Year
A
Proper 27
Sunday
9 November 2014
Eucharistic Preface
Let
us lift up our hearts.
........We
lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our
God.
........It is right to
give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right to give
you our thanks and praise, O God,
for your mysteries well up from
ancient depths,
assuring us that we will be with you forever.
In
the first of your mighty works,
you created the earth and filled
it with life.
You rescued a people from slavery
and called them
to choose between wisdom and foolishness, between serving you and
making their own gods.
In your child, Jesus, you have again
called us to choose -
to live in readiness
for the promised
return
of the one who died and rose again,
or to waste our
opportunities
and squander what you have given us.
We choose to
serve you,
and with hearts full of gratitude
we trust in your
protection and look for the day
when at the trumpet’s sound
the dead will arise
and all will be embraced in the marriage of
earth and heaven.
Therefore with .....
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
Short
Preface
(for insertion into Eucharistic prayers with
fixed prefaces)
As those who have chosen to serve you,
we
give thanks for your protection along the way
and your promise of
a day
when at the trumpet’s sound the dead will arise
and
all will be embraced in the marriage of earth and heaven.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
General
Prayer of Thanksgiving
(Preface reformatted for use
apart from communion)
We give you all
thanks and praise, O God,
for your mysteries well up from ancient
depths,
assuring us that we will be with you forever.
In
the first of your mighty works,
you created the earth and filled
it with life.
You rescued a people from slavery
and called them
to choose between wisdom and foolishness, between serving you and
making their own gods.
In your child, Jesus, you have again
called us to choose -
to live in readiness
for the promised
return
of the one who died and rose again,
or to waste our
opportunities
and squander what you have given us.
We choose to
serve you,
and with hearts full of gratitude
we trust in your
protection and look for the day
when at the trumpet’s sound
the dead will arise
and all will be embraced in the marriage of
earth and heaven.
Therefore, with our hearts lifted high,
we
offer you thanks and praise at all times
through Jesus Christ our
Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
Declaration
of Grace / Absolution
Jesus died and rose again,
and through Jesus,
those who live or die in him
will be
embraced in the mercy of God forever.
Sisters and Brothers,
........your sins are
forgiven;
................be at
peace.
©2002 Nathan
Nettleton LaughingBird.net
Commission
& Benediction
Go now, and follow in the
footsteps
of those who have gone before us in Christ.
Revere
the Lord.
Serve God in sincerity and faithfulness.
Teach those
who come after you to trust in God.
And may God protect you
along the way;
May Christ Jesus keep you alert and prepared;
And
may the Holy Spirit fuel the lamp that guides your path.
We go
in peace to love and serve the Lord,
........In
the name of Christ. Amen.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
Paraphrases
of the Scripture
Lections
for Proper 27 - Year
A - Sunday 9 November 2014
Lections from The
Revised Common Lectionary.
Copyright 1992 by the Consultation on
Common Texts (CCT)
P. O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville, TN
37203-0003, USA. Used with Permission.
* Joshua 24: 1-3a,
14-25
Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel
together at Shechem. He called a meeting of their leaders — the
tribal elders, the clan chiefs, the judges, and the civil officials —
and they gathered under the authority of God. Joshua addressed them,
saying:
“The LORD, the God of Israel, wants you to hear this. Back in the dark ages, your ancestors — Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor — lived in the land beyond the Euphrates river and served other gods. Then the LORD led your father Abraham out of that land and into the land of Canaan, and gave him a huge mob of descendants. So now, treat the LORD with due respect, and be absolutely fair dinkum and rock-solid in your commitment to doing all the LORD asks of you. Have nothing more to do with any of the other objects of devotion that your ancestors worked for back in those days, or when they were in Egypt. Put yourselves wholly at the service of the LORD. But if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, then you can make up your own minds what you are going to devote yourselves to: the ignorant ways of your ancestors back there in the dark ages; or the trivialities of the culture around you here. But I’ve made up my mind for myself and for my family; we will devote ourselves to the LORD.”
