family.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we pray for all who are ill and suffering. May we lovingly respond to their needs and not be tempted to turn away.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we pray for all who are in mourning of any kind of loss.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we pray for all refugees captives victims of human trafficking bullying and abuse.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we give thanks for the rich diversity of cultures faiths and peoples.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we pray for all who have been on any kind of retreat or travel that now leads them back of the mountaintop experience into new life.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we pray for an end to injustice and inequality. We pray for universal human rights and that we may become the voice of the voiceless and let justice roll down.

God of all compassion, acceptance, love, and mercy we add our own prayers and thanksgivings________________ and lay them in the loving arms of your son Jesus. Amen

Here is a virtual labyrinth walk to help you wind down and rest. Use your mouse, finger, or stylus for your feet.