Suggestion: ’Refresh’ each page before reading to make sure to get my latest edition
‘The Other Lectionary’ is 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
“We are thoroughly nature. To claim otherwise is to attempt to place human beings and everything we do
in some rare unimaginable realm beyond the universe,
thus rendering the power of our origins lost and our obligations vague”
12 May 2024. Mother's Day.
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 is called “Uluru Statement from the Heart”
A Response from Common Dreams5 Conference of Religious Progressives,
Australia/South Pacific 2019
Both found at Affirmations/Maniestoes
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 gather 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
We are held by an awesome beauty.
Above, below, surrounding us is the constant presence of Life… (Gretta Vosper/hb)
So let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life.
Note: Check out 'Special Liturgies’ (this site) for the following:
(i) A suggested process for introducing new hymns is called Hymn of the Month
(ii) Additional Special Purpose Hymns cover major international events or themes. 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
(iv) On Wonder, Awe, and Nature
Hymn/Song The people stand as they are able, to sing
"Praise to God, the World’s Creator" (Tune: 'Abbot's Leigh', 87.87D)
Praise to God, the world’s creator,
Source of life and growth and breath,
Cradling in her arms her children,
Holding them from birth to death.
In our bodies, in our living,
Strength and truth of all we do,
God is present, working with us,
Making us creators too.
Praise to God our saving Wisdom,
Meeting us with love and grace,
Helping us to grow in wholeness,
Giving freedom, room, and space.
In our hurting, in our risking,
In the thoughts we dare not name,
God is present, growing with us,
Healing us from sin and shame.
Praise to God, the Spirit in us,
Prompting hidden depths of prayer,
Firing us to long for justice,
Reaching out with tender care.
In our searching, in our loving,
In our struggles to be free,
God is present, living in us,
Pointing us to what shall be. (Jan Berry/cw)
OR
"Great Lover Calling Us To Share" (Tune: 'Galilee', 88 88) 402 TiS)
Great Lover, calling us to share
your joy in all created things
from atom-dance to eagles' wings,
we come and go, to praise and care.
Though sure of resurrection-grace,
we ache for all earth's troubled lands
and hold the planet in our hands,
a fragile, unprotected place.
Your questing Spirit longs to gain
no simple fishing-ground for souls,
but as life's story onward rolls,
world more joyful and humane.
As midwives who assist at birth,
we give our uttermost, yet grieve
lest folly, greed or hate should leave
a spoiled, aborted, barren earth.
Self-giving Lover, since you dare
to join us in our history,
embracing all our destiny,
we'll come and go with praise and care. (Brian Wren)
Remain standing
Opening Sentences
v1 We live at mystery's edge
watching for a startling luminescence or a word to guide us.
All In fragile occurrence the Holy One
presents oneself and we must pause...
Daily, there are glimmers, reflections of a seamless mercy
revealed in common intricacies.
All These circles of grace spill out around us
and announce that we are part of this mystery. Keri Wehlander/sosob
v2 Out of waiting comes birth, from the East comes the sunrise
(First bowl of flowers)
v3 Out of the seed comes new life
(Second bowl of flowers)
v4 Out of winter comes the spring
(Third bowl of flowers)
v5 Out of sleep comes the awakening. (Margie Abbott/soc)
(Fourth bowl of flowers)
Words of Awareness
We give thanks for the opportunities we have
to gather in this sacred space and celebrate our life together.
We will live this day as if it is the only day we have to live.
And we will sleep each night as if unnumbered tomorrows
will follow our each and every awakening. (Adapt. Kenneth Patton/sscl)
OR
As we continue to share in this Easter season, may we be helped to say
yes to life,
yes to a new beginning,
yes to the presence that gives us courage
for whatever is ahead of us.
OR
We pray:
Living God, we offer thanks and praise
for the vitality of your presence in our midst,
and for this opportunity to come together
to celebrate our common hope.
Be the creativity that sustains us
in these changing and challenging times.
May it be so.
