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
“...in the end the universe can only be explained in terms of celebration.
It is all an exuberant expression of existence itself”
16 October 2022 Pentecost 19C Colour: Green
Flowers in Mid-spring
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, emerging,
and their stewardship of this land throughout the ages.
First Peoples Statement to the Nation 2017 called “Uluru Statement from the Heart”
A Response from Common Dreams5 Conference of Religious Progressives,
Australia/South Pacific 2019
(Check out Affirmations/Manifestos for both)
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
Gathering Music
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 Video
Entry into the Celebration
The gong is sounded three times
With faith to face our challenges,
With love that casts out fear,
With hope to trust tomorrow,
We accept this day as the gift it is:
a reason for rejoicing. (Gary Kowalski)
So let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life.
Lighting of the Community Candle
The Community Candle is lit in silence
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 People stand as they are able, to sing
“Earth Was Given as a Garden” (Tune: ‘Hyfrydol’, 87.87D,
Earth was given as a garden,
cradle for humanity;
tree of life and tree of knowledge
placed for our discovery.
Here was home for all your creatures
born of land and sky and sea;
all created in your image,
all to live in harmony
Show to us again the garden
where all life flows fresh and free.
Gently guide your sons and daughters
into full maturity.
Teach us how to trust each other,
how to use for good our power,
how to touch the earth with rev’rence.
Then once more will Eden flower.
Bless the earth and all your children,
one creation: make us whole,
interwoven, all connected,
planet wide and inmost soul.
Holy mother, life bestowing,
bid our waste and warfare cease.
Fill us all with grace o’er-flowing.
Teach us how to live in peace. (Roberta Bard Ruby)
Remain standing after the hymn/song
Opening Sentences
A morning mist,
the gleam of a new day,
faintly we discern the possibilities
that are before us.
All Energy rising, plans turning to action,
we build our every yesterday
from the living of our days.
May we live our hope into tomorrow.
All May we wrap our lives around
the challenges of today.
And in the quiet of the sacred space,
may we listen at the centre of our being
All for the truth of our inner voice
that sets before us the purpose of this day.
(Silence)
Words of Awareness
A twig and leaf, a stone and bird,
small majesties of all our days.
A face and eyes, a hand and word,
these are the meaning of our praise. (Kenneth Patton/sscl)
OR
As God prays through us…
We gather grateful for the companionship
of hearts and minds
seeking to speak the truth in love.
We gather grateful for our heritage,
for the women and men before us
whose prophetic words and deeds
make possible our dreams and our insight.
And we gather grateful for the gift of life itself,
mindful that to respect life means both
to celebrate what life is
and to insist on what it can become.
Amen.
Hymn/Song “Beautiful Presence” (Tune: ‘Beautiful presence’) 9 HoS
Beautiful presence, how can we name you?
Words are too small for the one who is all.
How can we speak of your gentleness in us,
the warmth of our hearts in response to your call?
Refrain:
Beautiful presence, ocean of love,
strong as forever, soft as a dove.
Words often fail us, but this we know true,
you live within us as we live in you.
There have been times of spiritual blindness,
when error and pain have distorted our sight.
Beautiful presence, you were there with us,
to show us how darkness can turn into light.
Refrain:
Nothing that happens to us will be wasted,
all of our living is grounded in grace.
Gently you take down the walls of division,
leading us on to a larger place. (Joy Cowley)
Refrain:
People sit after the hymn/song
Welcome
Or in your own words
A warm welcome is extended to all.
Especially those who are gathering here 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.
CENTERING
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
Now in this time of silence may we move from busy-ness to quietness…
(Silence)
God of life
God of peace
God of wonders that will not cease...
Present with us now.
(Silence)
May the colours, flowers, stars, breezes,
warm days and glimmering nights
be your spring-time gift this day
Music of Reflection
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)
Readings
Two readings applicable for this special ‘end of season’ day.
The reader is (NN)
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)
• “A Butterfly: Moments of Grace and Illumination”
By Richard Jeffries. Life Prayers/366
A butterfly comes and stays on a leaf -
a leaf much warmed by the sun -
and shuts his wings.
In a minutes he opens them, shuts them again,
half wheels round, and by and by -
just when he chooses and not before -
floats away.
The flowers open, and remain open for hours, to the sun.
Hastelessness is the only word one can make up to describe it;
there is much rest, but no haste.
