Details on the availability of my books, supporting progressive religious thought, HERE
Suggestion: ’Refresh’ each page before reading to make sure to get my latest edition

‘The Other Lectionary’ - a suggested ‘southern hemisphere’ Lectionary (with a few Resources added) offered in parallel to, 
or even replacement of, the RCL which is in standard use by many.

A GATHERING LITURGY FOR THE
CELEBRATION OF LIFE

“Landscape is an incredible, mystical teacher, and when you begin to tune into its sacred presence,
something shifts inside you”

13 December 2022. Advent 3A. (Blue).
Celebrating Solidarity: The Jesus Meal Tradition

Acknowledgement of Country/First Peoples
(An act towards reconciliation)

For thousands of years Indigenous people have walked
in this land, on their own country.
Their relationship with the land is at the centre of their lives.

We acknowledge the (NN) People of the (NN) Nation, past, present, and emerging leaders,
and their stewardship of this land throughout the ages.

First Peoples Statement to the Nation 2017 called “Uluru Statement from the Heart” HERE
A Response from Common Dreams5 Conference of Religious Progressives,
Australia/South Pacific 2019 HERE

And we recognise and give thanks that we humans

are creatures of the Earth living in the ecosystem

—flowers, trees and insects; land, waters and mountain range—

that is unique to (NN).

May we honour one another and honour life itself.

(NN) is a safe place for all people to worship regardless of
race, creed, age, cultural background or sexual orientation

GATHERING

Rich and Striking Visuals
          “The function of beauty… is to make us aware of a reality which is richer and deeper 
          and more marvellous than anything we can dream or conceive.” (Henry N. Wieman)
          Artwork OR Floral/Symbols display (cloths, candles, stones, wood, leaves, flowers, earth, water) OR projection of Film/Video 

Gathering Music

Entry into the Celebration
The gong is sounded three times

Let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life.

Lighting of the Community Candle
The Community Candle is lit

Advent Wreath – ‘Source of Light’
Advent 3
v1 Stars without number
gathered in forms and patterns
that shine together.
Light third candle

v2 Father and Mother God,
we give thanks for the stars and the planets
for their light and shapes that never fail.
We pray for all people
that we may learn to live together,
to love each other,
to work together,
to make this world a better place.  Adapted-HJohnston/ssb
All  Amen.

OR

Advent 3: “Fire”
v1   Today, we remember fire and light
with this candle of joy.
All  Fire is at the heart of the energy,
that powers our world.

v1  Yet we humans use energy that cannot be renewed.
We take and do not replenish.
All  We rip the environment apart, searching
for more of what cannot sustain us.
(Silence)
v2  We light this third advent candle…
The candle is lit

All  And as we do we renew our commitment
to live gently and joyfully,
respecting the fire around us.
v1   May it be so.

Presentation of the Christmas Bowl
v5  Without joy, people struggle to find their way.
The bowl, made by the children previously, is placed near the Advent wreath

Note: (i) A suggested process for introducing new hymns, called Hymn of the Month, can be found HERE
(ii) Additional Special Purpose Hymns that cover major international events or themes can be found HERE  They include these categories: 1. Bush (Brush) Fire, 2. Tsunami, Storms/Cyclones, 3. Earthquakes, 4. War/Remembrance, 5. Caregiving, 6. God as Mother, 7. Human Trafficking, 8. Disabled, 9. Migration/Refugees, 10. Terrorist Attacks, 11. Science/Cosmology
(iii) Specific resources on Terrorism HERE
(iv) On Wonder, Awe, and Nature  HERE

Hymn/Song  The people stand as they are able, to sing.  Children move to Sunday Club.
"Carol our Christmas"   (Tune: ‘Reversi')                                                                                     9(v1-3) AA
Carol our Christmas,
an upside down Christmas;
snow is not falling and
trees are not bare.
Carol the summer, and
welcome the Christ Child,
warm in our sunshine and
sweetness of air.

Sing of the gold and the
green and the sparkle,
water and river and lure
of the beach.
Sing in the happiness
of open spaces,
sing a nativity summer
can reach!

Shepherds and musterers
move over hillsides,
finding, not angels,
but sheep to be shorn;
wise ones make journeys
whatever the season,
searching for signs of the
truth to be born. (Shirley Erena Murray)
Remain standing

Opening Sentences
The season of Advent challenges us
All  to see God's vision of what is yet to be,
to hear God's voice calling anew,
All  to smell the scent of God in our world.

