Update, Tuesday, October 13, 2020
From Pastor Allison – The Sanctuary Working Group invites you to join us next Wednesday, October 14, at 7:30 p.m. for a discussion of the webinar Abolition and Liberation: A Conversation with Angela Davis and Jamal Juma’. You can view the webinar here.
Even if you haven’t had a chance to watch this powerful webinar, please join us for our important discussion on what abolition and liberation look like today.
An Abundance of Spirit and Seeds
Opening Prayer for the Alliance of Baptist Fall Gathering 10/10/20
Written by Rev. Dr. Allison Tanner
To the Great Life-Giver and Liberator we pray
We, Your people, find ourselves living in uncertain and unfamiliar times
Uncomfortable and anxious times
Fearful and turbulent times
Yet times that you are all to familiar with
Times in which you call us to be and do so much more
Times in which the pain of your people cries out to us Apocalyptic times of revealing the powers with which we wrestle
In these times of uncertainty, we take comfort in the promises of old, the ancient rhythms of creation, and your ongoing work as the Great Life-Giver and Liberator
Amidst the chaos of the moment – we continue to live in the SEASON of the SPIRIT –
A Pentecost season of mighty winds and transforming fire
A time in which we celebrate the very breath of God who continues to breathe life into the dust of the earth – who continues to breathe life into valleys of dry bones – who continues to breathe life into the very body of Christ that evil has sought to destroy but always emerges resurrected – may we, the body of Christ, be filled with your life-giving breath that we might be Spirit-led people working for transformation in these tumultuous times.
Pentecost Spirit – Continue to breathe new life into us and into our communities
into our government and our struggling democracy
into our economy and our need to provide for one another
into our health care systems and our education systems,
into our identity as a nation and who we can become
into our understanding of what it means to protect and serve
into our ability to break down walls and welcome strangers and
love our neighbors and care for ALL who dwell in this land
Pentecost Spirit – continue to stir us to ways of life and liberation in
these times that are anything but ordinary
We recognize this Pentecost Season we are living in culminates with the coming of Autumn – a season that intermingles the need to let go of so much that is no longer giving life, and of scattering seeds with abandon that will one day produce new life.
May we be attentive to the seeds that surround us – the abundance of seeds being scattered – seeds that will sink deep into the land and become offshoots of new life in the months and years to come
Seeds of dissent of protest of outrage
Seeds of accountability and demands for justice
Seeds of refusal to let go of our democracy
refusal to let go of our humanity
refusal to let go of our vision of a land filled with liberty and justice for all
Seeds of courage and resistance and resilience
Seeds of reparation and restoration
Seeds of community care and mutual aid
Seeds of hope that give life to movements of hope
Seeds of a new world that limits profit and prioritizes people
that turns swords into plowshares
that allows us to more fully become beloved community
As we watch the ways of old dying all around us,
may we scatter seeds of life with abandon, knowing that death leads to new life there is so much around us that needs to die,
so that new ways of being can take root.
To the Great Life-Giver and Liberator we pray
May your spirit keep breathing new life into us
May we scatter seeds of life in these days filled with death
May we courageously continue to serve life and love and liberation. Amen.
No Soup, But Study meets tonight at 6:00. We continue our study of one passage from each book of the Bible as we consider Leviticus 16: 1-32, The Day of Reconciliation.