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

“There is a need for the religious traditions… to appreciate that the primary sacred community
is the universe itself, and that every other community
becomes sacred by participation in this primary community.”

29 October 2023. Pentecost 22A. (Green).
Celebrating Community in the Tradition of the Meal

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 available at Affirmations/Manifestoes

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)
 Multi-sensory 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

God's presence fills this place of gathering.
The whole earth is full of God's glory.

So let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life.

Lighting of the Community Candle
The Community Candle is lit

For gathering today in this sacred space,
we light the flame.

Note: Check out 'Special Liturgies’ (this site) for the following:
(i) A suggested process for introducing new hymns, called Hymn of the Month
(ii) Additional Special Purpose Hymns that 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) Some specific resources on Terrorism
(iv) On Wonder, Awe, and Nature

Hymn/Song  The people stand as they are able, to sing
“The Arching Sky of Morning Glows”  (Tune: ‘Tallis Canon’, LM)                                    330 SLT
The arching sky of morning glows
like frescoes high in vaulted rows.
The ragged hills of greening spring
like chorus masters bid us sing.

The colours of our contoured land
no artist born could hue as grand,
but contours of the human heart
sole groundings are for every art!

When-ever sounds the sacred sigh
beneath this gable of the sky,
the forms of art and spirit blend;
by craft and morn our hearts transcend. (Mark L. Belletini)

OR

“The Summons” (Tune: ‘Kelvingrove’)                                                                                     116 (v1,2,4) HSNW
Will you come and follow me
If I but call your name?
Will you go where you don’t know
And never be the same?
Will you let my love be shown,
Will you let my name be known,
Will you let my life be grown
In you and you in me?

Will you leave yourself behind
If I but call your name?
Will you care for cruel and kind
And never be the same?
Will you risk the hostile stare,
Should your life attract or scare?
Will you let me answer prayer
In you and you in me?

Will you love the ‘you’ you hide
If I but call your name?
Will you quell the fear inside
And never be the same?
Will you use the faith you’ve found
To reshape the world around,
Through my sight and touch and sound
In you and you in me?  © Iona Community
Remain standing

Opening Sentences
Time runs in circles and cycles.
All  Day follows night.
Weeks turn into months.
Months into years.
One generation follows another.
All  Our lives are locked and linked by time.  (Marjorie Dobson/mm)

Act of Awareness
In all our living, may we be freed
to see things afresh,
to be more fully alive,
and have the courage to keep faith in
the future of humanity.

OR

We pray:
We are grateful for the generations that have gone before us,
especially people of vision, imagination and creativity.
We know there are still discoveries to be made
and problems to be solved.

May we not betray the trust given to us,
but be prepared to take our place
in the circle of time.
May it be so with us.

Hymn/Song  "Wonder and Radiance”  (Tune: ‘Faithfulness', 11.10.11.10 and refrain)                   7 SNS3
Movement and colour are graces so pleasing;
Sounds and sweet perfumes are here to delight;
Oceans and mountains and flora and fauna -
Too many marvels for us to recite.
Refrain:
Wonder and radiance,
Beauty, extravagance,
All come together in what we can see;
Nature’s abundance can fill all our senses;
We are in awe of these gifts that are free.

Given for everyone, now and the future ;
Given for sharing, not profit nor greed;
Food for the hungry and drink for the thirsty;
There is sufficient for meeting each need.
Refrain:
Wonder and radiance,
Beauty, extravagance,
All come together in what we can see;
Nature’s abundance can fill all our senses;
We stand in awe of these gifts that are free.

Love and respect for the world all around us
Can make a difference; can halt future doom;
Can bring some healing; prevent grim destruction;
Show our thanksgiving and help nature bloom.
Refrain:
Wonder and radiance,
Beauty, extravagance -
These priceless gifts are for you and for me;
Nature’s abundance can thrill all our senses;
We must protect and preserve all we see.  (© George Stuart 2008)
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.

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

Let us listen to the silence of this sacred space…
(Silence)

We live at mystery's edge,
Watching for a startling luminescence
Or a word to guide us.

Daily, there are glimmers,
Reflections of a seamless mercy
Revealed in common intricacies.

