January 17, 2026

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Presider:  Karla

Responder:  Pat

 Theme: Our Prophetic Path

Dave: Over the past few weeks, we have been made aware, through scripture and tradition, that angels, stars, and dreams have played important roles in delivering messages from God to humanity. And it all came to pass as it had been foretold by the Prophets.

The readings provide information that may help those of us who still wonder about how to frame and understand the concept of Prophecy. How, when, and where we have been led by God to experience this Divine Mystery through a different lens. How do the conversion stories of the prophets and ours confirm for us that our transformations were key in leading us into a deeper understanding of the mystery of God? We are continuously called to enter into a transformation that will enhance our relationship with the God mystery, a relationship immersed in the ever-loving energy of evolution, in whom we live, move, and have our being.

Gathering Song:

 Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87935930592?pwd=qZlKA506MIS9okXQQxBkaKsyhsZJDV.1

Presider: We begin our joy-filled celebration together in the name of the Holy One, Source of all Being, Jesus, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit Sophia, our Wisdom within. Amen.

Opening Prayer:  JayCee

O Holy One, voice in the listening heart, your gifts to us are beyond measure, and your patience without limit. We gratefully acknowledge your presence among us and within us. As we gather to celebrate Eucharist, we offer you thanks and praise for the gift of our humanity, the consciousness and freedom that allow us to know you and one another. We ask that you continue to graft us onto your wholeness so that, with absolute self-confidence, we may feel an impassioned desire for everyone else to experience the same transformation and ecstasy. Amen

Gratitude Rite:  Cathy W. reads verses

Jesus, model of love and compassion.

R: Strengthen us to be your Love in the world. 

Jesus, our refuge and our hope.

R: Strengthen us to be your Peace in the world.

Jesus, our truth, and our wisdom.

R: Strengthen us to be your Light in the world.

Transformation Rite   Gina

We pause now to remember the times we have not borne fruit in caring for self and others. Take a moment to recall one missed opportunity, one broken or damaged relationship.

(Pause briefly and extend your hand over your heart)

We ask for and receive forgiveness, we open our hearts to Infinite Love, which embraces and heals us. Let it be.  Amen.

Gloria

 
https://youtu.be/8AK9zPuyQ2o?list=RD8AK9zPuyQ2o

LITURGY OF THE WORD 

Prayer before the scriptural readings

Barbara: May the scriptures we read today become living bread. May your spirit empower us to share the  gift of eternal love to those we meet along our journey

First Reading: Isaiah 49:3, 5-6  Patti

A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

The Holy One said to me, “You are my servant Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” Thus says YHWH, who formed me in the womb to be YHWH’s Servant who destined me to bring back the children of Jacob, and gather again the people of Israel; “It is not enough for you to do my bidding, to restore the tribes of Leah, Rachel, and Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel. I will make you light the nations, so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

The Word of God. R: Thanks be to God.

Psalm 40  Gerry

Response: Here I am, / Adonai, I come to do Your will.

I waited and waited for You, Adonai, now at last You have stooped to me / and heard my cry for help.

R:

You, who wanted no sacrifice or oblation, I opened my ears, You asked no burnt offering or sacrifice for sins. Then I said, "Here I am! I am coming!"

R:

In the scroll of the book, am I not commanded / to obey Your will? My God, I have always loved Your Law / from the depths of my being.

R:

I have always proclaimed the righteousness / of Our God in the great assembly; Nor do I mean to stop proclaiming, / as You know well.

R:

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:1-3  Christine

A reading from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians.

From Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our colleague: To the church of God in Corinth, together with all the holy ones throughout Achaia: Grace and peace from our loving God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Blessed be Abba God, the God of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Source of all mercies and the God of all consoling.

The Word of God. R:  Thanks be to God.

Alleluia

https://youtu.be/4B0nxsYk1N4?list=RD4B0nxsYk1N4

Gospel Reading: John 1:29-34  Margaret

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John.

The next day, catching sight of Jesus approaching, John exclaimed, “Look, there’s the lamb God’s sacrificial lamb, who takes away the world’s sin! This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘The one who comes after me ranks ahead of me, for this One existed before I did.’ I did not recognize him, but it was so that he would be revealed to Israel that I came baptizing with water.” John also gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and the Spirit came to rest on him. I didn’t recognize him, but the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘When you see the Spirit descend and rest on someone, that is the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ Now I have seen for myself and have testified that this is the Only Begotten of God.”

The Good News of Salvation!

R: Glory and praise to our Savior Jesus Christ!

Homily

Statement of Faith  Linda and Therese

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 God's Word, bringer of God's healing, heart of God's compassion, bright star in the firmament of God's prophets, mystics, and saints.

We believe that we are called to follow Jesus as a vehicle of God's love, a source of God's wisdom and truth, and an instrument of God's peace in the world.

We believe that God's 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 people of God  Janet

R: Shelter us, O Holy One, in the shadow of your wings.

As we prepare for the sacred meal, we pray for the needs of the people of God in our community and around the world and for the earth and all universal life sustained by God.

