Amistad Sunday POINTS TO PONDER

Transcription

1 Faith United Church of Christ An inclusive spiritual family shaping a better you for creating a better world. A place to make a difference. March 19, rd Sunday in Lent Sacred Fellowship 10:45 a.m. We are delighted that you are here today! We hope you will find us an affirming, uplifting, and committed family of faith. Here we work to make everyone, without any exceptions, to feel accepted, inspired, and encouraged in their spiritual journey. In dialogue, we seek to understand. In encouragement, we seek to heal. In all things we yearn to live by love, for peace, with joy. This is a place where your intellect will be challenged, your heart will be nurtured, and your spirit refreshed. Varying beliefs are expressed openly and freely, and your doubts will not be suppressed. We trust that we are all, every person and part of creation, continuing to be blessed by God s grace; and that in community we can help each other to see this grace alive in our lives and relationships. We hope to share our gifts with you, even as we pray that you will want to share your gifts with us. Whoever you are and wherever you may be in your life s journey, we invite you to be a part of our lives and our spiritual home. Welcome! Amistad Sunday POINTS TO PONDER As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. Abraham Lincoln The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners. --- Isaiah 61:1 For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace. They acted shamefully, they committed abomination; yet they were not ashamed, they did not know how to blush. --- Jeremiah 6:13-15c We all have desires. Yet, uncontrolled desires lead us to want more than we need, want more than others have, and want for the sake of having. This greed leads us to justify doing things that we would call evil if another did them sometimes even to the point where we don t see them as evil when others like us do them. When we profit at another s expense, we violate the Golden Rule to treat others as we would want to be treated. Those who enslaved others would not have wanted to be treated in like manner, but they justified their greed in various ways even claiming it was for the good of society. They valued their own freedom, but not that of others. It is like those in Jeremiah s day who lived in moral contradiction as they spoke of their own peace while others were oppressed or were in war. Jeremiah saw them as those without conscience: those who were not ashamed and did not know how to blush. In 1839, the year the Amistad slaves were captured, many in Europe and in America did not know how to blush at their treatment of other people. In reading the short passage from Jeremiah above, ask yourselves, Are there things going on today in our nation and in our world in which we need to learn to blush?...in which we need to stand up for justice? Do we need to promote racial understanding and reconciliation? Do we need to come to the aid of refugees and others oppressed? Do we need to create income equality when some are exorbitantly wealthy and others live in poverty? Do we need to promote interreligious respect, and denounce Islamophobia? Do we need to build bridges rather than walls, provide aid rather than war? Are we willing to live by the Golden Rule individually, and as a nation? Rev. Bret S. Myers, 3/8/2007 I can never join with my voice in the toast which I see in the papers attributed to one of our gallant naval heroes. I cannot ask of heaven success, even for my country, in a cause where she should be in the wrong. Fiat justitia, pereat coelum. My toast would be, may our country always be successful, but whether successful or otherwise, always right. John Quincy Adams Letter to John Adams (1 August 1816), referring to the popular phrase "My Country, Right or Wrong!" based upon Stephen Decatur s famous statement, "Our Country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right, but our country, right or wrong." The Latin phrase is one that can be translated as: "Let justice be done, though heaven perish".

