Parish Ministry

The Day After the Election: A Pastoral Letter

11.09.2016 by Heather Prince Doss //

Brothers and Sisters:

Today, a difficult election season is behind us. We know now that Donald Trump will be the 45th President of the United States of America. In the circles I frequent, there is a deep sense of sadness that we have elected a person who, in his campaign, promoted bigotry, misogyny, and greed. There is also a deep, if dim, hope that his presidency will not be based on that kind of rhetoric. Trump and his supporters have acknowledged that our nation is deeply divided along lines of race, education, and class. Last night in his acceptance speech, Trump spoke to the need for building trust and serving the common good, even if it is not clear how to do so.

Among you, the members and friends of Eliot Church, I know there are some who are fearful because the Trump campaign has threatened you and the people you love. Many in our congregation are not citizens of the United States, and they are afraid that their immigration status will not be renewed or they will be deported. Some in our congregation belong to the LGBTQ community, or have children who do. They are afraid that their marriages and legal rights will no longer be protected. Some are afraid that an emphasis on law and order will mean that more of our young men (especially young black men) will find themselves imprisoned.

While we need space to acknowledge and give voice to these fears, we also need to remember that people of faith should not be governed by fear. Over and over again, God speaks to God’s people and says “Fear not.” We are a people of faith, and so we will confess (over and against our fears) that God who created us and redeemed us is still with us. If our worst fears materialize, Eliot Church will continue to be safe place for people on the margins – even if that comes at great risk. But we will not assume or fear the worst. Instead we will hope and work for the best. We will look for the best in people, including our President elect. We will continue to pursue goodness and justice in our communities. We will live out Christian unity that transcends political differences, for the sake of building up the whole body – indeed the whole nation.

I recognize that not everyone in our congregation will identify with the feelings I have articulated. There are other kinds of fears that I have not voiced here. Some may be celebrating victory even while others are feeling defeated. I am not asking anyone to deny or denounce their personal political views. I do call on each of us to listen to one another, to make space for a variety of realities and feelings among us, and to commit together to be a people of faith, not a people of fear. Let us not incite fear in others, and let us not give in to the fear that others may be inciting around us. Our God is bigger than our fears, and he offers us faith that is stronger.

God is good, all the time – even now. Let us also be good and do good in the name of a God who is stronger than all our fears. I pray God’s blessing upon America, but even more I pray that America will be a blessing to God.

Grace and Peace,
Pastor Heather Prince Doss

Bread From the World: World Communion Liturgy

09.27.2016 by Heather Prince Doss //

This Sunday is World Communion Sunday, a day when Christian churches around the world have all agreed to celebrate Communion as a sign of our oneness in Jesus Christ. Not all Christian traditions participate, but many do, and the day is a powerful reminder of our unity in Christ despite the theological, political, linguistic, and cultural differences in the church around the world.

I wrote the following liturgy for use in my congregation this Sunday. Members have agreed to bring the breads listed. In some cases, they are making the bread from their country of origin. You could adapt the breads to your own context. As always, this liturgy is for you to use and adapt, provided you include a credit like “Adapted from Rev. Heather Prince Doss.” I am likewise grateful for Rev. Sarah Campbell and Rev. Jordan Rimmer for ideas that contributed to this liturgy.

Invitation to the Table

Today we celebrate World Communion Sunday, remembering our Christian brothers and sisters around the world who also celebrate this feast. We remember that this is our Lord’s Table, and all who seek Jesus are welcome.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Matzah is unleavened bread reminds us of all who eat their bread in haste.
It symbolizes for us all the refugees who, like the ancient Israelites,
leave their homes and flee from danger.
May it remind us, too, of the homeless in our own city and country.
We pray, O God, for your church among those with no place to call home.
May we learn from their searching faith,
and may we be a place of welcome for all who seek safety.

Frybread reminds us of Africa,
the birthplace of humankind where Christianity continues to flourish.
It also reminds us of a legacy of slavery, and of a people who endured.
We pray, O God, for your church in places where it flourishes,
and we confess the times and places when we have enslaved our brothers and sisters.
May we learn from the vibrant faith of our African brothers and sisters,
and may we build a more just and peaceable world.

Nom Chakie is a Cambodian bread that reminds us of Asia,
where Christians are a minority among Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and others.
It represents for us the ways our faith calls us beyond our culture
and reminds us of our brothers and sisters who are persecuted for their beliefs.
We pray, O God, for your church in places
where Christianity is dangerous, politically or socially.
May we learn from the steadfast faith of our Asian brothers and sisters
and walk with Jesus through every trial.

Tortillas remind us of Central and South America,
where faith and culture have colored one another beautifully;
but also a place where Christians live with violence, drugs, and conflict as a daily reality.
We pray, O God, for your church in places beset by violence and still colored by hope.
May we learn from the persistent faith of our Latino brothers and Latina sisters,
and may we look upon them with compassion as our neighbors.

