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The Service For The 14th Sabbath In Ordinary Time
July 7, 2001
[The "+" indicates that the Moderator and the Congregation are to cross themselves, if they should so choose.]
[The men, upon entering, must remove all their clothes and when they have found a proper place to sit, out of respect for the sanctuary of our Lord, must kneel before entering the pew. It is expected that they will furnish and use their own serviettes.]
[The Choir is to sing the antiphon. If there is no choir the Congregation is to recite it.]
Choir (or Congregation): "Within your temple, we ponder your loving kindness, O God. As Your name, so also Your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; Your right hand is filled with justice."
[The Altar man, holding the censer, and the Moderator, in that order, line up for the procession. The rest of the Congregation lines up behind them row by row and proceeds to walk around the church in the procession.]
Choir (or Congregation): "Within your temple, we ponder your loving kindness, O God. As Your name, so also Your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; Your right hand is filled with justice."
[After the procession is over, the Congregation takes their seats and the regular service begins.]
Moderator: + “In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, Most Holy and Eternal Trinity.”
Moderator: "Let us all join in a statement of our faith:"
Congregation and Moderator: "We believe that God, through His Holy Word, has made it more than evident as to how He wishes to be worshipped. God created man, as represented by Adam, in His image. This creation was meant to be in harmony with Nature and the Natural Laws. To this end men were created to be naked and to worship God in that, their natural state. It is only by the shame of having sinned that Adam felt that he had to hide himself behind clothes. We believe that by encasing ourselves in clothes that we are only mimicking Adam in his sin and rebellion against the First Cause. God, in His Holy Wisdom, had given Adam the option of eternal life in his nakedness. But he, in his ignorance, cast away the blessing of nudity that God so fervently wanted him to have. We believe that we of the Apertarian Church must return to the First Cause in the way He has called us to worship Him. We offer an open door to any Gay male that would worship with us in the joys and blessings of his God-given nudity. For those who wish not to join us we offer prayers that God will also bless them. When His time is right He will open their eyes that they might see what has been so abundantly revealed to us."
Moderator: "Amen."
Old Testament Lesson
Moderator: "The Old Testament lesson for the 14th Sabbath in Ordinary Time is found in:
Zechariah 9: 9, 10:
9. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10. And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion [shall be] from sea [even] to sea, and from the river [even] to the ends of the earth.
Moderator: “This is the word of the Lord.”
Congregation: “Thanks be to God.”
Responsorial Psalm
Response: "I will praise Your name for ever, my King and my God."
Moderator: "I will extol You, O my God and King, and I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day will I bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever."
Congregation: "I will praise Your name for ever, my King and my God."
Moderator: "The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. The Lord is good to all and compassionate toward all His works."
Congregation: "I will praise Your name for ever, my King and my God"
Moderator: "Let all Your works give You thanks, O lord, and let Your faithful ones bless You. Let them discourse of the glory of Your kingdom and speak of Your might."
Congregation: "I will praise Your name for ever, my King and my God"
Moderator: "The Lord is faithful in all His words and holy in all His works. The Lord lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down."
Congregation: "I will praise Your name for ever, my King and my God."
The New Testament Lesson
Moderator: “The New Testament lesson for the 14th Sabbath in Ordinary Time is found in:
Romans 8: 11-13:
11. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
12. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
13. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
Thus endeth the New Testament lesson for today."
[The Moderator then raises the Bible.]
Moderator: “This is the word of the Lord.”
Congregation: “Thanks be to God.”
The Gospel Lesson
Moderator: “The Gospel lesson for the 14th Sabbath in Ordinary Time is found in:
Matthew 11: 25-30:
25. At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
26. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.
27. All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and [he] to whomsoever the Son will reveal [him].
28. Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30. For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light.
[The Congregation rises as the altar man rings the bells.]
Congregation: + “In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Most Holy and Eternal Trinity."
Moderator: Thus endeth the Gospel for today."
