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Never Place a Period Where God Has Placed a Comma Posters that can be used with this litany:
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Graphics developed by Kevin Papierski. |
This series of Lenten litanies is offered to the churches of the United Church of Christ as a way to spread awareness of and excitement about the Still Speaking Initiative. The comma as a symbol of this campaign comes from the quote by Gracie Allen, “Never place a period where God has placed a comma.” The concept of this series is to slowly build this complete sentence through the seven Sundays of Lent and Easter.
The litanies are designed to be used at the beginning of worship and could be enhanced with complementary visuals. A black-and-white banner with the complete sentence could be displayed somewhere visible to all in worship. Each week the new word(s) could be colored in. Another suggestion is simply to add the new word(s) each week. If your church has the technology available, the sentence could be projected on a screen or a wall as it grows. Perhaps the children of the church could participate in the decorating of the words. Each church has its own wealth of creativity to tap. Some accompanying posters are available at the links at right.
Additionally, each week there are suggested “headlines” that have been used in the Still Speaking Initiative campaign. Feel free to use these, or others of your choosing in any way that fits. All of this is offered with the hope that the churches of the United Church of Christ will be able to celebrate their unique identities as they extend God’s extravagant welcome to the world outside their doors.
SUGGESTED BULLETIN INFORMATION TO ACCOMPANY LITANY:
Today’s litany was developed as part of the United Church of Christ Still Speaking Initiative, a multi-year effort to offer an extravagant welcome to those who are seeking a spiritual home and who may not know that a church like the UCC exists. The Initiative includes national television ads (the newest will run during April, 2006) as well as radio and print advertising being used by many local churches. For more information about the Still Speaking Initiative, visit stillspeaking.com.
March 5
New word(s): Never
Sentence: Never…
Headline: Never place a period where God has placed a comma
One: The advice to “never say ‘never’” although ironically contradictory is worth repeating when we consider that God is still speaking. When Jesus’ enemies rolled the stone in front of his tomb they thought he would never bother them again.
Many: Our God is a God who continues to speak hope into the world. As we begin this Lenten journey we commit ourselves to see beginnings not endings in those pauses when God takes a breath.
One: The breath of God is the Holy Spirit forming words that break old chains. Let us bind ourselves together with our brothers and sisters across the United Church of Christ as we journey toward a brighter day as God breaks forth yet more light from God’s holy word.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
March 12
New word(s): place
Sentence: Never place…
Headline: Our doors open extra wide, after all Jesus was a carpenter.
One: A sense of place has always been important to people of faith. We call the place we worship a sanctuary because it is a holy place, a place set apart for special use.
Many: God’s presence makes any place holy, and God’s extravagant welcome bids us to bring all people to holy places, and to take holiness to all places.
One: We acknowledge with our sisters and brothers across the United Church of Christ that God has placed a blessing on gatherings where God is worshipped. So this day and every day we swing wide the doors of our sanctuary to all, even as we swing wide the doors of our hearts to welcome God in.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
March 19
New word(s): a period
Sentence: Never place a period…
Headline: If you think getting up Sunday Morning is hard, try rising from the dead!
One: Jesus’ enemies assumed that they had put a stop to him on the cross. They exclaimed that they had placed a period at the end of the gospel story.
Many: But God had yet another word to speak, conquering death by raising the Word of God. Good Friday was only a comma, not a period.
One: We come to worship in solidarity with all the members of the United Church of Christ because we are compelled to seek a word for our day from our God who is the source of all hope.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
March 26
New word(s): where God
Sentence: Never place a period where God…
Headline: Jesus wandered alone for 40 days. How long have you?
One: Often our conversation with God is punctuated by question marks. Sometimes doubt and fear leads us to miss the presence of God. Instead of allowing our faith to point to where God is, and where we are go, we are left asking, “Where, God?”
Many: But when we read the story of our faith we learn that wanderings end and that God is ever-present on the journey. We can find comfort in the pause a comma brings and celebrate God’s continuing presence.
One: We dare to proclaim that this gathering, like all similar gatherings this day throughout the United Church of Christ, is a place where God welcomes all seekers, providing food for the journey that is never aimless with Christ as our guide.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
April 2
New word(s): has placed
Sentence: Never place a period where God has placed…
Headline: Turn your other cheek, not your back
One: If God is indeed speaking to us today, then we would be foolish to turn a deaf ear in any direction. If God has spoken in the past through the lowly, the outcast…or as the Hebrew prophet Namaan learned, even a donkey…then we would be wise to expect God to speak through the unexpected.
Many: Jesus told us to love our enemies - could it be that we need to start by listening to them? Could it be that God might still speak to us through those with whom we quarrel and debate?
One: In the United Church of Christ we dare to seek to be not only united but uniting. Our strength must come in our diversity. We must strive for inclusion, particularly of those whom Jesus came to serve: the least, the last and the lost.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
April 19 Palm/Passion Sunday
New word(s): a comma,
Sentence: Never place a period where God has placed a comma.
Headline: Our faith is over 2000 years old, our thinking is not.
One: Pauses grant us time for reflection. None of us ever stops learning, so we seek a word for today. We seek a word that is alive and fresh: not out of step with all that we have learned so far, but perhaps the next step on the path of faith.
Many: History is rich with wisdom that we gratefully accept. But what good does wisdom do us if it is only in the past? We seek to bring the ancient word into our modern world to lead us yet today.
One: In the words of James Russell Lowell, “New occasions teach new duties, time makes ancient good uncouth.”[1] So we strive to make the progress God demands of us. We rejoice to join with the United Church of Christ as we eagerly move into the future.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
April 16 Easter
New word(s): Never place a period where God has placed a comma.
Sentence: Never place a period where God has placed a comma.
Headline: Red state, blue state, joyous state!
One: Death has not had the final word; God has not allowed the Christ to be stopped by a human period, instead placing a divine comma on the Passion drama. Our joy is complete this day as we boldly proclaim that Christ is risen!
Many: Christ is risen indeed! Christ has arisen with healing for all, not just for some. Salvation is ours! Salvation is God’s gift to all humanity today and every day.
One: Nothing now separates us from God. Nothing now separates us from each other. Today it doesn’t matter if we are in a “red” state or a “blue” state, with all of our brothers and sisters in the United Church of Christ, and all believers everywhere, together we are in a joyous state marveling at the mighty power of our God.
Many: We welcome our still-speaking God this day with a renewed promise never to place a period where God has placed a comma.
Download a Copy of these Litanies in Microsoft Word.