The Uniting Church of St James
Curtin, ACT
Minister-in-Placement: Revd Rex A E Hunt, MSc(Hons), GradDipCommMgt
eMail: rexae@optusnet.com.au
Web site: www.rexaehuntprogressive.com
LITURGY FOR THE
CELEBRATION OF LIFE
17 June 2007. Pentecost 3C. (Green).
10.30am. Contemporary liturgical worship.
Celebrating community: Sacament of Holy Communion
Acknowledgement of land
(An act towards reconciliation by the Church of St James, Curtin.)
For thousands of years Indigenous people have walked
in this land, on their own country.
Their relationship with the land is at the centre of their lives.
We acknowledge the Ngunnawal People and their stewardship
of this land throughout the ages.
St James is a safe place for all people to worship regardless of
race, creed, age, cultural background or sexual orientation
GATHERING
Music
Entry into worship
The gong is sounded three times
In the presence.
In the peace.
In the power, of God.
All Amen.
Let us celebrate the richness and diversity of life in the presentness of God.
Lighting of community candle
The candle is lit
Divine spark from sacred dark
Symbol of our holy intent illuminate this hour. Kathy Huff
Hymn The people stand as they are able, to sing
“God Beyond, Within, Between” (Tune: ‘St Magnus’ 86 86, 378 TiS) 20 SNS
God is beyond, within, between;
The now and what has been;
God in the future and before;
The ever wondrous 'More'.
God is beyond gods we create
Ev'n those we venerate.
God is beyond what is beyond,
But still our hearts respond.
God is within, the force we know
In all life's ebb and flow,
In God we live and move and be,
And touch and taste and see.
And God we know is in between,
Involved but still unseen,
When fostering in you and me
A rich community.
God is within to sanctify;
Beyond to glorify;
God is between to beautify;
Of this we testify. George Stuart
Remain standing
Opening sentences
Life rises in our midst:
All sometimes hard-won life.
It surprises us when it blossoms forth at unexpected times:
All and in unexpected places.
It comes with power stronger than death:
All life born of faithfulness,
life born of courage,
life born of God. (D McRae-McMahon/plpm)
Prayer
We pray:
Surprising God,
whose love leads us to new experiences,
may we be open to your presence
among us and within.
Let us sense your glory in the sights and sounds of this day.
Amen.
Hymn “When our heart is in a holy place” 1008 STJ
Refrain:
When our heart is in a holy place,
When our heart is in a holy place,
We are blessed with love
And amazing grace,
When our heart is in a holy place.
When we trust the wisdom in each of us,
Ev’ry colour every creed and kind,
And we see our faces in each other’s eyes,
Then our heart is in a holy place.
Refrain:
When we tell our story from deep inside,
And we listen with a loving mind,
And we hear our voices in each other’s words,
Then our heart is in a holy place.
Refrain:
When we share the silence of sacred space,
And the God of our Heart stirs with in,
And we feel the power of each other’s faith,
Then our heart is in a holy place.
Refrain:
The people sit after the hymn
Welcome
In your own words
A warm welcome is extended to all.
Especially those who are worshipping at St James for the first time
or who have returned after an absence.
Your presence both enriches us
and this time of celebration together.
Refer to printed liturgy.
Fellowship hour following worship.
Those visiting, please sign our Visitors book.
Meditation
“Christpower”
By John Shelby Spong. Jesus for the non-religious/292.
Look at him!
Look not at his divinity,
but look, rather, at his freedom.
Look not at the exaggerated tales of his power,
but look, rather, at his infinite capacity to give himself away.
Look not at the first-century mythology that surrounds him,
but look, rather, at his courage to be,
his ability to live, and
the contagious quality of his love.
Stop your frantic search!
Be still and know that this is God:
this love,
this freedom,
this life,
this being;
And
when you are accepted, accept yourself;
when you are forgiven, forgive yourself;
when you are loved, love yourself.
Grasp that Christpower
and dare to be yourself!
That is, I believe the pathway to God,
the God whom I have en-countered in the
profoundly human Jesus.
Shalom!
Silence
Let there now be a quiet time among us.
(Silence)
May the silence remind us of the best hours we have known,
and strengthen our resolve
to live in that spirit
which gives the better meaning to our lives. Bob Holmes
(Silence)
Music of reflection
EXPLORING
Reading from our religious tradition
Let us now listen to a story from our religious tradition.
Gospel:
Luke 7:36-50 (Inclusive Text)
One of the Pharisees invited Jesus to a meal.
When Jesus arrived at the Pharisee's house
and took his place at the table, a woman came in, who had a bad name in the town.
She had heard Jesus was dining with the Pharisee
and had brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment.
She waited behind him at his feet, weeping,
and her tears fell on his feet,
and she wiped them away with her hair;
then she covered his feet with
kisses and anointed them with the ointment.
When the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this, he said to himself,
‘If this man were a prophet, he would know who this woman is who is touching him
and what a bad name she has.’
