Suggested preparation for worshipDear Leura Family,

You may like to light a candle to represent the light of God among us even as we gather as a community scattered. (Don’t light the gas oven! That’s a different image altogether!)

You may like to prepare beforehand, music to be played as part of your act of worship:

1. As you begin the order of service – perhaps music which fills you with wonder 2. Music for Reflection – or bird sounds3. Hope-filled music - for the conclusion of our worship.

If there is another person sharing this liturgy with you:

One might act as liturgist reading aloud the plain textanother/others might respond with the text marked in bold italics.

You might take turns being liturgist and respondent.

Scripture readings could also be read in different voices.

The red text suggests other actions you might take within our worship experience.

There are a lot of words in this liturgy partly because the scripture readings are embedded within it.You may like to pace your worship slowly, even in sections over a few daysor return to sections during the week ahead.

The Bible translation I have embedded is Eugene Peterson’s translation The Message because hearing a less familiar translation sometimes opens up new insights.

If anyone wants to discuss elements of this service with me you may contact me as follows:

ihpearson@bigpond.com0403 062 253

Our liturgy commences on the next page.

I hope it helps your sense of worship this week.

Warm regards,Ian Pearson

Leura Uniting Church Lent 5

29 March, 2020

_________________________________________________________

Affirming Life

An Acknowledgement of CountryIt’s a great privilege and joy

to live here on land cared for by the Gundungurra and Darug people.We recognise and honour the elders, past, present and emerging

of this beautiful country that we call home and upon which we celebrate today.

GOD’S LIGHT IS ALWAYS AMONG US You might light a candle

MUSICAL PRELUDE You might play some wonder-filled music to prepare you for worship

We Gather in Praise of GodWE GATHER

Ring-a-ring o' roses,A pocket full of posies,A-tishoo! A-tishoo!We all fall down.

Though folklore scholars tell us the tradition is erroneous, this nursery rhyme has been associated for many of us with the Great Plague in 1665 England, or with earlier outbreaks of the Black Death.

Few people dispute that we find ourselves now with similar fears, terrors and social exclusions to those in earlier centuries.

For many, the extent of our present social distancing feels dystopian, surreal, apocalyptic.

I greatly missed our Leura Church worship together last Sunday. Thank you Stephen for providing us with resources to worship at home last week.

***

George Stuart, retired Uniting Church minister in Newcastle, has written the following hymn for this time of pandemic.

You may like to sing his words to the tune Forest Green which is the tune we sing to ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’ TiS 316

HYMN Certain of Uncertainty

In life with such uncertaintywe long to feel at peace;But with no proven guaranteewe feel our stress increase.When in the maze we grope each day,‘Confusion’ is our name;When change can ruin life we say,‘Please, let things stay the same.’

Sometimes our journey feeds our fear,can lead us to despair,But in these times we need to hearfrom Jesus and his care.He trusted ‘Love’ would find a wayto ease his troubled soul;He found that ‘Love’ would always say,‘My strength shall make you whole.’Disease, distress can take controland test our firm resolveto be a source that would console,

that helps our fears dissolve.In human ways we play our partwhen hearing Jesus’ call;he said ‘Fear not.’  He’s in our heartwhen helping those who fall.

We find our true humanitywhen ‘Love’ directs our course.Inspired by Jesus’ melodyof hope, with all its force;He is our guide when life is grim;He’s with us in our strife;We stride together. Trust in himwho came to bring us life.

We cannot see what lies ahead,it mostly is unknown;But ‘God in us’ shares every dread,we need not feel alone.Together we can help ‘Love’ grow;Together stand as one;Our human love can make it so;Our future can be won.

George Stuart March 19th, 2020, in response to the Coronavirus Pandemic. Used with permission.

LOCKDOWNYes there is fear.Yes there is isolation.Yes there is panic buying.Yes there is sickness.Yes there is even death. But,They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise you can hear the birds again.They say that after just a few weeks of quiet the sky is no longer thick with fumes but blue and grey and clear.They say that in the streets of Assisi people are singing to each other across the empty squares, keeping their windows open so that those who are alone may hear the sounds of family around them.They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.Today a young woman I knowis busy spreading fliers with her numberthrough the neighbourhood so that the elders may have someone to call on.Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples are preparing to welcome and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary.All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting.All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way.All over the world people are waking up to a new reality.

