United in spirit, and gathered through the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship God with gladness. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Prayers in this service are adapted from Celebrate God’s Presence (UCPH). Thanks this week to Dr. Jim, Jenny, and Heather!

PRELUDE: “Fantasy Bossa” (Norton)

OPENING PRAYER

Holy One,
you are with us in the dawning of the day,
through crowded hours of work and play,
and in the star-filled stillness of the night.
In these moments,
touch our hearts with your peace,
that we may know your presence,
and may love and serve you in all that we do.
Remind us that any moment we focus on you
becomes an act of worship.
In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen

HYMN OF PRAISE: “O love, how deep”

O love, how deep, how broad, how high!
It fills the heart with ecstasy,
that God, in Jesus Christ, should take
our mortal form for mortals’ sake.

God sent no angel to our race
of higher or of lower place,
but wore the robe of human frame,
and freely to this lost world came.

For us he was baptized, and bore
a holy fast, and hungered sore;
for us temptations sharply knew;
for us the tempter overthrew.

For us he prayed, for us he taught,
for us great daily works were wrought,
by words and signs, and actions, thus
still seeking not himself, but us.

For us to wicked foes betrayed,
scourged, mocked, in purple robe arrayed,
he bore the shameful cross and death;
for us at length gave up his breath.

For us he rose from death again,
for us he went on high to reign,
for us he sent his Spirit here
to guide, to strengthen and to cheer.

To God whose boundless love has won
salvation for us through the Son,
to God all praise and glory be
both now and through eternity.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

O God,
in whose mercy we find our peace,
in whose presence we find our place:
cleanse our hearts to make us new,
that we may be faithful followers of your way,
the way of love and mercy.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

God will give us what we need:
strength for today,
hope for tomorrow,
and forgiveness
for all that is past.
Amen.

SPECIAL MUSIC: “Thy Word” (Grant/Smith)

FIRST READING: Psalm 105

Give thanks and call on God’s name.
Make known to the nations what God has done.
Sing, O sing the songs of praise;
tell of all God’s wonderful deeds.
Exult in God’s holy name;
let those who seek God be joyful in heart.

Turn for help to the One who is your strength;
seek God’s presence continually.
Remember the marvels the Most High has done,
the wonders and judgements God has given,
O children of Abraham and Sarah, God’s servants,
O offspring of Israel, chosen of God.

You are the eternal God,
your justice reaches every corner of the earth.
You are ever mindful of your covenant,
the promise you gave to a thousand generations,
the covenant you made with Sarah and Abraham,
the oath you gave to Isaac.
You confirmed it for Jacob as binding.
To Israel your everlasting covenant you declared,
‘To you I give the land of Canaan,
as your appointed inheritance.’

SECOND READING: Romans 12.9-21

⁹ Be sincere in your love for others. Hate everything that is evil and hold tight to everything that is good. ¹⁰ Love each other as brothers and sisters and honor others more than you do yourself. ¹¹ Never give up. Eagerly follow the Holy Spirit and serve the Lord. ¹² Let your hope make you glad. Be patient in time of trouble and never stop praying. ¹³ Take care of God’s needy people and welcome strangers into your home.

¹⁴ Ask God to bless everyone who mistreats you. Ask him to bless them and not to curse them. ¹⁵ When others are happy, be happy with them, and when they are sad, be sad. ¹⁶ Be friendly with everyone. Don’t be proud and feel that you are smarter than others. Make friends with ordinary people.^[a] 17 Don’t mistreat someone who has mistreated you. But try to earn the respect of others, ¹⁸ and do your best to live at peace with everyone.

¹⁹ Dear friends, don’t try to get even. Let God take revenge. In the Scriptures the Lord says, “I am the one to take revenge and pay them back.”

²⁰ The Scriptures also say,

“If your enemies are hungry,
    give them something to eat.
And if they are thirsty,
give them something
    to drink.
This will be the same
as piling burning coals
    on their heads.”

²¹ Don’t let evil defeat you, but defeat evil with good.

HYMN: “I’ve got peace like a river”

I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river in-a my soul.
I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river in-a my soul.

I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain in-a my soul.
I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain in-a my soul.

I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean in-a my soul.
I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean in-a my soul.

REFLECTION

No one wants to be regarded as a loose cannon on the deck.

But if you were a loose cannon on the deck, you would surely be aware that you are being summarized with a sailing idiom. An idiom is a turn of phase with a particular meaning often unrelated to the words themselves. In other words, you may be disruptive, or careless, of a breaker of norms, but only a “loose cannon” if you know the idiom. Clearly, this idiom doesn’t hide its maritime origin.

Other idioms hide their nautical beginnings a little more carefully. If you are learning the ropes, you know that you are acquiring knowledge unique to a disciple or a trade. For the new sailor, your full-time job is literally learning the ropes, or determining the purpose of every sheet, halyard, or line. (Ironically, the first thing you learn is that there are no ropes on a boat, only sheets, halyards, and lines). Likewise, showing your true colours—giving people a sense of the real you—began as a nautical phrase. Flags (your colours) were used to identify your country of origin, unless, of course, you were a pirate. Pirates would fail to show their true colours, until they showed their true colours, and by that time it was too late.

Sometimes we suspect that an idiom comes from the sea, but it’s not clear how. Pipe down, as an example, is something you tell noisy children or neighbours, and it seems to come from the practice of blowing the bo’sun’s pipe at the end of the day. You were literally piped down to your hammock. There is evidence, however, that ‘pipe down’ became just another thing to shout at the crew, something my skipper does with some regularity.

Finally, I give you a favourite of mine, ‘shipshape and Bristol fashion.’ There’s no mystery that this is a nautical idiom, shipshape gives it away, but ‘Bristol fashion’ is a bit of a mystery. Some argue that Bristol was a preeminent port that prided itself on its orderliness, while others have a more complex origin story. Bristol is located on the River Avon, a tidal river, which in olden days meant that when the tide went out your boat would rest on its keel, often on an angle. In Bristol, therefore, everything on board had to be fastened securely—Bristol fashion—or there would be a terrible mess.

