The Easter season invites us not just to action but also to contemplation. I am so glad that these contemplative services from St Andrews Episcopal Church in Seattle will continue through this season.
A contemplative service with music in the style-of-Taize for the Second Sunday of Easter. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756 with additional notes below:
“Jesus the Lord is Risen (Surrexit Dominus Vere II)” and “My Peace” – are songs from the ecumenical Taize community in France. Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“Even in Sorrow” was composed by Kester Limner in March 2020 for the people of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Seattle, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY).
“By the Mark” is written by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.
Thank you for praying with us! www.saintandrewsseattle.org
by Tom Sine
Many Pastors Have Begun to Search for a New Normal
This has been a tough year for many pastors and their congregations. Many churches report that not only is Zoom attendance down but so is giving. However, some churches have created new ways to reach out to neighbors. For example, Saint Lukes Episcopal Church, here in Seattle, has reached out by inviting neighbors to use their community garden called SLUG… Saint Luke’s Urban Garden.
Pew Research just reported that a growing number of mainline churches are searching to find a new normal. Like many evangelical churches, many leaders are attempting to find ways to move back into their sanctuaries… with social distancing.
Church Members are Searching for a New Normal
I suspect that many of us who are church members are even more eager to find a new normal. I am sure many of us have suffered a tragic loss of loved ones and friends. Many of us know people who have lost their jobs or are in danger of losing their homes. Thankfully, growing numbers of us are getting vaccinated and looking forward to moving from isolation to having people over again.
One of the things that Christine, my partner, and I have missed the most is offering hospitality. We have both had our vaccine shots. Part to the new normal we are beginning to plan for early summer here in Seattle is hosting small groups of friends in our backyard for lunch with social distancing. What is the new normal you are looking forward to with family and friends? I suggest you start your retreat by defining some new normals for your lives. You might restore some practices, like hospitality, to enrich your life.
One Post-Easter Pathway to a New Normal… With a Difference
It looks like things could really begin to recover in the US this summer. What are some things that you would like to be a part of your new normal? What are some of the most realistic places to begin? Post-Easter, what are also some new ways to express your faith in turbulent times like these?
Christine and I are actually going on a post-Easter Retreat on the pacific coast. We will start with discerning what the new normal will look like for us recovering some of the old joys that we miss. We will also explore ways to sharpen our spiritual practices as well as how we seek to reach out to others in these troubled times.
We encourage all readers to plan a post-Easter retreat to begin to more clearly define: what you would like as the new normal in your daily life? What are also some new ways to update your spiritual practices as an immediate follow-up of the celebration of Easter 2021? For example, what are some:
- New daily practices you would like to try out in your spiritual life as a part of a new normal?
- What are also possible new practices you might consider to reach out to so many who are still suffering from both the pandemic and the continuing recession?
Consider Beginning your Post-Easter Retreat by Inviting Jesus to Join you for Breakfast
I suggest that you consider beginning your retreat, as Christine and I are, by inviting the risen Jesus to join for breakfast on our chosen retreat day. My favorite image of the risen Jesus in the 21st chapter of John. Here we see some of his surprised disciples coming back from fishing on Lake Tiberius. “Jesus said to them ‘bring some of the fish you have just caught.’ He added ‘come and have breakfast.’ (John 21:10-12).
I find myself, on this day after Easter Sunday, very drawn to this risen Jesus offering breakfast on the beach to his surprised disciples, I find I am very drawn to this Jesus that is so immediate and welcoming.
John reminds us, “When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter… ‘do you truly love me more than these?’ ‘Yes, Lord’ he said, you know that I love you.’ Jesus said ‘feed my lambs.’” (John 21:15) Jesus repeated his clear message three more times to feed his sheep. (John 21: 15-17)
I also value his follow-up reminder to Peter that following this Jesus isn’t just about the Easter invitation to love the triune God more deeply. It is also an invitation to care more deeply for our neighbors as well.
