PSParish Support Pack

PSParish Support Pack ALL SAINTS CONTENTS Liturgy of Rememrance and Baptism Page 2. Bible Readings Page 4. Psalm and Hymns Page 5. Prayers Page 6. Meditation Page 7. Primary Assembly / Childrenʼs address Page 8. Secondary Assembly Page 9. churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 1

LITURGY OF REMEMBRANCE AND BAPTISM GREETING Grace to you and peace from God who is, and was, and is to come. Amen. And from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and ruler of kings on earth. Amen. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen. THE REMEMBRANCE OF THE SAINTS THE HYMN: "For All The Saints" (vs. 1, 2, 3) The grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. And also with you. When we were baptized in Christ Jesus, we were baptized into His death. We were buried, therefore, with Him by Baptism unto death, so that as Christ was raised from he dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live a new life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His. Almighty God, those who die in the Lord still live with you in joy and blessedness. We give you thanks for the grace you have bestowed upon your saints who have finished their life in faith and now rest from their labors. Amen. These saints of insert name of parish, who have joined the Church Triumphant, are remembered as the bell tolls the joy of Jesus' triumph over death: Name those parishioners who have died during the previous year. When we were baptized into Christ Jesus, we were baptized into His death so that as He was raised from the dead, we too might live a new life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His. Amen. THE HYMN: "For All The Saints" (vs. 4, 5) When we were Baptized into Jesus Christ, we were born anew to a living Hope. By water and the Word we were united to the Church, the community of saints on earth. God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we give you thanks for freeing your sons and daughters from the power of sin and for raising us up to new life. Bless the saints of insert name of parish as we seek to live in the light of your grace, and bring us to the full joy of your salvation in Jesus Christ. Amen. Bless these saints who have been added to your earthly community at insert name of parish by the waters of Baptism: Insert names of those who have been baptised over the past year. When we were baptized into Christ Jesus, we were baptized into His death so that as He was raised from the dead, we too might live a new life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His. churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 2

The Lord be with you And also with you. Let us pray. Gracious Lord, through water and the Spirit you have made us your own. As you brought us to new life, daily increase in us the gifts of your grace: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence. Grant us your grace so that we can follow in faith where you have led the way, so that at length we may fall asleep peacefully in you and wake into your likeness; to you, the author and giver of all life, be all honour and glory now and forever. Amen. When we were baptized into Jesus Christ, we were born anew to a living Hope. By water and the Word we were united to the Church, the community of saints on earth. churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 3

BIBLE READINGS Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14 I, John, saw another angel ascend from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God upon their foreheads." And I heard the number of the sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand sealed, out of every tribe of the sons of Israel. After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb!" And all the angels stood round the throne and round the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God for ever and ever! Amen." Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, "Who are these, clothed in white robes, and whence have they come?" I said to him, "Sir, you know." And he said to me, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 1 John 3:1-3 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Beloved, we are God's children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And every one who thus hopes in Him purifies Himself as He is pure. Matthew 5: 1-12 When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and when He sat down His disciples came to Him. And He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven. Also: Wisdom 3: 1-9 Isaiah 25: 6-9 Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 44: 1-10, 13-14 Ecclesiasticus 2: (1-6) 7-11 Revelation 7: 2-4, 9-17 Revelation 21: 1-6a churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 4

PSALM AND HYMNS PSALM 24 - NRSV The earth is the LORD's and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully. They will receive blessing from the LORD, and vindication from the God of their salvation. Such is the company of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. Who is the King of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. [Se'lah] - NRSV HYMNS For all the Saints When the Saints go marching in Rejoice in Godʼs Saints Ye Servants of God The Church of Christ, in Every Age O Church of God, United Come, Sinners, to the Gospel Feast See the Morning Sun Arising This Is the Feast of Victory Marching to Zion Come, We Who Love the Lord Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones Christ the Victorious Forward Through the Ages Shall We Gather at the River churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 5

