Sunday, September 15, 2019

Let us Remember the 56th anniversary of the Birmingham Church Bombing and speak the names of :Addie Mae Collins (14) Cynthia Wesley (14) Carole Robertson (14) Carol Denise McNair (11)



Good Evening Beloved Community!

Happy Sunday! I love you all and hope you are having a good day! Today was a busy day at church and I was able to rest this afternoon. As I was pouring through my feed I was reminded that today is the 56th anniversary of the Birmingham Church Bombing! It was and is a stark reminder that we have lost our worst pieces of history and need to regain it. How many of you know this story? If you don't here is a piece from the Southern Poverty Law Center: Please click on the title -Remembering the Birmingham Church Bombing. As is our custom let us regain what was lost and speak the names of the victims this day and always:
This was a post on Twitter from Dan Rather today-

On a Sunday morning, 56 yrs ago, a terror bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church. 4 African-American girls killed. Please pause to say their names aloud. 

Addie Mae Collins (14)
Cynthia Wesley (14)
Carole Robertson (14)
Carol Denise McNair (11)

We will not forget you.
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We light our candles and remember!


I call the name of Addie Mae Collins (14)
Let light perpetual shine upon her



I call the name of Cynthia Wesley (14)
Let light perpetual shine upon her.



I cal the name of Carole Robertson (14)
Let light perpetual shine upon her.




I call the name of Carol Denise McNair (11)
Le t light perpetual shine upon her.





Here is a virtual ofrenda /altar to lay our prayers, flowers, and remembrances.




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Today's lessons come from the Eucharistic Lectionary Year C. The Gospel centers around the lost sheep and the lost coin that are ultimately found. God is continually seeking after us and finding us. Are we allowing ourselves  to be sought and found by God?  Do you feel lost or do you feel as though God has found you and brought you back into the Beloved Community? Let us ponder this and these quotes on seeking and finding.  So let us us begin.


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Quotes on seeking!


"Father, I am seeking: I am hesitant and uncertain, but will you, O God, watch over each step of mine and guide me." ~ Saint Augustine

"Seek first to understand, then to be understood." ~ Stephen Covey


"Must the Christian go around looking for a cross to bear, seeking to suffer? No, insisted Bonhoeffer. Opportunities for bearing crosses will occur along life's way and all that is required is the willingness to act when the time comes. The needs of the neighbor, especially those of the weak and downtrodden, the victimized and the persecuted, the ill and the lonely, will become abundantly evident." ~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer


"Of course God does not consider you hopeless. If He did He would not be moving you to seek Him (and He obviously is). What is going on in you at present is simply the beginning of the treatment. Continue seeking with cheerful seriousness. Unless He wanted you, you would not be wanting Him." ~ C. S. Lewis


"May we help more than we hurt, may we seek to understand more than be understood and may we love more than we judge." ~ Cory Booker

"We cannot be part-time Christians! We should seek to live our faith at every moment of every day." ~ Pope Francis


"Pilgrims are persons in motion passing through territories not their own, seeking something we might call completion, or perhaps the word clarity will do as well, a goal to which only the spirit's compass points the way." ~ H. Richard Niebuhr

"Holiness is nothing else but the habitual and predominant devotion and dedication of soul, and body, and life, and all that we have to God; and esteeming, and loving, and serving, and seeking Him, before all the pleasures and prosperity of the flesh." ~ Richard Baxter


"If you do not yet know where you fit, I suggest you try seeking it in receptive silence.  I used to walk amid the beauties of nature, just receptive and silent, and wonderful insights would come to me." ~ Peace Pilgrim


"Lord Jesus, master of both the light and the darkness, send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. To you we say, 'Come Lord Jesus!'" ~ Henri Nouwen


"Religion is different from everything else; because in religion seeking is finding." ~ Willa Cather

"You are asking yourself, as all of us must: 'Who am I?' . . . 'Where am I?' . . . 'Whence do I go?' The process of enlightenment is usually slow. But, in the end, our seeking always brings a finding. These great mysteries are, after all, enshrined in complete simplicity." ~ Bill W.