Christine and I work at home as authors. I have found it easy to start the day, with our individual times of prayer and reflection. Then over breakfast, we take turns reading a Psalm and a gospel portion from the lectionary. We have found these practices have been very renewing during these very abnormal times. We also try to walk 2 miles each day in our neighborhood to enjoy the changing seasons, Christine calls these our “awe and wonder walks.”
If you don’t have any daily practices at this time, I recommend starting the day with some of the upbeat Psalms or begin reading through a gospel with prayer for your day.
In terms of reaching out to our neighbors in these troubled times, identify new needs where you life that stir your concern. I am increasingly concerned about the daunting challenges of our people who are just starting high school and college… particularly those from Black and Latino Communities.
Perhaps your church might consider starting a neighborhood garden project like Saint Lukes has done here in Seattle that we mentioned earlier.
We would love to learn what are new normals you are creating as all respond to the Easter call to join the risen Jesus on the beach for breakfast as our first step to create our own new normal in our lives in 2021.
Tom Sine, co-author with Dwight J. Friesen of 2020s Foresight: Three Vital Practices for Thriving in a Decade of Accelerating Change published by Fortress Press. Check it out on www.newchangemakers.com.
This article was adapted from the original post on the Episcopal Cafe. (Feature photo found here)
This is the second of a 2 part series on the instructed Eucharist. Today’s post starts with the creed that is said after the sermon – in the Episcopal church this is the Nicene creed.
The Nicene Creed
Following the sermon, we take a few moments of silence to let the words dwell with us. Then we recite
together the Nicene Creed, which was written in the fourth century to state the Church’s Trinitarian belief in God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Creed expresses the faith of the whole Church in all times and places.
Although the meaning of some of the phrases are not clear, think of the Creed as a prayer that you share with everyone today who is reciting this creed in their church. And think of it as a prayer you share with everyone who has gone before us who will recited this, and everyone who will come after us. The Creed is part of our communion with all Christians in all times and places.
Some people make the sign of the cross at the end of the creed to remind us that at our baptism we
were sealed with the sign of the cross and made Christ’s own forever. Such acts of reverence are ways in which we show outwardly what we believe inwardly.
The Prayers of the People
We now turn our attention to Christ’s Church and the world. Together, we pray for the Church, for
ourselves, and for the departed. The whole church, past and present, is united together in prayer. The names of persons who are in need of our prayers are added at this point, and there is usually an opportunity for us to speak out loud the names of people for whom we especially want to pray. During the pauses, you are invited to add your own petitions and thanksgivings either aloud or in your heart. These prayers are called “Prayers of the People” because they represent our deepest longings as God’s people at prayer.
The Confession & Absolution
I decided to include the prayer of confession and of absolution in this post after the following explanation.
Now we ask God’s forgiveness for the wrongs we have done individually and collectively as the people
of God. Confession is an important part of prayer whether we do it privately or in church with others. After
the confession is announced, there is a time of silence for private, silent individual confession. Then we recite together the words of confession. After we have made our confession, the Priest says the words of absolution, or forgiveness, assuring us that God has forgiven all of us.
Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
Absolution
Almighty God have mercy on you, +forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.
The Peace
This is the point in the service where we move from the Liturgy of the Word to Holy Communion.We
are first going to pass the peace—an ancient Christian practice suggested by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 16:20.
Being at peace with each other is a Christian obligation. We are invited to be at “peace” not simply with
those around us, but also with all those we have encountered in the last week. We should use this opportunity to resolve to work harder to be at peace with those we find difficult. In addition, it is important to bring the peace of the Lord to all those in our past who hurt us. It is so easy for us to live with unresolved hurt: in the symbolism of touching the hands of others you are invited to release the pain and hurt that is part of the past. This moment of peacemaking comes immediately before the offertory (the moment when we give of ourselves to God). Jesus instructs us to make sure we are at peace with those around us before bringing our gifts to God (Matt. 5:23–24).
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.