The baguette reminds us of Europe,
with its vast cathedrals that are often empty.
It represents those who keep the faith alive in lean times
and reminds us that the church is not a building, but a community of people.
We pray, O God, for your church in places where its power is diminished
and its followers are few.
May we learn from the age-old faith of our European brothers and sisters,
and may we live our faith so that our faith might live.

Cornbread reminds us of Native Americans
who first recognized God in the rhythms of nature.
It reminds us that the land we call home once belonged to others.
We pray, O God, for your church as it exists in every land.
May we learn from the earthy faith of our Native American brothers and sisters,
and may we care for the land and all those who call it home.

Come, Holy Spirit,
dwell in these breads and in this cup
that they might be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Come, dwell in your people of every land and language
that we might be united with one another
to be the body of Christ in every corner of the world today. Amen.

Words of Institution

Today, Christ-followers meet in public worship and secret gatherings to break bread together.
Today, in wealthy churches and hovels of poverty, wine is shared.
In many different languages, by ordained clergy and volunteer pastors,
these words of institution are given:

On the night he was betrayed, our Lord, Jesus, gathered for supper
with twelve of his closest friends, his disciples.
He took the unleavened bread of the Passover feast,
and when he had given thanks to God for it,
he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying,
“This is my body, broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way after supper Jesus took the cup and gave it to His disciples, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant – a new relationship with God,
marked by the forgiveness of your sins. Drink of it, all of you.”

And so today, every time we eat this bread and drink this cup,
we remember our Lord’s death, and we hope for the day when he shall come again.
These are the gifts of God for all the people of God.

Communion of the People

We will celebrate the feast by intinction with each kind of bread in a basket together. Worshipers may choose whichever type of bread they like – or maybe more than one!

Prayer after Communion

You have met us at the table, Lord Jesus,
to unite us with you and with brothers and sisters around the world.
Go with us now into that world,
that we might be a living sign of welcome among refugees,
of freedom among the oppressed,
of hope amid persecution,
of peace amid violence,
of living faith amid a culture of skepticism,
and of loving kindness toward the earth and all her inhabitants.
We pray in the name of Jesus, even as we pray that prayer that he taught us:

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 debts as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

Clothed in Love and Wax Print

08.31.2016 by Heather Prince Doss //

Last Sunday we dedicated new uniforms for Eliot’s African Fellowship Choir, beautiful custom-tailored pieces sewn from red, gold, and black African Wax Print fabric imported from Cameroon. It was a colorful musical affair, and this is the liturgy I wrote for the occasion.

The Psalmists writes:

Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!
Let everything that breathes praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!

We gather each Sunday morning to lift our voices in praise to God who made us, redeems us, and sustains us. We raise our songs, beat our drums, and move our feet and hips and hands – joining with the whole choir of creation. We are led each week by a choir: each week a different tradition, a different culture, even different languages. Today we give thanks to God for the soul-stirring and body-swaying rhythms of our brothers and sisters from Africa. From them we have learned new ways to praise, raised in the cradle of humanity. With them we have sung new songs that are as old as the earth itself.

Invite African Fellowship Choir members to stand.

Here these words from the Apostle Paul:

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

We celebrate today and dedicate to God not only these new uniforms that the African Fellowship Choir will wear, but we dedicate to God the people who will wear them:

May these uniforms you wear bind you to one another not only in outward appearance but also in inward spirit. As you wear them, you reflect the unity of the church through Christ Jesus. Wear them well.

As you put on these uniforms each month, may you be clothed not only in vibrant fabric but also in compassion, kindness, humility, patience, and love. As you wear them, you should bound together in perfect harmony. Wear them well.

As you rehearse the songs that you will sing, may it be not only your voices that ring with harmony, but also your lives. Clothed in one uniform and singing one song, may you also bring harmony to your families, your workplaces, your schools, and your communities. Wear them well.

Let us pray:
Eternal God,
we join our praises with the songs of the heavenly choirs;
with the music of birds and trees and people of every land;
with the harmonies of the universe.
We give thanks for the men and women
who lead our praise and worship each week as we gather in this sanctuary.
Especially we thank you for this African Fellowship Choir,
for their soulful songs and steady rhythms.
May their music encourage us all to praise,
and lift our prayers to your throne in times of joy and times of sorrow.

We dedicate these voices to you and to your service, O God.
We offer you these new uniforms that they wear,
praying that they will be a sign
not only of outward unity but inward harmony.
As each thread is woven into a whole cloth,
weave together men and women – basses, tenors, altos and sopranos –
into one choir of peace.

The whole earth is yours, O Lord,
and so we offer you but your own:
voices that you have given us,
uniforms that are your blessing upon us,
and a community of faith which you have entrusted to us.
May the songs we sing together
and the clothes we wear together
be a blessing to you and to the work of Christ Jesus on earth. Amen.

You are welcome to reuse all or part of this liturgy in your worship setting provided you credit me as the author. The liturgy may not be republished, sold, or used for commercial purposes.