Royal Wedding: Prayers

Prince William and Catherine Middleton have written their own prayer:

God our Father, we thank you for our families; for the love that we share and for the joy of our marriage. In the busyness of each day keep our eyes fixed on what is real and important in life and help us to be generous with our time and love and energy. Strengthened by our union help us to serve and comfort those who suffer. We ask this in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The following prayer may be said at public worship only after the Royal Wedding has taken place (from the Church of England):

Almighty and merciful Father, the strength of all who put their trust in you, we pray that, as you have brought William and Catherine together, you will so enrich them by your grace that they may truly and faithfully keep those vows which they have made to one another in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Alternative Services: Series One (adapted)

The Royal Wedding

An excerpt from the sermon:

“Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” So said St Catherine of Sienna whose festival day it is today. Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves.

Many are full of fear for the future of the prospects of our world but the message of the celebrations in this country and far beyond its shores is the right one – this is a joyful day! It is good that people in every continent are able to share in these celebrations because this is, as every wedding day should be, a day of hope.

In a sense every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and the groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them into the future.

William and Catherine, you have chosen to be married in the sight of a generous God who so loved the world that he gave himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ.

And in the Spirit of this generous God, husband and wife are to give themselves to each another.

Read it here.

You can read a PDF version of the bulletin for the wedding here.

Here's the homepage for the Royal Wedding.

More miscellany at the Episcopal Cafe here.

An ENS article: "Anglicans play central role at historic royal wedding" can be found here.

Poems for Easter Week

Poems to ponder about our risen Savior...

"Unto Me?"

"Unto Me?" I do not know you—
Where may be your House?

"I am Jesus—Late of Judea—
Now—of Paradise"—

Wagons—have you—to convey me?
This is far from Thence—

"Arms of Mine—sufficient Phaeton—
Trust Omnipotence"—

I am spotted—"I am Pardon"—
I am small—"The Least
Is esteemed in Heaven the Chiefest—
Occupy my House"

-- Emily Dickinson

The Blunder is in estimate

The Blunder is in estimate.
Eternity is there
We say, as of a Station --
Meanwhile he is so near

He joins me in my Ramble --
Divides abode with me --
No Friend have I that so persists
As this Eternity.

-- Emily Dickinson

Easter Sermon

Nine year old Joey was asked by his mother what he had learned at Sunday school. "Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his engineers build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. "Then he used his walkie-talkie to radio headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved. Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?" his mother asked. "Well, no. But if I told it the way the teacher did, you'd never believe it!"

Welcome to Easter! An unbelievable tale! Jesus, back from the dead! For some the story is mere myth, it has no power or interest for them. And like Joey, they’d never believe it as it is told. But we are gathered here because we do, because the story of Jesus gives meaning to our lives and guides us. It is an extraordinary story of faith – Jesus who was dead is alive. Even for the women who knew Jesus, who heard it first, their reaction was both great joy and fear.

When Mary Magdalene and the other Mary go to see the tomb that first Easter morning, I wonder how they felt going to the tomb. They certainly could not have anticipated that a great earthquake would happen and an an angel of the Lord would sit on the stone and the guards would become like dead men, frozen in fright. But it did. Do not be afraid. The angel says to them. Remember what he said! - He is not here – he has been raised – go and tell the disciples – he will see them. And they do just that.

When they encounter Jesus along the path back to the disciples, Jesus says to them, do not be afraid and go & tell. Easter is here, be free from the fear, go and tell others, I live, Jesus says to them. We don’t need to be afraid either. Some will scoff at the resurrection, some will call it a joke. To the foolish it will seem an idle tale, but to those who believe it is the power of God and it will transform our lives. As Peter Gomes, the author we used during our Lenten Study put it,

“Because Jesus lives we too may live, with as much time as God gives us, free from fear of the past, free from fear of the future. Christ went to the grave; we need not fear the grave. Christ has gone into the future; we need not fear the future. Christ inhabits life; we need not fear life. Because he lives, so, too, we will. Life begins when we discover this truth for ourselves, and act upon it.”