Each moment is so full of life
that it seems so long
and so sufficient in itself.
• Luke 18:1-8 (Inclusive Text)
Jesus told the disciples a parable about the need to pray continually
and never lose heart.
‘There was a judge in a certain town,' Jesus said,
'who had neither fear of God nor respect for persons.
‘In the same town there was a widow
who kept coming to the judge and saying,
"I want justice from you against my enemy!"
‘For a long time the judge refused, but at last said,
"Maybe I have neither fear of God nor respect for persons,
but since she keeps pestering me
I must give this widow her just rights,
or she will persist in coming and worry me to death."
And Jesus said,
'You notice what the unjust judge has to say?
Now will not God see justice done to the chosen who cry out
day and night even when God delays to help them?
‘I promise you, God will see justice done to them, and done speedily.
But when the Promised One comes,
will any faith be found on earth?’
Contemporary Exploration
‘The Hills are Alive: All Flowers, Bright and Beautiful’
(Six Cameos)
Silence for Personal Reflection
AFFIRMING
A Celebration of Faith (Optional)
In response to the thoughts and words reflected on let us stand, as we are able,
and share a contemporary Celebration of Faith.
The people stand as they are able
God of all living, we have seen your presence
in the rhythm and surprises of our years.
All You have accompanied us through all that is past.
We are thankful.
We recognise your closeness in this day.
All You challenge and encourage us
in each act and decision.
We seek to be courageous.
Now we look to you in the promises
which stretch before us.
All You meet us with hope and call us to freedom
to live as your new people.
We commit ourselves again, to live as people of faith.
The people sit
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.
Hymn/Song People stand as they are able, to sing
“All Creatures of Our God” (‘Lasst Uns Erfreuen’, 88.88. Alleluias, 4 verses)
All creatures of our loving God,
Lifit up your voice with praise and laud,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
You blazing sun with golden beam.
You silver moon with softer gleam!
O praise God! O praise God!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
You rushing wind, air, clouds, and rain,
By which all creatures you sustain.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
You rising morn, in praise rejoice,
You lights of evening, find a voice
O praise God! O praise God!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
You swirling water, flowing clear,
Make music for your God to hear,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
You glowing fire who lights the night,
Providing warmth, enhancing sight…
O praise God! O praise God!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Dear gentle Earth, who day by day
Unfolds your blessings on our way,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
The flowers and fruit that in you grow,
Let them God's glory also show!
O praise God! O praise God!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! (Adapted from original by Diann Neu)
People sit
Conversation with the Children
Children gather on the conversation mat
“Conversation”:
"Somewhere someone…:”
The kingdom of love is coming because:
All somewhere someone is kind when others are unkind,
somewhere someone shares with another in need,
somewhere someone refuses to hate, while others hate,
somewhere someone is patient - and waits in love,
somewhere someone returns good for evil,
somewhere someone serves another, in love,
somewhere someone is calm in a storm,
somewhere someone is loving everybody.
Is that someone you? (Binkley & McKeel/jke)
In Solidarity
Care Candle:
We are people of all ages who enter this safe space
bringing our joys and concerns.
Joys and Celebrations; Griefs and Concerns shared.
Focused Thoughts:
Listening Response:
Each day brims over with possibility.
All In every second lie choices, chances,
in numbers too great for us to comprehend.
May we ever strive to see beyond our limitations,
choose beyond our immediate needs,
All and live into each day,
the fullness of its opportunity. (Gretta Vosper/hb)
And so we take this 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 and within us,
and to see 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 appropriate
All Our Mother, whose body is the Earth,
Sacred is thy being. Thy gardens grow.
Thy will be done in our cities,
as it is in nature.
Thanks be this day
for food, and air, and water.
Forgive us our sins against Earth,
as we are learning to forgive one another.
And surrender us not unto extinction,
but deliver us from our folly.
For thine is the beauty, and the power,
and all life, from birth to death,
from beginning to end. Amen.
So be it.
Forever.
Blessed be. (Henry Horton/lp)
CELEBRATING
CELEBRATION OF FLOWER COMMUNION
Offerings
Presentation
Gifts, Bread, Wine, and Flowers brought forward
Creating God, the landscape of life and your presence is near:
a daffodil in bloom,
a single green leaf,
the red and green flash of a parrot.
May we too be a people of adventure and life,
grace-filled companions, offering
courage and hope in unexpected places.
