Violence
Rolling the Stones Away
The Spring and Summer of 2020 brought us heaviness: pandemic, financial distress, deepening political divisions, and the death of George Floyd which further exposed police violence against black and brown people and rekindled the resistance against systemic racism and white privilege. Any one of these would be heavy. Together they are weighing us down and threatening to crush us. This special service is a liturgical response to the heaviness and is intended to inspire hope and “roll the stones away.” LINK TO VIDEO HERE:...
read moreGun Violence Vigil
Here is a simple liturgy for a Gun Violence vigil held at Charlotte Congregational Church, Charlotte, VT in December, 2018. The liturgy below may be used in a group, or simply printed on sheets for attendees to use on their own. They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious.“Peace, peace,” they say, when there is no peace. – Jeremiah 8:11 ~ Welcome. The Judeo-Christian prophetic tradition teaches us that for real change to occur we need both lament and hope through God. Lament is the act of acknowledging what...
read moreBurdens Down
Sometimes tragedies trickle and sometimes they flow like a firehose. From late August through Early October 2017, Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria, earthquakes in Mexico, and a mass shooting in Las Vegas filled our public consciousness and burdened us. In both my church and personal life I experienced these tragic events having a cumulative and withering effect. The prayer below was written to be used in congregational worship to help people “lay their burdens down.” In conjunction with the prayer, you may...
read more9/11: from Grief to Action
The lectionary readings for 9/11/2016 (Year C, Revised Common Lectionary) offer good fodder for connections with 9/11/2001 and reflections on where we go from here–living with the reality of sin in ourselves and our world, and moving from grief to faithful action. Readings: Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 Psalm 14 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Luke 15:1-10 CALL TO WORSHIP (based on I Timothy 1:12-14 ) Leader: This is our faith: People: Gratefulness, because Jesus gives us strength. Leader: Mercy, overflowing to restore us to our best selves. People:...
read moreGod’s Heart Like a Beating Drum
The week of July 3, 2016 was another week of racism and violence in the U.S. Two black men, Philando Castille and Alton Sterling were shot to death by police officers. In retaliation, Micah Johnson shot 12 police officers in Dallas, 5 of whom died. Though weeks like this are becoming common, these events in particular filled our small rural community with feelings of anger, sorrow, even despair. Come Sunday there was a definite need in our morning worship service to lament and resist the racism and violence while at the same time being...
read morePraying in Response to Violence
On Sunday, 6/12, 49 people were shot to death, and many more were injured in an Orlando nightlcub. It was a horrifying tragedy on its own, but I think it was also the 133rd mass shooting (more than 3 shot) in the US in 2016. We have a major problem in this country with violence in general and gun violence in particular. Sadly, it is a problem that will not go away soon. The church has always prayed in response to violence. Often that praying has taken place during public gatherings like worship services, vigils, bible studies, etc. More...
read moreEverything on the Table: A Script for the Transformation of Gun Violence
This script was used a part of a closing devotional to end a three week ecumenical study about violence in general and gun violence in particular during Lent 2016. (NOTES: 1) The scripture reference below is Micah 4:1-4; 2) For this study we used a resource created by the United Methodist Church, titled “Kingdom Dreams, Violent Realities,” which accounts for some of the language you will see below. For this resource, click here.) The text below can be adapted for use in small groups, at a vigil, for a Sunday morning worship...
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