I share all of this because St. Paul shares an idiom with us, and the meaning is somewhat unclear. Here it is:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

First, we should note that it’s actually a quote from Proverbs 25 (21-22), a fact that doesn’t make the meaning any clearer. Gallons of ink have been spilled trying to make sense of this idiom, found in the context of not seeking revenge—while at the same time sounding like the precise sort of thing you might do to seek revenge. So what does it mean?

One kind-hearted soul suggested that “heap burning coals on his head” was something you did for others if their homefire went out. Since the ancient near-eastern practice was to carry burning coals on the head (in a suitable vessel, of course), the phrase simply described an act of neighbourliness. Lovely, but unlikely. I expect “heap burning coals on his head” sounds harsh, because it was meant to be harsh.

Another suggestion looks to Egyptian literature, in this case to suggest that “coals of fire” meant to change your mind, or have a change of heart. Therefore, it would seem, that “heap burning coals on his head” was a way to expedite this change process, to help them along. I think this is a little closer to the mark, since we are talking about transformation, but again we’re not quite there. Again, “heap burning coals on his head” sounds rather unpleasant to me.

More convincing, to my mind, is the idea this is an analogy. Being kind to your enemy will humiliate them, in the same way that heaping burning coals on their head would be a terrible humiliation. Rather than repay evil with evil, why not repay with good. This will disarm your enemy, leaving them about as unbalanced as getting the burning coal treatment.

All of this, however, is jumping ahead. The passage is about Christian living, an answer to the question “how then, shall we live?” God has given us the gift of new life in Christ, and now we need to do something, respond somehow, and live differently. How then, shall we live?

What Paul has assembled is an assortment of Old and New Testament quotes, bits of wisdom, law and Gospel. There’s Amos 5, Proverbs 3, Lev 19 and Deut 32, and that direct quote from Proverbs 25 we’ve already exhausted. Paul quotes Jesus (John 13, Mat 25, Luke 6, Mat 5) demonstrating this adherence to the Gospel and his familiarity with Jesus’ thought. But there is more happening in this relationship than just effective quoting. There seems to be another story, and I’m going to suggest it began the day Jesus heaped burning coals on Paul’s head. Let me explain.

Before I do that, I have to tell you about one of my favourite paintings. It’s here in the liturgy, Caravaggio’s Conversion on the Way to Damascus, found in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome. I would put heavy emphasis on the word found, since you have to search for it once you’re in the church. You would expect that when your church has one of the most famous paintings in the world, you might put it someone visible, but that would be too obvious. Instead it’s in a small side-chapel near the chancel, perpendicular to the viewer, and nearly impossible to see in its fullness (or get a proper photo). Luckily, we have the internet, so we can see it in all its drama and glory.

We see St. Paul unhorsed, at the second that he appears to hit the ground. His arms are elevated, that familiar reflex as you fall, as his attendant looks on. Beside him is his sword, his saints’ symbol, and the mode of his death (he was beheaded). His eyes are closed, which seems a likely response to fall, but we soon learn that his eyes have been closed by the experience, and will not reopen until some time later. Unspoken in the painting (but in the mind of the viewer) is the words spoken by Jesus in that moment, “Savle quid me perseveres?” (Saul, why do you persecute me?).

Saul (pre-Paul) has done evil to Jesus and his followers, and was first among those who opposed Jesus and his way. We see him on the edge of the crowd during the stoning of St. Stephen, and we know that he will confess more in his letters. And how does Jesus repay this evil? First, by loving him enough to see that he can become more than Saul—more than a persecutor of the church. But more importantly, he repays Saul’s evil by destroying the life he was living, heaping the burning coals of destruction on his head, ending one life so another could begin.

And Jesus expects no less of us. Maybe we weren’t unhorsed, and maybe we didn’t have burning coals heaped on our heads, but the experience of new life in Christ is meant to be just as dramatic a turn-around from the way the world lives. Maybe you can’t name a Saul-Paul moment, a dramatic rebirth at the bidding of Jesus the Christ, but the change is still there. Day-by-day, our walk with Christ is meant to unhorse us, to open our eyes to new needs and new trouble, and new meaning. Everyday is the opportunity for rebirth, a new baptism of forgiveness and love.

Paul became a loose cannon on the deck. No longer Saul the persecutor, he became Paul the apostle, the teacher, the guide. His message was about Christian living, how to live in the light of new life. Love, share, and be hospitable, he said. Live in harmony with others, laugh with the happy and cry with the sad, don’t imagine you’re better than others, and do not repay evil with evil. It’s a vision of an alternate way of being, where you too can be a loose cannon on the deck. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

Eternal God,
who caused all scriptures
to be written for our learning:
grant that we may so hear them,
read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that by patience and comfort of your holy Word,
we may embrace and hold fast
the blessed hope of eternal life,
which you have given us in Jesus.

Eternal God,
who leads the lives of the saints
to show us heroic virtue:
grant that we may follow them,
all along the pilgrims’ road,
that we too might become your saints,
living with courage and hope,
while blessing others on the way.

Eternal God,
who hears our prayers
and knows the desire of our hearts:
grant our longing for a world made new,
hope, help, and love endure,
that the weak may have strength,
the sick your healing,
and the bereaved the comfort
that only you can give.
In Jesus’ name we pray, 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 and ever. Amen.

HYMN: “Open my eyes, that I may see”

Open my eyes, that I may see
glimpses of truth thou hast for me;
place in my hands the wonderful key
that shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine!

Open my ears, that I may hear
voices of truth thou sendest clear;
and while the wavenotes fall on my ear,
everything false will disappear.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my ears, illumine me, Spirit divine!

Open my mouth, and let me bear
gladly the warm truth everywhere;
open my heart and let me prepare
love with thy children thus to share.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my heart, illumine me, Spirit divine!

