List of Supplies Needed
(1) Candle Lighting Display
(1) Triple Wick Candle
(7) 3×8 candles ( 1 of each: Red, Blue, Green, White, Yellow, Pink, Purple)
(1 or More) Large bowl(s) that can withstand heat.
(1 or More) Candles that will fit into the large bowl.
(1 per Participant) Individual hand held candles for each participant
(1 per Participant) Small card or paper and matching sized envelope
(1 per Participant) Piece of “Flash Paper” sized to hold one to three words written on it
(1 per Participant) Sharpened Pencil
(1 per Participant) Program with Order of Service
Preparation for Service
- Create Program with Order of Service
- Combine the Envelope, Card/Paper, Piece of Flash Paper, Pencil and Candle to be handed out to each participant as they arrive alongside the Order of Service
- Set up “Space” where burning bowl and Candle Lighting Display will be
- Decorate space and organize seating for burning bowl ceremony
- Have a “plan” for how people will participate by going to and from the burning bowls and have ushers or others prepared to help facilitate that process.
- Identify volunteers for service including Readers, Music, Ushers, Counters Etc.
- The night of, set up the large bowl and candles that will be in it (candles preferably concealed by the bowl).
- Creation and set up of Candle Lighting Display
Order of Service
(Total Time of Service & Fellowship – 2 Hours +/-)
- Open – Song (Choir or Musical Guest)
- Affirmative Prayer Invocation (Practitioner)
- Welcome and Lighting of the Triune God Candle (Blessing Spirit, Soul and Body as lighting))
- Congregational Song
- Words on Love (Minister 5 minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Love
- Words on Peace (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Peace
- Song (Choir or Musical Guest)
- Words on Life (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Life
- Words on Joy (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Joy
- Song (Choir or Musical Guest)
- Burning Bowl Ceremony (Accompanied by Instrumental from Choir)
- Words on Truth (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Truth
- Words on Beauty (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Beauty
- Song (Choir or Musical Guest)
- Offering/Giving and Affirmation
- Words on Light (Minister 5 Minutes)
- Candle Lighting and Affirmation by Volunteer(s) – Light
- Congregational Song “You Are the Light” by Amy Steinberg
- Affirmative Prayer Benediction (Practitioner)
- Peace Song Story and Closing Congregational Song – “Let There Be Peace On Earth”
“Burning Bowl” Process
- Conduct a short (2 – 3 Minute) guided visualization having everyone imagine anything in their lives, mentality or consciousness that they would like to release. Have them boil it down to no more than 2 – 3 words if possible.
(While others are meditating, light the candles concealed in the burning bowl(s))
- Have everyone write their words on their flash paper with pencil.
- Demonstrate how to burn the flash paper over the burning bowl(s) now filled with burning candles.
- Give instruction on how everyone will, in silence, come to the/a burning bowl(s) and release their “Challenge” into the flames and then return to their seats
*It is suggested to have music playing during this time. Also be sure to have planned out how the crowed will move to and from the bowl(s) before the service so ushers can help facilitate that process.
Readings and Affirmations
Love – Red
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 608
“Love is the self-givingness of Spirit through the desire of Life to express Itself in terms of creation. Emerson tells us that Love is a synonym for God. We are also told in the New Testament that ‘He that loveth not, knoweth not God; for God is love.’ Love is free from condemnation, even as it is free from fear. Love is a cosmic force whose sweep is irresistible. “
Affirmation:
I am swept into the activity of Love in all that I do. My every action takes Love into consideration and allows me to claim the Love that God shares through me, for me and as me.
Peace – Blue
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 617
“A state of inner calm. An inner calm so complete that nothing can disturb it. The peace that comes only from the knowledge that It is All. Fathomless Peace is meant by the Peace of the Spirit. This is the Peace to which Jesus referred when he said, ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.’ The infinite is always at Peace because there is nothing to disturb It. A realization of our Oneness with Omnipresence brings peace, the peace which is accompanied by a consciousness of Power.
Affirmation:
As I remember my connection to the Universe, I embody the Peace that allows me to know that I cannot be disturbed. This knowing allows me to be a presence in the world that brings calmness and harmony to all that I do.
Life – Green
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 606
“The animating Principle of Being… That inner something that makes everything live… Life is That Which Lives, and power is the energy with which It operates… In the objective world, Life is the power that binds everything together. It appears that Life manifests on different levels… All are but different ways through which the One Power operates. Life, then, is that quality of Being, running through all, which enables anything to be what it is.
Affirmation:
There is one Life, that Life is God, that Life is perfect, that Life is my life now.
Joy – Yellow
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 603
“The emotion excited by the expectancy of good. Gladness, delight, exultation. “
Joy is the absolute experience of our good in its fullest form moving through us. When we connect to the excitement of knowing that no matter what we do, that the Universe is doing it as us and through us then we become connected to the knowing that it is also working for us. Often confused with pleasure and happiness, Joy resides within and is expressed outwardly. No external condition can rob us of our joy nor can it impart to us more Joy. It is only by the activity of enthusiastically embracing our experience as one that emanates from within that Joy can be infused into our thoughts and actions. In this way, it is not fleeting, but an ever present Principle that has the ability to express at any point in which we have made ourselves available to celebrate our own goodness as the very goodness that God is.
Affirmation:
I am filled with the gladness and delight of knowing that no matter where I am or what I am doing, I am always receiving good. I live in the excitement and anticipation of that good in every moment.
