12th Sunday in Ordinary Time A tribute to Philip Berrigan June 24, 2017

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1 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time A tribute to Philip Berrigan June 24, 2017 Announcements, Prayer Requests, Sharing Joys and Concerns Call to Worship: Litany of Praise from Taize: Prayer for Each Day Loving God, you do not look at appearances but at our heart; you are forgiveness. Loving God, you renew in us peace of heart and a serene joy. Risen Christ, you are with us, even with those who are unaware of your presence. Risen Christ, you place in our hearts a longing for your Kingdom. Risen Christ, you call us to share the fruits of the earth and of our work. Loving God, by your Christ the fullness of your life is offered to us. Loving God, into your hands we place our entire life. We ask you to be with us tonight and pray within us. Amen Opening Hymn: Be Not Afraid (426) Opening Prayer: Jonathan Edwards (theologian) ( ). Blessed Holy Trinity: As Creator, you loved us into being. Our existence is a result of your desire. As Son, you assumed our sins as your own on the cross. You became us so that we might become you. As Holy Spirit, you empowered us to live the life we ve dreamed of living, a life of justice, imagination and love. Amen First Reading: Jeremiah 20:10 13 Jeremiah said: I hear the whisperings of many: Terror on every side! Denounce! Let us denounce him! All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him. But God is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors

2 will stumble, they will not triumph. In their failure they will be put to utter shame, to lasting, unforgettable confusion. O God of hosts, you who test the just, who probe mind and heart, let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause. Sing to God, praise God, for God has rescued the life of the poor from the power of the wicked! The Word of God. Thanks be to God. RESPONSORIAL PSALM : Psalm 69:8 10, 14, 17, (14c) R. God, in your great love, answer me. For your sake I bear insult, and shame covers my face. I have become an outcast to my brothers, a stranger to my children, because zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me. R. God, in your great love, answer me. I pray to you, O God, for the time of your favor. In your great kindness answer me with your constant help. Answer me, O God, for bounteous is your kindness; in your great mercy turn toward me. R. God, in your great love, answer me. See, you lowly ones, and be glad; you who seek God, may your hearts revive! For the God hears the poor, and his own who are in bonds he spurns not. Let the heavens and the earth praise him, the seas and whatever moves in them! R. God, in your great love, answer me. Reading 2: Remembrance of a peace activist: Philip Berrigan Philip Berrigan died December 6, 2002 at about 9:30 PM, at Jonah House, a community he co-founded in 1973, surrounded by family and friends. During his nearly 40 years of resistance to war and violence, Berrigan focused on living and working in community as a way to model the nonviolent, sustainable world he was working to create. Jonah House members live simply, pray together, share duties, and attempt to expose the violence of militarism and consumerism. The community was born out of resistance to the Vietnam War, including high-profile draft card burning actions; later the focus became ongoing resistance to U.S. nuclear policy, including Plowshares actions that aim to enact Isaiah's biblical prophecy of a disarmed world. He staged some of the most dramatic anti-war protests of the 1960s and was arrested at least 100 times, serving a total of 11 years in prison for his anti-war activities. He led the Catonsville 9, a group that doused a small bonfire of

3 Selective Service draft records in homemade napalm at a parking lot in the Baltimore suburb on May 17, 1968.In his last weeks, Berrigan was surrounded by his family, including his wife, his children, community members, and extended family. The Dominican sisters, who were Community members, were unable to be physically present at Jonah House; they were in jail in Colorado awaiting trial for a disarmament action at a missile silo, the 79th international Plowshares action. He was bigger than life -- extremely human and heroic and committed,'' said actor Martin Sheen, who marched in the funeral parade. He was a great inspiration and a mentor to others and me. His brother, the Rev. Daniel Berrigan, also was a member of the group. He learned patience through bolts and bars... through long sacrifice and little reward Daniel Berrigan told mourners. Some mourners carried sticks topped with cloth birds with tattered wings, while others sang Christian hymns and Buddhist monks chanted and beat drums. Ched Myers, 47, an activist, writer and teacher from Los Angeles, said Berrigan was a historic pioneer in the act of civil disobedience. In the church, mourners held signs reading Arm the world with hugs, Wage Peace, and Plowshares versus Depleted Uranium a reference to the name of Berrigan's Plowshares for Peace. He was a great prophet of peace, said the Rev. John Dear, 43, a Jesuit priest who lives in Cimarron, N.M. He spoke the truth against war. R. Thus, we remember the life of a peace activist. Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia, alleluia. The Spirit of truth will testify to me, says the Lord; and you also will testify. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel: Matthew 10:26 33 Unknown Jesus said to the Twelve: Fear no one. Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Everyone who acknowledges me before others, I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father. Silent Reflection, followed by Discussion

4 Intercessions: Adapted from: A Time for Prayer: The last writing of Philip Berrigan. Response: Sung: O God Hear Our Prayer. That we dim our hearts and our society, we pray: That the Holy Spirit subvert, stalemate, and expose all wars, we pray: That God intervene in the ecological crisis as the God of Creation, because we refuse to change our abuse of the earth, we pray: That Americans begin to understand and resist...the trashing of civil liberties, perpetual war, and world domination, we pray: That the crime of 72 years of nuclearism, and its consequent wasting of our lives and planet be revealed, we pray: That the scourges of the death penalty be ended, we pray: That he global war against children, especially our neighbors to the south, be lifted, we pray: That the rich West generously contribute medication and food to the global victims of HIV-AIDS, we pray: That each of us become people of fidelity, nonviolence, and justice, we pray: Now let us pray for our own needs...we pray Gathering at the Table: (If you wish extend your hand over the table.) God be with you. And also with you. Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to God. Let us give thanks to God. It is right to give God thanks and praise. You are such a gracious host, God of all Creation. Who are we to receive such goodness? You prepare a table for us, amidst our daily struggles, or successes and failures, even in the presence of our enemies. You anoint us, wash us, and feed us. You do all this. We confess that we tend to see our daily bread solely in terms of our own handiwork. But we are not self-sufficient. We need you. We need these brothers and sisters around us. Empower us. Shower us with your holy manna that we might be strengthened for the journey to which you have called us. By faith we stand and worship. By faith we walk and work. By faith we profess that Christ is alive, and that your spirit moves us to be and do more than we ever thought

5 possible. We pray all this in the name of the Jesus who said, I am the bread of life. In that spirit, joining hands together, let us sing his prayer as followers of Jesus. OUR FATHER... Each time we celebrate the breaking and sharing of the bread, we once again make the journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus and back. We can say, too, that each time we celebrate, we are able to achieve a bit more spiritual freedom. Freedom from the subjugating powers of this world, powers that forever try to become rich and popular, and freedom to love friend and foe. Amen. Silent Reflection Breaking Bread Hymn: Pan de Vida (345) Closing Prayer: (From the Book of Common Prayer, 1979) Almighty God, you have created us in your own image: Grant us grace to fearlessly contend against evil and to make no peace with oppression; that we may reverently use our freedom, help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice in our communities and among the nations, to he glory of your holy name: through Jesus Christ who live and reigns with your and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen Blessing: In the power of the Holy Spirit we now go forth into the world, to fulfill our calling as the people of God, the body of Christ. Go in peace. May God be merciful and bless us. May God look on us with kindness, May God so work in our lives that the world around may know God's will, and render praise unto God's name. Amen. May the blessing of Almighty God, Creator, Redeemer, and Holy Spirit come upon us and remain with us forever. Amen. Closing Song: Prayer of St. Francis (508) Passing the Peace