BLESSING

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,
and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

United in spirit, and gathered through the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship God with gladness. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Prayers in this service are adapted from Celebrate God’s Presence (UCPH). Thanks this week to Taye, Jenny, and Heather!

PRELUDE: “The Song of Twilight” (Nakada)

OPENING PRAYER (St. Patrick, 5th century)

May the strength of God pilot us.
May the power of God preserve us.
May the wisdom of God instruct us.
May the hand of God protect us.
May the way of God direct us.
May the shield of God defend us.
May the host of God guard us against the snares of evil
and the temptations of the world.
May Christ be with us,
Christ before us,
Christ in us,
Christ over us.
May our salvation, O God,
be always ours this day and forevermore. Amen.

HYMN OF PRAISE: “Guide me, O thou great Jehovah”

Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
hold me with thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me till I want no more,
feed me till I want no more.

Open now the crystal fountain,
whence the healing stream doth flow;
let the fire and cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through.
Strong deliverer, strong deliverer,
be thou still my strength and shield,
be thou still my strength and shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside;
death of death, and hell’s destruction,
land me safe on Canaan’s side:
songs of praises, songs of praises
I will ever give to thee,
I will ever give to thee.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

O God, in whose mercy we find our peace,
in whose presence we find our place,
in whose world we find our calling:
grant us grace so to hear and accept your Word
that we may be faithful followers
of your will and your way all our days.
The road is hard, and we often falter,
but we know that you urge us on,
willing to walk by our side.
Forgive us our halting steps.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

God will give us what we need:
strength for today,
hope for tomorrow,
and forgiveness
for all that is past.
Amen.

SPECIAL MUSIC: “God’s Colouring Book” (Parton)

FIRST READING: Psalm 124

‘If God had not been at our side,’
now let Israel say:
‘If God had not been at our side
when mortals rose up against us,
then they would have swallowed us alive,
when their fury was roused against us.
Then the flood would have swept us away,
and the torrent would have covered us.
Then the raging waters
would have gone right over our heads.’

But praised be God:
who has not given us as a prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird
from the hunter’s snare;
the snare is broken and we are free.
Our help is in the name of the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

SECOND READING: Exodus 1.8-22

8 Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. 9 “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. 10 Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.”

11 So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. 12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites 13 and worked them ruthlessly. 14 They made their lives bitter with harsh labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their harsh labor the Egyptians worked them ruthlessly.

15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”

19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”

20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

22 Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.”

HYMN: “God of freedom, God of justice”

God of freedom, God of justice,
you whose love is strong as death,
you who saw the dark of prison,
you who knew the price of faith:
touch our world of sad oppression
with your Spirit’s healing breath.

Rid the earth of torture’s terror,
you whose hands were nailed to wood;
hear the cries of pain and protest,
you who shed the tears and blood:
move in us the power of pity
restless for the common good.

Make in us a captive conscience
quick to hear, to act, to plead;
make us truly sisters, brothers
of whatever race or creed:
teach us to be fully human,
open to each other’s need.

REFLECTION

In the spirit of fairness, I give you evil kings.

After Mary I, Eadburh of Wessex, and old Jezebel, it seems fair to look at regal malevolence from the male point-of-view. There are, of course, no shortage of examples. And for that reason, I’m going to limit my look to evil kings in the Bible, beginning with Ahab, consort of the infamous Jezebel. You might say Ahab is more of the unindicted co-conspirator type (see last week), but he’s a bad hombre nonetheless.

Next, I might suggest Abimelech, who wanted to be king of Shechem, but had two problems: he was illegitimate (being the son of a Shechemite concubine) and he had 70 brothers, each with a better claim to the throne. He killed them all, save one, and claimed the throne.

Then there is the first Pharaoh on our list, this one made famous by Yul Brenner in the Ten Commandments. Handsome, yes, but hardhearted, stubborn, and seemingly impervious to frogs, lice, boils, pestilence, and most other plagues.

Or, how about King Herod, stock villain of every church school pageant since the dawn of time? Infanticide is the quickest route to being declared an evil king, so he qualifies.

And speaking of infanticide, we meet today’s evil king, an unnamed Pharoah who was obviously the boyhood hero of King Herod. In Exodus 1, we learn that whatever lingering gratitude the royal house of Egypt felt toward Joseph and his people was gone. The Egyptians felt threatened by the growing Israelite population, and feared a slave revolt or worse.

More taskmasters were appointed, and the Israelites were compelled to build new cities—cities of stone—yet the sense of threat did not recede. The author of Exodus describes the situation in simple terms: “the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly.” Clearly, Pharaoh needs a new plan, so he calls the midwives:

15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”

19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”

I don’t do sermon titles, but if I did, I might call this sermon “How to lie to a tyrant.” For you see, when you lie to a tyrant, you need to speak to the tyrant’s bias or base assumption. So, in this example, they describe the Hebrew women as more “vigorous,” which I expect Pharaoh heard as less refined than the Egyptian women. Some scholars have even suggested that vigorous is code for beast-like, which would take the existing bias argument even further. Whatever the meaning of vigorous, it’s clear that Pharaoh accepts the lie they concoct—disappointed that they have not completed their mission, but satisfied with their answer.

So who are these women, Shiphrah and Puah? The fact that they are named, while Pharaoh remains unnamed, tells us that they are the real subjects of the story. Again, there is a bit of a debate about their identity, since the Hebrew is unclear. It seems the key words can be translated “Hebrew midwives” or “the midwives to the Hebrews.” Now, my resident scholar is out of town, so I’m flying blind here, but this translation problem could explain a lot.

If the midwives were Egyptians tasked with obstetrics among the Hebrew women, the order to kill the male babies seems less unlikely. If the midwives were Hebrews, then we get into a whole other conversation about servitude and the extent to which those enslaved could be expected to carry out genocide against their own people. There is ample evidence that this occurs, but it remains a puzzle within the text.

