A moment of contemplation for yourself or on behalf of others on everything from the life-altering to the mundane.


Prayer: A conversation with The Higher Other who lives within each of us. An invitation to vent, to re-think, to ask, and to rest.

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Prayers of the People: Your Mother Called, 2nd Sunday in the Season of Creation '17

For Sunday, October 22, 2017, 2nd Sunday in the Season of Creation, Readings: Tell the World*, Psalm 104: 1-5, 14-15, 24-27, 31-33; 
Job 12:7-10, Matthew 6:25-34

       In the Lakota way, everything is connected. In days past you could see it in the rustling of the leaves or the swift rushing of a waterfall. Now you can see it in more obvious ways. The worms tunnel below the Earth, searching for food while at the same time helping the plants collect oxygen through their roots. This insight is fading from the general population, and because of this we are no longer taking care of the Earth....In our tradition, you respect everything. This idea was lost with the European colonization of the Americas and I’m trying to bring it back. [*Dorian Sage]

      Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty, wrapped in light as with a garment...how manifold are your works, in wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. [Psalm 104:1-2, 24]

      But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air...the plants of the earth...the fish of the sea...Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? [Job 12:7-9]

      And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? ...Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil not spin yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these...But strive first for the kingdom of God and all these things will be given to you as well. [Matthew 22:27, 28b-29, 33] 

       Welcome to The Season of Creation, week two.  This liturgical season originated in the Anglican Church of South Africa and was formalized in 2008. It is designed for us to explore our faith from a Creation perspective. The overarching theme for 2017 is Environmental Justice inspired in part by the Youth Principles from the Second National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit in Washington, DC in 2002, the text of which and a fuller explanation of the Season can be found here:   http://prayersofthepeople.blogspot.com/2017/10/prayers-of-people-in-beginning-1st.html
        We use Biblical and other readings that pertain to the specific theme of each of the 7 weeks of the Season. Alternate readings used will follow the prayers on this page.

Week Two's Theme isOur Planet Earth

       We wake in the morning and we do whatever it is we do on any given day. Work, school, vacation, overload on electronics or broadcast, rush to do this or that, catch the news and gloat or swear, or just shake our heads and move along to the next appointed activity; repeat. Do many of us ever stop, think, and say to ourselves or to another, "Wow, can you believe we are just floating around in space on this planet?" Um, well, no, not really - at least, I'll admit, I haven't thought about it quite that way, until now. Take a breath and a moment and ponder: 
C R E A T I O N, and for this week, specifically Earth. Here's a thought that I have enjoyed wondering about since reading some information on the late Kenyan Professor Wangari Maathai, winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her work in sustainable development. She suggested that we all re-read the story of Creation in Genesis, paying particular attention to the order in which God created. After all, 'If we had been created on Tuesday,' she said, 'There would have been nowhere for us to stand! God, with infinite wisdom, waited until the last day!' 
       Many of us, especially in western culture, take our planet for granted. We have much to learn about how to live here from the many indigenous cultures that inhabit this world with us. There is much to celebrate yet there is much to bemoan. Today, as we recognize the God-given bounty of Earth, our hearts are full and heavy. It isn't until our attention is wrenched from habit and routine, that we are faced with a true sense of "the real" reality. Untold millions of our fellow humans, other creatures, and living space that God has made, are suffering through the unfathomable environmental destruction of their lives through storms, floods, earthquakes, and fires, not to mention willful neglect of water systems, air quality, the crumbling infrastructure, wars, and too many other potential threats to name. There is a continuing stream of exceedingly bad news, of the dreadful and terrible kind, just about the condition of our planet that requires our attention, our action, and, our God-ordered stewardship. Why does this turn of cataclysmic events seem so sudden and unexpected to so many? Perhaps we've all just left things to others to care and fix - maybe the government, the scientists, those "environmentalist" types?  And in the midst of all of this, Jesus tells us do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today. Where is Alfred E. Neuman when you need him? Apologies if the reference is too obscure. He's a fictitious cartoon/comics character whose tag line is "What, me worry?" And then there's W. Clement Stone [1902-2002], a very successful American businessman, who once said, Thinking will not overcome fear but action will. Fear is definitely a big part of worry. So perhaps it can be said that the proverbial "wake-up" has arrived and it's time to act. Your Mother called, she wants to know what you’re doing to help.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader:  ~ God of Honor and Majesty, deliver us from distraction and neglectful disrespect that we may again experience wonder and amazement at the beauty of the birds of the air and the lilies of the field, the seas, and mountains, and sky. Strengthen our faith, our trust, and our hope to strive first for Your Kingdom to weaken our worry, and energize our will to do Your Work in this World. 

