“Singularity,” by Marie Howe



We are an Open and Affirming, Creation Justice CongregationOrder of Service Earth Day Edition, April 26, 2020We Gather in God’s PresenceLight a candle and center yourself in the presence of God, connecting the light of the candle with the divine light within you.Remember the words of our welcome – “No matter who you are and no matter where you find yourself on life’s journey, you are welcome here.” CREATION CARE MOMENT — This week’s Creation Care Moment comes from Steve Smith: “Good Morning,I would like to discuss an initiative that the Green Team has been considering for some time.? ?Last year an article in the Independent spurred a discussion about food waste and ways that folks who had more than they could use could share with those who might need or want that food.? Specifically the project in Lincoln? took extra garden produce and presented it at a roadside stand which was named “Take it or Leave it”. There was no distinction between those who took the produce or those who left it. Everyone was welcome and no one was questioned.This seemed like a possibility for us.? We are on a road with quite a bit of commuter traffic especially morning and evening and the church has an open parking lot already used often as a cell phone stop.? We imagine a small stand with bins for produce or any??other extra foodstuffs that might be donated. This discussion prompted several questions:- Would people in the church use this service?- Would people be willing to contribute in terms of time?- How many people have gardens who might contribute?Considering our present situation with COVID 19 including large scale unemployment and the resultant food shortages would you be able or willing to plant a little extra for this project?? If you are interested in this project please speak to me, Daniel or any other member of the Green Team.? If there is sufficient interest in the church we will poll the larger community.? Thanks for your consideration.”?Opening Prayer – “Aho Mitakuye Oyasin (All My Relations),” traditional prayer of the Lokota Nation All my relations. I honor you in this circle of life with me today. I am grateful for this opportunity to acknowledge you in this prayer…To the Creator, for the ultimate gift of life, I thank you.To the mineral nation that has built and maintained my bones and all foundations of life experience, I thank you.To the plant nation that sustains my organs and body and gives me healing herbs for sickness, I thank you.To the animal nation that feeds me from your own flesh and offers your loyal companionship in this walk of life, I thank you.To the human nation that shares my path as a soul upon the sacred wheel of Earthly life, I thank you.To the Spirit nation that guides me invisibly through the ups and downs of life and for carrying the torch of light through the Ages. I thank you.To the Four Winds of Change and Growth, I thank you.You are all my relations, my relatives, without whom I would not live. We are in the circle of life together, co-existing, co-dependent, co-creating our destiny. One, not more important than the other. One nation evolving from the other and yet each dependent upon the one above and the one below. All of us a part of the Great Mystery.Thank you for this Life.OPENING SONG “Oh, What a World 2.0 Earth Day Edition,” by Kacey Musgraves PRAYER OF CONFESSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY, by Ana Gobledale, AustraliaCall to prayerEach of us can do our little part to restore God’s creation to a place of health and wholeness.Where can you make a difference?How can you help fix the “damage done”?Let us confess our sins, knowing that God is listening.Prayer of ConfessionGod, often, we act out of ignorance, not realizing that our actions are harmful to the environment.Forgive us our short-sightedness and selfish designs.Help us recognize the beauty of the world – this Garden of Eden – as you have created it.Forgive us our arrogance, thinking we can make your creation more beautiful by changing it.Forgive us for using this continent’s precious water in unsustainable and polluting ways.Forgive us for participating in the destruction of the fragile web of your creation.So too, in our relationships, forgive us when we demand people grow or change to meet our own desires and expectations.Help us see and respect your beauty already in them as they are.SILENT REFLECTION WORDS OF ASSURANCE“Singularity,” by Marie Howe???(after Stephen Hawking)Do you sometimes want to wake up to the singularitywe once were?so compact nobodyneeded a bed, or food or money—nobody hiding in the school bathroomor home alonepulling open the drawerwhere the pills are kept.For every atom belonging to me as goodBelongs to you.???Remember?There was no???Nature.????No?them.???No teststo determine if the elephantgrieves her calf????or ifthe coral reef feels pain.????Trashedoceans don’t speak English?or Farsi or French;would that we could wake up???to what we were— when we?were?ocean????and before thatto when sky was earth, and animal was energy, and rock wasliquid and stars were space and space was notat all — nothingbefore we came to believe humans were so importantbefore this awful loneliness.Can molecules recall it?what once was?????before anything happened?No I, no We, no one. No wasNo verb??????no nounonly a tiny tiny dot brimming withis is is is isAll???everything???homeWe Listen for God’s WordSCRIPTURE & EARTH DAY SERMON Watch Pastor Daniel’s reading and reflections on Psalm 19 here We Respond to God’s WordHYMN “Morning Has Broken” Sing along with lyrics here OFFERING OF GIFTS We will be checking the church mailbox each week, so please continue to donate to our life and mission together through the mail.In addition to our regular offering, these weeks we will be continuing to collect our Deacons Fund offering. The Deacons Fund is a discretionary account used to help local Addison County individuals and families in times of acute need. Checks can be made out to the Weybridge Church, with “Deacons Fund” in the memo line.We are also continuing our collection to Plan International, as we keep in our thoughts and prayers the three young individuals that we are in correspondence with through this offering – Rutendo in Zimbabwe, Said in Honduras, and Heba in Egypt. DOXOLOGY We sing together: “Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise God all creatures here below; Praise God above ye heavenly host; Creator, Christ, and Holy Ghost.” PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE & THE LORD’S PRAYERJoin us at 10:30 for our Zoom Prayer and Fellowship gathering, where we will share our joys and celebrations, and our prayer concerns together. For this week’s conversation the Green Team will be hosting a first quarter check-in on our Creation Justice Pledges. See below for a report from Rev. David Andrews, on his experiments with a “personal carbon tax.” Creation Justice “Pledge” Report – by Rev. David AndrewsBack in January, I pledged to continue the practice of charging myself a "personal carbon tax" of ten cents for every gallon of fossil fuel that I consume, including gasoline, heating oil, and propane, as well as an additional amount from an on line calculator to offset my air travel. This is the third year that I've been doing this, and I've given the money to Vermont Interfaith Power and Light to support their work addressing climate change and environmental justice.?Interestingly, the actual amount of my carbon tax has been declining, which of course means that my fossil fuel consumption has also been declining. There are a few reasons for this. I installed two heat pumps last fall, so I'm burning less heating oil and propane. I made a conscious decision to reduce my air travel after a couple of years when I took multiple trips to Europe. And then along came Covid-19, causing the cancellation of the one trip to Europe that I had allowed myself, and also greatly reducing my driving for the past 6 weeks.?The nice thing about a carbon tax is the double reward it offers for reduced fossil fuel consumption. Not only are you spending less for the fuel, you are also paying a smaller tax. I'd like to see the same logic applied in our public policy.BENEDICTION?“I go my way, and my left foot says 'Glory,' and my right foot says 'Amen'” – Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker CreekWe would love to have you join us for our Zoom Fellowship and Prayer Hour – beginning at 10:30am. You can join the Zoom gathering here. Meeting password: 96153. ................
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