The one thing we can infer is that these women have status within their society. They seem to have some oversight role among the midwives, since we can safely assume that there were more than two. Perhaps they were the head of their guild, women responsible for the practice of midwifery throughout the society. Such guilds functioned as both oversight bodies and centres of education. Perhaps Shiphrah and Puah were “ministers of midwifery” within the governmental structure, the kind of people you would turn to to implement a controversial plan.*

But the plan—for a moment at least—is thwarted. Pharaoh accepts the lie that the midwives were late every single time, and he must find a new way to proceed. The late professor David Daube describes the action (inaction?) of Shiphrah and Puah as civil disobedience, and “the oldest record in world literature of the spurning of a governmental decree.” It won’t take long for the next act, when Moses’ mother and the daughter of Pharaoh engage in their own flaunting of the law, but pride-of-place belongs to Shiphrah and Puah. They are the mothers of civil disobedience, engaging in “good trouble” (quoting the late John Lewis) to overcome the ultimate example of state-sponsored violence: genocide.

And just because the lesson for today has taken us into the realm of resistance, I want to go a step further, and draw a link between the language of Pharaoh and the great scourge of our time, white supremacy. Listen as Pharaoh describes his view:

8 Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. 9 “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. 10 Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.”

It has long been argued that “Make America Great Again” is a dog-whistle to those who believe that America peaked in the 1950s and can only be great if the clock could somehow be wound back. And the choice of time is not accidental, since it predates civil rights legislation, gay rights, environmental regulations, second-wave feminism, and increased immigration from non-white majority nations. The words “far too numerous for us” could be found in a tweet, and they betray a sense that some belong and some do not.

When Hannah Arendt wrote her book on the Eichmann trial, she chose as a subtitle “A Report on the Banality of Evil.” It has become a familiar and oft-deployed phrase, describing the way evil hides behind “just following orders” or “just following the law.” When malevolent people control the levers of government, making dangerous laws or enacting corrupt policies, it falls to ordinary women and men to do the extraordinary things needed to meet the moment.

Meeting the moment, we meet Shiphrah and Puah. They bravely defy Pharaoh and “so God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.” Thus the House of Shiphrah and the House of Puah were founded, blessed by the God who blesses the troublemakers, those willing to defy the Pharaoh’s of this world.

May God continue to bless those who seek justice and resist evil. And may God bless those with the determination and creativity of Shiphrah and Puah, midwives of good trouble. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

God of all,
We close our eyes and see the faces of those we know and love—
neighbours and friends, sisters and brothers—
a community of kindred hearts.
Keep them safe from harm,
and encourage them in the face of sadness and fear.

God of all,
We close our eyes and see the faces of those we hardly know—
strangers, visitors, forgotten friends—
the ones who need an outstretched hand.
Give them hope,
and remind them that there are many who care.

God of all,
We close our eyes and see what cannot be unseen—
injustice, cruelty, oppression, malice,
the careless disregard for the sacredness of human life.
Stir our hearts,
and help us to be agents of your peace.

God of all,
We close our eyes and see all the images of God represented in our fellowship.
In me, in you, in each of us,
God’s spirit shines for all to see.
In the name of Jesus, we pray. 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 and ever. Amen.

HYMN: “Let there be light”

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

open our lips,
open our minds to ponder,
open the door of concord
opening into grace;

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

hallow our love,
hallow the deaths of martyrs,
hallow their holy freedom,
hallowed be your name;

your kingdom come,
your spirit turn to language,
your people speak together,
your spirit never fade;

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

BLESSING

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,
and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

United in spirit, and gathered through the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship God with gladness. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Prayers in this service are adapted from Celebrate God’s Presence (UCPH). Thanks this week to Dave and Heather!

PRELUDE: “This is My Father’s World” (Babcock)

OPENING PRAYER

Gracious God,
we pray for your blessing
on the church this day.
May the faithful find salvation,
and the careless be awakened.
May the doubting find courage,
and the anxious be calmed.
May the tempted find help,
and the sorrowful be comforted.
May the weary find rest,
and the strong be renewed.
May the aged find consolation,
and the young be inspired,
in Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

HYMN OF PRAISE: “Immortal, invisible, God only wise”

Immortal, invisible, God only wise;
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes;
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the true life of all;
we blossom and flourish like leaves on the tree,
then wither and perish; but naught changeth thee.

Thou reignest in glory, thou rulest in light;
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all praise we would render, O help us to see
’tis only the splendour of light hideth thee!

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Gracious God,
You are the author of love
and source of forgiveness.
We are all too human,
quick to judge,
and slow to understand.
Send your Spirit, O God.
Remind us the last word,
spoken on a hill far away,
was “forgive.”
Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

God will give us what we need:
strength for today,
hope for tomorrow,
and forgiveness
for all that is past.
Amen.

SPECIAL MUSIC: “Glory Bound” (Maher)

FIRST READING: Psalm 133

Spanish Refrain:
¡Miren qué bueno, qué bueno es!
¡Miren qué bueno, qué bueno es!

English Refrain:
Behold how pleasant, how good it is!
Behold how pleasant, how good it is!

How pleasant and harmonious
when God’s people are together:
fragrant as precious oil
when running fresh on Aaron’s beard. R

How pleasant and harmonious
when God’s people are together:
fresh like the morning dew
that falls on Zion’s holy hill. R

How pleasant and harmonious
when God’s people are together:
there is where God bestows
the blessing, life for evermore. R

SECOND READING: Genesis 45.1-15

Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.

3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.

4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.[a]

8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. 9 Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. 11 I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’

12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you. 13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.”

14 Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him, weeping. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.

HYMN: “Blest be the tie that binds”

Blest be the tie that binds
our hearts in Christian love;
the unity of heart and mind
is like to that above.

Before our Maker’s throne
we pour our ardent prayers;
our fears, our hopes, our aims are one,
our comforts and our cares.

We share each other’s woes,
each other’s burdens bear;
and often for each other flows
the sympathizing tear.

This glorious hope revives
our courage on the way;
that we shall live in perfect love
in God’s eternal day.

REFLECTION

Our story begins with a criminal conspiracy.

