Liturgical Settings
You will notice on the DVD that the settings for our Liturgies in
Women’s Hands are quite extravagant, going well beyond what is possible
in daily and weekly worship. We think of our worship services as akin to
the most festive liturgical occasions in the liturgical calendar and
claim and live the preparation for our liturgies as a part of the
liturgy itself. Sometimes, preparing the sanctuary for a “liturgy in
women’s hands” can take up to two hours, a time that we try to live in
contemplative quiet and prayer. We use fresh flowers, colorful cloths,
candles, pictures, icons, loved mementos, and elements from the earth
and ocean like water, sand, and shells.
On the DVD, for example, you will see Teresa (already in her alb, just
before the start of a liturgy) lighting floating candles in the
baptismal font, which was decorated with flowers, shells, bowls, and
cloths.
People who attend the “liturgies in women’s hands” often pause to spend
time with the sacred spaces, before or after the liturgy, and quietly
pray and ponder at the sites we have created.