People's Prayers

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Prayers of the People: Glitter Today or Shine Forever ~ Christ the King, Last Sunday of Pentecost '20 Yr A

For Sunday, November 15, 2020, Readings: Judges 4:1-7, Psalm 123, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, Matthew 25:14-30

I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep...I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak...I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at the weak animals with your horns...I will save my flock and they will no longer be ravaged...I will judge between sheep and sheep. [Ezekiel 34:15a, 16,20b-22]

Come, let us sing to the LORD; let us shout for joy to the Rock of our Salvation...For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. [Psalm 95: 1, 7a]

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ...may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe... [Ephesians 1:17-19a]

When the Son of Man comes into his glory...All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats...Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me...but the righteous [will go] into eternal life." [Matthew 25:31a, 32, 40, 46b]

In this Sunday of Christ the King, the Final Sunday in the Season after Pentecost, or The Season of the Kingdom in some places, we look at the Christ of Wisdom, of Eternity, of Majesty, and Jesus, of human form. The kingly Christ is now, has always been, will forever be but the Divine-Human Incarnation, the manifestation of the love of God that is Jesus is more than 2,000 years old. Jesus~ the human face of God ~ came and will come again as God's own divine self on Earth. It is more than difficult to comprehend, even as we continue to try, and forever as inexplicable and unsolvable as eternal mysteries always are.

Ezekiel’s message is speaking to the faithless shepherds, those governors of Israel who oppressed their flocks. With inexcusable mishandling of power, governing for the benefit of rulers, they failed in their handling of God’s Divine Plan which is government ~ shepherding ~ for the sake of the governed. A true shepherd is one who strengthens and protects the flock, tends the injured and the sick, calls back all who have strayed. The Shepherds are accountable for the safety and well-being of their flocks. In this passage, God the Almighty, assumes the role of Israel’s shepherd. Ezekiel’s message is of both hope and warning.

Paul is extolling the faith of the Ephesians and encouraging them so that with the eyes of your heart enlightened, and praying that they [and now we] come to know Christ more deeply, we will all know the hope to which we are called, and the spiritual riches of his glorious inheritance, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Matthew’s Gospel account, which has no parallel in the other three Gospels, is a view of the Great Judgment. As disciples, Matthew has been telling us all through his Gospel that the Law is only a starting point, we are to exceed those expectations by cultivating and manifesting an inner attitude of love for God in everything that we do. We are to be that love in all that we think and do, so that in all that we think and do our motives, our deepest intentions, are expressed as genuine service in Christ’s name, without any sense of merit or self-importance. There are many nice people doing good things but if their inner purpose is personal gain or acclaim, however small, they may be heading into the goat pen. And of course, it’s not so easy to be so pure of heart.

As we strive to be good sheep, our everyday lives, with their ups and downs on a variety of fronts, keep us fairly distracted and not always conscious of what and why we do as we do. It is often challenging, and perhaps distasteful, when confronted with particular issues and people that may repel us. Yet we are called to remember to look for Christ in strangers, the sick, the imprisoned, and the poor, as well as in those who seem better off in life than we are, and those who, in our less than best moments, we simply disparage as goats.

Some days, some seasons, some years, it's much easier to be a goat and rest in the more comfy Jesus ~ the sweet Baby of the Christmas glitter, pretty packages, and sparkling decorations, and, ignoring the other “reason for the season,” the resurrected Jesus in the bright colors of Easter flowers, dyed eggs, and candy.

But, as we are at the end of one liturgical season and beginning another, it is time to consider again our actions as members of the Body of Christ, and follow Jesus with intention and consciousness ~ the Jesus who is our Messiah, the Rock of our Salvation, Christ the King of Glory.

The writer of Ephesians prays for our wisdom, our enlightenment, and for us to know the glory of God’s immeasurable greatness. Let us not discard divine mystery for a false reality, but rouse ourselves from the haze of distraction, indifference, and complacency. Let us, as the blessed inheritors of the Kingdom, turn toward the inconvenient call of Christ. After all, if we believe that our very existence on this fragile island planet is truly a gift from God, what is there to lose if we live it through Christ? All that truly matters is not glitter, but, in Christ, it will shine forever.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader:  ~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, awaken us again to the wonder of God’s fullness in You, the beacon of our faith. Gather us as Your sheep into our divine blessings, for being Your love in the world, and for tending to and beckoning the goats of this life to turn and join us in Your eternal flock.

