Liturgy of Lamentation

The Preparation

Celebrant: Brothers and sisters in Christ, we gather to bring before the God of all consolation our tears and our heavy hearts, our prayers and our concerns. It is God who called us out of darkness into the splendor of His light through our baptisms into Christ. It is God who blessed us in our ministry to our communities and to each other. In Him alone is our hope. In Him and through Him we find our being.

As the prophet Jeremiah and the children of Israel poured out their lamentations and prayers to God after the destruction of Jerusalem, so also we pray to the God of our salvation, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

All: Amen

Hymn Just As I Am CP#615 

Just as I am, without one plea,but that thy blood was shed for me,

and that thou bidst me come to thee,O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

 Just as I am, and waiting not

to rid my soul of one dark blot,to thee whose blood can cleanse each spot,

O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, though tossed aboutwith many a conflict, many a doubt,fightings and fears within, without,O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

 Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind;sight, riches, healing of the mind,

yea, all I need in thee to find,O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, thou wilt receive,wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;

because thy promise I believe,O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

 Just as I am, thy love unknownhath broken every barrier down;now, to be thine, yea thine alone,O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Opening Prayer

Celebrant: Let us pray. O merciful Father, you teach us in your holy Word that you do not willingly afflict or grieve your children. Look with compassion on the sorrows of your servants. Remember us, O Lord, in mercy. Strengthen us in patience; comfort us with the memory of your goodness; let your presence shine on us and give us peace through Jesus Christ our Lord.

All: Amen

ReadingsDt. 4:32-40

Psalm 37:1-181 Do not fret yourself because of evildoers; *do not be jealous of those who do wrong.2 For they shall soon wither like the grass, *and like the green grass fade away.3 Put your trust in the Lord and do good; *dwell in the land and feed on its riches.

4 Take delight in the Lord, *who shall give you your heart’s desire.5 Commit your way to the Lord and put your trust in the One * who will bring it to pass.6 God will make your righteousness as clear as the light *and your just dealing as the noonday.7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for God. *Do not fret yourself over the one who prospers,the one who succeeds in evil schemes.

8 Refrain from anger, leave rage alone; *do not fret yourself; it leads only to evil.9 For evildoers shall be cut off, *but those who wait upon the Lord shall possess the land.10 In a little while the wicked shall be no more; *you shall search out their place, but they will not be there.11 But the lowly shall possess the land; *they will delight in abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plot against the righteous *and gnash at them with their teeth.13 The Lord laughs at the wicked, *because God sees that their day will come.14 The wicked draw their swordand bend their bow to strike down the poor and needy, *to slaughter those who are upright in their ways.15 Their sword shall go through their own heart, *and their bow shall be broken.

16 The little that the righteous have *is better than great riches of the wicked.17 For the power of the wicked shall be broken, *but the Lord upholds the righteous.18 The Lord cares for the lives of the godly, *and their inheritance shall last for ever.

2 Corinthians 3:1-18 Silence

Prayers of the People One: Merciful Lord, we acknowledge to You our losses and lamentations. Still we gather as You command and worship You in beauty and holiness.All: Yours is the power and glory forever. One: We turn to you now for your life-giving word. We turn to you for faith and hope.All: We turn to you to ask forgiveness for our sins.

One: Loving God, There is anger that we have expressed over our losses. There is anger we have held tight within ourselves. All: We let our anger go, accepting Christ’s way of renewal and peace.  One: There is inaction that has held us back. There is apathy that has bound us to the old ways. We let our apathy and inaction go so that we may work within a changing world.

All: We let our apathy and inaction go, accepting Christ’s way of renewal and peace.  One: There is a clinging to familiar patterns of worship, a clinging to familiar ways of serving in the community. We let our patterns go.All: We let our old patterns go, accepting Christ’s way of renewal and peace.

One: There is a sense of what might have been that we have clung to, a reluctance to face the realities of our faith communities. We let the old possibilities go. We are ready to grasp fresh possibilities.All: We let our reluctance go, accepting Christ’s way of renewal and peace.  One: We have sung the familiar hymns with familiar friends, with you we move on to sing new songs with new friends.All: We are ready to accept Christ’s way of renewal and peace.

One: We are ready to serve with new friends in new ways. We are ready to move on to new ways of ministry.All: We are ready to accept Christ’s way of renewal and peace.  One: We seek new ways to build up the life of the church and of the whole church of Christ. With God, we move on to strive for justice and peace in our local community and throughout the world.All: We are ready to accept Christ’s way of renewal and peace.

One: We offer you our memories of our faith communities, so dear to our hearts. We offer you the memories that we have shared together and the memories that we keep deep within ourselves. As you have blessed us in the listening and in the telling, Allow us to share them in new ways with renewed faith.All: Christ told wonderful stories and shared His experience with His disciples. Help us tell the old stories in new ways in Christ’s way of renewal and peace.

One:Empower us by Your Holy Spirit to dream dreams and see visions, that all things may be made new in you.All: We dedicate our lives to Your service. One:Make us to be Christ in the world, finding new ways to declare Your love to those around us.All: We dedicate our lives to Your service.

Lord’s Prayer

All: Our Father, which art in heaven,Hallowed be thy Name.Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, As it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread.And forgive us our trespasses,As we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn We Lay Our Broken World CP613

 We lay our broken world

in sorrow at your feet,haunted by hunger, war and fear,

oppressed by power and hate.

Here human life seems lessthan profit, might and pride,though to unite us all in you,you lived and loved and died.

We bring our broken towns,our neighbours hurt and bruised;

you show us how old pain and woundsfor new life can be used.

We bring our broken loves,friends parted, families torn;

then in your life and death we seethat love must be reborn.

PeaceCelebrant: Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid. The peace of the Lord be with you always.All: And also with you. BlessingCelebrant: As God promised to make all things new, may you be brought to a new beginning in Christ.All: Amen

Celebrant: May you find your future in Christ to be as rich and as blessed as your past.All: Amen Celebrant: May your lives be holy and acceptable to the Lord and your dreams filled with the power of the Spirit.All: Amen Celebrant: And may the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit be with you now and forever.All: Amen

 Celebrant: May you find your future in Christ to be as rich and as blessed as your past.All: Amen Celebrant: May your lives be holy and acceptable to the Lord and your dreams filled with the power of the Spirit.All: Amen Celebrant: And may the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit be with you now and forever.All: Amen