Words of Awareness
May we cherish each intertwining moment
and see with it all the complexities,
wonders, delights of relationship.
So may it be. (Gretta Vosper/wab)

OR

v1 We pray:
Now is the moment of magic, when an eastern star
beckons the ignorant toward an unknown goal.
So here's a blessing:
they find nothing in the end but an ordinary baby,
born at midnight,
born in poverty,
and the baby's cry, like bells ringing, makes people wonder
as they wander through their lives, what human love
might really look like, sound like, feel like.

v2 And here’s another blessing:
we already possess all the gifts we need,
we've already received our presents:
ears to hear music,
eyes to behold lights,
hands to build true peace on earth
and to hold each other tight in love.  (VSafford/adapted)
May it be so.

Hymn/Song  “Christmas is Real”  (Tune: ‘Highwood’, 11.10.11.10)
Christmas is real when the cost that we measure
reaches the manger and touches the skies,
shop fronts give way to divine revelation,
God is among us and selfishness dies.

Christmas is real when the gifts that are given
mirror the love of this God upon earth,
God who is known in self-giving and loving
crowning our poverty, coming to birth.

Christmas still echoed when screams of the children, 
slaughtered by Herod inflamed people's fear.
Christmas remains when the trees and the tinsel 
make way for news that we'd rather not hear.

Christmas is real when we enter the squalor
mirrored in Bethlehem so long ago;
off'ring the love that was seen in the God head,
total self-giving not baubles  and show.  © Andrew Pratt 2006

OR

"To a World so Torn and Tortured"  (Tune: 'Birabus', 87.87)
To a world so torn and tortured
Came the voice of one who knew,
What it cost to lift oppression,
Challenge the accepted view.

John convicted crowds before him,
Charged hypocrisy with God;
Opened up the way for Jesus
Who would follow where he trod.

Then imprisoned, John was silenced;
Yet a voice more powerful still
Challenged in and out of season
All who heard to do God's will.

Living Christ would lift oppression,
Dying he would seem to fail;
Crying out in desolation,
Yet God's love would still prevail.  (Andrew Pratt/sosb)  
The people sit after the hymn/song

Welcome
In your own words

A warm welcome is extended to all.
Especially those who are gathering at (NN) for the first time
or who have returned after an absence.

Your presence both enriches us and this time of celebration together.
Refer to printed liturgy.
Fellowship hour following the Gathering
Those visiting, please sign our Visitors book.

Reflection
“Resilience” #70
By Dennis McCarty. Thoughts from a Gentle Atheist/46

We walk through a crossroad in time.
All the cataclysms of the past
Have orchestrated this precise moment.
And from this moment spring
All the wonders of the future.
Let us be mindful what we do right now,
Because so very much depends on it.

Centering Silence
Centering silence has its roots in the earliest of monastic traditions of the ‘desert Fathers (abbas)/Mothers (ammas)’ and the Christian mystic tradition… Relaxing into ‘quietness’ creates the space for deep listening and draws you into yourself

Let us now take a moment to settle into the silence. 

Some thoughts from Hildegard of Bingen, 12th century mystic…
Glance at the sun.  See the moon and the stars.
Gaze at the beauty of earth’s greenings.  Now, think.
What delight God gives to humankind
with all these things.
(Silence)

EXPLORING

Wisdom from the World/Religious Traditions
“Wisdom is not just special knowledge about something. Wisdom is a way of being, a way of inhabiting the world. The beauty of wisdom is harmony, belonging and illumination of thought, action, heart and mind.” (John O’Donohue)

Reader: Into this day will break moments of awareness,

tiny shards of light that illumine

the whole reality of existence.

All May these readings be such a moment

and may we be blessed by their gift.  (Gretta Vosper/ab)

• The Infancy Gospel of James 2:1-7

Anna mourned and lamented greatly for two reasons, saying,
“I lament that I am a widow and I lament that I am childless”.

When the great day of the Lord was drawing near, her servant Juthine said,
"How long are you going to humble yourself?
Do you not see that the great day of the Lord is approaching?
You are not allowed to mourn.

“Take this headband which the leader of the activity gave me.
I am not allowed to tie it because I am your slave and it has a royal mark."

Then, Anna said,
"Get away from me.  I did not cause these things,
even though the Lord God has humbled me greatly.
Perhaps a crafty person has given this to you
and you have come to cause me to partake of your sin."