These circles of grace
Spill out around us
And announce that we are a part of that mystery. (Kerri Wehlander/ssb)
(Silence)

Music of Reflection

EXPLORING

Wisdom from the broad 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 the silence of our hopes and dreams,
words work upon us to break, crack, open us
to new understanding.
All  May we experience, in these words,
a seeking after truth, that we may lift ourselves
to this same desire.  (Gretta Vosper/ab)

• “We Gather Here”
By Barbara Hamilton-Holway (Edited)

We gather here as individual people:
young and old,
male and female,
gay, lesbian and straight,
abled and differently abled…

We gather here as a community of people who are more than categories.
We gather here, each ministering to the other,
meeting one another’s strength,
encouraging wholeness.

We give thanks for this extraordinary blessing.

Here may our minds stretch, our hearts open, our spirits deepen.
Here may we acknowledge our brokenness
and be ever stirred by love’s infinite possibilities.

• Matthew 22:34-40 (Inclusive Text)

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus has silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 
and one of them, a lawyer, asked Jesus a question to test him:
‘Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’

Jesus said:
‘You shall love your God with all our heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your mind’.
This is the greatest and first commandment.

‘And a second is like it:
‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets’.

Contemporary Exploration

Silence for Personal Reflection

AFFIRMING

A Litany: It Matters What We Believe  (Optional)
The people stand as they are able

v1  Some beliefs are like walled gardens.
They encourage exclusiveness,
and the feeling of being especially privileged.
Wm  Other beliefs are expansive and lead the way
into wider and deeper sympathies.

v2  Some beliefs are like shadows,
clouding children's days and fears of unknown calamities.
Mn  Other beliefs are like sunshine,
blessing children with the warmth of happiness.

v1  Some beliefs are divisive, separating
saved from unsaved, friends from enemies.
All  Other beliefs are bonds in a world community,
where sincere differences beautify the pattern.

v2  Some beliefs are like blinders, shutting off the power
to choose one's own direction.
Mn  Other beliefs are like gateways
opening wide vistas for exploration.

v1  Some beliefs weaken a person's selfhood.
They blight the growth of resourcefulness.
Wn  Other beliefs nurture self-confidence 
and enrich the feeling of personal worth.

v2  Some beliefs are rigid, like the body of death,
impotent in a changing world.
All  Other beliefs are pliable, like the young sapling,
ever growing with the upward thrust of life.  (Sophia L Fahs/slt)

OR

If celebrating All Saints Day

Saints Through the Ages,
Through the ages saints of God have witnessed in God's name;
All   through the ages, prophets, poets, martyrs, sages
have witnessed in God's name.

We come together in the cloud of witnesses
as one communion;
All   we raise our praises to God, the giver of life.

We bless the earthly memories 
of those who now shine in God's glory
All   and join the whole company on earth and in heaven
singing unending praise...
The people sing

“Doxology”  (Tune:  ‘Tallis’ Canon’, LM)                                                                        381 SLT
From all that dwell below the skies;
let songs of hope and faith arise;
Let peace, good will on earth be sung
through every land, by every tongue.  (Composite)

We celebrate the presence of the church 
in (Name) in our lives,
All  which is real when it stands open to the life of the city,
and bears witness to the love 
and justice 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)

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
"The Pen is Greater" (Tune: 'Gragareth', 8.8.8)                                                                    320 SLT
The pen is greater than the sword.
To wield a blade or write a word
we need the skill which hands accord.

A surgeon takes a knife to heal;
assassins do the same to kill.
Each acts according to their will.

I pick the cherries from a tree,
or break the branch and let it die.
For good or ill, my hands are free.

With fingers I can soothe a brow,
or make a fist and strike a blow,
kindness or cruelty bestow.

Then let us now this lesson see: 
like life itself our hands can be 
for evil used, or charity.  (John A Storey)

OR

“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

CELEBRATING

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'.  (V Arnold/es)

And so we take this flame and light our special care candle...
The Care Candle is lit

May we be blessed as we embrace the future.
Blessed as we lay down the past.
And blessed in the present moment
with lively hope and unexpected wonder.  (Adapted. Kate McIlhagga/bb)

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  O God,
you love us like a good parent,
and are present in every aspect of our existence

May your nature become known and respected by all
May your joy, peace, wholeness and justice 
be the reality for everyone
as we live by the Jesus Way

Give us all that we really need to live every day for you
And forgive us our failures as we forgive others for their failures
Keep us from doing those things which are not of you,
and cause us always to be centred on your love

For you are the true reality in this our now,
and in all our future.
In the Jesus Way we pray.  Amen. (David Sorrill)

CELEBRATING SOLIDARITY IN THE TRADITION OF THE MEAL
Offerings

Presentation
“Wisdom has set her table.
Come eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.
Lay aside immaturity, and live, and walk in the way of insight” (Proverbs 9:2,5-6)

Introduction
Members of the 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…

Welcome to the Table
v1 At this table we give thanks for
justice, love, peace and freedom.