No, we’re not talking about Russian interference or coercing Ukraine to help find dirt. That’s another sermon. In this sermon, Joseph’s brothers conspire to murder the lad, then change their minds, then conspire to deceive their father, and break an old man’s heart. But is it still criminal?

Conspiracy is one of those things you hear on television all the time. If you have an appetite for procedural dramas of a criminal sort, you will know that when two or more people conspire to commit an offence, yet only one person does the deed, everyone gets charged. In fact, doing the deed isn’t even necessary for the conspiracy charge to stick, since planning a crime is a crime itself.

And just because I’ve waited 30 years to quote a legal decision in a sermon, here is Regina v. O’Brien [1954]: “The law punishes conspiracy so that the unlawful object is not attained. It considers that several persons who agree together to commit an unlawful act, are a menace to society.” So the next time you and a friend are eyeing the donut on my plate, and agree to split my tasty donut, think again—no one wants to be labelled a menace to society.

(Just as an aside, keep R. v. Déry, [2006] in your back pocket. In my donut example, the Supreme Court does not include “fruitless discussions” as conspiracy. You need to make a proper plan.)

Back to poor Joseph. It’s not his fault that he’s his father’s favourite. Of that he has vivid dreams that others find annoying. Or that he can interpret the dreams of others. Or that his father gave him a fabulous coat, the kind of coat that just screams “Broadway musical.” Maybe Joseph was a little overbearing, or enjoyed his special status a little too much. But a criminal conspiracy? That’s going too far.

On the day in question, Joseph’s father has sent the lad to check up on the others, and make sure they’re doing their work. He’s still a speck on the horizon when the brother’s decide they’ve had enough of this upstart. They agree to kill him. Their plan—if you could call it a plan—is to kill Joseph, throw his body in an empty cistern, and claim a wild animal did it.

Luckily for Joseph, one brother couldn’t abide the plan. Reuben suggested they forget the killing part and just throw him in the cistern—just teach him a lesson, I suppose. But just then some traders appear, and the brothers hit on a new plan: sell Joseph to the Egyptbound traders, make some shekels, and then present a bloodied dreamcoat to their father. And the plan works. Joseph is sold on to Potiphar, the captain of the Pharaoh’s guard, and Jacob believes that his son is gone.

But that, of course, isn’t the end of the story. To summarize our way to today’s reading, we learn:

Some sort of Mrs. Robinson thing happens with Joseph and Potiphar’s wife.
Joseph lands in jail, but uses his dream gift to impress others.
One of the impressed inmates takes word back to Pharaoh, and Joseph is released.
Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s dream of fat and skinny cows, and becomes vizier.
As vizier—sort of like Prime Minister—Joseph saves the land from famine (and skinny cows).
People from the surrounding nations come to buy from Egypt’s ample supply of grain, including Joseph’s own brothers.
There is some back and forth with a silver cup (see chapter 44)
And the moment finally comes for Joseph to reveal to his brothers that he is, in fact, the vizier of Egypt.

But first Joseph has a good cry. People were a bit more emotional back then. He has a good cry and then the reveal:

“I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.”

And just because they’re in shock, he says it again, and then again: “God sent me ahead of you to save your lives! Go and get my father, and bring him along. There will be five more years of famine, some I’m going to settle you in the nearby Land of Goshen, and I will provide for you there—for you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.” At this moment, he embraced his brother Benjamin, and started crying. And Benjamin hugged him back, and started crying. Then I assume everyone was crying—because afterall—it was a more emotional time.

This is the moment to ponder hugging in the Bible. Where else do we see tearful reunions, families reunited in an emotional time? I think you see where I’m headed. This is really just an early telling of the prodigal son—which Jesus has recast to teach us about the Kingdom. How does it work?

Joseph, like the prodigal, is in a faraway land, and only late in the story chooses to return home (or rather, lets home come to him). There is lots of brotherly resentment, for Joseph on the front-end of the story, and for the prodigal at the end-end of the story. Both stories have an element of “while he was still far off,” but with a twist. For Joseph being far off gives his brothers occasion to plot against him, for the prodigal being far off gives the father time to plot forgiveness.

And forgiveness is where the stories truly meet. Yes, Joseph was forgiving from a position of good fortune, but this does not erase the pain of being sold, imprisoned, and separated from the father he loved. He could have just as easily turned his brothers away, or imprisoned them for all they did and for all they conspired to do. But he did not. He chose to forgive.

Likewise, the father of the prodigal had every reason to align with the older brother. Half his fortune wasted on profligate living. A faithful son still by this side. He could easily have turned the prodigal son away, and let the dead remain dead in his eyes, but he did not. He chose to forgive.

The glue that binds these two passages is a forgiving God. God could have acted to thwart the co-conspirators, but gave occasion to save them instead. Joseph gives God the glory, he doesn’t claim it for himself. It is God’s desire to preserve Joseph and by extension to save the rest of the tribe, since God has plans for all of them. And God can forgive these brothers, even when they don’t deserve it.

And again, the parable of the prodigal son is a glimpse of God’s kingdom, where wastrels and those given to profligate living also receive forgiveness: once dead, he is alive once more—was lost, but now is found. It is God’s desire to reach beyond resentment and “the way the world works” and forgive instead. It is God’s desire that everyone separated from kin and clan find their way home, resting in the everlasting arms of a forgiving God. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

Attentive God,
you have called us to be your holy people,
and to sing your praise.
Teach us to use our gifts for your glory,
and for strengthening the faith of your church.
Help us to persevere in practice and prayer,
that we may show your love to others,
and lead them closer to you.

Accept, O God,
the service of those who offer you praise
in the fellowship of this church.
May they serve you with glad hearts and dedicated lives;
that, by their service, your name will be glorified,
and the hearts of your people uplifted.

Acknowledge God,
the confession we make, having wronged others.
the prayers we make, for the sake of others.
the needs we have, making us like all others.

For those who are ill…hear our prayers.
For those who mourn…hear our prayers.
For those who have lost everything,
or enough to make it feel that way…hear our prayers.
For those in leadership…hear our prayers.
For those who teach, care, comfort, challenge,
support, console, or advocate…hear our prayers.
Find us among those we name,
as we pray for ourselves.
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 and ever. Amen.

