Dedication
A Garden of Remembrance
Honoring Sr. Ann Roddy, SSND
St. Clare Monastery, New Orleans, LA
Leader: Jesus our Savior, after your crucifixion your body was laid in a tomb in a garden, and there you first revealed yourself to your friends after you rose from the dead. When we felt crucified by Katrina, Ann helped lead us through the destruction to a new vision of life and faith.
All: Be present with all who come to this place
when it seems that all is lost, and awaken them to new life by your
resurrection power.
Leader: Holy Spirit
of Truth and Power, our Advocate and Friend,
All: Be present with all who come to this place
seeking direction and strength, fill their hearts with the love of God, and
send them out in witness to Jesus.
Leader: We now
dedicate this Memorial Garden to the Glory of God,
to the memory of Sr. Ann Roddy, and of all named here.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Opening Prayers
Genesis 2
Reflection
Leader: Community of God, I ask you to affirm your
belief and awareness that you are Beloved Children of God and are made from the
“sacred stuffs” of this planet.
All:
We confess that we belong to God, we
live in God’s world, and that we are wonderfully made from God’s hands from the
“red clay” of the earth.
Leader:
I ask you to reaffirm your desire to set aside a portion of the space that is
trusted to your care as the Tau Memorial Garden.
All: We acknowledge that what we
have is held in trust from God. We are responsible to be good stewards and to
live in covenant with each other and with this garden. We reaffirm our desire
to combine the Tau Memorial Garden with the space that honors St. Roch, he who
lived with and healed the poor, the sick and the powerless.
Leader:
And how shall you use it?
All: It shall be a garden
where we can find a quiet center in the many seasons of our lives. It will hold
our prayers, questions, and meditations.
It will be a place to remember those named on the red clay we have
carried here: the flesh and bones
gathered in this chapel and those who succumbed to the plague of AIDS.
Leader: And in whose memory shall this place be
named?
All: This garden shall bear witness to the special
gifts of Sr. Ann Roddy. She ministered
among us and with us for many years. Ann
saw the beautiful in us. She named us
“good”. She took the “sacred stuff” of
this earth and anointed us with her strength, tenderness and creative spirit.
Leader: I have born witness to your confession of
faith, I have heard your intentions, and I affirm your engagement in the
pilgrimage of seasons and life. As such,
do you promise to care for and maintain this Memorial Garden for as long as
this community of faith desires it to be such?
All: We do so promise.
Leader: I hear and affirm your desires and
promises. I invite you to join your
hearts in prayer as we proceed to and dedicate the Tau Memorial Garden.
Procession to garden
Let us pray.
Leader: God our
Father, at the dawn of creation you placed your children in a garden and walked
with them in the cool of the day. Ann
found great inspiration in the Tau House Garden.
All: Be present with us as we walk in this garden,
and open our eyes to the beauty of your creation.
Leader: Jesus, our
good Companion, on many occasions you withdrew with your friends to a garden
for quiet and refreshment; The Tau community spent many hours of prayer on
these red bricks:
All: Be present with all who come to meet you in
this place, and teach them your ways.
Leader: Jesus our
Redeemer, you suffered anguish and betrayal in a garden, and there you
submitted to your Father’s will. Ann
gave us an example of acceptance and love as we sat with the dying at Project
Lazarus.
All: Be present with all who come in sorrow and
pain to this place, and give them the grace of your redeeming love.