[The Moderator holds up the Bible]
Moderator: "This is the Word of the Lord."
Congregation: "Thanks be to God!"
A hymn is sung at this point.
[The Congregation then sits down as the altar man rings the bells.]
The Homily
“Come Unto Me!”
Moderator: "Today we Americans have more material possessions than ever before in history. Children have more toys and gadgets then can ever be imagined. And adults too. So many of us have so much "stuff" that we have to rent storage space to hold all of it. From vehicles to playthings to health machines to cooking utensils. There seems to be no end of "things" we can buy to make us happy.
And the opportunities for entertainment seem to be almost endless. We have books, magazines, toys, television, radios, phones, computers, the internet, games movies... It almost boggles the mind at how many ways we can find to entertain ourselves. With all of these things there should be no one who is unhappy, who is despondent.
Yet look at the statistics. More Gay teenagers are killing themselves than ever before. And I am not just talking bigger numbers, I'm talking higher percentages. Why? Why, in this world of seemingly endless pleasure and things are they trying to end their young lives? Why are they desperately attempting to escape from their existence? Do they sense something is wrong?
Yes, They have discovered that material things do not satisfy. They have discovered that pleasure does not bring happiness. They have discovered that sex does not cure loneliness. They have discovered that there must be more in their lives than they have. There must be something deeper. something more lasting than the moment. Something greater then they themselves.
Jesus said that man shall not live by bread alone (Luke 4: 4) What did He mean? He meant that within each of us is a deeper man, a greater spirit. It is this greater spirit that gives meaning to life, that makes each of us reach for something that cannot be seen, but can be profoundly felt.
How important is it? It is the very nature or our existence. Without it, we perish not only as individuals, but as nations as well.
Proverbs 29: 18:
"When there is no vision, the people perish..."
Kill the vision, kill the spirit that is within us and ever though our bodies continue to function we are little better than zombies.
Scripture tells us not to fear those who can destroy the body. Matthew 10: 28: "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.' Jesus was warning us about the great Deceiver.
I know: all too many people scoff at me when I mention Satan. They laugh and say that he is just a medieval myth that never existed to begin with. There is no evil, they say. It's all relative today. It's a case of situational ethics. And yet, look around you. If there is no evil, if there is no consummate power of darkness, why is there so much unhappiness?
Why is here so much unhappiness? Because life is more than what Satan tells us it is. Life is more than the next video game. Life is more that just the next trick. Life is more than just the next "hit". But, oh how we are led into believing that if we only had that next material possession, that next one night stand, that next line of cocaine, that all our happiness would be complete, Then, how disappointed we are, when we find we have been deceived.
We Apertarians know better We know we must walk after the Spirit. Jesus said: that which is born of the flesh is flesh. And that which is born of the spirit is spirit." We, as Gay Christian Nudists, have been reborn to be children of the spirit. Because of this we must walk after the Spirit.
This is not to say that we deny the body. No! Far from it! We will be the first to admit to the physical pleasures of this world. Our bodies were created to enjoy them And we believe that they should be enjoyed. However, we must never lose sight of the fact that we are deeper stuff than our bodies. And even though we can enjoy the physical pleasure they must always be subject to our control. When we fail to control them we have betrayed our deeper Spirit.
There are some things we know will destroy our soul even though we haven't tried them . Drugs for one. We know we can't control them, so we stay away from them. Unhealthy sex. We save our bodies for the man whom we shall fall in love with. Greed. Lust for things we put aside, contenting ourselves with enough to get by. We keep these things in their proper places, not allowing them to go wild in our lives and killing our inner souls.
Yet, oh how beautiful and pleasurable Satan makes them appear. And he never shows you the horrible price you will be called on to pay later, after the sin has lost its sheen. Yet you can see for yourself the price of unethical sex. Walk into any Gay bar. They're there, the burned out ones, the bitter ones the infected ones.
You don't have to be like them. Turn your life over to God and let Him direct your paths. Proverbs 3: 5 & 6:"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths."
