Installation Service –Senior Minister
Emcee: Michelle Lang, RScP
Presiding Minister: Dr. Rev. John Waterhouse
Officiating Minister: Dr. Rev. Candice Beckett
Prelude Music (recorded or ?)
Procession?
Welcome and Invocation –Michelle Lang
Michelle: Good evening. Welcome to Rev. Jay’s installation as Sr. minister of the Napa Valley Center for Spiritual Living, this evening. We are so glad everyone was able to make it out this evening. I am Michelle Lang, practitioner and Rev. Jay’s spouse. An Installation Ceremony is like a marriage of a minister and a center, except there are more people involved. Both the minister, the board, the practitioners and the community will all have the opportunity to say ‘I do’ in this commitment of the heart.
Let us open this ceremony with prayer: Invocation
Before we begin, I would like to make introductions. Please hold your applause until all of the names have been read: Please stand as I call your name.
Dr. Rev. John Waterhouse, President of Centers for Spritual Living and Presiding Minister;
Dr. Rev. Candice Beckett, former president of the Religious Science international, current Sr. minister of Ukiah Center for Spritual Living, Regional support Cordinator for this regions and tonight the Installing Minister:
Other visiting ministers, (cards or sheet with names and letter of call)
(After all have been introduced) Please give them all a round of applause
NVCSL practitioners (as a whole), Please give them all a round of applause
NVCSL Board of Trustees (as a whole) Please give them all a round of applause
Now I would like to invite Dr. Rev. John Waterhouse to the podium as the presiding minister.
As Dr. Rev. John Waterhouse and on behalf of Centers for Spiritual Living, it is my honor to preside over this important moment in this celebration.
Ernest Holmes, with his vision and through his writing, lit the torch of Religious Science. Those who have carried it since believed in the same principles which we have declared as our own today. They knew, as we know, that those principles are impersonal and universal — that they work for all, without exception.
And they knew, as we know, that the power of the Universe responds to the faith of all — regardless of the name by which that faith may be known, or the organization to which it belongs. God is no respecter of labels. Religious Science does not own the corner on truth.
But we know, too, that an illuminated consciousness, a trained mind, and an open heart together create the greatest avenue through which the Universal Power can flow.
As so there is good reason to celebrate today the installation of those who carry the torch and declare the principles, as well as illumine consciousness, train the minds and open the hearts of those who come learn and apply the Science of Mind to their lives.
On the larger, more impersonal level, this Church is the natural outcome of the consciousness of men and women far removed from this place and this evening.
And, it is even more than that — this Church is, in fact, nothing less than the culmination of a Divine Idea in the Mind of God.
On a more intimate level, it is the direct result of an idea in the minds of those who dreamed it, established it, nurtured it and grew it — who have been willing to be its heads, hearts, hands and feet.
Today, we install another generation of leadership — one who by his willingness, will add to the already vibrant growth of this church
Ministers, Board of Trustees, Licensed Practitioners, Congregation, and Friends, we are gathered here today to install this Minister of Religious Science as an official minister of this member center.
Official notification has been received from the Centers for Spiritual Living in Golden, Colorado, that Rev. Jay Lang is a fully ordained Religious Science Minister.
As a Minister of this Center, Rev. Jay Lang shall act in the following capacities in fulfilling the Ministerial office:
- He serves as a pastor/spiritual leader/director/senior minister of the congregation and counselor to all who come to him/her for help.
- He serves as an official and accredited teacher of Science of Mind classes under the authority of a church covenant with Centers for Spiritual Living.
- Every Minister of Religious Science must first have received license and recognition as a Practitioner before they may be licensed or ordained as a Minister. Therefore, he serves always as a Practitioner to the needs of the people when the call is made.
- SPECIFIC DUTIES/CAPACITIES IN WHICH THE MINISTER SHALL SERVE.
Let us together re-affirm our conviction as Religious Scientists as I read the Declaration of Principles. (The congregation can be asked to join in this with responsive reading or it can be presented by another minister).
Declaration of Principles: (Who reads?)
We believe in God, the living spirit almighty; one, indestructible, absolute, and self-existent cause.
This one manifests itself in and through all creation but is not absorbed by its creation.
The manifest universe is the body of God; it is the logical and necessary outcome of the infinite self-knowingness of God.
We believe in the incarnation of the Spirit in everyone and that all people are incarnations of the one Spirit.
We believe in the eternality, the immortality, and the continuity of the individual soul forever and ever expanding.
We believe that the Kingdom of Heaven is within us and that we experience this Kingdom to the degree that we become conscious of it.
We believe the ultimate goal of life to be a complete emancipation from all discord of every nature, and that this goal is sure to be attained by all.
We believe in the unity of all life, and that the highest God and the innermost God is one God.
We believe that God is personal to all who feel this Indwelling Presence.
We believe in the direct revelation of truth through the intuitive and spiritual nature of any kind, and that any person may become a revealer of Truth who lives in close contact with the indwelling God.
We believe that the Universal Spirit, which is God, operates through a universal mind, which is the Law of God.
We’re surrounded by this Creative Mind which receives the direct impress of our thoughts and acts upon it.
We believe in the healing of the sick through the power of this mind.
