(Please feel free to use this liturgy. Credit: Rev. Murray Speer.)
(For one or two voices, congregational responses in bold.)
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth,
the world was formless and fluid, and darkness covered the face of the
deep, while the spirit of God brooded over the face of the waters. Then
God said,
‘Let there be light.’
And there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
Help
us to remember that you are the source of life, and are intimately
connected with all living things. You bring form out of chaos, and call
all things into being. Everything that we have is thanks to you, O
God.
(sung: Voices United #370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
And God said,
‘Let there be a dome that separates the waters below from the
emptiness above.’
And it was so. God called the dome Sky.
And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
The
air that we breathe is yours, O God. Too often we have befouled it
with radiation, acidity, and toxic fumes. Forgive our neglect.
(sung: VU 370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
And God said,
‘Let the waters be gathered together, and let the dry land appear.’
And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said,
‘Let the earth produce plants and trees.’
And it was so. And God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
The
ocean and the land are yours, O God. Too often we have treated them as
a means to an end or an unlimited resource, without realizing the
delicate balances of nature. As we pave over farmland and pour oil into
the ocean, forgive our over-reaching ways.
(sung: VU 370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
And God said,
‘Let there be lights in the sky to give light to the earth.’
And it was so. God made the sun, the moon, and the stars, in order to shine light upon the earth. And God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
Your
dominion is not limited to our globe, O God. As our technological
presence extends to other globes, and our biological presence follows,
help us to be mindful of your call and respectful of the integrity of
your created universe.
(sung: VU 370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
And God said,
‘Let the waters teem with countless living creatures, and let birds fly
across the sky.’
So God created the sea creatures of every kind, and all the winged birds. God blessed them, saying,
‘Bear fruit and be many, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds be
many on the earth.’
And God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
The
animals of the sky and the sea belong to you, O God. As we hunt and
fish species to extinction and destroy their natural habitats, help us
to feel your outrage and your compassion. Forgive our disregard for
“all our relations.”
(sung: VU 370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
And God said,
‘Let the earth teem with countless living creatures of
every kind.’
And it was so. God made the wild animals and the livestock and everything that creeps on the earth.
And God saw that it was very, very good.
We
call on your mercy and your grace, O God, to carry us into a new
communion with the created order. Pour your compassion and your
forgiveness over us. Give us a vision of healing and togetherness for
your entire world. We know that, with Christ as our helper, we can
restore justice and balance and live in harmony with all that you have
made.
(sung: VU 370)
Send your Holy Spirit on your gathered people,
merciful and loving God, hear us, as we pray.
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