A Litany of Penance:
Lord, we pray for this world you have made. We ask your blessing on earth, wind, and water. Preserve this sweet place in its course through the cosmos.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Lord, we pray for the community of living creatures. Guide us in our works and ways, that every being may praise with its life and serve you all of its days.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Lord, we pray for our human family. You named us stewards of this Earth, and we want to tend it and care for it. Teach us to live in harmony together, so we can live in harmony with Earth.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Lord, again and again we seek what is good and do what is bad. We stand in the rubble of many bad choices. We have been forgetful and willful tenants since you first put us in the Garden. Give us strength and courage to change our ways, so this Earth may flourish under our care.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Lord, at the end of all things you will bring us into your household, to make community with you forever. Fill us with your Spirit now, in our days on this Earth, so we may be fit and ready for the new heaven and the new Earth you promise.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Lord, you have called us to be stewards of this wonderful Earth. Guide our efforts: refresh the ground and the sea, let the air be soft and sweet. Teach us to care for your Earth, as you care for us. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.[1]
OR
A Litany of Thanksgiving:
O give thanks to our God who is good;
whose love endures for ever.
You sun and moon, you stars of the western sky:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
Sunrise and sunset, night and day:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
All mountains and valleys, thickets and talus slope, cedar swamps and prairies, estuaries and alpine meadows:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
You rivers and straits, bogs and fens, glaciers, avalanches, mists, snows, and rains:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
You maples and firs, chantrelles and salal, dogwoods and heathers, mosses and ferns:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
You salmon and orcas, seals and crabs, kelp and loons, kingfishers, octopi, and prawns:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
You marmots and voles, salamanders and bears, swallowtails and gnats, swifts and warblers, owls and hawks:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
All peoples immigrant and native, women and men, who inhabit rain-bathed Cascadia:
give to our God your thanks and praise.
All you saints and martyrs of the North and West:
give to our God your thanks and praise.[2]
Creator God, we pray to you from the midst of your creation. We ask you to love and sustain this Earth; and to love and sustain us, who cling to it as it spins on its course through the cosmos. Teach us to love the Earth as you love it: help us not to take it for granted. Creator God, you made us in your image: teach us to be good stewards of your creation. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen[3].
Opening Acclamation:
Blessed be God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Who creates all things, redeems all things, and sanctifies all things.
Song of Praise:
You alone are unutterable,
from the time you created all things that can be spoken of.
You alone are unknowable,
from the time you created all things that can be known.
All things cry out about you;
those which speak, and those which cannot speak.
All things honor you;
those which think, and those which cannot think.
For there is one longing, one groaning,
that all things have for you. . . .
All things pray to you that comprehend your plan
and offer you a silent hymn.
In you, the One, all things abide,
and all things endlessly run to you who are the end of all.[4]
Salutation:
God be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.
The Collect of the Day:
God of unchangeable power, when you fashioned the world the morning stars sang together and the host of heaven shouted for joy; open our eyes to the wonders of creation and teach us to see all things for good, to the honor of your glorious name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.[5]
The Lessons[6]:
Old Testament:
Ezekiel 34:25 – 31
Psalm 148
New Testament:
Revelation 21:1 – 3, 5 – 7
A Reading from _______.
Hear what the Spirit is saying to God’s people.
Thanks be to God.
Gospel:
Matthew 18:1 – 14
The Holy Gospel of our Savior Jesus Christ according to _______
The Sermon
The Nicene Creed:
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us all[7] and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of Life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son].
With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.[8]
Prayers of the People:
Caring God,
we thank you for your gifts of Creation
for our world
the heavens tell of your glory.
for our land, its beauty and its resources,
for the rich heritage we enjoy.
We pray:
for those who make decisions about the resources of the earth,
that we may use your gifts responsibly;
for those who work on the land and sea, in city and in industry,
that all may enjoy the fruits of their labors
and marvel at your creation.
for artists, scientists, and visionaries,
that through their work we may see creation afresh.
We thank you for giving us life;
for all who enrich our experience.
We pray:
For all creatures and plants that have been put in peril by our actions,
for all who through their own or other’s actions are deprived of fullness of life,
for prisoners, refugees, the handicapped, and all who are sick;
for those in politics, medical science, social and relief work, and for your Church,
for all who seek to bring life to others.
We thank you that you have called us to celebrate your creation.
Give us reverence for life in your world.
We thank you for your redeeming love;
may your word and sacrament strengthen us to love as you love us.
God, Creator, bring us life.
Jesus, Redeemer, renew us.
Holy Spirit, strengthen and guide us.
Blessed are you, God of growth and discovery;
yours is the inspiration that has altered and changed our lives;
yours is the power that has brought us to new dangers and opportunities.