The Holy Communion
We now begin the second part of the Eucharist. There are four parts to this half of the service. The
first is our offering of money, food for the poor, and the bread and wine we will use at Communion. The
second part of the Eucharist is the prayer of thanksgiving and the consecration of the bread and the wine.
The third is the breaking of the bread. The fourth is the receiving of communion.
In the early days of the Church, worshippers brought their own bread and wine to the service. The
deacons chose what was needed for the consecration, and the rest was set aside for the poor. Today we have lay people who bring the bread and the wine to the altar. The bread and the wine, along with the money collected for the work of the church, are the offerings that will be presented to God.
The bread and wine are called “oblations”. Bread, wine and our gifts of money represent our lives, our
work, our recreation, our families and our community. In other words, we offer to God all that we have and
all that we do. This is called “stewardship”.
A deacon or priest “sets the table” by laying first a corporal, a white linen cloth, upon which are
placed a chalice, a cup for the wine, and a paten, a plate for the bread. The purpose of the corporal is to hold any crumbs which may come from the bread. Next, wine is poured into the chalice and a little water is added. Adding a little water to the wine was a sign of hospitality in the Middle East in the time of Jesus.
The Great Thanksgiving begins with the offertory sentence which reminds us that all our possessions
are really God’s gifts. The reason we take an offering of money in this part of the service, rather than at some other juncture, is because the fruit of our labor is a part of our Great Thanksgiving. And so we begin with an offertory sentence.
Offertory
Presentation Hymn
The Great Thanksgiving
The Priest now says the Great Thanksgiving. The prayers we use follow an ancient format from the
Second century. They are based on the accounts of the Last Supper primarily found in the Gospel of Luke and the letters of Paul.
We are doing two basic things in the Eucharistic prayer: We are remembering the ancient story, and
sharing in the blessing through the blessing of bread and wine. The prayer remembers the story of the people of God and makes it our own story; and we ask God’s blessing on us through the blessing of the bread and wine in our Communion.
In the Eucharistic prayer, we thank God for the many ways God is present in our lives and for the
many graces given to us. This leads us into a time of remembering—remembering God’s love for us,
remembering how we turned away from God, remembering that God came to us as Jesus Christ to share our
human nature so that we might be brought back to God. We remember Jesus’ last meal with his friends and
the words he spoke over the bread and the wine and we remember his death on the cross.
Once we have remembered the ancient story as our story, we offer our gifts of bread and wine as well
as ourselves and our lives to God. It is our offering that prepares us to invoke the presence of the Holy Spirit, asking that both the bread and wine and we ourselves be sanctified, that is, that we are made holy.
Although the priest says the words, this prayer is prayed by us all together. It is not some magic in the
priests hands that make this meal we share holy, it is our coming together as a family to affirm the thanking, remembering, offering and invoking with a resounding AMEN that makes our bread and wine, and us too, something more than before. Our prayer is completed when we recite together the Lord’s Prayer. In a very real way, the Holy Eucharist is a drama. Together we reenact the offering of Christ to make it real in our lives.
After this follows the part of the service known as the Great Thanksgiving and he Eucharistic prayer. To include these in this post would make it too long but you can find this prayer and in fact all the prayers of this service in The Book of Common Prayer.
The Invitation and Communion
The gifts we gave at the offertory, the bread and the wine, are now returned to us. Because God has accepted these gifts, they are changed. They are for us the Body and Blood of Christ: they become for us love, grace and strength.
(All who seek God and a deeper life in Christ are welcome to participate in Holy Communion. If you do not wish to receive the bread or wine, you are invited to come forward for a blessing. Please cross your arms over your chest to indicate to the priest that you would like a blessing. Gluten-free wafers are available; please make your need known to the minister.)
It is almost time for us to go, but we should not leave before we say together the prayer of thanksgiving. After this, the priest will give us God’s blessing.
Post Communion Prayer
Let us pray.
