Hybrid Church November 5, 2023 Remembrance Sunday

Christ Church Gabriola

A Collaborative Anglican – United Church

Open to All

 Hybrid Church

November 5, 2023

Remembrance Sunday

 

Rev. Sally Bullas

Musician: Dorothy Dittrich

 

We acknowledge these lands upon which we worship are the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation.

 

Whoever you are and wherever you are on life’s journey,

you are welcome here!

Welcome & Announcements

Whether you are gathering in person, on zoom or worshipping at home with the bulletin, welcome! We are one community, one in the body of Christ. 

 

Centering & Stillness                                                                                   (Martin Luther King Jr.)

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality...I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.”                          

 

(invitation to sit in silence)

 

Introit: Let There Be Light v. 1,3,6                                                      VU #679 

Let there be light, let there be understanding,
let all the nations gather, let them be face to face;

Perish the sword, perish the angry judgement,
perish the bombs and hunger, perish the fight for gain.

 

Let there be light, open our hearts to wonder,
perish the way of terror, hallow the world God made.

 

Lighting of the Christ Candle  

One:  Christ is our Light.

All:    Thanks be to God!

 

(the Christ Candle is lit)

 

Greeting
One:   The grace of Christ Jesus, the love of God, 

           and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

All:     And also with you

 

Opening Words                                                                                                                                     
One:  On this Remembrance Sunday we gather to pray 

All:    for a world where no one will learn war anymore.

One:  On this day when the guns once fell silent,

All:    we gather to pray for peace to reign in every heart, home and 

          nation.

One:  On this day of hope,

All:     we come before you, God, to remember all those who gave their lives so we could be free. 

 

One:  In this time of story, song, and prayer, help us to catch a vision                     of how the world could live together.

All:    And so, let echo the old prayers—make us channels of                           your peace. 

One:  In that spirit, let us join our hearts in song. 

 

Hymn: Make Me a Channel of Your Peace                                         VU #684

                                      

Opening Prayer                                                                                                                     
One:  Holy One,

All:    Grant that we who gather here today may pay fitting tribute                    and honour to the memory of those who have died in the                  service of their country.

One:  May we be so inspired by the spirit of their love and courage that, 

          forgetting all selfish and unworthy motives,

All: we may live only to your glory and to the service of your people. May we who desire peace be willing to work for justice. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

 

Passing of the Peace

One:  The Peace of Christ be with you.

All:    And also with you.

 

You are invited to turn to those directly around you and share Christ’s peace. Those on zoom, please unmute and share with one another.

 

A Time of Remembrance

 

O Canada                                                                                                                                      (VU# 524)

       O Canada!
       Our home and native land!
       True patriot love in all of us command.
       With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
       The True North strong and free!
       From far and wide,
       O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
       God keep our land glorious and free!
       O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

 

In Flanders Fields

       In Flanders fields the poppies blow
       Between the crosses, row on row,
       That mark our place; and in the sky
       The larks, still bravely singing, fly
       Scarce heard amid the guns below.

       We are the Dead. Short days ago
       We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
       Loved and were loved, and now we lie
       In Flanders fields.

       Take up our quarrel with the foe:
       To you from failing hands we throw
       The torch; be yours to hold it high.
       If ye break faith with us who die
       We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
       In Flanders fields.

 

Words of Remembrance

One:  They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old.

All:    Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

One:  At the going down of the sun and in the morning.

All:    We will remember them.

 

Last Post

Minute of Silence

Rouse

 

Reader: By the gift of your Spirit, calm and quiet our souls that we may hear your Word today and be lifted up to walk with you. In Christ’s    name we pray. Amen

 

Micah 4:1-5 (NRSV)                                      Reader: Nancy Hetherington Peirce

In days to come

   the mountain of the Lord’s house

shall be established as the highest of the mountains,

   and shall be raised up above the hills.

Peoples shall stream to it,

   and many nations shall come and say:

‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

   to the house of the God of Jacob;

that he may teach us his ways

   and that we may walk in his paths.’

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,

   and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

He shall judge between many peoples,

   and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;

they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,

   and their spears into pruning-hooks;

nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

   neither shall they learn war any more;

 

but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees,

   and no one shall make them afraid;

   for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

For all the peoples walk,

   each in the name of its god,

but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God

   for ever and ever.

 

Gospel Reading:                                                            Reader: Nancy Hetherington Peirce

As is your custom, please stand or sit for the reading of the gospel. 

Reader: God be with you.  
All:    And also with you

Reader:           The Good News of Jesus the Christ according to John

All:     Glory to you, Christ Jesus.

 

John 15:9-17

As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.

 

Reader: This is the Gospel of Christ.   

All:                   Praise be to Jesus Christ       

 

Reflection:                               “Peace Be With You”

 

Hymn: For the Healing of the Nations                                                     VU #678

 

Offering

 

Doxology                                                                                     CP #669

Praise God the Source of life and birth.

Praise God the Word, who came to earth.

Praise God the Spirit, holy flame.

All Glory, honour to God’s name.

Offering Prayer                                                                                                                                 

One:  Gracious God, bless these gifts and these givers.  May they be used well to foster peace and joy in this world and in the lives of those who cross our paths.

All:    May real and lasting change start now, with us, through us,                    and with God’s blessing. Amen.

 

Prayers of the People                                                          Susan Brockley                                                                                                

One:  God of Peace and Justice,

All:    Hear Our Prayer

 

The Prayer of Jesus                                                                                                               VU #959        Our Father in heaven, 
          hallowed be your name,

          your kin-dom come, 
          your will be done
          on earth as in heaven.  

          Give us today our daily bread.

          Forgive us our sins

          as we forgive
          those who sin against us.

          Save us from the time of trial

          and deliver us from evil

          for the kin-dom, the power
          and the glory are yours,

          now and forever.

 

Hymn: This Is God’s Wondrous World                                                        VU #296

 

Thank You

 

Blessing                                                                                                         

One:  Having gathered, remembered, heard, given, and prayed,
All:    we ask, Creating God, for your blessing, and for your                              continual presence in our lives.
One:  Remind us that no matter where we go, you are there.

All:    No matter how bleak the world becomes, all it takes         is one 

          ray of light for a new day to be upon us once again.  Amen.