PRAYERS Collect from the Prayer Book Almighty God, who hast knit together thine elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of Your Son, Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that thou hast prepared for those who unfeignedly love thee; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen Book of Common Prayer, 1979 Prayer of Remembrance Living God, in whom there is no shadow or change, we thank you for the gift of life eternal, and for all those who having served you well, now rest from their labours. We thank you for all the saints remembered and forgotten, for those dear souls most precious to us. Today we give thanks for those who during the last twelve months have died and entered into glory. We bless you for their life and love, and rejoice for them all is well, and all manner of things will be well. God of Jesus and our God, mindful of all those choice souls who have gone on ahead of us, teach us, and each twenty-first century disciple of every race and place, to follow their example to the best of our ability: to feed the poor in body or spirit, to support and comfort the mourners and the repentant, to encourage the meek and stand with them in crises, to affirm those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, to cherish and learn from the merciful, to be humbled by, and stand with, the peacemakers. Let us clearly recognize what it means to be called the children of God, and to know we are to be your saints neither by our own inclination nor in our own strength but simply by the call and the healing holiness of Christ Jesus our Saviour. Amen! Bruce Prewer, Uniting Church of Australia Prayer for our community Lord God, you have taught us that we are members of one another and that none of us lives to himself alone: we thank you for the community of which we are part; for those who share with us in its activities, and for all who serve its varied interests. Help us, as we have opportunity, to make our own contribution to the community and to learn to be good neighbours, that by love we may serve one another; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 6

Litany of thanks We remember, O God The countless saints of history who have blazed a trail of courage through time, We remember, O God The tender touch of loved ones, the example of heroes, the healing words of comforters, the remarkable acts of fearless ones. We remember, O God The gentle strength of grandmothers, the loyalty of friends, the kindness of strangers, the joy of children, the sacrifice of parents. We remember, O God The supreme love of Jesus, the blessing of his Spirit, the reminder of his words, the sharing of his suffering, the glory of his resurrection: shown forth in the lives of his disciples, young and old, dead and living, articulate and silent, strange and familiar, brilliant and ordinary. We remember in every time and place the saints of God who have shown us the Lord. SINCE WE ARE SURROUNDED BY SO GREAT A CLOUD OF WITNESSES... LET US SERVE GOD WITH JOY MEDITATION Eternal God, make us this day to remember the unseen cloud of witnesses who compass us about: Those who in every age and generation witnessed to their faith in life and in death; Those who by their courage and their sacrifice won for us the freedom and the liberty we enjoy; Those who served their fellow men at the cost of pain, of persecution and of death; Those for whom all the trumpets sounded as they passed over to the other side; Those whom we have loved and who have gone to be with you, and whose names are written on our hearts. Help us to walk worthily of those in whose unseen presence Iife is lived. Help us to have in our lives Their courage in danger; Their steadfastness in trial; Their perseverance in difficulty; Their loyalty when loyalty is costly; Their love which nothing can change; Their joy which nothing can take away. So grant to us in your good time to share with them the blessedness of your nearer presence, that we also May come to that life. where ail the questions are answered; where ail the tears are wiped away: Where we shall meet again, never to be separated from them, those whom we have loved and lost awhile'. Where we shall be for ever with our Lord. So grant to us in this life never to forget those who have gone before, so that in the life to come we may share their blessedness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. -Prayers for the Christian Year, William Barclay, Harper Chapelbooks, 1964 churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 7

ALL SAINTS' ASSEMBLY - PRIMARY Theme: All Saints is a time when the Church remembers and celebrates not only famous saints (here you can use a couple of examples of well-known saints and what they did) but all people who have lived a special life for God. PREPARATION: Make a collection of large pictures of a variety of animals. These could be posters, or the children could prepare their own. Alternatively, the children could make animal masks and parade in them. DEVELOPMENT: Show the children the pictures of animals, or hold a parade with the children wearing their animal masks. Identify the animals and discuss something about each one. If using masks, you could ask children to describe the animal characters they represent. Talk about how each animal is different and what skills, abilities and weaknesses they have. What can they do? What can't they do? Talk about how each one of us is different: 1. There are things we are good at doing (you could invite examples). 2. There are other things we are not so good at doing - or being (you could invite more examples). All Saints is a time when the Church remembers and celebrates not only famous saints (here you can use a couple of examples of well-known saints and what they did) but all people who have lived a special life for God. None of the animals we met earlier could do everything. Neither can we. But we can learn from the countless people before us who learned to live in the way Jesus taught. Then we can do our best with the gifts and skills God has given us and respect other people's gifts and skills too. READING: Matthew 5: 1-12 (The Sermon on the Mount). Jesus taught a very important lesson about how to be a saint in this reading. It shows you don't need to be showy or special to be a saint; just being aware of those around you and their needs already goes a long way towards being our best selves, the way God created us. PRAYER: There are so many animals in your world, God. Thank you for them all, small and large. For furry cuddly animals that we have as pets, who like to be with us, who we can love and who make us feel safe and happy. For strong animals who help us. For beautiful animals. For tiny animals. For animals we do not understand. For animals we have never seen. Help us to remember that they are all part of your creation, like us. Help us to live with them peacefully. And help us to live the life you want and be the sort of people that you want us to be. Amen. MUSIC: O When the Saints Go Marching In churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 8

