BELLS CORNERS UNITED CHURCH
FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT / LOVE
DECEMBER 19, 2021
The video recording of this service can be found here.
You can also dial-in by phone to listen to the audio recording at 613-820-8104
Gathering Music / Carol Sing:
Good Christian Friends Rejoice VU 35 (vs. 1-2)
(Words: Latin, 14th century, trans. John Mason Neale, 1833;
Music: German melody, harm. Gary Alan Smith, 1988.)
1. Good Christian friends, rejoice
With heart and soul and voice!
Give ye heed to what we say:
News! News!
Jesus Christ is born today.
Ox and ass before him bow
And he is in the manger now.
Christ is born today! Christ is born today!
2. Good Christian friends, rejoice
With heart and soul and voice!
Now ye hear of endless bliss:
Joy! Joy!
Jesus Christ was born for this!
He hath opened heaven’s door
And we are blessed forevermore.
Christ was born for this! Christ was born for this!
All Poor Ones and Humble VU 68 (vs. 1-2)
(Words: v.1 Katherine Emily Roberts, 1927, alt. v. 2 William Thomas pennar Davies, 1951;
Music: Welsh carol, harm. Erik Routley, 1951.)
1. All poor ones and humble
And all those who stumble,
Come hastening and feel not afraid
For Jesus, our treasure
with love past all measure,
In lowly manger was laid.
Though wise men who found him
laid rich gifts around him,
Yet oxen they gave him their hay,
And Jesus in beauty
Accepted their duty
Contented in manger he lay.
2. The Christ Child will lead us
The Good Shepherd feed us
And with us abide till his day.
Then hatred he’ll banish;
Then sorrow will vanish,
And death and despair flee away.
And he shall reign ever
And nothing shall sever
From us the great love of our King;
His peace and his pity
Shall bless his fair city;
His praises we ever shall sing.
Refrain:
Then haste ye to show him
The praises we owe him;
Our service he ne’er can despise;
Whose love is able to show us that stable,
Where softly in manger he lies.
Welcome & Centering for Worship Rev. Lorrie Lowes
Good morning! Welcome to this fourth Sunday of Advent – the Sunday of Love as we prepare ourselves to welcome the birth of Jesus. Whether you’re at home or elsewhere or joining us onsite, we are glad that you have joined us today.
We continue worshipping in the sanctuary on Sunday mornings at 10 am. If you wish to attend the service, you are more than welcome. As a faith community called to love and serve others, we highly recommend getting vaccinated as one of the best precautionary measures to protect yourself and others. Let us continue to be mindful of the health protocols such as masking, social distancing, hand sanitizing and staying home if you feel unwell.
During this time of pandemic, the work of the church carries on. Please take time to keep in touch with each other through prayers, phone calls, emails or via Zoom. Check also the many announcements on our website including Sunday School resources for your children at bcuc.org.
Lighting of the Advent Candle: Joy Acolytes: The Kelly Family
(Eric Hebert-Daly, Gathering ACE 2021-2022. Used with permission.)
Reader 1: Today we light the candle of Love.
Reader 2: Love is not always what we expect.
Reader 1: It may come through unexpected people and at unexpected times.
Reader 3: God’s love is not always what we expect.
Reader 1: God’s love comes to us in gentle whispers as well as with and insistent voice that we can’t ignore.
Reader 4: God’s love finds us when we are lost and heals us when we are broken.
Reader 5: May we allow God to love us into wholeness today,
So that we may share that love tomorrow.
All: May love be found in a manger and throughout the world.
(The fourth Advent candle is lit.)
Sung Response: Hope is A Star (Verse 4) VU 7
(Words: Brian Wren, 1985; Music: Joan Collier Fogg, 1987.)
Love is a flame that burns in our heart,
Jesus has come and will never depart.
When God is a child there’s joy in our song.
The last shall be first and the weak shall be strong,
And none shall be afraid.
Call to Gather Rev. Kim Vidal
(Carol Frost, Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission.)
Come! Hear the exciting news!
Elizabeth and Mary, two friends, sharing the excitement of the upcoming birth of their children, Gabriel’s announcement, and what God has chosen them to do. Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, and Mary, mother of Jesus, the son of God.