All Amen. May it be so.
Introduction
Members of the various Jesus movements regularly ate a meal together
when they met as a community.
It was a characteristic that they had in common
with virtually every other social group in their world.
It was considered primary to the early developments
in the movements’ meal liturgy.
These meal traditions were not about personal salvation or payment for sin.
Instead, they were about actions and offering hospitality, social identity,
and being in solidarity with those around us.
The liturgical movements centred on celebration, presence, and joy.
I invite you into the spirit of those meals…
Gathering
May love be with you.
All And also with you.
Let us open our hearts.
All We open ourselves to love and to each other.
Let us give thanks for the gifts of life and faith.
All Spirit of life, of grape and grain, we gather in gratitude.
Thanksgiving
The earth has gone the round of seasons:
from the vibrant green of spring's new life
to the lush richness of warm summer,
to the brilliant fulfillment of riotous autumn,
to the generosity and self-giving of winter…
Now we stand again, touched by the promise
of new life in the spring.
Have you considered the flowers, the lilies of the fields?
They spin not, neither do they sew,
yet Solomon, in all his glory
was not arrayed as one of these.
Say what you will about the economy of life,
flowers are irrefutable proof
of nature’s extravagance.
Everywhere you look,
in every nook and cranny,
during this season of life,
the flowers are there…
Spilling down a creek bank,
along a bush path,
in shopping centre parking lots,
in outback desert places, where the landscape
is not just there, it took 4.4 billion years to be there.
Flowers do not bloom for us.
They do not care whether or not we see them.
They grow and bloom
because they are full of life.
They are a gift of grace.
They invite us to seek the beauty in each moment.
They encourage us to find fulfilment in life
and the living of it.
And what nature has done for flowers,
nature has done for us.
We, too, are products of nature's extravagance.
As you came into this place this morning,
you brought with you a flower.
From many different sources
these many different flowers have come.
Together they symbolise the extravagance of nature,
for as various as these flowers are,
they do not begin to exhaust nature's inventiveness
in creating forms and colours and beauty.
Thus, in this season of spring it is fitting we should celebrate
the renewal of life and hope, using
the symbols of bread and wine and flowers.
Time out of mind we have watched
grain buried in the dark soil.
Time out of mind we have watched sprouting seeds
break through the soil, reaching towards the warm sun.
Time out of mind we have watched grain broken,
ground into dust-like flour.
Yet mixed with water and leavening,
it stirs, rises, becomes bread, and scones and biscuits,
sustainers of our lives.
For longer than we can remember
the fruit of the vine has been our companion.
Its clustered fruit is harvested
and crushed, and juice is stored and fermented
saved for festive occasions.
We have shared the fruit of the vine
in moments of joy and sorrow,
and to mark momentous turnings.
The Story
And we also remember the stories from our tradition...
How on many occasions Jesus would share
a meal with friends and strangers.
Bread and wine shared in community.
How the bread would be taken,
a blessing offered, and then shared between them.
And all of them ate.
How, after conversation, some wine would be poured out,
a blessing offered, and then passed between them.
And all of them drank.
The bread and the wine symbolised human lives
interconnected with other human lives,
and the power of giving and receiving.
In sharing this meal we enter into a new relationship,
with sacred wisdom,
with the planet, and
with one another,
All to feel our kinship with all life,
to raise our voice in the service of life,
All to love kindness, and to seek justice,
to live in harmony
All and awaken to peace.
May we sense the wonder of what might yet be.
All We are part of Earth
Earth is part of us.
And as we consider this Earth, our home,
All may we continue to walk upon it
gently and with reverence.
Bread and White Wine
Now in the spirit of those early meals
shaped and reshaped over many years by the various Jesus movements,
we in our time and place break the bread…
Bread is broken
And we pour out wine…
White Wine is poured into the Cup
And we remember
All For everyone born, a place at the table.
So we join our celebration to all people:
All Holy! Holy! Holy!
Heaven and earth are holy and good.
Communion
We take this bread and this wine
mindful of the Spirit at work in our lives,
in the ordinary,
in the everyday,
and in our desire to love as generously as Jesus loved.
All May this bread nourish our capacity for compassion.
May this cup strengthen our commitment to community.
For to eat and drink together reminds us
of the deeper aspects of human fellowship,
for from time immemorial
the sharing of bread and wine
has been the most universal of all symbols of community.
