People's Prayers

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Prayers of the People: The Weight of Faith ~ 2nd Sunday of Easter WLWC* ‘25 Yr C

For Sunday, April 27, 2025; Readings: Acts 1-3, 12-14; Psalm 6:1-10, Romans 8:31-39, Luke 18:18-30

Jesus presented himself to them, living, after his suffering through many convincing proofs, by appearing to them forty days and speaking about the reign of God. And staying with them, Jesus commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, rather to wait there for the promise of the Faithful One: “What you heard from me. For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from this one.” [Acts 1:3-5]

Have mercy on me, Faithful One, for I am fragile…for my bones are terrified…Turn, Healing One, save my soul; deliver me for the sake of your faithful love. [Psalm 6:2, 4]

If God is for us, who can be against us?...For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor powers-that-be, not things that are, nor things that will be, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Redeemer. [Romans 8:31b, 38-39]

…Jesus…said to the ruler…“Indeed it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is wealthy to enter the majesty of God!”…and the women and the men who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But Jesus said, “What is impossible for the woman-born is possible for God.” [Luke 18:25-27]

The Revised Common Lectionary’s [RCL] first reading for this Sunday begins with a passage from the 5^th chapter of the Book of Acts verses 27-32 which took place in about the Year 35 AD/CE, while the Crucifixion, Resurrection, Pentecost, and Ascension took place in about the year 33. In this reading, the disciples were standing before the council of the High Priests, who had given them strict orders not to teach in the name of Jesus. Dr. Gafney give us, in the WLWC,* a reading from the 1^st chapter of the book of Acts, of the newly risen Jesus appearing to the disciples and telling them about what was to come, that is, the Holy Spirit not many days from this one. In our time, the descent of the Holy Spirit, Pentecost, arrives this year of 2025 on Sunday June 8. The way time seems to move that is not many days from now!

For the Gospel, the RCL uses John 20:29-31 to recount the appearance of Jesus to the disciples after the Resurrection through the locked doors of their room. Previously when they had told Thomas that they had seen the risen Jesus, he said he wouldn’t believe until he touched the wounds…we know how that goes. In contrast, Dr. Gafney brings us the Gospel of Luke and the story of the rich young ruler which occurred prior to the Crucifixion.

In all the readings separately and combined every Sunday, and indeed every day, from this Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church [WLWC] the RCL, and all other sources of weekly and daily readings, and for Lent and Holy Week in particular—especially with the betrayal of Judas for his 30 pieces of silver and Peter’s 3 denials—we are always confronted with how God through the Hebrew Testament and Jesus through the Christian Testament spoke, taught, and worked through the flawed people chosen to do the work they were given to do. What we may not hear, or (like me too often) don’t want to hear is how those tasks are given to each of us, in our times, today, now. All too often I hear but I’m not actually listening as my head is busy building to-do lists for the wants and musts of daily life.

Yet here we are and hear we must. We, too, are to seek and to recognize the call for each of us, now, today, in whatever ways we are able. It may be volunteering for a ministry within the Church or with an outside organization. Perhaps donating food, clothing, or a few dollars according to our means. It might also be a civic action on behalf of pending legislation locally and/or beyond. And no matter our age, time or physical constraints, prayer is always useful and can be done anywhere, anytime, silently or otherwise.

Often, when we are reminded of the oughts, shoulds, or coulds of everyday life and especially with life of and in faith, we can be overwhelmed. The weight of faith for the Rich Young Ruler was a financial step too far. The weight of financial reward of leaving faith behind was the right step in the moment for Judas. The weight of fear in faith and its other costs loomed too large for Peter at first. All of us have our limits of time, money, our fears and our doubts as to the many and varied costs of faith. Am I called to be a literal martyr for my faith ~ oh I hope not! ~ but I know there are ways I can be a more active participant in the faith I claim, even in times of doubt and wondering. We are Created by God and each breath we take is a testament to another God-Given moment of life. To bear the weight of faith is a sacred task and holy duty and we live it one moment at a time, breath by breath, prayer by prayer, with hope in hope. Somedays faith feels heavier than others. So, whose life is it anyway ~ mine or God’s?

