- September 21 -
UN International Day of Peace
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SEPTEMBER 20, 2020 - 11:00am
Creation Time II in the Season of Pentecost
The Congregation of Hope United Church
Worship Leader - Brian Stevens BA. MDiv
PRELUDE
WELCOME
Welcome everyone to our online ZOOM Sunday worship. My name is Brian Stevens, I am the Pastoral Charge Supervisor here at Hope United in Toronto and am so pleased to have you with us today. Our musicians today are Sandy, Claire and myself. You can type greetings and comments at any time in the chat. A copy of the order of service was mailed out with your invitation. It is also available on our website HopeUnited.ca. A reminder that we will celebrate communion as part of our service today, so please have a bit of juice and piece of bread or wafer on hand for the communal blessing.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE LAND
With respect, we acknowledge the world views, spirituality, history and stewardship of the Mississauga of Scugog, the Hiawatha and the Alderville First Nations, on whose traditional lands our church resides.
We thank and honour the other indigenous peoples who share this land. As followers of the Jesus Way, we affirm our commitment as a people empowered to work in restoring broken relationships.
GREETING
I greet you in the name of our risen Lord and welcome you to our service of worship. Let us join together in our opening song “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus”. The words will also appear on your screen and it is also in Voices United # 357.
“Tell me the Stories of Jesus”
Tell me the stories of Jesus, I love to hear
Things I would ask him to tell me if he were here;
Scenes by the wayside, tales of the sea,
Stories of Jesus, tell them to me.
First let me hear how the children stood round his knee.
And I shall fancy his blessing resting on me;
Words full of kindness, deeds full of grace,
All in the lovelight of Jesus face.
Tell me, in accents of wonder, how rolled the sea
Tossing the boat in a tempest on Galilee!
And how the Master, ready and kind,
Chided the billows and hushed the wind.
Into the city I’d follow the children’s band,
Waving a branch of the palm tree high in my hand
One of her heralds, yes, I would sing
Loudest hosannas! Jesus is king!
Show me that scene in the garden of bitter pain,
And of the cross where my Saviour for me was slain.
Sad ones or bright ones, so that they be
Stories of Jesus, tell them to me.
CALL TO WORSHIP
(Based upon “The Principles of Peace” – Canadian Council of Churches)
The heart of God’s mission to creation is right relationship.
Peace is a gift from God,
Peace is at the heart of the inner life of the Holy Trinity.
All shall live in harmonious relationship with God.
Inner peace is a state of tranquility,
Mental quietude and concentration
nourished and deepened by prayer
And the guarding of the heart in a peaceful state.
Inner tranquility helps us listen and be open towards God.
Peace is the mission of all god’s people. Amen.
OPENING PRAYER
(from What is Creation Saying by By Ralph Carl Wushke)
Holy Wisdom, we see the destruction in the world around us,
and hear the cries of our fellow humans and creatures
affected by climate change.
We call to you: guide us; teach us;
inspire us; forgive us. And you say, “I have been your guide
and teacher. The whole cosmos bears witness to my wisdom,
and creation itself is the revelation of my love.
Turn to the plants and animals, the sea and the sky.
They will show you my wisdom.”
And so we say,
“Open our hearts and minds to all the wisdom of creation
as we gather in worship today.” Amen.
LIGHTING OF THE CHRIST CANDLE
We light this candle as a symbol of Christ’s light in the world. May it burn brightly within us all. Amen.
Sandy will now lead us in, “Touch us with Your light”. The words will appear on your screen. We will sing it through twice.
“Touch us with Your Light”
Light from this candle burning bright
Light our way through dark of night.
Help us find our way to you
Guide us, touch us with your Light, O Lord.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
(from What is Creation Saying by By Ralph Carl Wushke)
Creator God, made in your image,
we have re-made ourselves in our own image:
valued for our “bottom line” and production.
Forgive us for losing touch with the truth
of our connection with all creation
and the presence of the holy in each of us. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
Know that Christ, present at the dawn of creation,
sustains, calls, inspires, and forgives you,
He empowers you to be a new creation.
In Christ, all things are made new.
Thanks be to God!
Let us sing together, three times through, the Gloria. It is Voices United # 37.
The words will also appear on your screen.
Voices United # 37 “Gloria”
Gloria, Gloria, in excelsis deo
Gloria, Gloria, alleluia, alleluia!
THE PEACE OF CHRIST
May the Peace of Christ be with you always.
And also with you.
Gavin will unmute our mics so that we may greet one another!
FIRST READING Exodus 16:2-15
In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”
So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of Egypt, and in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?” Moses also said, “You will know that it was the LORD when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the LORD.”
Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.’”
While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the LORD appearing in the cloud.
The LORD said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’”
That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was.
Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
PSALM 105 (part 4) Voices United # 829
Refrain: Bless God, my soul. Hallelujah!
You led Israel out, with spoil of silver and gold.
