Let us proclaim that we have seen the glory of God believing that there is a light that shines in the darkness which the darkness shall not overcome. May the love of the Creator the joy of the Spirit and the peace of the Christ-child be with you this Christmas, and evermore.
What words will we use to usher in a new year? What words express our hopes and visions, our fears and frights, as we look into the year ahead? What words can enable us to release the past year and leave it in peace even as we face our world of war and violence? Newest […]
For nothing will be impossible with God. – Luke 1:37 I am a miracle. When you look at me, you may see the teenaged girl with pain in her heart and cuts down her arms. Or the empty alcohol bottles and the blurry memories. Or the scars from abandonment and relationship abuse. But if that’s […]
O little town of Bethlehem – lyrics for today Carols with Justice, Simple Living Works Verse 1: Phillips Brooks, 1868 Verse 2: John Becker Verse 3: Rae E. Whitney There will be no Christmas tree or traditional festivities in the place of Jesus Christ’s birth this year in response to the thousands killed in the […]
Appropriate for a Blue Christmas or Longest Night service acknowledging the challenges many people face during the ‘holiday’ season. God, you are not distant from us; you come to us in vulnerability, you offer yourself as a gift of love. God of love, hear our prayer. This night we pray for all who mourn. All […]
Words from around the world… What words can be uttered when our thoughts and imaginations are shattered? What words do we say aloud when we gather to worship? What words bring sense to violent senselessness? Perhaps the silence between the words will offer the needed time for sighs and tears. These prayers were originally written […]
Our help is in the name of the Eternal One, the maker of heaven and earth. – Psalm 124:8 ‘What if Martin didn’t stand up? What if Rosa didn’t sit down? … What if Maya didn’t speak out? What if Langston Hughes didn’t write it down?’ In India Arie’s song “What If,” she asks what […]
Appropriate for a Blue Christmas or Longest Night service, acknowledging the challenges often faced during the dark seasons of the year. On this longest night of the year, we gather to worship you, our Creator. The prophets tell of a light to the nations; a dawn from on high breaking upon us. The poets speak […]
Mysterious paradoxes collide in this story. A story of a baby, Born into nothing, Yet born into everything. Born in a shed, But born in love, And is love And brings love. The paradox of a young woman, Not yet wedded, Blessed to bring life, Into this world that needs life Needs hope Requires love. […]
God of all seasons and senses, grant us the sense of your timing to submit gracefully and rejoice quietly in the turn of the seasons. In this season of short days and long nights, of grey and white and cold, teach us the lessons of endings; children growing, friends leaving, loved ones dying, grieving over, […]