Then Jesus took him up,
‘Simon, I have something to say to you…
There was once a creditor who had two men in his debt;
one owed him five hundred denarii, the other fifty.
‘They were unable to pay, so he pardoned them both.
Which of them will love him more?’
‘The one who was pardoned more, I suppose,’ answered Simon.
Jesus said, ‘You are right.’
Then he turned to the woman.
‘Simon,’ he said, ‘You see this woman?
I came into your house, and you poured no water over my feet,
but she has poured out her tears over my feet
and wiped them away with her hair.
‘You gave me no kiss,
but she has been covering my feet with kisses ever since I came in.
‘You did not anoint my head with oil,
but she has anointed my feet with ointment.
‘For this reason I tell you that her sins, her many sins,
must have been forgiven her,
or she would not have shown such great love.
‘It is the one who is forgiven little who shows little love.
Then Jesus said to her…
‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’
Contemporary word
Silence for personal reflection
AFFIRMING
A celebration of faith
In response to the word reflected on, let us stand and share a celebration of faith.
The people stand
We celebrate our God
All who is not afraid of our minds with all their questions,
and all their doubting searchings for the truth.
We celebrate our God
All who knows and loves our deepest hearts,
whose compassion is always greater than ours
so that the measure of our kindness
is always less than that of God.
We celebrate our God
All who engages with our souls,
linking us with the mystery of the universe,
the endlessness of eternity,
yet is as close to us in our beings as a parent with a child. D McRae-McMahon/plpm
The peace
Let us then greet another as a sign of God's peace.
The peace of God is here... to stay.
All Thanks be to God.
You are invited to share the peace with your neighbours.
Hymn of the Month
“Where the love of God” (Tune: ‘Reconciliation’) 76 FFS
Where the love of God is guiding,
there is now another way:
new awareness of compassion
learned from one another;
love, the face of God in Jesus,
new creation's thrust,
love, transforming tears and terror
into health and trust.
Where the truth of God is driving,
there is now another way,
shining through our times' confusion,
sharp with revelation:
words that stifle sense or spirit
changed and redefined,
crosses raised to teach division
lowered, left behind.
Where the life on earth is cherished,
there is now another way,
where a child may grow in safety,
where there's peace and shelter,
when we hold the fragile planet
in our conscious care,
when we see again as sacred
all we are and share.
God will lead us on this mission,
God, the flightpath and the power,
lifting all who grasp the vision
into understanding:
so the heart and hope within us
set each other free,
where the love of God is guiding,
this shall come to be. Shirley Murray
CELEBRATING
Care candle
We are people of all ages who enter this space
bringing our joys and concerns.
Joys and concerns shared.
The Care candle is lit
Prayers
Pastoral
Lord's Prayer
You are invited to pray this contemporary prayer in the spirit of the Lord's Prayer,
and in your original language, as that is appropriate
All O God, you love us like a good parent,
and are present in every aspect of our existence.
May your nature become known and respected by all.
May your joy, peace, wholeness and justice
be the reality for everyone
as we live by the Jesus Way.
Give us all that we really need to live every day for you.
And forgive us our failures as we forgive others for their failures.
Keep us from doing those things which are not of you,
and cause us always to be centred on your love
For you are the true reality in this our now,
and in all our future.
In the Jesus Way we pray. Amen. David Sorrill
With the children
Children gather on the conversation mat
Conversation
"Somewhere someone"
The kingdom of love is coming because:
All somewhere someone is kind when others are unkind,
somewhere someone shares with another in need,
somewhere someone refuses to hate, while others hate,
somewhere someone is patient - and waits in love,
somewhere someone returns good for evil,
somewhere someone serves another, in love,
somewhere someone is calm in a storm,
somewhere someone is loving everybody.
Is that someone you? (jke)
CELEBRATING COMMUNITY: SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION
Offerings
Our offerings for the work of ministry in this place and beyond,
and our gifts of bread and wine,
shall now be received.
Presentation The people stand, as they are able as the gifts are presented
We pray:
The generosity of life is around us.
Even in difficult times
we can discover the spirit of generosity.
May we receive this generosity for our growing enrichment,
and may we give to this generosity
for the world's growing compassion.
Amen.
Thanksgiving
God is the heart of life.
All And we are the heartbeat.
May your hearts be filled with thanks
and praise and songs of joy.
All We rejoice in the miracle of life
and delight in our participation. Sherri Weinberg
The people sit
We give thanks and praise for all that is good in the world.
For the love we name God
and call the creator of heaven and earth
and all that is.
For the person we name Jesus
and his message of peace, justice and inclusiveness
that is the realm of God.
For the renewing strength and freedom of the Spirit
always present on the breath of life
All We give thanks for this presentness of God
in the midst of life.
God of winter, the unpopular, slandered season, we praise you.
God of mystery, wind and storm, we praise you.
God of brisk winter mornings,
frosted back lawns and stark hillsides;
of warm socks, coats and gloves,
heaters, raincoats, umbrellas and warm fires, we praise you.
So we join our celebration to all people, saying:
All Holy, holy, holy, re-creating God,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
All Hosanna in the highest.
