Welcome to the Canberra Hospital Chaplaincy Uniting Church Service Liturgy 12 July 2012 Jean Shannon presiding Organ Barbara Hall Presbytery Hospital Chaplaincy Leader The Uniting Church in Australia Presbytery of the Canberra Region 1
Call to prayer Lord, we open our hearts to you Creating community in this place; Linking our hopes, our fears, our joys & stresses To the millions who have confessed your presence. Here and now Our hearts are open. Here and now Your loving presence. Reflection Broken Down thought of the day from Brian Andreas Storypeople this is a machine that's supposed to make people good & true & kind & the funny thing is that it works best when it's completely broken down so everyone has to stop what they're doing & get together & figure out how to fix it. Silence for reflection Hymn Readings from our Biblical heritage 2 Samuel 6:1-5 12b-19 Mark 6:14-29 What s an Ark? Finger dancing 2
Opening our hearts To those not here we throw our senses open to include: People far away People in need People we love People who need love, hope, need, nearness. This is the light to guide their way. The sharing candle is lit Taize response sung 4 times Jesus Christ, inner light, do not let my darkness speak to me. Jesus Christ, inner light, enable me to welcome your love. Confession We are about to take the blessing of the Lord so this might be a good time to take stock of our efforts & short falls. Perhaps it is like a spring clean before we receive guests? I cannot pretend to know the things you would like to do better so I have focussed on my own concerns. Your prayers will help me. There is a blank for you to fill in silently at the end. Heavenly father, creator, source of all that we are: I do not always look for creative answers. Sometimes I rely on quick judgements or habits. Holy Spirit, you have touched me in so many ways But I haven t always been listening! Jesus, open to all, forgiving... Help me to walk gently with others, gently with myself, reconciled with God and earth. 3
Holy, Holy creator of all being Help me to be...(insert your concern silently) Amen The invitation Jesus invited all to the feast of peace and new life. Jesus risked everything in compassion. Jesus promised to make himself known in the breaking of the bread. Thanksgiving We give thanks for the wonderful gift of reflective awareness that allows us to recognise and name the sacred presence in our universe. We give thanks. Everything we have Everything we see Everything we do Everyone we love and everyone who loves us reveals this sustaining Presence We lift our hearts in praise. We marvel and wonder at the size and complexity of our universe. We marvel and wonder at the development of life on this planet. We give thanks for your creative Presence that 'energises' this life and all that exists. We recognise that as humans we are called to give your Presence full expression in our lives as we sing and dance, speak and write, love and create. Conscious that we live, move, and have our being in your Presence, we give thanks for people throughout history 4
who have affirmed your loving presence in all people. For those who have invited people to give witness to this by lives characterised by gratitude, compassion, generosity and forgiveness. Especially we give thanks for Jesus of Nazareth. In him we see the sacred presence urging all of us to reveal the creativity of the divine in ourselves. (Adapt/ MMorwood/pns) We also remember the meal tradition of Jesus and the early Jesus movements... So in that tradition, we call upon the Holy Spirit to come down on us and this bread and wine that we might be empowered to live the way of Jesus and become aware of the sacred in our lives, in the ordinary, in the everyday, and in our desire to love as generously as Jesus loved. Bread is broken. Bread... the very stuff of life. Broken. Wine is poured Wine... fruit of the vine. Cup full. Communion After communion God of love, God of compassion, may the celebration of the wonder and the mystery of your Presence, strengthen and enable us to be your body the church. 5
HYMN Blessing The grace of Christ attend you The love of God surround you The holy spirit keep you This day and forever. Dismissal Go out into the world in the power of the spirit In all things, at all times, Remember Christ is with you; Make your life your worship To the praise and glory of God. Amen 6
Thank you for joining us in the chapel. I hope this has been a time of renewal for you. Please stay behind after the service if you would like private prayers. My best wishes and good thoughts go with you as you return to your busy world. This liturgy is a gift of the Uniting Church. Please feel free to take it with you or take it to someone who might be in need of some comfort. Blessings, J Shannon 7