Come together, as friends, to sing God’s praise, and trust that we will discover what it is God has chosen us to do.
Elizabeth and Mary, companions, ready to support one another along their spiritual journeys.
Through the love and trust of God and filled with the Holy Spirit, their world will be forever changed!
Come together as companions in our spiritual journey, ready to support one another.
Remember the birth of Christ and how it changed the world, and trust that it will change our lives as well.
As Elizabeth and Mary understood and accepted their roles, we see the strength of their faith and their assurance of the love and the blessing of God.
Come together to praise God and to be guided by God’s love and the power of the Holy Spirit.
We trust that we will come to understand and accept our role in this time and place.
Let us worship God, ever thankful for Elizabeth and Mary’s faithfulness and friendship!
Opening Prayer and Silent Confession:
(Dora White, Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission.)
Holy and Eternal God,
You call us to gather in the midst of crisis and celebration, joy and sorrow.
You are with us; we are not alone.
Like Mary, may we overcome our fears.
You are with us; we are not alone.
Like Mary, may we find a safe place to go.
You are with us; we are not alone.
Like Mary, may we recognize your call for justice.
You are with us; we are not alone.
Like Mary, may we realize that we are blessed and chosen by you.
You are with us; we are not alone.
Like Mary, may we exalt and praise your name.
For you are with us; we are not alone.
Holy and Eternal God, we praise your name today. Amen.
Silent Confession
Words of Assurance
(Elaine Bidgood Sveet, Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission.)
Praise the Lord, for unto us was born a child in the city of David, the Messiah, the Son of God, Emmanuel, God-with-us, our judge and our hope. Your sins are forgiven. Believe. Receive. Rejoice! Thanks Be to God!
Advent Hymn: My Soul Cries Out MV120
(Words: Rory Cooney, 1990; Music: traditional melody, Ireland; arr. Rory Cooney, 1990.)
1. My soul cries out with a joyful shout that the God of my heart is great,
And my spirit sings of the wondrous things that you bring to the ones who wait.
You fixed your sight on your servant’s plight and my weakness you did not spurn,
So, from east to west shall my name be blessed. Could the world be about to turn?
Refrain:
My heart shall sing of the day you bring.
Let the fires of your justice burn.
Wipe away all tears, for the dawn draws near,
And the world is about to turn!
2. Though I am small, my God, my all, you work great things in me,
And your mercy will last from the depths of the past to the end of the age to be.
Your very name puts the proud to shame, and to those who would for you yearn,
You will show your might, put the strong to flight, for the world is about to turn. R
3. From the halls of power to the fortress tower, not a stone will be left on stone.
Let the king beware for your justice tears ev’ry tyrant from his throne.
The hungry poor shall weep no more, for the food they can never earn;
There are tables spread, ev’ry mouth be fed, for the world is about to turn. R
4. Though the nations rage from age to age, we remember who holds us fast:
God’s mercy must deliver us from the conqueror’s crushing grasp.
This saving word that our forebears heard is the promise which holds us bound,
Til the spear and rod can be crushed by God, who is turning the world around.
Storytime for the Young at Heart Rev. Kim Vidal
Today is the fourth and last Sunday of Advent. This means that Christmas is really getting near! Are you getting excited? I know, I am! What are some of the things that you look forward to at Christmas, besides opening presents and having a delicious meal with your family? This year, celebrating Christmas will be different because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But we still can enjoy it! Maybe if we get a lot of snowfall, your family can make a snowman or go for a drive to look at the colourful lights near the Parliament Hill. Or maybe you get to decorate a Christmas Tree with your favourite ornaments. What about making a gingerbread house? Or baking yummy cookies? I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful time.
Can you think of some of the family traditions your family has? One important tradition in our family is a get-together and dinner at midnight after attending the Christmas Eve service. I come from a big family of 11 children so you can imagine the merriment and fun as we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Oh yes, our house was very loud with laughter, games, carol-singing, dancing, food and stories!! On Christmas Day, we expect a visit from our close relatives and friends and have another good time together. Visitation is an important aspect of Christmas for my family. It reminds me of our Gospel story today when Mary went to visit her older relative Elizabeth.
