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(baby crying)
(classical music)
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Grace and peace to you in the name
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of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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We welcome you to this service of worship
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at Duke University Chapel on this
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13th Sunday after Pentecost.
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We realize that many of you are visiting
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with us from around the country,
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and we welcome you warmly to our campus.
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We hope you will have an occasion to be with us soon.
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Our preacher for today is the Reverend miss Helen Ninest,
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Director of the Campus Ministry Section,
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Division of Higher Education at the Board
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of Higher Education and Ministry
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for the United Methodist Church.
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That's quite a title. (laughing)
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Those of us who have had the opportunity to work
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with Miss Ninest are impressed by her vision
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for campus ministry and what the church's presence
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should be on college campuses, and also by her creativity.
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We feel especially privileged
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to have her with us as our preacher today.
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You are reminded that the sacrament
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of holy communion will be celebrated
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immediately after the service in the Memorial Chapel.
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Please note the other announcements
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as they are printed in your bulletins.
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And now, hear these words of scripture.
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"This is the day that the Lord has made.
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"Rejoice and be glad in it."
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(organ music)
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(choir singing in unison with organ)
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When we gather to praise God,
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we remember that we are a people
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who have preferred our will to the Lord's.
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Accepting God's power to become new persons in Christ,
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let us confess our sins before God and one another
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that we may be at one with our maker.
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Almighty God, you have called us into your church
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to be your servants at the service of others.
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Forgive us for falling short of your calling.
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We have loved our buildings
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more than our brothers and sisters.
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We have been more concerned with budgets
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than with justice and peace.
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We have been more ready to think about Christ
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than to live in Christ's image.
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Cut through our evasions, increase our courage,
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renew our vision, make us and the whole church
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more nearly what you would have us be.
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Through Jesus Christ, whose body we are, amen.
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Hear the good news, Christ died for us
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while we were yet sinners.
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That is God's own proof of His love toward us.
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In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
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In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.
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Let us pray.
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Open our hearts and minds, oh God,
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by the power of your Holy Spirit,
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so that has the word is read and proclaimed,
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we might hear with joy
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what you say to us this day, amen.
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Our first lesson this morning is from
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the book of Jeremiah 20:7-13.
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"Oh Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived;
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"thou art stronger than I, and thou hast prevailed.
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"I have become a laughingstock all the day;
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"every one mocks me.
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"For whenever I speak, I cry out,
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"I shout, 'Violence and destruction!'
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"For the word of the Lord has become for me
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"a reproach and derision all day long.
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"If I say, 'I will not mention him,
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"or speak any more in his name,'
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"there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
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"shut up in my bones, and I am weary
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"with holding it in, and I cannot.
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"For I hear many whispering.
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"Terror is on every side.
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"'Denounce him, let us denounce him!'
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"say all my familiar friends, watching for my fall.
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"Perhaps he will be deceived, then we can overcome him,
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"and take our revenge on him."
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"But the Lord is with me as a dread warrior;
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"therefore my persecutors will stumble,
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"they will not overcome me.
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"They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed.
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"Their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.
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"O Lord of hosts, who triest the righteous,
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"who seest the heart and the mind,
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"let me see thy vengeance upon them,
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"for to thee have I committed my cause.
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"Sing to the Lord, praise the Lord!
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"For he has delivered the life of the needy
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"from the hand of evildoers."
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This ends the reading of the first lesson.
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Arise, oh Lord, oh God, lift up thy hand.
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Forget not the afflicted.
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Why does the wicked man revile God?
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Why does he say to himself,
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"He won't call me to account"?
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Thou dost see; yea, thou dost note trouble and vexation,
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that thou mayst take it into thy hands.
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Break thou the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
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seek out his wickedness till thou find none.
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The Lord is king for ever and ever;
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the nations shall perish from his land.
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O Lord, thou wilt hear the desire of the meek;
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thou wilt strengthen their heart, thou wilt incline thy ear
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to do justice to the fatherless, the motherless,
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and the oppressed, so that one who is of the earth
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may strike terror no more.
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(organ music)
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(choir singing in unison with organ)
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Our reading from the gospel is from St. Luke 12:49-56.
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"'I came to cast fire upon the earth;
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"and would that it were already kindled!
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"I have a baptism to be baptized with;
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"and how I am constrained until it is accomplished!
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"Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth?
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"No, I tell you, but rather division;
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"for henceforth in one house there will be five divided,
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"three against two and two against three;
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"they will be divided, father against son
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"and son against father, mother against daughter
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"and daughter against her mother,
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"mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
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"and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."
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He also said to the multitudes, "When you see a cloud rising
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"in the west, you say at once,
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'A shower is coming', and so it happens.
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"And when you see the south wind blowing,
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"you say, 'There will be scorching heat'; and it happens.
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"You hypocrites!
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"You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky;
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"but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?"
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Here ends the reading of the gospel.
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(orchestral music)
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Our epistle lesson this morning is from the letter
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to the Hebrews, Chapter 12:1,2, and 12-17.
