Subversive Undercroft

Subversive Undercroft

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Subversive Undercroft episodes

  • #31 Get behind me!
    Does our imperfect understanding of love sometimes lead us to be another's tempter?
     
    READING
    Mark 8:31-38
    Jesus began to teach his disciples that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
    He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
     
    PRAYERS
    Jesus Christ intercedes for us at all times.  Together let us remember and pray to God through Christ,
    For the church universal, that the fasting of these forty days may clear away much that is needless and so open our eyes to the bright glory of the cross.
    For all the children of Abraham and Sarah, that we might find blessing and see our common inheritance as God’s beloved.
    For all who suffer in conflict, that God in mercy may turn our hearts toward one another and bring us to end our faithless reliance on weapons and violence.
    For all who have sought our prayers,
    For prisoners and all who are bound in body, mind, or spirit, that they may be delivered from their bondage
    For ourselves, for all who hear these prayers, that we may walk in Jesus’ path.
    For all who have died, that they be at peace.
    God, whose ways are beyond our knowing or approving, place the world’s troubles ever in our plain sight, and be yourself in our seeing and in our praying:  We ask this always through Christ our Lord.  Amen
     
    MUSIC
    Jordan’s Shore, Rose Ensemble
    Lord who throughout these 40 days, Chris Brunelle
    Poor Wayfaring Stranger, Hillbilly Thomists
    28 min
  • #30 Relevant, Spectacular, and Powerful
    We are tempted, as Jesus was - to look for easy solutions to difficult problems.  
     
    LINKS
    In the Name of Jesus by Henri Nouwen
     
    READING
    Mark 1:9-15
    In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” 
    And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.
    Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.
     
    PRAYERS
    let us turn our awareness to the presence of the divine that is always with us and always within us. 
    Let us bring before God all of those people and situations that are in any kind of need.
    Let us bring before God the poor, the forgotten and those who are marginalized, as we renew our commitment to the lonely and the unloved.
    Let us ask God to use our prayerful intentions for the benefit of all those who listen to this podcast, all those people we know and love, as well as people who are strangers to us. May we be blessings to one another.
    Let us call to mind our reasons to be thankful, as we remember our abundance and the life-giving way of gratitude.
    May God still our minds, Calm our hearts, breathe fresh life into us, and make us instruments of peace, justice and compassion. Amen. 
     
    MUSIC
    Selections from Giovanni Animuccia: Missa Victimae Paschali Laudes, Tudor Consort
    Come my way, my truth, my life, Blackfriar Music
    29 min
  • #29 You thought I was like you?!
    The voice of God calls for justice and expects that we will diligently strive for it.
     
    READING
    Psalm 50 (from the St Helena Psalter)
     
    1 The God of gods has spoken; *
    God has called the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.
    2 Out of Zion, perfect in its beauty, *
    God is revealed in glory.
    3 O God, you will come and will not keep silence; *
    before you there is a consuming flame,
    and round about you a raging storm.
    4 You call the heavens and the earth from above *
    to witness the judgment of your people.
    5 “Gather before me my loyal followers, *
    those who have made a covenant with me
    and sealed it with sacrifice.”
    6 Let the heavens declare the rightness of your cause, *
    for you alone are judge.
    7 “Hear, O my people, and I will speak:
    O Israel, I will bear witness against you, *
    for I am God, your God.
    8 I do not accuse you because of your sacrifices; *
    your offerings are always before me.
    9 I will take no bull-calf from your stalls, *
    nor he-goats out of your pens;
    10 For all the beasts of the forest are mine, *
    the herds in their thousands upon the hills
    11 I know every bird in the sky, *
    and the creatures of the fields are in my sight.
    12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you, *
    for the whole world is mine and all that is in it.
    13 Do you think I eat the flesh of bulls, *
    or drink the blood of goats?
    14 Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving *
    and make good your vows to the Most High.
    15 Call upon me in the day of trouble; *
    I will deliver you, and you shall honor me.”
    16 But to the wicked God says: *
    “Why do you recite my statutes
    and take my covenant upon your lips,
    17 Since you refuse discipline *
    and toss my words behind your back?
    18 When you see thieves, you make them your friends, *
    and you cast in your lot with adulterers.
    19 You have loosed your lips for evil *
    and harnessed your tongue to a lie.
    20 You are always speaking evil of your family *
    and slandering your own mother’s child.
    21 These things you have done, and I kept still, *
    and you thought that I am like you.”
    22 “I have made my accusation; *
    I have put my case in order before your eyes.
    23 Consider this well, you who forget God, *
    lest I rend you and there be none to deliver you.
    24 Whoever offers me the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me; *
    but to those who keep in my way will I show the salvation of God.”
    PRAYER
    The word of God calls us to see that all the places and occasions of the world, even places of sorrow and death, are transfigured by the presence of the glory of God in Christ Jesus.  Let us now call to mind all who are in any need and commend them to God’s transforming care.
    For those who are have lost someone they love,
    For the imprisoned, for those whose only home is the streets, and for those caught by addiction,
    For the hungry for the unemployed and under-employed,
    For refugees, for the victims of war, and for those trapped in poverty,
    For the people of our nation, our state, and our local communities,
    For artists and writers who inspire and challenge us to see,
    For preachers and teachers of the light-bearing word of Christ,
    For the church and its leaders, formed by the life-giving word of Christ,
    For those who have sought our prayer or whose need rests in our hearts
    For all of us, hungering to feed on the word of Christ,
    With Moses and Elijah and all the people of God, with the church throughout the ages bearing witness to the great light of God shining in dark places, we commend to you all for whom we pray, O merciful God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.
     
