Resurrection Sunday (Year A): Litany for the Story

Here are the Lectionary texts for Easter morning, Year A. I have tried to draw elements from each text, plus an additional reference from John 2. Hallelujah! He is Risen!

God, You have loved us with an everlasting love;
You have continually been faithful (Jeremiah 31:3)
You are our strength.
You are our salvation. ((Psalm 118:14)

This is the story of Jesus of Nazareth:
He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power.
He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed.
He was put to death on a cross and his body laid in a tomb. (Acts 19:38,39)

“Tear this temple down,” he said,
“In three days I will rebuild it!” (John 2:19)

And so it is:
On the third day,
As the disciples Mary and Mary Magdalene have seen:
Christ’s tomb is empty! (John 20:1)
An angel has rolled away the stone: (Matthew 28:2)
He is not there.
He is risen!
He is risen, indeed!

We celebrate the story of Jesus Christ:
Birth, work, death, resurrection.
And we have been raised with Christ,
Who is our life. (Col 3:1,4)

Amen



 

Good Friday: Litany for Scapegoats and Surprises

The texts for Good Friday (Year A) are expansive and rich. In the end, I had to veer away from them specifically to get a better overall picture. I could have written a whole litany on Peter resorting to violence (scolded by Jesus) and then denying Jesus. I could have written a whole litany with imagery from Psalm 22, which Jesus quotes in his last breath. I could have written a whole litany on "approaching the throne... with boldness" from Hebrews 10. It was just too much to pull together into a bite-sized congregational litany. Alas.

Hallelujah to the Lamb of God
Who was sacrificed;
Who was Scapegoat,
Who willingly went to death,
Who gave himself over to principalities and powers
So that they could be undone.

Everything we thought we knew about justice,
Everything we thought we knew about God
All our expectations of power and force
Our preconceived notions of victory
Were overturned in Christ
The old ideas are shadows.

Christ, who went to death
To prove life;
Who went to defeat
To prove victory;
Who went to darkness
To prove light.
Who went to pain
To prove joy.

We wait with you, Son of God, in mourning and quiet,
In the darkness of Good Friday,
Until the day dawns
And the Morning Star surprises our hearts. (1)

Amen

(1)2 Pet 1:19

Maundy Thursday (Year A): Litany for Dinner and Foot-washing

The Lectionary texts for Maundy Thursday include the account of the commands concerning Passover remembrance in Exodus, of Christ's celebration of Passover in 1 Corinthians, and the story of Jesus washing feet after dinner from John 13. Jesus brings the Passover story right back to himself, and then ties it up with a bow of down-and-dirty servanthood.

God, we receive the love of Christ.
We receive his great example,
We receive the power and work he demonstrated by your spirit;
And we receive the commands he has given.

This is Christ’s command:
That we love one another (John 13:34)
Just as Christ loved his disciples and others he met.
As Christ has done so must we do.

This is Christ’s example:
Washing the feet of his friends; (John 13:14-15)
Humbly doing the work of a servant
Becoming vulnerable, laying down his life.

This is Christ’s legacy
Which we receive as the gift of heaven:
Where once there was sacrifice,
Now there is mercy.  (Hosea 6:6)
Where once there was flesh and blood,
Now there are bread and wine. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

The mercy of God has been made known in the body of Christ.
The character of God has been made known in the work of Christ.
He has shown us a way forward,
And we will follow the path of peace.

Amen

Lent 6 (Year A): Litany for Palm Sunday

On Palm Sunday we celebrate the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Riding in on a donkey's colt, Jesus was praised and sung to, offered a cushy path of cloaks and palm branches; then betrayed and condemned shortly after. Every time I read that part of the story I'm reminded of those folks: exalting Jesus one day, calling for his death the next. How moody and un-centered they are, and how like them I am. It's by the mercy of Christ, and by discipline and spiritual formation, that we remain centered in love. (If this Palm Sunday litany isn't to your liking, here's another. )

Here are the Lectionary passages for the Palm Sunday Liturgy.

O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
His steadfast love endures forever! (1)
This is the day that the LORD has made;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it! (2)

Jesus Christ, you were the stone we rejected,
Yet you have become our Cornerstone, (3)
The one we look to as the best example of God’s Love;
The one we exalt above all others.