Mn At this table we give thanks for friends and strangers
together in community in this safe place.

Wm At this table we welcome old and young.

v2 A place at the table.  And all are invited.

Thanksgiving
v1 We give thanks for the unfolding of matter,
mind,
intelligence,
and life
that has brought us to this moment in time.
All We celebrate our common origin with everything that exists.

v1 We celebrate the mystery we experience and address as ‘G-o-d’.
ground and sustainer of everything that exists,
in whom we live and move and have our being.

v2 And we acknowledge this mystery embodied
in every human person,
aware that each one of us gives G-o-d
unique and personal expression.
All  G-o-d is everywhere present.
In grace-filled moments of sharing.
In carefully created communities of loving solidarity.

v2 We are one with everything, living and nonliving, on this planet.
Connected.
Interrelated.
Interdependent.

The Story
v1 We remember the stories from our tradition...

How on many occasions the sage we call Jesus would share
a meal with friends and strangers.
Bread and wine shared in community.

v2 For everyone born, a place at the table...

v1 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.

v2 The bread and the wine symbolised human lives
interconnected with other human lives,
and the power of giving and receiving.

v1 May the passion for life as seen in Jesus,
and in the lives and struggles of many other
committed and faithful people then and now,
enable us to dare and to dream and to risk...
All Together may we re-imagine the world.

Together may we work to make all things new.
All Together may we celebrate the possibilities and hope
we each have and are called to share.

v2 For everyone born, a place at the table...

Bread and White Wine
Bread is broken several times during the following

v1 And so now, in our time and in this place…
We break the bread for our broken earth,
ravaged and plundered for greed.
All  May there be healing of our beautiful blue and green planet.

v1 We break this bread for our broken humanity,
for the powerful and the powerless
trapped by exploitation and oppression.
All  May there be the healing of humanity.

v1 We break this bread for those who follow other paths:
for those who follow the noble path of the Buddha,
the yogic path of the Hindus;
the way of the Eternal Guru of the Sikhs;
the Mandaean tradition honouring John the Baptiser;
and the descendants of Abraham, children of Hagar and Sarah.
All  May there be healing where there is pain and woundedness.

v1 We break this bread
for the unhealed hurts and wounds
that lie within us all.
All  May we be healed.

White wine is poured into a cup/s
v2 Wine, fruit of the vine,
nurtured, tended, harvested,
and pressed out for us to drink.
All  Wine, liquid sunlight, prepared for our delight.

v2 Wine, gift of nature,
offering earth-bound humans
hints of other worlds,
other realities,
other possibilities.
All Pouring out this wine
we remember people of all ages
who searched down new paths, advancing
understanding,
compassion,
knowledge.

v2 Pouring out this wine
we are reminded of the call
All  to live fully,
to love wastefully, and
to be all that we can be.

Communion
v1 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 will be served in four groups around the Gathering space

SCATTERING

Hymn/Song  People stand as they are able, to sing
“The Suck of Surf through Shingle”  (Tune: ‘Aurelia’, 76.76D)                                           29(v1-2) RP
The suck of surf through Shingle,
the hush of turning tide,
the rolling, rhythmic thunder:
that chaos God would ride.
Across the foaming waters
a spirit soared and spilled
until the coarse confusion
was challenged, held and stilled.

Leviathan would play there,
an ark was tossed and turned,
disciples lost their sea-legs
as Galilee was churned.
The water mirrored evil,
a symbol of the hell
that drowned the hopes and wishes
of those caught in its swell.

OR

“God – The Dance”  (Tune: ‘Camberwell’, 65.65D)
Do we have a picture of what God may be?
Is it one of power and authority?
Does it help inspire more discovery?
Can we think of dancing metaphorically?

