Tag: siblings

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Invitation to the table Liturgy Prayer after Communion

An invitation to the table and two prayers after communion – no gatekeeping; acting out our gratitude

INVITATION TO THE TABLE

Sisters, brothers, and siblings in Christ,
this table is not ours to guard or gatekeep,
and there is no shortage of blessing here.

This is the table of Jesus Christ,
whose abundance is overflowing
and whose arms are open wide to receive
all who hunger and thirst.
Come to the table: you are welcome. 

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

What words of gratitude are big enough to express
the miracle of being nourished by our God’s own body and blood
across time and space?
Under all our different roofs, in so many corners of the world?

Words fail. So we will act out our thanksgiving,
fueled by this meal to bring glory to God
by working for peace, grafted to justice, for all God’s creatures.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

Let all the people thank you, God, 
for the nourishment of your own body, the sharing of your Spirit.
Having been fed at your table, may we be a nourishment to others,
sharing your good news with the world
until all know your justice, your mercy, and your abundance.
Amen.

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Invitation to the table Liturgy Prayer after Communion

Invitation to the table and prayer after communion: come with your doubts

Sisters, brothers, and siblings in Christ,
as we gather around different tables to partake in the same feast,
let no one be afraid to wonder, “Is God really in our midst?”

Let no one be ashamed to admit they do not fully believe or understand —
for who among us does? 

Jesus truly does welcome us — welcomes you! — to his table just as you are, with your doubts and your dread, your trauma and your pain.
So come, sit with us, and be fed by the One who loves you dearly.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

Jesus our Lord and our sibling, 
At this table you have proclaimed your resounding “Yes!” to our question, “Is God really here with us?”

Through the sharing of your life, your love, your Spirit, you take up our causes as if they were your own. All we can say is thank you. Thank you. Amen.

I wrote this for a virtual service centered around trauma and community’s role in the journey to recovery; an affirmation of protest is also woven throughout the liturgy. My sermon was based around Exodus 17:1-7, looking at the wilderness wandering through a lens of generational trauma and applying it to the collective and individual traumas we are facing today, from those caused by pandemic and police violence to personal struggles.

For this invitation, I draw from the Exodus reading.

Watch or read my sermon here.

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Invitation to the table Liturgy

Invitation to the table: outcasts welcome, bring your struggles and guilt

Sisters, brothers, and siblings in Christ,

When we are shunned, shamed, called unloveable,
Jesus sets a place for us.

When we are the ones doing the shunning and shaming,
Jesus sets a place for us, too, inviting us into a better way. 

Whoever you are, whatever struggles you face,
whatever guilt weighs you down,
come. Join us. This is God’s table, and Her feast is for all.

I wrote this for a virtual service on June 21, 2020 centered around themes of oppression, patriarchy, and white supremacy; it explored how our world shapes each of us based on our various identities and what kind of reconciliation is possible between oppressors and the ones who oppress. My sermon text was Genesis 21:8-21. My sermon, “No Good Patriarchs – Solidarity with Hagar” can be read or watched here.