Reclaiming Righteousness
Sunday, January 14, 2024 – 10 a.m.

Our live stream begins here at 10 a.m.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”  – The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

WELCOME & ANNOUNCEMENTS – Rev. Bromleigh McCleneghan

A MOMENT FOR ENLISTMENT – RD Bonnaghan

PRELUDE – Wayne Raymond

CALL TO WORSHIP – Rev. Ellen Ribe

Leader:  Listen, people of God, for the voice of God is calling:
“The ultimate measure of a [person] is not where [they] stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where [they] stand at times of challenge and controversy.”

People:  In difficult times, God calls us to join the movement of courageous truth-tellers.

Leader:  In comfortable times, God calls us to join the movement of silence-breakers.

People: In times of struggle, God calls us to join the movement toward freedom.

Leader: In times of peace, God calls us to join the movement toward justice.

People: In all times, God calls us to join with the movement of the Spirit.

Leader: Listen, people of God, for the voice of God is calling: “Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for equal rights. You will make a better person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.”

All:  Let us worship God, listening for the voice that calls us
to join the movement of love. 

INVOCATION – Rev. Ellen Ribe

God of all people, God of our histories, and God of our collective future, you know each of us in the fullness of ourselves. You see our distinctive gifts and our shared humanity. Open us to the realities of your world: impress upon us our place in a single garment of destiny. Call us to account where we have cut the ties that bind us. Call us to repentance when we have been complicit in ripping the seams of justice. Enter our hearts and make a space for your righteousness. Come in, we pray. Amen.

OPENING SONG – “Lift Every Voice and Sing”

TIME WITH CHILDREN AND BIRTHDAYS – “Just Ask: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You!” by Sonia Sotomayor, illustrated by Rafael López – offered by Betsy Harris

INTERLUDE 

READING – “I am a Prayer” by Joy Harjo — offered by Ron Nutter

I am a prayer
I am a prayer of rain in the desert when the flowering ones need a drink
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of sun when there is no end to night
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of ocean when there is no more blue
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of clouds when few make rain songs
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of roads that lead everywhere but home
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of white birds who cannot fly through a storm of fear
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of fire who arrived to care for humans, then was misused to destroy
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of wind, whose breathing carries seeds, pollen, and songs to feed the generations
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of moon who wears the night as a shawl to hide that which should never be spoken
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of grief, when life gambled with death and gave up families for guns
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of smoke, wandering the broken houses, the littered ground looking for a white flag of reason
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of mountains, those tall humble ones who agreed to lift our eyes to see
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of forever making a path of beauty through the rubble of eternity
I am a prayer
I am a prayer of poetry speaking the soundlessness of the dead who return to speak in prayer
I am a prayer with children on my back roaming the earth house of destruction and creation
I am a prayer without end

SPECIAL MUSIC & OFFERING– “Up to the Mountain” by Patty Griffin – offered by Elizabeth Clark

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INTRODUCTION TO TODAY’S PREACHER – Rev. Bromleigh McCleneghan

SCRIPTURE – 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 – Jeff Shapiro

SERMON – “Everybody in the Body is Somebody: On Equity, Diversity and Inclusion” – Dr. Rik Stevenson

HYMN OF RESPONSE – “O For a World”

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE – Rev. Bromleigh McCleneghan

HYMN – “When the Saints Go Marching In” – Larry Reimer, trumpet; Alan Hill, bass

Oh when the saints go marchin’ in
Oh When the saints go marchin’ in
Oh Lord, I want to be in that number
When the saints go marchin’ in.

Oh when the band begins to play,
Oh when the band begins to play,
Oh Lord I want to be in that number
When the band begins to play.

Oh when the light begins to shine,
Oh when the light begins to shine,
Oh lord I want to be in that number
When the light begins to shine.

Oh when the dream begins to live,
Oh when the dream begins to live,
Oh, Lord I want to be in that number,
When the dream begins to live.

Oh when the saints go marchin’ in
Oh When the saints go marchin’ in
Oh Lord, I want to be in that number
When the saints go marchin’ in.

BENEDICTION & BLESSING                                                         

You, O God, are with us not only on mountain tops and in the valleys. On the long stretches of ordinary, you are there too.
May your sustaining hand uphold.
May your righteous fury arise.
May your tender care embrace.
May Love do its work on all of us.
Awakening us to the roles we play,
Calling us to lives of collective transformation,
Nourishing us to dream dreams and prophesy of the world
You conspire to create with us

ALLELUIA 

 Here are our UCG friends celebrating a birthday this week!

9:45 a.m.              Childcare
10:00 a.m.            Worship – “Everybody in the Body is Somebody” –  Dr. Rik Stevenson
11:00 a.m.            Fellowship & Beverages   
                              Art in the Library Reception                
11:30 a.m.            Sunday Seminar
12:30 p.m.            Board of Membership
3:00 p.m.              Dances of Universal Peace
6:00 p.m.              Sacred Sound Symphony
7:00 p.m.              Small Group Series: “The History and Context of the Current Crisis in Israel/Palestine”

Sunday Seminar – Dr. Rik Stevenson, a historian in the Department of African American Studies at the University of Florida, presents a talk on “Challenging Academic and Political Prohibitions in Florida.” Join us in Reimer Hall or on Zoom. Meeting ID: 82964570385  Passcode: 1624

Please visit the lost and found table in the courtyard this Sunday to claim anything that belongs to you. There are a variety of water bottles and jackets that have been left behind, along with various other items. Anything not collected will be donated to Hospice Attic.

“The History and Context of the Current Crisis in Israel/Palestine” led by Fletcher Crowe – Beginning today, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m. and continuing for two more Sunday evenings (Jan. 21 and Jan. 28) in Reimer Hall, we will take up the troubling details of the war so far and try to arrive at policy recommendations that could lead toward peace in the Middle East. Advance registration is not required.

Art in the Library – All are invited to view a new art show in the Library beginning Sunday, January 14. The show will feature botanical paintings by Kelly Perez and there will be an artist reception today after the service.

The Church office will be closed on Monday, January 15 in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. 

The Racial Justice Committee invites you to stop by our table at coffee time to write a “Thank You” letter to Congressman Frost and Congresswoman Pressley for their support of the “Books Save Lives” Act which opposes book banning. Also at our table, get info about joining us at the MLK march on Monday! And we have a couple of “Black Lives Matter” t-shirts available for purchase!

The Racial Justice Committee invites you to join us tomorrow, January 15 at Bo Diddley Plaza, to march with others to recognize Martin Luther King Day. We will meet at 11:30 a.m. at the bicycle racks by city hall so we can march together. The march is from the plaza to the Martin Luther King Center at Citizens Field on NE 8th Avenue and Waldo Road. There is shuttle bus transportation provided back to the plaza.

We will be welcoming new members on Sunday, February 11, and if you’d like to join UCG, please join us at UCG 101, our new members orientation on Wednesday, January 31 at 5:30 p.m. in Reimer Hall. Contact the office if you would like to attend (352 378-3500) or sign up on the bulletin board in the courtyard. Childcare and refreshments are provided.

Next Sunday, January 21

9:45 a.m.              Childcare
10:00 a.m.            Worship – “Reclaiming Righteousness” – Rev. Chad McGinnis
                             Friendship Group
10:15 a.m.             United Tribes
11:00 a.m.            Fellowship & Beverages                                
11:30 a.m.            Sunday Seminar
                             Lively Arts meeting
12:00 p.m.            Owl Training
7:00 p.m.              Small Group Series: “The Current Crisis in Israel/Palestine”