All Saints Sunday

Sunday, November 3, 2024
10:30 AM 11:30 AM 10:30 11:30

Union Presbyterian Church 200 E Main St Endicott, NY, 13760 United States (map)

Google Calendar ICS

Jesus knows what it is to grieve. One of the most painful challenges he faced was the death of his dear friend Lazarus. How does he invite us to grieve, and to remember? Each year on the first Sunday in November, we remember together those who have gone before us in this immediate past year, whether friends, family members, or members of Union Presbyterian Church.

You can join us for worship in our beautiful sanctuary, or right here online. Worship is live-streamed; videos are available here or on Youtube following the service. You are invited! You are always welcome.

Memorial of All Saints

Grief and Glory

Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9; John 11:17-27; 32-44

Union Presbyterian Church

November 3, 2024

Sharing the Light of Christ, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Liturgist: Becky Conklin Preacher: Rev. Pat Raube

Welcome Rev. Pat Raube

Announcements Becky Conklin

Prelude Barbara Gannon, flute

“His Eye is On the Sparrow,” Judy Nishimura

Used with permission.

Call to Worship Adapted from Revelation 21

See, the home of God is among human beings.
God will dwell with us.
We will be God’s people, and God will be with us, and be our God.
God will wipe every tear from our eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.

God speaks to us and says, “See, I am making all things new.” 

Hymn #457 PH

“I Greet Thee Who My Sure Redeemer Art”

(Public Domain)

I greet Thee, who my sure Redeemer art,

My only trust and Savior of my heart,

Who pain didst undergo for my poor sake;

I pray Thee from our hearts all cares to take.

Thou art the King of mercy and of grace,

Reigning omnipotent in every place:

So come, O King, and our whole being sway;

Shine on us with the light of Thy pure day.

Thou art the life, by which alone we live,

And all our substance and our strength receive;

Sustain us by Thy faith and by Thy power,

And give us strength in every trying hour.

Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness,

No harshness hast Thou and no bitterness:

O grant to us the grace we find in Thee,

That we may dwell in perfect unity.

Our hope is in no other save in Thee;

Our faith is built upon Thy promise free;

Lord, give us peace, and make us calm and sure,

That in Thy strength we evermore endure.

Call to New Life

Each of us is part of a great constellation of souls, a great cloud of witnesses going back to the very beginning, to God’s creation of the world in love. It also goes forward into a future unknown, but one in which God’s love and justice will, in the end, lead to the restoration of all things. Let us pray to God for wholeness and peace in this life and beyond.

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. 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

The Lord is kind and merciful;  

Slow to anger and abounding with steadfast love.  

In the name of our brother, our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ,  

We are forgiven. We are free. Alleluia! Amen.  

Sharing of the Peace

A saint of the early church prayed,

“O Lord, you have made us for yourselves,

and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

Let us pray that we might rest in God and know 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 Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9

A reading from the Wisdom of Solomon, beginning at chapter 3, verse 1.

But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster

and their going from us to be their destruction,
but they are at peace.

For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.

Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;

like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.

In the time of their visitation they will shine forth
and will run like sparks through the stubble.

They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them forever.

Those who trust in him will understand truth,

and the faithful will abide with him in love,

because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,
and he watches over his elect.

Time for Young Disciples Rev. Pat Raube

Music: “Find Us Faithful”

Used by Permission. CCLI License #CSPL068847

Anthem Choir; Barbara Gannon, flute

“The Promised Land,” Stephen Caracciolo

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.  

On Jordan’s stormy banks I stand

And cast a wishful eye

To Canaan’s fair and happy land

Where my possessions lie.

I am bound for the promised land,

I’m bound for the promised land;

Oh, who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

Oh, the transporting rapturous scene

That rises to my sight!

Sweet fields arrayed in living green

And rivers of delight.

There generous fruits that never fail

On trees immortal grow;

There rocks and hills and brooks and vales

With milk and honey flow.

I am bound for the promised land,

I’m bound for the promised land;

Oh, who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

When shall I reach that happy place

And be forever blest?

When shall I see my Father’s face

And in his bosom rest?

I am bound for the promised land,

I’m bound for the promised land;

Oh, who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

Soon will the Lord my soul prepare

For joys beyond the skies,

Where never-ceasing pleasures roll

And praises never die.