Lighting of Community Candle
Community Candle is lit
Hymn/Song "Dear Mother God" (Tune: ‘Intercessor’, 11.10.11.10)
Dear Mother God, your wings are warm around us,
We are enfolded in your love and care,
Safe in the dark, your heartbeat's pulse surround us,
You call to us, for you are always there.
You call to us, for we are in your image.
We wait on you, the nest is cold and bare -
High overhead your wing beats call us onward,
Filled with your power, we ride the empty air.
Let not our freedom scorn the needs of others -
We climb the clouds until our strong heart sings -
May we enfold our sisters and our brothers,
Till all are strong, till all have eagles' wings. (Janet Wootton/cw)
The people sit
Welcome
Or 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
“Valiant Women”
A compilation by Miriam Therese Winter and others
v1 Throughout history and at present,
there have been and are many valiant women,
generous, gifted, who have given of themselves
for the benefit of others
with little or no recompense.
v2 I picked a rose this morning...
Strong in colour,
with dew resting gently on its petals.
It’s fragrance filled my spirit.
As I picked it,
it’s thorns scratched my hand,
and blood mixed with the dew.
And I was reminded of life, and all that comes with it.
A rose is placed on the table near the Community Candle
v1 Today we celebrate, honour and mourn
the role and place of women in this world.
The strength and colour of women,
the fragrance and wholeness of women,
the damaged and bleeding women,
the relationships between women and men,
the life of women and men we know and don’t know.
We come to God, who created women as well as men.
OR
"Womanly God"
By Mary Ann Ebert. Celebrating Women/133.
Womanly God, who are you?
The weaver of warm garments and magic tapestries;
The homemaker, welcoming and accepting;
The sister, second half - disturbingly other;
THe listening, reassuring friend, silent consolation;
The delightful daughter, discovering and dancing;
The encouraging teacher, suggesting new words, new vision;
The backbreaker planter of fields, weeding, reaping; the treader of wine;
The nurse with full breasts and herbal remedies;
The virgin bride, the fulfilling wife, the desolate widow;
The free creative maiden; the long-living treasury of wisdom;
The wind that make the heart sing.
Music of Celebration
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: The delight of a story well-known fills our hearts
as we listen for its familiar end.
All May we hear in these stories, familiar and new,
both wisdom and meaning for the days ahead.
• Proverbs 31:10-31 (Adapted and paraphrased)
Who shall find a valiant woman?
Look! We are all around you...
unheralded,
invisible,
some say non-existent,
but we know otherwise.
She is in the work rooms of industry and on every functioning enterprise.
Broadminded, her global perspective is a source of nurture for her.
She rises early, before the dawn,
to prepare food for her family
and organise the tasks of the day...
contributing,
setting standards,
changing the course of history.
She considers her options, then makes her move,
investing the experience she already has
or even profits previously earned.
She works diligently, taking pride in her inner resources and strengths.
When her gifts are encouraged and their value affirmed,
she will work well into the night,
entering wholeheartedly into even the menial tasks...
She opens her heart to the needy,
she is generous with the poor,
yet she does not neglect her family’s needs
nor priorities of her own...
She often speaks with wisdom,
and she teaches in a kindly way...
Her children rise up and call her happy;
her husband too, and he praises her:
'Many women succeed or do outstanding things, but you surpass them all…’
OR
• The Gospel of Mary 6:1 - 7:7
Peter said to Mary,
‘Sister, we know that the Savior loved you more than the rest of the women.
Tell us the words of the Savior which you remember – which you know and we do not, nor have we heard them.’
Mary answered and said, "I saw the Lord in a vision and I said to him, ‘Lord, I saw you today in a vision.’”
He answered and said to me: “Blessed are you that you did not waver at seeing me. For where the mind is, there is the treasure.”
I said to him,
"Lord, now, does one who sees the vision see it with the soul or with the spirit?"
The Savior answered and said,
‘One does not see with the soul or with the spirit, but the mind which is between the two sees the vision.’
