November 20, 2022

WELCOME TO ST ANDREW’S ON THE TERRACE

Today’s service is led by Rev. Dr Fei Taule’ale’ausumai and
Fionnaigh McKenzie

PRELUDE                                                   “Thornbury” Basil Harwood (1859 – 1949)

 

CALL TO WORSHIP –                                        Susan Gilchrist & Corrymeela, Ireland

 

Be with us in all of our journeys

from near and from far and histories unknown.

Be with us in strength and in weakness,

the lost and forsaken the proud and the strong.

Be with us in all of our beings,

where life in our genders can truly belong.

Be with us in all of our actions,

fulfilling your Kin-dom where all people come.

Be with us in all of our wishes

that rest in your love when all are as one.

SILENCE

PROCESSIONAL HYMN                                         FFS 67 ‘We are many, we are one’
                                                                                         Words and Music: © 1998 Colin Gibson

 

1. We are many, we are one,

and the work of Christ is done

when we learn to live in true community,

as the stars that fill the night,

as a flock of birds in flight,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine;

as the branches of a tree,

as the waves upon the sea,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine.

 

2. All division is made whole

when we honour every soul,

and the life of God in every you and me,

as the fingers of a hand,

as the grains that form the sand,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine;

as the threads upon a loom,

as a field of flowers in bloom,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine.

 

3. We will join creations song,

make a world where all belong,

billed as one in peace and loving harmony,

as the voices of a choir,

as the flames within a fire,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine,

as the snowflakes in the snow,

as the colours of a bow,

as the cluster of the grapes upon the vine.

 

WELCOME 

E te whānau a te Karaiti,

  ngā mihi aroha ki a tātou katoa.

Kia ora tātou.

Talofa lava.

Talofa.

 

PRAYER                                                                                 by Rabbi Reuben Zellman

JESUS’ PRAYER FOR TRANSGENDER REMEMBRANCE                   Rev .Kim Sorrells

Loving God, our beloved parent,
in whom we move and breathe and have our being,

the hallowing of your name shines forth in the diversity of your children.

May your peace and love, justice and equality, inclusion and belonging reign here on earth as in heaven.

Grant that our transgender loved ones might have their daily needs met;

that they might find gainful employment without discrimination; that they might have access to medical care without fear; that they might have their rights and lives protected, and that they might find a loving community to belong to and call their own.

Forgive us for the ways that we have fallen short and failed your transgender children.

Forgive us for the times we turned away, or did not care; for the times we laughed or judged their unique expression of your image; for the times we have misspoken, asked too much, or failed to hear,

as we forgive those who might have failed us.

Lead us away from the temptation to be complacent in the face of injustice. But instead give us courage to stand up and stand with your beloved children.

For your love and justice is to be made manifest now and forever. Amen.

 

LIGHTING THE RAINBOW CANDLE  

We light the rainbow candle to celebrate our inclusiveness and our children.

 

FAMILY TIME                                                                                                 Frank Cook

BLESSING THE CHILDREN (All stand)

We send you to the Rainbow Room to hear stories, ask questions

and have fun together. 

We bless you. Amen.   

PASSING THE PEACE

Traditionally we shake hands to pass the peace and say “peace be with you.”  Now that COVID-19 is here we ask that you pass the peace without shaking hands.                                                                               

THE WORD IN TEXTS                                                                           Jim Cunningham

Hebrew Bible                                                                                         Isaiah 40:28-31

Gospel/New Testament                                                                      Matthew 5:3-12

Contemporary reading                Made of Clay          Char (transteacher.wordpress.com)

Shame burrows
deep under my skin
like a thorn
in the sensitive pad of a bare foot:
sharp hooked words
digging into my very essence
trying to tear it out,
to purge,
to exorcise,

but there is no demon within me;
I too am made in God’s own image:
my heart, made to love who it loves,
me, made to be who I am.
You can chip away at me
with your insults and your ignorance,
and like marble under the sculptor’s chisel,
I become more whole.

Your barbed remarks cut deep
but our pride is nestled deeper –
denser –
the singularity before the explosion
and we will burst forth
in blinding light.

You have made angels of too many of us.
We do not belong in Hell but
we do not belong in Heaven
either:

we are claiming our place on Earth.

RESPONSE

For the Word in scripture,

for the Word among us,

for the Word within us,  

we give thanks.

REFLECTION                        Fionnaigh McKenzie and Rev Dr Fei Taule’ale’ausumai

 

TIME OF REMEMBRANCE                                                                            (Fionnaigh)

 

GLAMAPHONES WAIATA
Tiaho Mai rā                                                                                  Keta Kaiwai-Herbert

Purea nei                                                                                             Hirini Melbourne

 

 

LITANY:  Rev. Paul Turner of Gentle Spirit Christian Church of Atlanta          (Fei)

 

One: We praise you, Holy One, for the gift of life, precious, stubborn, fragile, and beautiful; we are grateful for the time we have to live upon the earth, to love, to grow, to be.