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Quotes on finding God:

"Finding God in All Things." ~ Ignatius of Loyola


"We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls." ~ Mother Teresa


"The first step toward finding God, Who is Truth, is to discover the truth about myself: and if I have been in error, this first step to truth is the discovery of my error." ~ Thomas Merton

"Revelation does not mean man finding God, but God finding man, God sharing His secrets with us, God showing us Himself. In revelation, God is the agent as well as the object." ~ J. I. Packer

"Finding God in all things is not an 'empirical eureka.' When we desire to encounter God, we would like to verify him immediately by an empirical method. But you cannot meet God this way...A contemplative attitude is necessary: it is the feeling that you are moving along the good path of understanding and affection toward things and situations. Profound peace, spiritual consolation, love of God, and love of all things in God-this is the sign that you are on this right path." ~ Pope Francis

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I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.Luke 15:10


God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

God is in the midst of us and we are each called by name.

Light and peace, in Jesus Christ our Lord.
 Thanks be to God.


Lighten our darkness, we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy
great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this
night; for the love of thy only Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Now let us form a virtual sacred circle of love in our hearts with love and say "The Light of Christ in Me, Recognizes the Light of Christ in you!"  and the God of love who made me in God's image made you in God's image and  love!

Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone's face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love?' These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will be many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.
Henri Nouwen


Confession of Need

Let us confess our need for God’s healing grace.

Silence

Together 

Compassionate God,
we confess our weaknesses and our need for your
strengthening touch.
We confess that some illnesses stem from our own fault,
while others are beyond our control.
We turn to you, source of life,
and ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ
for the gifts of true healing and life in you. Amen.

Together

May the God of love visit us in our times of trial and weakness,
and raise us to newness of life, through Jesus Christ, in the
power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.


A Smudging Prayer From - (Smudging as a Christian Aboriginal Ceremony)

Creator,
our Father in heaven,
we come to you as your children.
We confess that we are weak and broken images of you.
We pray for the forgiveness and healing you give in Jesus Christ.
May his Spirit clean our spirits, minds, hearts, and bodies.
We pray that your Holy Spirit
 will help us to worship in spirit and truth.
We pray in the name of Jesus,
so that his Spirit will carry our prayers to you.
Amen

We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better." - Thurgood Marshall

O God our shield and armor of light, whom we adore with all the angelic host: defend us from evil; watch over any who are in danger this night and give your angels charge over them; and grant that we may always rejoice in your heavenly protection and serve you bravely in the world; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen. 

From the Arusha Call to Discipleship!
Loving God, we thank you for the gift of life in all its diversity and beauty. Lord Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, we praise you that you came to find the lost, to free the oppressed, to heal the sick, and to convert the self-centred. Holy Spirit, we rejoice that you breathe in the life of the world and are poured out into our hearts. As we live in the Spirit, may we also walk in the Spirit. Grant us faith and courage to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus: becoming pilgrims of justice and peace in our time. For the blessing of your people, the sustaining of the earth, and the glory of your name. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.



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



Image result for Candles and Incense

O Gracious Light Phos hilaron

O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.


Holy God we come before you this night to light our candles and pray for those who are tired sorrowful, emotionally drained, and without enough energy to face the next crises. We pray for the many medical caregivers who are taking care of the survivors of violence in __________ and any place where violence and hate have occurred in the past few hours. We remember tonight the families of those who lost their lives  in the many acts of violence and disaster this week as they prepare for the many memorial and funeral services. We pray especially for the clergy as they pastor the bereaved and those in fear and in anguish. We continue to pray this weekend for the safety of all bars that serve the LGBT communities  that they may begin finding them a place for safety and sanctuary. We pray for safety in our homes, streets, social establishments that there won't be any more acts of gun violence. We pray this weekend for respite and more awareness of compassion fatigue and that we will stop the glorification of busy. We pray this night that we will rest well and be ready to spend more time with you tomorrow. God keep us safely in your arms this weekend and may we take time to become your arms, feet, hands, ears, eyes, and voices to your fragile and broken world. We light these candles as we pray and remember each by name and we also remember those who lost their lives in Birmingham 56 years ago.


We pray again for the victims by Name and pause for a moment and then say:

Addie Mae Collins (14)
Cynthia Wesley (14)
Carole Robertson (14)
Carol Denise McNair (11)



"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."

THE LIGHTING OF THE CANDLES -Anonymous

Lest we forget the great traditions of freedom and faith which are the heritage of humanity; lest we forget the pioneers, the statesmen, the bridge builders, the artists; and lest we forget You, the God of our fore bears who is our God also:

We light this candle of remembrance.

For the hope of a better world, in which righteousness and peace shall prevail among the people of the earth, and to create which is the task of the generations in which we stand, as well as for the courage and faith we shall need if we are to carry on this unfinished work:

We light this candle of consecration.

May the flame upon the altar of free faith shine in our hearts al ways, reminding us of the dark places to which we may carry light and strengthening us in every moment of doubt and discouragement with unwavering faith in You whom we serve and whose we are.