I saw a post today recalling a story about the Vatican Conclave that elected Pope Francis. The then Cardinal Bergoglio offered a reflection on the famous image of Jesus standing and knocking at the door “to be admitted, to come into our hearts, the enter our lives. “But what, he said, if Jesus is knocking for us to come out instead, to join him in the world outside?”

Now there’s a weighty question.

Requiescat in Pace, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, El Papa Francisco, 1936- 2025

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O Living Redeemer Christ, in Your grace and with Your love we seek Your constant Presence through the willing eyes of our souls. Grant us such fullness of faith and courage, that even in affliction and distress, we will seek and strive to follow Your Word and Witness to everlasting life in Your Name.

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

RESPONSE: In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ O Living Redeemer Christ, fill the rulers of our Earth, our Country, and our Community with the personal courage and humility to triumph over the injustice of ruthless authority and govern with equity, integrity, and reverence for all of Creation and its Inhabitants. We pray especially for: the President, the Vice-President, our Members of Congress, our Governor, our County Executive, our City Council, and our Mayor.

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ O Living Redeemer Christ, restore wholeness to all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit with illness, terrified bones, or fearful hearts and refresh the energy of those who give them care. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need…

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ O Living Redeemer Christ, You have broken the power of earthly death, now bring light to the darkness of those who grieve, as all of heaven is alive with joy, receiving those we love into eternal bliss. We pray especially for:

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ O Living Redeemer Christ, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently…

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ O Living Redeemer Christ, may Easter’s new fire burn brightly in the hearts of all those ordained in Your Church to inspire and light our pathway to You. We pray especially for: We pray especially for: Sean, our Presiding Bishop; Kevin our Bishop; Patrick, our Rector; Lloyd, our Rector Emeritus; and Cecily, our Deacon.

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

The Celebrant adds: Lord God in Christ, Who is, Who was, and Who is to come, our Alpha and Omega, release us from the limits of our earth-bound minds to know that what is impossible for we who are woman-born is possible for God. Free our souls to seek our life’s path through Your teachings and example. We ask through the immeasurable Wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and the unwavering love of our Almighty Creator, who together with You reign as One God in glory and dominion, forever and ever. Amen.

*Readings for our Parish in this Year C are from The Rev. Dr. Wilda [Wil] Gafney,

Womanist biblical scholar, and the Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas. She is the author of A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church Yr C, and others in her series, and translator of its biblical selections. I definitely commend her book for the complete readings, to Clergy and Laity, for her Text Notes, and “Preaching Prompts” whether or not you will use them in your Liturgies/Services/Preaching. There is much to learn from her work to inform every facet of our lives in Christ. To learn more about her and her work, see her website: https://www.wilgafney.com/

All compositions remain the property of the owner of this blog but may be used with attribution and edited for local use as long as they are not sold or charged for in any way. For more information or comments, contact: Leeosophy@gmail.com

Prayers of the People: Can You Prove It? ~ 2nd Sunday of Easter '25 RCL Yr C

For Sunday, April 27, 2025, Readings: Acts 5:27-32, Revelation 1:4-8, Psalm 150, John 20:19-31

The High Priest questioned [the Apostles] saying, “We gave your strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching…” But Peter answered, “We must obey God rather than human authority…” [Acts 5:27b-29]

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Hallelujah! [Psalm 150:6]

"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty. [Revelation 1:8]

Then [Jesus] said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said "...Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." [John 20:28-29]

The reading from Acts is perfect for this Sunday after Easter. A “what-happened-next” sequel to the drama of the Crucifixion and Resurrection narratives and a prequel to Pentecost which, this year of 2025, will be on Sunday, June 8. I would encourage everyone to read through to verse 42, as some may be surprised that the Apostles didn't just hide out until the day of Pentecost. What they were doing immediately after the Resurrection was quite courageous in standing up to the local High Priests. But of course, a compelling piece always is the telling of the story of the Apostle Thomas. Widely known as Doubting Thomas, he is the one who simply didn’t/couldn’t/or wouldn’t accept what he was told: that Jesus had risen from the dead. He wanted proof.

