Liturgy

In you, oh God, we have life and community.
In the city and in us, may your voice be heard.

Unconditional,
is the love that you place in our hearts.
Everlasting,
is the promise of hope you made.

We gather as the church.
We gather as the disconnected.
We gather as the restless.

We gather to offer an urban mass:
to acknowledge our restlessness,
to pray for rest, to remember your sacrifice
and to celebrate a reconnection.

God, you see all time and space spread out before you
while we see only in part.
You know the paths set out for us while
we see only our journey to this present moment.

Thank you that we are here together now.
Reconnect us to our environment,
to the community we serve and to each other,
so that while our paths disperse again, we may move as one.

We ask in the name of the Father,
of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Community Confession

O God,
We believe this: there is something within us right now—
so small that we might not know it is there;
but it has the power to grow into something our world needs.

We trust that you are never done with us.
With you, there is always a new beginning,
a new possibility to make something different of ourselves,
and to make a difference in the lives of others.

O God, surprise us with a strength we did not know we had,
with creative possibilities we never dreamed of.

We will open ourselves to the Spirit’s quiet prompting.
We will trust that you nurture within us
the gifts, talents, and character we need
to be Christ Jesus’s instrument of transformation and loving service.

O God, instill in us the confidence to
serve you in ways both great and small,
and to joyfully follow wherever you may lead.

We ask and pray in the name of you, the Father,
of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Reflection

What does the humanity of Christ mean for our bodies and lives here on earth?
As we reflect on what we are saved from through Christ, what are we also saved for?

Benediction

Christ has no body now on earth but ours,
no hands but ours,
no feet but ours.
We are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion
cares for the people of the world;

we are the feet with which Christ is to go about doing good;
we are the hands through which Christ now
brings a blessing.

We promise this day to keep awake,
to live each moment to the full,
to look with eyes of compassion,
and to act with courageous grace.

Go with the peace of Christ, and live the church.

In the name of the Father,
of the Son
and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Go in peace and live the church.
See you throughout the week.

[Photo by brandonfwilson @ Flickr]