2024 Advent Liturgy: Hoping for What We Don’t See
GATHERING
ENTRANCE
REFLECTION
Hope is not wishing: no, not that tentative.
Hope is not wanting: no, not that self-centered.
Hope is trust in grace unseen,
already there, already unfolding,
the seed beneath, the child within.
Hope is surrender to a greater movement,
acceptance that I am the thread
and the tapestry is vast.
Hope is confidence in spring as winter approaches.
Hope is belief in the fullness of time.
Hope is knowing in death and suffering
there is a healing presence.
Hope is patience, letting grace take its time.
Hope is planting ourselves in a future
that exists only in our acting:
raising children, loving enemies, planting trees.
Hope is awaiting the One Who is Here.
— Steve Garnaas-Holmes, “We Live by Hope,”
https://unfoldinglight.net/2019/12/09/gjylxrs66zw2w78jgp8jb93j85spj7/
LIGHTING THE ALTAR CANDLE
CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: In the long, dark nights of Advent,
it is hard to see what is ahead.
People: Like Elizabeth awaiting the birth of John,
we are called to hope
for what we cannot see,
to be patient as grace takes its time.
Leader: In the short, cold days of Advent,
it is hard to believe
that spring will surely come.
People Like Mary awaiting the birth of Jesus,
we are called to surrender
to something greater than ourselves.
Leader: In these four weeks of Advent,
we are called to hope,
to breathless anticipation
for the revelation of God among us.
All: We are called to await the coming
of the One who is already here,
the One who lived and died
and rose again to be born in us:
the One we know as Jesus, who is the Christ.
OPENING PRAYER
HYMN
SILENCE
PRAYERS
CONFESSION
Leader: We may believe
that our hope depends
on peace, justice, or comfort.
People: We can find hope growing
in moments of success or pleasure.
Leader: Whatever certainty
that we can have about the future
stimulates our hope.
People: But these false sources of hope
leave us in despair.
Leader: We cry out, Holy One,
awash in fear and anxiety.
All: Forgive us for our lack of trust
in your sustaining words and signs.
INDIVIDUAL PRAYERS OF CONFESSION
ASSURANCE
Leader: The Holy One knows our weakness
for false expectations
and offers authentic hope
grounded in grace unseen.
All: Amen.
THANKSGIVING AND PRAISE
INTERCESSION AND PETITION
COMMITMENT
All: O Holy One, we come today
to claim our relationship with you.
We pray for the commitment to grow together,
sharing the gifts you give us with others
here and in the wider world.
Forgive us for the hurt we have inflicted
and help us forgive those who have hurt us.
Give us strength and discipline
to nurture our relationship with you;
to care for every part of your creation;
to foster justice and be in solidarity with those in need;
to work to end all war, and violence, and discord;
and to respond joyfully when you call,
freely giving our selves as you have shown the way.
We open our hearts to you and your creation
in the name of Jesus, who is the Christ. Amen.
HYMN
THE WORD
SCRIPTURE
SERMON
SILENT REFLECTION
OFFERING
COMMUNION
PREPARATION
Leader 1: This is the table of the heavenly feast,
the joyful celebration of the people of God.
Leader 2: We gather now as one body, joined around the table.
Here we celebrate God’s presence among us,
united in Christ’s spirit, broken and whole all at once.
All: Nourished and hungry, loved and loving,
sinner and forgiven, we make one circle
of knowing, believing, rejoicing, being,
as God lights and rests among us.
GREAT THANKSGIVING
Leader 1: Eternal Giver of Life,
we give thanks that you are grace unseen,
like seeds in the ground,
an unfolding presence already here,
giving us confidence that spring will come.
Leader 2: We give thanks for Jesus,
your child, who showed us
that even in suffering and death
there is healing and resurrection.
People: We give thanks for Mary,
the mother of Jesus,
who surrendered herself,
consenting to be a thread
in your vast tapestry,
carrying in her womb
Emmanuel, God with us.
Leader 1: We give thanks for your Holy Spirit,
who teaches us patience
while grace unfolds in the fullness of time.
Leader 2: We give thanks for your Holy Church,
where we plant our future,
acting with hope by loving our enemies,
planting trees, and raising our children.
All: With grateful hearts, filled with hope,
we await the coming
of the One who is already here.
BLESSING THE ELEMENTS
Leader 1: Christ invites everyone to eat the bread of life,
to drink the cup of the new covenant.
Leader 2: Jesus said, I am the bread of life.
You who come to me shall never hunger;
you who believe in me shall never thirst.
Leader 1: On the night he gave himself up, Jesus took bread,
and after giving thanks to God, broke it and said,
This is my body,
broken for the healing of the world.
Whenever you eat it, do so remembering me.
Leader 2: After supper, Jesus took the cup and said,
This is the cup of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for all.
Whenever you drink it, do so remembering me.
All: O Holy One, send down your Spirit
that these gifts of grain and grape,
and work of human hands
may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Unite us with Christ forever
and bring us with the whole creation
to your eternal realm.
SHARE THE ELEMENTS
Leader 1: The body of Christ, broken for all of us.
Feed on Christ in your hearts with thanksgiving.
Leader 2: The cup of the new covenant,
poured out for the healing of the world.
Drink deeply of it.
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING AND DEDICATION
All: God of abundance and mercy,
we give joyful thanks
for your eternal love and healing presence
in our celebration of bread and cup.
Bless this Body of Christ
that we may attend faithfully to our call to be your servants,
with each other and throughout the world. Amen.
SHARED REFLECTIONS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
HYMN
BENEDICTION
Leader: Let us go out into the world
trusting in grace unseen,
already there, unfolding.
Let us bring a healing presence
into the future that exists
in our acting,
as we await the One who is here.
In the name of Mary’s Child
and in hope,
let us greet one another
with signs of peace.
All: Amen.