I can put myself in his place quite easily. It was a head-spinning week beginning with the glorious Palm Sunday entry into Jerusalem with crowds even more jubilant at Jesus’s arrival than ever before. As the week progressed it was time for the Passover dinner in an evening that turned strangely mysterious as Jesus shockingly washed everyone’s feet, and again said things not easily understood, then later he was suddenly arrested. The next day Thomas watched as this man he loved and admired more than any other and had given up his normal life to follow, was brutalized, degraded, and then confusingly vilified by many of the same people who had been singing Hosannas to him just a few days before! Then he was nailed to a cross, suffered an agonizing death and was buried in a tomb with a heavy stone rolled across the entrance. Thomas must have spent the following 24 hours trying to comprehend it all – the glory, the joy, the shock, the horror, and the shiveringly cold reality of the death of one so beloved. NOW Thomas is told that Jesus has come back from the dead?! He says, Prove it.

Perhaps it wasn’t so much that he didn’t believe but more that he had chosen not to until he had seen for himself. The crucifixion and death of Jesus was so traumatic and so very final. How could he dare to believe in the hope of such a thing as resurrection without the concurrent fear of soul-crushing disappointment? Anyone who has experienced the searing grief of significant loss will understand and quietly continue to hope it was all some terrible dream until the reality sets in.

Today we’re in an age of instant communication, “viral” social media posts, never-ending “breaking news,” overwhelming us with data that is real, slightly real, not at all real, and frequently bizarre. Like Thomas, we just want to be given answers with a little explanation so we don't have to think through all the conflicting information. It's also easier when the people or organizations we like and trust tell us what we want to hear. Yet, how do we distinguish between oft-repeated gossip and rumor that begins to sound true after the eleventieth forward on Facebook or other sources, and actual truth? In Thomas' case, he had the benefit of seeing and touching the wounds of the Resurrected Christ. For us, we must rely on our sometimes-faltering faith. In the ways of our current times, even if you trust your source of information it is prudent to keep an open mind, accepting that sometimes checking other sources might yield better data. In the ways of Christ, our information comes from the legacy of the Apostles in the writings of the New Testament that stand 2,000+ years later: "[These] are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." [John 20:30-31]

For the skeptics and atheists and those who just aren’t sure, it is true that we cannot prove the fact of the Resurrection by solid evidentiary standards. Neither can we prove that it didn’t happen. And if you do believe that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit do not exist, I’m okay with that—but can you prove it?

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, in Your grace and peace we see Your living Presence through the willing eyes of our souls. Grant us such fullness of faith, that even as seeds of doubt may sprout within us, we will seek and strive to follow Your Word and Witness to everlasting life in Your Name.

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

RESPONSE: In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, fill the rulers of our Earth, our Country, and our Community with the personal courage and humility to triumph over the injustice of ruthless authority and to govern with equity, integrity, and reverence for all of Creation and its Inhabitants. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, restore wholeness to all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit, and refresh the energy of those who give them care. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need…add your own petitions

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, You have broken the power of earthly death, now bring light to the darkness of those who grieve, as all of heaven is alive with joy, receiving those we love into eternal bliss. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

~ Holy Jesus, our Universal Christ, may Easter’s new fire burn brightly in the hearts of all those ordained in Your Church, to inspire and light our pathway to You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Risen Lord, Divine Messiah

In You is our Faith, our Hope, and our Peace

The Celebrant adds: Lord God in Christ, Who is, Who was, and Who is to come, our Alpha and Omega, release us from the limits of our earth-bound minds and free our souls to seek our life’s path through Your teachings and example. We ask through the immeasurable Wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and the unwavering love of our Almighty Creator, who together with You reign as One God in glory and dominion, forever and ever. Amen.