HYMN: “Now thank we all our God”

Now thank we all our God, with heart,
and hands, and voices,
who wondrous things has done,
in whom this world rejoices;
who from our mother’s arms has blessed us on our way
with countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God
through all our life be near us,
with ever joyful hearts
and blessed peace to cheer us,
and keep us strong in grace, and guide us when perplexed,
and free us from all ill in this world and the next.

All praise and thanks to God
for all that has been given,
the Son, and Spirit blest
who dwell in highest heaven,
the one eternal God, whom heaven and earth adore;
for thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.

BLESSING

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,
and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

United in spirit, and gathered through the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship God with gladness. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Prayers in this service are adapted from Celebrate God’s Presence (UCPH). Thanks this week to Faith, Olivia, and Heather!

PRELUDE: “Without His Cross” (Martin)

OPENING PRAYER

Ever-present God,
this day enfolds us and surrounds us:
be in our speaking and in our thinking;
be in our life and on our lips;
be in our hearts and in our souls,
today and forever. Amen.

HYMN OF PRAISE: “Come, O Fount of every blessing”

Come, O Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing your grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing
call for songs of endless praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount; I’m fixed upon it,
mount of God’s unfailing love.

Here I pause in my sojourning,
giving thanks for having come,
come to trust, at every turning,
God will guide me safely home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God,
came to rescue me from danger,
precious presence, precious blood.

O, to grace how great a debt
or daily I am drawn anew!
Let that grace now, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to you.
Prone to wander, I can feel it,
wander from the love I’ve known:
here’s my heart, O, take and seal it,
seal it for your very own.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Merciful God,
you made us in your image,
with a mind to know you,
a heart to love you,
and a will to serve you.
But our knowledge is imperfect,
our love inconstant,
our obedience incomplete.
Day by day, we fail to grow into your likeness.
In your tender love, forgive.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

God will give us what we need:
strength for today,
hope for tomorrow,
and forgiveness
for all that is past.
Amen.

SPECIAL MUSIC: “Let There Be Peace on Earth” (Miller/Jackson)

FIRST READING: Psalm 105

Give thanks and call on God’s name.
Make known to the nations what God has done.
Sing, O sing the songs of praise;
tell of all God’s wonderful deeds.
Exult in God’s holy name;
let those who seek God be joyful in heart.

Turn for help to the One who is your strength;
seek God’s presence continually.
Remember the marvels the Most High has done,
the wonders and judgements God has given,
O children of Abraham and Sarah, God’s servants,*
O offspring of Israel, chosen of God.

You are the eternal God,
your justice reaches every corner of the earth.
You are ever mindful of your covenant,
the promise you gave to a thousand generations,
the covenant you made with Sarah and Abraham,
the oath you gave to Isaac.
You confirmed it for Jacob as binding.
To Israel your everlasting covenant you declared,
‘To you I give the land of Canaan,
as your appointed inheritance.’

SECOND READING: 1 Kings 19.9-18

9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.

And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

HYMN: “Come down, O love divine”

Come down, O love divine,
seek now this soul of mine,
and visit it with your own ardour glowing.
O Comforter, draw near,
within my heart appear,
and kindle it, your holy flame bestowing.

O let it freely burn,
till earthly passions turn
to dust and ashes in its heat consuming;
and let your glorious light
shine ever on my sight,
and clothe me round, my onward path illuming.

And so the yearning strong
with which the soul will long
shall far outpass the power of human telling;
for none can guess its grace,
till love creates the place
wherein the Holy Spirit makes its dwelling.

REFLECTION

It seems accurate to say that your legacy is a matter of perspective and circumstance.

Take, for example, Mary I of England, known to history as “Bloody Mary.” Her premature death meant the failure of her project of returning England to the Roman Catholic faith. Had she succeeded, history would view her very differently, and we might be in the middle of Mass right now.

Yet even with her tarnished legacy, and a reputation that approaches the stereotype of an “evil queen,” recent scholars have taken a second look and decided that her legacy is less one-sided. Many in the realm welcomed a return to the old faith, and many of the things that her sister gets credit for—naval supremacy, the beginning of the age of exploration—actually started under Mary.

If you want someone closer to the evil queen trope, look no further than Eadburh, queen of Wessex. Annoyed with her husband’s advisor, she poisoned him, and inadvertently killed her husband (the king) as well. She fled to Francia, and ended up in an awkward love triangle with Charlemange and his son. Banished from court, she was appointed the abbess of a convent, a position she soon lost after a tryst with an overnight guest. If you were wondering why so few little girls are named Eadburh, then wonder no more.

And then, of course, there is Jezebel. Ignoring the way Jezebel has been reinterpreted in recent years, we need to look again at the book of 1 Kings to see Jezebel in her original setting. Like many “foreign” queens, she brought her religion with her to Israel, meaning that she was always going to be controversial. But rather than quietly worship Baal in her well-appointed chapel, she exploited her husband’s weakness to promote Baal throughout the land.

Enter Elijah the prophet. First, he warns the king that years of drought will follow if the worship of Baal does not stop. (In addition to being a garden-variety punishment for disobedience, drought is also a direct attack on Baal, since he was supposed to be the god of rain). Exiled the first time, Elijah waits three years before he is commanded to confront the priests of Baal directly. Read 1 Kings 18 for the best duel in history. It’s Jezebel and the priests of Baal zero, Elijah (and YHWH) one.

So Elijah must flee once more—and we reach today’s reading—but the real conclusion of the Jezebel story comes in the next episode. Ahab, the weak king, is unable to convince one of his subjects to sell him a vineyard. Annoyed, Jezebel arranges to have the vineyard owner killed through an abuse of the courts, and she seizes the vineyard. For the God of justice this is a step too far, and Jezebel’s inevitable fate is sealed. Again, if you were wondering why so few little girls are named Jezebel, then wonder no more.

