Bread and Roses
Self-directed Worship
Sunday, November 19, 2023
Gathering Music – “That’s What Makes You Strong” – by Jesse Winchester
The Way of the Three-Step Prayer — a spiritual practice of the Plains tribes
Step One begins in thanks.
O Great God, you have given me this day as a special gift. In taking this step into the day, I accept everything it will bring, whether it is part of my plan or not. Teach me to accept every gift that comes my way today. Help me to use each gift wisely, to love my brothers and sisters, and to care for my Mother the Earth.
Taking one step forward, or otherwise move your body.
Step Two requires doing something most of us loathe: Focus on yourself.
Dear God/Spirit, you have created me as I am. I accept myself as I am now, in the past, and as I will be in the future. I ask that today I will be true to the way you have created me. Help me to walk respectfully on Mother Earth so none of its plants will be crushed. Help me to walk into people’s lives in the same way today so none of them will be bruised.
Self-focus can be uncomfortable for many, but as you can see, the purpose is to work alongside God as a partner. If you are willing to really do that, you take a step forward.
Step Three is outward toward the cosmos.
O great God/Spirit, you have created me and everything around me with a sense of mystery. I now step into that mystery and put my arms around it. Help me to accept the things of this day I do not, and cannot, understand, that my encounter with them will bring me nearer to you and closer to living a holy life.
Time for Children –“What if everybody did that?” – by Ellen Javernick
Once, someone asked Jesus, “Of all the commandments, all the ways God tells us to live, which is the most important?
Jesus answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
There are many ways folks paraphrase this important idea. Treat others the way you want to be treated. But there’s another way to look at it, which I think this book lifts up. Imagine the world if we were all careless. If we all littered or were rude or disrespectful. That could feel like some pressure: but I think it is empowering, too. Every choice we make can make a difference for good.
Reading – “Ode to Hunger” – by Susan Nguyen
Praise SPAM fried with fish sauce and sugar
jackfruit, 25 lbs. of it carved on newspaper, latex sap sticking fingers
Praise Kraft mac and cheese: small miracle of powdered cheddar
pork floss in the big Tupperware
Sara Lee Praise soy sauce and rice
Shrimp Cup Noodles, 3 minutes ‘til done
Praise the soft insides of baguettes
the first star fruit, pocketed and sliced
to Chef Boyardee
to durian, sweet scent of garbage
to pickled mustard greens, Lean Cuisine
pizza bagels after school
Praise Women, Infants, and Children
banana blossoms, heart thinly sliced in vinegar, drained of all color
Special Music and Offering – “Bread and Roses”
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Contract workers were brought over from France
and the Llow Countries, not good enough to be citizens
but good enough to work their whole lives out
spitting up blood at the looms . . .
not good enough to vote
Well, they struck, most of them women,
27 thousand, dying at the average age of 26
Mostly from the dust in the weave rooms.
The issues were wages, hours, and conditions, like any strike.
The women met and decided wages, hours, and conditions
are important, but it takes more than those three things to be a woman,
or to lead any kind of decent human life.
The next day the newspaper reporters watching them parade
down the street noticed a young woman carrying a
that said Bread, yes, but roses too
This came to be called the “bread and roses” strike
and they marched for two bitter years,
had to ship their kids out of town
cause there was no way to feed em.
And they sang for Bread & Roses. – Art Crummer
Scripture Lesson – 1 Kings 17:1-16
In which the jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that they spoke by Elijah.
Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, ‘As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.’ The word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘Go from here and turn eastwards, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.’ So he went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the wadi. But after a while the wadi dried up, because there was no rain in the land.
Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.’ So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, ‘Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.’ As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, ‘Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.’ But she said, ‘As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.’ Elijah said to her, ‘Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
Reflection
Do you have any foods that give you comfort? What makes them sources of comfort to you?
Have you ever experienced hunger or food insecurity? What brought that period to an end?
How have you experienced generosity in your life? Is it easier for you to accept generosity from others or show generosity to others?
What do generous communities look like? What do they need in order to be generous?
Music –“Something to Love”
Prayer — “in the trees” by M. Jade Kaiser
Whether you are outside or only able to see the trees out the window, take a moment to offer these words.
In the trees, God, you linger.
With branches like arms outstretched in prayer, they invite, they host, they bear witness, they create.
Generations come and go,
but still they remain with such knowing, such history, such wisdom in their flesh.
The Holy in them, as it often does,
requires a disruption of ordinary ways of perceiving,
or else it goes unnoticed.
