WDP Board Meeting
April 2013
Opening Worship -- Times and Remembrance: leaving a Legacy
(Timing in RED)
Prayer of Praise and Thanksgiving (0-2)
Taken From WDP 2013, France Committee
One: Praise to you, O Lord! You created us in your image and we are all different. Thank
you for this diversity; for all the languages and dialects. Thank you for the cultures and
traditions that have emerged within our places of origin.
All: We are grateful!
One: Praise to you, O Lord! Each one of us is unique in your eyes. We celebrate these
differences and rejoice that we are called to be sisters and brothers. You guide us on the
path to solidarity whatever our origins, languages, appearances and personalities. Thank
you for your grace that welcomes us all as your children.
All: We are grateful!
One: May praise, honor and glory be given to you Lord, for the bounty that you have
granted us.
All: We are grateful!
One: Let us pray. Today, God ,we have everything to learn from Your Word. Free us from
all ready-made explanations that prevent us from hearing Your Call. Grant us to receive
Your Word as if we are discovering it for the first time. Through Your Spirit, may Your
Word become Good News for our lives. Amen
Song: Morning Has Broken (2-5)
Old Testament Reading (5-7)
Numbers 27:1-8 The Daughters of Zelophehad
Then the daughters of Zelophehad came forward. Zelophehad was son of Hepher son of
Gilead son of Machir son of Manasseh son of Joseph, a member of the Manassite clans. The
names of his daughters were: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 2They stood before
Moses, Eleazar the priest, the leaders, and all the congregation, at the entrance of the tent of
meeting, and they said, 3“Our father died in the wilderness; he was not among the company
of those who gathered themselves together against the Lord in the company of Korah, but
died for his own sin; and he had no sons. 4Why should the name of our father be taken
away from his clan because he had no son? Give to us a possession among our father’s
brothers.” 5Moses brought their case before the Lord. 6And the Lord spoke to Moses,
saying: 7The daughters of Zelophehad are right in what they are saying; you shall indeed let
them possess an inheritance among their father’s brothers and pass the inheritance of their
father on to them. 8You shall also say to the Israelites, “If a man dies, and has no son, then
you shall pass his inheritance on to his daughter.
New Testament Reading (7-9)
Taken From WDP 2013, France Committee
Matthew 25:31-40
Storyteller: "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he
will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will
separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he
will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those
at his right hand,”
King: “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you
gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you
gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.”
Storyteller: “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you
hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it
that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when
was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? And the king will answer them,”
King: "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my
family, you did it to me.
Nirmala: Meditation on Legacy (9-17)
Legacy Litany (17-19)
One: We remember the times we felt like a stranger, and how we were treated. We
remember the times we welcomed strangers, and we also remember the times when we
did not.
All: What will our legacy be?
One: We remember the legacy of Alma Matthews. One of these two buildings served as a
home for immigrant women and girls in the early 20th century. From 1888 to1926, Alma, a
woman of faith, worked with new immigrants arriving in New York City. We especially
remember her this year with WDP’s focus on immigrants.
All: What will our legacy be?
One: We remember the legacy of the United States of America, which once proclaimed it
would be a place of acceptance for all people. As we sit here in New York, we remember
the gift of the Statue of Liberty from France, and her words: Send me your hungry, your
poor, your cold, huddled masses…
All: What will our legacy be?
One: We remember two women who have been lost in this past year who gave so much to
our board. Paula Lamberg and Barbara Styles helped WDP USA get to the place where we
are today. We honor their hard work and contributions.
All: What will our legacy be?
Words of Remembrance (19-25)
Jane to speak about Barbara
Pam to speak about Paula?
Prayer of Remembrance (Unison) (25-27)
God our refuge, we pray to you today in the name of Jesus who was not found in the tomb
when his friends thought he was dead. We give thanks for the contributions of Barbara and
Paula to this work. We especially will miss Paula’s contribution to the Grants Committee.
We don’t understand how someone so young, with so much energy, could be gone. And yet
we believe with you that there is something stronger even than death. It is that love, that
hope, that we need today. Comfort us and surround us with your care as we work together;
fill us with hope and vision for our future; give us peace. This is our prayer. Amen.
Closing Song: May God’s Blessing Surround You (France 2013) (27-30)
And Ritual of Remembrance
Leader says: As we sing this closing song, you are invited to bring up your flower and place
it in the vase in honor of Paula and Barbara, and other inspiring women from your own life
who you have lost. We will repeat the song until all the flowers have been brought forward.
Nirmala has brought packets of sunflower seeds for each of us to take home from this
meeting. You are invited to plant them as a remembrance of Barbara and Paula.
Benediction
Let us turn now to our meeting, with grateful hearts for the women who have paved the
way for us, with sharp minds to consider what our legacy will be, and with seeds of hope
that will blossom into radiant bloom. Let us go in peace. Amen.