Day 829: Thursday, June 23, 2022

“the whole world is tied to how your heart feels. You’re as big as the world.”

A Peek at Sunday's Liturgy by Steve and Alice

This Sunday's liturgy takes a look at how we view hope in a world that is unraveling before our very eyes. Active Hope as presented by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone in their book and training curricula give us a new way to view hope - not a world of wishful thinking but a hope based on action and engagement.

As we see in this image, the work revolves around a continuous spiral. We begin by “Coming from a Place of Gratitude. All the major spiritual traditions are grounded in this premise. The second phase of the work is “Honoring Our Pain for the World.” This is done through deep listening and with genuine intention.

We feel the grief and pain for our destruction of the environment or the breaking of relations with other people or things of our world. It is how we become conscious of our belonging. We have an opportunity to look at why that hurts you. Joanna says, “the whole world is tied to how your heart feels. You’re as big as the world.”

It is a movement from the head to the heart. This heart work then allows us to “See with New Eyes.” It gives us the ability to see outside our selves and realize we are a part of the Greater whole.

We see the world as a living organism that can self regulate itself, and we are part of that self regulating system. The final stage of the spiral is moving into action, taking it into the world, “Going Forth.” We will explore this further in our shared homily.

Daily Reflection: Prayer for Juneteenth:

On June 19, 1865, enslaved African-Americans in Galveston, Texas, were told they

were free, almost two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. This date has

become symbolic of the end of 400 years of slavery, and people across the U.S.

have celebrated this day for a century and a half, and it was established as a

federal holiday in 2021.

Creator God, we acknowledge

The 400 years of slavery and pain

Your children stolen from Africa endured.

We acknowledge the sin of racism

That continues to sully our nation,

That continues to stir violence.

Hear our prayers for healing.

Creator God, we celebrate

The strength of our communities,

Who keep the faith,

Who keep the hope alive

That healing is always possible,

That we can become the nation

We aspire to be, with respect for all,

Where every person can live

Secure in dignity and with peace.

Creator God, we give thanks

For the end of the enslavement

Of your beloved children.

Hear our prayers for the end of racism:

Prayers that move us to prophetic action,

So all the promises of freedom

Will be fully realized in our nation.

Amen