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"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great
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"a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight,
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"and sin which clings so closely, and let us run
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"with perseverance the race that is set before us,
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"looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith,
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"who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross,
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"despising the shame, and is seated
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"at the right hand of the throne of God.
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"Therefore lift your drooping hands
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"and strengthen your weak knees,
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"and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame
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"may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.
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"Strive for peace with all people, and for the holiness
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"without which no one will see the Lord.
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"See to it that no one fail to obtain the grace of God;
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"that no "root of bitterness" spring up and cause trouble,
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"and by it the many become defiled;
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"that no one be immoral or irreligious like Esau,
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"who sold his birthright for a single meal.
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"For you know that afterward, when he desired
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"to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found
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"no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears."
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This ends the reading of the epistle lesson.
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Nancy commented on the length of my title,
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but what she didn't tell you is that in the bureaucracy
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of the United Methodist Church, the longer one's title is,
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the further down the ladder of the totem pole one really is.
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So, I would ask you not to be too impressed
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by the length of the title.
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Any preacher who is honest with you will share,
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will reveal both herself and her sources and her sermon,
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and I want to do that as I begin.
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I'm indebted to Robert Raines for both the title
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and the kernel of the message this morning,
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and to the author of the letter to the Hebrews.
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In addition, Heather Marie Elkins, who is a preacher friend
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of mine from West Virginia, shared with me
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the story of an experience in her first parish
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that left me forever changed.
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And finally, what I want to say this morning
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reflects some of the heart of my own
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faith struggle in the last eight or nine months of my life.
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Given that, will you bow with me for a word of Prayer?
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In Christ's name, amen.
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As the late E.B. White watched his wife Katharine
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planning the planting of bulbs in her garden,
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during what was the last autumn of her life,
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he wrote these words, "There was something comical,
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"yet touching, in her bedraggled appearance.
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"The small hunched over figure, her studied absorption
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"in the implausible notion that there
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"would yet be another spring.
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"Oblivious to the ending of her own days,
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"which she knew perfectly well was near at hand,
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"sitting there with her detailed chart
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"under those dark skies in a dying October,
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"calmly plotting the resurrection."
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Katherine White was a member of the Resurrection Company,
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the great host of those who plant seeds of hope
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under threatening skies of grief or oppression,
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going about their living and dying until one day,
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no one knows how or where, or when,
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the tender Easter shoots
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appear and a part of creation is healed.
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Katherine White was a member
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of the cloud of witnesses of which Hebrews speaks.
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Katherine knew the strength promised
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in the epistle this morning.
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Katherine was a plotter of the Resurrection.
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We are surrounded by a great company of plotters
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by a great cloud of witnesses.
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Emily Dickinson was one.
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She wrote, "Hope is the thing with feathers
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"that perches in the soul and sings the song
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"without the words and never stops at all."
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Dickinson knew that a great sorrow might snatch away
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the words of grace, but she could still hum it's melody.
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Dickinson, in her own way,
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was a plotter of the Resurrection.
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She knew something of the strength
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promised in the epistle lesson.
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Or Oscar Romero, celebrating mass in San Salvador,
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"If they kill me, I will rise again
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"in the hearts of my people," and they killed him.
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And today, his picture hangs and countless homes
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and churches across Latin America.
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He knew the strength promised in the epistle,
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and his spirit continues to plot the resurrection.
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Or my preacher friend Heather, and the stories
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she tells about her first appointment
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in the hills of West by-god Virginia.
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It was not what you would call a great appointment.
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A bypassed village, a dying factory mill railroad town.
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No chance of being mistaken for a successful here.
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But, they did well by holding their own.
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As a matter of fact, one very hot August day,
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they were doing just that, holding their own, race.
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Never mind that they were wildly overshadowed
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by the international Elby's race that was being held
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in Wheeling, Virginia, where people came
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from all over the world to compete.
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That didn't matter.
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They were holding their own.
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And, never mind that they didn't have the TV cameras
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or the famous runners, they were holding their own.
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In memory of a young high school student,
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a Catholic, who had died suddenly.
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And so, all the entry money went to a scholarship
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to help some other young person
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get a head start out of town.
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And, there were a lot of entries, all ages, all kinds.
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They were the golden boys without jobs, but still helpful.
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There was the 83 year-old optometrist
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who ran to prove he was still alive.
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There were wonderful women in different stages
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and ages of life, all gathered for a 3-mile run
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around the center of town, not big.
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You had to do that twice to make three miles.
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And Aaron was there.
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Aaron was the youngest of the runners.
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Aaron was seven, and he lived four doors down the street.
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Aaron's father had died before Aaron was born,
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and his mother tried hard to let Aaron walk
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as big and proud as he could.
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So, there was Aaron in the hot August sun.
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His armband so big it kept slipping down around his wrist.
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And, the mayor lifted the gun,
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and off it went, and off they took.
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The townspeople stood around
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and shuffle their feet and talked and waited.
