EASTER II 12 APRIL 2026

Hybrid Worship

EASTER II

12 APRIL 2026

 

Minister: Mona Smart

Music: Ian Cox

 

We acknowledge that 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!

 

Words for Worship

Words of response are in bold & italics

 

Prelude

 

Gathering Words

We continue with the gospel of John and his account of the resurrection of Jesus. Today’s story is about Jesus’ appearance in the “locked room” where the disciples have gathered in their fear and terror following the crucifixion.

 

Acknowledgement of the Land

We prayerfully acknowledge with thanksgiving that we gather on the unceded territories of the Snuneymuxw people. Gracious God, help us to seek a new relationship with the first peoples here, one based in honour and respect. Amen.

 

Call to Worship                                                                                          

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Sprit, be with you all.

And also with you.

 

Lighting of Candle                                                                             Episcopal Church

We light this candle to celebrate the risen Christ

       for whom no door is locked, no entrance barred.

May the risen Christ open the doors of our hearts,

so that we may seek the good of others

and walk the joyful road of love and peace,

to the praise of God, the Source of all life. Amen

 

(Candle is lit)

 

Opening Hymn: O Come and Let Us Sing                                                MV #9

 

Prayer of Forgiveness                                      Book of Alternative Services, ACC

Most merciful God,

We confess that we have sinned against you

in thought, word and deed,

by what we have done and by what we have left undone.

We have not loved you with our whole heart;

We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.

We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.

Have mercy on us and forgive us,

that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways,

to the glory of your name. Amen.                                                  2

Prayer for Illumination and Grace                       Alternative Prayers ACC, 2019

O God,

our beginning and our end:

accept our doubts,

heal our desire for certainty

and, by your Spirit’s gentle touch,

make us a people forgiven and forgiving;

through Jesus Christ, the Giver of Peace. Amen.

 

Affirmation of Faith                                                                 United Church

We are not alone; we live in God’s world.

We believe in God: who has created and is creating,

who has come in Jesus, the Word made flesh,

to reconcile and make new, who works in us and others

by the Spirit. We trust in God.

 

We are called to be the Church: to celebrate God’s presence,

to live with respect in Creation, to love and serve others,

to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus,

crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.

 

In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us.

We are not alone. Thanks be to God.

 

Peace of Christ

May the peace of Christ be with you.

And also with you.

Let us share the peace of Christ with one another.

 

Prayer Before the Reading of Scripture                         ACC & UCC Sources

O God, your Word is a lamp to our feet, and a light to our path.

Give us grace to receive your truth in faith and love.

 

Psalm 16 (VU #738)                                                       Reader: Mona Smart

Refrain: Protect me God: I trust in you!                               (sung refrain)

 

Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge.

I have said to God, “You are my God;

from you alone comes all my prosperity.”

All my delight is in the faithful who dwell in the land,

and in those who excel in virtue.

But as for those who run after other gods,

their troubles shall be multiplied.

Libations of blood I will not offer to those gods,

nor will I take their names upon my lips.   R                                        3

You, God, are my allotted portion and my cup;

you yourself have cast my lot.

My boundaries enclose a pleasant land;

            indeed, I have a noble heritage.

I will thank you, God, for giving me counsel;

            at night also you teach my heart.

I keep you always before me;

            you are on my right hand, therefore I shall not fall.   R

 

So my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;

for my body shall also rest in safety.

            For you will not surrender me to the Grave,        

            nor suffer your beloved to see the Abyss.

You will show me the path of life.

            In your presence is fullness of joy;

            and from your right hand flow delights for evermore.   R

 

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:3-9 (NRSV)                          Reader: Nancy Hetherington Peirce

A Living Hope

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Although you have not seen him, you love him, and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

 

This is the Word of God

Praise be to God.

 

Gospel Reading                                         Reader: Nancy Hetherington Peirce

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

 

God be with you.

And also with you

 

The Good News of Jesus the Christ according to John.

Glory to you, Christ Jesus.

 

4

John 20:19-31 (NRSV)

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors were locked where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

 

This is the Gospel of Christ.

Thanks be to God

 

Word: “Peace be with you.”

 

Hymn of Response: Breathe on Me, Breath of God                 VU #382

 

Life & Work of the Church

 

Prayers of the People                                                              Tim Leadem

We pray to our God,

            Hear our Prayers.

 

The Lord’s Prayer (sung)                                                             VU #959

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

your kingdom 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 kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours

now and forever. Amen.                                                                   5

Offering (offering now to be collected)

 

Offering Prayer                                                  Book of Alternative Services, ACC

Living God, receive all we offer this day as a symbol of our love. Increase in us our desire to work according to your will and show the fruits of your love at work in the world.

 

Closing Hymn: Go to the World                                                 VU #420

 

Blessing & Sending                                                                  United Church

God of resurrection, you have rolled the stone away and the tomb of our world has been opened wide.

With the dawn has come a new creation.

 

Let our worship today heal and cleanse those tombs of our old wounds and pain, that we may be transformed to release your power and fulfill our mission in the world.

Through the risen Christ we pray.

Amen

 

Postlude