An order of morning prayer for Brazil

Ecumenical Centre Morning PrayerMonday, 15 June 2009
Praying for Brazil through the ecumenical prayer cycle
this order of prayers was put together by Simei Monteiro and Elaine Neuenfeld

Prelude
Call to worship

Let there be the Word of God,
in every heart impearled.
The living Word
is told and heard for the healing of the world.

Let there be the Love of God
In Jesus Christ unfurled.
The Cross of death
gave life its breath
for the healing of the world.

Let there be the Wind of God.
Through all times it has whirled.
The Spirit moves,
reviews, renews
for the healing of the world.

Let there be the Church of God,
committed, true and bold.
The bread we share
in deed and prayer
for the healing of the world.

Song Agape # 54

Thanksgiving
God, we give you thanks and praise for:
The strength of the church in Brazil, the work of the National Council of Christian Churches, the witness of Pentecostal and Evangelical Christians, the work and commitment of ecumenical groups with the popular and contextual reading of the Bible and those who work to spread the Gospel on the streets and in the favelas.
Those who work for the liberation of the people, and for social, political and economic justice.
The beauty and biological diversity of the Amazonian rainforest – for parrots and the golden-headed lion tamarin, for the medicinal plants and the wisdom of the people who live at the margin of the Amazon (ribeirinhos); for the social movement in defense of the forest, rivers and indigenous land.
Feijoada, strong coffee, rice and beans - for daily bread, bread of justice, bread for all.
Carnival, popular fiesta, spread in all our regions, giving the diversity of colors, songs and when rich and poor dance together.

Old Testament Reading Isaiah 58:1-12
Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet day after day they seek me and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments, they delight to draw near to God.
"Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?" Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers. Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to strike with a wicked fist. Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, and to lie in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.

Aleluia by Simei Monteiro

Gospel Reading Matthew 11:1-6
Now when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and proclaim his message in their cities. When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me."

Reflecting and Interceding
(After each intercession and “God, hear our prayer” we will sing Kyrie)

Affirmation of Faith

L: Let us affirm our faith

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of the magistrates
nor in the god of the generals or of patriotic oratory.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of gloomy hymns
nor in the god of courtrooms
or of preambles or constitutions
and epilogues to eloquent speeches.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of good fortune of the rich
nor in the god of fear of the wealthy
nor in the god of happiness of those who rob the people.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of false peace
nor in the god of justice which is not of the people
nor in the god of venerable national traditions.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of vacuous sermons
nor in the god of formal greetings
or of loveless marriages.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD made
in the image and likeness of the powerful
nor in the god invented as a sedative
for the misery and suffering of the poor.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD who sleeps within church walls
or lies hidden in church safes.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD of the commercialized Christmas
nor in the god of slick advertising.


I DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOD made out of lies
as fragile as clay pots
nor in the god of the established order
which rests on disorder
and acquiesces in it.

THE GOD I BELIEVE IN was born in a cave.
He was a poor.
He was hounded by a foreign king
and wandered through Palestine.
He made the people his companions
and gave bread to the hungry,
light to those in darkness,
freedom to those who lay in bondage
and peace to those who prayed for justice.

THE GOD I BELIEVE IN
put human beings before law
and love in place of old traditions.
He had no stone on which to lay his head
and mixed with the poor.

His only dealings with learned people
were when they questioned his word.
He appeared before judges
who tried to find him guilty.
He was seen with the police
as a prisoner.
He entered the governor’s palace
to be flogged.

THE GOD I BELIEVE IN
wore a crown of thorns.
His tunic was woven entirely of blood.
He had escorts to clear his way before him to Calvary,
where he died, between thieves,
on the cross.

THE GOD I BELIEVE IN
is no other than
the son of Mary,
Jesus of Nazareth.

Every day he dies
crucified by our selfish acts.
Every day he rises from death
by the power of our love.

Song Momento Novo

Blessing

L. Let us ask for God's blessing

All: May God the Father grant us the grace that changes us.
May God the Son 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.