Liturgy to Celebrate Spring
Quieting, Centering with Taize
Presider: In the name
of our Provident God who shares divinity with us, in the name of our Provident
God who shares humanity with us, in the name of our Provident God, Spirit,
Sophia who inspires and unsettles us! ALL:
Amen.
Presider: My sisters
and brothers, God is with you! ALL: And also with you.
Greeting of Hope in Spring
ALL: Holy One who creates hope in us through each new spring,
we are grateful that winter is over. We rejoice in Mother Earth awakening. We
celebrate the greening of the earth, the nesting of birds, and the flowering of
our yards.
Presider: May the God
of love encourage and nurture new life within us. May we trust in God’s Spirit
moving with us, in us and through us as we reflect the creativity of God at
work and at play in this longed for springtime. ALL: Amen.
READER 1
An Indian Prayer:
Oh Great Spirit of the
East, I face you to understand birth and new beginnings.
I look to you bringing
forth a new day
And I am reminded that
life is about birth –
Of babies, puppies, new
seasons, new ways of doing things.
Teach me the mysteries of
Beginning.
READER 2
Oh Great Spirit of the
South, I look to you to understand abundance,
Fertility, warmth, and the
extravagance and colors of creation.
Come to my mind and feet
and lead me in the adventures of the South.
READER 3
Oh Spirit of the West, I
turn to you to understand dying.
As the sun goes down each
day, I am reminded of many deaths:
Friends, generations, the
seasons, and old ways of doing things.
Let the sunset remind me
that, like the sun,
I too shall arise in a new
life some day.
ALL: In the name of
our God who dwells within us, in the name of our God who is bearer of earth's
magnificent gifts: daffodils and willows, sparkling lakes, flocks of geese and
mallard ducks, cardinals and finches; in the name of our God who dances on moon
beams, and leaps for joy across the heavens; let us give thanks and praise.
LITURGY OF THE WORD
READER 4 First Reading: Job: 12.7-10
But turn to the animals, and let them teach you;
the birds of the air will tell you the truth.
Listen to the plants of the earth, and learn from them;
let the fish of the sea become your teachers.
Who among all these does not know that the hand of YHWH has
done this?
In God’s hand is the soul of every living thing; in God’s
hand is the breath of all humankind.
The word of God
All: Thanks be to God.( Pause to reflect and absorb)
READER 5
Psalm 104 REFRAIN: THE MAJESTY OF CREATION IS SEEN
THROUGHOUT THE LAND! ( Pause to reflect
and absorb)
READER 6
Second Reading from
Julian of Norwich
Be a gardener; dig a ditch, toil and sweat
and turn the earth upside down
and seek deepness
and water the plants in time.
Continue this labor and make sweet floods to run and noble
and abundant fruits to spring.
Take this food and this drink and carry it to God as your
gift. This also is the word of God.
All: Thanks be to God.
Reader 7: A reading
from the Gospel according to Mark …. ALL:
Glory to you O God.
GOSPEL: Mark: 16: 1-8
Reader: The good news
of the Resurrection!
ALL: Glory and praise
to Jesus the Christ!
HOMILY
Profession of Faith
All:
We believe in God, creator of beauty and promise who dwells
with us and the entire cosmos as mercy, infinite love and incomprehensible
mystery.
We believe in God made known to us in Jesus, Wisdom teacher
and healer, prophet of peace and justice who challenged the Law in favor of
reverence and respect for our human conditions.
We believe in the power of Holy Spirit-Sophia who renews the
whole of creation, who strengthens us in hope and gives us courage on our faith
journey.
We believe in the People of God together in community
learning forgiveness of self and others, reconciling alienations and divisions, and with God in unfolding a new
creation.
We believe in eternal life for all and in the holy
continuation of the inter-dependence of all species and elements of our planet
and the cosmos
GENERAL INTERCESSIONS
Presider: Let us
dance together the dance of new beginnings.That we may care for the cosmos in
which the Holy One is revealed, we pray to you our Creator... Response: Renew
us, O God!
Presider: That
peoples everywhere will cherish and care for creation and that leaders will recognize
their responsibility towards the environment, we pray to you source of new
life, ...R.
Presider: That each of us will embrace ways to reverse the
harm done to our environment, we pray .. R.
Presider: For
protection from spring storms especially tornadoes, flooding and lightening, we
pray to you source of our life. R.
Presider. Other Intentions
PREPARATION OF THE GIFTS
Presider: Blessed are
you, God of all life, through your goodness we have bread, wine, all creation,
and our own lives to offer. Through this
sacred meal may we become your new creation.
ALL: Blessed be God
for forever.
Presider: God dwells
in you. ALL: And also in you. Presider:
Lift up your hearts.
