ACE of Hearts in July 2007

ACE OF HEARTS
in July 2007

An Experiment: During the month of July, I would like to experiment with a different format for our ACE of Hearts. You will find the next two weeks of Gospel readings below.

I need your help in deciding if this format is helpful to you in preparing for each week's worship experience. Please let me know if you find this format helpful or not by either calling me at 310 613-5146 or writing me an email at rwcornner@aol.com or just handing me a note on Sunday.

I greatly appreciate your input. I want to make sure that the time I spend preparing such things is helpful to you in your Christian formation and understanding.

God's Peace in Open Hearts and Minds,
Bob+

Instead of our usual multiple choice format, you will have an opportunity to explore some of your own attitudes in relation to people in the Gospel stories and in response to some of the things that Jesus taught.

JESUS, MARTHA AND MARY

For SUNDAY JULY 22, 2007

(Luke 10:38-42)

As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what he was saying.

But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her."

Invitation: Having read the Gospel above, rank the following characters in the story according to your sense of who seems most sympathetic to you. Go with your first impressions and then see if you can explain what led you to your decisions about the interaction of the characters.

Use the following 6 point scale to rate each character:

1= Most Sympathetic

3= Neutral

6= Least Sympathetic

In order of appearance:

Jesus _____ Martha ______ Mary ______

FOR SUNDAY JULY 29, 2007

Jesus on Prayer: Persistence and Patience

Luke 11:1-13

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them,

"When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial."

And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

"So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

Jesus responds to his disciples' request to learn his way of praying. From that we get the Lord's Prayer. It is not exactly like the one we use on Sundays. Can you identify how it is different from what we use?

Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial."

Having read the Gospel above, rank the following characters in the story according to your sense of who seems most sympathetic to you.

Go with your first impressions and then see if you can explain what led you to your decisions about the interaction of the characters.

Use the following 6 point scale to rate each character:

1= Most Sympathetic

3= Neutral

6= Least Sympathetic

In order of appearance:

One of you who has a friend _____

Friend to whom you go at midnight ______

The Visitors from out of town

The Children of the Friend ______

Invitation: In the final section of this Gospel reading, Jesus connects the persistent person who goes to his neighbor at midnight to prayer. Respond to each of the statements below according to the following scale.

1= Strongly agree
3= Not sure
6 = Strongly disagree

1.I believe persistence in prayer always results in an answer to my prayer. _____

2. I believe that how I pray reveals what I believe about God and other people in the world. _____

3. I believe that prayer changes the person who is praying. _____

4. I believe that you have to be careful what you pray for because
you might get it. _____

5. I believe that I know what's best for those for whom I pray. _____

6. I believe that prayer makes me a more humble. ____

7. I believe that prayer allows me to surrender my sense of being in charge and responsible for everything. _____

8. I believe that prayer changes the people for whom we pray. _____

9. I believe that Jesus frequently prayed. _____

10. I believe that prayer makes my life better. _____

11. I believe that we should pray and work for bringing the compassionate of God into our world. _____

We have all prayed at some time during our lives. Here is some space to write down some of your experiences with prayer. Perhaps focus on both positive and negative experiences and offer some thoughts as to why you pray or don't pray today. The questions to which you responded above may help you in this last reflection on prayer.


FEEDBACK ON THE ACE EXPERIMENT

1= Agree 3= Neutral 6= Disagree

1. I like the old ACE format better. _____

2. I don't like the new or the old ACE format. _____

3. I like the Sympathy exercise. _____

4. I like the agree/disagree exercise. _____

5. I like being asked to compare the two versions of the Lord's Prayer (Luke to the one we say) _____

6. I like having input on the ACE. _____

7. I don't feel qualified to give input on the ACE. _____

8. I would rather not give input on the ACE. _____


WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT?

1. What sorts of learning experiences would like us to offer at the church that would meet your need as an adult Christian?


2. What questions would you like to see in future ACE offerings?

3. What is the hardest part about learning more about your Christian faith?

The Parable of the Samaritan: Sympathetic or Not Sympathetic

Here are the results of the surveys you completed about the characters in the Parable of the Samaritan.


1= Most Sympathetic

3= Neutral

6= Least Sympathetic

In order of appearance:

Man beaten and robbed 1.14

The Robbers 5.86

The Priest 4.71

The Lawyer 4.14

The Samaritan 1.29

The Innkeeper 2.14

ACE FOR JULY 8, 2007

What do the two candles on the altar represent?

A. Stage left and Stage right.

B. The Gospel and the Epistles

C. They are the lights used to read the service book.

D. They represent the need to save electricity.

The most correct answer is B. Acolytes learn to never allow the Gospel candle to burn alone. So, we light the Epistle candle (on your right as you face the altar)and then we light the Gospel candle (on your left as you face the altar). The Gospel candle is then extinquished first at the end of the service. We describe the church as having a Gospel and an Epistle side.

If you would like to submit a question for ACE, please drop me an e-mail at rwcornner@aol.com or fill out one of the forms at church found at the back of the church and in the parish hall on the kiosk.