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Joan: Welcome: We gather today to support the many in our community who are filled with sadness, concern, and fear about what the next four years will do to our democracy.
Theme Today: “Hang on Tight”
Welcome: We gather today to support the many in our community who are filled with sadness, concern, and fear about what the next four years will do to our democracy, to our country, to all our children of all sizes and colors. We are gathered today as a community of believers. We love and care deeply for one another. We know that we are united in our values and convictions. We will always be there for one another in the good and great times and in the difficult times as well.
Today we remind ourselves that we are a people of faith. We resolve to stand together for justice and equality. We have not lost our personal power, don’t give it up. We have a deeply inner spiritual conviction that we will see the light in a time when darkness becomes a threat. We will not let go of the comforts of our faith.
We are Divine. The Spirit of the Holy One has not forsaken us, and we will create a new earth.
Opening Song: Blessed Unrest sung by Zo Tobi
https://youtu.be/pLAZ9q6JDj0
Dotty: Opening Prayer:
Holy Mystery, life at times brings pain, anxiety, and fear interruptin our inner peace in our lives, and we seek relief and reassurance. May we continue to know that in those times it is hope and love shared with others that bring healing graces and, over time, awakens us to new possibilities and the strength of Divine Love allowing us to continue the work of bringing justice, equality and peace to the world. Amen
Jan: First Reading: A reading by Joan Chittister
Hope and despair are not opposites. They are cut from the very same cloth, made from the very same material, shaped from the very same circumstances. Every life finds itself forced to choose one from the other, one day at a time, one circumstance after another. The sunflower, that plant which in shadow turns its head relentlessly toward the sun, is the patron saint of those in despair. When darkness descends on the soul, it is time, like the sunflower, to go looking for whatever good thing in life there is that can bring us comfort. Then we need music and hobbies and friends and fun and new thought.
Despair colors the way we look at things, makes us suspicious of the future, makes us negative about the present. Most of all, despair leads us to ignore the very possibilities that could save us, or worse, leads us to hurt as we have been hurt ourselves.
Hope, on the other hand, takes life on its own terms, knows that whatever happens God lives in it, and expects that, whatever its twists and turns, it will ultimately yield its good to those who live it consciously, to those who live it to the hilt.
When tragedy strikes, when trouble comes, when life disappoints us, we stand at the crossroads between hope and despair, torn and hurting. Despair cements us in the present. Hope sends us dancing around dark corners trusting in a tomorrow we cannot see because of the multiple paths of life which we cannot forget.
Life is not one road. It is many roads, the walking of which provides the raw material out of which we find hope in the midst of despair. Every dimension of the process of struggle is a call to draw from a well of new understandings. It is in these understandings that hope dwells. It is that wisdom that carries us beyond the dark night of struggle to the dawn of new wisdom and new strength.
These are the inspired words of Joan Chittister, and we affirm them by saying, Amen.
The dawn of hope | Joan Chittister
Joan: Psalm 16
You, Adonai, are all I have, and You give me all I need;
My life is in Your hands.
I am always aware of Your presence,
You are near, and nothing can shake me.
And so, I am full of happiness and joy,
And I always feel secure;
Because You will not allow me
to go to the world of the dead;
You will not abandon to the depths below
the one You love.
You will show me the path that leads to life;
Your presence fills me with joy,
and Your help delights forever.
Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia: Jan Phillips
https://youtu.be/IC4nbwmQDVw
Den: Gospel: Mark 13:24-32
A reading from the Gospel attributed to the apostle called Mark.
Jesus said to the disciples, “But in those days, after that time of distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon will lose its brightness, the stars will fall from the sky and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Promised One coming in the clouds with great power and glory; then the angels will be sent to gather the chosen from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
“Take the fig tree as a parable: as soon as its twigs grow supple and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the Promised One is near, right at the door. The truth is, before this generation has passed away, all these things will have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
“But as for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither the angels of Heaven, nor the Only Begotten, no one but our God.”
These are the inspired words of the apostle called Mark and the community responds: LET IT BE SO AND SO IT IS!
Dotty: Homily Starter; Sharing
Jan: Statement of Faith
We believe in the Holy One, a divine mystery
beyond all definition and rational understanding,
the heart of all that has ever existed,
that exists now, or that ever will exist.
We believe in Jesus, messenger of the Divine Word,
bringer of healing, heart of Divine compassion,
bright star in the firmament of the Holy One's
prophets, mystics, and saints.
We believe that we are called to follow Jesus
as a vehicle of divine love,
a source of wisdom and truth,
and an instrument of peace in the world.
We believe in the Spirit of the Holy One,
the life that is our innermost life,
the breath moving in our being,
the depth living in each of us.
We believe that the Divine kin-dom is here and now,
stretched out all around us for those
with eyes to see it, hearts to receive it,
and hands to make it happen
Den: Prayers of the Community
Our world is troubled, it is broken, it is divided. The response of the follower of Jesus must be to accept all of humankind without prejudice.
