Jesus shares statements of blessing for the poor and sorrowing. We ponder the great cloud of witnesses, of whom we are a part, on this day when we traditionally remember the lives of those who have gone before us. We celebrate the Lord’s Supper, and remember there are so many more around the table than meet the eye.
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Memorial of All Saints
Saints, Here and There
Revelation 7:9-12; Luke 6:20-31
Union Presbyterian Church
November 6, 2022
Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
Liturgist: Kevin Kelley Preacher: Rev. Pat Raube
Prelude Choir
“We Sing for All the Unsung Saints,” Carl P. Daw, Jr.
©1994, Hope Publishing Company, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
We sing for all the unsung saints,
That countless, nameless throng,
Who kept the faith and passed it on
With hope steadfast and strong
Through all the daily griefs and joys
No chronicles record,
Forgetful of their lack of fame,
But mindful of their Lord.
Though uninscribed with date or place,
With title, rank, or name,
As living stones their stories join
To form a hallowed frame
Around the mystery in their midst:
The Lamb once sacrificed,
The Love that wrested life from death,
The wounded, risen Christ.
So we take heart from unknown saints
Bereft of earthly fame,
Those faithful ones who have received
A more enduring name:
For they reveal true blessing comes
When we our pride efface
And offer back our lives to be
The vessels of God's grace.
Welcome Rev. Pat Raube
Call to Worship
Thanks be to you, O God, that we have risen this day,
to the rising of this life itself.
Be the purpose of God between us and each purpose,
the hand of God between us and each hand.
The pain of Christ between us and each pain,
the love of Christ between us and each love.
O God, who brought us to the bright light of this new day,
bring us to the guiding light of eternity.
Hymn # 23 W & R (maybe with bells)
“All Creatures of Our God and King”
(Public Domain)
All creatures of our God and King,
Lift up your voice and with us sing
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O burning sun with golden beam,
And silver moon with softer gleam,
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
O rushing wind that art so strong,
You clouds that sail in heaven along,
O praise him, Alleluia!
O rising morn in praise rejoice,
O lights of evening, find a voice,
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
O flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for your Lord to hear,
Alleluia, Alleluia!
O fire so masterful and bright,
Providing us with warmth and light,
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
All you who are of tender heart,
Forgiving others, take your part,
Sing praises, Alleluia!
All you who pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on him cast your care,
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Let all things their Creator bless,
And worship him in humbleness,
O praise him, Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One,
O praise him, O praise him,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Call to New Life
Prayer for Wholeness and Peace
Eternal God, in every age you have raised up people to live and die in faith. We confess that we are indifferent to your will. You call us to proclaim your name, but we are silent. You call us to do what is just, but we remain idle. You call us to live faithfully, but we are afraid. Give us courage to follow in your way, that joined with those from ages past, who have served you with faith, hope, and love, we may know the love and justice of your reign.
(Silent Prayer)
And we pray,
We are grateful that neither death, nor life, nor present things, nor things to come, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Words of Assurance
With the whole church:
We affirm that we are made in God’s image,
befriended by Christ, and empowered by the Spirit.
With people everywhere:
We affirm God’s goodness at the heart of humanity,
planted more deeply than all that is wrong.
With all creation:
We celebrate the miracle and wonder of life and the unfolding purposes of God, forever at work in ourselves and the world. Thanks be to God. Amen!
Sharing of the Peace
May the peace of God be with you.
And also with you.
Let us offer one another a sign of God’s peace.
Scripture Revelation 7:9-12
After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. They cried out in a loud voice, saying,
“Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne and to the Lamb!”
And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, singing,
“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor
and power and might
be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
Children’s Message Rev. Pat Raube
Music: “Worthy is the Lamb” (Public Domain)
Scripture Luke 6:20-31
Then he looked up at his disciples and said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
“Blessed are you who are hungry now,
for you will be filled.
“Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
“Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven, for that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
“But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
“Woe to you who are full now,
for you will be hungry.
“Woe to you who are laughing now,
for you will mourn and weep.
“Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.
“But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes away what is yours, do not ask for it back again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Response Holy Wisdom, Holy Word:
Thanks be to God!
Meditation Rev. Pat Raube
Affirmation of Faith (Unison)
From “A Brief Statement of Faith,” Presbyterian Church (USA)
In life and in death we belong to God. Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, we trust in the one triune God, the Holy One of Israel, whom alone we worship and serve.