Back to our reading, Elijah’s second exile is worse than the first. This time he’s hiding in a cave, feeling sorry for himself, and generally resigning himself to defeat at the hands of Jezebel and Ahab. God is having none of it. The word of the Lord came to Elijah and said “what are you doing in there?” He could have just admitted that he was hiding, but instead he tries to explain himself: “everyone,” he said, “is dead. The covenant is gone, along with the places of worship. I’m the only prophet left, even though I have been zealous for the LORD.”

At this point the LORD was growing tired of all the gloom, and told Elijah to wait at the mouth of the cave for the LORD to pass by. Here’s what happened next:

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

The same question, then the same response. Still, God is having none of it. “Go back to the seats of power,” the LORD said, “and you will have occasion to make some political changes.” And then the most important message at all: “You imagine that you are the last of a breed, but this is far from the truth. There are seven thousand others in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

When we’re surrounded by trouble, the first and obvious question is ‘where is God in all this?’ Weak kings and evil queens, the worship of foreign gods, the murder of prophets, abuse of process and the state-sanctioned killing of innocent people—where is God while all this is happening? We want God to move heaven and earth to defeat the unjust, to overcome those who would rule with such inequity, but direct intervention doesn’t follow. A great and powerful wind levelled mountains before the Lord, but the Lord is not in the wind. After the wind, the earth trembled and quaked, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. But after the fire came a still small voice.

So we pull our cloaks over our heads, and we edge farther out of our hiding places, our eyes adjust to the light of this moment, and we train our ears and truly listen as the heavenly voice speaks: ‘You suppose you are alone, but you are not. You suppose that you are the last to seek justice, but you are not. You suppose you are the last to hate abuse, the last who decry the way the powerful oppress the weak—but you are not. The Lord of all can see into the hearts of the people, and understands that many have not bowed down to useless gods of this age.

Perhaps they are quiet now, and perhaps they remain in their caves of fear and reluctance, but they too are ready to listen for the still small voice of the Most High. Elijah felt alone, but 7,000 others meant he was not alone.

The bluster of those who worship the false-god of strength (and power at any cost) can be overwhelming. The noise of those who lack compassion or promote discord can be overwhelming. The intensity of daily outrage and 20,000 lies can be overwhelming. But we do not lose heart.

For God is not in the strength of the wind, nor is God in the noise of the earthquake, nor is God in the intensity of the fire. No, God is in the still small voice that says “we are not alone.” Thanks be to God. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

O God, lover of the world,
you hold all that you have created
within your compassionate embrace.
As you hold our lives
torn by pain or sorrow within your aching heart,
we cry out for wholeness—
for ourselves, for those we love,
and for our world.
May your healing presence gently transform
the places of our lives where we hold pain.
May your loving presence be a comforting reality
for all those who find themselves
in despair, lost or alone.
May your transforming presence
create generosity in place of greed,
harmony in place of hatred,
and everlasting justice where evil now reigns.
O God, lover of the world,
from the silence of our own hearts,
we bring before you
these people and places that need
your healing, loving, transforming presence…
O God, lover of the world,
this is your world,
and we claim your power and your presence
to make it whole.
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 and ever. Amen.

HYMN: “Lead on, O cloud of Presence”

Lead on, O cloud of Presence, the exodus is come.
In wilderness and desert our tribe shall make its home.
Our slavery left behind us,
new hopes within us grow.
We seek the land of promise where milk and honey flow.

Lead on, O fiery Pillar, we follow yet with fears,
but we shall come rejoicing though joy be born of tears.
We are not lost, though wandering,
for by your light we come,
and we are still God’s people. The journey is our home.

Lead on, O God of freedom, and guide us on our way,
and help us trust the promise through struggle and delay.
We pray our sons and daughters
may journey to that land
where justice dwells with mercy, and love is law’s demand.

BLESSING

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,
and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

United in spirit, and gathered through the power of the Holy Spirit, we worship God with gladness. We encourage you to pray over the words that follow, and follow the links within the liturgy. Prayers in this service are adapted from Celebrate God’s Presence (UCPH). Thanks this week to Dave and Heather!

PRELUDE: “The Prayer” (Foster et al.)

OPENING PRAYER

Come Holy Spirit, come.
Come into every place we worship this day.
Come into each heart, each prayer, each song,
each life open today
so that we may live and love with purpose,
courage, and enthusiasm
serving our world.

HYMN OF PRAISE: “O for a thousand tongues to sing”

O for a thousand tongues to sing
my great Redeemer’s praise,
the glories of my God and King,
he triumphs of God’s grace.

Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
that bids our sorrows cease;
’tis music in the sinner’s ears,
’tis life and health and peace.

He speaks, and listening to his voice,
new life the dead receive,
the mournful broken-hearts rejoice,
the humble poor believe.

Hear him, you deaf; you voiceless ones,
your tongues again employ;
you blind, behold your Saviour comes,
and leap, you lame, for joy!

My gracious Master and my God,
assist me to proclaim,
to spread through all the earth abroad
the honours of your name.

PRAYER OF CONFESSION

Holy Spirit of forgiveness, come to us again:
shake our hearts,
and set our souls on fire with your love.
We hold out to you
all our particular burdens of guilt and sin,
and we ask for your help
to live the way of your justice and love. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

God will give us what we need:
strength for today,
hope for tomorrow,
and forgiveness
for all that is past.
Amen.

SPECIAL MUSIC: “On The Wings Of A Dove” (Ferguson)

FIRST READING: Psalm 17

Hear my just cause; attend to my cry, O God.
Listen to my prayer from lips that do not lie.
Let judgement in my favour come forth from your presence;
and let your eyes discern what is right.
If you examine my heart, if you visit me by night,
if you test me, you will find no wickedness in me.
As for what others do, according to the command of your lips
I have kept from travelling with the violent.
My steps have been firm in your paths,
and my feet have not stumbled.