Among the tribes not one fell behind
The Egyptians were glad when they went
For the dread of Israel had fallen upon them.
You spread cloud as a screen
And fire as light by night.
The people asked, and you sent them quail;
You filled them with bread from heaven
You opened a rock and water gushed out:
It flowed like a river through the arid land.
Refrain: Bless God, my soul. Hallelujah!
For you remembered the sacred promise
You made to Abraham and Sarah, your servants.
You led out your people rejoicing,
Your chosen ones with songs of gladness.
You gave them the lands of the nations;
They took possession where others had toiled
That they might keep your laws and obey your teachings.
Refrain: Bless God, my soul. Hallelujah!
GOSPEL READING Matthew 20:1-16
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.
“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.
“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’
“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Hear the Good News of Christ!
Praise to you, O Christ.
REFLECTION: “Peaceful Hearts” - Brian Stevens
MUSIC MINISTRY (link: https://youtu.be/ei9pLMG5z6E)
"I'm So Glad Trouble Don't Last Alway" by Nathaniel Dett (Sung by Sandy)
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
Oh my Lord, O my Lord, what shall I do?
Make more room, Lord, in my heart for Thee,
Make more room, Lord, in my heart for Thee,
Make more room, Lord, in my heart for Thee,
Oh my Lord, O my Lord, what shall I do?
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
I'm so glad trouble don't last alway,
Oh my Lord, O my Lord, what shall I do?
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
O God, you have called your laborers to give their gifts.
Bless these offerings so that they reflect the work of the kingdom of heaven.
With Christ, our servant, we pray. Amen.
Let us join our voices in thanks as we sing “Your Work, O God Needs Many Hands”. It is the first verse from Voices United # 537 and the words will also appear on the screen.
VU # 537 DOXOLOGY “Your Work, O God Needs Many Hands ”
Your work, O God needs many hands to help you everywhere
And some there are who cannot serve unless our gifts we share.
Because we love you and your work, our offering now we make;
Be pleased to use it as your own, we ask for Jesus sake.
PRAYERS OF THE DAY
Let us centre our hearts in prayer
Peacemaking requires abolishing war and transforming conflict: They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more (Isaiah 2:4). Engaging in war constitutes a failure. Guide us, help us, challenge us Lord to tackle the well-organized roots of violence and take up the responsibility to prevent conflicts and to protect people. Teach us to yearn for and seek out a deep desire for resolution of conflicts and lasting peace in our world.
We pray to the Lord…
Lord, Hear our Prayer
Life-giver, we pray that your wisdom, revealed in all your works, may inspire us to live in right relation with Earth, our Mother, all her creatures, and the whole human family. May the harmony of creation be a model for our relationships with our neighbours near and far, teaching us that we are not self-sufficient, but only thrive through a constant exchange of energy and elements, love and language in the web of life.
We pray to the Lord…
Lord, Hear our Prayer
Holy Wisdom, we rejoice in the signs of your power in evolutionary creation and the unfolding cosmos. From the stardust of the galaxies to the plankton of the sea, from the oasis in the desert to the crowded city, all creation is infused with your power. Make us ever mindful of the inspiration that infuses all creation.
We pray to the Lord…
Lord, Hear our Prayer
Pain-bearer, we hear the cries of creation and of our brothers and sisters, human and every other kind, the world over: climate refugees, species in danger of extinction, victims of war and economic injustice, especially those people and places we name at this time. We remember also those in special need in our own community and families who we name at this time ….
(mics will be unmuted, please say name or intention)
Moment of Silence
Extend the balm of your healing power, For all those named…For all intentions offered
We pray to the Lord…
Lord, Hear our Prayer
Lord, may our prayers and intentions fall gently upon your ear, grant them O Lord, as you see fit in time, in ways, in blessing and care. And with the words that our Saviour taught us….we say….
LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth as in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil,
For thine is the kingdom, the power,
And the glory,
Forever and forever. Amen.
Let us join together in the singing of our communion hymn (link: https://youtu.be/nC4Lg_gRoL0), “Eat This Bread and Never Hunger”. It will be led by Claire. It is # 471 in Voices United and words are also on your screen.
“ Eat This Bread and Never Hunger”
Eat this bread and never hunger,
Drink this cup and never thirst,
Christ invites us to the table...
Where the last become the first.
Asking for a cup of water,
Jesus touched forbidden ground,
And the woman with a question,
Told the world what she had found.
Eat this bread and never hunger,
Drink this cup and never thirst,
Christ invites us to the table...
Where the last become the first.
Walking down a desert highway,
Jesus healed a man born blind
Soon the man became a witness
To the truth we seek and find.
Eat this bread and never hunger,
Drink this cup and never thirst,
Christ invites us to the table...
Where the last become the first.
Weeping for his friend at graveside,
Jesus felt the pain of death;
Yet he knew God’s power to waken
Living water, living breath.