We are spreading our cloaks out on the path
Laying palm branches at your feet
We offer every good thing we have:
Every talent
Every blessing
Every moment
Every word and thought.
Every thing of value that we claim
We lay at the feet of the King who comes
In humility, in peace, and in Divine Love.

Help us to remain in your steadfast love -
Rooted in gratitude and grounded in your presence;
To stay - no matter what the crowds around us do-
Steeped in compassion and centered in mercy.

Hosanna to the Son of David! (4)
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD (5)

Amen

1) Psalm 118:1
2) Psalm 118:24
3) Psalm 118:22
4) Matthew 21:9
5) Psalm 118:26

Lent 5 (Year A): Litany for Dry Bones

This week's Lectionary readings contain the accounts of Ezekiel's vision of a valley of dry bones, and of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. I've also included elements from Romans 8 and Psalm 130.

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And in his word I hope;
My soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning,
More than those who watch for the morning. (1)

You free us from our graves (2)
And the traps our minds set for us. (3)
You free us from the constant hell of our own egos and deceptions,
And show us the path of peace.

You breath the breath of life into us (4)
And give life to our bodies through your Spirit. (5)
Come from the four winds, O breath,
And breathe upon us, that we may live. (4)

Where there was once a tame breeze
There is a wind.
Where there was once a valley of dry bones
There is a multitude of life.

Our bones were dried up;
Our hope was lost. (6)
But we hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love,
And great power to redeem. (7)

1) Psalm 130:5,6
2) Ezekiel 37:12
3) Romans 8:6,7
4) Ezekiel 37:9
5) Romans 8:11
6) Ezekiel 37:11
7) Psalm 130:7

Lent 4 (Year A): Litany for Blindness

This litany incorporates the New Testament readings from this week's Lectionary passages: when Jesus heals a man born blind in John 9, and a section of Ephesians 5. I am particularly captivated by the image of Jesus smearing mud on the man's face as part of the healing. I think there's all kinds of goodness in that image if we look for it.
 

God, we understand that sometimes, before our eyes can see, they must get muddy.
The mud is a crucial step: Jesus working on us.
We can’t know sight until we’ve tried to see through mud. (1)
We must realize our blindness, and admit it.

The blindness itself isn’t our sin.
It’s pretending we can see when we can’t that is harmful.
It’s judging the mud of others to be worse than our own that sets us back.
It’s being dishonest about our blindness that displeases You. (2)

To all the ways we’ve been blind to our own true selves,
Open our eyes, Oh God.
To all the ways we’ve been blind to the suffering of others,
Open our eyes, Oh God.
To all the ways we’ve been blind to and complicit in our society’s brokenness,
Open our eyes, Oh God.
To all the ways we’ve been blind to the sacredness of human beings,
Open our eyes, Oh God.
To all the ways we’ve been blind to your invitation and calling in our lives,
Open our eyes, Oh God.
To all the ways we’ve been blind to the way of your kingdom coming, now and not-yet,
Open our eyes, Oh God.

We want to live as children of light. (3)
We want to learn what pleases You.  (4)
We want light shined on the deepest recesses of our beings,
So that all that is hidden may become visible. (5)

Amen

1. John 9:11

2. John 9:41

3. Eph 5:8

4. Eph 5:10

5. Eph 5:13

Lent 3 (Year A): Litany for Living Water

Here are the Lectionary passages for the third Sunday of Lent, Year A.

O come, let us sing to the LORD;
Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. (1)

You have proven yourself faithful over and over again.
You give us water for our thirst.
We are the people of your pasture, the sheep of your hand (2)
You give us food for empty bellies.