Our story tells us what happened when God sent the angel Gabriel to tell Mary that she was going to have a baby and that she would name him Jesus. Can you imagine how Mary, perhaps a teenager, engaged to marry Joseph, must have felt to hear news like that? I’m sure she was nervous and scared or maybe a little excited? After a while, the story tells us, that Mary visited the home of Elizabeth to tell her the news. Elizabeth who is much, much older than Mary, was also expecting a baby and the story tells us that when she heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in Elizabeth’s womb!
Elizabeth blessed Mary and said to her, "God has blessed you above all women, and the baby you are carrying is also blessed." That is awesome! Before Mary even said a word about having a child, Elizabeth already knew and that Mary’s child was going to be a very special baby! Mary and Elizabeth shared a love that only mothers know when they are expecting a child. So, Christmas story begins with the celebration of Jesus’ birth and it was love through Jesus that makes Christmas so special!
Let’s close with an embodied prayer. Please repeat after me:
Holy One (reach up and out)
May your love (cross hands and lower arms over heart)
Be in my head... (touch head)
...and heart (touch heart)
May your love (keep touching heart)
Be in my actions (touch eyes and mouth)
May your love (cross hands over heart)
Be in all I say... (touch mouth)
...and do (extend hands, or in a group, hold hands)
AMEN (head down, hands at prayer with palms together)
Hymn: Love is the Touch MV 89
(Words: Alison M. Robertson, 1998; Music: John L. Bell, 1998)
1. Love is the touch of intangible joy;
love is the force that no fear can destroy;
love is the goodness we gladly applaud:
God is where love is, for love is of God.
2. Love is the lilt in a lingering voice;
love is the hope that can make us rejoice;
love is the cure for the frightened and flawed:
God is where love is, for love is of God.
3. Love is the light in the tunnel of pain;
love is the will to be whole once again;
love is the trust of a friend on the road:
God is where love is, for love is of God.
4. Love is the Maker and Spirit and Son;
love is the kingdom their will has begun;
love is the path which the saints all have trod:
God is where love is, for love is of God.
Prayer for Illumination Reader: Will Wightman
(Beth W. Johnston, Gathering A/C/E 2021. Used with permission.)
Open our hearts to the mystery of your word, Holy God.
Open our spirits to its meaning for our lives.
Be with us as we listen for and receive your word today. Amen.
The Gospel Reading: Luke 1:39-55 (NRSV)
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43 And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”
Mary’s Song of Praise
46 And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50 His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
May the love of God dwell where the word is spoken. Thanks be to God!
Sermon: “How Could Mary Know?” Rev. Lorrie
On this fourth Sunday of Advent, we look away from John the Baptist, preaching his heavy messages from the banks of the Jordan. Oh, we aren’t leaving him altogether, of course; we will meet him again soon. He will still be preaching and baptising, urging the people to change their thinking and their actions, to turn their lives around, to repent. The crowds will still be gathering, people from all walks of life. Some will be there out of curiosity; some may be simply looking for a ritual cleansing. Some will be wondering if this wild man could be the promised Messiah… And that next time we meet John the Baptist, one person in the crowd will stand out. Jesus will come to be baptised by him.
Who are these two men – John and Jesus? Where did they come from? Where did their radical thinking originate? How did they come to be so full of prophetic wisdom?
And so, today we turn away from the banks of the Jordan River to look back to where it all began, to the time leading up to their births - two lives that were intertwined long before Jesus joined John on the banks of the river.
Today our scripture tells us the story of two pregnant women – one an unwed teen and the other a post-menopausal woman – both expecting their first child. That, in itself, is interesting, I think. Mary, of course is a familiar figure to Christians – the mother of Jesus, revered in many denominations and celebrated by all at Christmas time. But what about Elizabeth? Why don’t we hear more about her, the mother of John the Baptist?