Her servant Juthine replied,
"Should I invoke a curse on you because you did not hear my voice? 
The Lord God has shut your womb
and he will not give you offspring in Israel."

So Anna also became extremely frustrated and
removed her mourning garment, washed her head
and clothed herself with her wedding dress.

Around the ninth hour, she went down to her garden to walk around.

She saw a laurel tree and sat down under it.

After a rest, she petitioned the Lord, saying,
"God of my ancestors, bless me and hear my prayer,
just as you blessed our mother Sarah and gave her son Isaac to her."

• Matthew 11:2-11  (Inclusive Text)

John in prison had heard what Jesus was doing and sent disciples to ask him,
‘Are you the one who is to come, or have we got to wait for someone else?’

Jesus answered,
‘Go back and tell John what you hear and see;
the blind see again,
and the lame walk,
lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear,
the dead are raised to life and the Good News is proclaimed to the poor;
and happy is the one who does not lose faith in me.’

As the messengers were leaving, Jesus began to talk to the people about John:
‘What did you go out into the wilderness to see?
A reed swaying in the breeze?  No?

Then what did you go out to see?
‘One wearing fine clothes?

Oh no, those who wear fine clothes are to be found in palaces.

Then what did you go out for?
‘To see a prophet?  Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet:
This is the one of whom scripture says:
Look, I am going to send my messenger before you
who will prepare your way before you.

‘I tell you solemnly, of all the children born of women,
a greater than John the Baptist has never been seen;
yet the least in the realm of heaven is greater than John is.’

(For those interested...
You can purchase a copy of the Inclusive Texts/Readings (AU$50) from:
Inclusive Language Project
PO Box 1303
Toombul QLD 4012 Australia)

Contemporary Exploration

Silence for Personal Reflection

AFFIRMING

An Affirmation of Faith (Optional)
In response to the word reflected on, let us stand
and share an affirmation of faith…
The people stand as they are able

We believe in Creativity God,
All  from whose heart flows forth healing
enough for the pain of the world and our pain.

We believe in Jesus the Companion,
Al l  who saw into the souls, minds and bodies 
of people like us and reached out in healing touch,
gathering in the wounded ones
in love beyond the commonplace.

We believe in the Spirit Holy who breathes
All  warmth into the cold places,
touches with living fire the deathliness in our life
and remembers with grief, all the hurts
which we dare not name.  (Adapt/Dorothy McRae-McMahon/bst)

Sharing 'The Peace'
Let us take a moment to celebrate each other.

May a heart of peace rest with you.

All And also with you. (David Galston/q)

You are invited to share the peace with your neighbours

OR

Namaste

Facing the person with right hand on your heart and a slight bow of the head…

The Divine in me honours the Divine in you.

OR

The Light in me recognises the Light in you.

OR

The spirit within me sees the spirit within you.

CELEBRATING

Hymn/Song   People stand as they are able, to sing
In Southern hemisphere
"This Land of Bursting Sunrise” (Tune: ‘Andujar’, 76.86D)                                                         82 SLT
This land of bursting sunrise,
all lavender and blue,
its cloud-strewn, light-swept day skies flow,
and every day renew.
To east the glow of dawning,
to west the blaze of night,
‘round all the long horizon’s rim,
the everlasting light!

This land of open vistas,
life rooted deep and free,
the canyoned plains, the mountains vast,
plumb earth’s immensity.
Here in life’s fragile balance,
the sun and stars above,
find hand in hand, and heart to heart,
the everlasting love. (John H Holmes)

OR

“We Sing Now Together” (‘Kremser’, 12.11.13.12)                                                           67 SLT
We sing now together our song of thanksgiving,
rejoicing in goods which the ages have wrought,
for Life that enfolds us, and helps and heals and holds us,
and leads beyond the goals our forbears once sought.

We sing of the freedoms which martyrs and heroes
have won by their labor, their sorrow, their pain;
the oppressed befriending, our ampler hopes defending,
their death becomes a triumph, they died not in vain.

We sing of the prophets, the teachers, the dreamers,
designers, creators, and workers, and seers;
our own lives expanding, our gratitude commanding,
their deeds have made immortal their days and their years.

We sing of community now in the making
in every far continent, region, and land;
with those of all races, all times and names and places,
we pledge ourselves in covenant firmly to stand.  (Ed T Buehrer)

OR

“Carol of the Refugee Children” (Tune: ‘Cradle Song’)
Away and in danger,
no hope of a bed,
the refugee children,
no tears left to shed                 
look up at the night sky
for someone to know
that refugee children
have no place to go.       

