A Day of Remembrance – 11 September
Prelude and Hymn: “Here by our own home waters” Passion Chorale
Lighting of Memorial Candle
We remember 11 September 2001, the destruction of the World Trade Center in New York City, the jet crashing into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, the jet flown into the ground in rural Pennsylvania. We mourn the lives lost, we grieve for the families of the dead, we bemoan the loss of our innocence,
however naïve. We pray for God’s presence and healing, for reconciliation, for peace with justice.
In silence, we remember.
(Silence is observed while candles are lit.)
Kaddish (Adapted) (Recited first in Hebrew if available) (In unison, standing)
Let the glory of God be extolled, let God’s great Name be hallowed in the world whose creation God willed.
May God’s Reign soon prevail, in our own day, our own lives, and the life of all, and let us say: Amen.
Let God’s great name be blessed forever and ever.
Let the name of the Holy One, blessed be God, be glorified, exalted, and honored, though God is beyond all the praises, songs, and adoration that we can utter, and let us say: Amen.
Rest eternal grant them, O God; And let light perpetual shine upon them.
May they and all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
Psalm 42 (with Refrain)(The Psalm may be sung in plainsong w/an appropriate antiphon; Psalm is from the Episcopal Office for the Burial of the Dead)
Micah 4.1-5
Response to the reading:
The universe whispers that all things are intertwined. Yet at times we heard the loud cry of discord. To which voice shall we listen? Although we long for harmony, we cannot close our ears to the noise of war, the din of terror,
the rasp of hate. How dare we speak of concord, when the fact and symbols of our age is cruelty, terror, and the smoke of concentration camps, and bombs?
The intelligent heart does not deny reality. We must not forget the grief of yesterday, nor ignore the pain of today. If there is goodness at the heart of life, then its power, like the power of evil, is real. Which shall prevail? Moment by moment we choose between them. If we choose rightly, and often enough, the broken fragments of our world will be restored to wholeness.
For this we need strength and help. We turn in hope, therefore, to a Power beyond us. God has many names, but God is One. God creates; God sustains; God loves; God inspires us with the hope that we can make ourselves one as
God is One.
Hymn “When sudden terror tears apart” The Third Tune
Romans 12.9-21
Reflections: (Here brief reflections are offered by one to three persons)
Hymn “God binds us with a mighty cord” Kingsfold
Reading
You shall love the Lord your God with all your mind, with all your strength, with all your being.
In the eyes of the One God, here and there are the same they and I are one. Oceans divide us; languages and cultures and races divide us; God’s presence unites us.
Set these words, which I command you this day, upon your heart.
To pray is to stake our very existence on the truth and on
the supreme importance of that which we pray for.
Teach them faithfully to your children; speak of them in your home and on
your way, when you lie down and when you rise up.
The world is not the same since Auschwitz and Hiroshima, since Oklahoma City,
and the attacks in New York City and Alexandria, Virginia and Pennsylvania
last year. The decisions we make, the values we teach must be pondered, not
only in the halls of learning, but also before the inmates of extermination
camps, in the sight of the mushroom of a nuclear explosion, in the halls of
government and our cities, in the camps of refugees overseas.
Bind them as a sign upon your hand; let them be a symbol before your eyes.
The groan deepens, the combat burns, the wailing does not abate. In a free
society, all are involved in what some are doing.
Inscribe them on the doorposts of your home, and on your gates. Some are guilty, all are responsible.
Be mindful of all My commandments, and do them; so you shall consecrate
yourselves to your God.
Holiness, an essential attribute of God, can become a quality of our own.
The human can become holy. – Musical Interlude
Intercessions
God, our creator, your will for us and for all your people is health and
salvation: Have mercy on us.
We ask your presence with all who are in mourning, for those who lost
mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, spouses, lovers, friends and neighbors.
(PAUSE) We pray: Have mercy on us.
For those who have died as a result of terror and violence; for those who
have been injured; for those who are in shock and grief;
We pray: Have mercy on us.
For the victims of terror and fear; for us, who are shaken and ill at ease
with the future; for all who are beset by fear and anxiety;
We pray: Have mercy on us.
For those who plot terror and mass destruction, that their hearts and minds
will be changed. For those who suffer from oppression and religious
fanaticism, that they may be opened to your creative and loving presence in
their lives, We pray: Have mercy on us.
For our nation and all the nations of the world; for all who live in distress
and agony, for all who have given up hope,
We pray: Have mercy on us.
Be with us and guide us, O God; prevent us from vengeance and isolation.
Give us a community of peoples united in faith and hope, a community willing
to work through the issues of our life and a world without violence.
We pray: Have mercy on us.
I invite your own prayers: PAUSE.
We pray: Have mercy on us.
Collect:
Ever-present God, You call us on a journey to a place we do not know.
We are not where we started. We have not reached our destination.
We are not sure where we are or who we are. This is not a comfortable place. Be among us, we pray.
Calm our fears, save us from discouragement, and help us to stay on course.
Open our hearts to your guidance so that our journey
to this unknown place continues as a journey of trust. Amen.
Lord’s Prayer / Hymn 680 “O God our help in ages past” St. Anne
Blessing
May God be present with you this night;
May God be present this night with those who remember.
May God welcome those who died into loving arms, and offer
consolation and hope to their families.
God be with you, with us, now and forever. Amen.
Notes:
1. Kaddish from Gates of Prayer.
2. Responsive Prayer from Gates of Prayer, pages 579-580.
3. “A Prayer for Transition,” from Women’s Uncommon Prayers, p. 55.
4. Hymn from Songs of Remembrance of the Hymn Society of the US and Canada
Prepared/written by the Rev. David Selzer, doselzer@gmail.com, Past Chairperson of Episcopal Peace Fellowship, currently in the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa.