Do not let anyone tell you that you as a Gay person have no worth. God has paid a high price for you. That is why it's so important to live for Him, nurturing your inner Man. God gave us the Great Gay Commission to sustain us through our lives. Ask God to help you understand how to use it. It is your very salvation!
Thus endeth the homily for today."
Moderator: + "In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, Most Holy and Eternal Trinity."
The Offering
Moderator: "Jesus has said that the Lord loves a cheerful giver. We pray that you will open up your heart and give so that we may continue to carry God's message of nakedness, healing and salvation to all those Gay male Nudists who still are suffering needless pain and rejection."
[The collection plate is then passed around while a hymn is sung. When the collection is completed the collection plate(s) are brought forward and laid on the altar. The Moderator then prays over the gifts.]
Moderator: "Dear heavenly Father, we know we can do nothing to merit Your eternal love. Yet You did love us before the foundation of the world. Accept our humble gifts for your service and bless the givers also. We pray in Your Son's name and for Your eternal glory. Amen."
[The Moderator moves back to the pulpit.]
The Communal Prayer
Moderator: "The Lord be with you."
Congregation: "And also with you."
Moderator: + "Let us pray... Oh Lord, we bring before You all of the problems of the day (here list petitions for local problems). Help us to put in proper perspective the trials that You send our way. We ask that You will look down on our efforts and help us to help the Gay male Nudist who still suffers. We ask Your help in particular for N_____ and N_____. We also pray for our leaders who You have put into power. Give them the wisdom to make decisions that reflect Your will. But we always and ever give You thanks and pray that You will work Your will so that one day all men may walk free in their nakedness the way You have created us to be. Let Your Holy Spirit guide us as we pray the way Your Son taught us saying..."
Congregation and Moderator: "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thou art the Kingdom and the Glory for ever and ever. Amen."
Moderator: "Amen."
The Communion Service
[The Moderator moves behind the altar and faces the people.]
Moderator: "Brothers, we are gathered here today to commemorate the sacrifice of our most Holy Lord Jesus Christ who by His willful offering of His perfect self upon the cross secured for us the promise of heaven in the next life and the blessings of nakedness in this life. Let us each examine our consciences and prepare ourselves for the communion service."
[Here is observed a moment of silence while the men examine their consciences and silently ask for forgiveness.]
Moderator: "The Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread..."
[At this point the Moderator elevates the bread and displays it to all sides of the Congregation while the bells are rung. The priest then genuflects.]
Moderator: "And when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you. This do in remembrance of me."
[The Moderator then breaks the wafer into three pieces and places it in the chalice of grape juice.]
Congregation: "This, Lord, we will remember, to keep it holy."
Moderator. "After the same manner also He took the cup, and when He had supped said, "This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me."
[The Moderator then elevates the chalice filled with grape juice and displays it to all sides of the Congregation while the altar man rings the bells. The priest genuflects.]
Congregation: "This, Lord, we will remember, to keep it holy."
Moderator: "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till He come."
[The Congregation then lines up to receive communion. The Moderator dips a wafer in the grape juice and offers it to each communicant. Each may take communion the way he feels is right, i.e., standing or kneeling, in his hand or in his mouth, etc. When all have received communion the Moderator then offers communion to the altar man, if there is one. He then takes communion himself, and drinks ALL OF THE GRAPE JUICE IN THE CHALICE. He carefully washes the chalice and covers it with an altar cloth. He then returns to the pulpit.]
[A hymn is sung.]
Moderator: "Please stand for the final benediction.'
[The Congregation stands.]
Moderator: + "The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Go thy way and be at peace in thy nakedness. The service is ended. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, most Holy and Eternal Trinity."
[At this point a closing hymn may be sung.]
[The Congregation then observes a moment of silence while the Moderator goes to the front door to welcome the men as they exit. When the altar man rings the bells the men are then free to dress and leave the service.]