To live our lives of faith, we like the Marys need to spread the good news of the Resurrection. In Victor Hugo's classic novel Les Miserables, Jean Valjean is sent to jail for 19 years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving family. Released from prison with the yellow passport that identifies him as a convicted felon, Valjean is scorned and avoided; Valjean is consumed by bitterness and

"hatred for the law…which becomes hatred for the human race, and hatred for creation."

In his wanderings through France, Valjean meets a bishop named Bienvenu, who welcomes the tired, starving traveler into his home. In the middle of the night, as the kind old bishop sleeps, Valjean makes off with as much of the household silver as he can carry. But as soon as he steps out of the house, the police, who had been watching him, arrest him. The police wake the bishop and throw Valjean and the silver at his feet. Monsignor Bienvenu thanks the police for finding Valjean, and then, to their amazement, hands Valjean two silver candlesticks that Valjean had left behind. The bishop says that he was most concerned that Valjean have the candlesticks, as well. The baffled police leave, assured by the bishop that everything is fine. Valjean is even more baffled. The bishop helps Valjean to his feet. Why? Valjean wonders.

"My brother, you belong no longer to evil but to good. It is your soul that I am buying for you. I withdraw it from dark thoughts and from the spirit of perdition and I give it to God."

Valjean then leaves the bishop's house with the silver and sets out to build a new life redeeming others as he has been redeemed by the bishop's extraordinary kindness. (from Connections) The Bishop frees Valjean from fear and helps give him his life back, his purpose. Likewise, it is Jesus in his resurrection that helps transform our lives from fear to life!

For the next 50 days, we will celebrate Easter, the new life that is gained for all who put their trust in Christ. But it is up to us how we will celebrate. May we follow the good examples of Mary Magdalene and the other Mary who go and tell others. May we be like the Bishop in Le Mes who through kindness is willing to help bring new life for someone stuck in hate & dark thoughts. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it,

“From the resurrection of Christ a new and purifying wind can blow into the present world. If a few human beings would really believe this and would let themselves be moved by this in their earthly behavior, much would change. To live from resurrection - that indeed is the meaning of Easter."

May we celebrate this meaning of Easter and be willing to live into this Easter, into the resurrection, without fear and let our new lives unfold. Amen.

Easter Sunrise Homily & Benediction

The preacher was standing at the front door, shaking hands as his parishioners came out. He pulled one man aside and said, "You need to join the Army of the Lord, son!" "I'm already in the Army of the Lord, Pastor," he replied. "How come I only see you at Christmas and Easter?" asked the preacher. "Because I'm in His Secret Service!" he replied.

Today, no one is in the secret service for we all called to celebrate and proclaim with our lives that Christ is risen! God has shattered the silence of Good Friday, when evil and darkness seemed to have won. We stood by the cross as witnesses on that day but in that prayerful silence we waited and hoped. Now it is God who shouts out new life to our world! God has renewed the earth and this has happened through Jesus’ death and resurrection.

“God has turned all our sunsets into dawns.” – St. Clement of Alexandria

And in that light, we need to live into the resurrection which means we need to live it in our daily lives; not as some best kept secret we lock away in our vaults for no one to see. But maybe its not a secret but rather we are so in awe and fear of the resurrection, we are not sure what to do.

Maybe what we fear is the change in our lives if we truly celebrated and lived that promised resurrection in our lives. If we truly celebrated the resurrection, would people see us as crazy? What would it look like in our lives? The author Megan McKenna tells a story about a time when she was leading a Bible study. She writes,

"Once in a parish mission when I was studying scripture (Luke 7: 11-17) with a large group, someone called out harshly, 'Have you ever brought someone back from the dead?'

My response was 'Yes. Every time I bring hope into a situation, every time I bring joy that shatters despair, every time I forgive others and give them back dignity and the possibility of a future with me and others in the community, every time I listen to others and affirm them and their life, every time I speak the truth in public, every time I confront injustice — yes — I bring people back from the dead.' " [Not Counting Women and Children: Neglected Stories from the Bible by Megan McKenna]

From the Bronx in New York City, I hear the words of the Rev. Johnny Ray Youngblood on practicing resurrection…