In every difficulty, you reveal yourself to us and give us good things:
From suffering comes endurance,
From endurance comes character,
From character comes hope,
And hope does not disappoint us,
Because your love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. (3)

Your love is living water for our hearts (4),
An unending source of life.
You give to us freely, as family.
You prove your love for us:
Even when we were still caught up in sin and distance from you,
Christ died for us, bringing us near. (5)

O come, let us worship and bow down,
Let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker. (6)

Amen

(1) Psalm 95:1
(2) Psalm 95:7
(3) Romans 5:3-5
(4) John 4:10
(5) Romans 5:8

(6) Psalm 95:6

Lent 2 (Year A): Litany for Grace and Rebirth

This litany incorporates the Lectionary readings for the Second Week of Lent (Year A). They're not easy ones. They contain concepts whose interpretation theologians have debated for centuries: "Faith vs Works" and the question of what it means to be "born again." These questions and ideas have sparked prolonged and intense debate among various sects of the faith. No wonder it's hard to write a prayer that everyone can pray surrounding these passages, one that is able to hold the tension and explore it.  Tricky business.

We lift our eyes up to the hills. Where does our help come from?
Our help comes from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth.
The Lord is our keeper;
The Lord will keep our lives. (1)

We trust in the Lord, who justifies the ungodly. (2)
We are the ungodly, the lowly;
But the Lord is gracious to us,
And our trust is counted as righteousness. (3)
By faith we are reborn in the Spirit (4):
     New vision
     New ways of thinking,
     New power to accomplish good work.

For the Son of God has shined his face on us
With glorious light (5);
And the Lord has given us the gift of favor.
His promise rests on grace.

To accept the gift of grace
Help us, Oh God.
To trust in you
Help us, Oh God.
To turn away from evil and toward the goodness of Christ
Help us, Oh God.
To produce fruit that comes from vibrant faith
Help us, Oh God.

Amen

(1) Psalm 121
(2) Romans 4:5
(3) Romans 4:3
(4) John 3:6
(5) Matthew 17:2

Lent 1 (Year A): Litany for Abundance

Be glad in the Lord, O Righteous
Shout for joy, all you upright in heart. (1)

The free gift of God is offered to you:
Abundance of grace and life (2)
Through the obedience of the person
Jesus Christ, our Lord.

As Christ fasted in the desert forty days and forty nights and faced temptation (3),
So we set aside a season of fasting and acknowledging temptation:
A discipline which reminds us of our need for God
And draws us closer to Christ

So many things pull at us:
     Power and wealth
     Vengeance and self-protection
     Comfort and ease
Things which draw us away from doing the work of Christ in the world
But steadfast love surrounds us (4)
We confess our transgressions to you
And you forgive us (5)
In the midst of self-denial
We find this abundance of love.

Be glad in the Lord, O Righteous
Shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

(1) Psalm 32:11
(2) Romans 5:17
(3) Matthew 4:2
(4) Psalm 32:10
(5) Psalm 32:5
 

Litany for Ash Wednesday (Year A)

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent, in which people of faith set aside time to fast and reflect upon the state of ourselves. It's a time of humility, and of facing the truth that we are imperfect and fall short and need the grace of God to meet us, not shying away from what we must deal with before we can grow. Many of us smear ashes on our heads on this day, as a symbol of our humility and contrition. This litany references several of the day's Lectionary passages.

Oh God, our wrongdoing is ever before us
Our complicity in systems of injustice
Our tendency to validate falsehoods
Our sloth about love
Our willingness to be constantly entertained and never quiet
Our egos, violence, and idolatry.
   
These things only begin to describe our transgressions.
We are none of us immune to them. (1)
We have done harm
And left good undone.

We devote ourselves in this season
To cleaning up our messes;(2)
Both inward, of our deepest hearts;
And outward, of our societies and relationships.
Show us our own selves,
That we may become transformed
And by repentance and contrition
Re-make the world with you. (3)

We are deep in need of grace.
Have mercy on us, oh God. (4)

Amen

(1)Joel 2:12,13
(2) Psalm 51:10
(3) Isaiah 58:6-8
(4) Psalm 51:1


 

Resurrection Sunday: "Life"

God, your works are marvelous
Your power, amazing.

We are astonished at what You have done:
You have raised Jesus
Who was put to death at the hands of an angry multitude
Who was beaten, nailed, and pierced;
You have raised him to glorious Life.
We are astonished at this gospel.

We stand now silent before you, too surprised for words.
(pause)

And now we raise a shout:
(All:) HALLELUJAH!

That Jesus Christ, put to death on a cross
Is now alive and ruler of the world!
Again we raise our voices:
(All:) HALLELUJAH!