                                                         Jesus, Face of God
RESPONSE:              Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, guide our conscious intent in our own actions to assure that we and the leaders of governments on this Planet, locally and globally, seek the lost, bind up the injured, feed the hungry, and all for their own sake, in justice with mercy. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                                       Jesus, Face of God
                                                       Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, grant comfort and healing for all who suffer in body, mind, or spirit, and for those who give them care. We now join our hearts together to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

                                                       Jesus, Face of God
                                                       Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, embrace all grieving hearts as You joyously bless those now entering Your gracious and forever kingdom. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

                                                       Jesus, Face of God
                                                       Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

                                                       Jesus, Face of God
                                                       Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

~ Christ Jesus, King of Glory, inscribe special blessings upon the souls of those anointed to lead us in Your Church, as we journey together through the gifts and trials of this mortal life. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Jesus, Face of God
Enlighten the eyes of our hearts

The Celebrant adds: Son of Man, the Incarnation of Love, even as we each are at once sheep and goat, You extend the blessing of Your welcoming and forgiving hands. Strengthen us in our weakness that we may one day rise into Your holy and sacred Kingdom. We offer our praise to You as Jesus, our Redeemer Christ; to the Holy Spirit, our Wisdom Guide; and to our Glorious Creator, who together and before time, live and reign as one God, then, now, and into forever. Amen.

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Monday, November 9, 2020

Prayers of the People: Risk Now, Saved Later ~ 24th Sunday after Pentecost '20 Yr A

For Sunday, November 15, 2020, Readings: Judges 4:1-7, Psalm 123, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, Matthew 25:14-30

At that time, Deborah, a prophetess…was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel…and the Israelites came up to her for judgement. [Judges 4:1-7]

To you I lift up my eyes…to the Lord our God…Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy… [Psalm 123:1a, 3b-4a]

…the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night…”There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction…but you…are not in darkness…for you are all children of the light…keep awake and be sober…put on the breastplate of faith and love and…the hope of salvation. [1 Thessalonians 5:1-11]

Jesus said, “It is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them…to each according to his ability… [Matthew 25:14, 15b]

This week’s Gospel is one that is not the most uplifting when it falls on what is generally known in the Episcopal Church as Stewardship Sunday. The prior weeks are given to various moments of personal and positive testimonies as to the value of pledging – I’ve participated in those and have even run two successful stewardship campaigns in two different parishes (don’t tell anyone on the Stewardship Committee, please!). But this is one of “those” pieces of Scripture that often drives long-term clergy around a small bend.

There are MANY interpretations and commentaries on this Gospel and even whether or not is a parable or an allegory. Is God the “man” or is it Jesus – after all, the “man” is going on a long journey and later returns to judge the success of those to whom he entrusted the money.

It is an important point to remember that Jesus was speaking to the disciples AFTER Palm Sunday, during his last week of life. We have only one more Gospel in Matthew left in this cycle and it follows this one immediately. But we won’t finish to the obvious conclusion as that will come as we journey through Lent to Good Friday and Easter next year. Another point is that each worker was given the particular amount of money according to their ability as decided by the man. Now I’m sure that most of us feel terribly sorry for the poor scared schmuck who was thrown out on his ear. Yet the question remains, is this just a cruel and heartless Master – we know he cheats and steals from the phrasing of I knew you were a harsh man, reaping where you do not sow, gathering where you did not scatter seed – and how could this possibly represent our God, our Christ?

What I have accepted is that this is a forewarning that we have each been given the gifts/talents that we need to fulfill our purpose in this earthly sojourn. Paul has laid it out clearly that the Lord will come like a thief in the night in the midst of seeming peace and security. If we remember the Gospel from last Sunday, the passage just before this one, about the Bridegroom arriving and the foolish and wise maidens [Matthew 25:1-13] then we will remember the similar warning to Keep awake…for you know neither the day or the hour. And this, too, now knowing we have the talents we need, starkly reminds us that we only have so much time to use it or lose it and we do not know how much. This isn’t the time to be shy about doing what you know you can do or what you can learn to do for your faithful mission of Christ in this life. Burying our gifts/talent behind a wall of false humility or just plain fear like our friend above won’t get us the ticket to enter the joy of your master.