Mary and Elizabeth, cousins who live far apart and are far apart in age but women who share a common passion and an unbreakable bond, friends who, beyond all imagination, are sharing their first experience of pregnancy. They share their fears, and worries. They share their joy and wonder. They share their hopes and dreams for the future of their sons… They share their hopes and dreams for the future of the world. They share their understanding of the responsibility they have been given. The elderly wife of a priest, and the young daughter of a peasant family from a small backwater village, share the dream of a better world, not just for their children, but for all people everywhere. These are the dreams of all new parents, I think. What sets these two apart is that their dreams are revolutionary for the time and that they believe these dreams are possible to achieve. After all, Gabriel has just told Mary that nothing is impossible with God. The immediate evidence is here, in the pregnancies of these two. Their faith that God is indeed with them gives them the courage to take the action that will set these dreams, these possibilities, in motion.
What do we know about the place of women in biblical times? For the most part they had no status of their own, their place in the world depended on the significant men in their lives – first father, then husbands, and then sons. Most of the stories in our Bible feature men as the main characters. There are some exceptions, of course, but very often the women we read about are seen as sinful. Where men might be exalted for speaking up or taking a stand, often the independent women of our stories face punishment – Eve is expelled from the garden and she is condemned along with all women to suffer greatly in childbirth… Miriam is given a disfiguring skin disease by a disgruntled God… Women are expected to be quiet, and to be subservient to their husbands. Meek and mild… hmm isn’t this how we have come to think of Mary? Mary, accepting her fate, saying “Let it be”, giving birth in a stable seemingly without complaint and immediately receiving visitors – shepherds, magi, and perhaps even a little drummer boy (just what every woman wants right after giving birth, and just what a sleeping newborn needs!) – all the while smiling sweetly, nodding quietly.
But, is that what the gospel story is really telling us? Let’s look again at the passage Will read for us this morning…
When the angel Gabriel appears to Mary – giving her the fright of her life! – Mary makes a decision that will alter the course of her life, and of the world. At first, she says, “This isn’t possible! I’m just a girl! I’m not ready for something like this!” … but, in the end, she says, “Let it be.” She could have said, “No way, Gabriel! I’m not the one for the job; tell God to find someone more capable.” But she didn’t. What if, instead of picturing her as obedient and submissive, we hear this as an acceptance of the challenge? In today’s world, I hear her saying, “OK, let’s do this!”
And then… she needs to share the news and to process it, to figure out what the implications of this might be. Does she run to her mother? To a trusted girlfriend down the street? To the man to whom she is betrothed? No, she sets out on a three-day journey – alone from all we read, and isn’t that a scary thought! – to the house of her cousin Elizabeth, the one Gabriel has told her is also experiencing an unexpected pregnancy.
Now I see a girl who is independent and brave, someone who realizes that she has been given an opportunity and a responsibility, not someone who is accepting an unpleasant fate. She goes to the one person she knows will understand what she has experienced and what she sees in her future. To make this journey and to do it with haste tells me that, although Elizabeth may be far away geographically, she is someone Mary knows and trusts, someone who accepts and even encourages Mary’s dreams, her independent thinking, her chutzpa. We are told that Mary arrives at the home of Zechariah but, rather than seek welcome from this priest, she immediately greets Elizabeth, the one whose counsel she needs and trusts.
Can you imagine their greeting?
“Elizabeth, Elizabeth! Something has happened and I need you to help me understand. How can this even be possible? Am I crazy? What have I done? What have I gotten myself into?? Please help me figure out what I’m supposed to do now!”
We know right away that Mary has come to the right place. Elizabeth, old enough to be Mary’s mother or even grandmother, is happy to see her. She doesn’t scold her, she doesn’t say, “Oh, now you are in trouble! What were you thinking?” She is filled with joy! Even the baby in her womb leaps for joy! “What a blessing, Mary! And how blessed you are to be chosen to mother this child!” Elizabeth is certain that if God needs a messenger to transform the world, Mary is the right person to raise him. Mary, outspoken, brave, and passionate; Mary who looks at the world and sees a need for revolutionary change; Mary who loves and trusts God. Elizabeth sees a mother who will instill in her child a sense of justice and a drive to make a difference.
Elizabeth gives Mary the boost of confidence she needs; she dismisses all doubt; she assures this young relative that she is on a right path; and she assures Mary that she has her support.
Elizabeth is older, more experienced, and therefore we presume, the wiser of the two women in our story…and yet she seems to put this young girl above herself. “Why has this happened to me that the mother of my Lord comes to me?”