Eat this bread and never hunger,
Drink this cup and never thirst,
Christ invites us to the table...
Where the last become the first.
LITURGY OF COMMUNION
God be with you
And also with you
Lift up your hearts
We lift our hearts in prayer
Let us give thanks to God
It is good to give God thanks and praise
Loving God, source of all, we thank you and praise you with our lips and with our lives, that, having created us and all things through your word, you welcome our prayer and praise. For the goodness of creation and the glory of redemption we praise you. For your risen presence on this day we thank you as we are grateful for the law and prophets who came before you.
Therefore, with all that is seen and unseen, and with all the faithful of every time and place, we join in this hymn of praise and thanksgiving…
MV # 203 Holy, Holy, Holy ( Sanctus and Benedictus)
O holy, holy, holy God,
O God of time and space.
All earth and sea and sky above
bear witness to your grace.
Hosanna in the highest heav’n,
creation sings your praise,
And blessed is the One who comes
and bears your name always!
Loving God, Holy one, we offer our praise and thanksgiving over this bread and cup, because in Jesus Christ you have joined yourself forever with us, uniting heaven and earth. Now, therefore, we gratefully remember:
Jesus’ birth into our humanity,
Baptism for our sin,
Compassion for our suffering,
Intimacy with our fragility,
Rebuke of our pride,
Bearing the cross with its death,
And rising from the tomb by the power of God.
On the night before he died, Jesus took a loaf of bread, gave you thanks, broke it and said Take, eat, this is my body broken for you. Each time you do this, remember me.
Then Jesus took a cup, and having given thanks, he passed it to his friends saying: Drink. This cup is the new covenant in my blood, do this in remembrance of me. Let us proclaim the mystery of faith:
MV # 204 Memorial Acclamation
Sing Christ has died and Christ is risen,
Christ will come a-gain!
Sing Christ has died and Christ is risen,
Christ will come a-gain!
Loving God, come to us and bless these gifts of bread and wine that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ; the sign and seal of our forgiveness in him and our adoption as the children of God.. As we eat and drink together, on this happy day, make us one with Christ and one in Christ, a sign of his eternal reign in the world.
This sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving we offer you, loving God, though Jesus Christ our Saviour, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Life-giving God may we who share in Christ’s body
live his risen life;
We, who drink this cup, bring new life to others;
We, whom the Spirit lights, give light to the world.
MV # 205 Great Amen
Amen, amen O Holy One! Hosanna and Amen!
Amen, amen O Holy One! Hosanna and Amen!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
• Online Worship next Sunday, September 27 at 11:00am.
• The Church Board and trustees will meet following the service
• September 21 is the UN International Day for Peace. In 2018 they created a statement document entitled “ Principles of Peace”. It may be found online at https://www.councilofchurches.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/CCC_PriniciplesOfPeace_English.pdf
• In regard to Sunday worship on-site at Hope, the Church Board and trustees have made the decision, now that schools are open, to wait a few weeks, then assess once more.
• We are assembling a working group to oversee the planning of capital repairs to our building. The work will consist of developing a five year plan based on the building assessment which has been completed. If this work is of interest to you, please send an email hopeunitedchurch@gmail.com or call Brian Stevens.
• For Pastoral emergencies contact Brian Stevens at 647-825-5136 or by email: HopeUnitedChurch@gmail.com
CLOSING PRAYER
As you leave this place of worship and prayer,
go into the world drawing on the senses—
sight and hearing, taste, touch, and smell—
mindfully aware of the wisdom of creation
and its power to make you whole. Amen.
Let us sing together “O day of Peace” Voices United # 682 and the words are here on your screen.
O Day of peace that dimly shines
Through all our hopes and prayers and dreams
Guide us to justice, truth and love
Delivered from our selfish schemes
May swords of hate fall from our hands
Our hearts from envy find release
Till by God’s grace our warming world
Shall see Christ’s promised reign of peace.
Then shall the wolf dwell with the lamb
Nor shall the fierce devour the small;
As beasts and cattle calmly graze
A little child shall lead them all
Then enemies shall learn to love.
All creatures find their true accord
The hope for pace shall be fulfilled
For all the earths shall know the Lord
BENEDICTION AND BLESSING
(Season of Creation. Org)
May God the Father bless you,
May God the Son bless you, who nurtures you with the rain and sunshine of love;
who brings us all to the fullness of life;
and may the blessing of the Triune God be with you always
that you might be a blessing to others. Amen.
CHORAL BLESSING “Walk in Love”
Walk in love as you go into the world,
Walk in peace with everyone you meet,
May God’s grace touch your heart, mind and soul…
This day and evermore,
Amen. Amen, Alleluia and Amen!
POSTLUDE
Please stay with us following the service for a few moments to chat.
Mics will be unmuted so all can say hello.
Thank you to everyone who assisted with our Service of Worship.
Blessings to all and keep safe!
Hope United.ca