For death has lost its sting.
The grave has been overtaken by life.
The new Kingdom has begun.
The way of love is victorious.

And this gospel fills our hearts, and all the earth:
All: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

Hallelujah!

Lent Series: Litany for Good Friday, "Death"

Great God, we acknowledge that we are not always able to recognize Your ways as good
We confess that we are, at times, confounded;
As on Good Friday, when we commemorate the death of one so dear to us
The Savior, Christ the King.

As a seed must pass through death to sprout new life,
So Jesus Christ has passed into death.
Taking the nature of a human, a servant
He made himself nothing
He humbled himself by becoming obedient to death
Even death on a cross!

For three days, we wait with him, for death to accomplish its purpose;
For Christ’s sacrifice to be made meaningful;
For Christ to re-imagine death.
We grieve, even while we are hopeful.

We wait, and as the stones seal Christ’s body in the tomb, even then we say:
“Oh Death, Where is Your sting? O Grave, Where is your victory?”
And we acknowledge Your good way, the confounding way of obedience to death
That brings us toward Life and Hope.

Amen

Lent Series: Litany for Palm Sunday, "Fulfillment"

"Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" comes directly from John 12, the instance for which Palm Sunday derives its name; in which the people of Jerusalem pave the streets with palm branches and garments, an ancient version of a red carpet, for Jesus and the donkey colt he rides upon. Earlier in the text, Mary pours a pint of expensive nard, a costly essential oil, on Jesus feet.

Hosanna!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!

The One we have long awaited, the Messiah, has come.
Hosanna!
Riding into Jerusalem, not on a warhorse, but on a young donkey,
Hosanna!
The Prince of Peace has come, the one who heals our wounds.
Hosanna!

Everything that was foretold, Christ has fulfilled.
We offer a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving.
We set up a banquet, and pour costly perfume at His feet.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

This is Jesus
Whose name is glorified
This is Jesus
High and lifted up

Hosanna!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!

Lent Series: Litany for Lent, Week 5 "Waiting"

God, in this season of Lent
We quiet our souls
That we may see more clearly the one our hearts long for
We ask, seek, and knock
That our prayers may be answered
And our longing fulfilled

We acknowledge that so much of faith-life involves waiting
     for the voice of God to speak
     for the Spirit of God to move
     for the fullness of Your kingdom to come
     for Christ’s return
     for the world to be made new
     for justice and peace to become ordinary
     for love to become the world’s motivation

We acknowledge that even as we wait, you are working
     redeeming the earth
     redeeming people
     confirming Your love.

As Christ waited three days in a tomb
So do we wait for resurrection life.
We wait in faith,
That You are even now giving us new life.
We wait in hope for the Lord.
All creation waits for the Lord.

Amen

Lent Series: Litany for Lent, Week 4 "Thirst"

This prayer in the Lent Series is written for the fourth Sunday in Lent (this year March 6). I re-used lyrics from one of my songs for this one. You can find the prayers for the first Sunday in Lent (February 14, 2016) here, the second Sunday (Feb 21, 2016) here, and the third Sunday (February 28, 2016 ) here.

God, in this season of Lent we reflect upon our emptiness, and Your fullness
Our souls thirst for You.
We come to You, Wellspring of Life
Our flesh longs for you.
You graciously offer us a fountain of water, springing up to eternal life
In a dry and weary land, where there is no water.

Jesus, You are the Living Water, the holy spring
You satisfy our deepest needs.
Whoever drinks of the water You give
Need never thirst again.

We acknowledge the miracle, mystery, and kindness of Your provision
We were thirsty, and you gave us a drink.
Fulfill now Your promise to us:
That those who thirst for righteousness will be filled.

May our hunger, thirst, and need always lead us to You
Let all who are thirsty come to Jesus and drink of living water.

Amen

Lent Series: Litany for Lent, Week 3 "Hunger"

This prayer in the Lent Series is written for the third Sunday in Lent (this year February 28). You can find the prayer for the first Sunday in Lent (February 14, 2016) here, and the second Sunday (Feb 21, 2016) here.

