From Lament to Gratitude
Did you know that you were part of a small experiment with radical intent?
As part of our journey with the BTS Center’s Small Church leadership Community we were asked to design, carry out and report on such an experiment. A session on eco-grief and lament, which was part of our homework one week, inspired us to experiment with naming and sharing our griefs and laments publicly, as part of our worship. Set in the context of Lent our “radical intent” was to draw closer to each other and to God as we prepared ourselves for the grief of the cross and the joy of resurrection.
Questions abounded-how would our community react? Would people feel safe to share not only collective but personal grief and lament? Would the only banners hanging be those of SCLC team? Kyrie Eleison.
Our report to the SCLC included a video incorporating pictures of our worship space and portions of our concluding Service of Lament. The comments and feedback we received as well as the volume of heartfelt laments that filled our space indicated that our community is open to new ideas and indeed feels safe sharing grief as well as joy in our lives and worship together. The other teams were intrigued by our experiment and we have shared details of planning and education that took place before and during.
Our next sessions turned to gratitude and the importance of practicing it individually and communally. Each team was asked to compose a Litany of Gratitude specific to our particular place, congregation and community’s gifts. Our refrain was to be “What we need is here”. Our team reviewed the asset mapping we did in congregational groups back in August and each chose several assets to expand into stanzas. We shared this with the SCLC teams and would like to share it with you. As we look to the future of Nativity we can be certain that it will be very different from the past. We also know that our strong foundation of faith and love for each other and all of God’s creation will allow us not only to survive but thrive because “what we need is here”.
Litany of Gratitude
Today we take time to give thanks and express gratitude for Nativity Lutheran Church, for what has been, is and will be.
What we need is here
We offer thanksgiving for this beloved place, a small part of your infinite creation, where we gather again and again for worship and fellowship, a place that is both familiar and new every day, a place we can feel, hear, touch, taste and smell. We thank you for the soil beneath us, the sky over us, the plants and creatures who live here with us, for each other and all you have made.
What we need is here
We are grateful for the gift of our faith and the ways we share it in our lives and in this faith community, for our trust that you are with us, for the times when, with our faith, we lift each other up, and the times when we are carried by the faith of those around us.
What we need is here
We give thanks for the faith filled disciples who formed this community and established it as a place of rich, meaningful worship, learning, and service to the world beyond our doors. Their strong foundation is our springboard to the future.
What we need is here
We are grateful for partners who encouraged us to have difficult conversations about faith and inclusion, and grateful to our faith community for embracing the commitment to love and welcome all people as beloved children of God.
What we need is here
For music that lifts our spirits, we give thanks. For the singing of liturgy, for the musical leaders, and for the times when the congregation lifts their praises in song - we give thanks.
What we need is here
We recognize that as human beings, we need each other. We are thankful for those who take time to provide food and sustenance through the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, for Meals provided for the Homeless Coalition, the AIO food pantry, and for the times when we are able to join together for food and conversation.
What we need is here
Though there is struggle in the world and in our lives, we look around and see the earthly home you have given us. Life moves through the seasons, plants grow, birds survive and sing, there is water in our wetland. We feel the moon keeping its rhythms, and the sun getting stronger. Your ocean’s ever-changing scene inspires us. We see all these gifts of beauty and are nourished by them.
What we need is here
Sixty years ago, the founding members established Nativity Lutheran Church on the grounds of this beautiful estate. We are thankful for their forethought, for the beautiful building in which we can worship, and for the advancements in technology that allow us to connect with those members who can not attend in person.
What we need is here
We searched for a spiritual leader and are grateful for our Pastor who answered the call, moving across the country bringing energy and innovation, relevance and hope in a time of decline, chaos and fear.
What we need is here
We give thanks to God for the many and diverse talents and gifts he gives his children (musical, medical, technological, leadership, hospitality, languages, to name a few) and the willingness of our community to share their gifts in our ministry.
What we need is here
We are thankful for this country and for the freedoms that uphold our right to practice our religion. May we be respectful of the many forms of religion that are practiced in this free country.
What we need is here
We see how your creation so freely gives us the essentials we need, gifts of the whole earth and of the local environment where we live. We are grateful for surroundings that are largely free of danger, for clean air, clean water, fruit trees and many other gifts that help us to thrive and be healthy.
What we need is here
God you have blessed us abundantly. Open our eyes that we may focus on abundance rather than scarcity, open our hearts that we may move forward in love rather than fear.
What we need is here
As the Church Year continues its familiar circle, we enter “Ordinary Time.” It’s the green season, technically celebrated two times during the year: following the 12 Days of Christmas until Ash Wednesday and then after the season of Easter until we begin Advent. This second part sometimes seems long to languish in the green but it serves an opportunity to embrace the ordinary spaces and places of our lives, and reminds us of how precious creation is. To quote my maternal grandmother, “Green is nature’s color. It goes with anything.”