Through their testimonies
you teach us about growing in every direction,
about becoming sources of home,
about resilience and resurrection and beauty across stages of life.
You – the trees – both sources of our life-breath.
Make us fierce protectors of these sage companions
and the sacred flesh of all the earth. amen.
Closing Song – “Welcome Table” as performed by Dan and Claudia Zanes
I’m gonna sit at the welcome table
I’m gonna sit at the welcome table one of these days, (Hallelujah!)
I’m gonna sit at the welcome table, sit at the welcome table one of these days!
I’m gonna feast on milk and honey…
I’m gonna tell God how you treat me…
All God’s children gonna sit together…
Benediction
As you go out from this time of reflection, may you be nourished: by daily bread and the bread of life, by beauty and generosity; that you, too, may be generous and compassionate in all that you do. Amen.
Here are our UCG friends celebrating a birthday this week
|
Sue |
Littell |
11/19 |
|
Shanna |
Swiers |
11/21 |
|
Berta |
Hernandez-Truyol |
11/22 |
|
Jeremy |
Archer |
11/22 |
|
David |
Rixx |
11/23 |
|
Alberto |
Breccia |
11/25 |
Today at UCG
No Sunday Seminar this week due to Church on the Prairie. Join us next Sunday, November 26 for “The Theology of Lessons and Carols” with Talia Raymond.
“Grace in Action” — We have received pledges totaling 65% of our goal. With just a week more to go before our enlistment team starts making phone calls, this is a wonderful moment to submit your pledge for next year. Thank you to all who have already responded. There are three ways to pledge:
1. go online here or
2. send an email to the UCG accountant at catherinec@ucgainesville.org or
3. fill out a pledge card, available in the church office and foyer, and return in person or by mail.
The Compassion in Action Committee is soliciting requests for Christmas mini-grants in support of people or causes in need of financial assistance during the holiday season. These small grants of $50 to $150 typically go to local individuals, families, and non-profit organizations known by our congregation members. Forms are available in the church office or here. The deadline for requests is November 28. Rawlings Christmas Angel Gift Market — Thank you so much for donating to the Rawlings Elementary School gift market! You can take a Christmas angel from the tree in the foyer or sign up for gifts online at: https://bit.ly/CIAangel23. Return the unwrapped gifts with the Christmas angel to the foyer on Sundays, December 3 or 10, or bring them to Seminar B between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. the weeks of November 27 or December 4. Blessings to all of our Christmas angels. Advent Contemplative Prayer — During Advent, we are called to be present, to take time to breathe, to be still, and to wait, as over the weeks, the eternal rhythms of Advent’s hopes come to life within us. Amid our seasonal busyness, join us for a time for silence, scripture, and readings, and time in small groups to reflect, listen, and pray for one another. We will meet on Tuesdays, December 5, 12, and 19 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Participants are asked to commit to at least two of the three sessions. If you did not register earlier this fall, just email Sandy Reimer at reimer.sandy@gmail.com. Deadline is November 28.
Advent Small Group “Magnify: Mary’s Song and the Magnificent Women of Advent,” offered Tuesdays, Nov. 28 — Dec.19, 8 p.m. on Zoom. Contact Bromleigh at bromleighm@ucgainesville.org to register.Thanksgiving Office Hours — The church office will be closed November 22-25 for the Thanksgiving holidays. Regular office hours will resume on Monday, November 27.
Help Serve a Thanksgiving Lunch at Girls Place on Wednesday, November 22. The meal is served between 11:00 and 11:30 a.m. Please arrive at 10:30 a.m. for a guided tour of their facility. You are welcome to stay and eat with the girls once everyone is served. Please note: Girls Place is not requiring masks but they are always welcome. If you do wear a mask, please bring your own or let Shanna at the UCG office know to bring you one. Click here to sign up! Puzzle Amnesty Month – Got puzzles lying around at home that you’ve been meaning to bring to church? Now’s your chance! Bring them any time during office hours through November. Please either tape the boxes shut or secure the pieces in a bag. We’re having too many missing pieces because they fall out of the boxes when we store them. The next puzzle Sunday is November 26. Thanks!
The wearing of masks in the Sanctuary is optional. People with respiratory symptoms should remain at home. People over age 65, people at risk for serious illness from COVID, and people who live with someone at increased risk are encouraged to wear an N-95 or KN-95 mask. There will be no COVID Update next week because of the Thanksgiving holiday.