God is Love – can help us into Jesus’ mind;
For this Jewish rabbi is a dance, we find
All his life reminds us what love’s all about;
Dancing in the gospels, he would sing and shout.

Jesus shows us dancing in a loving way;
Costly yet fulfilling; never just display;
Sometimes it’s not easy; we may need a prod;
For to dance with Jesus is to dance with God.
Remain standing

Parting Words
Let us embrace the wonder of this week
with expectation and imagination...
The Community Candle is extinguished

After the words, a quiet.
After the songs, a silence.
After the crowd only the memory recalls the gathering.
All  Peace and justice have need of us
after the words, the music,
and the gathering.

God grant us the depth
for dedication to justice with compassion. 
All  God grant us the will
to be apostles of peace.  (Adapt. Max Coots)

Blessing Words
God bless to us each sign of spring,
each new green shoot,
each lighter day,
each warmer wind.

God bless to us rebirth.  (Kate McIlhagga/bob)
All  Amen. May it be so.

OR

v1  Let us join with the Earth and with each other
   To bring new life to the land
   To restore the waters
   To refresh the air

v2  To protect the animals
   To treasure the trees
   To gaze at the stars

 v3  To cherish the human community
   To heal the Earth
   To remember the children
All   Let us go forth to put our words into action.  (Diana Neu/rb)

Hymn (Cont) “The Suck of Surf through Shingle”  (Tune: ‘Aurelia’, 76.76D)                       29(v3) RP
A metaphor for anguish
commotion without God,
a place where love seemed vanquished,
where hatred's footsteps trod.
But walking on that water
and stilling waves of rage,
where maddened swine had floundered
God's love had come of age.  © Andrew Pratt
The people sit after the hymn

OR

“God – The Dance”  (Cont)  (Tune: ‘Camberwell’, 65.65D)
Love is never static, always finds a way
To be kind and gentle; to be warm each day;
Like a dance with rhythm, love is never still;
Lightens every burden and prolongs each thrill.

God, the Love Dance, call us – use your energy
To live every moment in a dance with Me.
Dancing solo can be quite a misery.
Dancing with Me helps you find your destiny.  (George Stuart 2008)
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:
(HSNW) Bell, J. L Heaven Shall Not Wait. Wild Goose Songs Vol. 1. Revised edition. Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications, 1989.
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.
Burgess, R. A Book of Blessings. Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications, 2001.
Dobson, M. Multi-coloured Maze. Drama, Hymns, Prayers and Poems for Worship and Everyday Living. London. Stainer & Bell, 2004.
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.
Inclusive Readings. Year A. Brisbane. Inclusive Language Project. In private circulation, 2004.
Mitchell, R. C. & G. A. Ricciuti. Birthings and Blessings. Liberating Worship Services for the Inclusive Church. New York: Crossroads, 1992.
Morely, J. (ed). Bread of Tomorrow. Praying with the World’s Poor. London. SPCK/Christian Aid, 1992.
Morwood, M. Praying a New Story. Richmond. Spectrum Publications, 2003.
Neu, D. L. Return Blessings: Ecofeminist Liturgies Renewing the Earth. Cleveland. Pilgrim Press, 2002.
(RP) Pratt, A. Reclaiming Praise. Hymns from a Spiritual Journey. London. Stainer & Bell Ltd, 2006
(SLT) Singing the Living Tradition. Boston. UUA, 1993.
(SNS3) Stuart, G. Singing a New Song. Traditional Hymn Tunes with New Century Lyrics. Volume 3. Toronto. George Stuart, 2011.
Vosper, G. Another Breath. Prayers for Celebration and Reflection. Brisbane. The Centre for Progressive Religious Thought Brisbane, 2009/2010.

Web sites/Other:
Hamilton-Holway, Sorrill, Coots. UUA Worship Web. Boston.  <www.uua.org/spirituallife/worshipweb/>
“God – The Dance”. George Stuart. Direct from the author.
V Arnold. Eureka Street eZine 20, 23. 23/11/10.
David Galston. Quest Learning Centre for Religious Literacy. http://www.questcentre.ca/

Tradition of the Meal: 
Shaped from published resources created by and adapted from: Michael Morwood, Carter Heyward, L Bruce Miller, Shirley Erena Murray, David Bumbaugh, David Galston, John S Spong, the Iona Community… and others. With grateful thanks