Loving God, we give you thanks for restoring us in your image and nourishing us with spiritual food in the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood. Now send us forth a people, forgiven, healed, renewed; that we may proclaim your love to the world and continue in the risen life of Christ our Savior. Amen.
The Blessing
We now prepare to leave.
The procession leads us out into the world around us so that we may do the work that God has called us to do, wherever we may be: in our homes, in our schools, in our work and in our play. We have been fed with spiritual Food. God has given us the strength to live our lives as faithful followers of Christ.
We have concluded the Eucharist where we began, in the midst of life, in a world where there is suffering and need. But we are centered, as Christ was, in a life to be lived and shared. The Eucharist is the work of the people of God together. It is not a service confined to Sunday morning. Rather, it is a way of life. It is the essence of life itself.
This is followed by a closing hymn sung while those who have led us in the service process out of the church.
The Dismissal
Now is time for the dismissal. We are not allowed to linger; we are called to get back out into the
world and do the work we are given to do. Finally, the Deacon will send us forth to do the work that God has called us to do, and we all respond by saying with gusto: “Thanks be to God.”
THE DISMISSAL
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
This instructed Eucharist originated from the Rev. Jenny Replogle who used the following resources for this instruction: Liturgical Life Principles by Ian Markham and these two websites – http://bookofcommonprayer.
NOTE: As an Amazon Associate I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links. Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
By Lilly Lewin,
Long ago I found Joyce Rupp’s wonderful book The Cup of Our Life. I have used it for years in my own prayer time and it inspired me to create a way to pray through Holy Week using our coffee/ tea cups… Last Friday, we prayed with Jesus as he took the cup of suffering for each of us. On Easter Sunday, we drank from the CUP OF LOVE. The Living Water was poured out for us on Good Friday and NOW the CUP is refilled and overflows with that LIVING WATER that will never run dry! And that CUP overflows with abundant love!
We have entered into the season of Easter, or Eastertide. It’s a whole season of the Church calendar/church year so you haven’t missed Easter, we are just getting started! We get to experience the HOPE and LOVE of Easter and celebrate Resurrection for 50 days… until Pentecost Sunday (May 23rd this year!).
This gives me HOPE! This reminds me that I don’t have to feel badly if I haven’t experienced much Easter yet. Or if I’m still in shock and traumatized from the craziness of all that has been the Year of Covid, I can start to baby step towards the joy and hope of Easter. And if you work on a church staff, you may be exhausted from all the details of worship during Holy Week, and you might just need a long nap before starting to truly experience the joy of Easter for yourself!
Grab a coffee cup/tea cup. Maybe even find one to represent NEW LIFE and LIVING EASTER to you! I have this cup with the butterfly and other symbols on it that I’m using to remind me of Easter this year. It’s not a new cup, it has chips and flaws, just like me!
HOLD YOUR CUP
What is in your cup today? Talk to Jesus about this… it might be fatigue, frustration, sorrow, joy, peace or something else? Talk to Jesus about this, then Empty your cup of the things you don’t want or need today.
As you hold your cup, consider how you need Jesus to fill it during this Easter Season! What do you want/need Jesus to refill your cup with in the next few days? FILL YOUR CUP WITH SOMETHING TO DRINK AND allow Jesus to fill you up with His great love!
Have you been drinking from an Easter Cup this week?
Have you been tasting the HOPE of NEW LIFE AND RESURRECTION? As you drink from your cup today and this weekend, allow Jesus to fill you with HOPE each day.
The First CUP in our EASTER CUP Series is THE CUP OF HOPE.
Pick up your cup
Hold it
Consider what is bringing you Hope today.
Because of Easter, have new hope… like “Star Wars”. Hope, after so much loss and despair has now returned!
Jesus is no longer dead!
Death doesn’t get to win!
The Empire doesn’t get to win!
We can once again be people of Hope not despair!
HOLD YOUR CUP
HOLD YOUR CUP
What is bringing you Hope today? Maybe even take time to make a list of all the things that are reminding you of HOPE and NEW LIFE so you can notice and remember. Keep the list going during the week and read it out loud next Friday to see all the beautiful, hopeful things that are happening in and around you!