Breaking of bread/Pouring of wine
We remember the time when Jesus faced
difficult decisions and destructive forces:
- in the days and nights of his searching,
- in finding ways to free others from images and ideas
that kept them captive and dependent and fearful of God,
- in breaking down social and religious barriers,
- in facing failure,
- in facing death.
When we too experience the winter of our lives
may we find the courage to let go
and trust in your guiding, warming light.
And as we eat together at this table
we remember the words and the actions of that meal...
Bread broken, wine poured out – in silence
Ancient symbols. Common acts.
Communion
So we break and share bread and drink wine,
pledging ourselves to allow the spirit that moved in Jesus
to move freely in our lives.
The bread and wine is served in the pews
After Communion
God of amazing grace,
in the cold of the winter months
we are grateful for your presence, warming us.
We pray this presence will strengthen us
to follow in the way of Jesus, in this city.
SCATTERING
Hymn The people stand as they are able, to sing
"Christ, the tent God pitched" (Tune: ‘Picardy’, 87 87 87. 684 TiS) 1 (v1-3) TMT
Christ, the tent God pitched among us
tabernacled on this earth,
as the sacred mystic presence
which sustains our spirits' growth,
for in Christ the Word incarnate
God's new world is brought to birth.
We are called to live as pilgrims,
from our birth until that day,
when our bodies have their ending
in their earthly home of clay,
but not all who walk that journey
find the true, the living way.
We can trap ourselves in systems,
and destroy life's primal stream,
or can dance in life's adventure
to the edges of our dream,
binding beauty, love, and justice
into one great holy theme.
Remain standing
Words of mission
The presentness of God reaches beyond this place...
The community candle is extinguished
Do not try to exceed your commission.
Life is too short for grand gestures followed by self pity in the hour of failure.
Go out to serve Christ without anxiety.
Do what you can.
Entrust to others what you must.
And dedicate both your successes and your failures
to the greater glory of God.
All We are better than conquerors
through the Christ who loves us. (Bruce Prewer)
Blessing words
May the blessing in the strength of the Brindabellas,
the calm of Lake Burley Griffin
the freshness of gum tree and wild flower
remain with you...
And may God's strength, peace and creativity go with you always.
All Amen.
Hymn (Cont "Christ, the tent God pitched" (Tune: ‘Picardy’, 87 87 87. 684 TiS) 1 (v4-5) TMT
Leaving all that breeds oppression
let us learn to travel light,
with no temple but our body,
and as shelter for the night,
pitch a pilgrim tent for dwelling
in the place of sheer delight.
Christ is found within each canvas
painted with the earth and sky,
in the singing and the dancing
and within the people's cry,
for the world is space for singing
God's great song that never dies. Bill Wallace
The people sit after the hymn
'This week' at St James
Notices
Birthdays and anniversaries
Significant events
Journey candles
Recessional music
Fellowship
Morning tea is now served.
You are invited to share in the moment of fellowship.
You are invited to keep this copy of the liturgy and take it home with you
to share with another member of your family, or with a friend.
The contemporary hymns used in this liturgy,
in addition to those from Together in Song,
are reproduced with permission under license #A1197.
LicenSing - Copyright cleared music for churches.
Some of the resources used in shaping this liturgy:
Binkley, C. G.; J. M. McKeel. 2001. Jesus and his kingdom of equals. An international curriculum on the life and teaching of Jesus. CA: Santa Rosa. Polebridge Press.
Faith forever singing. Songs for a new day. 2000. NZ: Raumati. New Zealand Hymnbook Trust.
Holmes, R. H. 1972. The Bob Holmes worship materials. Vol 1. NY: Little Falls. Self published.
Inclusive readings. Year C. 2006. Qld: Brisbane. Inclusive Language Project. In private circulation.
Iona Community. 2001. Iona abbey worship book. Scotland: Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications.
McRae-McMahon, D. 2001. Prayers for life's particular moments. VIC: Thornbury. DesBooks.
Macnab, F. 1996. Hope: The deeper longings of the mind and heart. VIC: Richmond. Spectrum Publications.
Morwood, M. 2003. Praying a new story. VIC: Richmond. Spectrum Publications.
Singing the journey. 2005. MA: Boston. UUA.
Spong, J. S. 2007. Jesus for the non-religious. NY: New York HarperSanFrancisco.
Stuart, G. 2006. Singing a new song. Traditional hymn tunes with new century lyrics. Second edition. NSW: Sydney. CPRT Sydney.
Wallace, W. L. 2001. The mystery telling. Hymns and songs for the new millennium. NY: Kingston. Selah Publishing.
Ward, H.; J. Wild, J Morley. (ed). 1995. Celebrating women. New edition. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Withrow, L. 1995. Seasons of prayer. Resources for worship. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Web sites:
UUA Worship Web. MA: Boston. UUA.
Sherri Weinberg. St Paul's Presbyterian Church. NZ: Devonport.
Bruce Prewer Web Site. VIC: Bendigo.