Many: We give thanks for the will to live and for our capacity to live fully all of the days that we are given;

One: and for those who have been taken by the devastation of violence used against them we remember them and claim the opportunity to build lives of wholeness in their honour.

Many: We give you thanks for the partners, friends, allies and families who have been steadfast in their love; for the people who have devoted their life’s work to the prevention of violence, support and making transition from one gender to another possible with passion and commitment,

One:  for the diligent science, brilliant ideas and insights that have led to new, life-giving procedures, for those in leadership who have acted to provide health care for people who are in transition.

Many: We give thanks for those whose prejudice and judgment have yielded to understanding, for those who have overcome fear, indifference, or burnout to embrace a life of caring compassion.

One: We praise you, Eternal One, for those who have loved enough that their hearts have broken, who cherish the memories of those we have lost, and for those who console the grieving.

Many: God, grant us the love, courage, tenacity and will to continue to make a difference in a world even with the violence aimed towards our community.

One:  Inspire us to challenge and stand strong against the forces that allow the needless harm and violence to continue — prejudice, unjust laws, repression, stigma, and fear.

Many: Into your care, we trust and lift up the hundreds of souls who have been tortured and murdered.

One: We lift up to you our dreams of a world where all are cared for,

Many: our dreams of wholeness,

One: our dreams of a world where all are accepted and respected,

Many: a dream we know you share.

 

 

 

OFFERTORY MUSIC            “If I ruled the world” (Camelot) by Bricusse / Ornadel 

 

 

OFFERING HYMN                                           AA8 ‘Brother, Sister, Let Me Serve You’

                                                                                                Words and Music: Richard Gillard

1. Brother, sister, let me serve you;

let me be as Christ to you;

pray that I may have the grace to

let you be my servant too.

 

2. We are pilgrims on a journey,

and companions on the road;

we are here to help each other

walk the mile and bear the load.  

OFFERING PRAYER

Faithful God, you ask us to be faithful people.

In this community, you ask us to be people of justice.

In this community, you ask us to be people of mercy.

In this community, you ask us to be people of peace.

Be with us as we try to be faithful

in large ways and in small ways

so your eternal community may come in every way.

Amen.

 

 

We recognise and bless the gifts brought to the table, and those which wing their way electronically from our banks to the church’s account.

LIFE IN THE COMMUNITY OF ST ANDREW’S

People share notices and visitors are welcomed.  If you have a notice, please move to the front row, ready to speak briefly from the lectern. 
For the benefit of newcomers, please introduce yourself before you begin.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE                                                                        Barrie Keenan

CIRCLE OF PRAYER

We think today of the people of Tunisia and the Muslim people in Tunisia and throughout the world. We hold all refugees in our hearts. We pray in particular for those detained for many years in Papua New Guinea & Nauru. We give thanks for progress that has been made and pray that their calls for justice might yet find a compassionate response. In New Zealand, we remember those in Parliament, and today we name Chris Penk (Kaipara ki Mahurangi) and Willow-Jean Prime (Northland). Here in the Central Presbytery, we pray for the leaders and people of Rongotea – St Luke’s Uniting Church (Presbyterian-Methodist).

PRAYER FOR ST ANDREW’S

Renew your people, God,

and renew our life in this place.

Give us a new spirit of unity

with all who follow the Way of Jesus

and new bonds of love

with people of other faiths.

 

Bless the city in which we live

that it may be a place

where honest dealing,

good government,

the desire for beauty,

and the care for others flourish.

 

Bless this church

that what we know of your will

may become what we do,

and what we believe

the strong impulse

of our worship and work.

Amen

HYMN                                                                     ‘Sing a song for peace and justice’

                                                                   Words: ©1992 Shirley Murray, Hope Publishing Co. USA 

                                                                                              Music: John Hughes Tune: CWM Rhondda IECS 59

 

1. Sing a song for peace and justice,

speak for those who cannot speak!

claim the world for peace and justice:

let the strong support the weak.

 

Refrain Light a candle in the darkness,

hope and freedom must not die!

hope and freedom must not die!

 

 

2. You who live in happy places,

who can laugh and speak and sing,

listen for the other voices,

mute with fear and suffering.

 

Refrain Light a candle….

 

3. Thousands cry in nameless prisons –

plead with powers that hold the key:

plead that human rights be honoured,

that the innocent go free.

 

Refrain Light a candle….

BLESSING

It is sacred work to make sure that in this world, all are treated equally,
all have the right to live a safe life, all have the chance to thrive.

May the spirit strengthen us to go out and do this work. 

Help us and our world to transition from grief to celebration,
from ignorance to understanding,
from shame to pride,
from complacency to activism
and from hopelessness to hope.

Amen.

SUNG AMEN

POSTLUDE                               “Grand March” from Aida by G. Verdi (1813 – 1901)

 

 

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