God, in this season of Lenten fasting we set our eyes toward You.
We turn our hearts in Your direction.
We acknowledge our great need for you, and our great hunger.
Give us food from Your hand, oh God.
We confess that we often seek to fill a void inside us with frivolous things, spiritual junk food.
Forgive us, and bless us with manna from heaven.

We set aside the expectation that our hunger might be satisfied by anything but Your Spirit.
Nourish our souls, oh God.
We rely upon Your promise of provision.
They that hunger for righteousness will be filled.
Where we are empty
Fill us up, Oh God.

Jesus said: “I am the bread of Life. Those who come to me will not hunger.”
We come to You, Jesus.
We do not live by bread alone
But by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Amen

Lent Series: Litany for Lent, Week 2 "Mercy"

This prayer in the Lent Series is written for the second Sunday in Lent (this year February 21). You can find the prayer for the first Sunday in Lent (this year February 14) here.

Hear, Oh God, when we call to You
Have mercy on us and answer us.

In our vulnerability
Have mercy on us, oh God
In our forgetfulness
Have mercy on us, oh God
In our anxiety
Have mercy on us, oh God
In our wrongdoing
Have mercy on us, oh God
In our hard-heartedness
Have mercy on us, oh God
In our blindness,
Have mercy on us, oh God

In your mercy, you rescue us from our enemies.
In your mercy, you remove our transgressions from us.
In your mercy, you made a way for us to be reconciled to You.
In your mercy, you sent your Son, Jesus Christ, to heal our brokenness.

Grant that in this season of Lent, our hearts may be devoted to You,
That we may see Your mercies new each day.
Grant that we may be always ready to offer mercy to those in need of it,
For mercy triumphs over judgement.

Amen

Litany for Ash Wednesday

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent. Congregants wear a smudge of ash on their foreheads to symbolize repentance and fasting, and commence the season of preparation for Easter.

Oh God, we are reminded this day of the temporality of our lives here on the earth.
We are dust and to dust we will return.
It is by your Spirit and your power that we are given life.
You are the source of all hope and life.

We enter now a season of repentance.
That we may turn from selfishness.
We set aside some comforts
That we may turn our attention to Your holiness.
Cast now our transgressions far from us
As far is the east is from the west.

We mourn the profound disconnection from You that happened at the dawn of humankind.
Bring us back into Your presence.
We rejoice in the perfect work of Christ on earth.
Christ reconciles us to You.

Prepare our hearts, Oh God, for Resurrection life.
You bring beauty from ashes.
Prepare our hearts for the joy of Your coming.
You bring gladness from mourning.
Prepare our hearts for the fullness of Your presence.
You bring forth praise from despair.

Amen

Litany for Fat Tuesday

This litany was originally posted at Godspace. Happy Mardi Gras!

God,
We revel in your expansive grace;
We bask in your boundless love;
We delight in the excess of your blessings to us.

As Christ turned water to wine at Cana,
So You are spreading out a bountiful feast for Your people.

We acknowledge that your kingdom is
    always expanding
    always welcoming
    always inviting
    always growing  
    always blessing
    always filling.

We acknowledge that in Your presence there is always
    a joyful song
    a chorus of worship
    a fountain of life.

We acknowledge that your attitude toward us is always
    joyful celebration
    unconditional love
    wholehearted acceptance.

The universe is bursting, drunk with Your love.
Our hearts are plump, satisfied with Your love.
Our lives are filled up, ripe with Your blessing.

May we live our lives in the fullness of joy.
Amen

Lent Series: Litany for Lent, Week 1 "Temptation"

Holy God: in this season of Lenten fasting, we remember Christ
Who went out into the desert to fast and undergo temptation.
We confess that we are often distracted by material comforts
And tempted to value them above the Kingdom of God.

You, God, are our help in difficulty;
Christ is our inspiration.
We confess that we do not live by bread or worldly provision alone,
But by every word that comes from Your mouth.

May we fill our mouths, our hearts, our minds now with your words
That we might be transformed and renewed.
May we, with renewed hearts and minds,
Better serve the purposes of Your kingdom.
May we, by setting aside worldly distractions
Become more like Christ.
May we, with purified motives and deeper understanding,
Receive Christ when He comes to us.

Lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.

Amen