We trust in Jesus Christ, fully human, fully God. Jesus proclaimed the reign of God: preaching good news to the poor and release to the captives, teaching by word and deed and blessing the children; healing the sick and binding up the brokenhearted; eating with outcasts, forgiving sinners, and calling all to repent and believe the gospel. Unjustly condemned for blasphemy and sedition, Jesus was crucified, suffering the depths of human pain and giving his life for the sins of the world. God raised this Jesus from the dead, vindicating his sinless life, breaking the power of sin and evil, delivering us from death to life eternal.
In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit, we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives, even as we watch for God’s new heaven and new earth, praying, “Come, Lord Jesus!” With believers in every time and place, we rejoice that nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Anthem Pat Raube, Chris Bartlette
“Hallelujah”
Words and music by Ma Muse, All rights reserved, Used with permission
Every time I feel this way, this old familiar sinking,
I will lay my troubles down by the water
Where the river will never run dry.
Hallelujah! — I’m gonna let myself be lifted.
By and by, I will lay my troubles down by the water
Where the river will never run dry.
It’s been said, I do believe, as you ask so shall you receive.
So take from me these troubles, bring me sweet release
Where the river will never run dry.
Hallelujah! — I’m gonna let myself be lifted.
By and by, I will lay my troubles down by the water
Where the river will never run dry.
There is a river in this heart of hearts
With a knowingness of my highest good;
I am willing, I will do my part
Where the river will never run dry.
Hallelujah! — I’m gonna let myself be lifted.
By and by, I will lay my troubles down by the water
Where the river will never run dry.
Where the river will never run dry.
This river will never run dry.
A Reading from John Donne’s “Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions”
The church is catholic, universal, so are all her actions; all that she does, belongs to all. When she baptizes a child, that action concerns me; for that child is thereby connected to that head which is my head too, and ingraffed into that body, whereof I am a member. And when she buries a man, that action concerns me; all mankind is of one author, and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated; God employs several translators; some pieces are translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God's hand is in every translation, and his hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again, for that library where every book shall lie open to one another; as therefore the bell that rings to a sermon, calls not upon the preacher only, but upon the congregation to come; so this bell calls us all…
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
The Naming of the Saints
Merle Sommerfeldt Josh Pratt Joan Halligan
Joan White Mary Lopian Dean Miller
Rick Chadwick Paul Watkins Jeff Cooley
Carl Schnabel June Wolff Paul Calderone
Jennie Bennett Gene Smith George William Daly
The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper/ Prayers of the People
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise!
Therefore we praise you, joining our voices with angels and archangels,
with prophets, apostles, and martyrs, and with all the faithful of every time and place, who forever sing to the glory of your name:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
The Story of the Supper
According to his commandment:
We remember his life and death,
we proclaim his resurrection,
we await his coming in glory.
The Gracious Spirit
Prayers of the People
The Lord’s Prayer (Unison)
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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
The Communion
Music during Communion:
“Come, Share the Lord,” Bryan Jeffery Leech
©1984, Fred Bock Music Company, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Prayer After Communion
God of glory, in this holy feast you have made us one with Christ and with that great multitude of the faithful—those who hunger and thirst no more and worship night and day in your temple. Lead us in the paths of righteousness and guide us to the springs of the water of eternal life, until we join the choir of the redeemed, singing: Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb: Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymn #529 W & R
“For All the Saints”
(Public Domain)
For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou wast their rock, their fortress and their might;
Thou, Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou in the darkness drear, their one true light.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle; they in glory shine.
Yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave again and arms are strong.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day:
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of glory passes on his way.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
From earth’s wide bounds and ocean’s farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Benediction
Go into the world in peace.
Have courage!
Hold fast to what is good.
Return no one evil for evil.
Strengthen the faint-hearted,
support the weak,
help the suffering.
Honor all people.
Love and serve the Lord your God,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.
And may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the sweet communion of the Holy Spirit,
be with each and all of us,
This day and forevermore.
The Spirit is among us, so go in peace.
Thanks be to God. Amen
Postlude Chris Bartlette
“With the Saints in Glory Shining,” Edward Broughton
©2014, Lorenz Publishing Company, All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.
License #A-728112. All rights reserved.
Where an * is indicated, please rise in body and/or in spirit.
“W & R” ~ the red Worship and Rejoice hymnal.
“PH” ~ the blue Presbyterian Hymnal
Call to Worship from the Iona Community, Scotland.
Prayer for Wholeness and Peace and Communion prayer from the PCUSA Book of Common Worship.