When Joshua finished his speech, the leaders replied, saying:
“There is no way we would turn our backs on the LORD and devote ourselves to other gods. It was the LORD who broke us free from slavery and did such spectacular things before our very eyes in the land where we had been oppressed. As we travelled, the LORD looked after us every step of the way and kept us safe from hostile nations. It was the LORD who drove out the nations who were occupying this land to make room for us. Therefore we will serve the LORD, for the LORD is our God.”
But Joshua challenged them saying, “You lot haven’t got
what it takes to serve the LORD, for the LORD
has the most uncompromising standards. The LORD demands your
undivided devotion, and will not tolerate or forgive any
unfaithfulness or breech of trust. If you do the wrong thing by the
LORD and go running around after some other
object of devotion, the LORD will turn on you and
do you some serious damage. The LORD will quit
looking after you and wipe you out instead.”
........But
the leaders of the people all insisted, “No, we will serve the
LORD!”
........So
Joshua said, “You people are all witnesses that you made this
choice with clear heads and sound minds. You all understand that you
are choosing to serve the LORD
alone.”
........“We know
what we are saying,” they replied.
........The
Joshua said, “Well then, get rid of any other objects of
devotion that you have in your lives, and give your hearts wholly and
solely to the LORD our God.”
........And
the people answered Joshua, saying, “The LORD
our God is the only one we will serve and they only one we will
obey.”
........So Joshua
ratified the alliance between God and the people that day, and there
at Shechem he spelt out the terms and conditions of the
alliance.
©2002 Nathan
Nettleton LaughingBird.net
*
Psalm 78: 1-7
We are keen to learn of you,
LORD;
........your
people are eager to hear what you have to say.
We listen to
those who pass on the old stories;
........the
dark mysteries of ancient wisdom.
These are things we must hear
and know,
........for the wisdom of
our ancestors must not be lost.
We will not deprive our
children of these things.
........We
will pass on the stories to the next generation,
LORD,
................stories
of the wonderful things you have done,
........so
that they know how great and amazing you are.
You laid down
the law for your people, LORD,
........and
set out what you expected of your chosen ones.
You spelt it out to
our ancestors,
........and told them
to teach it to their children,
................so
that the next generation would know your ways;
so that those who
had not yet even been born
........would
be able to grow up and pass it on to their children;
so that they
will trust their future to you, God,
........living
their lives by your instructions
................and
never forgetting what you have done.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
*
1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18
Sisters and brothers,
as you grieve over the recent death of some members of your
congregation, we do not want you to be left in the dark about what
this means for their future. The pain of separation is real, but your
grief is different from the grief of others who have no hope beyond
this. Why? Because we believe that Jesus died and rose back to life,
and that in the same way, all those who have died will be gathered up
by God with Jesus to share his life. We declare this to you with the
utmost confidence, for we have the Lord’s word for it. We who
are still alive, and who may still be here when the Lord arrives to
take charge, are certainly no better placed than those who have died.
On that day, when the order is given, and the archangel roars, and
God sounds the siren, the Lord will emerge from heaven in person, and
the first to their feet will be those who have died in union with the
Messiah. Then the rest of us, those of us who are still alive at the
time, will be snatched up too, and there will be a great reunion in
the clouds as we all meet the Lord in the air together. From then on,
there will be no more painful separations; we will all be with the
Lord forever. So keep reminding one another about what I’ve
said, so that you may all take courage in this time of
sadness.
©2002 Nathan
Nettleton LaughingBird.net
*
Matthew 25: 1-13
While speaking to his
followers, Jesus said, “When the time comes, the kingdom of
heaven will be like this:
....At a wedding celebration, ten young women were given the job of holding up oil lamps and forming a guard of honour to greet the bridegroom when he arrived at the reception hall. Five of them had their wits about them, but the other five were not the full bottle. These five dim-wits had their lamps alright, but they didn’t bring any spare oil. The five bright-sparks had some extra with them, just in case. The bridegroom was delayed by several hours, and the ten girls all fell asleep in the foyer while they were waiting for him. Finally, on the stroke of midnight, there was a shout, ‘Quick! The bridegroom is has just come round the corner. On your feet and get those lamps waving!’