OR
• John 17: (Selected verses/NRSV)
After Jesus had spent time teaching his disciples, he took some time out for prayer.
This story commences in the midst of that prayer...
“I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world.
They were yours, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word...
“For the words that you gave to me I have given to them,
and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you;
and they have believed that you sent me...
“And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you.
Holy One, protect them in your name that you have given me,
so that they may be one, as we are one.
“I have given them your word, and the world has hated them
because they do not belong to the world,
just as I do not belong to the world.
“I am not asking you to take them out of the world,
but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.
“As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world”.
Contemporary Exploration
Silence for Personal Reflection
AFFIRMING
Litany from International Women’s Day (Optional)
The people stand as they are able
We enter into faith in God,
All Female and male alike, for we are all together in Jesus Christ.
Yet more than this, as we prepare to welcome Jesus,
in the way that we welcome the gift of roses to our door,
Jesus is already preparing to welcome us,
as he welcomed the Samaritan women at the well.
All We are welcomed, female and male alike,
for we are all together in Jesus Christ.
In the entire world;
in its creation, width and breadth is God’s grace,
ready to be celebrated.
In shouting and praising, even
when we struggle with our gender,
when injustice is around,
when we least want or expect it,
God’s grace is with us.
All Female and male alike, God’s grace encompasses us all.
Christ arrives at the right moment
to challenge injustice,
to challenge the treatment of women in our community,
to challenge our structures and actions
All Yet in our weakness, whether male or female, Christ still died.
While we question, and do not understand all that is God.
While we question the actions of our community,
and the treatment of those we love,
Christ struggles with us, in the power of God.
All Bring us to a time, when as women and as men,
we celebrate the warmth of God together.
Where we are aware of our weakness and strengths,
as we honour and praise the fullness of God.
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
“Sing of a Sacred Circle” (Tune: ‘Sacred Circle', 75.65) 23 TMT
Sing of a sacred circle
round the sky and earth,
binding plants and creatures,
linking death and birth.
Sing of that ring of mystery,
changed by fearsome greed;
pawned for Judas silver,
sold for idols' needs.
See how a people's loving
greens the Mammon ring;
hear the people's sharing,
help creation sing.
Sing of the Gospel ring-time;
love embracing earth;
vibrant sphere of our living,
circle death and birth. (William L Wallace)
People sit
CELEBRATING
The Offering
The Presentation
God the weaver, making patterns,
spinning threads throughout our days,
help us to discern your weaving
in the multi-coloured autumn maze. (Adapt.Marjorie Dobson/mcm)
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 space
bringing our joys and concerns.
Joys and Celebrations; Griefs and Concerns shared
Focused Thoughts:
Listening Response:
Creation thrums with Being
and peals the Word - 'I am’.
All We sometimes remember
to whisper the antiphon, 'We are'. (VArnold/es)
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 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 appropriate
All Loving God,
within and around us, we revere you.
We seek to live life as you would want us to do:
with love and respect for all people
and all things in the universe.
May we find each day sufficient for our needs.
And find forgiveness when we do wrong,
just as we forgive those who do wrong to us.
In times of trouble, may we centre our lives in you.
For your being is love, which comes
with strength and with beauty.
Throughout eternity. Amen. (Margaret Rolfe)
SCATTERING
Hymn/Song People stand as they are able, to sing
“A Prophet-Woman” (Tune: ‘Megerran’, 87.87D) 696(v1-2) TiS
A prophet-woman broke a jar,
by Love's divine appointing,
With rare perfume she filled the room,
presiding and anointing.
A prophet-woman broke a jar,
the sneers of scorn defying,
With rare perfume she filled the room,
preparing Christ for dying.
A faithful woman left a tomb
by Love's divine commission,
She saw, she heard, she preached the Word,
arising from submission.
A faithful woman left a tomb
with resurrection gospel.
She saw, she heard, she preached the Word,
apostle to apostles.