I offer this passage from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin about whom I cannot say enough. A French philosopher, noted paleontologist, geologist, and among other things a Jesuit Catholic priest – not, shall we say, always beloved of Rome. I hope it speaks to you as it does to me. It is from one of his books, The Divine Milieu. Not always easily read yet this piece brought this Gospel together for me (and it was written in 1965 so the masculine language is of its time):

God obviously has no need of the products of your busy activity since he could give himself everything without you. The only thing that concerns him, the only thing he desires intensely, is your faithful use of your freedom and the preference you accord him over the things around you. Try to grasp this: the things that are given to you on earth are given to you purely as an exercise, a blank sheet on which you make your own mind and heart. You are on a testing ground where God can judge whether you are capable of being translated to heaven and into his presence. You are on trial so it matters very little what becomes of the fruits of the earth, or what they are worth. The whole question is whether you have learned how to obey and how to love.

This life is filled with risky investments of time, of relationships, of errors in judgement. Yet we must continue to endeavor to discover and recognize our gifts, our opportunities, and the path that draws us to salvation. We must risk now to be saved later.

The image I used above is probably the most famous quote from John Wesley who is credited with the founding of a method of preaching and worship in the Anglican Church in England, whose congregations are now known as Methodist. But neither John nor his brother Charles ever left their Anglican roots.

I also commend to you a further look at the Prophetess Deborah - the only female Judge in the Bible - just an interesting serendipity to have her featured in this week when the first female and woman of color has been elected Vice President here in the USA. For an interesting piece on her click here: Deborah, Judge

PS: PLEASE consider a pledge of any amount to your church or a non-profit cause. Even a small amount that you know you can make is useful for planning a budget and you can always give more. In these times of no or few in-person offerings, even as the daily expenditures of the building and staff continue, think seriously of what you can do and to help you decide re-read Wesley, above!

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O Lord, our God, you have given us each our talents according to the abilities with which You created us. Grant us the courage to put on the breastplate of faith, love, and the hope of salvation, to encourage ourselves and one another to boldly risk the peace and security of what we have, to be Your faithful stewards for all of our allotted time.

Creator and Redeemer Lord

RESPONSE: Grant us Your Mercy

~ O Lord, our God, keep us from complacence as we continue to call to account those who govern now and those who soon will, in our Nation, in our Community, and in our World. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Creator and Redeemer Lord

Grant us Your Mercy

~ O Lord, our God, calm and heal the hearts of all who are seriously ill, in depression, or facing other uncertain life circumstance, and steady the course of those who give them care. We now join our hearts together to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

Creator and Redeemer Lord

Grant us Your Mercy

~ O Lord, our God, fill our hearts with the peace of those who are now alive again, in the glorious and eternal light of Your Kingdom. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

Creator and Redeemer Lord

Grant us Your Mercy

~ O Lord, our God, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

Creator and Redeemer Lord

Grant us Your Mercy

~ O Lord, our God, we give great thanks and prayerful gratitude for the faithful stewards of Your Church, who keep us on a spiritual track in daily life, and guide us in living the mission of Christ on earth. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Creator and Redeemer Lord

Grant us Your Mercy

The Celebrant adds: O God Most High, through your Judge and Prophet Deborah, and the Apostles Paul and Matthew, we learn the dangers and the opportunities of investing all our mortal days in Your service. We lift up our eyes to You for the willingness, the strength, and the mercy, to reap enough of what we sow to enter into the joy of our master. We ask through Jesus, our Christ and our Master; the Holy Spirit, the Sacred Breath in our souls; who together with You, live and reign as One God, forever and forever. Amen.

Monday, November 2, 2020

Prayers of the People: Got plans? ~ 23rd Sunday after Pentecost, Year A

For Sunday, November 8, 2020, Readings: Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25; Psalm 78:1-7, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18,

Matthew 25:1-13

Now therefore revere the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness…as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord…incline your hearts to the Lord…and him we will obey. [Joshua 24:14a, 15c, 23b, 24b]

That the generations to come might know, and the children yet unborn; that they in their turn might tell it to their children; 7 So that they might put their trust in God… [Psalm 78:6-7a]

We do not want you to be uninformed…about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope…so we will be with the Lord forever. [1 Thess 4:13, 17b]

Ten Bridesmaids too their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise…Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” [Matthew 25:1b-2, 13]

Keep awake, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. [Mt 25:13] Of all the admonitions of Jesus, this one always sends a chill up and down my spine. I've spent a considerable amount of time in hospital emergency rooms for a variety of personal and professional reasons, and a swift and unexpected death can sometimes overwhelm even the most experienced and detached medical staff, let alone loved ones.

