Lament

The following originally appeared as part of "Grief over Injustice, Hope for Wholeness—Lent 5: Racism."Call to ConfessionIn this service we acknowledge before God the sin of racism. Admitting to acts of racism and repenting of them do not define our identity. Jesus determines who we are—each and every one of us. The act of worship is itself an act of protest against the social caste system. It tells people from all nations and all walks of life who they really are in Christ and who our neighbors are in Christ.Jesus prayed that we would have unity, and we pray that for ourselves today too. We pray that we would not look for what divides us, but seek what unites us.Prayer of ConfessionGod of every nation, tribe, and tongue,We lament the ways we have used dehumanizing language and made disparaging jokes at the expense of other cultures.We lament the history of residential schools across our nation, the cultural genocide that took place there, and the ways this has impacted our indigenous brothers and sisters for generations.We lament senseless attacks on racial and religious groups—the places of worship attacked, the families and individuals run down on sidewalks, the targeted vandalism, police brutality, gang violence, and profiling.We lament the ways we have made God into an image of whiteness by failing to acknowledge God’s image in the theology, worship, and cultures of the global church.We lament our lack of imagination and courage in directly confronting and dismantling systemic racism with the excuse that the church should focus on piety and evangelism.Let us be humble and listen to the pain, rage, and grief pouring from the lips of our neighbors and friends.May God give us grace and strength to resist lies, arrogance, injustice, racism, and oppression in all forms. God, in your mercy,Show me my own complicity in injustice.Convict me for my indifference.Forgive me when I have remained silent.Equip me with a zeal for righteousness.Never let me grow accustomed to unrighteousness.Amen.Song “Man of Sorrows—What a Name” BlissAssurance of Pardon Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;   remove your evil deeds   from before my eyes;cease to do evil;     learn to do good;seek justice;   rescue the oppressed;defend the orphan;   plead for the widow.Come now, let us argue it out,   says the Lord:If your sins are like scarlet,   will they become like snow?If they are red like crimson,   will they become like wool?—Isaiah 1:16–18 NRSVUERevised Common LectionaryYear C: Season after Pentecost—Proper 14 (19)Year C: Season after Pentecost—Proper 26 (31)