The Bread and White Wine is served
After Communion
And now we prepare to leave this place.
As you do, you are invited to take one of the flowers.
Take a different one than the flower you brought.
Take it not to keep forever and forever.
Nothing is forever.
Take a flower as a symbol of gratitude
for beauty we did not create,
for joys which come when unexpected.
Take a flower as a symbol of your participation
in the community of this gathering,
in the community of human kind,
in the community of all living things,
in the universal community.
If you did not bring a flower take one anyway.
Take a flower as a symbol
of beauty
and grace
and joy
and love.
For knowing how to receive
is fully as important as knowing how to give.
Hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth” (Tune: ‘Dix’, 77 77 77)
For the beauty of the earth,
for the splendour of the skies,
for the love which from our birth
over and around us lies:
Refrain:
Source of all,
to thee we raise this
our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of ear and eye,
for the heart and mind’s delight,
for the mystic harmony
linking sense to sound and sight:
Refrain:
Source of all,
to thee we raise this
our hymn of grateful praise.
For the wonder of each hour
of the day and of the night,
hill and vale and tree and flower,
sun and moon and stars of light:
Refrain:
Source of all,
to thee we raise this
our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human care,
sister, brother, parent, child,
for the kinship we all share,
for all gentle thought and mild:
Refrain:
Source of all,
to thee we raise this
our hymn of grateful praise. (FSPierpoint/adapt)
Remain standing
PARTING
Parting Words
The presentness of God reaches beyond this place.
The Candle is extinguished
Let our congregation be, in its own way,
A gift which each of us presents to the other.
All But even more,
Let it be a gift from each of us to our community.
Let us be a gathering place for the spirit,
All A refuge for hope,
A beacon of inspiration,
A dynamo of life and justice for all.
Let faithful community be our ground of being:
All Commitment and action by which to
Reimagine and reshape our world.
Words of Blessing
Go into this week,
held together by the love of God
clothed with the nature of Jesus our Companion
reinforced by the strength of the Holy Spirit.
All Amen. May it be so.
The people sit
Music
'This Week' at (NN)
Notices
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Significant Events
Journey Candles
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
Primary sources. “Flower Communion Service” and “A Springtime Service” by David E Bumbaugh, in The Communion Book. (ed). C. Seaburg. Boston. UUMA, 1993.
Hope Is Our Song. New Hymns and Songs from Aotearoa New Zealand. Palmerston North: New Zealand Hymnbook Trust, 2009.
Inclusive Readings. Year C. Brisbane: Inclusive Language Project. In private circulation, 2006.
McCarty, D. Thoughts from a Gentle Atheist. Religious Readings for the Skeptical. USA. Dennis McCarty, 2019
McRae-McMahon, D. The Glory of Blood, Sweat and Tears. Liturgies for Living and Dying. Melbourne. JBCE, 1996.
Neu, D. L. Return Blessings: Ecofeminist Liturgies Renewing the Earth. Cleveland. Pilgrim Press, 2002.
Patton, K. Services and Songs for the Celebration of Life. Boston. Beacon Press, 1967.
Roberts, E. & E. Amidon. Life Prayers from Around the World. 365 Prayers, Blessings, and Affirmations to Celebrate the Human Journey. New York. HarperCollins, 1996.
Singing The Living Tradition. Boston. UUA, 1993.
Smith, D. E. & Hal E. Taussig. Many Tables. The Eucharist in the New Testament and Liturgy Today. London. SCM Press, 1990.
Stuart, G. Singing a New Song. Traditional Hymn Tunes with New Century Lyrics. Volume 2. Toronto. G Stuart, 2009.
Vosper, G. Another Breath. Prayers for Celebration and Reflection. Brisbane. The Centre for Progressive Religious Thought Brisbane, 2009/2010.
Vosper, G. Holy Breath. Prayers for Worship and Reflection. New & Revised Edition. Brisbane. The Centre for Progressive Religious Thought Brisbane, 2004/2010.
Other:
Kowalski. UUA Worship Web. Boston. <www.uua.org/spirituallife/worshipweb/>David Galston. Quest Learning Centre for Religious Literacy. http://www.questcentre.ca/
Nancy L Steeves. “Praying in the Spirit of Jesus”. One of several non-theistic resources found at: http://stephen.srv.ualberta.ca/publications/non-theistic-liturgy-resources/#sthash.0Sd5KwzN.wLO2Tlw4.dpb