R: May the scriptures we read today become living bread.
May your spirit empower them to shape us in Jesus’ likeness.
Give us wisdom as we interpret these words of scripture; may they nourish our minds and souls.
Come to Me
https://youtu.be/_otg7S0jvp4?si=ZrVWPdNa3_svyfOn
Galen: Help us God to open our hearts to all who are hungry for the goodness of life. R: The bread of life satisfies our hunger and thirst.
Janet: We are witnessed, worthy, and welcomed today by Jesus, the bread of life. R: The bread of life loves us and knows our needs.
Galen: Let us feast at the table of love and justice, where no one dines alone.
The bread of life has come to sustain us. R: Believing this promise, let us worship together!
Nick: Opening Prayer
Gracious God, as we gather in this season of reflection and repentance, you call us from our hiding places and invite us to the table of grace.
You see us in our brokenness and meet us with mercy.
You offer us the bread of life that nourishes our souls,
heals our wounds, and strengthens us for the journey of faith.
In this time of worship, open our hearts to your transforming love and lead us to greater humility and justice.
May this sacred time draw us nearer to you and to one another. Amen
A Reading from the Book of Isaiah 43: 16-21 Barbara
Thus says the Most High, who opens a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters, who leads out chariots and warriors, a mighty army, till they lie prostrate together, never to rise, snuffed out and quenched like a wick: “Remember, not the events of the past, the things of long ago consider not; see, I am doing something new! Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? In the desert I make a way, in the wasteland, rivers. Wild beast honor me, jackals and ostriches, for I put water in the desert and rivers in the wasteland for my chosen people to drink, the people whom I formed for myself, that they might announce my praise.”
The Word of God R: Thanks be to God
Psalm 126 R: God has done great things for us; we are truly glad.
Verses: Rita
When God brought back the captives of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouths were filled with laughter and our tongues with rejoicing. R:
Restore our fortunes, O God, like the streams in the Negeb! May those who sow in tears reap with songs of joy! R:
Those who go forth weeping, carrying the seed for sowing will come home with shouts of joy R:
A reading from the letter of Paul to the Philippians 3: 8-14 Lucia
I have come to rate all our loss in the light of the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ. For Christ’s sake I have forfeited everything. I have accounted all else rubbish so that Christ may be my wealth and I may be in Christ, not having any justice of my own based on observance of the law. The justice I possess is that which comes from tough faith in Christ. It has its origin in God and is based on faith. I wish to know Christ and the power flowing from the resurrection; likewise, to know how to share in Christ’s sufferings by being formed into the pattern of Jesus' death. Thus, do I hope that I may arrive at resurrection from the dead.
It is not that I have reached it yet, or have already finished my course; but I am racing to grasp the prize, if possible, since I have been grasped by Christ Jesus. Sisters and brothers, I do not think of myself as having reached the finish line. I give no thought to what lies behind but push on to what is ahead. My attention is on the finish line as I run toward the prize to which God calls me -life on high in Christ Jesus.
Gospel Acclamation: Ancient Words by Michael W Smith video by Denise Hackert-Stoner
https://youtu.be/gqtEtqmjHf4?si=zQF4cTaLZAhusGgb
R: and also, with you.
A reading from the Holy gospel according to John 8: 1-11 Nick
At daybreak, he reappeared in the Temple area, and when the people started coming to him, Jesus sat down and began to teach them.
A couple had been caught in the act of adultery, but the scribes and Pharisees brought only the woman, and they made her stand there in front of everyone. “Teacher,” they said, “This woman has been caught in the act of adultery. In the Law of Moses, the punishment for this act is stoning. What do you say about it?” They were posing this question to trap Jesus so that they could charge him with something. Jesus simply bent down and started tracing on the ground with his finger. When they persisted in their questioning, Jesus straightened up and said to them, “Let the person among you who is without sin throw the first stone at her.” Then he bent down again and wrote on the ground.
The audience drifted away one by one, beginning with the elders. This left Jesus alone with the woman, who continued to stand there. Jesus finally straightened up again and said, “Where did they go? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, Teacher.” came the reply. “I don’t condemn you either. Go on your way - but from now on don’t sin any more."
The Good News of Salvation! R: Glory and praise to our Savior Jesus Christ!
Homily Nick
Statement of Faith Pat alternate with Cathy W.
We believe in the Holy One, a divine mystery
beyond all definition and rational understanding,
the heart of all that has ever existed,
that exists now, or that ever will exist.
We believe in Jesus, messenger of the Divine Word,
bringer of healing, heart of Divine compassion,
bright star in the firmament of the Holy One's
prophets, mystics, and saints.
We believe that We are called to follow Jesus
as a vehicle of divine love,
a source of wisdom and truth,
and an instrument of peace in the world.
We believe in the Spirit of the Holy One,
the life that is our innermost life,
the breath moving in our being,
the depth living in each of us.
We believe that the Divine kin-dom is here and now,
stretched out all around us for those
with eyes to see it, hearts to receive it,
and hands to make it happen.
Prayers for the Community Therese
As we prepare for the sacred meal, we are aware that just as Jesus is anointed, so is each of us. We bring to this table our blessings, cares and concerns. Please feel free to voice your prayers beginning with the words “I bring to the table….”
We pray for these and all unspoken intentions. Amen.