    MUSIC
     
    Seek, Seek, Swan Silvertones
    Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult, St George Winyah Episcopal Church
    Be Though my Vision, Norton Hall Band
    Je M Sou Ou, Rodlin Pierre & CDP Unplugged feat. Stanley Pierre
    30 min
  • #28 Everyone is searching
    Everyone is searching for Jesus, but he has already gone out searching for us.
    READING
    Mark 1:29-39
    After Jesus and his disciples left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
    That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
     
    PRAYERS
    Let us offer our prayers to God, who frees us from the bondage of sin and gives us that liberty of abundant life which is revealed to us in Christ Jesus.
    + That the Church may discover many ways to present the love of God, reaching people of different cultures, tongues, and understandings with the one message of Christ; let us pray. 
    + That those who are weary may have their strength renewed, those who are hungry be given the bread of life, those who are sick healed of their illness, and those in despair awaken to hope; let us pray.
    + For those who are peacemakers throughout the world, that their labor be not in vain, but bear fruit that brings new life to the peoples of all nations; let us pray. 
    + For family life, that through love and forgiveness relationships may prosper, and children may have the stability that builds emotional, physical, and spiritual wellbeing; let us pray. 
    + For all who have died, especially children and young adults, that they may find eternal life in the arms of our all-merciful Savior; let us pray. 
    As a community of faith, called to proclaim the good news of Christ may we spend time in prayer and stillness with God that we may then go boldly out into the world to voice and heart and hands of God, serving all people in Love.  Amen. 
     
    MUSIC
    Fix Me Jesus by Fools for Christ
    Ain’t Got Time to Die by Acappella Spirituals
    Hold On by DEM
    23 min
  • #27 Who really wants to be healed?
    The dark powers of the world always recognize the presence of God and seek to destroy it.  To follow Christ is to fully open our eyes to reality of the world.
     
    Readings: Deuteronomy 18:15-20  1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Mark 1:21-28  Psalm 111
    24 min
  • #26 A message from the Lord!
    Jonah is the most grudging and unenthusiastic prophet possible; but even with that, God can do amazing things.
     
    READING
    Jonah 3:1-5, 10
    The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.
    When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.
     
    MUSIC
    Seek ye first the kingdom of God, The VGK-Sarepta Children Choir at Bellville SDA Church
    All Creatures of our God and king
    Prayer for Peace, Chris Brunelle
    Lay me low, Jazzbanjorex
    25 min
  • #25 Here I am Lord
    God calls to us over the noise of our lives and in surprising and unexpected ways and places
     
    READING
    1 Samuel 3:1-20
    Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.
    At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
    Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Then the Lord said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering forever.”
    Samuel lay there until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” He said, “Here I am.” Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also, if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. Then he said, “It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.”
    As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was a trustworthy prophet of the Lord.
     
    PRAYERS
    In the waters of baptism, we were called to be God’s children and to minister to one another.  Let us therefore pray for ourselves, for one another, and for all those in need of our prayers,
    Let us pray for the church, that we may all stand fast in the one faith to which we have been called. 
    Let us pray for the world, that our conflicts may cease and that peace may reign in this new year. 
    Let us pray for all Christians who have been baptized into the one family of faith, that our lives reflect the forgiveness and love which was first shown us. 
    Let us pray for all who are blind to the injustices of our world, that their eyes may be opened and that they may work for an end to oppression and injustice. 
    Let us pray for those who suffer, that they may find healing and wholeness in God’s love. 
    Let us pray for the faithful who have gone before us; that we may follow the example of their lives and be reunited with them in the joy of everlasting life. 
    Lord God, you know our thoughts and needs better than we ourselves.  Accept the prayers which we now offer, and strengthen us to do your will, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.
     