2 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Isaiah 58:6-7 We are in a time when need to promote racial understanding and reconciliation. We need to come to the aid of refugees and others oppressed. We need to create income equality given some are exorbitantly wealthy while others live in poverty. We need healthcare to be a right for all people. We need to promote interreligious respect, and denounce Islamophobia. We need to build bridges rather than walls, provide aid rather than war. We need to see ourselves as people of God and citizens of the world, not as patriots. We need to live by the Golden Rule individually, and as a nation else our proclaimed values are meaningless. Rev. Bret S. Myers, 3/9/2016 CALLED TOGETHER AS SPIRITUAL FAMILY Welcome and Announcements Please sign the registration pads at the ends of the pews on the center aisle. We ask that you please shut off cell phones and practice quietness during the service. Please join us for fellowship and refreshments after the worship in Romig Hall (lower level of elevator or stairs). Prelude * = You are invited to stand as you are able Austen Auriemma, drums Welcoming the Light of Love in Our Midst (acolytes light altar candles) We prepare ourselves for communing with the sacred as love s light is brought into our awareness. The light of love burns within and among each of us, and we carry that light into our sanctuary; visually reminding us of the image of the divine that lives in our hearts, minds, and souls and that we nourish through our faith-filled fellowship. Affirming God s Presence in Us All You Matter! Sharing Christ s Peace As a sign of our reconciliation with God and one another, greet and welcome those around you and share the peace of Christ. * Hymn of Freedom s Light We Are Marching* in the Light of God #526 *vs. 1: Marching *vs. 2: Singing *vs. 3: Dancing *Centering Our Souls Prayer of Advocates for Others O God who creates and parents all your children, we thank you for making us all brothers and sisters of one another. No matter what our race, ethnicity, sexual identity, language, or other distinguishing characteristics we may have, we are all your children and siblings to each other. O God who clothes us in skins of many colors, we pray that you will help us to see the beauty of persons of every color. In seeing the beauty of every person, we vow to treat each person with respect, kindness, and consideration. Let us not judge one another as having greater or lesser worth, but see within us all the dignity of your image. Forbid that we should witness another suffer injustice while we stand back and watch, fearing what may happen to us if we intervene. Grant us the courage and the honor to act on the behalf of justice for people all over the earth, reminding ourselves that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Forgive us for our past omissions to correct injustice, and spark our consciences to lead us to lives of love in which we consider the interests and rights of others as equal to our own even as you did for our spiritual ancestors whose moral convictions ended up liberating the Amistad captives. Inspire us to do what is right rather than what is most prudent to do that which nurtures and sustains a virtuous character and a spiritual serenity within ourselves because of our integrity in living in accordance with your will. Establish within our hearts the desire to harbor hope, the will to follow faith, the need to practice peace, the commitment to engender justice, and the resolve to create compassion. May it be so. Our Stories of Random Acts of Kindness and Intentional Deeds of Compassion WE LISTEN FOR THE SACRED IN THE MIDST OF OUR LIVES Choral Anthem "We Are Singing, for the Lord Is Our Light" arr. Hal Hopson A Time for All God s Children Following the Children s Chat, the nursery is available for infants and toddlers under 4 years. The nursery is located through the front door to the right, and up the steps past the offices. Prayers Sharing Our Joys and Concerns / Lighting Candles of Hope Silent Meditation: The Prayers of the People Pastoral Prayer Collective Prayer for Amistad Sunday Read in unison Out of the depths we cry to you, O God, because the injustice in our world is too much to behold and bear. We cry out for those who are abused, enslaved, raped and treated as less than your children. We cry out for our brothers and sisters who are weak, exploited, suffering and upon whom

3 unspeakable acts of violence are committed daily. We cry out to you for the children of our world who go hungry for no reason at all when we possess the means to feed them all. Today, we cry out to you to move us from despair about the challenges in our lives and world and to empower us to bring your Divine love to all in need. O God, in the words of the Psalmist hear our voices; be attentive to our prayers. On this day when we commemorate the Amistad Event and the 53 captives held aboard it... we pause to give you thanks for their faith, legacy and inspiration. We remember also the faithful believers of our church who took up the Amistad cause and fought to secure the inalienable rights that are endowed by you. And yet, O God we know that we cannot rest on remembering because you call upon each and every one of us to act to make a difference in our world today. If we are to respond to the challenges of our world we need you to move us with your Holy Spirit, the same spirit that charged the Amistad captives to stand up for the freedom that was rightly theirs. God, we are your people and this is your church; you challenge us to act as your presence in this world: in a world groping in the night of despair you've given to your church the Light of hope to shine. In a world where people are living behind walls that divide and doors that are locked you've given your church the Keys to the Kingdom to unlock those doors. God, we give you thanks for the gift of Christ Jesus, whose love and compassion gives us strength for today and hope for tomorrow and in whose name we lift this prayer. Amen Copyright 2008 Local Church Ministries, Worship and Education Ministry Team, United Church of Christ, 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, OH Permission granted to reproduce or adapt this material for use in services of worship or church education. All publishing rights reserved. We Cannot Rest on Remembering was