As you drink from your cup today, consider all the things bringing Hope into your life, your world, your home.
If you are having trouble
Ask Jesus to show you .
As you fill your cup, let it be filled with HOPE!
Drink in the Hope of Resurrection
Drink from the Cup of Hope today, and everyday this week.
For me… Hope looks like the Birds in my front yard… and getting the vaccine.
For me the shot/needle/jab is
A sign
A gift
A cup of Hope that we can drink in today!
It’s a gift
Truly a miracle
Im so grateful.
The vaccine is a cup of Hope for me
And I am praying that more people will put away the cup of fear and take the vaccine:shot/jab/needle as an act of loving our neighbors and drinking in Hope!
Pick up your cup
Hold it
What is bringing you Hope today? Drink IN THE HOPE OF RESURRECTION and NEW LIFE!
Make a List of Hopeful Things
This is a post from a few years ago but wanted to highlight it since so many readers seem to be interested in the Introduction to the Liturgical Calendar: Resource List. Part 2 of this will be posted tomorrow.
A few weeks ago, we did something out of the ordinary for our Sunday worship. Throughout our worship service, Mother Danae Ashley, our associate rector, paused to explain what we were doing and why we do it the way we do it. As the elements of the worship service were explained I realized how little I understood of the rich and ancient heritage that inspires the service in the Episcopal and many other mainline and Catholic services. And I realize that if I have little understanding of these than many others do, too, and it is easy for us all to criticize the forms and traditions of another form of service that is different from ours and that we do not feel comfortable with.
Another Wall to be Broken Down
This is another place in which we need to break down walls. We need to seek to understand why our brothers and sisters in others denominations and faith streams worship differently from us. So today and tomorrow I thought that I would share this instructed Eucharist.
I have highlighted some of the explanations that particularly impacted me – either because I had not fully understood these before or because of how far back in the history of the church they are rooted. When we lose sight of this we lose sight of so much that is essential to our faith.
Today we will look at the explanation of the liturgy from the beginning of the service until the scriptures are read which precede the sermon . Tomorrow we will move through the creed, prayers and to the Communion. I hope you find this as enlightening and enriching as I did.
Welcome to An Instructed Eucharist
In Episcopal churches, our posture is part of our participation. So I invite you to stand for the opening hymn and the procession of the worship leaders into the church. We stand out of respect, and you might want to bow as the cross passes you.
The central symbol of our faith is the cross. In this symbol of state execution, we see the presence of God entering into suffering, identifying with it, and transforming it.
We bring to our worship our whole being. We pray not just with words, but with our every sense. We pray silently and we pray out loud, and we pray through music. We pray by sight through the visual symbols that surround us. And we pray even with our sense of taste and smell through the bread and wine we will soon share and through the incense we sometimes use.
We also pray with our bodies through actions like crossing ourselves, and through our stances of sitting, standing and kneeling. Most of these postures are optional, but we find them useful in helping to worship with our bodies and not just our minds.
Typically, we follow the Jewish and Christian traditions of standing to praise God and to pray, sitting in order to listen, and kneeling in order to express penitence and devotion.
The Liturgy of the Word
As the procession begins, we stand as a sign of respect, and also because standing is the best way to sing. So as those who will minister to us through word and song process to the front of the church we all sing the opening hymn
For nearly 2,000 years, Christians have come together Sunday after Sunday, and often during the
week. They have come to offer themselves to God and to communicate with God in a very special way. We call this the Holy Eucharist. “Eucharist” is a Greek word for “Thanksgiving.” Eucharist is only one name for this service. Sometimes it is called the Holy Communion, the Lord’s Supper, or the Mass. But whatever name we call it, our Sunday Eucharist is the centerpiece of our worship and life together as a faith community.
Episcopal worship primarily comes from the Book of Common Prayer. The texts and patterns of
worship in the prayer book are derived from the earliest surviving texts of ancient Christian worship, updated and expanded as times and circumstances have changed.
