Worship Resources

(Drawn from Jubilee to the World Bank:

Economic Globalization for Faith-Based Activists, chapter 11 [first edition, 2008])

CALL TO WORSHIP                                   (Based on Leviticus 25)

Leader 1:        The Lord God says you shall count off seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years, so that the period of seven weeks of years give forty-nine years.

Leader 2:        Then on the tenth day of the seventh month—on the day of atonement—you shall have the trumpet sounded throughout all your land.

Leader 3:        And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you.

People:           Let the trumpets blow loud and long throughout all the land.

Leader 1:        The Jubilee year shall be a holy time, a time to proclaim liberty throughout all the land.

People:           Let trumpets proclaim liberty throughout the land.

Leader 2:        The Jubilee year shall be a holy time, a time to proclaim liberty to enslaved debtors.

People:           Let the trumpets blow loud and long throughout the land.

Leader 3:        The jubilee year shall be a Holy time, a time for everyone to return home to their family possession. Let the trumpets sound the return.

People:           Let the trumpets Proclaim liberty throughout al the land.

Leader 1:        The Jubilee year shall be a Sabbath rest for all the peoples, and for the animals, and for the land. Even the land will rest in that time.

People:           Let the trumpets blow loud and long throughout all the land!

Leader 2:        The fiftieth year shall be the year of Jubilee. Let the trumpets blow throughout all the land!

All:                 Let the trumpets of liberty and Jubilee blow throughout the land!

CALL TO WORSHIP

Leader:   We come together to proclaim God’s Jubilee, and to praise God for the gift of all of life.

People:   We come knowing the world belongs to God—the Earth and all its people.

Leader:   God does not intend for people to suffer, whether near at home or in far away countries.

People:   When God’s love and our faith come together, God’s will for the abundant life for all humanity, and our lives of faithful service will join hands.

Leader:   We come today as one to hear and experience the call of God.

People:   We come together to heed a jubilee call.

PRAYER OF INVOCATION:                                             (Unison)

Loving God,

send your Spirit to us as we seek to live as you intend.

May your presence comfort us and also confront us with the responsibility of making your word of love become flesh in our actions.

We are learning that people around the world suffer and die because their countries must shoulder stifling burdens of international debt.

We know that you do not intend for millions to suffer and that you call all of us to work to bring in your realm.

Help us to share the good news of life with others, that in sharing, we might learn what it means to live your love. 

In the name of Christ,

Amen.

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH

Leader:   The God who fulfills each divine promise offers us love without limits. 

People:   In the center of our being is God’s holy presence, setting us free to follow a path of light and not darkness. Our spirits yearn for liberty and our hearts dance at the thought of freedom.

               May we become a positive presence for those who suffer and hunger around the world. Amen.

CALL TO WORSHIP:

Leader:   We come together to proclaim God’s Jubilee, and to praise God for the gift of all of life.

People:   We come knowing the world belongs to God—the Earth and all its people.

Leader:   God does not intend for people to suffer, whether near at home or in far away countries.

People:   When God’s love and our faith come together, God’s will for the abundant life for all humanity, and our lives of faithful service will join hands.

Leader:   We come today as one to hear and experience the call of God.

People:   We come together to heed a jubilee call.

CALL TO WORSHIP                          Based on Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11

Leader 1:        The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to those who are afflicted,

Leader 2:        to bind up the brokenhearted,

Leader 1:        to proclaim liberty to those who are bound,

Leader 2:        and release to those who are imprisoned;

Leader 1:        to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of restoration to our God;

Leader 2:        to comfort all those who mourn;

Leader 1:        to provide for those who mourn, a garland instead of ashes,

Leader 2:        the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

Leader 1:        garments of splendor instead of a heavy heart.

Left Side:       They will be called oaks of righteousness,

Right Side:     a planting of the Lord, to display his glory.

Leader 1:        They shall build up the ancient ruins,

Left Side:       they shall raise up the former devastations;

Right Side:     they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

Leader 2:        For I the Lord love justice,

                       I hate robbery and wrongdoing;

Leader 1:        I will faithfully give them their recompense,

                       and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Left Side:       Their descendants shall be known among the nations,

                       and their offspring among the peoples;

Right Side:     all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.

