Worship Resources

This page has links to a number of worship resources that fit the style an message of Not Ordinary Times, but are not specifically tied to one of the core questions and worship themes.

Resources for standard liturgical elements -- prepared specifically for Not Ordinary Times

• Invocations
• Prayers of confession and words of assurance

Other worship resources -- prepared specifically for Not Ordinary Times

• Confession and Lament for Creation, by Rev. Allyson Sawtell
  "Oh God of time and space, We confess we are running out of both. ..."
• Humans from the Humus, a responsive liturgical prayer by Rev. Tom VandeSadt
  "Humans from the humus, ancient of lineage, extending back to savannahs, oceans, star dust, Creator. ..."
• Stone in Hand, a prayer of anger and confession by Rev. Tom VandeSadt
  "I have a stone in my hand, smooth, round, and heavy, and I want to throw it with all the fury in my heart .
• Crying Out To God: the Lament as a Liturgical Form for Confronting the Phenomenon of Vanishing and Extinguished Species (MS Word document), by Rev. Roger Burkhart -- the article has both biblical/theological reflection about the nature of lament, and a poem of lament that could be used liturgically
  

Websites -- a few key locations:

• Let All Creation Praise -- a website devoted to "Worshiping God with creation" -- has both theological articles and worship resources
• Earth Ministry -- their extensive section on worship aids
• GreenFaith -- Eco-themed worship services
  

Published worship resources with appropriate content:

• Earth Prayers -- ed. by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon, Harper Collins
• Earth Gospel: A Guide to Prayer for God’s Creation -- Sam Hamilton-Poore
• Seven Songs of Creation: Liturgies for Celebrating and Healing Earth -- Norman C. Habel, in the "Earth Bible" series

Links to sample sermons and worship services on other websites

• Choose Life -- 5/11/14 Earth Sabbath sermon by Mark Davidson, Church of Reconciliation, Chapel Hill, North Carolina -- a good overview of themes and perspectives for Not Ordinary Times

• Seeds of Hope -- a collaborative sermon for Earth Sabbath, 2013, Church of Reconciliaton, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
• Dummerston, VT -- Full worship service from Dummerston, Vermont, Rev. Susanna Griefen -- with a sermon on "Not Ordinary Times" and other liturgy
• UCC Conference Meeting -- Order of worship from the 2014 annual meeting of the South Central Conference, United Church of Christ, Pentecost Sunday, June 8, 2014
  

• Extinction Grieving Prayer -- a liturgy by Terri MacKenzie, SHCJ
  

Poetry and literature:

• The Universe Is Our Holy Book, a poem by James D. Forbes (3 pages, PDF)