As we prepare for the sacred meal, we bring to this table our cares, and concerns.
We bring to the table our fears and concerns: divisions between andamong us and with no defined pathway to heal wounds, we will make a commitment to do what we can, no matter how small to bring justice in our country.
We bring to the table our country that our leaders will be enlightened to listen to the needs of the people, especially the poor and respond with support and assistance.
We bring to the table all those, including members of our MMOJ community to work tirelessly for change in our government
We bring to the table all those who have hardened their hearts and refuse to listen, to seek understanding and who show no personal compassion for the very people who gave them their vote.
We bring to the Table our commitment to work toward solutions, healing divisions and be committed to focus on we can do to make all American lives better.
We bring to the table the needs of the MMOJ community as requested in the Book of Prayer Requests (Joan Meehan)
We now invite you to share your intentions beginning them with thewords: “I bring to the table.”
We pray for these and all unspoken concerns of our hearts.
These are our prayers, our needs and our concerns, O Holy One. Strengthen us as we seek to be Christ to our broken world. Help us, as people of faith, to be a light to our world in darkness. Raise up in gratitude all those who worked tirelessly for change.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Eucharistic Prayer by Diarmuid O’Murchu
Jan: Gracious God, source and sustenance of life, redeeming presence to the pain and brokenness of our world, Holy Spirit, who enlivens and inebriates all that exists, we beseech your healing power upon us and upon all we pray for today.
As we prepare for this sacred meal, we are aware of our call to serve, and just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us.
Down through the ages, you rescue us from darkness. You light up our ways with wise and holy action. You restore our faith and our dwindling hope.
For all you bring into our lives, and for all we seek amid pain and suffering, we acclaim your love and greatness, and we join with all creation to sing our hymn of praise:
Holy, Holy, Holy by Karen Drucker
https://youtu.be/kl7vmiZ1YuI
Dotty: Come forth Sacred Spirit and be with us at our Eucharistic Table. Send light and blessing upon this bread of the grain and this wine of the grape which reminds us of our call to be the body of Christ in the world today. As we share this bread and cup we proclaim and live the gospel of justice and peace. We commit to following you, practicing what you continue to teach us:
We choose to live justly,
love tenderly,
and walk with integrity
On the night before he died, Jesus came to the table with the women and men he loved. He reminded them of all that he taught them, and to fix that memory clearly within them, he bent down and washed their feet. He then returned to the table.
He lifted the bread, spoke the blessing, broke the bread, and offered it to them saying:
Take and eat; this is my very self.
He then raised high the cup and he invited them to do the same. He said: this is the cup of the new covenant, he spoke the grace, and offered it to them saying:
Take and drink.
Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.
What we have heard with our ears, we will live with our lives, as we share communion, we will become communion
both Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge. Please consume the bread and drink the cup with the words:
We are one with one another
Communion Song: Bread of Life by Rory Cooney [Video by MT Streck]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7aYkPE5YDE
Den: May the Spirit of life and wholeness, who transforms the gifts we present, transform us, too, that we may be refreshed in our inner being and be empowered to bring mercy, love, hope and healing to those whose lives we touch.
So grant, that in union with all peoples, living and dead, we may strive to create a world where suffering and pain are diminished, where justice and peace are restored, and where all people can live in health and wholeness, united in acclaiming the God of life, whose abundance is offered to each and to all, ‘til the Kindomarrives in the fullness of time.
This prayer we make in the name of our healing and nurturing God, through, with and in whom we offer these gifts, sources of life, love and goodness, now and forever. Amen.
Jan: Let us join together to pray the Prayer of Jesus:
O Holy One, who is within, around and among us,
We celebrate your many names.
Your Wisdom come.
Your will be done, unfolding from the depths within us,
Each day you give us all we need;
You remind us of our limits, and we let go.
You support us in our power, and we act with courage.
For you are the dwelling place within us,
the empowerment around us,
and the celebration among us, now and forever. Amen (Miriam Therese Winter)
Dotty: Introductions – Thanksgivings – Announcements
Dotty: BLESSING
Please raise your hands in blessing and join together in our closing prayer:
We pray for harmony in the midst of divisiveness and for hope in the middle of hurt. We pray for our civic leaders and ourselves and all peoples with a call for harmony and deep peace: May we awaken to the Hope of the Kindomof Heaven within, around, and among us. Amen.
Closing Song: Every Step of the Way by Christopher Grundy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wj0cHXzAGTI
We are the Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community. www.marymotherofjesus.net
If you wish to add an intercession or Thanksgiving to our MMOJ Community Prayer book, please send an email to Joan Meehan jmeehan515@aol.com
To support our community, please send your check to:
Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community
5342 Clark Road #3079, Sarasota, FL 34233
