At the Beginning of God’s Creating

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1)

The Schocken Bible offers the opening of Genesis this way: “at the beginning of God’s creating of the heavens and the earth, when the earth was wild and waste, darkness over the face of Ocean, breath of God hovering over the face of the waters…”

There are two things is these verses which are especially important for us in this this time.

The first: the distinction between “in the beginning when God created…” and “at the beginning of God’s creating…”

“In the beginning when God created,” implies that nothing existed before a certain point in time. It implies that God got busy creating, and according to the story, worked for six days, turned it over to humans for safekeeping and then God rested. God’s work was done as soon as creation came into being. It sounds like a onetime event.

“At the beginning of God’s creating” implies that this creation story is merely the beginning of God’s creative process. A New Creed affirms that we “believe in God who has created and is creating.” God’s creating is an on-going process.

The second thing that’s important for us in these two verses the difference between a formless void and wild and waste. Formless void implies that there was absolutely nothing and that God called creation into being out of nothingness.

Wild and waste implies that matter existed. It just wasn’t in any organized, recognizable form. The Inclusive Bible phrases it as “chaos and emptiness.” The Jewish study Bible has this to say about chaos. “To modern people, the opposite of the created order is ‘nothing,’ that is, a vacuum. To the ancients, the opposite of the created order …. was an active, malevolent force we can best term ‘chaos.’”

So, in the ancient tradition, there was a belief that what existed before creation as we know it was untamed, unorganized, chaotic matter. Chaos theology (Dr. Sjoerd L. Bonting) offers this idea bringing science and theology together: there was a big bang which created chaos—energy and disorganized matter which God used to create the universe.

God used what already existed to begin creation. It seems everything is neat and orderly. God set everything in motion, and it should all work perfectly. Except that chaos theology goes on to suggest that there was a tiny bit of chaos left over that even God couldn’t control.

If there’s a bit of chaos left in the universe, it suggests that even God could be surprised and unprepared for what will happen next. We can see and identify chaos all around us—random accidents, miracle recoveries, new viruses, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, drought…all things that are possible—both good and bad—but in the realm of unlikely or inexplicable. How do we explain one person gets sick and dies, someone else recovers perfectly? How do we explain someone who was supposed to be on the Titanic, for example, and changed their plans at the last minute? We might say these are the bits of chaos still left in the universe.

Our faith affirms that God is still at work using the chaos that already existed to create and re-create.

What can we learn about present circumstances from this story?
Chaos has always existed, and it creates the energy and opportunity for creation and re-creation. If we say we are living in a time of chaos, we might ask: what are the opportunities to create something new from this energy? What is currently in need of being re-created?

We can’t plan for every eventuality. We can’t know what will happen next. In the midst of what feels like an uncertain time it might be tempting to try and control everything. The creation story reminds us that God can’t control every bit of chaos. If God can’t control every bit of chaos, why should we expect to control the chaos we experience?

Going back to school at this time is fraught with all sorts of unknowns. Chaos and the uncertainty attached to it is neither good nor bad. It simply is. Can we use the chaos to create new routines or patterns that are life-giving? Can we use the chaos to think more carefully about our choices?

When God uses the chaos to create, God sees that it is good. Can we see what comes out of the chaos as something good rather than something to be afraid or anxious about? If we look at what we might consider destructive chaos, we might be able to see God creating something good. If we think about covid, we can see the ways in which people are helping their neighbours who are isolating for various reasons. If we think about Black Lives Matter, we can see the ways in which people are finally beginning to see the systemic racism and work for change. Our reconciliation work in Canada offers an opportunity for new relationships, more understanding and changes in systems that have been destructive for many Indigenous people. These are good things that come out of the energy of chaos.

I encourage us to embrace the chaos that exists around us knowing that God is present and the chaos can actually support us in creating and re-creating the world around us.

Animal Sunday

Season of Creation at St. Andrew’s concluded with a pet blessing. People were invited to bring household pets to worship (on a leash or in a carrier). This was a new expereince for the congregation. I know there were a handful of people who stayed away either because of allergies or because animals in the church wasn’t a fit for them. The service seemed to be meaningful and was appreciated by those that did attend. There were eight dogs and a cat. It just happened that my husband, Roland, was greeting so our dog Abby got in on the action!

We began worship by telling stories about animals that shared our life. The pets and their people were invited up to the front one at a time. Their people got to say something about their furry pal. Some people brought pictures instead of live animals. One woman talked about the kitten she was fostering that was heading off to its new home that very day.

I used the blessing from Tracy Sprowls-Jenks. After each pet was introduced, the congregation offered the blessing.