There are two halves to the Eucharist which we should keep in mind as we experience our worship
together. The first part is known as the “Liturgy of the Word.” The word “liturgy” means the work of the
people. In the Liturgy of the Word we gather in the Lord’s name, proclaim and respond to the Word of God,
and pray for the world and the church. We do this, not as a group of spectators watching a group of
performers, but as the people of God acting together, each with their appointed part to play.
This explanation was followed by the Collect for Purity
Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid:
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly
love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
And then the appropriate Collect of the Day from the Book of Common Prayer.
At this point in the service, we will be invited to learn about the nature of God. God has been revealed
to us through Scripture. Through the reading of Scripture we learn about a God who has encountered
humanity with love and is calling for us to resist sin and live our full potential. Normally there are 4 lessons – one each from the Old Testament, Psalms, Epistles, and Gospels.
Each reading contributes to the picture of how God relates to humanity. From the Old Testament, or
the Hebrew Scriptures, we learn about the story of God’s love and faithfulness from the beginning of time
until the birth of Christ. The Psalms invite us to recognize our different moods–from rage to jealousy as well as praise and joy; as we sing or say the psalm we are invited to trust that God understands those moments when we are bewildered, as well as those when we are happy. This practice of using a psalm after the Old Testament reading goes back to the middle of the fourth century. The Epistles (which means “letters”) help us discover the impact of Christ on the early Church. We’ll talk about the Gospel in a few minutes.
Part of what I love about the readings in this form of service is how they have all been handpicked to move us through a progression of understanding the story of God. So often I misinterpret what Jesus is saying because I do not understand the Old Testament context that he is drawing from.
The Reading of the Gospel
The gospel is a Greek word meaning “good news” and that is the title given to the Dirst four books of
the New Testament – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the biographies of the life of Jesus. The Gospel lesson is always read by a member of the clergy, and if possible, it is read by a deacon, to symbolize that a deacon’s special role is to lead us in taking the Gospel to the world.
On most Sundays, there is a Gospel procession into the center of the congregation, signifying that the
Gospel is at the center of our life as a faith community. Wherever we are seated in the church, it is
appropriate for us to stand up and turn to face the Gospel book and reader as a sign of respect.
Our gospel procession echoes the Jewish practice of carrying the Torah – the scrolls containing the
Law – into the congregation. The Gospel Procession does one more thing – it reminds us that we are to carry the Good News of Jesus Christ into all the world. We usually sing as we make this procession, often singing ‘Alleluia’ to express our joy in the Good News that God has come among us.
Making the Sign of the Cross with your thumb on the forehead, mouth and chest at this time asks
God’s blessing “in my mind, on my lips, and in my heart.” This way of making the sign of the cross is one of the earliest known symbols of the Church, dating from the Second century.
Normally a sermon would follow the Gospel reading. In the sermon, we respond to the word of God we
have heard and continue the conversation of what God is doing here in our community.
This instructed Eucharist originated from the Rev. Jenny Replogle who used the following resources for this instruction: Liturgical Life Principles by Ian Markham and these two websites – http://bookofcommonprayer.
NOTE: As an Amazon Associate I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links. Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
by Gilbert George,
For 2000 years our example stands
Speaking of God and power
in a contrary, counter-intuitive way
The way taught that power
maintained by fear is self-destructive
that violence rebounds upon its wielder.
Our example rejected the many
opportunities to seize political control
knowing that “control” of politics is
an illusion built upon a foundation
of shifting sands.
The nails of Empire still aren’t long enough
to pin truth to the cross of fear
or long enough to hold up the lies
that fear of punishment is the only
path to peace.
The nails of Empire aren’t long enough
to hold together the false hopes
of an Empire in the sky being enough
to carry us through the fear of
Empire sanctioned pain, fear, and death today.
The nails of Empire aren’t, and never will be,
long enough to hold Love to the cross
of controlling fear or to reach
an afterlife of eternal punishment
at the hands of the divine Emperor.