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I don't think they really cared who was going to win.
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They were more interested in who was
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going to be able to finish.
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They didn't have to wait long.
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The first of the runners came around
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the far corner towards them.
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They came around what my friend Heather calls
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the only Christian institution in town,
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which was the volunteer fire department.
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As they aimed towards the first lap,
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the townspeople counted them as they went by.
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Most there, though some had dropped out.
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They watched closely as Aaron finally rounded the corner.
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A little shaky and beet red, is armband missing by now,
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but he smiled fiercely at his mother as he ran past.
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And then they waited again, and time got long,
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and they waited some more.
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The first of The golden boys was properly cheered,
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and then the townspeople waited again.
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Who would finish?
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One by one by one they came in,
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counting noses, counting numbers.
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It seemed to be the last, and no one had seen Aaron.
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His grandmother's house was along the marked path,
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and the townspeople thought he probably stopped about there.
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Just as the crowd was beginning to move,
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he came around the corner, all alone,
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and they waited and they cleared a way for him,
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and he came on and he got about 20 feet away,
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and he fell and he lay.
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Heather was across the street from where his mother stood,
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and she watched her for a moment.
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His mother waited about two heartbeats
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to see if he would get up by himself,
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and while he was trying to struggle up, she ran up to him
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and pushed away the others who were there and lifted him up.
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And, there was a moment when they just watched each other,
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looked at each other in that hot August street.
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Everyone thought she was going to take him over
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to the shaded table where the water was, but what she did
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was to shift him higher and turn,
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and she began to run.
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And, holding him high against her heart,
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she carried them both over the finish line.
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In the heat of that street, in the middle of nowhere else,
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the townspeople trembled.
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They knew what they had seen.
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The way the journey ends.
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And, I had seen it too through Heather's eyes,
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the way the journey ends.
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For when we lay our life on the line,
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when we out race our hearts,
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when we give all that we have to give,
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and the end is not yet,
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when everything in us gives way
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and we go down, as we will go down,
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then the Risen One
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comes and lift us up and carries us over.
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First to last, the good news,
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in life, in death,
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in life beyond death, God is with us,
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we are not alone, thanks be to God.
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Aaron and his mother, you see,
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are plotters of the Resurrection.
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They each knew something of the strength
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promised in the epistle to the Hebrews.
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They are members of that great cloud of witnesses.
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In so many ways, we do the plotting,
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and it is God who brings the resurrection.
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Our offices, our church,
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our homes, our city,
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our university, our nation,
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and even the world
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needs poets like Dickinson, and prophets like Romero,
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and runners like Aaron.
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We need those who will plot the resurrection.
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We need the great cloud of witnesses, both living and dead.
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We need those whose lives witness to the strength,
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promised in the epistle to the Hebrews.
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Sisters and brothers, lay aside every weight
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and sin which clings so closely.
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Run with perseverance the race which is set before you.
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May you hear the call to be a plotter of the Resurrection,
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and may you find the strength that comes
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from knowing God has raised us all
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from death to life.
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Amen, so be it, amen.
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(organ music)
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(choir singing in unison with organ music)
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The Lord be with you.
And, also with you.
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Let us pray.
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Oh, eternal God, who art the hope
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of the ends of the earth, we turn our hearts unto thee.
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In the spirit of thanksgiving, we offer these prayers
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for others, trusting in thy eternal goodness,
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seeking to give thanks in all things.
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Let us pray for peace in our world.
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Oh, eternal God, in whose perfect Kingdom
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knows strength is known, but the strength of love,
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so mightily spread abroad your spirit,
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that all people's may be gathered under the banner
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of the Prince of Peace as children of one creator.
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Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
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Let us pray for social justice.
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Grant, oh God, that thy life giving spirit may so move
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every human heart, that barriers which divide us
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may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatred cease,
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and they all divisions being healed,
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we may live in justice and peace.
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Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
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Let us pray for those who suffer.
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Oh, ever living God, look with pity on those
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who live with violence, oppression,
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disease and death as their constant companions.
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Have mercy upon us.
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Strengthen those who spend their lives
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seeking to heal or to comfort others.
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Help us to see the day when everyone may enjoy
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a just portion of the riches of this land.
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Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
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Let us pray for creative human endeavors.
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Oh, creator of the universe, we pray for all hopeful
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and constructive movements now afoot in our midst.
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We pray thee for all scientists seeking new discoveries,
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for all teachers who instill a thirst for knowledge,
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for all students who desire to know the truth,
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for all those who love beauty and seek to create it,
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and for all servants of the common good
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who seek to make a better world.
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Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
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Our kind and gracious God, so draw our hearts unto thee,
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so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations,
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so control our wills that we may be holy thine,
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utterly dedicated unto thee, and then use us we pray,
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to thy glory and the welfare of thy people.
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Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
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Through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we pray, amen.
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And now, in the spirit of thanksgiving
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for the mighty acts of God, let us offer
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our gifts and ourselves unto God.
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(classical music)