To how small we really are. To how little control we really have. To what really matters. To Love. So we pray and we remember that yes there is fear. But there does not have to be hate.Yes there is isolation. But there does not have to be loneliness.Yes there is panic buying. But there does not have to be meanness.Yes there is sickness. But there does not have to be disease of the soulYes there is even death. But there can always be a rebirth of love. Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.Today, breathe.Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic. The birds are singing again The sky is clearing, Spring is coming, And we are always encompassed by Love. Open the windows of your souland though you may not be able to touch across the empty square, Sing. Richard Hendrick alt., Irish Franciscan friar, in the Huffington Post 21/03/2020

A PRAYER FROM VULNERABILITYLet us pray.

Because you made the world,and intended it to be a good place,and called its people your children;because, when things seemed at their worst, you came in Christ to bring out the best in us; so, gracious God, we gladly say.

Goodness is stronger than evil, Love is stronger than hate, Light is stronger than darkness. Truth is stronger than lies.

Heralding Advent Service, Roseville-Lindfield-Killara Interchurch Fellowship, 2013

You may wish to stand

DOXOLOGY Sung or Said twice Tune TiS 715 Psalm 150.6 Traditional Czech folk melody

Everything that has breath, praise the Lord of hosts forever, praise the Lord.Please be seated

We Listen for word of God

JESUS’ CLOSEST FRIEND DIES John 11. 1-6

A man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. This was the same Mary who massaged the Lord’s feet with aromatic oils and then wiped them with her hair. It was her brother Lazarus who was sick. So the sisters sent word to Jesus, ‘Master, the one you love so very much is sick.’

When Jesus got the message, he said, ‘This sickness is not fatal. It will become an occasion to show God’s glory by glorifying God’s Son.’

Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, but oddly, when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed on where he was for two more days. After the two days, he said to his disciples, ‘Let’s go back to Judea.’

A PRAYER GROUNDING THE PASSAGELoving God,as we worship here,we join people throughout the worldreceiving news of sadness or disaster or pain right now.

May we all experience your touch where we hurt. Amen!

***

South Australian Lutheran lay man Robin Mann offers this hymn to us to his own tune ‘Lara.’I could not find a known alternative tune to this metre if you do not have a hymnbook at home.

HYMN TiS 689

Lord hear my praying, listen to me;you know there’s evil in what I see.I know I’m part of all that is wrong;Still won’t you hear my sorrowing song?

Children are crying, hungry for food, sick from diseases – God are you good?People are homeless, lost and alone;God, are you hiding? Where have you gone?

Why do the rich ones steal from the poor?Why do they build their weapons of war?How can you stand the torture and pain,hope disappearing, freedom in chains?

Jesus, remind us that you are foundwith those who cry, with those who are bound;where there is suffering, you will be there -help us to follow: Lord, hear my prayer.

Robin Mann 1949 –

JESUS’ LIFE IS THREATENED John 11. 7-10

After the two days, he said to his disciples, ‘Let’s go back to Judea.’

They said, ‘Rabbi, you can’t do that. The Jews are out to kill you, and you’re going back?’

Jesus replied, ‘Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in daylight doesn’t stumble because there’s plenty of light from the sun. Walking at night, he might very well stumble because he can’t see where he’s going.’

A PRAYER GROUNDING THE PASSAGESuffering God,today your people all over the planetmake their voices heard in both your Christian nameand your name in other religious traditions.

We all walk through minefields of dismay todayknowing you will be with us whatever comes.

Thank you for the courage you invite from us! Amen!

JESUS AFFIRMS LIFE. RIGHT NOW John 11. 11-27

Jesus then announced, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. I’m going to wake him up.’

The disciples said, ‘Master, if he’s gone to sleep, he’ll get a good rest and wake up feeling fine.’ Jesus was talking about death, while his disciples thought he was talking about taking a nap.

Then Jesus became explicit: ‘Lazarus has died. And I am glad for your sakes that I wasn’t there. You’re about to be given new grounds for believing. Now let’s go to him.’

That’s when Thomas, the one called the Twin, said to his companions, ‘Come on. We might as well die with him.’

When Jesus finally got there, he found Lazarus already four days dead. Bethany was near Jerusalem, only a couple of miles away, and many of the Jews were visiting Martha and Mary, sympathizing with them over their brother. Martha heard Jesus was coming and went out to meet him. Mary remained in the house.

Martha said, ‘Master, if you’d been here, my brother wouldn’t have died. Even now, I know that whatever you ask God he will give you.’

Jesus said, ‘Your brother will be raised up.’

Martha replied, ‘I know that he will be raised up in the resurrection at the end of time.

‘You don’t have to wait for the End. I am, right now, Resurrection and Life. The one who believes in me, even though he or she dies, will live. And everyone who lives believing in me does not ultimately die at all. Do you believe this?’

‘Yes, Master. All along I have believed that you are the Messiah, the Son of God who comes into the world.’

A PRAYER GROUNDING THE PASSAGEIn the middle of Martha’s griefshe proclaimed you as Saviour.