written by the Rev. Dr. Bernard R. Wilson, Senior Minister of Norfield Congregational Church, United Church of Christ of Weston, Connecticut. *Hymn for Racial Justice & Reconciliation Tune: Finlandia O God, We Bear the Imprint of Your Face Words: Bruce Neswick, 1994; Music: Shirley Erena Murray, 1981; rev O God, we bear the imprint of your face The colors of our skin are your design And what we have of beauty in our race as man or woman, you alone define Who stretched a living fabric on our frame And gave to each a language and a name. Where we are torn and pulled apart by hate because our race, our skin is not the same While we are judged unequal by the state and victims made because we own our name Humanity reduced to little worth dishonored is your living face on earth. O God, we share the image of the One whose flesh and blood are ours, whatever skin In Christ s humanity we find our own and in your family our proper kin Jesus our brother we still crucify love is the language we must learn, or die. An Amistad Dramatic Reading What God Requires (Copyright Worship and Education Ministries Team, Local Church Ministries, UCC, Cleveland.) Message Sengbe Pieh: A Free Man s Story of Slavery *Hymn for Releasing the Captives Amistad Tune: National Hymn Words to the hymn Amistad 2000 by Ned W. Edwards, Jr., Farmington, CT. All rights reserved. Music: George Warren, God of the Mendi, stolen from their home, Bound, beaten, chained, their futures bought and sold; In fear they rose and claimed their liberty. Great God of ours, you set the captives free. God of the faithful, offering their hands, Building a home and giving of their land; Bound by desire of friendship to impart. Great God of ours, you bind the broken heart. God of the ship that sails again today, Justice and hope are cargo on its way. Caught on the wind, your Spirit as its guide. Great God of ours, may you be glorified. God of the church, whose work is not yet done; Grant your desire, that we may all be one. In this abode, your covenant we raise, Great God of ours, in righteousness and praise. God of all worlds, we put our trust in you, Seeking to love as Christ would have us do; Open our hearts to stranger and to guest That we may be your oaks of righteousness. WE DEDICATE OURSELVES TO GOD S SERVICE THROUGH FAITHFULNESS Giving of Our Tithes and Offerings Offertory Organ Improvisations *Song of Dedication Tune: Old Hundredth; p. 7 Let Peace and Love live in our soul Till all creation is made whole May truth and justice ever reign

4 And sweet compassion heal all pain. *Unison Prayer of Dedication O God, whose coming was tender and mild, but whose presence is empowering and passionate: We are thankful for the hope you inspire in our world where poverty is painful and loving-kindness is lacking. Jolt us with justice that the world s prayers for peace may be answered. Jostle us with generosity that we may know the joy of giving. In this season of Lent, enter into our hearts that hope may arise within us to expect that which has been promised: that nourishment will be provided for the hungry...that comfort will call upon the suffering...that freedom will ensue for the imprisoned...that justice will be imparted to the persecuted...that compassion will nurture the oppressed...that peace will pacify the violent...and that love will live in the midst of all peoples and creatures that you have declared good. May this gift of hope that you give to us be passed on to others by how we give of ourselves through our time, talents, tithes, and offerings. Blessings be. *Encouragement for the Journey A Creole blessing from Sierra Leone (home of the Mende) May God grant you a long life, a well body, and a cool heart (peace). *Response for Living in Peace (see insert) *Postlude Austen Auriemma, drums Oh, Freedom! *The Light of Love Goes into the World Love s light is not extinguished from our worship, but is transferred from the flame of the candles to the passion in our hearts that we may go forth to let the light of love shine through us as we go to serve in the world! WE GO FORTH AS PEACEMAKERS TO CREATE JUSTICE FOR ALL Our worship is fulfilled, and our purpose is confirmed, through our service as God s stewards to the world and all creation. Use the blessings God has given you as you share the joy in your heart, the wisdom in your mind, the love in your spirit, and the peace in your soul. Thank you for sharing sacred fellowship with us. Faith UCC is an open and affirming church, embracing diversity in our congregation and community, and affirming the dignity and worth of every person. We are an inclusive community of faith that celebrates God's presence through worship and the sharing of God's word. We welcome all persons into the full life and ministry of the church, regardless of race, ethnic background, gender identity, sexual orientation, capability, or circumstance of life. Our Ministry Ministers All the Congregation Pastor Rev. Bret Myers Ushers Mary Jane Wild Trustee Liturgist Tina Aumiller, Marilyn Morrisson Children s Message Acolyte Nursery Fellowship Martha Thompson Church Staff Custodian Scott Luzier Church School Coordinator - Barbara Chellman Choir Director Colin Ruffer Organist Mark Ferraguto Administrative Assistant - Jeff Stormer Worship Leader for Today: Tina Aumiller 2nd Dramatic Reader: Marilyn Morrisson Other Participants for Today:??? The liturgies for this morning s worship, along with the Song of Dedication, were written by Rev. Bret S. Myers except where otherwise noted. Welcome to all first-time (and returning) guests to Faith UCC! We would like to get to know you and for you to get to know us. Join us after worship for coffee and conversation. There is free parking on Sundays at the meters and at the McAllister & Pugh Street parking garages so, we hope you ll worship with us again next Sunday! Electronic Giving Options: During the offering time in the service, you may place your offerings on the plates the ushers will bring around. If you prefer to give electronically simply scan the QR code with your smart phone to be directed to our online donation page March Special Offering One Great Hour of Sharing One Great Hour is a Christian effort to empower, provide water, supply food, and give relief from disasters. Learn more at: Make checks payable to Faith UCC with OGHS noted in the memo line, or use the special envelope on Sunday, March 26 th.

