Second Sunday of Advent December 4/5, 2010 (A) Tony and Veronica Nitko Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. Colossians 3: 15 Announcements Only Call to Worship: Holy God, We long for your peace, and trust in your promise; we hear your call to turn toward you, to change our lives and welcome you in. Meet us here and fill our minds with your wisdom and our hearts with your peace, that our worship together may open us to the challenge of your dream of wholeness for all. In the name of the one who is coming, we pray. Amen! Lighting of the Advent Candles We dream God s dream, of a world at peace Where enemies are reconciled, and children play in safety; Where the poor and powerless find justice. We remember God s promise of a Ruler of Peace, Filled with the Spirit of God, of wisdom and understanding, Of counsel and might, of justice and faithfulness. We light this Advent candle, and we pray: Come Lord Jesus! Open our lives to the Peace that you bring; Let us turn to you, and get ready! Hymn: O Come, O Come Emmanuel (36) Stanza 1 and 7 Only. Lest We Forget: 30 th Anniversary of the Deaths of Martyrs (left to right) Dorothy Kazel, Ita Ford, Maura Clarke, Jean Donovan On December 2nd,1980, Dorothy Kazel, Ita Ford, Maura Clarke, and Jean Donovan
were brutally murdered by the Salvadoran military for their work and dedication to the poor. They dedicated their lives to accompanying the children and families who had fallen victim to the escalating violence and oppression that eventually brought about the civil war Their struggle to be people of integrity and commitment in the face of life threatening situations continues to speak to us. If the lives and sacrifices of our many modern martyrs are going to have any ongoing meaning in the world today, it will be because we still feel their pain and are open to listen to the Gospel calling us: to risk to challenge ourselves to fidelity to the responsibilities of global and local citizenship to be a transforming presence of love, accepting all people as children of one God to hear the cries of oppression around us to live an ever deepening awareness that what is worth dying for is also worth living for to pour forth ourselves in love, living the Works of Mercy in the spirit of the Beatitudes". Let us not forget. So Be It! Introduction to the reading from Isaiah: The Jesse Tree is named from Isaiah 11:1: "A shoot will spring forth from the stump of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots." It is a vehicle to tell the Story of God in the Old Testament, and to connect the Advent Season with the faithfulness of God across 4,000 years of history. The Branch is a biblical sign of newness growing out of discouragement, which became a way to talk about the expected messiah. It is, therefore, an appropriate symbol of Jesus the Christ, who is the revelation of the grace and faithfulness of God. The Israelites through the descendants of Abraham were chosen by God to be a light to the nations. God saved them from the Egyptians but they soon forgot God and worshiped false gods. But God saved them again and again and kept promises to them. Isaiah had spoken of a time when God would cause a new shoot, a new leader, to spring from the cut-off stump of the lineage of Jesse, David s father (11:1). They returned to the land. But across the years, they again struggled to obey and live up to their calling. They would never again slide into the worship of false gods. They had learned that lesson. But the great kindom that they dreamed of restoring remained only a hope. They held onto the hope that the same God who brought slaves out of Egypt, and who brought exiles out of Babylon, could bring the messiah into the world! God was faithful to that promise, and a new savior was born in Bethlehem But we also know that the world is still with us. Even though we can have peace and joy through the presence of Jesus Christ, we still long for deliverance from the oppression of sin in the world. We long for the full reign of the Christ, and the Kindom of Peace that he will bring. So, while we celebrate the birth of the Branch, the new shoot from the stump of Jesse, we still anticipate with hope this Second Advent, and await the completion of the promise. The Jesse Tree helps us retell this story, and express this hope. A READING FROM ISAIAH 11:1-10
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of God will rest on him --the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of God - and he will delight in the fear of God. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithful-ness the sash around his waist. The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of God, as water covers the sea. On that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a signal for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of dwelling will be glorious. The word of God. Thanks be to God. Responsorial Psalm: From: Psalms ANEW, in inclusive language; St. Mary s Press. R. Justice shall flourish in time, and fullness of peace forever. O God, with your judgment endow the leaders. They shall govern your people with justice and your afflicted ones with righteousness. R. Justice shall flourish in time, and fullness of peace forever. Virtue shall flower in their days, and world peace, till the moon is no more. May they rule from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth. R. Justice shall flourish in time, and fullness of peace forever. For they shall rescue the poor when they cry out and the afflicted when they have no one to help them. They shall have pity for the needy and the poor; They shall save the lives of the poor. R. Justice shall flourish in time and fullness of peace for ever. Blessed be their name forever; Their name shall remain as long as the sun. In them shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed; all the nations shall proclaim their happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in time, and fullness of peace forever. 2 nd Reading: From: Advent and Christmas, Wisdom from Henri Nouwen Claiming True Peace Keep your eyes on the prince of peace, the one who doesn t cling to his divine power; the one who refuses to turn stones into bread, jump from great heights, and rule with great power ; the one who touches the lame, the crippled, and the blind, the one who speaks words of forgiveness and encouragement Keep your eyes on him who becomes poor with the poor, weak with the weak. He is the source of all peace. Thanks be to God. Gospel Acclamation Gospel: Matthew 3: 1-12 God be with you. And also with you. A reading from the Gospel of Matthew. Glory to you, O God. QuickTime and a decompressor are needed to see this picture. John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, Repent, for the kindom of heaven is at hand! It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: A voice of one crying out in the desert, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. John wore clothing made of camel s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, We have Abraham as our father. For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire. Listen to what the Spirit is saying to the Church. Glory and Praise Silent Reflection/Dialogue Intercessions: Please sing the response.