....The ten young women all jumped up and trimmed their lamps, but by that time the five dim-wits were almost out of oil. They turned to the well-prepared women and said, ‘Our lamps are going out. Can you spare us some oil?’
....But the well-prepared women replied, ‘Sorry! If we try to make it go around all ten of us, then all the lamps will run out and there’ll be no lights at all. You’ll have to go down to the shops and get some more for yourselves.’
....But while the five who had not kept their stocks up ran down to the shops, the bridegroom pulled up, and those who had been ready for him waved their lamps and followed him into the wedding feast. The door was locked behind them, and when the other five returned, they couldn’t get in. They banged on the door and called out, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us.’
....But the bridegroom replied, ‘I’m telling you straight, I don’t recognise you.’”
“And so,” Jesus concluded, “Keep yourselves ready,
because you have no way of knowing when the time will come.”
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
Alternative
Hebrew Bible Lections themed to the Gospel Lection
*
Wisdom of Solomon 6: 12-16
Wisdom is a radiant
beauty
........and her beauty never
fades.
Those who love her always recognise her
........and
those who seek her have no trouble finding her.
She is open
and generous
........with all who
desire her.
Get up early to track her down
........and
you’ll have no trouble;
you’ll find her right
outside,
........ready and waiting
for you.
Anyone who gets their mind fixed on her
........is
on the way to understanding everything clearly.
Anyone who stays
awake to her
........will soon be
without a care in the world.
She is always on the lookout for
those who are worthy of her;
........she
bowls up and generously introduces herself;
................she
is there in their minds whenever they need her.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
OR
*
Amos 5: 18-24
I, the LORD,
am heartbroken over you people
........who
seem so eager to see day
................when
I step in to put everything right.
........What
have you got to look forward to on that day?
What you see as a
light at the end of the tunnel
........is
a train coming the other way!
For you it will be like you escaped
from crocodile
........and swam into
the jaws of a shark;
or flopped down in your favourite
chair
........and sat on a deadly
snake.
Can’t you see that for you
........the
day of justice will be a dark and gloomy day
................and
not any kind of bright new tomorrow?
I can’t stand your
religious festivals;
........when you
gather for worship, it makes me sick.
I will not accept
anything you offer me in worship,
........no
matter what it costs or how beautifully it is presented;
You can
offer me your sacrifices and gifts,
........but
I will turn away in disgust.
Go and sing your noisy songs
somewhere else;
........I don’t
want to hear another note you play.
Your worship will remain
like a foul stench to me
........until
you flood your lives with justice;
................until
your passion for doing what’s right
........................is
as unstopable as a rolling river.
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net
*
Wisdom of Solomon 6: 17-20
The first sign of
wisdom in a person
........is a
genuine hunger to learn from others.
Those who seek guidance from
others
........are clearly proving
their love of wisdom,
and the love of wisdom
........is
shown in living by her laws.
Living by her laws
........guarantees
unending life,
and unending life is lived
........in
close relationship with God.
So the desire for
wisdom
........leads directly to the
Kingdom of God.
©2002 Nathan
Nettleton LaughingBird.net
OR
*
Psalm 70
Please God, deliver me!
........Help
me, LORD, quickly!
These people are out to
get me, LORD;
........leave
them confused
................with
egg all over their faces.
They are trying to do me
harm;
........knock them off their
perches
................and send them
packing.
When they smirk and make a joke of me,
........run
them out of town in disgrace.
Put a smile on the
face
........of everyone who seeks
you, LORD.
Give everyone who loves your
ways
........reason to celebrate your
greatness forever.
But right now, God, I need your help in a
hurry;
........I can’t make
ends meet.
You are the one who helps me;
........the
one who rescues me from danger.
................Quickly,
LORD, help me without delay!
©2002
Nathan Nettleton LaughingBird.net