Order of Worship
Let us be as open vessels that God’s spirit may enter.
The Community Gathers: Experience God’s presence in the assembly. Please greet one another with joy and welcome new friends into our community of love.
You are welcome here…come and worship!
Focus: The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all, our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it and to foster its renewal is our only hope. Wendell Berry
Welcome: Rev. Shirley Bowen
Gathering Music: Mother Nature (by Rob Duquette)
-Rob Duquette
Call To Worship:
(L) Let us hear God’s call to cherish the earth. Let us dream of our world where the species are infinite
(P) and our dreams will be delicate.
(L) Let us sing in a world with all voices in harmony
(P) and our song will be delicate
(L) Let us walk in our world of warm light and fragility
(P) and our tread will be delicate.
(L) Let us go gently into a delicate world.
(P) Let us worship God.
Opening Hymn: God of the Sparrow #22 vs. 1-6
Opening Prayer:
O God, we thank you for this earth, our home;
For the wide sky and the blessed sun,
For the salt sea and the running water,
For the everlasting hills And the never-resting winds,
For trees and the common grass underfoot. We thank you
for our senses By which we hear the songs of birds,
And see the splendor of the summer fields,
And taste of the autumn fruits, And rejoice in the
feel of the snow, And smell the breath of the spring.
Grant us a heart wide open to all this beauty;
And save our souls from being so blind
That we pass unseeing When even the common thorn bush
Is aflame with your glory, O God our creator,
Who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
– Walter Rauschenbusch
Lord’s Prayer:
Readings and Scripture: Ute Prayer, Psalm 65, Luke 24:13-35
-Anne Murray
Sermon: “Leaving our opaque world” Rev. Shirley Bowen
Music: Meditative Instrumental ~ Rob Duquette
Musical call to Prayer: (two times) Hush now in quiet peace, be still your mind at ease. The Spirit brings release, so wait upon the Lord.
Prayers of the People:
Closing Music: For the Beauty of the Earth #14 vs. 1-4
Benediction:
As we go forth from this sacred space,
May we celebrate Earth and our shared lives,
May we recognize our connections to all that is in and on Earth, May we truly and deeply value the inherent worth of all
In this awesome interconnected web of existence,
May we commit ourselves to a new way,
And may we hold our commitments and each other
Gently yet firmly. Blessed be and Amen.
Postlude: Go In Peace
With special thanks to our Guest Presider, Rev. Shirley Bowen and to Rob Duquette, our Guest Musician.
Pastor’s Information: pnorbert1217@gmail.com and church cell 207-205-4951.
Upcoming Events…
May 20th, Rain Date: May 27th: Plant Sale at the home of Nancy Bancroft, 2 Courtlynn Circle in Saco. Volunteers needed. Please contact Nancy for more info. Many beautiful plants for sale!
May 27th, 9-2: Yard Sale at the home of Peter and Eve McPheeters, Biddeford Pool. Please start looking now for good quality items to donate. FMI: Eve McPheeters, Bonnie Tallagnon and Cris Hudson.
(All proceeds from Plant Sale and Yard Sale to benefit our Community Outreach Programs!)
Saturday, June 17th: Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner. Please note the date clarification; it was listed incorrectly last week in the weekly message. If you did sign up and cannot attend, please let Paula know, and if you would like to attend now that you know the date, please contact Paula or add your name to the list at church. Once we have the number of attendees, you will be contacted about where you will attend dinner! Thanks to our gracious hosts and to all who are interested in attending.
April 29th: Biddeford Ball: Our friend Roxy Schlaver shares this invitation to a wonderful local fundraiser to help build a park in the downtown. All the details and connections for tickets for this event are available on this link:
https://angelrox.com/pages/biddeford-ball-tickets
Prayers of the People: U.N. Environmental Sabbath Service, Earth Day 1990
To bring new life to the land To restore the waters To refresh the air
-We join with the earth and with each other.
To renew the forests To care for the plants To protect the creatures
-We join with the earth and with each other.
To celebrate the seas To rejoice in the sunlight To sing the song of the stars
-We join with the earth and with each other.
To recall our destiny To renew our spirits To reinvigorate our bodies
-We join with the earth and with each other.
To recreate the human community To promote justice and peace To remember our children
-We join with the earth and with each other.
We join together as many and diverse expressions of one loving mystery: for the healing of the earth and the renewal of all life.