Worship Words for Sunday, June 21: When the Words are Wrong

Looking for liturgical language that suits this moment in our world — a world of pandemic, uprising against individual and systemic racism, virtual gathering, and so much more? Here we offer some…feel free to use as is, to adapt, or to use for inspiration for your own. If you use these in written materials, please credit the author. If you use them in online worship, there’s no need for verbal attribution but if you post the video and it’s possible to mention the author in the video description, please do.

Collect/Prayer of the Day for Father’s Day by Julia Seymour
Holy and gracious Parent of all, your presence is with us all of our days and your love surrounds us in both pain and joy. On this day, we ask your blessing for those on earth who fulfill the role of father. May these people be strengthened in patience and mercy all of their days. Bring wholeness to brokenness, safe unity to separation, a just peace to dissension, and hopeful joy to sorrow. Console those who are grieving on this day with your Holy Spirit’s power. On this day, and on the last day, may the fatherly among us rest in your peace and rise in your power through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, to whom all glory and honor is due. Amen.

Oración de confesión by Julia Seymour
Dios de misericordia
Hemos pecado en nuestras palabras, nuestros hechos y nuestros pensamientos.
No amamos a nuestros vecinos.
Peleamos con nuestra familia.
No nos preocupamos por la tierra o los animales.
Ni siquiera nos arrepentimos sin su ayuda.
Perdónanos. Ayúdanos. Cúranos
Nuestros corazones quieren tu integridad.

Litany for Reflection by Julia Seymour
Lord, I speak as one, but I offer words for all of us gathered before you.
Lord, I speak as one, but I reflect on the brokenness of the whole world.
Lord, I speak as one, but I ache with collected knowledge and memories of generations.

As your people, Lord, we often look to Abraham and Sarah as our spiritual parents. We frequently praise their faithfulness. We sometimes speak about their doubts and missteps. We almost never tell of their cruelty to Hagar and to Ishmael. We never discuss that their actions toward Hagar and Ishmael were lawful, but immoral. We do not tell the whole story of your faithfulness to Hagar and to Ishamel; we do not confess the ways in which we have sinned just like Abraham and Sarah.

As your people, Lord, we let the written words about masters and slaves sit on the page, pretending they have no power. We let our eyes and our minds skip over them, as though their venomous history does not rattle warningly. We do not tell the truth about the manipulation of your word and your will by enslavers. We do not renounce, reject, repudiate these words, this history, this reality with our whole selves.

As your people, Lord, we let songs and psalms about your grace flow from our mouths. We revel in the warm feeling of cheap grace, ignoring the deeper call for turning away from sin, depravity, and hatred. We create spiritual bypasses by murmuring that the cross was for “all lives” or we love “all our neighbors”. We sin as though grace is the clean-up crew. We sin, ignoring the hard work of real repentance. We sin, resisting the constraints of your righteous grace.

Lord, I speak as one, but I offer words for all of us gathered before you.
Lord, I speak as one, but I reflect on the brokenness of the whole world.
Lord, I speak as one, but I ache with collected knowledge and memories of generations.

Musical ideas are offered here for your inspiration…if you use them in online worship in any way other than simply embedding/linking them in a post like this one (ie, if you re-use the video in your own video, or if you use the song in your online service), you’ll need all the relevant licenses.

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If you have written words for online worship that you are willing to share, please send us an email: revgalblogpals at gmail dot com.