Set us, your new creation, to walk through this new world,
watching and learning, loving and trusting, until your kingdom comes.
Amen.[9]
The Confession:
Happy are those whose sins are forgiven, whose wrongs are pardoned.
I will confess my sins to the Lord, I will not conceal my wrongdoings.
(Silence)
God forgives and heals us.
We need your healing, merciful God:
give us true repentance.
Some sins are plain to us,
some escape us,
some we cannot face.
Forgive us;
set us free to hear your word to us;
set us free to serve you.[10]
God the Creator brings you new life,
forgives and redeems you.
Take hold of this forgiveness
and live your life in the Spirit of Jesus.
Amen.[11]
The Peace
Offertory Sentence:
Jesus, the true bread that comes down from heaven: leaven us with your Holy Spirit, that the world may know the abundance of life in your new creation.[12]
Eucharistic Prayer
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
All thanks and praise are yours at all times and in all places, our true and loving God; through Jesus Christ, your eternal Word, the Wisdom from on high by whom you created all things. You laid the foundations of the world and enclosed the sea when it burst out from the womb; you brought forth all creatures of the earth and gave breath to humankind. Wondrous are you, Holy One of Blessing; all you create is a sign of hope for our journey; and so as the morning stars sing your praises we join the heavenly beings and all creation as we shout for joy:
Glory and honor are yours, Creator of all, your Word has never been silent; you call a people to yourself, as a light to the nations, you delivered them from bondage and led them to a land of promise. Of your grace, you made Jesus to be human, to share our life, to proclaim the coming of your reign and to give himself for us, a fragrant offering. Through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, you have freed us from sin, brought us into your life, reconciled us to you, and restored us to the glory you intend for us.
We thank you that on the night before he died for us Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, gave to his friends and said: “Take, eat, this is my Body, broken for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.” After supper Jesus took the cup of wine, said the blessing, gave it to his friends and said: “Drink this, all of you: this cup is the New Covenant in my Blood, poured out for you and for all for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.”
And so remembering all that was done for us: the cross, the tomb, the resurrection and ascension, longing for Christ’s coming in glory, and presenting to you these gifts your earth has formed and human hands have made, we acclaim you, O Christ:
Rising, you restored our life.
Christ Jesus, come in glory!
Send your Holy Spirit upon us and upon these gifts of bread and wine that they may be to us the Body and Blood of your Christ. Grant that we, burning with your Spirit’s power, may be a people of hope, justice, and love. Giver of Life, draw us together in the Body of Christ, and in the fullness of time gather us with [blessed , and] all your people into the joy of our true eternal home.
Through Christ and with Christ and in Christ, by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, we worship you our God and Creator in voices of unending praise. Blessed are you now and for ever. AMEN.[13]
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
in 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.[14]
The Fraction Anthem
Post Communion Prayer:
Gracious God, you have given us much this day: the wheat and grapes which found our feast, the wit and will to transform them into bread and wine, and the precious presence of your Son who transfigures and redeems all that we have broken and lost. Send us out now to care for this fragile earth, our island home. Grant us the wit and will to transform the toxic, irreverent ways we live, and the saving presence of your Son Jesus Christ who goes before us and calls us into this world you love. To him, to you, and to the Holy Spirit be honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.[15]
The Blessing:
May you be a new creation, Christ for those to whom Christ shall send you, and the blessing of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier be amongst you and with you always. Amen.
The Dismissal
Notes
[1] This Litany of Penance from Episcopal Peace and Justice Ministries Jubilee 2000 Manual, pp. 211 – 214.
[2] This Litany of Thanksgiving was formulated after the “Benedicite Aotearoa”, New Zealand Book of Common Prayer, p. 457.
[3] This prayer is from the Episcopal Peace and Justice Ministries Jubilee 2000 Manual, pp. 211 – 214.
[4] This song of praise by Gregory of Nazianzen.
[5] This collect was taken from the New Zealand Book of Common Prayer, p. 569.
[6] The lessons listed were based on the liturgical calendar. You may use the lessons which fall under your liturgical calendar or substitute texts dealing specifically with themes of creation and stewardship.
[7] Many versions of this creed use “men” here. Others, as here, use gender-inclusive language.
[8] This version of the Nicene Creed is from the 1975 ecumenical version, published by the International Consultation on English Texts (ICET) in the book Prayers We Have in Common.
[9] From the New Zealand Book of Common Prayer, p. 463 – 465.
[10] From the New Zealand Book of Common Prayer, p. 458.
[11] From the New Zealand Book of Common Prayer, p. 460.
[12] From Enriching our Worship 1, p. 52.
[13] From Enriching our Worship 1, p. 62 – 65.
[14] This version taken from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (BCP).
[15] From In Celebration of Creation, St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Medina, Washington