Thank you for faith in hard times. Amen!A CONTEMPORARY WITNESS ‘Life in the midst of Apocalypse’

Available in a separate document attached with this liturgy

MUSIC FOR REFLECTION Play your reflective music here

We Respond to God’s Character of LoveLENT IN A TIME OF PANDEMICIn this Lenten time of pandemic:

We seek to fast from hugging and handshaking and to feast on bowing and waving.

We seek to fast from hoarding food and toilet paper and to feast on the food in the back of our pantries.

We seek to fast from gathering physically and to feast on communing virtually.

We seek to fast from obsessing about the future and to feast on the everyday wonders of the present.

We seek to fast from casting blame for our troubles and to feast on showing compassion for the most vulnerable.

We seek to fast on being scared and to feast on getting prepared.

We seek to fast from fear and to feast on the perfect Love that casts it out.

Jim Burklo alt., Musings blog 19/3/20

JESUS WEEPSJohn 11. 28-35

Martha went to her sister Mary and whispered in her ear, ‘The Teacher is here and is asking for you.’

The moment she heard that, Mary jumped up and ran out to him. Jesus had not yet entered the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When her sympathising Jewish friends saw Mary run off, they followed her, thinking she was on her way to the tomb to weep there. Mary came to where Jesus was waiting and fell at his feet, saying, ‘Master, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.’

When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him. He said, ‘Where did you put him?’

‘Master, come and see,’ they said. Now Jesus wept.

A PRAYER GROUNDING THE PASSAGEGracious God,it is often when we have ‘cried our eyes out’that you are able to enter our empty heartsand offer your peace.

As Jesus wept openly, may we not be ashamed or embarrassed about our tears.

May we open our hearts to you and to all who grieve. Amen!

JESUS INVITES LAZARUS TO LIVE John 11. 37 - 44

Others among them said, ‘Well, if he loved Lazarus so much, why didn’t he do something to keep him from dying? After all, he opened the eyes of a blind man.’

Then Jesus, the anger again welling up within him, arrived at the tomb. It was a simple cave in the hillside with a slab of stone laid against it. Jesus ordered, ‘Remove the stone.’

The sister of the dead man, Martha, said, ‘But Master, by this time there’s a stench. He’s been dead four days!’

Jesus looked her in the eye. ‘Didn’t I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’

Then, to the others, ‘Go on, take away the stone.’

They removed the stone. Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, ‘Father, I’m grateful that you have listened to me. I know you always do listen, but on account of this crowd standing here I’ve spoken so that they might believe that you sent me.’

Then he shouted, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ And he came out, a cadaver, wrapped from head to toe, and with a kerchief over his face.

Jesus told them, ‘Unwrap him and let him loose.’

A PRAYER GROUNDING THE PASSAGEAmazing God,against all the odds, you are with us throughout our lives!

Amazing God, we thank you for your breath of life breathed every moment… … including this one… from your lips. Amen!

HYMN Tune Slane (2) Tis 613

Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy, whose trust, ever childlike, no cares could destroy: be there at our waking, and give us, we pray, your bliss in our hearts, Lord, at the break of the day. 

Lord of all eagerness, Lord of all faith, whose strong hands were skilled at the plane and the lathe: be there at our labours, and give us, we pray, your strength in our hearts, Lord, at the noon of the day. 

Lord of all kindliness, Lord of all grace, your hands swift to welcome, your arms to embrace: be there at our homing, and give us, we pray, your love in our hearts, Lord, at the eve of the day. 

Lord of all gentleness, Lord of all calm, whose voice is contentment, whose presence is balm: 

be there at our sleeping, and give us, we pray, your peace in our hearts, Lord, at the end of the day. 

Joyce Placzek (‘Jan Struther’) 1901-53

OUR PRAYERS OF LONGING‘Out of the depths, I cry to you, O Lord.’ Psalm 130:1

This week, our heads and hearts have been filled with so many thoughts, worries and questions about our world, our country, our community, our family and friends, and ourselves.

Life as we have known it is changing fast, every day. Even those who generally don’t feel threatened by change, are challenged.

But in these days of uncertainty we can cling to the promise God gave us through the prophet Malachi – “I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I never change.” And we have the reassurance we find in that old chorus based on the verse in Hebrews – “Yesterday, today and forever, Jesus is the same. All may change but Jesus never, glory to His Name”.

So, it is with confidence, we can bring our prayers to You, our loving and unchanging God.

We are very conscious at this time of those who are fighting the effects of COVID-19, and pray that you will give them strength and healing. We thank you for medical teams and health workers, many over-stretched, who care for the critically ill, and pray that you will keep them safe, and that there will be time to rest.