As I take some time off I offer a poem for this green season, for times of vacation and times of sabbath. It is “Pied Beauty” from Poems by Gerard Manley Hopkins. Hopkins was a Jesuit priest of the Victorian era whose poetry was published after his death and had a significant influence on the modernist movement of poetry in the 20th-century.
Glory be to God for dappled things –
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced – fold, fallow, and plough;
And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim.
All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:
Praise him.
Summer Blessings,
Pastor Anderson
Reminder: Now that summer is here, Worship service begins at 9:30 AM each week.
Sunday, June 2
8:45 AM - Choir practice in Sanctuary
9:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Fred Walker
Reader: Fred Walker
Usher: Tina Huntley
Monday, June 3
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, June 4
No Out of Office Hours
Thursday, June 6
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
3:00 PM - Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers Grief Group for Parents, Meeting Room
June 6 - 8 - New England Synod Assembly
Donna Perry, Lynne Taylor, and Pastor Anderson will be attending the New
England Synod Assembly as Nativity’s voting members. Please keep them and the entire Assembly in your prayers as they do the business of the church and as they elect a new bishop who will lead
our synod for the next six years.
Sunday, June 9
9:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Kim Murphy
Reader: Judy Pelletier
Usher: Carolyn Ramm
Monday, June 10
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, June 11
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Hole In the Wall Bagels, 754 Main St, Rockland
Thursday, June 13
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
Sunday, June 16
9:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Marty Taylor
Reader: Fran Kresge
Usher: Mimi Moore
Monday, June 17
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, June 18
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
Main Street Markets, 435 Main St, Rockland
Wednesday, June 19
6:00 PM - Pen Bay Singers' Benefit Concert for Homeworthy
Thursday, June 20
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
3:00 PM - Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers Grief Group for Parents, Meeting Room
Sunday, June 23
9:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Carolyn Ramm
Reader: David Paul
Usher: Kim Murphy
Annual Congregation Meeting, immediately following Worship
Monday, June 24
7:00 PM - Men’s Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Tuesday, June 25
9:30 - 11:00 AM - Out of Office Hours
School House Bakery, Tenants Harbor
Thursday, June 27
8:00 AM - Morning Prayer, via Zoom
Sunday, June 30
9:30 AM - Worship in-person and online
Assistant: Fred Walker
Reader: Carolyn Ramm
Usher: Bruce Cobb
Month of June
Altar Care: Jennie Dynesius
Flower Arranger: Julie Moser
Acolyte: Jennie Dynesius
Note For midweek prayer via zoom - there is a separate Zoom link.
Email Pastor at office@nativityrockport.org if you would like the zoom link. Please also email Pastor if you do not have the Sunday link.
Creation Care News
God has created a world in which humans have a special role as stewards of creation. This means they should look after the interests of the planet and all life on it. This belief is more about living in harmony with nature. When God gave humans dominion over the land, he gave them responsibility too.
In Genesis 1:28 God gives mankind its first stewardship assignment. It says, And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth (ESV).
Christians acknowledge creation care as an act of discipleship; we are stewards of the earth, summoned by God to “work it and take care of it” (Genesis 2:15). Our uses of the earth must be designed to conserve and renew it rather than to deplete or destroy it.
Ten Simple Things You Can Do to Help Protect the Earth
From: https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/ocean/earthday.html
• Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Cut down on what you throw away. Follow the three "R's" to conserve natural resources and landfill space.
• Volunteer. Volunteer for cleanups in your community. You can get involved in protecting your watershed, too.
• Educate. When you further your own education, you can help others understand the importance and value of our natural resources.
• Conserve water. The less water you use, the less runoff and wastewater that eventually end up in the ocean.
• Choose sustainable. Learn how to make smart seafood choices at www.fishwatch.gov.
• Shop wisely. Buy less plastic and bring a reusable shopping bag.
• Use long-lasting light bulbs. Energy efficient light bulbs reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Also flip the light switch off when you leave the room!
• Plant a tree. Trees provide food and oxygen. They help save energy, clean the air, and help combat climate change.
• Don't send chemicals into our waterways. Choose non-toxic chemicals in the home and office.
• Bike more. Drive less.
Also a reminder of the new R’s to add to what we can do for the earth, given by Gretchen Hanna last month.
• RETHINK: Do I really need it or love it? Will I be using it in six months? Am I going to properly dispose of this after it reaches its shelf life? Where is my waste going and where will it end up? What else can I use this product for before I discard it?
• ROT: Check out Scrapdogs for your food waste recycling. They have options to fit your food waste lifestyle. Or start composting your own scraps!
• REPAIR: Find and watch a YouTube on how to make items new again. Or donate items to someone who can.
• REMEMBER: ‘THINK GREEN’ when you enter a store whether virtually or physically. Exercise a conscience state before purchasing new! Be mindful!
All mostly a reminder at a time when climate change has been making itself very noticeable.
Be Kind to Our Earth, it’s the only one we have,
Sue Dawson
Vegetarian recipes for June
Again, this month, our vegetarian recipes come from the kitchens of Elaine Isakson and Denise Stadler. Thank you both for sharing with us.
From Elaine we have a recipe for Tofu/Broccoli Stir-Fry with Peanut Sauce, another of her family favorites.
Denise has also sent us a family favorite, her recipe for Farro Salad.
Why vegetarian recipes? Because they help us be kind to the Earth by reducing our carbon footprint. Food production is responsible for about 30% of global greenhouse gases. Production of vegetarian food is responsible for significantly less greenhouse gas than production of red meats. We can make a significant dent in that 30% by eating a few more meatless meals every month. Let’s do it!
-- Lynne Taylor for the Creation Care Team
All Vegetarian recipes can be found in THIS folder
Thank you
Dear friends,
Mark and I would like to thank everyone for their cards, support and prayers for our son Matthew over these last months. You have all been a comfort to us and to his Virginia family. We are blessed to have such a wonderful church family.
Peace be with you,
Denise and Mark Stadler
Out of the Office in June
You are welcome to join Pastor Anderson on Tuesdays, 9:30 - 11:00 AM, for casual and spontaneous conversation. Come and go at whatever time works for you.
June 4 - No Out of Office Hours
June 11 - Hole In the Wall Bagels, 754 Main St, Rockland
June 18 - Main Street Markets, 435 Main St, Rockland
June 25 - School House Bakery, Tenants Harbor
Concerts in June!
There are many concerts happening in the MidCoast Area during the month of June.
On June 8 and 9 the PenBay Singers will present a concert at the Belfast Boat House at 6:30 PM (tickets for the Belfast concerts can be purchased at The Green Store in Belfast). The ensemble is directed by Kim Murphy, and Carolyn Ramm will be playing violin for three of the selections.
The same concert will also be presented at Nativity Lutheran Church on June 19th at 6:00 PM as part of an anniversary celebration. Nativity Lutheran Church is celebrating 60 years, The Pen Bay Singers' community choir is celebrating 50 years, and our neighbors: Homeworthy (formerly Knox County Homeless Coalition) are celebrating 10 years. Half of the concert proceeds will benefit Homeworthy. We hope you can join us, no ticket needed - just show up! Suggested donation is $20.
On June 16 at 4:00 PM at the CHRHS Strom Auditorium, MidCoast Community Chorus will present their benefit concert: Hope Sings! This concert will raise money for the YMCA's Live Strong program. Marty Taylor, Kim Murphy, and Ollie Jones sing with the chorus. Plus, Ollie and Carolyn's daughter - Anna Jones, is the fantastic administrative assistant for MCC! Buy MCC tickets here!
Happy Birthday in June
2 - Eric Waters
6 - Karin Pratt
10 - Katrina Christy, Denise Stadler, Aaron Cramp
14 - Susan Laatz
16 - Michele Paul
25 - Jessica Isakson, Pat Miller, Jane Monhart
Editor's note: Did we miss your birthday? Please email your birthday date to kmusicorama@gmail.com so that we can add you to our monthly salutation.
Announcements & Timely Reminders
- The Pastor’s Discretionary Fund: Please remember that an extra $5 or $10 each month may make a huge difference to a family in need! Please indicate any additional donations as "Pastor's Discretionary" when you mail in your monthly offering.
- Don't forget: One simple way to help care for creation is to download the weekly bulletin onto your smart phone or tablet and then bring that device to worship or use it when you zoom at home saving paper and resources. Need help figuring that out? Call Pastor for Android help or Denise Stadler for Apple help.
- Your aluminum pop tabs can help keep families with sick children close to each other and the care and resources they need. Look for the paper bag on the Social Ministry bulletin board in the Narthex. Place your tabs in the bag and take your container home and fill it again! The tabs are donated to the Ronald McDonald House.
A Note from your editor, Kim Murphy
Reminder - send articles and photos by the 20th of each month.
Email kmusicorama@gmail.com
Photos this month: Elaine Isakson, Coffeeshop Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash, Bible Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash, Balloon Photo by Gaelle Marcel on Unsplash, Gratitude Photo by Donald Giannatti on Unsplash, Lifted Hands Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash, Thankyou note Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash, Broccoli Photo by Disiana Caballero on Unsplash, Aluminum can tabs Photo by Donald Giannatti on Unsplash
Nativity Lutheran Church
Sunday Worship (Sept -May) 10:30 AM
Summer Sunday Worship (June - August) 9:30 AM
Email: office@nativityrockport.org
Website: www.nativityrockport.org
Location: 179 Old County Rd, Rockport, ME, United States
Phone: 207-594-4665