♬ You are invited to stand, if you are able and comfortable, for the sung portions of the service. Please wear your mask for singing.
Bold print in bulletin – congregation
GATHERING AND GREETING
Welcome & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: As we gather, we acknowledge with respect the history, spirituality, and culture of the K’omoks First Nation and the Coast Salish peoples on whose traditional and unceded territory we meet. We also honour the heritage of all Indigenous peoples as we recognize the need to seek a new relationship between the descendants of settlers and of those who were here before colonization. As a congregation of The United Church of Canada, with them, we take responsibility both for past injustices and the need for healing and reconciliation. We love and honour this land upon which we meet and live and all whose footfall has trod and will tread upon it.
The Singing Bowl is Sounded and the Lantern is Lit
Call to Worship:
In the midst of the jangling demands of life that wear us down,
We, as God’s children, are loved from God’s calm centre.
In the midst of discord and of squabbles between us,
We, as God’s children, are loved into loving each other.
In the midst of cultural dissonance,
We, as God’s children, are loved toward harmony.
We gather at God’s call from the Great Conductor
To sing of self-giving love in notes of concord and rhythm.
Opening Prayer
Creator God, unbind our hearts to know ourselves, our inner beings, so deeply as to transcend the trappings of this world’s fears and need for power,
That we may learn the wisdom of accompanying every meeting of other lives on their journeys,
That we might leave with them a seed, or song,
That someday their own hearts may learn to fly their own flights. Amen.
HYMN: MV#146, “The Kingdom of God”
Bold print in bulletin – congregation GATHERING AND GREETING
Welcome & Announcements
Land Acknowledgement: As we gather, we acknowledge with respect the history, spirituality, and culture of the K’omoks First Nation and the Coast Salish peoples on whose traditional and unceded territory we meet. We also honour the heritage of all Indigenous peoples as we recognize the need to seek a new relationship between the descendants of settlers and of those who were here before colonization. As a congregation of The United Church of Canada, with them, we take responsibility both for past injustices and the need for healing and reconciliation. We love and honour this land upon which we meet and live and all whose footfall has trod and will tread upon it.
The Singing Bowl is Sounded and the Lantern is Lit
Call to Worship:
In the midst of the jangling demands of life that wear us down, We, as God’s children, are loved from God’s calm centre.
In the midst of discord and of squabbles between us,
We, as God’s children, are loved into loving each other.
In the midst of cultural dissonance,
We, as God’s childrenThat someday their own hearts may learn to fly their own flights. Amen.
HYMN: MV#146, “The Kingdom of God”
HEARING AND REFLECTING:
Scripture Readings:
PSALM 132
From Psalms for Praying © 2007 Nan C. Merrill
Enter into the Silence, into the Heart of Truth;
For herein lies the Great Mystery where life is ever unfolding;
Herein the Divine Plan is made known, the Plan all are invited to serve.
Listen for the Music of the Spheres in the resounding Silence of the universe.
May balance and harmony be your aim as you are drawn into the Heart of Love.
Those who follow the way of Love with calm and faith-filled intent,
Know that all is working toward healing and wholeness.
And may the healing power of Love lift you from the limitations of fear and ignorance into the arms of freedom.
May the peace of the Spirit bless you and lead you on life’s journey.
Be not afraid of the Silence, for Wisdom’s Voice is heard there!
As you follow the Light, you become gentle and kind,
you come to life in the Light and see through Love’s eyes.
Children enter the world radiating the Spirit –
learn from them of innocence and simplicity;
Learn to co-operate with the unseen realms, to see beyond the veil.
JOHN 18:33-37 (The Inclusive Bible)
So Pilate re-entered the Praetorium and summoned Jesus. Are you the King of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or have others told you about me?”
Pilate replied, “Am I Jewish? It is your own people and the chief priests who hand you over to me. What have you done?”
Jesus answered, “My realm is not of this world; if it belonged to this world, my people would have fought to keep me out of the hands of the Temple authorities. No, my realm is not of this world.”
Pilate said, “So you’re a King?”
Jesus replied, “You say I’m a King. I was born and came into the world for one purpose – to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who seeks the truth hears my voice.”
Reader: Holy Wisdom, Holy Word. Thanks be to God!
Reflection: “Active Witnesses to Truth”
Reign of Christ Sunday is like the New Years Eve of the church year because next Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent, and the beginning of the new liturgical year. In the 3-year cycle of lectionary readings we are at the end of Year B, which features readings from the Gospel of Mark, and about to begin Year C, with readings from the Gospel of Luke. If you’re curious about the lectionary readings for each year, you can find them in Voices United starting on page 998 or online by searching for the Revised Common Lectionary.
On Reign of Christ Sunday, we look back at all the sacred stories of the past year and we arrive at a turning point, the ultimate question of our journey on The Way of Jesus. Whose authority do we recognize? What kind of leader do we choose to follow?
To help us with that choice, we turn to a conversation recounted in the Gospel of John in which two very different leaders, Pilate and Jesus, circle around the meaning of truth.