The scripture reading was Psalm 104:10-30.

Reflection:

Psalm 104 names humans as one of many animals. It leaves the impression that animals are as much a part of God’s spirit as we humans. They, like us, spend time on the earth, God provides and cares for them. Animals also carry God’s spirit within them. They are connected to us and we to them. Many of us have furry, feathered or scaled friends that we care for. We have a relationship with them and they often become part of our family. Even beyond our pets, we have responsibility for the wild creatures of the earth.

Humans destroy animal habitats with our towns and cities and agriculture. When I was a child, there were no antelope or moose around my farm. Now both are common. They have moved in as they look for food and shelter. On Ocean Sunday we talked about the whales that are swallowing plastic and garbage in the oceans. Our actions are impacting other creatures and most of the time we are oblivious because we don’t see the results. The creation story is written in a way that puts humans as the pinnacle of God’s creation. This psalm puts us in our proper place—not the top of creation but as one creature among many. God created the earth to be shared by many creatures and yet it is easy for humans to use more resources than we need, to pollute and destroy habitat. We need to have the same concern for the wild creatures that we have for our furry friends that share our homes.

The last several weeks have focussed on creation—both the awe and wonder of what we see and experience and the human impact and destruction of creation. Our faith calls us to be in relationship with the rest of creation and see ourselves as an integral part of the earth—not separate from it. As we move out of creation season and continue with season after Pentecost we look for God’s spirit throughout the creation. We look for reminders that we are not alone and that we live in God’s world which we share with many other creatures.

Offering Invitation:

This Sunday we are reminded of our place among the creatures and the way in which we care for all creation. We offer gifts of time, energy cash and PAR to heal all creation: this community of faith, this city, across Canada and around the world.

Offering Prayer

Creator, All life comes from you and depends on you. May we find our place in your complex world as we seek to care for all creatures and all creation. Amen.

I had intended for this to be a shorter service but with the individual blessings it was close to an hour. For most of the service the animals were quiet and you wouldn’t have known they were there. Following the service, there were cat and dog treats available at coffee time. The animals got lots of love and attention before and after worship!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tracy Sprowls-Jenks

https://www.uua.org/worship/words/meditation/281577.shtml

Cosmos Sunday

September 22 was Cosmos Sunday at St. Andrew’s.  Again, the Whitespruce Work crew was instrumental in pulling this off. In various nooks and crannies of the church, there were cardboard stars of various sizes left from previous projects. These were covered in glitter, a string was strung across the front of the sanctuary and the stars suspended from it.

The call to worship found here inspired me to think about dancing. I found Spirit Blowing Through Creation by Marty Haugen which celebrates the creation and holds in tension the need for a new relationship with the creation. Two of our children who take ballet agreed to dance this piece of music. Another child was around when the practicing was taking place so we ended up with three children offering liturgical dance.

I invited people to turn to someone nearby and finish this sentence based on Psalm 136. “Give thanks to God for God is….” They were invited to talk about what they find most amazing in the whole universe. It could be something tiny or something big.

As people arrived for worship they were given a small ball of galaxy dough. One of the guys from the work crew spent several hours mixing this dough as it was very sticky and goopy. Cornstarch finally, firmed it up enough to be used. Each person was asked to use their galaxy dough to create some part of creation.

Psalm 136 from The Message was read responsively.

The Minute for Mission featured a Two-Spirit Pow-wow in Saskatoon which continued the theme of all creation dancing.

Reflection:

Psalm 136 that we are experiencing today, describes the wonder and awe of a cosmos we are only a tiny part of. The cosmos is bigger than we can fathom and it is in the tiniest cell of our body. We are a part of that cosmos that is within us and beyond us. We are called to participate in the great dance of life. We celebrate and give thanks to God. But if you’ve been watching the news over the summer, you know that the Amazon is burning and destroying the earth’s capacity to provide the oxygen we need to survive. We watched the destruction in the Bahamas. I met deaconess from the Caribbean this summer. They said there is no longer a hurricane season. There are hurricanes year-round and many more than what we hear in the news. There are wildfires in Australia and California, flooding in India, typhoons in China and the list goes on….

We might say that’s just part of the weather. There have always been bad storms, tornados, hurricanes and fires and while this is true, it doesn’t account for the intensity or the frequency of the storms. We see the vastness of space which gives us a sense of awe and reminds us of how tiny we are in God’s grand scheme of the universe. Yet humans are instrumental in changing how the universe functions for good and bad. We have learned to cure certain diseases and adapt to certain medical conditions so we live longer with a better quality of life. We have learned how to change the DNA of plants to grow more food. With this knowledge we change the world and create unexpected consequences: people live longer, genes mutate, cancer appears with more frequency. We are one speck in the web of life and yet humanity’s impact is felt across creation.