PASSING OF GOD’S PEACE Cathy P.
Beneath the mantle of peace, Jesus, the bread of life, provides a bounty of fellowship, care, and connection.
May the peace of Christ be with you.
R: And also, with you.
Take a moment to greet others with the peace of Christ, which inspires us to care for the needs of all those who need God’s love and forgiveness.
Our table is set, let us hold up the bread and wine as the prayer is offered up on our behalf.
Janet: Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you: fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life.
R: Blessed be God forever.
Nick: By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who shared in our humanity.
Galen: Blessed are you God of all creation, through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you: fruit of the vine and work of human hands,
it will become our spiritual drink.
R: Blessed be God forever.
Gracious God, we offer these gifts as a sign of our gratitude for the bread of life that sustains us.
May these offerings be used to feed the hungry, welcome our neighbors, and spread your love and justice throughout the world.
Bless both the giver and the gift, that they may bear fruit for your kin(g)dom.
Amen.
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
Let us join with open hands to pray our Eucharistic prayer:
Nick: Our God Be With You
R: And also, with you
Nick: Lift up your hearts
R: We lift them up to our God
Nick: Let us give thanks to our God
R: It is right and just to give God our thanks
Penny: Brothers and Sisters in Christ, the table is set for you.
God so loved the whole world that God sent Jesus to feed us all.
God freely gives us love and life so we might freely give love and life to others.
If you are hungry, tired, weary, or worn, there is space for you here. Come, the bread of life and the cup of blessing await you.
In the name of the forgiving God of mercy as we sing our song of praise:
https://youtu.be/nTewBnxBy30?si=VCBsGfEwhKPKDrzR
Karla: We thank you for Jesus, simple servant, lifting up the lowly, revealing you as God-With-Us, and revealing us as one with you and all of creation.
Please extend your hands in blessing over your bread and wine.
Nick: Together, we call on Your Spirit, present in these gifts - bread that satisfies our hunger and wine that quenches our thirst – to make us more deeply One, living in the fullness of holy compassion and Sophia Wisdom, that they may become for us the Body +and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ at whose command we celebrate this Eucharist, these mysteries.
As Jesus spent his days with a small circle of friends in the work of healing, forgiving others, and making peace, so he spent one of the last nights of his life with them, to celebrate the ancient festival of Passover.
At the Seder meal, they sang together the psalms of liberation, and then carefully he went among them, to wash their feet.
Back at the table, Jesus took bread from the meal into his hands, said the grace and shared it with them, saying,
Take this, all of you and eat it,
For this is my Body which is given up for you, for you are wonderfully made. (pause)
When the supper was finished Jesus picked up the cup, blessed it then gave it to his friends as he is giving himself to each of us this afternoon saying…
Take this all of you and drink from it, for this is the cup of my Blood. The cup of the everlasting covenant, Do this is memory of me, so that you might be truly free.
Penny: We join ourselves with our Brother Jesus, as visionaries and healers and peacemakers of our own time in history.
Let us proclaim the mystery of our faith.
R: Save us, Savior of the world, for by your cross and resurrection you have set us free.
Juanita: For it is…
Through Christ, we have learned how to live.
Through Christ, we have learned how to love.
Through Christ, we have learned how to serve.
R: Jesus say only the word and we shall be healed
Nick: Let us all receive Jesus together, as we are the Body and Blood of Christ.
(consume the Body and Blood of Christ)
Bread of Life Lenten Song:
https://youtu.be/VmVerIoRS9o?si=vgsqhLGNg4X2ymbJ
John and alternate with Gina
In faith and hope we are sustained; in grace and dignity reclaimed. In praise, we thank you.
In union with all peoples living and dead, we unite our thoughts and prayers, asking for wisdom and courage:
- to discern more wisely your call to us in the circumstances of our daily lives;
- to act justly and courageously in confronting the pain and suffering that desecrates the Earth and its peoples;
- to take risks in being creative and proactive on behalf of the poor and marginalized;
- and to love all people with generosity of heart, beyond the labels of race, creed and color.
And may we ever be aware and alert to the new things Your Spirit makes possible in us, as our world unfolds amid pain and beauty, into the fullness of life to which all are called, participating in the wise and wonderful work of co-creation.
Like Jesus, we will open up wide all that has been closed about us, and we will live compassionate lives, for it is through living as Jesus lived, that we awaken to your Spirit within, moving us to glorify you, O Holy One, at this time and all ways.
Amen.
Let us pray the prayer Jesus: Marita
O Holy One, who is within, around and among us,
We celebrate your many names.
Your Wisdom come.
Your will be done, unfolding from the depths within us,
Each day you give us all we need;
You remind us of our limits, and we let go.
You support us in our power, and we act with courage.
For you are the dwelling place within us,
the empowerment around us,
and the celebration among us, now and forever. Amen
(Miriam Therese Winter)
Nick: Let us pray together our blessing:
Go now into the world brimming with love for God and others. May you share the bread of life, offering not only what sustains the body but what nourishes the soul.
Live your lives serving in the way of Jesus,
extending compassion and mercy to all people,
hope to the despairing, and bread to the hungry.
As you go, may the love of God enfold you, the peace of Christ guide you, and the power of the Holy Spirit sustain you, now and forever.
Amen.
Dismissal: Karla
Closing Song:
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