Our example came to town
not on a steed of imperial might
but on a beast of burden, of labor,
carrying the tool to remove the nails
of Empire that can never be
long enough to win against
the wide open arms of love.
Thanks to Andy Gries from Pixabay for the photo above.
I did not grow up in a liturgical church and to be honest, when I first read about it 40 years ago, I found little significance in a calendar that was totally out of synch with the seasons of the Southern hemisphere. It was my first Easter in the Northern hemisphere, with spring bursting out around me, and the promise of resurrection in the air that taught me to appreciate it. I love the way that it connects the human story to the story of God and find that even for my Southern hemisphere friends, it has growing significance that roots our faith in the events of Jesus’ life and encourage all Christians to explore the significance of the rhythm it provides for our lives.
Paul Neeley of Global Christian Worship provides an amazing and comprehensive description of the Liturgical Calendar and how to use it in Using the Church Calendar to Celebrate the Whole Story of God.
Books:
Recommended by Christine Sine
- The Liturgical Year by Joan Chittister. This was one of the first books I read after I became interested in the liturgical calendar. It gave me a very good overview of what it was all about.
- To Dance With God: Family Ritual and Community Celebration by Gertrud Mueller Nelson. I loved this book particularly because of its family orientation which helped me to understand that the liturgical calendar is not just for church but for everyone.
- The Circle of Seasons by Kimberlee Conway Ireton. A very engaging introduction to the church year.
- Seasons of Celebration by Thomas Merton. A classic that offers readers a series of original and masterful meditations on the church year.
- Seasons of Prayer by Donna Fletcher Crow. A fresh approach to the church year that begins with Lent not Advent. This delightful book weaves classic prayers like the Lord’s prayer into the events of the Christian year
- Celebrating the Christian Year by Martha Zimmerman. Another great overview of the church year.
- Celebrating Biblical Feasts In Your Home or Church by Martha Zimmerman. This book focuses particularly on the feasts of the church year. I love the focus on family celebrations .
- Feasting for Festivals Customs and Recipes to Celebrate the Christian Year by Jan Wilson. A wonderful collection of recipes and craft ideas to help us celebrate the seasons.
- Worshiping in Season Ecology and Christ Through the Liturgical Year by Joseph E. Bush Jr. A Very informative look at how God’s love for creation is woven through the liturgy.
Recommended by Others
- Journey Into the Heart of God Living the Liturgical Year by Philip H. Pfatteicher. Journey into the Heart of God is an interesting and helpful mixture of history, theology, and devotional thoughts that will become a partner with you as you walk through the liturgical year. Showcasing hymns, liturgical texts, and customs this an excellent resource for individuals and communities looking for a deeper understanding of all the seasons of the liturgical calendar.
- Living the Liturgical Year Time to Inhabit the Story of God by Bobby Gross. A starting point for those Christians in a non liturgical setting but want a pretty substantial guide that leans toward the devotional bent. Many gems abound for those more knowledgeable about the liturgical year. It will surely help you pursue God in a deeper way.
- A Homemade Year : The Blessings of Cooking, Crafting, and Coming Together by Jerusalem Jackson Greer
- Things Seen and Unseen by Nora Gallagher
- Ancient Future Time by Robert Webber. An excellent resource for those who wish to be rooted in the ancient traditions of our faith but find themselves contextualizing them for the modern world. Particularly strong in guiding individuals and communities in using the yearly liturgical cycle for discipleship.
- The Liturgy of the Ordinary : Sacred Practices in Everyday Life by Tish Harrison Warren
- Moments and Days How Our Holy Celebrations Shape Our Faith by Michelle Van Loon
- Celebrating the Southern Seasons: Rituals for Eotearoa Juliet Batten
And if you are looking for a way to share this with kids here is a great video from Godly Play to watch and share with your kids;
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Photo above of Liturgical Calendar by Third Church, used with permission.
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