We get to choose: Will our presence be one that creates and sustains life or one that deadens and destroys life?

Offering Prayer:

Holy One of galaxies and sky, of molecules and specks of dust: We share our gifts trusting that you are a God of both big and small. May these gifts remind us of our place in the universe and be used in healing your creation. Amen

 

Interactive Worship for Storm Sunday

On September 15, we celebrated Storm Sunday as the second Sunday of Season of Creation. As people arrived for worship they were given a raindrop made out of wax crayon melted between wax paper. Instructions can be found here. The Whitespruce work crew helped us out again by making all these raindrops and putting a sting on each one. They created some larger raindrops which were hung on the walls for decoration. I had pinwheels and large garden flower spinner stuck in pots and a fan lined up just right to make them spin.

We used this Call to Worship from Beth Barnett based on Psalm 29. The reading parts were arranged ahead of time with a mix of children and adults. Other people were invited to choose one of the instruments. I sat in the front pew and directed the instruments and read the leader’s part with everyone else on the chancel.

To get us thinking about storms I used a clip of Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day.  After the clip, I invited people to hold their raindrop and think about a storm they had experienced. How did they feel during the storm? What did they do during the storm? They were then invited to write  (using permanent marker) a word on the raindrop that described the storm. The children collected the raindrops. One of the older children supervised tying all the raindrops together to make a mobile. Later in the service, we hung the mobile on a shepherd’s hook stuck in a bucket of sand.

Psalm 29 was read from Laughing Bird. This an Australian paraphrase that uses Australian idiom and images and modern, casual language. I like the way the describe storms.

The Minute for Mission: A Health Crisis describes the aftermath of a tsunami in India which damaged a nuclear powerplant and continues to create health challenges for people in the region.

Reflection:

The version of the Psalm that was read today is a paraphrase that comes from Australia. It uses images that are familiar to the people. If we were going to describe a storm what images might we use to describe a prairie storm? How would you describe the wind and the clouds, the hail, the snow of winter?

On the one hand, storms can be very scary. They have so much power behind them and we know they can be dangerous and have the potential to destroy. The landscape can be totally changed by a tornado, wildfire or flood. We also know that climate change is causing storms to intensify. As we heard in the Minute for Mission, one storm had devastating and unexpected consequences years later. When we see the destruction a storm can cause, how do we find God?

I believe as Sally McFague describes in her book The Body of God, that the earth is God’s body. The storms, while a natural phenomenon, are also a bit like an illness. They are a symptom that something is out of balance. We all have bacteria in us and most of the time it doesn’t cause harm but when it is out of balance, we become ill. If the earth is God’s body, and the earth is ill, then God is ill. It might seem strange to think of God in this way. Human bodies have an amazing ability to heal throughout our lifetime…our immune systems should kick to heal. The parts work together to find balance again.

God’s body, the earth, also has the ability to heal. We are part of the earth’s creation—not separate from it. We need to actively involved in healing the earth which is not only our home but God’s incarnated being.

The thing about storms is that even though they can be powerful and destroy, I love watching lightning out the window or hearing the thunder. I love seeing the snow sculpted by the wind. The key here is knowing that (unless it’s a tornado) I’m probably safe in my home. The psalm gives assurance that God is with us in both the fear and the awe of storms.

We’ve been talking today about the weather but these storms might also be storms in life. The same principle applies. They can be scary and destructive but the also have the power to transform our lives. It isn’t always a pleasant experience but if we stay in the storm, we find God’s presence in both the fearfulness and the awe of the experience.

Invitation to offering:

We recognize the storms of the world and make offerings through cash, PAR, time and talents to support people and creation in weathering the storms of life. These gifts support ministry in this congregation and community and around the world through Mission and Service.

Offering Prayer:

God of the storm, be present with us through everything life offers. May these gifts be used to bring healing of body, mind, spirit throughout the earth. May we be a reflection of you as we seek healing for your body. Through your spirit, Amen.

Happy Storm Sunday! I hope this sparks your creativity for worship.

 

 

 

 

Interactive Worship for Ocean Sunday

This fall in worship planning and leadership, I have been focussing on encouraging interaction between people, creating visual components that speak to the theme.

The community of faith that I serve is blessed with a relationship with a nearby correctional centre that has a work crew looking for things to do. For Ocean Sunday, the work crew was able to climb ladders and suspend fabric and streamers from the ceilings.

