A water liturgy for the time of Lent

This service was put together for worship in the Ecumenical Centre on Monday 2 March 2009. Many of the prayers come from the WCC assembly worship book "Em Tua Graça" and the motivation for doing a service on water comes from the Ecumenical Water Network's Seven Weeks for Water.

Learn how to make your own rain stick from recycled material. We were lucky enough to have one amongst our amazing variety of instruments.

Longing for Water and for Justice

~ Water Stick ~ Welcome ~ Water Stick ~

Prayer
Holy Spirit, Life-giver, who moved over the waters in creation, who led your people through the waters of the Red Sea to liberation, and who comforted your exiled people by the waters of Babylon, draw us together as we gather in your name.

Tears
Sing: By the Rivers of Babylon
By the rivers of Babylon, where we sat down
And there we wept when we remembered Zion (twice)

Carried us away to captivity, required of us a song
How can we sing Jehovah's song in a strange land (twice)

By the rivers of Babylon, where we sat down
And there we wept when we remembered Zion (twice)

Longing and searching
Psalm 42
As a deer longs for flowing streams,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
When shall I come and behold
the face of God?
My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me continually,
‘Where is your God?’

We sing two verses of Psalm 42 (sung lightly, as a dance)
Comme un cerf assoiffé brame,
Recherchant le frais des eaux
O Seigneur, ainsi mon âme
Soupire après tes ruisseaux !
Elle a soif du Dieu vivant
Et s'écrie, en le suivant :
O mon Dieu, quand donc sera-ce
Que mes yeux verront ta face ?

Mon seul pain, ce sont mes larmes
Et nuit et jour, en tout lieu.
Au milieu du bruit des armes,
On me dit : Que fait ton Dieu ?
Je repense à ta maison,
Où j'allais en procession,
Chantant avec les fidèles
Tes louanges immortelles.

Palm 63
O God, you are my God, I seek you,
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands and call on your name.

Sing verse three of Psalm 42
Quel chagrin donc te dévore ?
Toi mon coeur, rassure-toi !
Espère en Dieu, car encore
Tu pourras louer ton Roi !
D'un regard, assurément,
Il guérira ton tourment :
Mon Dieu, je sais que mon âme
Près de toi reprend son calme !

Litany of commitment (read in Spanish)
By the rivers in Fortaleza, we sat down and cried for the cholera victims
In those who lived there we saw sadness and didn't know what to say.
People who lived there did not have songs on their lips
They wanted joy but with neither water nor health, there was no way to be joyful

How could we sing praise to the Lord in the midst of such suffering?
If we forget you, may we go thirsty.
May our lips be dry if we forget you, if we don't bring back water, health and joy.

Judge, Lord, our elites, for their neglect and greed have long mistreated us.
But remember Fortaleza, your children in Ceara, Harare, Bangladesh ... who suffer from thirst and cholera;
don't let the earth go dry

Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream.
Amen (copyright Napoleao Marcos Mendes In Esperança Viva, CLAI, 1995)

We keep silence, listen to the sound of the rain stick and then rise to sing a different setting of Psalm 42 in Agape 92 verses 1-3

Isaiah 41:17-18 (read in French)
When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them,
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.

John 7: 37-38 (read in French)
On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, “Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.” ’

Meditation

Prayers of intercession (read in French and German)
Spirit of creation, you hovered over the formless void and separated waters from waters:
we ask your guidance in our stewardship of water, that it may enhance the goodness of your world.
We pray for all the people of the earth, that we may realize our place within nature
and live in harmony with all the elements and organisms that are your abiding gift.

Sung response

Spirit of encouragement, you offered signs of hope despite the flood,
providing creatures the safety of an ark and extending an olive branch for the dove to carry home:
we pray for those who have suffered through the rising tide
of tsunamis, typhoons, hurricanes and floodwaters of every kind.
We pray for those who mourn, that they may be comforted in the knowledge of your eternal care.

Sung response

We pray for the poor and for all who work together to rebuild societies in hope of a better world.
We pray for a generation that has failed to confront global warming and rapid climate change;
save us Lord from the harsh storms of nature, but most of all save us from ourselves

Sung response

We pray for spiritual resources to aid us in reaching out to others, meeting them where they are,
so that we may offer a cup of fresh water to the thirsty, and the word of life to all.
Pray in our prayers, loving Spirit, that our own spirits may be revitalized
Just as gentle healing water brings new growth to a parched and barren land.
In the name of the triune God we pray.
Amen (copyright WCC in Em Tua Graça)

The Lord's Prayer in our different languages

Blessing
May God the Father grant us the grace that changes us
May God the Spirit grant us the grace that saves us
May the Spirit of life grant us the grace that makes us free
And as we go on our way may we celebrate peace

(copyright Antônio Carlos Soares de Santos, Brazil)

Sing Agape 64 ~ O healing River