Monday, April 14, 2025

Prayers of the People: The Glorious Rising Son ~ Easter Day WLWC* ‘25 Yr C

For Sunday, April 20, 2025; Readings: Isaiah 49:1-13, Psalm 18:2-11, 16-19;

Hebrews 11:1-2, 23-24, 28-39; John 20-18

Sing for joy, you heavens, and exult O earth; let the mountains break forth into singing!! For the Tender-Loving One has comforted God’s people, and will mother-love God’s suffering ones. [Isaiah 49:13]

The snares of Sheol encircled me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon She Who Hears; to my God I cried for help. From her temple she heard my voice…She delivered me from my strong enemy…the Sheltering God was my support. [Psalm 18: 5-6, 17a, 18b]

Now faith is the essence of things hoped for, the conviction of that which is not seen. By faith, indeed, were our ancestors approved. [Hebrews 11:1-2]

…Mary Magdalene came, early on while it was still day, to the tomb and saw the stone removed from the tomb…she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know it was Jesus…Thinking that he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him…Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher.) [John 20:1, 14-16]

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! Easter Day is here at last! It is, of course, the most joyous day in the Christian year. While Christmas is lovely and inspiring in its own way, it would be no more than a pagan celebration of the winter solstice without the miracle of the Resurrection. Our Liturgical journey has taken us through the 40 somber days of Lent, and in this Holy Week, we walked the Stations of the Cross, re-enacted the Last Supper with the humility of foot-washing, experienced the mournful desolation of Good Friday, and the quietness of Holy Saturday. And now we arrive at the most potent symbol of Christianity—the Resurrection of Christ, our Messiah. We are reveling in the bells and flowers, the alleluias, triumphal music, and soaring voices all proclaiming that Jesus, the Christ, IS Risen.

Before we turn to brightly colored baskets filled with chocolate bunnies, hard-boiled eggs with shells dyed in multiple and vibrant hues, marshmallow chicks, and jelly beans, before the ham or lamb or turkey or roast has finished in the oven and all settle into the feast, let us take a moment to review the brief and shining earthly life of the man for whom the face of the world was changed forever, Jesus of Nazareth.

The infant humbly born was celebrated instantly by angels and shepherds alike. A neighboring group of exotic Kings or Wise Men traveled far to honor and worship the One whose Star was a sign for them of a new King in Jerusalem. The current King, Herod, wasn't pleased and so Joseph, warned in a dream, took Mary and Jesus to safety in Egypt and while we aren't specifically told, we are given to believe they returned sometime after Herod's death. We get a glimpse of him at Passover, lost and found in the Temple at about age 12 keeping the Rabbis on their theological toes. The timeline loses him until his cousin John, the Baptizer is prophesying his coming and ultimately baptizes Him. He is about 30 and from his 40 days in the wilderness preparing for his ministry, it is a swift and politically fraught period of about 3 years. His teachings upset the theocratic structure of the ruling Judaic leaders who had compromised their own souls to keep a semblance of power during the Roman occupation. Their devious plots to upend his miraculous healings, his preaching and teaching of compassion, peace, cooperation, justice, and mercy in the hearts of his followers ultimately resulted in their seeming success, a politically manipulated murder of a small-town, would-be prophet. But of course, 2000+ years later, Christ is in still our midst.

For this Easter Day, Dr. Gafney has used slightly different pieces of the reading from Isaiah that she used for her Liturgy of the Word on Palm Sunday. Her explanation is for us to remember that this day started out as a day of sorrow for those who followed Jesus, witnessing or knowing of his death while not yet knowing of his Resurrection. For those Palm Sunday services that do not include the Passion, this makes perfect sense. In our parish, as in many that I know, we did use a Passion narrative in the form of several readers speaking the words of Holy Week at our Liturgies. Certainly the sorrow here is reflected in Mary Magdalene’s arrival and discovery of the empty tomb. To that end I have used only one verse of the Isaiah reading above.

We worship, study, and pray to follow the Christ who teaches us in our own times that our salvation leads us to eternal life if we but follow him. And now, in our time as then, and in all times since, we must also be wary of the false prophets whose shiny exteriors denigrate the very essence of the message of Jesus. Take care to turn away from the person who can tantalize with completely anti-Gospel charm and lead us astray as quickly as those who cheered with waving palms and loud Hosannas for Jesus' arrival on Palm Sunday and shouted in cold blood "CRUCIFY HIM" only a few short days later.

We find the fullness of our souls in the empty tomb. Christ is within us and we are marked as his own forever. Let us shout with unbounded joy to God’s Glorious Rising Son, ALLELUIA, CHRIST IS RISEN! As we begin again, let us stay the course in our own brief sojourns for the truth, life, and love of his Gospel.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! By rising from human death, You have brought us to the dawn of a new Creation within us each that is alive in You. Remind us to know You in each breath we take, the courage to seek Your face in every person we meet, and the strength to feel Your beating heart within us in all the days and nights of our earthly life, especially on those that are joy-filled or discouraging.

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

RESPONSE: Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! Resurrect Your Truth and Your Love in all of us who claim faith in You, especially those who govern in all places across this Earth, this Country, and this Community. May the marks of death wounds still upon Your Risen Body, summon us to insist to ourselves and our political leaders that Justice, Mercy, and Respect are required for the least of, as for all of, our companions in this brief, mortal, God-given life journey. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! Restore hope to the hopeless and faith to the fearful, soothe suffering everywhere, and grant stamina to all who serve You in others. We now join our hearts to pray aloud for those in need…add your own petitions

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! Lift the veil of grief from all who mourn, as our loved ones now dance in the limitless joy of eternal life with You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! We pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently…add your own petitions

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! May Your Resurrection be the source of unbounded elation that overflows in all who are anointed to guide our spiritual paths, and enliven our desire to be renewed as Your own forever. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Radiant Lord, Hope of our Faith

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

The Celebrant adds: Alleluia! Our Lord is Risen! Holy Jesus, excite our hearts and minds, and transform our souls with the miracle of Your return from the dead. So infuse our consciousness with Your constant Immortal Presence, that our thoughts, words, and actions begin and end in You. We ask through You, our Savior Glorified; and the Holy Spirit, the Fire of our Faith; who together with our Luminous Creator of All, are One God, now and forever. Amen.

*Readings for our Parish in this Year C are from The Rev. Dr. Wilda Gafney, Womanist biblical scholar, and the Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas. She is the author of A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church Yr C, and others in her series, and translator of its biblical selections. I definitely commend her book for the complete readings, to Clergy and Laity, for her Text Notes, and “Preaching Prompts” whether or not you will use them in your Liturgies/Services/Preaching. There is much to learn from her work to inform every facet of our lives in Christ. To learn more about her and her work, see her website: https://www.wilgafney.com/

Prayers of the People: The Ever Rising Son ~ Easter Day '25 RCL Yr C

For Sunday, April 20, 2025, Yr C, Readings: Acts 10:34-43, Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24;

1 Corinthians 15:19-26, John 20:1-18

Peter began to speak to Cornelius and the other Gentiles: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him…” [Acts 10:34-35]

I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me and have become my salvation. The same stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone…On this day the Lord has acted; we will rejoice and be glad in it. [Psalm 118:21-22, 24]

For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being…so all will be made alive in Christ. [1 Corinthians 15:21, 22b]

Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb...Jesus said to her, “Mary!”…Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. [John 20:10-11a, 16a, 18]

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! Easter Day is here at last! It is, of course, the most joyous day in the Christian year. While Christmas is lovely and inspiring in its own way, it would be no more than a pagan celebration of the winter solstice without the miracle of the Resurrection. Our Liturgical journey has taken us through the 40 somber days of Lent, and in this Holy Week, walked the Stations of the Cross, re-enacted the Last Supper with the humility of foot-washing, and experienced the mournful desolation of Good Friday. And now we arrive at the most potent symbol of Christianity—the Resurrection of Christ, our Messiah. We are reveling in the bells and flowers, the alleluias, triumphal music, and soaring voices all proclaiming that Jesus, the Christ, IS Risen.

