The Stable

The winds were scornful,
Passing by;
And gathering Angels
Wondered why

A burdened Mother
Did not mind
That only animals
Were kind.

For who in all the world
Could guess
That God would search out
Loneliness.

--Sr. Mary Chrysostom, O. S. B.

dive for dreams

dive for dreams
or a slogan may topple you
(trees are their roots
and wind is wind)
trust your heart
if the seas catch fire
(and live by love
though the stars walk backward)

honour the past
but welcome the future
(and dance your death
away at the wedding)

never mind a world
with its villains or heroes
(for good likes girls
and tomorrow and the earth)

-- e. e. cummings (1894-1962) avant-garde American poet, and playwright; Published in Poetry magazine, June 1952.

The Journey of the Magi

“A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter.”
And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.
There were times we regretted
The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces,
And the silken girls bringing sherbet.
Then the camel men cursing and grumbling
and running away, and wanting their liquor and women,
And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters,
And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly
And the villages dirty and charging high prices:
A hard time we had of it.
At the end we preferred to travel all night,
Sleeping in snatches,
With the voices singing in our ears, saying
That this was all folly.

Then at dawn we came down to a temperate valley,
Wet, below the snow line, smelling of vegetation;
With a running stream and a water-mill beating the darkness,
And three trees on the low sky,
And an old white horse galloped away in the meadow.
Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel,
Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver,
And feet kicking the empty wine-skins.
But there was no information, and so we continued
And arriving at evening, not a moment too soon
Finding the place; it was (you might say) satisfactory.
All this was a long time ago, I remember,

And I would do it again, but set down
This set down
This: were we led all that way for
Birth or Death? There was a Birth, certainly
We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death,
But had thought they were different; this Birth was
Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death.
We returned to our places, these Kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.

-- T. S. Eliot (1888-1965), American-born Modernist English poet, essayist, editor and critic

Joy

I went to look for Joy,

Slim, dancing Joy,
Gay, laughing Joy,
Bright-eyed Joy,—
And I found her
Driving the butcher’s cart
In the arms of the butcher boy!
Such company, such company,
As keeps this young nymph, Joy!

-- Langston Hughes (1901-1967), African American poet, playwright, and novelist, leader of the Harlem Renaissance

Whatever is Foreseen in Joy

Whatever is foreseen in joy
Must be lived out from day-to-day,
Vision held open in the dark
By our 10,000 days of work.
Harvest will fill the barn; for that
The hand must ache, the face must sweat.

And yet no leaf or grain is filled
By work of ours; the field is tilled
And left to grace. That we may reap,
Great work is done while we are asleep.

When we work well, a Sabbath mood
Rests on our day, and finds it good.


-- Wendell Berry (1934- ), American poet, novelist, essayist, farmer, and agrarian philosopher

Scripture reference: James 5:7-10, Advent 3A

Patience, Hard Thing!

PATIENCE, hard thing! the hard thing but to pray,
But bid for, Patience is! Patience who asks
Wants war, wants wounds; weary his times, his tasks;
To do without, take tosses, and obey.
Rare patience roots in these, and, these away,
Nowhere. Natural heart’s ivy, Patience masks
Our ruins of wrecked past purpose. There she basks
Purple eyes and seas of liquid leaves all day.

We hear our hearts grate on themselves: it kills
To bruise them dearer. Yet the rebellious wills
Of us we do bid God bend to him even so.
And where is he who more and more distils
Delicious kindness?—He is patient. Patience fills
His crisp combs, and that comes those ways we know.

--Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889), English poet, mystic and Jesuit Catholic priest

Scripture reference: James 5:7-10, Advent 3A

Blessing of the Pledge Cards

God of the Broken-Open, God of the Hard-Hearted, Loving God of us all however we come, we bring before you the pledges of our people. 

We thank you for the blessings of this life, of your gifts to us we give back to you. In faith, may we give with thankful hearts. In hope, bless them to your honor and glory in the coming year. In love, guide us to share your love. 

Inspire us to do the work you have given us to do. Encourage us in our weakness. Break open those things which we hold back, so that in the fullness of you we can live, and thrive, and grow. We thank you, Lord, and we commit ourselves, our full selves, our time, talents, and treasure, to you. 

Take these gifts and bless them in the name of Jesus your Christ. Amen.

--from the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia

Liturgy for Pledge Ingathering

Exhortation
Priest:The Lord God in his goodness has seen fit to call us together as the Church of Jesus Christ in this place. In our history of being God’s people of St. Martin's Episcopal Church, God has given us his word of creation, redemption and blessing. He has given us his word of forgiveness and grace. He has given us his word of guidance and mission, and sent his Holy Spirit to empower us for that mission. And when we have strayed from his word, God has called us to return to him that we might continue to be blessed by his grace and favor. We are nothing without our God and his word of hope and promise.

Therefore, people of God, on this day I invite you to commit yourselves and your whole lives to God’s holy word and to his loving purpose for you and for us as St. Martin's Episcopal Church, so that our lives may be enriched and the work of our hands blessed and prospered.

Litany of Commitment to God’s Word
Leader: Let us pray. Almighty God, by your holy word, all that we know has come into existence: our universe, our world, our lives, our loved ones, and all that we have and hold so dear. By your holy word, you sent forth your Son to bring us salvation through the cross of death and resurrection. By your holy word, you have called us together to be a Church of love and service in the world. By your holy word, we know that we live in grace and hope. Keep us ever close to your word, that it might be written upon our hearts.
All: We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Help us to grow in faith and love toward you, so that we might always live in trust and hope.
All:We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Center us in routines that keep us close to you, O Lord. Center us in weekly worship.
All. We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Center us in daily prayer.
All: We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Center us in knowledge of holy scripture.
All: We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Center us in the mission of the church.
All: We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Leader: Center us in lives of thankful giving and loving for all the blessings which you have bestowed upon us.
All: We commit our lives to your word, O God.

Priest: By your word, O Lord, guide our lives, forgive our sins, inspire our thoughts, shape our attitudes, lighten our darkness, give us eternal hope, and fill our hearts with joy, assuring us of your constant presence, until you bring us at last into the glories of your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
All: Amen.

At this time, people may bring their Pledge Cards forward and place them in the baskets before the altar.

Dedication of Pledges & Commitments
Priest: Accept, O God, the tokens of our love and signs of pledge and commitment which we bring forward today. By your word of blessing and grace, may they blossom forth as leaves on a tree, as flowers in our hearts, as blessings in your kingdom, as joy in Jesus Christ.
All: Amen.

 


To view the context for this liturgy as well as to become familiar with other helpful worship resources, click on http://www.LiturgyByTLW.com [Liturgy of God’s Word for Reformation Sunday]

Author
Rev. Thomas L. Weitzel is on the Bishop’s staff of the Indiana-Kentucky Synod, ELCA as the Director of the Freed to Lead Fund.

Prayer Over Pledge Cards

Gracious and loving God, giver of all that is good and true and beautiful and life-giving. These cards represent our sweat, they represent our lives, they represent our dreams. The pledges which we make on them are but tokens of the awesome gifts that have been given to us and they are pledged in thanksgiving for all we have received, for all we have been inspired to be, for all we are challenged to become, in this place.

May they be the first fruits of all we have and not what we have left over, so that we may live out as closely as possible how you give to us. May we see them as our offering to you, sacred, holy, yet earthy, filled with possibilities. May we hold this image in our hearts and minds so as we watch our offerings each week come to your table, we can see our very selves being part of this offering, it is us on the table, living sacrifices to you. Amen.


--The Rt. Rev. Greg Rickel, Bishop of the Diocese of Olympia