First United Methodist Church of Schenectady
Worship for Ninth Sunday after Pentecost

August 2, 2020

2020 Photo from Dominick Giaquinto

Getting Centered

It may help to center yourself into worship by lighting a candle, as a symbol of God’s presence with you during the time of worship. You may also want to pay attention to lighting, the position of your body, and the availability of distractions.

Breath Prayer

“We are one in the Spirit”
Breath prayers involve breathing in the first phrase, and breathing out the second.
You may wish to simply pray for a moment before starting, or you may wish to pray while listening to the prelude.

Prelude

Prelude from A Lyric Suite by Alfred Fedak
Dominick Giaquinto – Organ (FUMC)

Call to Worship

One: We come together while in many places
Many: To share a time across times
One: To be one in spirit
Many: And one in love.

Hymn #2130: Will You Come and Follow Me

Connecting in Prayer

Shared Prayer

O God, in mystery and silence you are present with us, bringing new life out of destruction, hope out of despair, growth out of difficulty. We thank you that you do not leave us alone but labor to make us whole. Help us to perceive your presence in the unfolding of our lives, and to attend to the gentle guidance of your Spirit, that we may know the joy you give your people. Amen.

Silent Prayer

Photo from Alice Nash

Pastoral Prayer

You are welcome to read this out-loud or silently.

Our God, because of a pandemic we are scattered across time and space—isolated from each other. Yet because of your universal Spirit, we are together as one wherever we are and whenever we share this service. Help us learn from this experience of being a community unhinged from a familiar frame that you are the glue holding us together in love. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Word and Reflection

Choir Anthem

Ubi Caritas – Ola Gjeilo

Where charity and love are, God is there.
The love of Christ has gathered us together.
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Let us revere and love the living God.
And from a sincere heart let us love one another. Amen

Scripture – Galatians 3:23-29

Mission Moment – Jan Huston

Arizona Justice for Our Neighbors
Please consider contributing a mission moment. It can be an experience, a poem, something meaningful that you recently learned, a brief book review, an insight, or maybe something else. Send your idea to me – Jan Huston.

Arizona Justice for Our Neighbors (AZJFON), a United Methodist Immigration Ministry, is the organization that coordinated the United Methodist Primetimers visits to Tucson so that participants could learn about immigration. Click here to learn more.

“Lighting a Candle for Children Separated from Parents at the Border”
Rev. Kelley Dick, AZJFON Board Member &
Minister at Sahuaro Christian Church; June 2020
Saguaro Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has a commitment to be an inclusive, intergeneration, missional and sacred community of faith. We live this out in a number of different ways. We have been holding a daily candle vigil for the children who were separated from their parents at the border for the past 770 days. We hold it on Saguaro Christian Church’s Facebook page every day at 10am.
Our vigil began first at a border crossing in Nogales, Son. We were on an Agape trip serving alongside our sister church Comunidad Familiar Cristiana in Nogales, Son. As our group was waiting in line to cross the border, we caught up with the news going on in America. Report after report, story after story of the horrific family separations caught our attention just as the small children waiting to seek asylum caught Owen’s (the other minister at Saguaro) 2 daughter’s attention. It was as if the world shifted on its axis, we knew we had to do something, but what? All the way home and into the next day we prayed and texted and prayed and read and soon the daily vigil was born. In 2018, immigrant children along the southern border were separated from their families as a result of Trump’s “Zero Tolerance Policy.” Many were reunited, but some are still separated. Even now, questions remain regarding the care of children within detention centers. We’ve seen the stats, we’ve read the reports, we know that families are still separated. It is our hope that by holding this vigil that we will ignite in others the desire to help change the system.
The lighting of the candle reminds us that even in the worst conditions that God is still present. So we light the candle to remind us all of the light inside each of us is the same light inside each of the families separated at the border. We will pray until all are reunited. But prayer should also move us to action. May this action be our prayer in motion. We can all do something. We invite you to continue to pray, protest and be an agent of change alongside us. Three ways we encourage you to help justice happen are:

1. Reach out to those in power and make your voice heard. Policy makers are policy changers. We recommend the “5 Calls” app or “ResistBot.”
2. Give money, resources, and time to organizations and churches who are helping immigrant families navigate the asylum process.
3. Do your research, be knowledgeable and know together we can make a difference.

Children’s Time

Passing of the Peace

If you are worshiping with others, please pass the Peace of Christ.
Whether you are alone or with others, please take a moment to find God’s peace within, and then to share it with the world. You may want to reach out to speak peace to another during this week.

Hymn #534: Be Still My Soul

Scripture Reading: Mark 7:24-30

Sermon – “An Inclusive Community” – Rev. Bill Pattison

Responding

Offering

2017 Photo Show – “Prayers, Presence Gifts, Service, Witness” by Larry McArthur
If you wish, you are welcome to use this time to make a donation to the church online, or to put a check in the mail.
The time of offering is not only about our financial gifts to the church, it is about offering our lives to God and the building of the kindom. This is a time for reflection: What is being asked of us? What is being given to us? What are we able to offer? What do we need?

Offertory Anthem

“O Sing! Rejoice!” by George Handel, arr. Patrick Liebergen

O sing! Rejoice! Lift up a joyful song to God with every voice!

Prayer of Presentation

We share, O God, the gifts of who we are, not just what we have earned, that the world may be a better place. Amen.

Hymn #2223: We Are One in the Spirit

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord;
And we pray that all unity will one day be restored.
Chorus: And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand;
And together we’ll spread the news that God is in our land.
We will work with each other, we will work side by side;
We will work with each other, we will work side by side;
And we’ll guard each man’s dignity and save each man’s pride.
All praise to the Father, from whom all things come;
And all praise to Christ Jesus, His only Son.
And all praise to the Spirit who makes us one.
Copyright: Words: 1966 F.E.L. Publications. Assigned 1991 Lorenz Publishing Company (Admin. by Lorenz Corporation),
Music: 1966 F.E.L. Publications. Assigned 1991 Lorenz Publishing Company (Admin. by Lorenz Corporation)

Benediction

Let us bring a sense of community to all we meet. Amen.

Postlude

“Finlandia” by Jean Sibelius
Cantus


Photo by Barbara Armstrong