Leader 2:        We will greatly rejoice in the Lord,

                       Our whole being shall exult in my God…

Left Side:       For as the earth brings forth its shoots,

                       and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,

Right Side:     so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

CALL TO WORSHIP BASED ON THE HYMN,

“CALL TO JUBILEE”

One:     God of the lowly, God of Liberty

All:      Reign down your justice, Call for Jubilee

One:     Bind up the broken, set the captives free.

All:      Bring in the homeless, help the blind to see.

One:     Call out your people, help us see our sin,

All:      Bring us to repentance, and never fall again

One:     Grant us your blessing, mold us in your peace.

All:      Grant us your wisdom, help our warring cease.

One:     Come God of mercy, break the debtors' chains.

All:      Call down your justice, on the wicked's claims.

One:     God of the lonely, God of Mystery.

All:      God who knows the poor in Solidarity.

One:     Guide us from darkness. Guide us from our fears.

All:      Give us your courage. Wash away our tears.

One:     Help us to stand and fight for liberty.

All:      Help us to live in solidarity.

One:     Help us to hear cries, of captivity

All:      Help us God that we may, be your Jubilee.

CALL TO WORSHIP

Leader:     Welcome to all who gather here and now in this place!

People:     Creator God, we come together as a part of your family!

Leader:     With our hearts and voices, we come before you now, and our tongues sing praises to your name!

People:     In song and prayer we worship you, God of Jubilation!

PRAYER OF INVOCATION

Leader:  God of all life, you led the Hebrew people from slavery to freedom, from a bondaged land to promised land.

               We thank you for their song and story, passed down to us through the ages.  In you we are set free.

People:  And the people all said, “Jubilee!”

Leader:  God of hope and promise, you brought them into a land flowing with milk and

               honey, of new life and new dreams.

               Help us to offer milk, honey, and new dreams to all your world,

               for in you we are set free.

People:   And the people all said, “Jubilee!”

Leader:   God of peace, our liberated ancestors followed you in the wilderness and, though it was not easy, found a way of harmony and cooperation.

               Help us on this very special day to still follow your way, to teach the ways of harmony and cooperation, and live lives of liberation and Jubilee,

               for in you we are still set free.

People:  And the people proclaimed, “Jubilee!”

Leader:  God of community, you gave us families and friends, neighbors and new people so that we may not be alone.

               Help us open our community to all who need a home,

               for in you everyone can be set free.

People:  And the people proclaimed, “Jubilee!”

Leader:  God of life and fullness, you nurture and tend us wherever we are.

               Help us extend your loving-kindness and generosity to all, and especially to those who are sick, lonely, in prison or afraid,

               for in you we are all set free.

People:  And the people all shouted, “Jubilee!”

Leader:  God, you sent your child, Jesus, who proclaimed liberation to the captives and was a teacher and a friend.

               Help each of us to find you whenever we seek you, that we may be strengthened and our hearts may be lifted up,

               for in you we are set free.

People:  And the people all shouted, “Jubilee!”

CALL TO CONFESSION

Leader:           We are a people in need of confession and forgiveness. Let us now pray to God for forgiveness through Christ’s name.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Leader:           The earth is yours, O God. You created its riches—the water, the land, the minerals—sufficient resources for all your children’s needs.

People:           We confess that we are not good stewards of that which you have placed in our care. Too often we think of ourselves first and only ourselves.

Leader:           Creator God, forgive us, We are short-sighted and selfish with your gifts.

Men:               We squander your gifts…

Women:         We hoard your gifts…

Men:               We share as little as we can…

Women:         We take as much as we can.

All:                 Show us your way, O Lord, and help us to bring your good news to those who are poor, and your year of release to those who are in bondage. Teach us to respond to your Gospel. Equip us to turn your love into compassion.

                       Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

Leader:           If you do away with the yoke, the clenched fist, the wicked word, if you give bread to the hungry and relief to the oppressed, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your shadows become like noon. The Lord will guide you always, giving you relief in the desert places.  (Isaiah 58:9-11)

People:           Amen.