From the Resistance Prays 9/11 issue:

Service begins with humility. Christ instructs us to love one another as He has loved us (John 13:34); that’s a sacrificial and humble love (Philippians 2:8). Over and over again, the Word instructs us to approach our disposition toward others with humility (Philippians 2:3-11, James 4:10, Micah 6:8).

Service requires sincerity. The Lord loves a cheerful giver, but also a sincere one! (2 Corinthians 1:12). Take joy in caring for others – in doing so it is as though we are caring for the King of Kings himself (Matthew 25:34-40).

Service is an expression of Godly love. We are called to love one another (1 John 3:11, 1 Peter 4:8). When we serve and love others, when we give our lives (even metaphorically) to the needs of our fellow men and women, we demonstrate our heart’s desire to know and follow Jesus’ example (Mark 10:45).

God of peace, protector of "the least of these," inspire in us a holy hunger for justice. Give us the wisdom and discernment to see your calling for our life. We know that if any of us lacks wisdom, we need only ask for your guidance. We know you’ve called us to serve the poor and the powerless, to use the grace you’ve given us to protect and provide for the needs of others, and that in doing so, we may mirror your great love for us. Forgive us for the times when we’ve failed to do everything in our power to serve those in need, and grant us opportunities to serve those who need us most. We ask all these things in the name of Jesus, whose grace and peace has showed us how truly to love one another. Amen.


Woe to those who make unjust laws, 

to those who issue oppressive decrees, 

to deprive the poor of their rights

and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people…

- Isaiah 10:1-2a


God of love and justice, free us from the distorted moral narratives that prop up policy violence, and give us grace to build up a culture where grace is normalized, love is actualized, and justice is realized, in our lives and in our world. Amen.

Today's issue 9/15/2019
Wisdom shouts in the street;
    in the public square she raises her voice.
Above the noisy crowd, she calls out.
    At the entrances of the city gates, she has her say:
“How long will you clueless people love your naïveté,
    mockers hold their mocking dear,
    and fools hate knowledge?
You should respond when I correct you.
    Look, I’ll pour out my spirit on you.
    I’ll reveal my words to you.
I invited you, but you rejected me;
    I stretched out my hand to you,
    but you paid no attention.
You ignored all my advice,
    and you didn’t want me to correct you.
So I’ll laugh at your disaster;
    I’ll make fun of you when dread comes over you,
        when terror hits you like a hurricane,
        and your disaster comes in like a tornado,
        when distress and oppression overcome you.
Then they will call me, but I won’t answer;
    they will seek me, but won’t find me
        because they hated knowledge
        and didn’t choose the fear of the Lord.
They didn’t want my advice;
    they rejected all my corrections.
They will eat from the fruit of their way,
    and they’ll be full of their own schemes.
The immature will die because they turn away;
    smugness will destroy fools.
Those who obey me will dwell securely,
    untroubled by the dread of harm.” -- Proverbs 1:20-33

I share Rev. Jones Mayfield's prayer from one year ago when Dr. Christine Blasey Ford testified again today: 

Peace amidst all of the triggering and PTSD.
Wholeness amidst the trauma and pain.
Peace and wholeness for all of us.
Amen.




Psalm 14

Dixit insipiens

1 The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." *
All are corrupt and commit abominable acts;
there is none who does any good.
2 The Lord looks down from heaven upon us all, *
to see if there is any who is wise,
if there is one who seeks after God.
3 Every one has proved faithless;
all alike have turned bad; *
there is none who does good; no, not one.
4 Have they no knowledge, all those evildoers *
who eat up my people like bread
and do not call upon the Lord?
5 See how they tremble with fear, *
because God is in the company of the righteous.
6 Their aim is to confound the plans of the afflicted, *
but the Lord is their refuge.
7 Oh, that Israel's deliverance would come out of Zion! *
when the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice and Israel be glad.



Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28

At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem: A hot wind comes from me out of the bare heights in the desert toward my poor people, not to winnow or cleanse-- a wind too strong for that. Now it is I who speak in judgment against them.

"For my people are foolish,
they do not know me;
they are stupid children,
they have no understanding.
They are skilled in doing evil,
but do not know how to do good."
I looked on the earth, and lo, it was waste and void;
and to the heavens, and they had no light.
I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking,
and all the hills moved to and fro.
I looked, and lo, there was no one at all,
and all the birds of the air had fled.
I looked, and lo, the fruitful land was a desert,
and all its cities were laid in ruins 
before the Lord, before his fierce anger.
For thus says the Lord: The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end.