In my own life, the hour and the day have whisked away those I hold most deeply in my heart so unexpectedly, I can still feel the reverberation in my heart and head, as if being hit with a concussive blow that never quite heals and never quite stops. This reminds me that I, too, am subject to immediate and sudden factory recall.

Joshua reminds the Israelites to incline our hearts to the Lord to serve and obey, to revere God in sincerity and in faithfulness. The psalmist tells us to know and recount to generations to come the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord that they might put their trust in God.

Paul and those he converted and to whom he preached, were working with a presumption that the return of Jesus was fairly imminent. There was some concern by the Thessalonians about who would be raised up when Jesus returned. Paul gives them and all of us hope, when he says about those who have died, that you must not grieve as others do who have no hope as we all will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

With the parable of the 10 Bridesmaids, we are given a serious lesson in preparation, taking nothing for granted, being ready for whatever comes. The parable itself is an example of an ancient Palestinian bridal ritual that those listening to Jesus would have understood. As the wedding day approached, the Groom, accompanied by friends would travel to take the bride from her home, usually at night. The bride was attended by maidens of both families and as they might be journeying a great distance, no exact time of arrival of the Groom was known. And so, then, preparation is the call here, keeping watch and being ready to embark. If you missed the Groom’s arrival and the wedding party’s departure, you were done. Those invited who remained awaiting the bridal party's return, were expected to stay at the Bridegroom’s, or a neighbor’s home, as long as it took for the entourage to appear. The underlying message about preparation is knowing NOW what we must do. At the Last Judgement, you’re in or you’re out.

The Bridegroom is the Messiah, one through whom God’s work is undertaken to completion. Matthew is clear that the Bridegroom is the Risen Christ although Jesus never referred to himself as Messiah. Still, whether or not we are convinced that there will be no second chance at the End, we do know that an end is coming, whether by our mortal death or Divine cataclysm. We don’t know the day or the hour.

Playing the role of active Christian, faithful attendance to worship, giving of alms, doing good deeds, etc., is all well and good, but my inwardly digested attitude of preparing my soul for a possible quickness to my human ending needs some work. A re-evaluation of every-day and long-term plans, might be considered. Time to get more oil for the lamp, trim the wick, and start again to match my Sunday best to my daily thoughts, words, and actions. How about you, got plans?

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader:  ~ O Lord our God, deliver us from our foolishness of pursuing empty and temporary pleasures, that distract us from the wisdom of preparing our souls. Guide us to keep our everyday thoughts and words as actions of faith, in earnest service to You.

                                                      O God, Almighty
RESPONSE:      We put our trust in You

~ O Lord our God, we turn our faces to You in the serenity of Your constant Favor, for the resilience to give constant witness to the teachings of the One who was, Who is, and Who will come again. Give us, always, a calm, rational voice to the issues at hand, to all holding power on our Planet, in our Country, and in our local Community, especially to those with whom we disagree. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                                       O God, Almighty
                                                       We put our trust in You

~ O Lord our God, incline the hearts to You of all who are fearfully ill, economically desperate, or emotionally distressed, and endow their care-givers with compassion and energy. We now join our hearts together to pray for those in need… add your own petitions
                                                       O God, Almighty
                                                       We put our trust in You

~ O Lord our God, console us all with hope and the knowledge that we, with all who have gone before, will be with the Lord forever. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

                                                       O God, Almighty
                                                       We put our trust in You

~ O Lord our God, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

                                                       O God, Almighty
                                                       We put our trust in You

~ O Lord our God, grant our spiritual leaders continuing purity of heart, hope of the spirit, and the fidelity of faith, to guide our soul journeys toward Your eternal kingdom. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

O God, Almighty
We put our trust in You

The Celebrant adds: Most High and Holy God, keep our hearts awake and our minds alert to reflect Your presence within us now and in the time to come, as we move through this life ready for the unknown day and hour of our new life in You. We ask this through Jesus, our Christ and our Redeemer; and the most Holy Spirit, our Advocate; who, together with You, eternally reign as One God, in heaven, on earth, and beyond all time and space. Amen.