Hard dancing no regrets Alice walker wrote a book called Hard times require furious dancing. She wrote after a horrible year of death and dissolution. When she d felt she had enough time to write and wallow, she got her good friend to design some invitations to a party. Her friends were invited to dance out their feelings until they were exhausted - Until all grief and anger was overcome by joy. The joy of being together, the joy of dancing. Alice says in one of the poems: This we know: We were Not meant To suffer So much & learn Nothing. In our readings today, at the very edges are 2 malevolent figures. They haunt the stories with ill intent first Saul s daughter and then Herodias daughter. Both nursing grudges that would be a cancer. I would call them regret. In my story, they would be the gonna list and they hide at the edges and strike when people are most vulnerable. But Brian Andreas gives some good advice in Some Kind of ride. He says... Everything changed the day she figured out there was exactly enough time for the important things in her life. Perhaps we need to be make more room for dancing. Pastoral Care Chaplaincy Canberra Hospital Phone: 62443849 Fax: 61745132 8
Readings for 19 July 2012-07-17 2 Samuel 6:1-5 New International Reader's Version (NIRV) David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem 1 Again David brought together the best soldiers in Israel. The total number was 30,000. 2 He and all of his men started out from Baalah in Judah. They wanted to bring the ark of God up to Jerusalem from there. The ark is named after the Lord. He is the Lord who rules over all. He sits on his throne between the cherubim that are on the ark. 3 The ark of God was placed on a new cart. Then it was brought from Abinadab's house, which was on a hill. Uzzah and Ahio were guiding the cart. They were the sons of Abinadab. 4 The ark of God was on the cart. Ahio was walking in front of it. 5 David was celebrating with all his might in the sight of the Lord. So was the whole community of Israel. All of them were singing songs. They were also playing harps, lyres, tambourines, rattles and cymbals. 12 King David was told, "The Lord has blessed the family of Obed-Edom. He has also blessed everything that belongs to him. That's because the ark of God is in Obed-Edom's house." So David went down there and brought up the ark. With great joy he brought it up from the house of Obed-Edom. He took it to the City of David. 13 Those who were carrying the ark of the Lord took six steps forward. Then David sacrificed a bull and a fat calf. 14 David was wearing a sacred linen apron. He danced in the sight of the Lord with all his might. 15 He did it while he was bringing up the ark of the Lord. The whole community of Israel helped him bring it up. They shouted. They blew trumpets. 16 The ark of the Lord was brought into the City of David. Saul's daughter Michal was watching from a window. She saw King David leaping and dancing in the sight of the Lord. That made her hate him in her heart. 17 The ark of the Lord was brought into Jerusalem. It was put in its place in the tent David had set up for it. David sacrificed burnt offerings and friendship offerings to the Lord. 18 After he finished sacrificing those offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord who rules over all. 19 He gave to each Israelite man and woman a loaf of bread. He also gave each one a date cake and a raisin cake. Then all of the people went home.
Mark 6:14-29 John the Baptist's Head Is Cut Off 14 King Herod heard about this. Jesus' name had become well known. Some were saying, "John the Baptist has been raised from the dead! That is why he has the power to do miracles." 15 Others said, "He is Elijah." Still others claimed, "He is a prophet. He is like one of the prophets of long ago." 16 But when Herod heard this, he said, "I had John's head cut off. And now he has been raised from the dead!" 17 In fact, it was Herod himself who had given orders to arrest John. He had him tied up and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias. She was the wife of Herod's brother Philip. But now Herod was married to her. 18 John had been saying to Herod, "It is against the Law for you to have your brother's wife." 19 Herodias held that against John. She wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20 because Herod was afraid of John. So he kept John safe. Herod knew John was a holy man who did what was right. When Herod heard him, he was very puzzled. But he liked to listen to him. 21 Finally the right time came. Herod gave a big dinner on his birthday. He invited his high officials and military leaders. He also invited the most important men in Galilee. 22 Then the daughter of Herodias came in and danced. She pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, "Ask me for anything you want. I'll give it to you." 23 And he promised her with an oath, "Anything you ask for I will give you. I'll give you up to half of my kingdom." 24 She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" "The head of John the Baptist," she answered. 25 At once the girl hurried to ask the king. She said, "I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a big plate right now." 26 The king was very upset. But he thought of his promise and his dinner guests. So he did not want to say no to the girl. 27 He sent a man right away to bring John's head. The man went to the prison and cut off John's head. 28 He brought it back on a big plate. He gave it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. 29 John's disciples heard about this. So they came and took his body. Then they placed it in a tomb.