Because of this the earth shall mourn,
and the heavens above grow black;
for I have spoken, I have purposed;
I have not relented nor will I turn back.

The Song of Mary Magnificat
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in you, O God my Savior, *
for you have looked with favor on your lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: *
you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,
and holy is your name.
You have mercy on those who fear you *
from generation to generation.
You have shown strength with your arm *
and scattered the proud in their conceit,
Casting down the mighty from their thrones *
and lifting up the lowly.
You have filled the hungry with good things *
and sent the rich away empty.
You have come to the help of your servant Israel, *
for you have remembered your promise of mercy,
The promise made to our forebears, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.

1 Timothy 1:12-17

I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners-- of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

A Song of Faith
1 Peter 1:3-4,18-21

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, *
by divine mercy we have a new birth into a living hope;
Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, *
we have an inheritance that is imperishable in heaven.
The ransom that was paid to free us *
was not paid in silver or gold,
But in the precious blood of Christ, *
the Lamb without spot or stain.
God raised Jesus from the dead and gave him glory *
so that we might have faith and hope in God.


Luke 15:1-10

All the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them."

So he told them this parable: "Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, `Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

"Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, `Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.' Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

A Song of Our True Nature
Julian of Norwich
Christ revealed our frailty and our falling, *
our trespasses and our humiliations.
Christ also revealed his blessed power, *
his blessed wisdom and love.
He protects us as tenderly and as sweetly when we are in greatest need; *
he raises us in spirit
and turns everything to glory and joy without ending.
God is the ground and the substance, the very essence of nature;
*
God is the true father and mother of natures.
We are all bound to God by nature, *
and we are all bound to God by grace.
And this grace is for all the world, *
because it is our precious mother, Christ.
For this fair nature was prepared by Christ
for the honor and nobility of all, *
and for the joy and bliss of salvation.


Optional Psalm and Lesson from the Hebrew Scriptures:

Psalm 51:1-11

Miserere mei, Deus

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your loving-kindness; *
in your great compassion blot out my offenses.
2 Wash me through and through from my wickedness *
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions, *
and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you only have I sinned *
and done what is evil in your sight.
5 And so you are justified when you speak *
and upright in your judgment.
6 Indeed, I have been wicked from my birth, *
a sinner from my mother's womb.
7 For behold, you look for truth deep within me, *
and will make me understand wisdom secretly.
8 Purge me from my sin, and I shall be pure; *
wash me, and I shall be clean indeed.
9 Make me hear of joy and gladness, *
that the body you have broken may rejoice.
10 Hide your face from my sins *
and blot out all my iniquities.
11 Create in me a clean heart, O God, *
and renew a right spirit within me.

Exodus 32:7-14

The Lord said to Moses, "Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, `These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'" The Lord said to Moses, "I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation."

But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, "O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, `It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, `I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'" And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.



Everything Has Its Time

3 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.



The Lord’s Prayer or the alternative is said. From A New Zealand Prayer Book
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
Or
Eternal Spirit,
Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and that shall be,
Father and Mother of us all,
Loving God, in whom is heaven:
The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples
of the world!
Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom
sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
now and for ever. Amen.


Collects from A New Zealand Prayer Book and the Book of Common Prayer


Loving God,
in Jesus you gather us into your family;
confidently we call you Father;
may your Spirit bring us to share
the glorious liberty of your children.
Hear this prayer for your love’s sake.
Amen.

O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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.(BCP)

The Beatitudes
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.


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


Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes, you are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”

Teresa of Avila


For the Future of the Human Race
O God our heavenly Father, you have blessed us and given us
dominion over all the earth: Increase our reverence before
the mystery of life; and give us new insight into your purposes
for the human race, and new wisdom and determination in
making provision for its future in accordance with your will;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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.

Let us pray the litany of the Saints of Social Justice Living and Departed. You may add your own to the list.

Lord, have mercy on us.
CHRIST, have mercy on us.
LORD, have mercy on us.