Remain standing
OR
“Nothing Less” (Tune: ‘Regent Square’)
A recessional hymn written for the Installation of The Right Reverend Kay Maree Goldsworthy as Archbishop of Perth (Australia),
10 February 2018, the first female Archbishop in the world.
Nothing less than love has saved us -
not our wisdom, art or skill.
Christ, amidst our mess and madness,
died and rose and, living still,
sends us, treasured, fed and cherished
empty hearts to find and fill.
Nothing less than faith sustains us -
living water, pilgrims’ bread.
Christ, the friend who never leaves us,
walks the unknown path we tread,
sends us, brave or trembling, onward
to the work that lies ahead.
Nothing less than justice calls us -
not what we may stand to gain.
Christ, beside the poor and voiceless,
pleads for peace, denounces pain,
sends us out to make a difference,
growing heaven’s earthly reign.
Remain standing
Litany in Praise of the Feminine
To be offered by the women of the congregation
v3 Mother God
Spirit-filled Woman
Source of all living things
Wm It was you who breathed life into me.
In your likeness I was formed.
The darkness of your sacred womb enwraps me
in the silence of the Holy One
v4 Your creative energy pulsates through
every fibre of my being.
Wm You birth forth life within me.
Your abundant breasts continue to sustain my very being.
You carry me close to your heart
And sing your song of love to me.
v5 You hold me close to your heart
And sing your song of love to me.
Wm You hold me close to you and comfort me.
v6 Cradled in your arms, I am at peace.
Wm You bathe me with life-giving waters of your giftedness.
v7 Reflected in your eyes is my dignity as woman.
You nurture me and guide me
To proclaim my sacredness as woman of God
You call me forth to image your compassion, love and joy
To a broken world.
Wm Together we dance life’s passionate song. (MKemen/wp)
OR
Litany in Praise of Valiant Women
Many remarkable achievements are absent
from the annals of history because they were done by women.
And the conclusion is drawn that nothing was done by women
because nothing is recorded there!
So let us now praise valiant women recalling to life
representatives of all those unsung heroines who lives are living testimony
that God is God in all.
All We praise valiant women whose lives give hope to us all.
Eve,
the first woman,
mother of all the living,
soul of the human race.
All We praise valiant women
Sarah,
heart of the covenant,
mother of nations,
who conceived laughter in her old age
All We praise valiant women
Rebecca,
woman of ingenuity,
achieving her own purposes
in a patriarchal world
All We praise valiant women
Rachel,
who waited seven years, seven days,
waited for love,
waited for life
All We praise valiant women
Nefertiti,
Queen, co-ruler of Egypt,
who, with her husband,
introduced into Egypt the revolutionary notion
of worshipping only one God
All We praise valiant women
Huldah,
prophet in Israel
whose judgement shaped the canon
that contains God’s holy word
All We praise valiant women
Mary,
mother of Jesus the Christ,
a woman, one of us
All We praise valiant women
Elizabeth,
who proved
one is never too old
to have her dream come true
All We praise valiant women
Anna,
prophet at prayer in the Temple
when Jesus was offered to God,
who from that moment preached Jesus,
proclaiming salvation to all
All We praise valiant women
Proba,
4th-century theologian,
whose interpretation of tradition
was systematically ignored
All We praise valiant women
Bridget,
patron saint of Ireland,
who founded a monastic centre of learning
for women in the 5th-century
All We praise valiant women
Trotula,
11th-century physician
considered the mother of gynaecology,
whose book on woman’s diseases
was a valuable reference for centuries after her death
All We praise valiant women
Julian of Norwich,
14th-century, England,
whose mystical experiences
are revelations of divine love
All We praise valiant women
Florence Nightingale,
who raised the menial role of nurse
to the level of a profession in 19th-century England
All We praise valiant women
Caroline Chisholm,
who was responsible for providing a caring home
for young immigrant women
cast adrift in 19th-century Sydney
All We praise valiant women
May Gibbs,
created a complete and fascinating
fantasy world for children
with her stories about gum nuts and the Australian bush
All We praise valiant women
Indira Gandhi,
prime minister of India,
who was elected twice to that position
and assassinated while in office
All We praise valiant women
Corazon Aquina,
her refusal to yield to dictatorship
and her courage in the face of overwhelming odds
is a model for all women
All We praise valiant women
All women of accomplishment
who achieved despite the odds,
in science, the arts, religion,
health, education, economics,
athletics, the home and in the socio-political fields
All We praise valiant women
Who shall find a valiant woman?