ALL SAINTS' ASSEMBLY - SECONDARY Links the Olympic Games with All Saints. PREPARATION: A large picture of the Olympic symbol, perhaps a scoreboard, sports equipment, e.g. a javelin, pair of trainers, hurdle etc.. DEVELOPMENT: Perhaps you can think as far back as the beginning of term. September can be a hard time, especially when you begin a new school. But there were some people for whom last September will have been really unforgettable - the athletes who took part in the Olympic Games 2004 in Athens. Why should we be talking about them when the theme is 'All Saints'? Maybe it's not as strange as it seems. Let's start somewhere completely different to make the connections. We'll start in France. READER 1: Just over 100 years ago, Baron Pierre de Coubertin wanted to do something to promote athletic excellence and international harmony. He chose the Olympic Games in ancient Greece as his inspiration. READER 2: In fact, he was basing his inspiration on a complete fiction. The Olympic Games weren't about peace and harmony at all. So what were they about? READER 3: Two thousand five hundred years ago, the Games were held at Olympia in Greece. It wasn't a very impressive place. The local city state Elis - not one of the top in the league of Greek city states - was responsible for them. There were nine main events, and these were only for men. There were running events: the stadion (a one-lap sprint of about 200 metres - the name stadium comes from this), the 400 metres and the long distance (24 laps). There was boxing, various horse and chariot races and a race in armour. The races were very tough. It's no coincidence that the Greek for 'competition' was agon - from which we get our word 'agony'. And, to add to that, all the races were run in the nude... READER 2: As for peace and harmony, the Greek states were so often fighting each other that there had to be a truce for a month either side of the games to make sure everyone could get there and back again safely. LEADER: But there was more to the games than just the races. These only went on for part of the event. The rest involved offerings to the Gods, acts of courage, processions and other forms of worship. Because the original Olympic Games took place in the context of a religious festival, athletes saw themselves offering their manliness and abilities to the gods on behalf of the wider community. That is why the prizes were only tokens - a wreath of sacred olive leaves, for example (and why today only 'amateurs' are allowed to enter). Like athletes today, sport was only one part of original Olympic athlete's lives. A big part, maybe, and the only one we remember them for. But they did have another existence as people's sons, neighbours, comrades. And that's where we get back to saints. On All Saints' Day the Church honours people who are remembered as special. It may be something specific that they did, or the way that they were committed to their beliefs. They are seen as sort of experts, or super-people, like champions, able to inspire us or help us in difficult situations. Like Olympic athletes, though, there is more to saints than just their saintliness or being able to get you out of tough situations. It's worth churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 9

remembering they are ordinary people doing something extraordinary. One of the extraordinary things about saints and athletes is that they are both driven by relentless commitment to a greater goal, whether it is their sport (like Steve Redgrave) or their beliefs. The Greek for 'athlete' means 'a prize'. Whether it's a halo or an Olympic gold medal, between saints and athletes there's something to inspire us all. READING: 1 Corinthians 9: 24-25 PRAYER: The Bible reading could be used as a prayer. MUSIC: The theme music from Chariots of Fire, a film about an earlier Olympics. The music should be available on compilations of famous film tunes. churchnewsireland@gmail.com PSP All Saints 10