We pray for all people at the moment, who have concerns about their loved ones, please give them your peace.

We pray for government leaders and medical experts, that they will discern the right course ahead for all people. And we ask that all may heed their directions and advice so the escalation of numbers of those becoming ill around the world is decreased, and that there is a fair distribution of food, goods and medication for everyone. We pray for funding to be readily available to expedite the development of the much needed vaccine against COVID-19.

We especially bring before you, Lord, people most vulnerable to infection – older folk, the homeless and those in crowded refugees camps around the world, where social isolation and easy access to soap and water is at the least, difficult, and for many, is impossible.

We pray for the thousands who have had to close their business or who have lost their current employment, and need to seek government assistance. We pray that the response to critical financial needs will come as quickly as possible.

The welfare of our children and grand children is important to us, and pray for them as they struggle to understand why their world has been turned upside down. We pray for all those who are now beginning to study at home. We pray for overworked teachers who are scrambling to produce online lessons, and for parents who now have an added role to play in supervising their children’s education.

And, Lord, there are still other ongoing concerns on our hearts as well. We know that the ongoing effects of the recent Australian bushfires have not gone away, and circumstances will be made more difficult for many by the present medical crisis. There are still farmers in western NSW who are still

battling drought. We continue to offer our prayers for them all, that the assistance they need will not be diminished.

We pray for our church here, and in many other places, and thank you for all who are exploring and working to find new ways of ‘doing church’, which will nourish, sustain, bless and bring comfort through this trying time. We especially think of our own church family. Please help us to be even more mindful and caring of each other at a time when we cannot physically gather together. As we stay separate in our homes, let us remember your comforting presence is always with us, and your love surrounds us all.

Lord, perhaps many of us at present, feel like Ezekiel did in our readings this week, we are in a valley of dried bones. But let us remember how you said to Ezekiel: “I the Lord God, will put breath in you, and once again, you will live”.

We thank you for your life-giving breath within us and for your unchanging love. Please strengthen us to face whatever challenges lie ahead. Open our hearts to receive the hope you bring us –hope which casts out fear.

In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen Lorraine White

WE OFFER OUR GIFTS IN GRATEFULNESS TO GODOur church community still has people’s needs to meet and bills to pay even in our absence from our worship together. Some people give direct in order to cover their absences from our community worship. I invite you to join me in sending a cheque of offering to Kerry made out to Leura Uniting Church in order to sustain our community now and into the future.

AN OFFERING PRAYERMay the emptiness of our Leura Church sanctuary, the vivid blue of a plane-less sky the silence of an empty concert hall be our sacred offering, meagre gifts of absence from wise and less wise-hearted people.  

Please God let our ceasing be enough.  Let our hospital beds be enough. Let our slow awakening to the interconnectedness of every living being be enough

Let a pillar of stillness rest at the entrance to every home and prison. Let this plague pass over us. 

And let us be blessings to others through our casseroles left at the door, our phone calls offered in warmth and our emails of care. Amen.THE PEACE The peace of the Lord be always with you. And also with you.

We Go Out to Serve God in the World COMMISSIONING & BLESSINGFriends,Fast from self-concern: feast on compassion for others.Fast from personal anxiety: feast on eternal truth.Fast from discouragements: feast on hope.Fast from facts that depress: feast on verities that uplift.

Fast from lethargy: feast on enthusiasm.Fast from thoughts that weaken: feast on promises that inspire.Fast from shadows of sorrow: feast on sunlight of serenity.Fast from idle gossip: feast on purposeful silence.

As we walk that path we will receive the Living Water from Jesus and the Spirit will be with us on the hills and in the valleys. It is in God that we place our trust! Amen.

Pitt St Liturgy alt. Lent 5 2011

***

Let us sing in words written by Western Australian Anglican priest Elizabeth Smith….

RECESSIONAL HYMN TiS 687 Tune Camberwell Same tune as ‘At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow’

God gives us a future,daring us to gointo dreams and dangerson a path unknown.we will face tomorrowin the Spirit’s power,we will let God change us,for new life starts now.

We must leave behind ussins of yesterday,for God’s new beginningis a better way.Fear and doubt and habitmust not hold us back:God gives hope, and insight,and the strength we lack.

Holy Spirit, teach ushow to read the signs,how to meet the challengeof our troubled times.Love us into action,stir us into prayer,til we choose God’s life, andfind our future there.

Elizabeth J, Smith.

MUSICAL POSTLUDE You might play some uplifting music to inspire you for the week ahead

Liturgy Curator & Contemporary witnesser - Ian Pearson

Parts of this liturgy are enlarged by an idea in The Whole People of God, Year A, 1999 Adult Study March 21