God of the prophets, in the wilderness of Jordan you sent a messenger to prepare our hearts for the coming of your son - the one who brings true peace into our world and into our lives. Help us to hear the good news, to repent, and so be ready to welcome our Savior and to enter into the kindom Jesus brings. O God, hear our prayer. Help us, dear God, to accept and to unwrap the gifts you give us; especially we ask you to help us accept the gift of your peace. Help us to acknowledge our deep and abiding need for you and to confess that only you can help us find what we are looking for. Only you can help us repair our broken relationships. Only you can lead us to the peace you want us to have. Help us walk toward the light. O God, hear our prayer. Loving God, as we have prayed for ourselves, so we pray for others. Many are in despair through physical hardship, seeking relief from their burdens, and hope in the midst of their cares. Others have minds and souls filled with hatred, lives shackled by prejudices and the terrible obsessions that lead to war and to that which is worse. Come to them with the help that they desperately need. Come to them with the gift of healing and the gift of seeking. Come to them with the gift of loving and the gift of having found. O God, hear our prayer. Loving God, the church in all the world, also needs saving from everything that threatens its mission. Where it is persecuted, keep it faithful. Where it persecutes, rebuke it. Where it is seduced by affluence, shake it. Where it is self-satisfied, unsettle it. Where it is weak, poor, and meek, bless it with your joy, peace and strength. O God, hear our prayer. We give you thanks for your peace, O God, for your gift to us and for how you have promised it to the whole world. This day we know some of that peace within our own experience: we know what it is to be made whole, what it is to walk through the wilderness and then to enter the promised land, we know what it is to depend on you -- and to find that you do not fail. We hold before you now those who need the peace we have prayed for today, some who need a healing touch, some who need comforting, and some who celebrate your goodness toward them hear our prayers. PLEASE SHARE WITH US YOUR PRAYER REQUESTS AND CONCERNS. O God, hear our prayer Breaking Bread Prayer: We Remember the Bread of Life Jesus, Divine Bread Maker, each time we gather to break this bread we share its richness and: We remember who you are as the bread of our lives: You are the one who enters in the hungry places of our hearts, wanting to convince us of your deep, abiding love.
You are the one who invites us constantly to choose life, even when our world, and sometimes our own inner places, tastes of death, pain, and weariness. You are the one who becomes our spiritual energy, inviting us to yearn for truth and to grow from its treasures. We remember how you gift us with this bread: This bread is strength for us when times are tough. This bread must be broken before it can be shared. This bread, when taken within, transforms the quality of our presence. This bread binds us together, and moves us to forgiveness, and which gathers us to form community. We remember what this bread asks of us: To be patient with our own growth, to recognize the process of our journey, to yield to the nourishment which is waiting for us if we will but come to the table. To be leaven so that faith can rise in our hearts. To be so deeply wedded to compassion that our hearts always save a space for the tears of the world. To give ourselves fully to the sojourning dimension of our lives knowing that the manna of our God is blessing enough for as we yearn for our true home. And finally, we remember: That our hearts are filled with gratitude for this good gift. Within us, all that is holy cries out: Come Bread of Life, come! Let us join hands and hearts and sing the prayer that the Jesus gave us: Our Father Breaking Bread Song: Let the Valleys Be Raised (62) 1,3 Closing Words: Tonight we heard John proclaim the love of God, the forgiveness of God, and the day of God's coming. He made this personal and particular by giving that love and forgiveness to all those who came to him and entered the river with him. What John proclaimed and gave was hope, the hope that peace in our lives is possible, that the past can be forgotten, that it can be washed away, and that when the new comes, when God comes, we can meet and stand before God without fear. The call of John for us to repent is neither a word of criticism nor a word that claims that somehow he is better than us. Rather, on John s lips the call to repentance is a word of opportunity: -- it is a way into the future with God, -- it is a renewal of our relationship with God, and -- it is a new beginning in our relationships with each other. Amen. Blessing:
Go in peace, love and care for one another in Christ's name. And may the Prince of Peace dwell within your hearts and bless you with the mercy that he died to give you. Amen. May his love fill you and make your lives new and whole. Amen. And may his everlasting peace shine forth from you and bring blessings to all who are around you, both now and forevermore. Amen. And May God bless us and keep us, May God s face shine upon us, May God be gracious to us and grant to us, and to all our broken world, peace. And may the blessing of Almighty God, the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit come upon us and remain with us forever. Amen. Closing Hymn: Patience, People (46) 2,3