Maybe you’re saving All Saints for this Sunday, because yesterday was Reformation Sunday.
Maybe you’re having stewardship commitment/dedication Sunday.
Maybe you’re in the middle of the stewardship campaign.
Maybe it’s a communion Sunday.
Maybe it’s just another Sunday in the endless Year A journey through Matthew.
Whatever you’re doing this Sunday, we want to create together for worship! Join in the comments below as we write together, bounce ideas around, contemplate themes or hymns or creative expression. How are the people of God encountering the living Word this Sunday?
If you follow the lectionary, you might be pondering telling our history and figuring out how to make a choice to serve the Lord. What does it mean to serve the Lord with your congregation’s particular story? How might that relate to All Saints or Communion or Stewardship? Or you might be wondering what’s up with those lazy bridesmaids who didn’t make sure they had enough oil. Aside from singing Keep Your Lamps, what are some ways we can use the liturgy to help our congregations be prepared to encounter God? If you’re pondering the connection between yet another missed rapture date and All Saints, perhaps Thessalonians is your guide. What liturgical language do you need to illuminate this strange and oft-misunderstood idea?
As we contemplate the plot twists, the lives of our communities, and the movement of the Spirit–what language are you leaning toward for this week? What ideas do you hope to convey? What musical ideas do you have?
Let’s create together!
We are working on All Saints for this coming Sunday. I love pairing it with communion. Not settled on liturgy yet, but we do have a time of remembrance when I invite folks to reflect silently on the saints in their lives and give thanks for them. They can then write those names down on slips of paper and bring them forward and place them all around on the communion table. (I’ll be playing Sweet Honey in the Rock’s “Beatitudes” during that). Then, we have a tangible way to remember that bigger communion of saints who join us in the feast.
We also celebrate All Saints’ this Sunday, and I’m leaning toward using Revelation and 1 John as the texts for the day, with an eye toward talking about the scriptural understanding of “heaven” that they present.
revlkb, I like your idea of having a tangible connection to the saints as part of communion, and now to figure out how to make that happen in our space and liturgy. If you get something together on that, please do share!
Musically, we’re definitely doing “For All the Saints” and probably also “I Sing a Song of the Saints of God.” Another hymn will likely focus on the idea of new creation, since that’s what the sermon is going to lean toward. Any other ideas?
All-Saints.
Every year, I do this thing at the font where we honor the completion of the baptism of any member who has died by placing a glass heart (I have 9 of then) in the font…plus we do the same thing to honor martyrs, victims of violence/oppression, public servants, etc…however many categories I can think of to use all of the stars…this year, to go with our stewardship theme, I’m using pewter acorns instead of the hearts…symbols of the newness/potential/legacy they leave behind as they complete their baptisms.