Mary responds with a song from her heart. “My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on, all generations will call me blessed…”
In many denominations, this is where the reading of the Magnificat ends – with Mary praising God and looking toward a future where everyone will know that she is favoured in God’s eyes. Back to Mary, meek and mild – convinced that this tricky situation is actually a blessing and all will be right with her world. It’s clean, it’s comfortable. It fits with our beautiful nativity stories, and it doesn’t ask us to do anything. Our UCC resources give us the option of stopping even before this, with Elizabeth’s enthusiastic welcome of Mary and her news…
But, I think we need to go on, to hear the parts that are avoided because they are uncomfortable, especially to those in power and those with privilege. The parts that show Mary’s revolutionary thinking, her vision of what God wants for the world… a scattering of the proud, removing the powerful from their thrones, lifting up the lowly, filling the hungry with good things, and sending the rich away empty…
In our Lectionary Study this week, we wondered if this song of Mary that we call the Magnificat could really have come from her. It was remarked that it seems very polished for a 14-year-old girl. How would Mary know all this? How could she possibly have so much insight at such a young age? Why would Elizabeth value the thinking, the dreams, of a child? Maybe it was really Elizabeth who said these things, as some theologians believe… or maybe it was a quote from the song of Hannah in the Hebrew scriptures… maybe it was something written by Luke and put into the mouth of Mary …
And then we thought about Malala, and Greta Thunberg, and Amanda Gorman, and Autumn Peltier… all young girls who have raised their voices in today’s world, young women with passion, insight, and wisdom… strong women who make us uncomfortable, strong women who will go on to raise strong children…
None of these young women came into the world fully formed, with minds aware of not only the beauty of this world but also its inequities, its injustice, the destructive behaviour of its people. All of these young women were born into families and communities who taught them to see and to think.
God didn’t send John or Jesus into the world as fully formed men, ready to take on the problems in the world. God sent newborn babies to families with vision, families who had strong faith in God – but not blind faith or passive faith – families who knew that the world would never change without putting faith into action, families who nurtured strong minds and strong voices.
It all began with a family.
Both Matthew and Luke spend time sharing the genealogy of Jesus. Matthew starts with Abraham and Luke goes all the way back to Adam. Is this simply to prove that Jesus is descended from David as was prophesied? If that’s the case then why continue back so far?
Family Trees traditionally go down through the male line, but Matthew mentions five women in the family tree of Jesus – Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, all determined and resourceful women who took matters into their own hands and all women who had a shady history - seducers, an adulterer, and even a prostitute! All women who were not willing to be passive when they saw a need for action. And he ends with Mary… I wonder, did Matthew see something other than a meek and mild servant of God?
I know many people today are interested in genealogy. We are intrigued by our roots, by the people and the circumstances that played a part in creating us and who we have grown to be. If you have studied your own family tree, you know how complicated it can become when you try to define relationships… is he a first cousin once removed or a second cousin? We want to know more than what appears in a birth announcement; we want to know where they lived, what they did in their lives – because our family history is a lot more than our genes, it is all part of what makes us who we are today. We want to know about the women in our past, not just the men. How did they meet? Why did they marry? Who were their children? Am I the first to follow this career path or do I follow a long line of ministers? It’s not a straight line, it’s a spiral. And it all plays a part in who we are today.
The mothers of John and Jesus were cousins, John and Jesus are part of the same family tree. They were raised by strong, free-thinking women who were likely married to men who thought and lived in the same way. They grew up in families and communities that nurtured, their faith, their intellect, and their sense of social justice.
Our scriptures tell us little to nothing about the childhoods of these two men – at least not directly – but they do tell us where they came from and where they began. Perhaps that’s all we need to know. The messages that they gave the world are as linked as their roots.
And so, today we celebrate their mothers who had the courage and the faith to say yes to God, and the insight to raise men who would have the insight and the tools needed to transform the world.
There is a beautiful song that we hear at this time of year called “Mary Did You Know?” It asks if Mary had any idea of who her son would grow up to be. One of my colleagues calls the words a bit “mansplainy” as if Mary was just the vessel to bear Jesus and nothing more. Of course Mary knew! She had a big part in who he would become! So, she found new words to this song that were written by Jennifer Henry, a name you may recognize as she was the speaker from Kairos who came to BCUC a few years ago on an Indigenous Sunday. My friend and classmate, Bri-Anne Swan recorded it and I’d like to end by sharing this version with you.