The babies are crying,
their hunger awakes,
the boat is too loaded,
it shudders and breaks;
humanity's wreckage
is thrown out to die,
the refugee children
will never know why.

Come close, little children,
we hold out our hand
in rescue and welcome
to shores of our land -
in *aroha, touching
your fear and your pain,
with dreams for your future            
when peace comes again.  (© Shirley Erena Murray 2016)

*Maori for 'warm embracing love’
alternative line “in touching, in healing'

In Solidarity
Care Candle:
We are people of all ages who enter this space
bringing our joys and concerns.
Joys and Celebrations; Griefs and Concerns shared

Focused Thoughts:

Listening Response:
In the light and beauty of day
All  We give thanks in awe and wonder.
In the dark and stillness of night
All  We dream of healing and hope (Gretta Vosper/wwg)

And so we take a flame and light our special Care Candle…
The Care Candle is lit

For ourselves, for those named or remembered, and in solidarity with those
who have not the freedom to express their concern or celebration
for fear of discrimination or condemnation.

In all our joys and in all our concerns, may we be ever mindful
of the presentness of the sacred among us,
and to see the new possibilities of the now.

The 'Abba' Prayer: (Optional)
You are invited to pray in the spirit of the Abba/Lord's Prayer, and in your original language, as that is appropriate

All  Father, may your name be holy.
May your rule take place.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Pardon our debts, for we ourselves pardon
everyone in debt to us.
And do not bring us to trial
into a trying situation.  (Burton Mack/Q)

CELEBRATING SOLIDARITY: THE JESUS MEAL TRADITION
Offerings

Presentation
May we find a meaning in life, a purpose, a belonging.
And may we find pleasure in receiving from life and satisfaction in enriching life.

Welcome
May Love be with you.
All And also with you!
May our hearts be opened.
All We open ourselves to life.
Creator of light, Bearer of life, Source of love,
All your ancient love stirs within us.

Thanksgiving
The sacred emerges for us everywhere:
in the rhythm of the oceans
in the magnificence of the stars,
in the beauty of all beings.
All  We are grateful for the gifts of our story.

v1  In this season, we listen for the voices crying in the wilderness.
We sing the song of angels who quiet our fears.
We find ourselves in the company of shepherds and magi
who search for what is coming to birth
in unlikely places among unlikely people.

In the company of courageous parents,
we dare to birth the holy among us.

In the divine, we live and move and have our being.
For all that is born of a sacred love,
we give our thanks and praise.

The advent of the holy is among us in every moment.
All  In Jesus of Nazareth, we see new possibilities,
new ways of being in the world.

v2  He was moved by the plight of the poor.
He made his home with the homeless
and shared his table with those
who could not command a seat at any table.

He dreamed of a world where enemies learned to love one another,
where the abundance of creation was shared fairly,
and where love was the law of every land.

The Story
v3   Near the end of his life,
Jesus shared a sacred tradition of his people
and shaped it into something new.

Around a simple table, he celebrated
the liberating story of Passover.

He dreamed of another revolution:
a world without a Pharaoh or a Caesar;
a world governed by the love which brought it into being.

v1   Together with his friends,
Jesus broke the bread of freedom
and shared the cup of compassion.

Breaking the Bread of Freedom
In silence

Pouring the Cup of Compassion
In silence

The Invitation
v2   Come from loneliness into the welcome of this table.
All Come from anxiety into the peace of this table.

Come from tensions into the joy of this table.
All  Come from conflict into the love of this table.

Come and share the bread which leavens our hope.
All Come and share the cup which strengthens our compassion.

Come to enliven our capacity to work for transformation.
All  Come, let us lay aside those things that shield our hearts.

v1   Let us be open to the holy we meet
in the manger, and in the mirror.

Sharing the Bread and the Cup
The Bread and the White Wine is shared with everyone

After the Sharing
v1  Spirit of life, though we live in a world of need:
Mn  Here we have tasted hope and hunger for a world more just.
Wn  Here we have glimpsed the dream of creation renewed.
v2  May we have the courage to be bread and wine for one another.  (Adapted.Nancy L.Steeves, 2008)

PARTING

Hymn/Song  The people stand as they are able, to sing
“Look in Wonder“  (Tune: ‘Yr Hun Gan’, 87.87D. 590 CSH)
Look in wonder, hold in honour
all the beauty of the earth!
World, surrender to her splendour:
God’s own blessing for her birth;
sense and savour every colour,
every season, sun to star,
see the measure of this treasure,
all we nurture, all we mar.