PRAYER OF OUR SAVIOR (THE "LORD'S PRAYER" OR "OUR FATHER")

      (From Luke’s version, in the KJV, using “debts”)

Our Father

   which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

   Thy will be done,

   as in heaven, so also in earth.

Give us each day our daily bread.

   And forgive us our sins;

   for we also forgive everyone that is indebted to us.

And lead us not into temptation;

                       But deliver us from evil.

PRAYER OF INVOCATION:  (Unison)

Loving God,

send your Spirit to us as we seek to live as you intend.

May your presence comfort us and also confront us with the responsibility of making your word of love become flesh in our actions.

We are learning that people around the world suffer and die because their countries must shoulder stifling burdens of international debt.

We know that you do not intend for millions to suffer and that you call all of us to work to bring in your realm.

Help us to share the good news of life with others, that in sharing, we might learn what it means to live your love. 

In the name of Christ,

Amen.

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH:

Leader:   The God who fulfills each divine promise offers us love without limits. 

People:   In the center of our being is God’s holy presence, setting us free to follow a path of light and not darkness. Our spirits yearn for liberty and our hearts dance at the thought of freedom.

               May we become a positive presence for those who suffer and hunger around the world. Amen.

A PRAYER OF INVOCATION BASED ON JUBILEE TEXTS

Leader:         In the spirit of your Jubilee Year, O God, we remember the words in Leviticus to our ancestors in faith, to restore the homes and livelihoods of those who had been exiled by debt, by bondage, by poverty, by conflict.

People:    “On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. And you shall…proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you, when each of you [who has been impoverished] shall return to his property and each of you [who has been enslaved] shall return to his clan…It shall be a Jubilee for you” (Leviticus 25:12-13).

Leader:         In the spirit of your Sabbath Year, O God, we remember the words of Deuteronomy to our ancestors in faith, that there should be no one hungry among them, that they should cancel the debts of the poor, that they should free the slaves in their midst, restore them to dignity and help them to prosper.

People:   “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release…every creditor shall release what he has lent to his neighbor. He shall not exact it of his neighbor…because the Lord’s release has been proclaimed.…there will be no poor among you” (Deuteronomy 15:1-2).

Leader:         In the spirit of your favored Year, O God, we remember the words of the prophet Isaiah, to our ancestors in faith, that those whom you have anointed are sent to comfort those who mourn, to lift up their devastated cities, to give them a garland instead of ashes.

People:   “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to those who are bound, and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor” (Isaiah 61:1).

Leader:         In the spirit of your coming Realm, O God, we remember the words of your son/prophet/messiah (or “our brother”) (depending on the congregation’s tradition), Jesus, to our ancestors in faith, that the spirit of the Jubilee is being fulfilled in the ears of those of us who hear and understand the scriptures. 

People:   “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives, sight to the blind, liberty to the oppressed, and the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Leader:   We pray all these things, O God, in the name of your Son who first suffered for those in the world who suffer.

All:         Amen

RESPONSIVE READING BASED ON ISAIAH 61:1-4, 8-11

Leader 1:   The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to those who are afflicted,

Leader 2:   to bind up the brokenhearted,

Leader 1:   to proclaim liberty to those who are bound,

Leader 2:   and release to those who are imprisoned;

Leader 1:   to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of restoration to our God;

Leader 2:   to comfort all those who mourn;

Leader 1:   to provide for those who mourn, a garland instead of ashes,

Leader 2:   the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

Leader 1:   garments of splendor instead of a heavy heart.

Left Side:  They will be called oaks of righteousness,

Right Side:      a planting of the Lord, to display his glory.

Leader 1:   They shall build up the ancient ruins,

Left Side:  they shall raise up the former devastations;

Right Side:      they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

Leader 2:   For I the Lord love justice,

                  I hate robbery and wrongdoing;

Leader 1:   I will faithfully give them their recompense,

                  and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

Left Side:  Their descendants shall be known among the nations,

                  and their offspring among the peoples;

Right Side:      all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.