Thanks be to God for Mary and Elizabeth. Amen.
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer Rev. Lorrie
Holy One,
In this time when the world seems lost to injustice, violence, despair, and self-centredness, we, like Mary, pause to remember the great things you have done for us. We remember that, no matter how bleak the situation may seem, you are always with us, not to simply rescue us but to give us the strength, the courage, and the compassion to do the hard work of creating your perfect kin-dom here in this earthly place.
We pray with thanks for all the people in the world who are working for transformation – the helpers, the leaders, the writers, and the activists, young and old, who use their skills to heal, their hearts to comfort, and their voices to prophesy.
We pray for those who suffer at the hands of the proud and the powerful – that violence be replaced by peace, neglect by compassion.
We pray for those who hunger - for food, for spiritual nourishment, or for love and kindness – that they might be filled in all these ways.
We pray for the marginalized that they might find welcome in community - welcome for who they are now, not who we wish they could be.
We pray for ourselves with all of our pride, our power, and our privilege – that we might find the clarity, the faith, and the courage of Elizabeth and Mary, to not only hear your message but be moved to action.
As the day of celebration approaches, keep us aware of the amazing gift that Jesus was – and is – to the world. Help us to truly share this gift in transformational ways.
All this we pray in the ancient words of prayer that he gifted to his followers:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kin-dom come, thy will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kin-dom, the power and the glory,
Forever and ever, Amen.
Invitation to Offer Rev. Kim
(Lori Van Santvoort-Jansekovich, Gathering Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission)
It is the season of Advent, the season of gifts and giving. With love in our hearts, let us worship god with our offerings as we anticipate in wonder the birth of the Christ Child. Let us gather our time, talents and treasures together and present them as an offering to God. If you are not on PAR and wish to send in your offering and donations, you can drop them in the slot by the kitchen door of the church or mail them to BCUC. You can also send in your support through e-transfer. Thank you for your continued love and support to BCUC.
Offertory Prayer
(Bob Root, Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission.)
In these days of waiting, O God,
As Mary grew Jesus in her womb, so grow in us a spirit of generosity.
Bring to birth within us a passion for justice and peace.
As we share these gifts, which you have entrusted to us,
so may your dream for the world come closer to fulfillment.
We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Sending Forth Rev. Lorrie
(Bill Steadman, Gathering ACE, 2021-2022, Used with permission.)
In the words of Luke’s gospel:
“Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment
of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”
May we also seek to fulfill our calling
and to be open to the blessings of God,
Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, now and always. Amen.
Hymn: There Was a Child in Galilee MV134
(Words and Music: Janet Gadeski, 2005; arr. Patricia Wright, 2006.)
1. There was a child in Galilee
who wandered wild along the sea.
A holy child, alone was she
And they called her Dreaming Mary.
And she dreamed, rejoicing in her saviour; She dreamed of justice for the poor. She dreamed that kings oppressed no more. When she dreamed, that Dreaming Mary.
2. One holy day an angel came
With voice of wind and eyes of flame.
He promised blessed would be her name, When he spoke to Dreaming Mary. Then she spoke, rejoicing in her saviour. She spoke of justice for the poor. She spoke that kings oppressed no more
When she spoke, that Dreaming Mary.
3. And did she dream about a son?
And did he speak, the angel one?
We only know God’s will was done
In the son of Dreaming Mary.
Then she prayed, rejoicing in her saviour. She taught him justice for the poor. She taught that kings oppressed no more. When she taught, that Dreaming Mary.
4. Then Jesus grew in Galilee,
They wandered wild along the sea.
Now he calls to you and me
To dream with Dreaming Mary.
And we dream, rejoicing in our saviour. We dream of justice for the poor. We dream that kings oppress no more. As we dream with Dreaming Mary.
Departing Music: Mary and Elizabeth – Pepper Choplin
Sung by Erin Meyers and Sarah Parker, Advent Concert 2015.
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