We worship, study, and pray to follow the Christ who teaches us in our own times that our salvation leads us to eternal life if we but follow him. And now, in our time as then, and in all times since, we must also be wary of the false prophets whose shiny exteriors denigrate the very essence of the message of Jesus. Take care to turn away from the sorcerer who can tantalize with completely anti-Gospel charm and lead us astray as quickly as those who cheered with waving palms and loud Hosannas for Jesus' arrival on Palm Sunday and shouted in cold blood "CRUCIFY HIM" only a few short days later.

We find the fullness of our souls in the empty tomb. Christ is within us and we are marked as his own forever. Let us shout with unbounded joy to God’s Ever Rising Son, ALLELUIA, CHRIST IS RISEN! As we begin again, let us stay the course in our own brief sojourns for the truth, life, and love of his Gospel.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Radiant Lord of Life

RESPONSE: Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

Radiant Lord of Life

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! Restore hope to the hopeless and faith to the fearful, soothe the suffering and grant stamina to all who serve You in others. We now join our hearts to pray aloud for those in need…add your own petitions

Radiant Lord of Life

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! Lift the veil of grief from all who mourn, as our loved ones now dance in the limitless joy of eternal life with You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Radiant Lord of Life

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! We pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently…add your own petitions

Radiant Lord of Life

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

~ Living Christ, Risen in Glory! May Your Resurrection be the source of unbounded elation that overflows in all who are anointed to guide our spiritual paths and enliven our desire to be renewed as Your own forever. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Radiant Lord of Life

Alleluia! You ARE Risen, indeed!

The Celebrant adds: Alleluia! Our Lord is Risen! Holy Jesus, excite our hearts and minds, and transform our souls with the miracle of Your return from the dead. Infuse our consciousness with Your Immortal Presence that our thoughts, words, and actions begin and end in You. We ask through You, our Savior Glorified; and the Holy Spirit, the Fire of our Faith; who together with our Creator of All, are One God, now and forever. Amen.

Monday, April 7, 2025

Prayers of the People: Palm Sunday/The Sunday of the Passion ~ 6th Sunday in Lent '25 WLWC Yr C

For Sunday, April 13, 2025, Readings: Liturgy of the Palms ~ Matthew 21:1-11, Psalm 118:19-29; Liturgy of the Word: Isaiah 49:5-16, Psalm 22:1-11, Galatians 3:23-4:7; Mark 14:32-52

The disciples went and did just as Jesus instructed them…A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road and other cut branches…and spread them on the road…shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Holy One! Hosanna in the highest!” [Matthew 21:6, 8-9]

This is the gate of the Holy Presence…This is the day that the Fount of Creation has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. [Psalm 118:19-29]

“…I will give you as a light to the nations, for it will be that my salvation reaches to the end of the earth.” [Isaiah 49: 6b]

“Commit yourself to the Saving One; let God rescue and deliver the one in whom God delights!” [Psalm 22:8]

Now before faith came, we were garrisoned and guarded under the law…Therefore the law was our instructor until Christ came…But now that faith has come…in Christ Jesus you are all daughters and sons of God through faith. [Galatians 3:23-26]

Jesus and his disciples went to a place called Gethsemane and he said…”You all sit here while I pray…and stay awake…” Jesus came a third time and found them sleeping… “Enough! The hour has come. Look! The Son of Woman is betrayed into the hands of sinners…” [Mark 14:32,34b,41]

Of course, regular Church-goers know that Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday, for many decades now, are at once separate and yet one commemoration. And even non-regular Church-goers know the basic elements of both. The recounting of the procession with palm branches celebrates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The Passion narrative develops the details of his Last Supper, the betrayal by Judas, and the machinations of the Chief Priests whose local standing and power among the Jews and Rome were clearly threatened by this acclaimed and unorthodox prophet and miracle-worker.

Although there are differences in the texts used for this Sunday between the Revised Common Lectionary and this, Dr. Gafney’s Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, they are minimal given the theme. Dr. Gafney uses the Gospels of Matthew and Mark instead of Luke in the RCL. Within the synoptic Gospels, the basics remain fairly constant with more or less detail and slight variations. And, Dr. Gafney uses her own translations and emphasizes the feminine presence by her language and expansive titles for God yet does not change the context of the readings in any other way.