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
RESPONSE:               Let Your breath within us create worthy action

~ God of Honor and Majesty, grant us abundant and vigorously convincing words and actions that will enlighten and animate the leaders of our Planet, our Nation, and our Community, to care for and protect Your glorious Creation, this fragile Earth, our island home. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
                                                Let Your breath within us create worthy action
                                               
~ God of Honor and Majesty, soothe and heal all who live in chronic pain, worry, and hopelessness, and rejuvenate those who give love and care. We now join our voices to pray aloud for those in need…  add your own petitions

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
                                                Let Your breath within us create worthy action
           
~ God of Honor and Majesty, our hearts are full of love and thanksgiving for all You have called home to glory and rejoicing in new life through Christ. We pray especially for:  add your own petitions 

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
                                                Let Your breath within us create worthy action

~ God of Honor and Majesty, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently…  add your own petitions

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
                                                Let Your breath within us create worthy action

~ God of Honor and Majesty, magnify Your presence in and through all who teach us Your Word, hear our needs, preside at the Eucharist, and whose life work is to walk with us toward You. We pray especially for:  add your own petitions

                                                Creator of Heaven and Mother Earth
                                                Let Your breath within us create worthy action
                                                                                                        
The Celebrant adds:  O Lord of Creation, fill us again with conscious awareness of Our Planet, Earth, our many living companions seen and unseen, the habitats, the resources, and the complex life systems without which we will all simply cease to exist. Enlighten, animate, and urge us to respect, repair, and re-connect with the Work of Your Hands.  We ask this through our Jesus, our Savior Christ, and the Holy Spirit, the Energy of our Souls, who together with You, reign as One God now, always, forever.  Amen.
       
*Reading #1: Tell the World by Dorian Sage, 2015 Grand Prize Winner in the Middle School #WeAreHere Writing Challenge©, Lakota Children’s Enrichment
       In the Lakota way, everything is connected. In days past you could see it in the rustling of the leaves or the swift rushing of a waterfall. Now you can see it in more obvious ways. The worms tunnel below the Earth, searching for food while at the same time helping the plants collect oxygen through their roots. This insight is fading from the general population, and because of this we are no longer taking care of the Earth. In the past, the Lakota people would migrate so that the Earth had a time for cleansing. The area that we lived in would never be forgotten so much that it would die. We relied on the Earth, but it did not rely on us.
       Aspens are a unique kind of tree because they sprout from the roots of another Aspen, which is why you often see them growing in groves. If one of these trees gets sick, the rest of the trees usually get sick too because they rely on the same food supply. It is much the same with us. If one of our food sources had an unexpected shortage in production, the majority of human life would be affected. This is just one of the reasons it’s good to be self-reliant, and to have your own energy source if possible.
       Everything is too connected in the modern world. There is no longer privacy, and your information is there for everybody to see. If something happened in the world, like an outbreak of some sort, our food supply could be cut off, and it could affect our water because we don’t focus on renewable sources of food and energy.
       Human life is too destructive, and it is ruining the Earth’s natural cycle. Eventually humans are going to bring about their own downfall, and there will be nothing there to stop it. This is why I encourage our great people to start living off the grid, and to start relying on themselves for sustenance. In our traditional ways, we would always let the Earth replenish itself. We relied directly on the animals and on the signs from nature for survival.
       One tribe in Africa even relies directly on a certain species of bird to help them find beehives. The bird helps the tribe so that in return they will give them part of the honey store that the bee hive holds. The bird will fly in the direction of the hive, showing the humans where to get it, and then will whistle when nearby. The bird will then wait on a tree somewhere near until the people leave a piece of the honeycomb somewhere within the bird’s line of sight.
       If the idea of these short paragraphs is not yet obvious, what I am trying to get at is everything is connected, even us. We need to start relying more on ourselves for our food, and taking better care of the environment which takes such good care of us. In our tradition, you respect everything. This idea was lost with the European colonization of the Americas and I’m trying to bring it back.





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