Every creature by its nature
shares the cycle, life’s design,
every human, man and woman
joins the circle, moves the line;
look in horror, look in anger –
these are life-streams we destroy!
tree and river gone forever,
bird and flower dead to joy.
Remain standing

Parting Words
As we prepare to leave this sacred space where we have celebrated together,
let us return to our work enlivened and renewed...
The Community Candle is extinguished

Go now in peace.
Deeply regard each other.
Truly listen to each other.
Speak what each of you must speak.
Be ready in any moment to disarm your own heart,
and always live as if a realm of love had begun.
All  So be it.  Blessed be.  (B Hamilton-Holway) 

Words of Blessing
Be still!
And let God's peace wash over you
Like waves lapping over stones
Smoothing rough edges of insurmountable worries
To tiny insignificant gains of sand,
Taking away the jaggedness of sin
To leave smooth shining love.

Be blessed!
In the name of God who forgives.
In the name of God, who loves.
In the name of God who daily calls us to action,
in God's life-sustaining, liberating
and transforming grace.
All  Amen! May it be so!

Hymn/Song  (Cont) “Look in Wonder“  (Tune: ‘Yr Hun Gan’, 87.87D. 590 CSH)
In this garden, Eve and Adam
still are given time and place,
ours to cherish, ours to nourish,
ocean, water, land and space;
God, unnerve us, God, forgive us:
how we plunder, waste and war!
Give new meaning to earth’s greening,
that the beauty thrives once more.  © Shirley Erena Murray, 2006
The people sit after the hymn/song

'This Week' at (NN)
Notices
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Significant Events
Journey Candles

Music

Fellowship
Morning tea is now served.
You are invited to share in this time of fellowship.

You are invited to keep this copy of the liturgy and take it home with you
to share with another member of your family, or with a friend

Please include any reproduction of hymns/songs for local church use
on your Music Licence returns, as appropriate

Some of the Resources used in Shaping this Liturgy:

Abbott, M. Sparks of the Cosmos. Rituals for Seasonal use. Unley. MediaCom Education, 2001.
(AA) Alleluia Aotearoa. Hymns and Songs for all Churches. Raumati. New Zealand Hymnbook Trust, 1993.
Duncan, G. (ed). Shine On, Star of Bethlehem. A Worship Resource for Advent, Christmas and Epiphany. Norwich. The Canterbury Press, 2001.
(HoS) Hope is Our Song. New Hymns and Songs from Aotearoa New Zealand. 2009. Palmerston North. New Zealand Hymnbook Trust.
Inclusive Readings. Year A. Brisbane. Inclusive Language Project. In private circulation, 2004.
Iona Community. Iona Abbey Worship Book. Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications, 2001.
McRae-McMahon, D. The Glory of Blood, Sweat and Tears. Liturgies for Living and Dying. Melbourne. JBCE, 1996.
Mack, B. L. The Lost Gospel. The Book of Q and Christian Origins. New York. HarperSanFrancisco, 1993.
(SLT) Singing The Living Tradition. Boston: UUA, 1993.
Vosper, G. We All Breathe. Poems and Prayers. Toronto: PostPurgical Resources, 2012.
Vosper, G. With or Without God. Why the way we Live is more important than what we Believe. Canada: Toronto. HarperCollins, 2008.

Web sites/Other:
Safford, Suchocki, Hamilton-Holway. UUA Worship Web. Boston.  <www.uua.org/spirituallife/worshipweb/>  
Andrew Pratt "Christmas is Real". Hymns&Books blog site. UK.  <http://hymnsandbooks.blogspot.com/>  
Early Christian Writings. http://<www.gospels.net/translations/infancyjamestranslation.html>
"Look in Wonder". Shirley Erena Murray. NZ. Direct from the author. Used with permision.
Nancy L Steeves. “Praying in the Spirit of Jesus”. One of several non-theistic resources found at: <http://www.ualberta.ca/ST.STEPHENS/resources>
Advent 3: Fire. Adapted from ‘The Four Elements’ by Dean Salter, UCC. 2006
Shirley Erina  Murray. “Carol of the Refugee Children”. Direct from the author. Used with permission.