I call upon you, God, for you will answer me.
Incline your ear to me and hear my words.
Show me the wonders of your steadfast love;
for by your right hand you save from their enemies
those who take refuge in you.
Guard me as the apple of your eye;
hide me under the shadow of your wings,
from the wicked who assail me,
from deadly foes who surround me.
As for me, I shall see your face because my plea is just;
when I awake and see your face,
I shall be satisfied.

SECOND READING: Matthew 14.13-21

13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

HYMN: “Praise our Maker”

Praise our Maker, peoples of one family:
God is love, God is love!
Praise our Maker, peoples of one family:
God is love, God is love!

Love our Saviour, followers of Jesus:
God is love, God is love!
Love our Saviour, followers of Jesus:
God is love, God is love!

Care for others, children of the Spirit:
God is love, God is love!
Care for others, children of the Spirit:
God is love, God is love!

REFLECTION

I open the backdoor, I see a new tree. I look up from my book, I see a new tree. I close my eyes and count to ten, I see a new tree.

And not just any tree. This fast-growing and seemingly supernatural tree is known to some as the Tree of Heaven, the Chinese Sumac, the Varnish Tree, the Stinking Sumac (like rotting cashews?) while some cheeky gardeners and landscapers have been known to call it the Tree of Hell.

It grows quickly. It requires no care. It is one of the few trees that will take root in a crack in the sidewalk and make a go of it. And while this constantly reseeding tree will spread and quickly take over any space available, it has some internal weakness, and is known to drop branches or topple over in a strong wind. In most places, it is classed as a noxious weed, and should be avoided, as it pushes out native species and is very hard to eradicate.

I know, you’re thinking, “tell us how you really feel…” But I can confess to you that I have mixed feelings about the tree. It is an attractive tree, and I admire it’s tenacity, but the cost to the neighbourhood is too high. Meanwhile, it does teach us about abundance, and the extent to which nature finds a way. There may be no mustard tree in my backyard, but the Tree of Heaven is the next best thing, if explosive growth from seemingly nothing is what you’re looking for.

Lectionary watchers, attentive to the sequence of readings we follow, are just now wondering if I have the wrong sermon. The mustard seed and the yeast in three measures of flour is so last week, and this week we are supposed to be feeding the five thousand, or trying to understand this moment in the unfolding story. Rest assured I’m on the right week, but I see a parallel—maybe a bridge—from the seeds and yeast to the five thousand on the hillside.

Just ten chapters ago, Jesus was calling the disciples. The first crowd appears, a direct response to the healing and teaching that has begun. He shares the Sermon on the Mount, and the crowd grows. There is more healing, more teaching, and soon Jesus is struggling to keep up. “The harvest is plentiful,” he says, “but the workers are few.” He sends out the twelve to share the load, but this only increases the need. Soon we’re at five thousand, and when Jesus landed he saw them he had compassion on them and healed the sick—but the crowd remained.

Before we talk about feeding anyone, we need to recognize that this is a living parable, a sure sign of the kingdom embodied in the explosive growth of the crowd. Jesus is the leaven, the seed that grows, creating a plant where everyone can find shade. The explosive growth from inviting an intimate group to walk with him, to facing a hillside of hungry souls, is just as kingdom-setting as the mustard seed or the yeast in flour.

So too the premise of the story. “They need not go away,” Jesus said, “we should feed them instead.”

“But Lord,” they said (something I’m sure Jesus was tired of hearing, or is tired of hearing), “we have food for ourselves, and no more.” They actually gave the evening’s menu—five loaves and two fish—but the assumption was the same: few could be fed. Soon, however, we learn that explosive growth is on the menu, and the kingdom comes to the hillside that day and everyone is fed.

I want to interrupt this sermon with an observation. God in Jesus feeds the five thousand, something that all preachers agree. Then things diverge. On one end of the spectrum, feeding the five thousand becomes an early version of stone soup, with Jesus inspiring the crowd to share the food that was already on hand. At the other end of the spectrum, the physical limitations of five loaves and two fish were overcome, in the same manner that the storm was stilled, the leper was healed, and the demons sent away.

I can’t tell you what to believe, I can only point to what the world seems to need. We need God to be active in the world, overturning our expectations, expanding our horizons, overwhelming us with the explosive growth that belongs to the kingdom alone. Efforts to explain (or explain away) don’t live comfortably with the arresting and unexpected nature of God’s own realm. When faced with longing and hunger, Jesus said “we should feed them instead.”

In our time, on many levels, we face an explosive growth in need. The hillside crowd continues to swell, with people who are hurting, lost, broken, afraid, grieving, isolated, alienated, oppressed, confused, angry, bewildered, or simply exhausted. The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Now, more than even, we turn to God to help us address this need, in both ourselves and others. We turn to God to open the kingdom store of loaves and fishes once more, to fill us—that we in turn may fill others. “They need not go away,” Jesus said, “we should feed them instead.”

I want to conclude with words from our passage, words that transform this living parable in a sacrament of compassion:

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied.

May it be so. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE

We remember before you the great company
of every name joined with us throughout the world.
From five thousand to countless millions,
your generosity never ends.
You multiply the gifts you give us,
simple things that become extraordinary,
—and mirror your love.

O Lord, save your people and bless your inheritance;
embrace them also, and lift them up for ever.
We bless your holy name for all your servants
believers that span the world you made.
Bless your church wherever it is found,
in peace or in strife,
and bless the ministry that you provide:
caring for others and sharing your mercy.

We rejoice that we share a holy fellowship.
We pray that we may be united
with sisters and brothers the world round,
we pray for them as they pray for us,
committed to tend the sick, calm the anxious,
and speak for those who cannot be heard.

We pray this through Jesus Christ our Redeemer.
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 and ever. Amen.

HYMN: “Blessed assurance”

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of the Spirit, washed in Christ’s blood.
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Saviour all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Saviour all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight!
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
angels descending, bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love. R

Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Saviour am happy and blessed;
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with God’s goodness, lost in Christ’s love. R

BLESSING

Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way,
and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless
until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Amen.
—1 Thessalonians 5:23

God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.