CHRIST, hear us.
CHRIST, graciously hear us.
GOD, THE FATHER OF HEAVEN, have mercy on us.
GOD THE SON, REDEEMER OF THE WORLD, have mercy on us.
GOD THE HOLY GHOST, have mercy on us.
HOLY TRINITY, ONE GOD, have mercy on us.
HOLY MARY, pray for us.
HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, pray for us.
HOLY VIRGIN OF VIRGINS, pray for us.
ST. MICHAEL, pray for us.
ST. GABRIEL, pray for us.
ST. RAPHAEL, pray for us.
ALL  HOLY ANGELS AND ARCHANGELS, pray for us.
ALL  HOLY ORDERS OF BLESSED SPIRITS, pray for us.
ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, pray for us. ST. JOSEPH, pray for us.
ALL HOLY PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS, pray for us.
ST. PETER, pray for us.
ST. PAUL, pray for us



After the names are spoken aloud our response is this :
"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Pauli MurrayFesto Kivengere
 Nelson Mandela 
 Malala
 Anne Frank
 Raoul Wallenberg
 Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Wilberforce, John Newton, Alex Haley, ROOTS 
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Oskar Schindler
Elie Wiesel. The Albanian Muslims who Saved the Jews in World War II
Johnathan Myrick Daniels
James Chaney
Andrew Goodman
Michael Schwerner
Martin Luther King Jr.
Sacheen Littlefeather 
St. Theresa of Calcutta
Fr. Damian of Molokai
The Martyrs of Japan
The Martyrs of Memphis
The Martyrs of Uganda
The Martyrs of lynching in our country past and present
The Dakota 38
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Our Japanese family members who were sent to internment camps
Our family members who died in the Nazi Concentration camps
Our family members who practice civil disobedience and peaceful-non violent protest
John Lewis
Clara Barton
Florence Nightingale
Thich Nhat Hanh

We remember these Transgender Martyrs killed in 2019 (This year). Source Wikipedia:

Dana Martin, 31
Jazzaline Ware
Layleen Polanco,27
Ashanti Carmon, 27
Claire Legato, 21
Muhlaysia Booker, 23
Michelle "Tamika" Washington, 40
Paris Cameron, 20
Chynal Lindsey, 26
Johana Medina Leon, 25
Chanel Scurlock, 23
Zoe Spears, 23
Denali Berries Stuckey, 29
Tracy Single (née Williams), 22 
Kiki Fantroy
Pebbles LaDime Doe, 24 
Bailey Reeves, 17 
Bee Love Slater, 23
Black Elk
Chief Seattle
Florence Li Tim Oi
 The Dalai Lama
Leonard Pelletier
 Harvey Milk
 Mahatma Gandhi
Oscar Romero
 Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin
 Our indigenous family members who walked Trail of Tears
 The Righteous Gentiles
 Madame C.J. Walker
Margaret Sanger
 Gabby Giffords
Francis Perkins
All God's children who have died and survived Gun Violence
The Charleston 9
 The Orlando 49
 The Martyrs of Stonewall
Ryan White
Matthew Shepard 
 Malcolm X,  Mohammed Ali, Salam Al Maryati, 
 Cesar Chavez
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Lee Bates, Marie Curie, The Philadelphia 11, Barbara Harris, Katharine Jefferts Schori 
Seneca Falls Conference.
 Christine Jorgenson, Billy Tipton, Renee Richards
 Sally Ride, Billy Jean King, Sheila Kuehl, 
 Your heroes of social justice.
Triangle Shirt Factory Fire Victims.
 Dorothy Day
 Jane Addams 
Addie Mae Collins
Cynthia Wesley
Carol Roberson
Denise McNair
Indira Gandhi
Benazir Bhutto
Those who have spoken and speak with prophetic voices.
We name before God the names of others who are on your hearts this day________________
"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."

We add these prayers this day!

As we continue to pray  let us pray the words of peace of St. Francis of Assisi

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.

Now let's take time to mediate on what Martin Luther King Jr. and all those who have fought for justice throughout the world.  Who are your favorite protesters?
The Key of Jesus is Compassion, Acceptance, Love, Mercy, and Justice.