5 March 26 Fourth Sunday in Lent April 2 Fifth Sunday in Lent April 4 Trustees Meeting, the Merchant s April 9 Palm Sunday/Sixth Sunday in Lent April 13 Maundy Thursday, Worship Service 7PM April 14 Good Friday, Ecumenical Services State College Presbyterian Church April 16 Easter Get In Touch with Us! Faith United Church of Christ 300 E. College Avenue State College, PA Tel: (814) Websites: facebook.com/scfaithucc Church Office faithucc@comcast.net Church Office Hours: 9:30 a.m. 1:30 p.m. Pastor s revbmyers@yahoo.com Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Fridays Please make an appointment with Rev. Myers if you would like to meet with the pastor. You may call the church office, or his cell at Prayers for healing and wholeness: Linda Merchant, Susan Meyer, Lisa B. (JoAnn s daughter), Brandon G., Lisa Neidigh, Bunnie Hartswick, Katelynn Wilson, the Family of Jean Dreese, Darlene Ripka, April S., AJ, Randy Brown (Aimee s Dad), Sheila W., the Parrish Family, Robert Zupp (Eileen Pfaff s nephew), Ruth Tressler, Stephen Pelletier, Kathie Reed (Seann's Mom)

6 Don't miss the latest webinar series led by Andy Lang, executive director of the Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ. This webinar is for ONA churches seeking new ways to revive, strengthen and expand their ONA commitment. Participants will learn best practices for ONA church growth--including marketing, communications, advocacy, and personal evangelism. The webinar is offered at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 21. Contact ed@openandaffirming.org for more information. Life After Loss Support Group St. John s UCC 218 N. Church Street, Boalsburg A six-week educational support group for anyone experiencing a loss through death Sessions will be held from 5:30 8:00 pm on the following Sundays in 2017: March 5 March 12 March 19 March 26 April 2 April 9 Participants are encouraged to attend all six classes to receive the most benefit. If you must miss a session due to a prior commitment, please still consider attending. A light supper will be provided. There is no charge for the classes. Register by calling the Boalsburg church office at Nourishment for the Journey The Africans were captured while going about their lives in Mendeland (present day Sierra Leone). They were then taken illegally to Cuba on a slave ship. They were given Spanish names so they would be classified as Ladinos rather than Bozales. Ladinos were resident slaves before 1820 (when the treaty to suppress the African slave trade went into effect). Bozales were slaves illegally imported after They were therefore not slaves, but captives. Fifty-three of them were sold to two Spaniards, who were then transporting them on the Amistad to another part of Cuba to work on plantations. After they had gained control of the schooner, they were captured and jailed in Connecticut. One of the arguments used by former U.S. President John Quincy Adams before the Supreme Court to help win the Africans freedom was that the captives were justified in their actions to gain their freedom. Jesus echoed Isaiah in proclaiming release to the captives. Many of our ancestors in the faith helped slaves to freedom via the Underground Railroad, and supported and defended the Amistad captives, out of a profound moral imperative, rooted in their own deeply held experience of God and the Gospel of grace. The Abolitionists responded to the challenge of Isaiah and Jesus, not only to proclaim release to the captives, but to gain it. They believed in grace, so they knew that social and political transformation was possible. As the abolitionist Wendell Phillips declared: My friends, if we never free a slave, we have at least freed ourselves in the effort to emancipate our brothers. The freeing of the Amistad captives proved a turning point not only for the abolitionist cause, but also a defining moment for the Congregational Church (one of the four denominations that merged in 1957 to form the United Church of Christ) in defining its commitment to seek justice for all. ********** P.S. Don t forget to continue your Random/Intentional Acts of Kindness / Intentional Deeds of Compassion this week and throughout Lent! I m looking forward to hearing your stories! The Women s Guild will meet March 27 th. Contact Edna Bicehouse for details. First IICC Coffee Hour at Webster s Bookstore & Café! Tomorrow, March 20, 6:30-8:00 pm Suggested Discussion Topic: Does anything need to change? (e.g., What small or large change needs to happen in your life? In our country or in the world? In our interfaith activities? Does external change require internal change as well? Which comes first?) The Hymn Amistad : The hymn text, inspired by Isaiah 61 and Jesus' fulfillment of that scripture, recounts the uprising on the Amistad, the experience of the Mende in Farmington, CT, the building of the present day Freedom Schooner, and the hope for the continued work toward justice and equality by the church of Jesus Christ. The text is wedded to the tune National Hymn because of its power, dignity and the fact that it was composed for the hymn text "God of Our Fathers, Whose Almighty Hand" (Daniel Crane Roberts, ), which was written to serve New York City s centennial celebration of the adoption of the Constitution of the United States in Our Constitution allowed the Mende to be set free despite the will of the governing officials at the time, allowing justice to prevail. A version of this hymn was used to dedicate the Amistad Chapel in the national offices of the United Church of Christ in Cleveland in May 2000.

