Sunday Prayers 13/3

Prayers of Adoration & Confession

Watch or 6:34

Loving God, you hold us, you hold the world
with compassion beyond our understanding.
We cannot know the depth of your pain
as you watch the death and destruction
caused by greed, self-interest, anger, ignorance.
We seek you beyond the darkness and you are there.

Jesus Christ, you lead us, you show us the way
calling us to follow you on the path to peace and mercy.
We cannot know the depth of your pain
as you watch us stumble, denying you,
closing our eyes to the sufferings of the world.
We seek you beyond our failings and you are there.

Holy Spirit, you breathe in and through us
setting our hearts on fire with a passion for justice.
We cannot know the depth of your pain
as we push you away, quelling the fire
with our busyness, our sadness and despair.
We seek you beyond the ashes and you are there.

Prayer of Confession: Broken, BUC Songs
We continuing praying singing ‘Broken’, join in as you wish – listening, singing the whole song or only the refrain

Broken we come to meet you face to face
Into us breathe wholeness life giving grace.
Broken we come in worship you to find.
Loving rest forgiveness, bread and wine.

1. Weary and dry from our journey
Your pilgrim people we are
you meet us at every corner
open arms.

In every hard place Your presence
acts as our comfort and guide.
Shown through the actions of others
Your love shines.

2. We look for You to sustain us,
Strengthening Spirit You are.
Infinite love our companion
as we share.

And when we stumble or falter
You come to sit by our side.
Never alone will You leave us –
reconciled

Word of Grace
Jesus shapes the world with love calling us
to follow him beyond denial and despair.
Broken, we meet Jesus face to face.
He breathes wholeness, life giving grace
into each and everyone of us.
We can be confident then that
in His name our sin is forgiven.
Thanks be to God.

Saide Cameron, offered for worship 13/03/2022, Lent 2C

SONG: Broken by Elaine Loukes. Used with permission

Prayers of the people

Watch or 53:38

At end of the prayers of the people I will light the oil burner in the chapel space for us to light our own tapers.

Now I would like to invite you to hold a rock in your hand, or in your imagination, as we pray.
We will ask for mercy and sing a Kyrie Eleison during our prayers, appropriately it is one from Ukraine. Let us pray:

God our rock and our fortress,
We pray for a world racked by violence.
We see the images of unimaginable destruction and misery,
this time in Ukraine, and can’t make any sense of such devastation.
How can this happen in 2022?
Why have we not learnt a different way of resolving differences?

Lord have mercy (sing)
Kyrie eleison, Kyrie, eleison, Kyrie eleison

Jesus, who faces the future and does not run away,
We pray for a church that has been found wanting,
siding with power, turning away from uncomfortable truths,
marginalizing people who are different, denying people’s humanity
based of their gender or sexual orientation, and in so doing denying you.

Christ have mercy (sing)
Christe eleison, Christe eleison, Christe eleison.

Spirit, who is with us in our time of trial,
We turn to you in grief,
Grief for the devastating illnesses we face,
the lives that have been lost,
the homes and businesses that have been inundated,
the plans and hopes that have been shattered,
the loss of habitat and destruction of the planet.

Lord have mercy (sing)
Kyrie eleison, Kyrie, eleison, Kyrie eleison

Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, who knows what it is to be tested,
As we work for peace, we know you will be by our side.
As we strive to stand with others in times of need, we know you will stand with us.
As we name these griefs before you, we know you will hold us all in your love.
Amen.

Prayer response: Peace, salaam shalom
Let’s sing now of our longing for peace in the world.
As we sing place your rock near or under one of the artworks close to where you are sitting.

Peace salaam, shalom,
Peace salaam, shalom,
Peace salaam, shalom,
Peace salaam, shalom

Kirsty Bennett, offered for worship 13/03/2022, Lent 2C

SONG: Kyrie eleison, (Ukrainian Orthodox), from Together in Song, Harper Collins Religious.