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    Gathering Rite (10:25)

    Dedication: “Song for my Father”

    Today is a day like any other day.
    I got up, got dressed, came to church, and here I am with you.
    And I’m singing a song because you asked me to.

    And this song is a song like any other one.
    It starts up, has words and a melody.
    And if it speaks to you, then it’s yours for free.

    But this church is a church unlike any other one.
    It allows me to be me as I am, and as I wish to be.
    And it brings all kinds of good and loving friends to me.

    And my father is a father unlike any other one.
    I’ve received much of the best of what I am from him.
    And it’s my father, Abraham, for whom sing this hymn.
    And this day, and this song, and this church are special
    Because of him.


    Prelude:  “In the Stillness Of the Morning” / “Listen To Your Heart’s Song”

    In the stillness of the morning,
    In the shadows of my of my soul I perceive the Divine.
    And so I say, "Namaste, my brothers and sisters."
    Namaste, Blessed be. Amen.

    Listen. Listen. Listen. Listen.

    Listen to your heart's song. It will help you to face what you fear.
    It will show you the way, if your heart you obey,
    It will keep your vision clear.

    Listen to your heart's song. It will help you begin to see
    That the love in your heart is the strongest part.
    It's the music that sets you free.

    Listen to your heart’s song. It will tell you who you are.
    You can reach from the depths of the deepest sea
    Outward to the highest star.

     Listen to your heart song.
    It will help you be kind, it will make you strong.
    Listen (listen, listen ...) to your heart’s song!

    Introit: “As We Gather In This Sacred Place”

    As we gather in this sacred place
    Let us remember those who have died
    And will die for our sins in numbers beyond counting.

    As we gather in this sacred place
    Let us acknowledge those who yet live
    To grant us grace in blessings ever mounting.

    Let us not forget those whose lives end, as ours begin
    In this sacred place. Amen, amen.

    Meditation: “Within the Center Of Your Heart”
    Do do do do do do, do wah. Do do do, ah, oom.
    Within the center of your heart, whispering
    Speaks the voice of God, whispering.
    Within the center of your heart, crying low
    Sings the voice of God.
    Hear you now; hear you now.
    Listen to the voice.

    Within the center of your heart, crying low
    Sings the voice of God.
    Hear you now; hear you now.
    Listen to the voice.



    To continue listening, click on: Penitential Rite (7:54)
    Borrowing from the title of a Charles Ives composition, and prompted by, and in memory of, a young man who lost the battle with his inner demons, my Reflection begins with a jarring assemblage of notes representing the letters, T-H-E U-N-A-N-S-W-E-R-E-D Q-U-E-S-T-I-O-N W-H-Y‽ (that last character is called an interrobang and is placed there with deliberation).

    Confiteor    : “The Unanswered Question: Why?” / “De Profundis”

    (De Profundis. Ah.)

    From the depths I cry to Thee, O Lord.
    Grant me strength to live Thy holy Word.

    I despair that ever shall I see Thy face.
    In a world of fear that cannot feel Thy grace.

    Oft I feel the world turn into ice.
    Love is dear. No one will pay the price.

    I but seek to learn how to forgive,
    That I may be free, and in Thy mercy live.

    Confiteor ii: “Brian”
    So I talk to you of peace, and I want to save the world;
    I speak of social justice with my banners all unfurled.
    I stand along some picket line, or march with all my friends,
    But when asked, ‘Will I be arrested,’ I reply,
    “Well, that depends.”
    [Chorus]:
    Brian, you never meant to be a hero,
    Didn’t want to be a martyr,
    Did just what you had to do.
    Brian, I just had to give a cheer. Oh,
    But I wish that I could write
    A better song to give to you.
    I write letters after church, vote resolutions every year,
    As I seek to find the answer in a heart still locked in fear.
    I take my CD workshop, talk of laws the action bends;
    But when I’m asked to lay my body down I say,
    “Well, that depends.”

        [Chorus]
    So I seek a path to follow, try to sort out what is true;
    And I believe that we all do the very best that we can do.
    But, God, grant me enough courage and the strength of all my friends
    To resist the urge to say to life and love,
    “Well, that depends.”

        Brian, you never asked to be a martyr,
        Didn’t want to be a hero,
        Did just what you had to do.

        Brian, I just had to give a cheer. Oh,
        But I wish that I could write
        A better song to give to you.

        Bop, da, da … do wah. That depends.

        Brian.

    Kyrie:“Eirana” *
    Lord, you came to live among us, mortal.
    In risen form you said to your disciples:
    Our father’s peace I bring: “Eirana.”

    Kyrie, O Lord, have mercy (eleison.)

    Christ, many times you lived, many times you died:
    Gandhi ji, Martin, Oscar, Rachel, Thomas Fox. “Eirana.”

    Christe, O Christ, have mercy (eleison.)

    Lord, you will continue living, and dying until we get it right. “Eirana.”

    Kyrie, O Lord, have mercy (eleison.)

    “Eirana, eirana, eirana.”

        * “Jesus spoke of peace using the Greek word ‘Eirana.’ He chose this word because it established His peace as inner peace, peace dependent upon God, in contrast to peace as the world understands it.”
        – Dr. Charles E. Smith, from Make Me an Instrument of Thy Peace


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