Truth – Purple
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 639
“That which is. It is the Reason, Cause and Power in and through everything. It is the Birthless, Deathless, Changeless, Complete, Perfect, Whole, Self-Existent, Causeless, All-Mighty, God, Spirit, Law, Mind, Intelligence, and Anything and Everything that implies reality. By a process of axiomatic reasoning, we arrive at the conclusion that Spirit knows nothing outside Itself. The Truth is That Which Is; and being That Which Is, It must be Infinite and All. Being Infinite or All, the Truth can have nothing outside itself, other than itself, or unlike itself, by which to divide itself; consequently, the Spirit is indivisible, changeless and complete within itself. Itself is All that Is – both Cause and Effect, the Alpha and the Omega.”
Affirmation:
The Truth of who I am realizes its wholeness by consciously knowing that I am an indivisible expression of God. I am complete as God is complete, perfect as I am a part of God, which is perfect in its wholeness.
Beauty – Pink
Reading:
Beauty is the act of God discovering and acknowledging itself. When we pause to admire a sunset, the blooming of a flower, a smile, a work of art or even an entire culture, we recognize the divine presence within these things that stirs up the feelings of appreciation and gratitude in us. Acknowledging the Beauty of the world around us in the manifest world is akin to acknowledging the grand and vast presence of God from whence all things come. It is the connection we find in ourselves and in the world around us that bespeaks of a universal goodness that makes all things possible; and in all of its wisdom it has created us and all that we see and imparted to us an opportunity to pay witness to its magnificence.
Affirmation:
I recognize the Beauty in all things knowing that doing so is to recognize that it is of God, as I am of God, and that we are one by means of it. I see the Beauty in everyone and everything and it reminds me of my own goodness.
Light – White
Reading:
Science of Mind Textbook – Page 607
“In flashes of illumination, the inspired have seen INTO THE VERY CENTER OF REALITY, and have brought back with them a distinct impression of what they have seen and felt. A glimpse of this reality, illumines the whole being with a flood of light. Every mystic has had this experience. Jesus was the greatest of all mystics; and once, at least, after a period of illumination, his face was so bright that his followers could not look upon it. In moments of deepest realization, the great mystics have sensed that One Life flows through ALL; and that ALL are some part of that life. They have also seen substance, a fine, white, brilliant stuff, forever falling into everything; a Substance indestructible and eternal. At time, the realization has been so complete that they have been actually blinded by the light. Light was the first great revelation of the Divine Creative Energy that called all living things into being… “Let there be light and there was light”. There is a healing light in the rays of the sun, which we term a physical light; there is a healing power in the wonderful high powered lamps, but how much greater is the healing power which Jesus recognized in himself and in others! “I am the light of the world; he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” “…I have set the to be a light…” “He that loveth his brother abideth in the light.” “…the son’s of God, without rebuke… ye shine as lights in the world.”
Affirmation:
As I awaken to the realization that God is having it’s being by means of me, I embrace the light that illumines my path knowing that it shines from me, upon me and for my highest good. I celebrate the return of the light as my return to this knowing and am shown all that is mine to see.
“Let There Be Peace On Earth”
Lyrics and a Brief History
Sy Miller and Jill Jackson were a husband and wife songwriting team. In 1955 they wrote a song about their dream of peace for the world and how they believed each one of us could help create it.
They first introduced the song to a group of teenagers selected from their high schools to attend a weeklong retreat in California. The young people were purposefully from different religious, racial, cultural and economic backgrounds, brought together to experiment with creating understanding and friendship through education, discussion groups, and living and working together in a camp situation. Sy Miller wrote in his own words what happened:
“One summer evening in 1955, a group of 180 teenagers of all races and religions, meeting at a workshop high in the California mountains locked arms, formed a circle and sang a song of peace. They felt that singing the song, with its simple basic sentiment – ‘Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me,’ helped to create a climate for world peace and understanding.”
When they came down from the mountain, these inspired young people brought the song with them and started sharing it. And, as though on wings, “Let There Be Peace On Earth” began an amazing journey around the globe. It traveled first, of course with the young campers back to their homes and schools, churches and clubs. Then the circle started by the teenagers began to grow. Soon the song was being shared in all fifty states – at school graduations and a PTA meetings, at Christmas and Easter gatherings and as part of the celebration of Brotherhood Week. It was a theme for Veteran’s Day, Human Rights Day and U.N. Day. 4-H Clubs and the United Auto Workers began singing it. So did the American Legion, the B’nai B’rith, the Kiwanis Clubs and CORE. It was taped, recorded, copied, printed in song books, and passed by word of mouth. The song spread overseas to Holland, England, France, Germany, Lebanon, South America, Asia and Australia. The Maoris in New Zealand sang it – even the Zulus in Africa sang it.
Professional singers took it up. Among them, Nat King Cole, Mary Tyler Moore, the International Children’s Choir, The Young Americans, Bing Crosby, Harry Connick Jr., and Bob Hope to list a small few.
The song began to win awards and “Let There Be Peace on Earth” was awarded the George Washington Honor Medal by the Freedom Foundation at Valley Forge for “Outstanding achievement in helping to bring about a better understanding of the American Way of Life.” It also received a Brotherhood Award from the National Conference of Christians and Jews. This simple thought, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me” first born on a mountain top in the voices of youth, continues to travel heart to heart – gathering in people everywhere who wish to become a note in a song of understanding and peace – peace for all humankind.
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.
Let there be peace on earth
The peace that was meant to be.
With God as creator
We are family
Let us walk with each other
In perfect harmony.
Let peace begin with me
Let this be the moment now.
With every step I take
Let this be my solemn vow.
To take each moment
And live each moment
In peace eternally.
Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.