I am bound for the promised land,

I’m bound for the promised land;

Oh, who will come and go with me?

I am bound for the promised land.

Scripture John 11:17-27; 32-44

A reading from the Gospel according to John, selected verses from chapter 11.

When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”

When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Response Holy Wisdom, Holy Word:

Thanks be to God!

Sermon “Grief and Glory” Rev. Pat Raube

Affirmation of Faith The Nicene Creed

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,

was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary

and became truly human.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,

who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Hymn # 515 W & R

“Hymn of Promise”

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.  

In the bulb there is a flower;
In the seed, an apple tree;
In cocoons, a hidden promise:
Butterflies will soon be free!
In the cold and snow of winter
There's a spring that waits to be,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.

There's a song in every silence,
Seeking word and melody;
There's a dawn in every darkness
Bringing hope to you and me.
From the past will come the future;
What it holds, a mystery,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.

In our end is our beginning;
In our time, infinity;
In our doubt there is believing;
In our life, eternity;
In our death, a resurrection;
At the last, a victory,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.

A Reading from John Donne’s “Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions”

The church is 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

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. 

Prayer Response  #489 W & R

“Lord, Listen to Your Children Praying,” Ken Medema

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.  

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us power, send us grace.

Call for Offering

* Doxology

“Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow,” Brian Wren  

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.    

Praise God from whom all blessings flow; 

Praise God, all creatures high and low. 

Praise God, in Jesus fully known: 

Creator, Word, and Spirit one. 

* Prayer of Dedication

The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper/ Prayers of the People

According to the Gospel of Luke,

when our risen Lord was at table with his disciples,

he took the bread, and blessed and broke it,

and gave it to them.

Then their eyes were opened

and they recognized him.

God is with us.

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!

O Lord our God, Creator and ruler of the universe,

we praise you for saints and martyrs, for the faithful in every age who have followed your Son and witnessed to his resurrection.

From every race and tongue, from every people and nation,

you have gathered them into your kingdom.

You have shown them the path of life

and filled them with the joy of your presence.

How glorious is your heavenly realm

where the multitude of your saints rejoice with Christ!

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:

Sanctus

“Holy, Holy, Holy Lord,” Marty Haugen

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

Holy, holy, holy Lord, 

God of power, God of might, 

Heaven and earth are filled with Your glory. 

Hosanna in the highest. 

Blessed is He who comes  

In the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest, 

Hosanna in the highest. 

You are holy, O God of majesty,

and blessed is Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord.

Sent to be our Savior, he took our flesh and dwelt among us,

full of grace and truth.

His words are true. His touch brings healing.

To all who follow him, he gives abundant life.

When evil sought to destroy him, and he lay in the darkness of death,

you raised him from the grave. He is our risen Lord forever!

The Story of the Supper

We give you thanks that the Lord Jesus,

on the night before he died, took bread, and after giving thanks to you,

he broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying:

Take, eat. This is my body, given for you.

Do this in remembrance of me.

In the same way he took the cup, saying:

This cup is the new covenant sealed in my blood,

shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.

Whenever you drink it, do this in remembrance of me.

According to his commandment:

We remember his life and death,

we proclaim his resurrection,

we await his coming in glory.

The Gracious Spirit

Gracious God, pour out your Holy Spirit upon us

and upon these your gifts of bread and the fruit of the vine,

that the bread we break and the cup we bless

may be the communion of the body and blood of Christ.

By your Spirit unite us with the living Christ,

and with all who are baptized in his name,

that we may be one in ministry in every place.

As this bread is Christ’s body for us,

send us out to be the body of Christ in the world.

The Communion

In life and in death we belong to you, our Alpha and Omega.

We thank you that you bring us together

across all time, in communion with Jesus the Lord.

The table is ready. All are welcome.

Music during Communion:

“We Remember You,” Joel Raney

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

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  

May God bless us. May God keep us in the Spirit’s care,

and lead our lives with love.

May Christ’s warm welcome shine from our hearts,

and Christ’s own peace prevail through this and every day,

till greater life shall call. Amen.

Postlude  Chris Bartlette

“With the Saints in Glory Shining,” Edward Broughton

Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE.     

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.