Taize

The Rev. Canon Bahman Kalantari

Every Tuesday, at 3 p.m. we are holding an alternate worship opportunity.

which consists of Taize music and includes the Holy Eucharist as

well as prayers for healing. This is a beautiful opportunity for

those who feel more comfortable gathering in a smaller,

more intimate setting to experience the love and power of Jesus.

At the beginning of the service, you are invited to light a candle – to affirm a personal vow, to pray for someone or a particular situation, to invite the light of Christ to shed light on your path, and to receive illumination.

In the name of the Liberating Lord!

The Invitatory

Great are you, O Lord, and greatly to be praised.

There is no end of your greatness.

One generation shall praise your works to another and shall declare your power.

All your works praise you, and your faithful servants bless you.

They make known the glory of your reign of justice and peace and speak of your power.

Our mouths shall speak your praise; let all flesh praise your holy name for ever.

We will now sing Holy Spirit come to us:

Psalm 18

I love you, Lord, my strength.

The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the Lord was my support.
He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.

The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.
For I have kept the ways of the Lord;
I am not guilty of turning from my God.
All his laws are before me;
I have not turned away from his decrees.
I have been blameless before him
and have kept myself from sin.
The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Let us now sing The Kingdom of God:

Affirmation

God is our refuge and our strength,

our present help in tribulation.

Even when the mountains fall

and tumble into the sea,

even when the earth shakes,

we have to sing.

Exalt God among all nations.

Blessed be the God of Love!

We will now sing In the Lord:

The Gospel

Matthew 20:1-16

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.

“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’

“‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.

“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’

“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’

“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’

“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

The Word of the Lord

Let us now sing Stay With Me:

The Third Song of Isaiah
Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land;
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the Lord will rise,
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open;
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you, The City of the Lord,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no more be heard in your land,
ruin or destruction within your borders.
You will call your walls, Salvation,
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day;
by night you will not need the brightness of the moon.

We will now sing God is Forgiveness:

Illumination

God our faithful Shepherd,

we depend on you for everything we need:

for daily food, for guidance and protection,

for healing in injury and comfort in sorrow.

You respond in abundant provision.

Thank you for your tender care of us.

Thank you for soothing the wounds of this life.

Thank you that in the presence of enemies,

especially the last enemy of death,

you are with us, as Shepherd, Host, Home.

Let us now sing O Lord Hear My Prayer

Prayerw

With all the faithful, let us pray to the Lord,

who is our hiding place in times of trouble,

who surrounds us with glad cries of deliverance.

We pray for all who are hungry—

whether hungry for power and glory

or hungry for a simple meal.

Show the mighty

that you alone can satisfy their deepest need,

and feed the poor

from the abundance of your good creation.

We pray for the church in times of trial—

whether tested by tempestuous change

or tempted by safety of the status quo.

Give us peace

when anger and fear threaten to divide us,

and challenge us

when we are too comfortable in this world.

We pray for leaders in high places—

whether determined to help those who suffer

or distant from the cries of the oppressed.

Open their eyes

to see your saving power at work,

and open their ears

to hear your prophets’ calls for justice.

Lord God, instruct us in the way we should go

and let your steadfast love surround us always;

in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

We will now sing Bless the Lord my Soul.

The Lord's Prayer

And now, as our Saviour Christ has taught us, we are bold to say,

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who 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.

Let us now sing Jesus, Remember me:

Closing Prayer

May the grace of Christ,

the love of Abba,

and the Spirit’s joy surround us

as we walk in the light of the Lord. Amen.

Postlude: