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litany for Palm Sunday: threat

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Jesus was beloved by the poor and the outcast
but he was a threat to people with power.
Jesus stood against the Temple,
so he was a threat to the Sadducees.
Jesus healed on the Sabbath and ate with sinners,
so he was a threat to the Pharisees.
Jesus took the titles of “Lord,” “Son of God,” and “King.”
those were the Caesar’s titles: he was a threat to the government.
Jesus came without violence
yet he disturbed the peace.
Jesus came proclaiming the Kingdom of God
and the kingdoms of this world were frightened.
Lord, help us to love your Kingdom more than the kingdoms of this world.
For thine is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Drew Ludwig, Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church, Buffalo, NY

confession: caught between options

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God, so often we do not know what to do. We feel caught between the options, uncertain of where you are leading. In our anxiety, we turn on each other, relying on sarcasm and mocking to bolster our pride. In our frustration, we ask all the wrong questions while never listening for an answer. In our fear, we sacrifice you on the altar of our own security and desire. Forgive us, O God.

~silence~

One:    We stand at the threshold of your kingdom, Lord.

All:     Open wide the door of life, and give us courage to walk through.

 

Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL

Confession: You invite, but…

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One:    You, Lord, invite us into relationship

All:     but relationships are messy and hard work, so we turn you into an idea instead.

~silence~

One:    You, Lord, invite us to trust,

All:     but we insist trust must be earned, so we turn back to what we know.

~silence~

One:    You, Lord, invite us to come in,

All:     but we aren’t sure we want to commit, so we stand in the doorway, undecided.

~silence~

One:    You, Lord, invite us to go out,

All:     but we don’t want to offend anyone, and we don’t know enough,

            so we stand at the threshold and look but never leap.

~silence~

One:    Forgive us, O God,

All:     for our chosen captivity to the kingdoms of this world.

Open wide the door of life, and give us courage to walk through.

 

Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL.

confession: denial

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You, O Lord, are the giver of every good gift. Your love is the ground of our being. You call us to listen, to feast upon your word, and to follow in your way. You call us to trust you with everything we are and everything we have. Yet so often we deny you—by claiming we deserve what we have, by remaining silent in the face of injustice, by keeping busy so we do not have time to hear the cock crow.

For all the ways we have betrayed you, and ourselves, forgive us, O God.

~silence~

One:    Open wide the door of life, O God,

All:     and give us courage to walk through.

confession: we keep you at arm’s length

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You, Lord, are closer to us than breathing, nearer than hands and feet. And yet we so often try to keep you at arm’s length, even as we beg for you to be with us. We close the door to protect our privacy, believing security can be gained by keeping others out. We stand outside, believing you don’t really invite us in…and if you do, certainly not along with them.

When we take a step back, insisting on both physical and emotional distance in the name of what is proper, forgive us. When we believe that surface relationship is plenty deep enough, and protest your call to be fully real with one another and with you, forgive us. When we rely on custom as a way to keep ourselves apart, forgive us.

Close the gap between us, Lord, and show us what true love does.

~silence~

One:    Open wide the door of life, O God,

All:     and give us courage to walk through.

Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL