Before the Emergents barbecue their last rib and their throw their last Frisbee, let's not fail to notice what passes for their liturgy. Here is Brian McLaren's shot at immortality with his own Kyrie Eléison.

Let's Confess It (Em, c, b) 106bpm
(a prayer of confession)

Let's confess it: there's a lot of evil, lust and greed in our world. Oppression and sin build up pressure within until there's an eruption of corruption. Beneath the skin, we skid and spin in spiritual crisis where vice is the norm, and justice, kindness, humility, and civility are all too rare.

Unaware of our despair, we smile in denial and say "It's all OK. No need to change, no need to grow, just have another drink or smoke, tell another joke, and don't think or rethink. Make another buck, with some luck you can buy a bigger house, store more stuff, drive fast, look good, keep up."
Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.

Meanwhile, addiction, rejection, and a lack of reflection spawn friction, dejection and a loss of direction. Every family, community, and nation are shaken. Creation's resources are carelessly taken. And pollution scars every ocean, mountain, breeze, and shore, with visible symptoms of our inner war.

We're all victims. We're all villains. We're stuck in the web that we spun ourselves. But God lights a spark of hope in the dark to help us cope with all that's wrong and needs to be made right. God has come into all our pain, shame, and loss through the cross, and calls us to a path of life, love, purpose, and peace.
Lord have mercy, Lord have mercy.

If we humble ourselves to believe and receive, a river will flow and a candle will glow in a secret sacred place within us, very deep, where we have been wasting in shadows, half-dead or half-asleep. We've been falling in a vicious viral downward spiral that leads to death. Let's wake up, hear God calling, take a deep, fresh breath.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

"We confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart and we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and please forgive, that we may finally and fully learn to live in dignity and unity, integrity and harmony, delighting in your will and walking in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen."

Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.