 

 

As each person arrived, they were given a paper flower. Thanks to the work crew for all their cutting! These are made by squaring a piece of coloured letter paper and cutting it into quarters. These smaller squares are folded into quarters. The unfolded edges are trimmed as shown.

 

When you open the paper it looks like this.

 

Then you fold up the petals to create a square bottom and the flowers float.

 

When Sunday morning arrived a pristine wading pool of water awaited us. The service began with children adding plastic bags and straws to the water.

 

 

We read the story of the fishers who fished all night and caught nothing. Jesus came along and told them to put out their nets on the other side and the nets were filled to overflowing. Luke 5:1-11

We read A Garden of Whales maggie s. davis and Illustrations by Jennifer O’Connell. In this story, the whales disappear, are nurtured by children and able to repopulate the oceans.

I used wondering questions to invite the whole congregation to think about these stories.

• I wonder what kind of danger came to the whales?
• I wonder how you plant whale tears?
• I wonder how they made the ocean safe again for the whales?
• I wonder how the whales survived after they grew in the garden?

Reflection:

This passage of scripture holds the tension between the scarcity and abundance of the earth and waters. In Jesus’ time people relied heavily on the fishing for their livelihoods and for their food. They were deeply connected to sea and the life within it. We are much less connected. Our water comes out of a tap and as long as the water continues to flow, we might not notice that there is a problem with the water. I suspect that the folks in Zambia that we heard about in the Minute for Mission are very aware of water, how much they use and the ways in which water can be contaminated. In a similar way, many First Nation reserves recognize the challenges of clean, abundant water.

The destruction of our water sources doesn’t just impact on humans. It destroys other forms of life—like the whales and other sea creatures. The earth needs all its creatures in order to be healthy and thrive.

While we are disconnected from our water sources, we are complicit in the waste and contamination of water. I invite you to take a moment in silence to reflect on our relationship with water.

I invited people to write a prayer for the water and oceans on the flower. When then came up for communion they placed the flowers in the wading pool with the garbage to transform the future of creation. I forgot to take a picture after worship as I was rescuing the flowers so they could be dried and placed on the walls around the sanctuary.

 

Season of Creation Communion Liturgy

Photo by Renato Abati on Pexels.com

I wrote this communion liturgy for Season of Creation. There are places for people to shout out various parts of creation that they celebrate and pray for. It uses the Kingsfold Communion Set for sung responses. This may be found in More Voices (United Church of Canada) # 203-205.

 

 

 

 

 

 

One: We come to Christ’s table where all are welcome. We come with our human imperfections and mistakes. We come with our grief and our joy. From oldest to youngest we are all welcome at this table.

One:      Holy one, Creator of earth and sky and sea, you filled your creation with abundance. You filled the sea with many creatures. We give thanks for…

All:          (shout out creatures that live in water)

One:      You filled the sky with creatures that fly. We give thanks for…

All:          (shout out creatures of the air)

One:      You spread your abundance over the earth. We give thanks for…

All:          (shout out creatures that live on land)

One:      And beyond the earth you created a whole universe of wonders…stars, planets, moons, asteroids. You created wonders on earth and beyond that we have yet to see or fathom.

All:          We celebrate creatures and waterfalls, the flowers of summer, the harvest of gardens and fields. We give thanks for all the ways we see and experience you in creation. You are creator and life-giver who fills us with breath.

One:      You place your breath in us just as you placed it in Jesus of Nazareth. As we remember his life, death and resurrection, we experience your love. Through time and space, you are a constant presence and so we sing:

Sing:     Holy, Holy, Holy (More Voices # 203)

One:      We remember Jesu’s life as he ministered with the broken and hurting of the world. We remember Jesus as he witnessed suffering, experienced grief and loss, felt physical pain. As we gather in this place, we remember our own experiences of suffering, grief and loss. We witness the pain of the creation destroyed by human brokenness. We remember in silence or outloud…

All:          (shout out situations of pain and suffering)

One:      With the weight of the world on his shoulders, Jesus gathered for one last meal with family and friends. They gathered around the table as Jesus broke bread and shared wine. Hours later, it was all over and Jesus was dead. But the pain, suffering, grief and loss will not have the word in the story of life.

Sing:      Memorial Acclamation (More Voices # 204)

One:      The breath of God’s spirit moves within us, within the gifts of bread, and wine and water, binding and mending the brokenness of the world, uniting us with all creation.

Sharing the Feast

Sing:      Great Amen (More Voices # 205)