Leader 2:   We will greatly rejoice in the Lord,

                  Our whole being shall exult in my God…

Left Side:  For as the earth brings forth its shoots,

                  and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,

Right Side:     so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

HYMNS

Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow

Text: Charles Wesley, 1707-1788

Music: Lewis Edson

Tune: LENOX, Meter: 66.66.88

1.            Blow ye the trumpet, blow! 

               The gladly solemn sound 

               let all the nations know, 

               to earth's remotest bound: 

Refrain:

               The year of jubilee is come! 

               The year of jubilee is come! 

               Return, ye ransomed sinners, home. 

2.            Jesus, our great high priest, 

               hath full atonement made; 

               ye weary spirits, rest; 

               ye mournful souls, be glad: 

               (Refrain) 

3.            Extol the Lamb of God, 

               the all atoning Lamb; 

               redemption in his blood 

               throughout the world proclaim. 

               (Refrain) 

4.            Ye slaves of sin and hell, 

               your liberty receive, 

               and safe in Jesus dwell, 

               and blest in Jesus live: 

               (Refrain) 

5.            Ye who have sold for nought 

               your heritage above 

               shall have it back unbought, 

               the gift of Jesus' love: 

               (Refrain) 

6.            The gospel trumpet hear, 

               the news of heavenly grace; 

               and saved from earth, appear 

               before your Savior's face: 

               The year of jubilee is come! 

               The year of jubilee is come! 

               Return to your eternal home.

Go Down, Moses

Text: African-American spiritual (Ex. 3:7-12)
Music: Afro-American spiritual; adapt. and arr. by William Farley Smith, 1986
Tune: TUBMAN, Meter: 85.85 with Refrain

1.            When Israel was in Egypt's land, 

               let my people go; 

               oppressed so hard they could not stand, 

               let my people go. 

Refrain:

               Go down, (go down) Moses, (Moses) 

               way down in Egypt's land; 

               tell old Pharaoh 

               to let my people go! 

2.            “Thus saith the Lord,” bold Moses said, 

               let my people go; 

               “if not, I'll smite your first-born dead,” 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

3.            No more shall they in bondage toil, 

               let my people go; 

               let them come out with Egypt's spoil, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

4.            We need not always weep and mourn, 

               let my people go; 

               and wear those slavery chains forlorn, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

5.            Come, Moses, you will not get lost, 

               let my people go; 

               stretch out your rod and come across, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

6.            As Israel stood by the water's side, 

               let my people go; 

               at God's command it did divide, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

7.            When they had reached the other shore, 

               let my people go; 

               they sang a song of triumph o'er, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

8.            O Moses, the cloud shall cleave the way, 

               let my people go; 

               a fire by night, a shade by day, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

9.            Your foes shall not before you stand, 

               let my people go; 

               and you'll possess fair Canaan's land, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

10.          This world's a wilderness of woe, 

               let my people go; 

               O let us on to Canaan go, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

11.          O let us all from bondage flee, 

               let my people go; 

               and let us all in Christ be free, 

               let my people go. 

               (Refrain)

Jacob’s Ladder

Text: African-American spiritual 
Music: African-American spiritual
Tune: JACOB’S LADDER, Meter: 8.8.8.5 with Refrain

(Note that the original lyrics concluded with “Year of Jubilee” at the end of each stanza)

1.         We are climbing Jacob's Ladder

            We are climbing Jacob's Ladder

            We are climbing Jacob's Ladder

            Year of Jubilee

2.         Every rung goes higher, higher

            Every rung goes higher, higher

            Every rung goes higher, higher

            Year of Jubilee

3.         Sinner do you love my Jesus

            Sinner do you love my Jesus

            Sinner do you love my Jesus

            Year of Jubilee

4.         If you love him, why not serve him

            If you love him, why not serve him

            If you love him, why not serve him

            Year of Jubilee

5.         We are climbing Jacob's ladder,

            We are climbing Jacob's ladder,

            We are climbing Jacob's ladder,

            Year of Jubilee!