Monday, October 26, 2020

Prayers of the People: BE Attitudes ~ All Saints Sunday '20 Yr A

For Sunday, November 1, 2020, Readings: Revelation 7:9-17, Psalm 34:1-10, 22; 1 John3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12

They will hunger no more, and thirst no more, the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd...[Revelation 7:9-17]

I sought the LORD and he answered me and delivered me out of all my terror...The LORD ransoms the life of his servants, and none will be punished who trusts in him. [Psalm 34:4, 22]

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God; and that is what we are...And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. [1 John :1-3]

[Jesus] taught them saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit...those who mourn...the meek...those who hunger and thirst...the merciful...the pure in heart...the peacemakers...those who are persecuted...Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven... [Matthew 5:1-12]

All Saints Sunday is the actual All Saints Day this year, November 1st. Always a special day for us Catholic kids in Catholic School because, as a Holy Day of Obligation, we had off from school the day after Halloween! We loved rubbing that in the faces of our non-Catholic friends. Oh, well yeah, we were obligated to go to church…but maybe some of us just overslept?

Of course, we often saw biographical films of the Holy Ones, read hagiographies (bios of Saints), discovered who our patron Saints were and generally recognized Saints as mostly long-ago-very-holy-people. While many of us had our favorites for one reason or another, for me the whole “Saint” thing seemed remote from everyday life. As an adult, I’ve read some accounts of some historically famous Saints, including a couple of fairly recent ones, whose activities didn’t always seem so, well, saintly.

It seems that defining "Saint" in this day and age still conjures a mind-image of someone many centuries and continents removed from our everyday place and time in this world; someone who is an example of complete perfection in every facet of life that is unattainable for us, and, if we're honest, undesirably difficult. Yet many saints and Saints, the ordinary and the officially designated, are/were flawed humans with real human frailties and struggles. How did their lives become exemplary? There was something extra in their attitude of life and in what drew others to them.

As an Episcopalian I have come to appreciate that there are many on our Liturgical Calendar who are not designated “Saints” but are remembered for particular gifts or positions that shone in ways that changed themselves and others in relating to God. The best discussion I have found of “sainthood” is from Sister Joan Chittister, which follows. This piece offers us some food for prayerful thought on ways we might discover our inner saint and seek to, at the very least, support the very basic tenets of the Greatest Commandment [Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-34, Luke 10:25-28].

"For centuries the church has confronted the human community with role models of greatness. We call them saints when what we really often mean to say is "icon," "star," "hero," ones so possessed by an internal vision of divine goodness that they give us a glimpse of the face of God in the center of the human. They give us a taste of the possibilities of greatness in ourselves. What qualities will be necessary to live a life of integrity, of holiness, in the twenty-first century? What models of those values, if any, have been raised up to show us the way to God in a world that is more preoccupied with the material than with the spiritual, more self-centered than selfless, more concerned with the mundane than with the divine, more parochial than cosmic? (They) are male and female, Christian and non-Christian, married and unmarried, religious and lay, pragmatists and artists, named saint by a process or proclaimed saint by the people who lived in the shadow of their lives. They are people like you and me. With one exception, perhaps. In their eyes burn the eyes of a God who sees injustice and decries it, sees poverty and condemns it, sees inequality and refuses it, sees wrong and demands that it be set right. These are people for whom the Law above the law is first in their lives. These are people who did not temporize with the evil in one system just because another system could have been worse. These are people who saw themselves clearly as the others' keepers. These are people who gave themselves entirely to the impulses of God for the sake of the world." ~ Sister Joan Chittister, Roman Catholic nun and former Prioress of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie, PA, an activist, author and speaker on a variety of subjects such as spirituality, religious life, peace, and justice among others. The excerpt is from: "A Passion for Life: Fragments of the Face of God", Orbis, Maryknoll, NY, 1996

It seems to me that it matters not if one is an official Saint. Yet there are certainly exemplary qualities of those who are official as well as those who are not, but they stand out, as Sr. Joan says, because: they give us a glimpse of the face of God in the center of the human. It is an attitude for us to acquire in our quest for eternal life. An attitude of being a child of God, and knowing that the full presence of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit are within us always, ready to be shining through us, for our neighbors and for ourselves. In the Gospel for this week, the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches those present that often those who might be considered the least of us are especially blessed. It opens up a way of living for us to contemplate, a pathway of living intentionally into the blessings of God. As we look into one or more of the ideals of the Beatitudes, we may just discover new prayerful habits, conscious acts in all we say and do, our own personal BE Attitudes to take us through each day accompanied by that ever-growing Communion of Saints and saints until we, too, join the Heavenly Chorus.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ Lord of All Saints and All Sinners, as we celebrate the Holy Saints of the Ages, we also commend to You the everyday saints still living among us. Grant us the wisdom to follow the examples set for us, to seek a saintly heart within our own flawed humanness, and to discover our blessed place in the Beatitudes of Christ.