We believe in the control of conditions through the power of this mind.
We believe in the eternal Goodness, the eternal Loving-kindness, and
the eternal Givingness of Life to all.
We believe in our own soul, our own Spirit, and our own destiny.
We understand that the life of man is God.
INSTALLATION
I would like to invite Dr. Rev. Candice Beckett , the to the stage as the installing minister.
Installing Minister/Dr. Beckett: I, present to the Board of Trustees, the Practitioners and the Congregation, to be duly installed as an official Minister of this Center. Rev Jay Lang.
{Minister comes to the podium and stands to the right of installing minister, who makes any desirable comment.)
Charge to Minister:
Do you accept these principles and promise to adhere to them and make them the basis of your teaching?
Do you so consecrate yourself to this ministry that you will do your utmost at all times to reflect the Christ within, in all that you think, say, or do?
Do you so dedicate yourself that you will be constantly aware of the Spirit within all people and that you will see only the perfect Spiritual person, perfect in mind, body and in Spirit?
Do you promise to minister faithfully and lovingly to the people now committed to your charge, and to seek ever to be an example of moderation, patience and loving kindness?
MINISTER: I do
May the Infinite Spirit who empowers you to do all these things, grace you with the strength faithfully to perform the same, and to live the principles of this teaching and our Centers for Spiritual Living organization?
Charge to Board of Trustees / Leadership Council (Invite Trustees to come forward)
To the Napa Valley Center for Spiritual Living Community,
We now present to you those individuals who have been duly elected to serve on your Board of Trustees.
Not only do these board members oversee the business affairs of your church center, but their individual and collective awareness establishes a consciousness for the entire congregation. Recognizing the authority you have entrusted to them, we now charge them with this responsibility.
Do you promise to follow the light of truth, seeking at all times to be aware of what is right, rather than who is right?
BOARD: We do.
Do you accept Rev. Jay Lang as a minister of this church, as a Spiritual leader and teacher?
BOARD: We do.
Will you support his vision, his ecclesiastic leadership and his ideas to foster, nurture and grow this Spiritual community.
BOARD: We Will.
Thank you. You may be seated.
Charge to Practitioners (Ask Practitioners to come forward)
We now present to you those individuals who are the licensed professional practitioners at this center. They not only have to completed numerous classes, they also have been deemed to have the consciousness necessary to be effective in prayers they offer congregants, this center and the world as a whole.
Rev. Jay knows and understands the role of the licensed Practitioner is to be part of the ecclesiastical team, establishing and maintaining a continual consciousness of the Spiritual vision of this church.
You also carry out most of your work in the great and powerful silence. The fruits of this work are manifested as demonstrations in the lives of yourselves, your clients and your church.
Do you consecrate yourself to this Spiritual vision and activity?
PRACTITIONERS: We Do
Do you accept Rev. Jay as a minister of this church center, as a Spiritual leader and teacher?
PRACTITIONERS: We Do
Will you support Rev. Jay and the community with your consciousness, your listening ear, your prayers, and your teaching?
PRACTITIONERS: We Will.
Thank You. You may be seated.
Charge to Members of the Church (Ask members to stand)
You are the voice of this church. You are the ambassadors of Religious Science in this community. You are the backbone as the volunteers giving service.
Do you promise to uphold and practice the principles of Religious Science moment by moment to the best of your ability?
MEMBERS: We Do.
Do you accept Rev. Jay Lang as a minister of this church/center as a Spiritual leader and teacher?
MEMBERS: We Do.
Will you support his vision, his ecclesiastic leadership and his ideas to foster, nurture and grow this Spiritual community?
MEMBERS: We Will
Thank you. You may be seated.
Charge to Ministers Present: (If ministers from other churches are part of ceremony)
As colleagues, do you promise to give of your friendship, your love, and your affirmative prayers to this minister?
MINISTERS: We do.
Thank you
You may be seated.
Spouse/Partner:
We would like to invite Michelle Lang to the stage.
Michelle, your role is unique in this community as Rev. Jay’s spouse.
We know that you offer unwavering support for his ministry.
We ask the community to consider your support of her role in this center.
Keep her in mind in your thoughts and prayers for she offers a listening ear and a loving support without putting her own opinions above others.
We offer you this candle as a reminder that while you support the light of Rev. Jay’s ministry and this center, you need to remember to present the light that is within you and your own expression of the Divine.
Installation
Through the authority vested in me by the Centers for Spiritual Living organization, and as the Regional Support Coordinator and and Spiritual Leader of Ukiah CSL acting on behalf of this congregation, I do install you here and now as a minister of the Napa Valley Center for Spiritual Living with all of the rights, privileges, and obligations appertaining to your office.
Teach, heal, minister to the people.
Peace be with you.
The God of Peace dwell richly in your heart
through love, and make your labor fruitful unto eternal life.
Amen.
ANSWER TO CALL – (NAME)
Installed Minister shares comments on answering the “call” at the church/center.
Fight in my own armor, the thing is that I did not have to fight at all.
Installing Minister: Everyone please join me in acknowledging and congratulating Rev. Jay Lang as the Sr. Minister of the Napa Valley Center for Spiritual Living.
Closing Spiritual Mind Treatment/Benediction