RESPONSIVE READING
For the marvelous grace of Your Creation - We pour out our thanks to You, our God,
For sun and moon and stars, for rain and dew and winds, for winter cold and summer heat.
We pour forth our praise to You for mountains and hills, for springs and valleys, for rivers and seas.
We praise You, O Lord, for plants growing in earth and water, for life inhabiting lakes and seas,
For life creeping in soils and land, for creatures living in wetlands and waters,
For life flying above the earth and sea, for beasts dwelling in woods and fields.
How many and wonderful are Your works, our God! In wisdom you have made them all!
But we confess, dear Lord, as creatures privileged with the care and keeping of Your Creation,
That we have abused your Creation gifts through arrogance, ignorance,and greed.
We confess risking permanent damage to Your handiwork;
We confess impoverishing Creation’s ability to bring You praise.
Yet, we confess that Your handiwork provides the context for our living;
It is our home, it is the realm in which we live the life of Your kingdom,
Your kingdom that is now in our midst and coming yet more fully.
We confess, Lord, that we often are unaware of how deeply we have hurt Your good earth and its marvelous gifts.
We confess that we often are unaware of how our abuse of Creation has also been an abuse of ourselves.
O Lord, how long will it take before we awaken to what we have done?
How many waters must we pollute? How many woodlots must we destroy?
How many forests must we despoil? How much soil must we erode and poison, O Lord?
How much of Earth’s atmosphere must we contaminate? How many species must we abuse and extinguish?
How many people must we degrade and kill with toxic wastes before we learn to love and respect your Creation,
Before we learn to love and respect our home?
For our wrongs, Lord, we ask forgiveness.
In sorrow for what we have done we offer our repentance.
We pray that our actions toward You and Your Creation are worthy of our repentance,
That we will so act here on earth that heaven will not be a shock to us.
We promise to reverence Your Creation as a gracious gift entrusted to us by You, our God.
We promise anew to be stewards and not pillagers of what You have entrusted to us.
Creator God, You have given us every reason to learn this wisdom of lives lived in harmony with Creation.
May we, your servants, increasingly serve.
May we, your servants, increasingly come to love Your Creation as we increasingly come to love You,
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Creator God, this is such a beautiful world, both fragile and resilient. Forgive us when we act as if this world belongs to us, rather than you. May our desire to love all of life grow; may our ability to act lovingly toward all of life grow. Thank you for these people and this time together. Help us to continue to support one another in our journeys. Use us to bring about a world more compassionate and just, Where all people and all creation enjoy and share in life’s bounty. Amen.
(adapted from “A Call for Climate Justice,” www.protectingcreation.org/documents/CryOfCreation.pdf)
Prayer of Invocation
Hail, God of life, Maker of the universe! Today we join with birds and trees and animals, with rocks and rivers and mountains, to worship and adore you as the One who brings all beings to their birth! Hail, Christ of the spheres, child of God's wisdom! In your womb the universe was made; but in your love you emptied yourself of all divinity and took the way of ultimate suffering. We have gathered this day to sing our thanks! Hail, Spirit Holy, breath of God's life and primal fire! You dwell in our souls as the instinct for love and justice; you clear our eyes to appreciate beauty and celebrate life. You are the voice of calm and the fire of passion. Ignite our worship, make us lovers of God! (by Garry Deverell, “Eco-Justice Programs,” www.toad.net/~cassandra/deverell.htm)
Opening Prayer
We call upon all that we hold most sacred, the presence and power of God the Creator.
Teach us to care for the earth, our planet home with its beautiful depths and soaring heights, its vitality and the abundance of life.
Help us to live simply that others may simply live.
We make this prayer through Jesus Christ, your Son. Amen.
(from The Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, “Earth Day Prayer Service,” http://www.osfphila.org/sp/pryr_svcs/prayer_earth_day.html)
God Speaks, Earth Speaks
God speaks through rocks and trees and water,
And the words “Peace be with you” are heard.
God speaks through budding flowers and twinkling stars,
And surely “Peace be with you” is heard.
God speaks, and is still speaking, when every living creature on earth breathes:“Peace be with you. Peace be with you.”
(Pause)
But some do not hear the words.
Some do not hear God speaking through the land or the sea or the air.
They doubt.
God speaks, but they do not hear.
(Pause)
God speaks, but do we listen?
Must we touch the scars on the soil or put our hands through the ozone layer to believe?
Must we have proof of God’s presence among us in order to act?
Or can we believe without seeing. . .
Can we hear creation’s blessing of “peace be with you,” and respond in kind?
God speaks
God speaks!
God speaks through the sunrise and the sunset, “Peace be with you.”
And we are granted another day to respond. Thanks be to God!
by Kelly Jo Clark, “God Speaks, Earth Speaks” http://www.eco-justice.org/GodSpeak.pdf)
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