Let us pray in the Key of Jesus and Ring the Bells of  El Camino Real (King's Highway)for those who fought for  justice, peace, and equality. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for Martin Luther King Jr. and his witness to all of our family members who were longing for justice in this their distant home and land that we take for granted. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for Mahatma Gandhi who taught us how to protest non-violently Help us to follow Your and His Model  and use our words  to make peace and cry out for the voiceless.
We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray  and give thanks for all who gave their lives in the Stonewall riots to help pave the way for LGBTQ rights and the rights of those who are afraid to live authentically. May we see God in each of us who are in the LGBTQ community, who are family, allies, and friends , be enfolded into the mainstream community with out fear and labeling. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the
 Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for Elizabeth Cady Stanton and all of our sisters who fought for the rights of women so that they would no longer be property but full and perfect members of  society and examples of citizenry to their sons and daughters. We pray that all of our sisters may have full protection and rights securely given them. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for all of our family members who were interned in the Japanese internment camps at Manzanar and Santa Anita. We pray for their contributions to our society and ask for their forgiveness for the wrongs we may have done out of fear and mistrust. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for the witness of all our Native and Indigenous Martyrs who were here in their homelands of origin in this country We pray for forgiveness for the wrongs we have done to them and remember the trail of tears that took them away from places they call home and became refugees in strange and distant lands. We remember this night all of our family members who are refugees. We pray that the y may one day return home as You , Mary, and Joseph left Egypt for Nazareth. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for Malala and all children who speak truth to power. We pray for all our children that they may be protected from harm. May all of our youth look to Malala for hope and a role model of what one child can do. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for Cesar Chavez and all those who fought for the farm worker and for the rights and protection of those who put food on our tables We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for those who have died in the struggle for justice, equality, inclusion, and universal human rights.We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for all the many witnesses that we have not named but you know them all may we remember them now_____________________________We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

Jesus we pray and give thanks for this night especially for ________________________

We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.

We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Forgiveness,Justice, Peace, Human kindness, and most especially love,  for all of our family members now. We pray this in the name of Jesus who came to unite us in love, forgiveness, and serve to and speak  for  the least of these. Amen. 

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Let us continue to be at prayer!

Now as we turn our hearts towards our time of prayer  we ask that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit be in our midst.  We give thanks for their loving and sustaining presence in our hearts, bodies, minds, and spirits and most especially in our lives.

Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray especially this night for all those who have been affected by gun violence of any kind. We pray for the families, victims, and the communities. We also lift up the city of Birmingham and every city and nation where terror, violence, and hatred have occurred  that as they continue to mourn they may find comfort in each other.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray this night for peace in God's fragile and broken world. May we as Children of God become blessed peacemakers and help soothe and care for the tenderhearted who are living in fear, terror, and adversity.


Silence and reflection for a space.



We pray this night for all those who are in need of healing of body, mind, and spirit. We pray for the healing of those who are living with chronic and mental illnesses. May we as their caregivers and friends offer them solace and a soft place in which to fall. We remember them now by name____________.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray this night for all those who are the least of these that  they may find shelter, food, and clothing. Give us courage to step up and help . 



Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray for all agencies and organizations that help minister to the needs of children, women, those who have been abused, chronic disease research and patient care.  We remember especially this month: All t Cancer foundations, A.I.D.S. foundations, and Alzheimer's foundations.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray for all faith communities and the clergy who 
minister to them . We pray for a climate of love, dignity, and respect for all our family members who differ from us and that we may grow in love and unity towards and with them.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray and give thanks for all Caregivers: Remembering : Family members, Clergy, home health, hospice workers, mortuary ministries, EMTs., Police, Firefighters, Troops, day care workers, teachers and anyone else who provides care and protection for us. 


Silence and reflection for a space.


We pray this night for all refugees,immigrants, captives, political prisoners, prisoners, those who are victims of human trafficking and slavery. and all who are in danger and have been victims and survivors of domestic violence and abuse.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We especially pray for all the leaders of  the nations of the world and especially our President that they may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God and that they may have the courage to lead in times of trouble and in times of plenty.


Silence and reflection for a space.


We add our additional prayers, thanksgivings, remembrances, and celebrations to you  Lord Jesus as we pray lovingly in their names  and ours ________________ We pray these our prayers in Jesus most holy and life giving name. Amen.


A Collect for Saturdays

O God, the source of eternal light: Shed forth your unending
day upon us who watch for you, that our lips may praise you,
our lives may bless you, and our worship on the morrow give
you glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


The Lord bless you and keep you. Amen.
The Lord make his face to shine upon you
and be gracious to you. Amen.
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you
and give you peace. Amen.


After Worship

Grant, we beseech thee, Almighty God, that the words which
we have heard this day with our outward ears, may, through
thy grace, be so grafted inwardly in our hearts, that they may
bring forth in us the fruit of good living, to the honor and
praise of thy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


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Good Night Dear Ones. I love you and want you to know that you matter. I hold you close to my heart this day and always.

With love,blessings, and peace,

Sara

Resources:
Enriching Our Worship 1 and 2
A to Z Quotes
A New Zealand Prayer Book
Walk With Me On Our Journey
Metis Aboriginal Ministries
The Resistance Prays
Other sources as noted
Book of Common Prayer
Quote sites for Prayers


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