Liturgical Color: Purple

Theme: The cleansing of the temple; the promise of Jesus' resurrection.

The Community Gathers

Pastoral Invitation to the Celebration:

Suggestion: In the Name of God, the Holy One and Loving One, welcome to worship. Are you ready to begin? If not, I invite you to allow the Spirit of God to make you ready, not only for Jesus' words of comfort, but also, for Jesus' words of confrontation - for indeed, we cannot have one without the other.

Continue with this litany:

Leader: The call of Christ is not an easy one.

People: It is an invitation to self-giving.

Leader: It requires hard work in the face of disappointment and hostility.

People: It means going on when everyone else has given up.

Leader: We will need to support, encourage, affirm each other if we are to follow Chris…