ALL: We lift them up
to God. Presider: Let us give thanks to
our God. ALL: It is right to give God thanks and praise.
EUCHARISTIC PRAYER
Part One: Reader 8
God of amazing surprises, Creator of butterflies, stars and
planets, Designer of earth's wonders, Giver of life and laughter, we praise
your passionate love hidden, yet revealed, everywhere in our world.
We thank you that from the beginning, you called us to partnership
with all creation in the holy dance that is all of life in your Divine
Presence. We praise you as we jump for joy in an explosion of grace that
resounds through the universe.
ALL: Holy, Holy,
Holy, God of dance and song, heaven and earth are robed in your glory. Hosanna
in the Highest. Blessed are You who dwell among us. Happy are we who are called
to this banquet of unending joy. Hosanna in the Highest.
Presider:
We thank you for the women and men through the ages who have
embraced Love's cosmic dream of communion with hearts ablaze. We pause now to
remember those who have shown us how to step lightly on the path to holiness.
Let us remember those who taught us how to reverence and cherish the earth, how
to plant a seed, how to catch a fish, how to harvest a garden, how to embrace
the beauty and goodness of nature. (Time for spontaneous remembrance)
Part 2: Reader 9
We praise you, Christ, who calls us to deep intimacy in this
Eucharistic celebration. We offer thanks for this gift, the Bread of Life and
the Cup of Joy, that will heal our hearts and transform our lives.
Part Three: ALL
(Please all extend hands as we recite the consecration
together)
Let us proclaim the mystery of faith: On the night before he
died, Jesus gathered for the Seder supper with his friends. Like the least of
household servants, he washed their feet, so that they would know how to
remember him. Back again at the table, he lifted up the bread of freedom, spoke
the grace, broke the bread, and offered it them, saying:
(presider lifts the bread)
Take and eat; this is my very self. (pause)
Then he lifted up the cup of blessing, spoke the grace, and
offered them the wine, saying: (presider
lifts the wine)
Take and drink of the covenant made new again through my
life, for you and for everyone, that all captivity might celebrate renewed
life. Whenever you do this, you
re-member me. (pause)
ALL: Christ, in your
dying and rising, all creation leaps together toward a new earth and new
heavens.
Part Four: Reader 10
Although we come from diverse backgrounds, we are one body,
for we all share in this one bread. And so, as we join with one another in the
cosmic dance, Creator God, we celebrate your holy presence in every living
thing.
Let us live as a new body, brought to birth by the Spirit of
the Risen One in acts of forgiveness, healing, and justice. Let us support all
who suffer and work for peace in lands torn by violence and hatred where the
flowers can’t grow and the children can’t play in the sun. Let us pray for an
end to violence everywhere.
ALL: Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ, in the
resurrecting power of Divine Love, all glory and praise is yours, O Gracious
God, forever.
ALL:
THE PRAYER OF JESUS: Our Mother, who is within, we celebrate
your many names. Your wisdom come. Your will be done, unfolding from the depths
within us. Each day you give us all that 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.
The Prayer of Jesus as interpreted by Miriam Therese Winter
THE SIGN OF PEACE
Presider: Jesus,
You said to your disciples, “My peace I leave you. My peace I give you.” Look on the faith of all and grant us the
peace and unity of your kindom where you live forever and ever. ALL:
Amen. Presider:
May the peace of Christ Sophia be always with you. ALL: And
also with you. Presider: Let us offer each other a sign of peace.
LITANY FOR THE BREAKING OF BREAD
ALL: Loving God, You call us to speak truth to
power, have mercy on us. Loving God,
You call us to live the Gospel of peace and justice, have mercy on us. Loving God, You call us to be Your presence
in the world. Grant us peace.
Presider: Let us
share the Body of Christ with the Body of Christ! ALL:
Amen
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Presider: Creator of
the cosmos, divine dancer, you have lifted us up and swung us around to see
your beauty in nature's awesome gifts everywhere and in everyone. May we
continue to move together to the divine rhythm of harmony and peace, dancing
joyfully in love with all created beings forever. Lead us to new life and inspire our work and
play with creativity and joyful enthusiasm. ALL:
Amen
CONCLUDING RITE
Presider: Christ
Sophia is with you
ALL: and also with
you.
BLESSING
(everyone please extend your hands in mutual blessing)
ALL: May we go forth
as dancing prophets and mystic visionaries of our cosmic communion with all
life, in the Name of the Creator, in the Name of the Healer, in the name of the
Spirit who breathes new life into us every spring. Amen
DISMISSAL
Presider: Go in the
peace of Christ Sophia. Let the service
begin! ALL: Thanks be to God.
Liturgy composed and designed
by
Bridget Mary Meehan , Barb Billey, Michele Birch Conery, Mary Weber and
The Inclusive Community of Albany, New York
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