Life In The City Spiritual Care Package Thursday, April 16, 2020
Below is a spiritual care package full of readings, music and reflection. Please accept it as a token of love and kinship.
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OPENING PRAYER, Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Disturb us, O Lord, when we are too well-pleased with ourselves. When our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little, because we sailed too close to the shore. Disturb us, O Lord when with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the water of life. Stir us, O Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture into wider seas where storms show Thy mastery, where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars. In the name of Him who pushed back the horizons of our hopes and invited the brave to follow. Amen.
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CHRISTIANITY 101
I’ve heard there are more gospels than Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Is this true?
Yes, that’s right. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are called canonical gospels because they are included in the canon of scripture that we now call the Bible. But many other gospels circulated among early Christians. Some of the most well-known are attributed to Thomas, Philip, Judas and Mary Magdalene.
Debate raged for centuries over which books accurately reflected the life and message of Jesus. But by the fifth century AD, church leaders had reached a consensus, and the Bible as we know it came into being. The gospels that didn’t make the cut soon disappeared and were forgotten.
But in the relatively recent past these ancient texts have resurfaced in unlikely places. The Gospel of Mary was discovered in Egypt, wrapped in feathers and tucked into a niche in a wall at a burial site. The Gospel of Thomas was also found in Egypt, in 1945, by two brothers who entered a cave and found the manuscript tucked in an earthen jug. These, as well as other non- canonical gospels, have proven that, far from being homogenous, early Christians were as wildly different in their religious outlooks as we are today. ______
POEM LET’S REMAKE THE WORLD by Gregory Orr
Let’s remake the world with words. Not frivolously, nor To hide from what we fear, But with a purpose.
Let’s, As Wordsworth said, remove “The dust of custom” so things Shine again, each object arrayed In its robe of original light.
And then we’ll see the world As if for the first time, As once we gazed at the beloved Who was gazing at us.
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DOLLY’S CORNER
A spoonful of Dolly makes the medicine go down in the most delightful way. This week’s dose is Hard Candy Christmas from the popular musical The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas. Hard Candy Christmas says what a lot of us are feeling right now: I’m barely getting through tomorrow, but still I won’t let sorrow bring me way down. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcPY3RIvtCw ______
MEDITATION
Taizé is a French community that has become an important site of pilgrimage for many Christians, particularly youth. They are especially known for their use of music during worship and meditation. At the link below you’ll find two prayerful pieces that are great to meditate to, including Jesus, Remember Me which we’ve used at Life In The City. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjLZKRa3c98 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-TIUXM1gns
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PODCAST/INTERVIEW In this episode of his Sojourners podcast, the Rev. Jim Wallis chats with Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician, public health leader, and passionate advocate for patient-centered health care reform. Dr. Wen shares urgent advice for sustaining and protecting our body, as well as our mind and soul, amid the coronavirus pandemic. https://sojo.net/media/we-are-not-powerless-against-virus-fighting-covid-19-collective-care
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MUSIC
Kacey Musgraves reminds us that no matter how bad the storm there’s always a Rainbow over our heads. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OFv566mj7s
Our Throwback Thursday selection is Everyday People by Sly and the Family Stone. Their message of community is as relevant now as it was back in 1968. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUUhDoCx8zc
The Beatles had a hit with Come Together, but Ike and Tina Turner took it to the next level. This video is classic Tina. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-ZBYZZWJbk
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WORDS OF WISDOM
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. 1 Peter 1:3-4
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 1 Peter 5:10
It’s important to emphasize that hope is only a beginning; it’s not a substitute for action, only a basis for it. Rebecca Solnit
Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced. James Baldwin
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GIVING and VOLUNTEERING
Now more than ever, Life In The City needs your support. Visit https://www.lifeinthecityaustin.org/give to stand with our community during these troubled times.
For ideas on volunteering your time for LITC, contact Ashley Cuellar at [email protected] or Pastor LyAnna at [email protected].
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CLOSING PRAYER, Rev. Angel Kyodo Williams
May all beings be granted with the strength, determination and wisdom to extinguish anger and reject violence as a way. May all suffering cease and may I seek, find and fully realize the love and compassion that already lives within me. May I exercise the precious gift of choice and the power to change that which makes me uniquely human and is the only true path to liberation. May I swiftly reach complete, effortless freedom so that my fearless, unhindered action be a benefit to all. Amen.