THE EXODUS RITES

When we had weekly meetings the Exodus Rites were divided into Opening and Closing Rites, recited at the beginning and the end of each meeting. Someone would be designated, or volunteer, to lead the opening and closing. When the email program began the Rites were combined as prelude to the each study.

The Rites are foundational to Exodus, they are our only “ritual.” They are meant to inform and inspire our spiritual journey, our thinking, and understanding in a life-giving way, while recognizing and validating our struggle.

The Rites were derived and adapted from a creed used in community development programs under the guidance of the Ecumenical Institute in Chicago in the 1960s. A version was repeated in their organizational meetings as a way to unify the working groups and remind them of the depths of their common history, their common objectives for the future, and as a way to legitimize each member’s unique past, present, and future.

When I was facilitating meetings inside I would often use one of the Rites as an opening Deep Talk. The conversation around the Rites was always surprisingly deep and far reaching, not to mention inspiring and motivating. New interpretations and profound meanings of the Rites always emerged in those discussions.

The Exodus Rites have not changed since the inception of Exodus and of Exodus New Life Agenda. In fact, Rev. Muller, from time to time, would suggest slight modifications to the words or phrases. The groups always firmly rejected these suggestions. They asserted that the Rites were profound, complete, and durable.

Gordon W. Brown, Exodus Facilitator

The Exodus Rites (Traditional)

Opening Rite
Leader: Let us come to terms with life.
Group: Our life is in the human struggle.
The struggle is painful and deep.
The struggle holds death and life.
Leader: Out of the struggle of the now we will
create the human world of the future.
Group: The past is approved. The present is received.
The future is open.
Closing Rite
Leader: We stand before the up-againstness in life.
Group: We stand before the possibility and hope in life.
Leader: Our hope is in our decision to embrace all that is,
as that out of which our life will come.
Group: We decide if death is life, and if life is death.
We will create a human world by deciding to live
the life we have for the sake of humanity.

The Exodus Rites (As used in the email program.)

LET US COME TO TERMS WITH LIFE
Our life is in the human struggle. The struggle is painful and deep. The struggle holds death and life.
OUT OF THE STRUGGLE OF THE NOW WE WILL CREATE THE HUMAN WORLD OF THE FUTURE
The past is approved. The present is received. The future is open.
WE STAND BEFORE THE UP-AGAINSTNESS IN LIFE
We stand before the possibility and hope in life.
OUR HOPE IS IN THE DECISION TO EMBRACE ALL THAT IS AS THAT OUT OF WHICH OUR LIFE WILL COME
We decide if death is life and life is death. We will create a human world by deciding to live the life we have for the sake of humanity.