An Australian Eucharist
Service Prepared by Rev. Glenn Loughrey 2018
Acclamation:
Blessed be God, the Great Creator Being.
Blessed be God, the Breath of All, the Wisdom behind the Dreaming and the Way of Reconciliation and Healing.
Let us pray.
Creator God,
You who know our secrets and walk in our hearts:
Remove the rubbish and the unseen
By the wisdom of your Dreaming
So we can live on country in kinship with you
And make you known to all,
Through Christ our elder. Amen
Opening Sentence:
Hymn of Praise
Glory to God of Holy Dreaming,
and peace to God’s mob on country.
Great Creator Spirit,
Almighty and all loving,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your beauty.
Jesus Christ, only child of the Father,
Holy One, elder of God,
you take away the evil of the world:
be understanding of us;
you who are present near to God:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Sacred One,
you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are above all things ,
Jesus Christ,
with the Dreaming’s Spirit,
in the beauty of God the Father. Amen.
Collect
Scripture Readings
Please sit
Sermon
Please stand
Affirmation of Faith
Let us together affirm the faith we share.
We believe in God, the creator of all life, wholeness, and love.
We believe God is experienced in Jesus Christ.
We believe that in his life, Jesus reveals God in grace, mercy, forgiveness, and justice.
We believe that in his death, Jesus reveals God present in the world even with it’s hatred, violence, and pain.
We believe that in Jesus’ resurrection, God is calling us to the abundant and just life of the dreaming; life beyond our fearful and fragile human experience.
We believe that God lives among us, within us, and through us by the power of the Dreaming’s Spirit.
We believe that God asks us to be together on country, full of faith, hope, and love.
We believe these things not because we have experienced them but out of conviction; as one who trusts in the reality of the Creator as revealed in the tribal man Jesus Christ through the Dreaming’s Spirit. Amen.
Prayers of the People
Let us pray for the world and for the Church.
Prayer Responses
God, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Silence
Almighty God, you have promised to hear our prayers.
Grant that what we have asked in faith
we may by your kindness receive,
through Jesus Christ our Elder. Amen.
Confession:
Jesus said: I came so that you may have life, and have it abundantly.
Let us acknowledge our selfishness with honesty and humility.
silence
Relying on God’s forgiveness, we pray:
God of Holy Dreaming, we are comfortable in our self-interest and unaware of our rejection of others. Yet we are seeking welcome and inclusion, fearful of rejection, and struggling to find our own place. Search for us, welcome us, forgive us, and bring us home, we pray, through Jesus Christ our Elder. Amen.
Absolution:
There is rejoicing in the Dreaming when the lost are found, and there is hope on country when creation turns to God in faith. Through Jesus our Christ, and brother your selfishness is forgiven. Amen.
Please stand
The Greeting of Peace
We are the body of Christ.
His Spirit is with us.
The peace of the God be always with you.
And also with you.
Offertory Hymn
Offertory Prayer
Generous God of Holy Dreaming.
Through your goodness we have these gifts to share.
Accept and use our offerings for your benefit
and for the fulfilment of your purposes.
Wonderful be God for ever.
The Great Thanksgiving
God, you are with us.
We are never alone.
Our lives are open.
We know you are here.
And recognise you in all creation
For this
We thank you.
God of Holy Dreaming,
Thank you for country
For the joy of being here
and the possibilities of sharing in its wonders
with others of all species;
For this
We thank you.
We recognise your patience
Remaining ready to welcome us back
after we got lost in the bush;
We welcome your gift of Jesus,
your child, our elder,
Who lived for you so we too may.
For this
We thank you.
Knowing blood does not cleanse us,
We recognise his obedience to your tradition and language,
Which lead him to be unjustly crucified,
Opens the way for us to remain faithful to
Your way, the ways of our ancestors, your prophets.
For this
We thank you.
We dance each day
In celebration of his return from the world of the dead
to you and to us ;
celebrating in the new growth in people of all ages,
in the grass and trees,
the eagle and the trout
goanna eggs and kangaroo pouches.
And so, with people of every nation, tribe and language, and with the whole Church throughout the ages, we bring ourselves: all that we are, and all that we are not, joyfully giving thanks and singing:
Holy, holy, holy, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. [Blessed is he who comes in the name of our God. Hosanna in the highest.]
Glory to the God of Holy Dreaming, we honour you in whom our lives are founded, and in whom our futures lie. We remember and honour our ancestors searching that perceived your presence in life, and your meaning for all of life.
Above all we honour Jesus, our Christ and elder, whose life and death and resurrection shows us your complete nature and the possibilities for us.
We remember that, on the night before his death, Jesus, as he’d always done, gathered his mob for a common meal. He took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread and gave some to each one, saying: “Take, eat: This is my body, my country, given for you and for all creation, take, eat and be restored.”
After supper he took a cup of wine, and, when he had given thanks, he gave it to them and said: “Drink this, all of you: This is my life given for you and for all creation, drink joyfully and be renewed.”
In light of this, we proclaim the mystery of our faith:
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ’s spirit renews our lives.
God of Holy Dreaming; may our hearts and minds be alive to what is sacred in these symbols of bread and wine. May they open us to your guidance and to your love for us, for all humankind, and for all life on this earth. This is our hope and shared desire, the expression of our love and trust in Jesus, our Christ, our elder.
And now, in the spirit of Christ’s teaching, we pray:
God of Holy Dreaming, honoured be your name.
Let your Way be known, your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our self-centredness,
as we forgive those that act against us.
Save us in the time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the Way, the power, and the glory
are yours forever and ever. Amen.
Christ has died and lives for all. (Breaks the bread)
These are God’s gifts; take Jesus our Christ and elder, into your hearts.
This bread: the body of Christ. This wine: the life of Christ.
(Offers communion to all)
Here is the place heaven and earth meet; here is the “everywhere, then” of our dreaming.
Communion of the People
Post Communion Thanksgiving
God of Holy Dreaming, we thank you for this simple community meal that brings the spirit and reality of Christ into our hearts, and brings us closer to you. May our lives be lit up by your love, and may your love light up others through us. Amen.
The Blessing
Life is short, and we do not have too much time to gladden the hearts of those who travel the way with us. So be swift to love and make haste to be kind, and the blessing of the one who made us and loves us and goes before us be upon you and all those whom you love, this day and always…..
in the name of the God of Holy Dreaming, and of Jesus Christ our elder and of the Creator Spirit. Amen.
Dismissal
Go, walk gently on country to love and serve our God
In the name of Christ. Amen
(Elements of this service have been sourced from “A Prayer Book For Australia”, ‘Holy Communion Second Order & from resources at https://progressivechristianity.org/.)