7 A Just Peace Church The Just Peace Church vision is a hallmark of United Church of Christ theological identity. For nearly two decades, the Just Peace Church program has been a grassroots movement of UCC congregations committed to corporately naming and boldly proclaiming a public identity as a justicedoing, peace-seeking church. The movement traces its history to the 1985 General Synod, when a Just Peace Church Pronouncement called upon all settings of the UCC to be a Just Peace Church, underscoring the words of Dr. Robert V. Moss, the second president of the UCC, who wrote in 1971, "We now need to put as much effort into defining a just peace as we have done in the past in defining a just war." The General Synod defined "just peace" as the interrelation of friendship, justice, and common security from violence. The pronouncement called the church to a vision of shalom rooted in peace with justice and placed the UCC General Synod in opposition to the institution of war. Over the years, the Just Peace Church identity has become an important symbol for many of our congregations, as both a means of shaping congregational identity and as a theological framework for doing justice-based theological reflection. For many Just Peace congregations, this identity has helped to underscore their ministries of direct service, legislative advocacy, and courageous witness. The approach has differed from place to place: Some became immersed in anti-war and anti-militarism issues, while some focused their energies on U.S. policies affecting central America. Others strengthened their multi-racial, multicultural witness. Some developed neighborhood ministries, while others translated their just-peace identity to be a fitting starting place for eventually becoming "Open and Affirming" or "Whole Earth" churches. Justice and Witness Ministries is committed to a revitalized Just Peace Church movement, wherein congregations will be empowered and resourced to create an even stronger justice and peace witness for decades to come. In coming months, we hope you will be hearing more about the Just Peace movement in the UCC as conversations expand and deepen in various settings around our church. What does it mean to be a Just Peace Church in times like these? This is the question we have been asking ourselves and others. Your responses are most helpful in shaping the new directions of our collective movement. See more at: SITTING FOR PEACE Saturday, March 25, 6:30 pm RSVP if you wish to participate in body or in spirit, to Shih-In Ma: sittingtogether2@gmail.com Come create and share a space of Love, Peace and Silence As before, we ll gather with a vegetarian potluck at 6:30 pm. We ll sit together in stillness and silence from 8:00 until about 8:40. We welcome diversity here so please do whatever silent-still practice you choose. Then we ll continue nourishing our bodies and our hearts after the sit :-) If you can t come, please sit with us in spirit from 8:00 pm to about 8:40! If you RSVP, please let me know your 1-3 word intention/dedication/prayer for the energy of our gathering. I will send you the readings in advance and will presence you by name and intention as we start. When you join, it s palpable. The Caring Network What is the Caring Network and what do the Caring Leaders do? We are very fortunate to have a group of nine Caring Leaders (volunteers) who are friends and members at Faith Church. They are: Edna Bicehouse, Jane Childs, Jean Frank, Sue Doran, Rev. Ernie Hawk, June Irvin, Mary Jane Wild, and Jim and Sally Welsh. Each Caring Leader has a list of people from the church with whom they keep in contact. Our main question is: how do you want to be cared for? Please let your Caring Leader know if you have a prayer request or if you need help or support in some way. If you have any questions please call me at or me: sandy99@onemain.com. Join us for State College s second annual Palm Sunday Peace Walk! The Peace Walk is a participatory community event focused on bringing together our diverse community to acknowledge ways we work for peace by serving the people Jesus called us to serve; the poor, the sick, the isolated, the downtrodden and imprisoned. This 1 mile walk starting at 3pm on Sunday, April 9th will begin at University Baptist & Brethren Church and visit five stops along the way to hear voices of peace from our community and pray for peace and healing in our divided world. We will end at St. Paul s United Methodist Church for a simple soup meal together. All are welcome to participate in this walk regardless of faith tradition.