We remember that the arrival of Jesus created quite a stir. To this day in the Palm Sunday processions our hymns and shouts with "Hosanna" ["Hoshana" in Hebrew], praise to God with great elation, are as exuberant as when Jesus was greeted by the throngs that lined the road from Bethany to Jerusalem. They sang and shouted Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord [Ps 118: 26]. Cloaks and branches on the pathway for Jesus were a sign of the highest honor. The palm was the symbol of triumph and victory in the Greco-Roman culture of the times. The donkey or colt was itself a deliberate choice of Jesus sending the disciples to specifically retrieve it. The prophet Zechariah says in the Old/Hebrew Testament: Rejoice greatly, O daughter, Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter, Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey [Zechariah 9:9]. Jesus was accused later in the week of proclaiming himself "King of the Jews," yet riding into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey would have been a known and understood symbol that he was coming in peace, as one would do to show a peaceful arrival rather than a warrior King riding in on a grand horse, bent on taking power and war.

All these elements were carefully noticed and recorded by the Roman occupiers and the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council, who had its own police force and trial court and who set the deadly wheels of what is to come in motion. How easy, it seems, to go from enthusiastic cheers of the crowd to the politically manipulated yet equally enthusiastic and malevolent jeers by the same people mere days later. How altogether and suddenly eerie now.

The tone is set for this new journey through Holy Week in our own times of political machinations, violence, crowd wrangling, and manipulation. It is also time for me to acknowledge to my innermost self the moments of my own betrayal of Jesus through denial in thought, word, action, or plain inaction. Turning away from the unpleasant, the insincere, and especially the dangerous is safer and less stressful in the short run, but, going with the flow by participation or neglect reaps far more tyranny and destruction than standing up to oppression.

Dr. Martin Luther King said it best, "A time comes when silence is betrayal." That time came for Peter, that time is now for us. We, together, are the voice and power of Christ’s love in times of Palms and in the ensuing Storms. Let us always sing HOSANNA in the name of Jesus, our Redeemer Lord.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader:  ~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, jolt us out of merely listening or re-reading to know now the sudden joy of Your continuing Holy Presence in our midst. Open us to the shudder of feelings, today, and in this coming week, as beguiled minds turn to riotous, politically-manipulated, and deadly betrayal. Inspire us in this day, and every day to come, to experience the breadth, the depth, and the power of Your love, and to never deny You within ourselves or to another.

Jesus, our Saving One
         RESPONSE:                   We commit ourselves to You

~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, we turn to You for the courage to stand up, expect, and require that all who hold or seek office in the governments of this Earth, this Country, and this Community be exemplars of principled justice, mercy, and peace. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                                     Jesus, our Saving One
                                                       We commit ourselves to You

~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, in Your loving-kindness make Your face to shine upon those who suffer through chronic pain, distress in spirit or in life, and refresh all who give them care. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

                                                     Jesus, our Saving One
                                                       We commit ourselves to You

~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, fill the hearts of all who mourn with the comfort of the joyful and jubilant welcome that those we love received in their new and eternal life. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                                     Jesus, our Saving One
                                                       We commit ourselves to You

~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or silently… add your own petitions

                                                     Jesus, our Saving One
                                                       We commit ourselves to You

~ O Faithful One, a Light to the Nations, may each of those who lead us in Your Church be granted the tongue of a teacher and the humility of Your human likeness, as they guide us all to stand up together with faith and trust in You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Jesus, our Saving One
We commit ourselves to You

The Celebrant adds: Oh Christ, Son of Woman, agitate our spirits and provoke our desire to seek Your mind in all that we do. Urge us to empty ourselves of all distractions pulling us away, that we may find our true and everlasting life in You. We ask this of You, our Hope and our Redeemer; and the Holy Spirit, the Sanctifier of our Souls; who together with the Fount of Creation, is One God, now and forever. Amen