"The reason we're here this morning is not just because a resurrection happened, but because there's one goin' on. Every time I see a brother or sister come to Christ, there's a resurrection goin' on. Every time I see a man put down his bottle, there's a resurrection goin' on. Every time I see someone [a man] go back to school, there's a resurrection goin' on. Every time I see a man hug his son, there's a resurrection goin' on.” [Upon This Rock: The Miracles of a Black Church by Samuel Freedman]

Jesus has brought us new life, new beginnings. It is there for us to live, to experience, to celebrate in our lives. The resurrection is God’s gift of redemption to us. But it is up to us to accept that gift and then to live it in our lives, not as secret disciples. We have to make that new start, we have to love, to forgive, to listen, to change, to hope… As Dietrich Bonheoffer Lutheran Pastor & Martyr put it: It is

“from the resurrection of Christ that a new and purifying wind can blow through our present world… If a few people really believed that and acted on it in their daily lives, a great deal would be changed. To live in the light of the Resurrection – that is what Easter means.” (Letters & Papers from Prison)

May our lives live in that light and help bring that resurrection to all who are still living Good Friday lives. Amen.

Easter Benediction:

And now to God who is able to keep us from falling, and lift us from the dark valley of despair to the bright mountain of hope, from the midnight of desperation to the day break of joy; from the sunset and darkness of Good Friday to the dawn and light of Easter; to God be power and authority, for ever and ever. Amen. (slightly adapted from Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-68)

Prayers for the Royal Wedding

From the Church of England:

We pray for all who are preparing for or celebrating their marriage. In particular we pray for Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton. As they embark on married life together, we hold them and their families before God and ask for his grace and blessing.

God of all grace,
friend and companion,
look in favour on William and Catherine
and all who are made one in marriage.
In your love deepen their love
and strengthen their wills
to keep the promises they will make,
that they may continue
in life-long faithfulness to each other;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen. (Common Worship)

Heavenly Father,
tender and compassionate,
create in William and Catherine a love deep and true,
that in this broken world they may be a sign of unity.
May they nurture, support and inspire the children
with whom you may entrust them
to enjoy your blessing and to serve your world;
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen. (New Zealand (adapted))

Dear Jesus,
we pray for Prince William and Catherine Middleton
as they get ready for their wedding day.
Keep them safe,
make them happy
and help them
to look after each other always.
Amen. (Christopher Woods)

A Prayer for the families of Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton:

Gracious Lord,
bless the families of William and Catherine
that they may grow in love and friendship.
Grant that, as they witness the marriage vows,
they may find their lives enriched and strengthened
and their loyalties confirmed;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen. (Common Worship)

A prayer for all who are preparing for marriage:

Faithful God,
giver of all good things,
give to all who prepare for marriage
wisdom and devotion in the ordering of their lives together.
May they dwell together in the love and peace of the risen Christ.
May they always
seek one another's welfare,
bear one another's burdens
and share one another's joys;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen. (Common Worship (adapted))

A thought for Easter

This is where it gets scary. The resurrection only makes sense as God’s “showing his hand” about the meaning of the cross. So I can’t have Easter joy if I don’t find joy in Jesus-on-the-cross. In fact, I can’t even believe in the resurrection, unless I want to believe in a God who would be so crazy as to identify himself with the crucified Jesus. God identifies with Jesus’ choice to risk being crucified, his refusal to make the compromises that could have saved him from it. Paul speaks of the foolishness and weakness of God shown on the cross. The resurrection, far from supporting the notion of a triumphalistic deity of power, mysteriously confirms how deeply hidden and baffling the Creator truly is, as he reveals that he is at one with the man who so willingly exposed himself with an open heart to the fate devised by political power and religious expediency to crush him.

Authentic Easter joy—the genuine pearl of great price—is unfeigned delight in my heart of hearts that a hidden God turns out to be so different from all the stuff, aggressive or sentimental, that gets fabricated about him. Centuries ago, a custom grew up of beginning Easter sermons with a joke, known as the risus paschalis. The subtlety of Easter joy is like getting a joke. It is impossible to explain the resurrection to someone who doesn’t get the foolishness of the cross. You either get it or you don’t. The real God has authenticated himself in an event only the poor in spirit can appreciate. Easter faith comes with a desire to be in on the secret, to get the joke.

From “The Real Thing” in Compass and Stars by Martin L. Smith (Church Publishing, 2007).