After the Fires

The one task that remained for me [besides some requests from Getty Images] was to thumb through the books on my shelf from the indefatiguable Dorothy McRae McMahon and find some crafted words for more traditional settings that I could/would adapt as single slides on various walls in a stark space.... on our youthmultimedia egroup Robert Stringer posted Dorothy's work to share.....

IN THE GRIEVING
After the fires

You will need:
A large bowl of water
A small leafy branch
A basket of leaves and cut flowers

Opening Sentences
As we gather here today in grieving,
our hearts cry out the hard questions for God.
“Why?” we ask into the heavens.
“Why would this happen to the people and the land?”
Our tears are joined in loss and pain,
as we look around us and see the ruins of life.
Our faith trembles in confusion,
as we try to hold onto certainties,
in the midst of the challenges to hope.
Where are you, loving God?
Come to us now and weep with us
as we face the harsh realities of this time.
A silence is kept
Our tears and the tears of all the people
are joined with the tears of God.
A bowl of water is lifted high and placed on the Communion Table

Hymn or song

Prayers of confession
O God, who understands the deepest fears in our souls,
when tragedy strikes and the innocent suffer,
we cannot help but struggle.
What will others ask of us, who are your people?
Will we know what to say if they talk with us about you?
How can we interpret the universal upheavals before us
and the terrible despairs that spread abroad in our community?
Silent reflection
Forgive us as our faith falters, O God.
May we honour what lies before us,
rather than trying to offer easy answers or trite responses.
Stand beside us, Jesus Christ
and heal us, Holy Spirit, we pray.
Amen



Assurance of pardon
The minister takes the branch,
dips it into the bowl of water
and walks down the aisle sprinkling water on the people.
We are never separated from the love of God.
Jesus Christ has walked our way, with all its realities.
The tears of God will become the water of life,
for us, and for the world.
Thanks be to God.

Readings

Sermon

Hymn or song

Affirmation of faith
Let us stand and say what we believe:
We believe that we are never left alone.
God, the Holy Parent,
holds us in the hollow of a loving hand
and cradles the whole world in compassion.
Christ, the Human One,
walks beside us and bears within,
every grief and pain which is ours.
The Holy Spirit hovers like a dove of peace,
breathing healing and kindness
over the stricken people.
This is our God,
the One whose life is never defeated.
Soon we will see before us
the rising of good and hope.
This we believe.
From this will we live.

Prayers of Intercession
Let us lift our lives to God
and pray for all those
who long for those they have lost,
for treasures which they will never see again,
for homes which are nothing but smouldering ashes
and for the land itself as it mourns this day.
As we make our prayers,
let us place these flowers and leaves
in and around the bowl of tears,
as a sign of the renewing of the people and the earth
which is to come.
The people bring their prayers
O God, in Christ Jesus,
as you experienced in your journey on earth,
there are times when it is hard to believe
that life will ever rise in strength again.
Grant us the faith to believe that this will come, O God.
Make us your true witnesses to love and grace.
Amen.

Hymn or song

Let us go from here
As the bush springs green again,
restoring its beauty to us as a gift,
as the seeds are broken open by the fire
for the beginning of new life,
and as we bring together all that is among us
for the future in this place:
Let us go from here,
stronger than when we came,
holding on to those who have lost the most,
ready for all that is to come
and walking firmly into a new day.
Let us go in courage, hope and peace,
surrounded by the love of God.

BLESSING
And may the Holy God surprise us on the way,
Christ Jesus be our company
and the Spirit lift up our feet.
Amen.

More Resources for focus on the Victorian Bushfires

"Never Alone" Barlow Girl
"A Day Without Rain" Enya
From "Mustard Seeds" Blog by Ann Scull from East Gipsland

"Gabriels Oboe" Ennio Morricone and Yo-Yo Ma recognisable from the film 'The Mission'
[lament]
"Prélude from Unaccompanied Cello Suite No. 1 In G Major, BWV 1007 (Excerpt)" Yo-Yo Ma
[a range of reflective emotions]

Several colleagues have referenced 1 Kings 19:12 or the wider passage off the earthquake etc and whether God was 'in' those..... write a short paraphrase for reflection

Hold This Space

Cheryl and the alt.worship folk in VicTas have generously and selflessly begun to post some aspects of the urban space they are creating from scratch for this weekend in Melbourne!
I mention it here because the prayers and well thought out 'spaces' may offer you ideas for your weekend in your place... and they have some really important and appropriate ideas.
I'm sure they would be happy to hear other ideas and how stuff was helpful for you... keep up with the ideas and suggestions here

More on Bushfire Liturgies etc

This snippet from todays WARREN cartoon in the Daily Telegraph celebrates a link between the spirit of Aussie diggers and volunteer firefighters...

The Uniting Church in Australia collection of liturgies which might be useful and adaptable for worship in corporate settings this coming week and beyond can be found here.

There is still a gaping hole for discussion> reflection> space for children, youth & families and to be honest my creativity is still in recovery from a dry 2008!!

What I do know is:

treat young people as capable of feeling, processing, understanding

take questions seriously

don't expose children to image overlaod but neither ignore their reality

shut up and ask questions

create time and space for spiritual practices with space, simplicity and appropriate resonance

water is a contrasting and useful element

maybe choose one photo to use sparingly

don't mould the story to fit your picture of God

don't impose God on this story

while the stories of volunteers, relief efforts, sandwich makers, free coffee and generous donors emerge and tv newscasters are keen to refer to 'if there's any good to come out of this story' I believe it's imporant to let those acts speak for themselves...

Suffice to say the normal reactions might include:

confusion

anger

disappointment

resolution

fear

questioning

helplessness

More than one colleague has it right, suggesting SIMPLE gestures, spaces and time where God will emerge and have space to do so...

But then, what would I know...