    MUSIC
    Come my way, my truth, my life by Blackfriar Music
    Jesus is the Lord of All by Olly Knight
    Of the Father’s love begotten by Church Folk
    Halleluiah by Factories & Alleyways
    29 min
  • Here I am Lord

    God calls to us over the noise of our lives and in surprising and unexpected ways and places


     


    READING

    1 Samuel 3:1-20


    Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.


    At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.


    Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Then the Lord said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be expiated by sacrifice or offering forever.”


    Samuel lay there until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” He said, “Here I am.” Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also, if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. Then he said, “It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.”


    As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was a trustworthy prophet of the Lord.


     


    PRAYERS

    In the waters of baptism, we were called to be God’s children and to minister to one another.  Let us therefore pray for ourselves, for one another, and for all those in need of our prayers,


    Let us pray for the church, that we may all stand fast in the one faith to which we have been called. 


    Let us pray for the world, that our conflicts may cease and that peace may reign in this new year. 


    Let us pray for all Christians who have been baptized into the one family of faith, that our lives reflect the forgiveness and love which was first shown us. 


    Let us pray for all who are blind to the injustices of our world, that their eyes may be opened and that they may work for an end to oppression and injustice. 


    Let us pray for those who suffer, that they may find healing and wholeness in God’s love. 


    Let us pray for the faithful who have gone before us; that we may follow the example of their lives and be reunited with them in the joy of everlasting life. 


    Lord God, you know our thoughts and needs better than we ourselves.  Accept the prayers which we now offe

    29 min
  • #24 God who dwells below
    God reveals God's self to the world so that all might see and follow the distant star to a new dawn
    READING
    Matthew 2:1-12
    In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
    `And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
    for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
    Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
     
    PRAYERS
    It is in following the Light that we discover the truth. With the love of God to guide our footsteps, let us journey to the new Bethlehem and offer our prayers to the Holy Child.
    + For the light of hope which illumines the depths of reality and releases our hearts to offer the treasures of our souls.
    + For the fragile stirrings of peace sown in troubled places throughout the world, that freedom may flourish, and its fruits bring hope to those most in need.
    + For the forgiveness of our sins: our greed and narrow-mindedness, our selfishness and misuse of power, our misjudgment of one another, that we may acknowledge our faults and turn to the all-merciful love of God.
    + That we may be humbled in the presence of the poor, bending the knee of our hearts to those who have no defender, and to those whose economic and personal distress pains us to encounter.
    + For those who are suffering with illness and for those who bear a private grief, that the Holy Comforter may bring them relief from their burdens.
    + For all that is to be revealed to us during this new year: the joys, the disappointments, the struggles, the new directions and insights; that through all our journeys we may know the Messiah as our constant companion.
    + For a generosity of spirit, that through the delight of giving treasures rich and rare, we may share a common bounty and support a shared mission.
    + We offer these prayers in thanksgiving for the Body and Blood of Christ, a foretaste of that heavenly banquet upon which the faithful departed continually feast. Amen.
     
    MUSIC
    We Three Kings
    RTists for Christmas
     
    Be Thou My Vision
    Norton Hall Band
     
    We Three Kings
    Maya Solovey
    27 min
  • #23 In the beginning was the Word
    It's the end of the year and the first Sunday after Christmas where we encounter the beauty of God's being
     
    READING:
    John 1:1-18
    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
    There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
    He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
    And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.'") From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known.
     
    PRAYERS:
    Let us pray to God who has given us the revelation of divine grace and truth through the birth of Jesus, the Messiah.
    + For faith, that the garments of salvation and righteousness may clothe us, and bring to our outward actions the inner workings of God’s joy in our lives.
    + For the leaders of our country and our state, that the light of Christ may illumine their hearts, empowering them to boldly proclaim the truth without fear or deception.
    + For the victims of war, political upheaval, and economic uncertainty, that we may not forget their needs but continually seek ways to offer the assistance that Christ would have us bring.  
    + For those who are limited by illness, living with the uncertainty of debilitating diseases or the darkness of mental despair, that they may continue to call upon the hope of God.
    + For all who have died and for all who are lonely or grieving, that they may remain close to the heart of the Risen One, whose presence knows no end.
    + For the Church as we move toward the challenges of the future, that we rejoice in the faith of our ancestors and in the ever-present support of our sisters and brothers in this household.
    + For each of us, that as we enjoy the material blessings of this season, the light and love of Jesus may continually transform us into a spiritual people through whom the Word of God is revealed.
     
    MUSIC:
    Christmas Eve, Borrtex
    I Saw Three Ships, Ben Devries
    In the Bleak Midwinter, Rue Royale
    26 min

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Sharing the Radical Good News of Jesus