We pray for all suffering from natural disasters all over the world, that they not lose hope and that they feel the light of your love.  R:

Jesus, Wonderful Counselor, give wisdom to those who negotiate to bring about a better quality of life to all people.  R:

We pray that our government puts children above guns, power, and greed.  R:

Jesus, Lamb of God, help us to acknowledge our complicity in the suffering of others, and give us a renewed spirit that we may share in the mystery of redemption. R:

Jesus, Prince of Peace, may those who govern seek to bring peace, that all may live in a fully human way. R:

We pray for the people of Ukraine and Russia, that they may live in peace without fear, and that goodness and sanity will fill the hearts and minds of those that would cause them harm. R:

You are the Way, the Truth, and Life. Awaken in us the courage to set aside all pettiness and all half-truths that keep us divided from one another. R:

And for what else do we pray? Begin with, “I bring to the table.”

Holy One, may we respond to the needs of our sisters and brothers in loving prayer and solidarity. Amen

The Sign of Peace  Penny

It is fitting that, having asked for Divine and mutual forgiveness, we now extend an expression of Peace to each other. Grant Your peace, O Loving God, that following the example of Jesus and with the strength of the Spirit, we may be eager to spread that peace to everyone, everywhere, with no exceptions. Amen All: May the peace of our gracious and loving God be always with us.

Let us turn to each other and, with praying hands, offer one another a sign of peace.

Preparation of the Gifts

Offertory: Here is My Life by Joe Wise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsHM7_XZT5A

Kathy N: Blessed are you, God of all Creation, Earth, and the Universe. This bread we offer is our spiritual evolution into the heart of Christ. May this bread become spiritual nourishment for our journey.

Karen: Blessed are you, God of all Creation, Earth, and the Universe. This wine is our desire to make co-creator choices in our own lives and for humanity. May we grow in faith, hope, and love by following the way of Jesus Christ, our wise elder brother.

Edelle: Grateful for your covenant with us, which extends to us the heritage of light and life and love, we gather in hopeful openness, joined with all living creatures, and we sing

Holy, Holy, Holy by Karen Drucker

https://youtu.be/J3r-3TFB6wI?list=RDJ3r-3TFB6wI

Eucharistic Prayer

Marita: Holy Mystery, you stirred the waters of creation, and you dwell in us and in every living being and earth itself.

Karla: We lift up our hearts to our Creator in whom past, present, future, and all that exists are One.

(Extend hands in blessing over bread and wine for the Invocation of the Wisdom Spirit.)

Come, Wisdom Spirit, and settle on this bread and wine. Fill them with the holiness and wholeness of our brother Jesus the Christ, who is calling us to justice, peace, equality, and dignity for all. We give thanks and praise this day. Amen.

On the night before he died, Jesus gathered with his friends and washed their feet so they would follow his example in serving human consciousness.

When he returned to his place at the table, he spoke the blessing, broke the bread, and shared it with them, saying,

All:  Take and eat of the bread of life. Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.”

Jesus then raised the cup of blessing, spoke the grace saying, “Take and drink of the covenant made new again through my life in each of you and in your community.

All: Whenever you remember me like this, I am among you.”

Jesus, who was with God in the beginning of the creation of the heavens and earth, is with us now in this bread. The Spirit of whom the prophets spoke in history is with us now in this cup.

 Let us proclaim the mystery of faith

R: Christ dies, Christ rises, Christ comes again and again and again.

Great Amen

https://youtu.be/9DiHBsKjBYQ?list=RD9DiHBsKjBYQ

The Abba Prayer Patti

Eternal Spirit, Earth maker, Pain bearer, Life giver, Source of all that is and that shall be, Father and Mother of us all, Loving God, in whom is heaven. 

The hallowing of your name echoes through the universe. The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world, Your will be done by all created beings.

Your commonwealth of peace and freedom, sustain our hope and come to earth. With the bread we need for today, feed us. In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us. In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.

From trial too great to endure, spare us. From the grip of all that is evil, free us. For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever. Amen

Juanita: What we have heard with our ears, we will live with our lives. As we share communion we will become communion, both Love’s nourishment and Love’s challenge to grow in consciousness and obedience to the call of the Holy One in Jesus the Chris

Take and share communion with the words “(I am) or (You are) love for the world.”

Communion Meditation:  As I kneel Before You

https://youtu.be/vdLdeI38V70?list=RDvdLdeI38V70

Prayer After Communion  John

Loving God, may this Eucharist, in which we share Christ’s healing love, deepen our oneness with you and with one another. May wonder and thanksgiving fill us with knowledge, understanding, and experience of your love and compassion for us, your sacred people. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Christ.

Closing Community Blessing  Karla

(Everyone please extend your hands in mutual blessing.)

May our hearts be glad on our journeys as we dream new dreams and see new visions.

May we live and work for mercy, peace, and justice, in our hearts for ourselves and our brothers and sisters…whoever they are and wherever they are.

May we learn to bless, honor, and hold in reverence one another and thus grow in gratitude and humility.

May we continually strive to be the faith of a mustard seed, so we can move mountains that are barriers to justice and equality.

And may we be the face of God to the world, reflecting a compassionate and caring presence in us to everyone we meet.

And finally, as we leave this sacred space, let us look with new eyes and hearts to recognize our call to Spiritual growth and evolving consciousness. Thanks be to God. Amen

Dismissal: Nick

Closing Song:   On Eagles Wings

https://youtu.be/rG_y6X2K_dM?list=RDrG_y6X2K_dM