Wm Look! We are all around you.
Inspired by this witness of our sisters in faith,
let us now go forth encouraged to give of our best efforts,
knowing that the grace of God
is power unto good. (Miriam T Winter/wpws. Adapted)
Words of Blessing
I set the keeping of Christ about you.
I send the guarding of God with you
to possess you,
to protect you,
to accompany you on all your paths,
through trouble,
through danger,
through loss.
And I set the dancing of the Spirit around you,
each day, each night,
each night, each day. (Kate McIlhagga/ghs)
All Amen. May it be so.
Hymn/Song (Cont). “A Prophet-Woman” (Tune: ‘Megerran’, 87.87D) 696(v3-4) TiS
Though woman-wisdom, woman-truth,
for centuries were hidden,
unsung, unwritten, and unheard,
derided and forbidden,
the Spirit's breath, the Spirit's fire,
on free and slave descending,
can tumble our dividing walls,
our shame and sadness mending.
The Spirit knows, the Spirit calls,
by Love's divine ordaining,
the friends we need to serve and lead,
their powers and gifts unchaining.
The Spirit knows, the Spirit calls,
from women, men and children,
the friends we need, to serve and lead,
Rejoice, and make them welcome! (Brian Wren)
OR
“Nothing Less” (Cont) (Tune: ‘Regent Square’)
Nothing less than Holy Spirit
gives our mission energy.
Christ, among the slow and fearful,
breathes the truth that sets us free,
sends us out to bless, forgive and
be the change we long to see.
Nothing less than all we are and
all we have and dream and do
you transform by grace, and make us
holy, humble, hopeful, true.
Threefold God of power and beauty,
start with us your world made new. (© Elizabeth J Smith)
The people sit
'This Week' at (NN)
Notices
Birthdays and Anniversaries
Significant Events
Journey Candles
Recessional 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.
Ahlers, J; R Broughton, & C. Koch. (ed). Womenpsalms. Winona. St Mary’s Press/Christian Brothers Publications.
Binkley, C. G. & J. M. McKeel. Jesus and his Kingdom of Equals. An International Curriculum on the Life and Teaching of Jesus. Santa Rosa. Polebridge Press, 2001.
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. Palmerston North. New Zealand Hymnbook Trust, 2009.
Holy Bible. NRSV. Nashville. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989.
McIlhagga, K. The Green Heart of the Snowdrop. Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications, 2004.
Patton, K. Services and Songs for the Celebration of Life. Boston. Beacon Press, 1967.
(SLT) Singing the Living Tradition. Boston. UUA, 1993.
Taussig, H. (ed). A New New Testament. A Bible for the 21st Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013
(TiS) Together in Song. Australian Hymn Book 2. Sydney. HarperCollins Religious, 1999.
Vosper, G. Holy Breath. Prayers for Worship and Reflection. New & Revised Edition. Brisbane. The Centre for Progressive Religious Thought Brisbane, 2004/2010.
(TMT) Wallace, W. L. The Mystery Telling. Hymns and Songs for the New Millennium. Kingston. Selah Publishing, 2001.
Ward, H.; J. Wild, & J Morley. (ed). Celebrating Women. New edition. London. SPCK, 1995.
Winter, M. T. Women Prayer. Women Song. Resources for Ritual. Hartford. Meyer Stone Books, 1987.
Web Sites/Other:
V Arnold. Eureka Street eZine 20, 23. 23/11/10.
Rolfe, Margaret. "Loving God..." 2004. Canberra.
Elizabeth Smith. “Nothing Less” Available to the public. 2018.