I’m a huge fan of the movie “The Cider House Rules” and the novel it’s based on by John Irving. There is a scene near the beginning that has something crucial to say about the difference between facts and truth. The story takes place during the second world war, and centres on an orphanage in a remote part of the state of Maine. Every night when he turns out the light in the boys’ dormitory, the eccentric Dr. Larch who runs the orphanage says, “Good night you princes of Maine, you kings of New England” and the little boys giggle or roll their eyes at this absurdity and go to sleep knowing that they are loved.
Cider House Rules plays with the difference between fact and truth. The little boys know the reality of their situation in their heads. But because of the great love and compassion of Dr. Larch and the nurses in their orphanage, because Dr. Larch names them as princes and kings, they know in their hearts that that is the deepest truth. They are loved, they are wanted, they are important in the eyes of those who know and care for them.
In our gospel reading, Jesus is standing trial before Pilate, the Roman ruler of Judea. The temple authorities have arrested Jesus and brought him to Pilate, but when Pilate asks them what they are accusing him of they have no clear answer. Pilate asks them to take Jesus away and judge him according to their laws, but they insist that Pilate has to judge him because they are not able to execute him themselves. So Pilate is in an awkward position, wanting to keep the local religious authorities happy but unable to charge Jesus with a specific crime under Roman law.
In his questioning of Jesus, Pilate focusses on trying to define his crime. He asks him “Are you the King of the Jews?” Pilate is trying to get at the facts: what has Jesus done? What crime can he be accused of to keep the religious authorities happy? A claim to kingship would be a clear threat to the Romans, who recognize only Caesar as king. But Jesus is quick to deflect that accusation, challenging Pilate on whether he is the source of that question or whether it is coming from someone else.
Next, Jesus points out that he is not a political threat to Rome, that he is not claiming authority in Pilate’s world of military and economic power. While Pilate scrambles to uncover the facts that will fit his world, Jesus is rooted in the truth of God’s realm. He claims authority in a different world, not a spiritual world separate from this one but the world of those who belong to the truth.
The New Revised Standard Version uses the phrase “everyone who belongs to the truth” . What does it mean to “belong to the truth”? Belonging implies being part of a group or an organization. How can we be part of an abstract concept like “the truth”?
So that’s one of the reasons I chose to take this passage today from the Inclusive Bible, where they use the word “seek” instead of “belong”. Jesus says, “Everyone who seeks the truth hears my voice.” Theologian Emilie M. Townes says “In the New Testament, it is possible to speak of truth as something that is done rather than something that is simply believed or thought of”. “Seeking truth” reflects this more active relationship. Seeking truth moves us beyond understanding the facts to a deeper understanding of our relationship with God. Seeking truth means listening to Jesus instead of the false values and false leaders of our world.
Townes goes on to say, “Though important in helping establish and maintain many social norms, intellectual truth does not fill all of our needs. We are compelled to go beyond merely understanding and making sense and order in our world. We must seek to know God and live as active witnesses on this journey into God…In Jesus, we learn that truth is a stimulant for faithful living and witness, rather than only a matter for contemplation. It is something we do.”
How can we follow Jesus’ example and be active witnesses to the truth? A more contemporary way of asking that same question might be “How can we, like Jesus, speak truth to power?” It was dangerous in Jesus’ time and it can be dangerous today.
Three years ago, an Anglican priest and one of her parishioners from the lower mainland were sentenced to 7 days in jail and fined $2000 each. They were found guilty of civil contempt of court for chaining themselves to a tree on Trans Mountain’s property on Burnaby Mountain.
These women belong to the Salal + Cedar ministry, which supports Christians to embrace new ways of living in right relations with each other and the earth. They are part of a growing movement across North America called Watershed Discipleship which seeks to reconnect people to the creation-values at the core of Christian tradition and explores ways for communities to reconnect with the land and water and all living things of a particular place.
One way the Salal + Cedar community reconnects with the land, waters and people of the Fraser river watershed is through outdoor worship. Rain or shine, the community meets year-round twice a month to commune with one another and the outdoors. In addition, members also meet for walking meditation and prayer in nature, support grassroots environmental movements, and participate in community service projects such as creek restoration.
While the term watershed is most commonly used to describe the natural boundaries of creation, it can also be used to describe a critical moment in time when we are compelled to act. Salal + Cedar is deeply concerned by climate change and since 2016 its members have responded to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project which crosses through Coast Salish territory by participating in direct actions on and around Burnaby mountain, including civil disobedience like their protest in 2018.
In her ministry, the Rev. Laurel Dykstra draws from her biology background and experiences in environmental justice movements to connect the impacts of current issues on the health of the watershed.
Addressing the court, Salal and Cedar parishioner Linda Hutchings said that she did not contest any of the facts laid out by Trans Mountain’s lawyer, but said she did not agree with his interpretation of the laws that apply in the case.
“Our understanding is on a different understanding of law,” she said. “I see a fence, a property line, an injunction zone, as an imaginary line drawn to protect interests and I see a tree as a being, a creature who draws from the earth and water and as an indicator of the one who makes trees and who makes Earth. We sought to speak the truth with our bodies about where our allegiance lies.”
Hutchings said she respects pre-existing Coast Salish law, which she believes she was respecting and upholding when she chained herself to the tree.
“We sought to speak the truth with our bodies about where our allegiance lies.”
It’s hard to imagine a better example of speaking truth to power: two women whose consciences compelled them to break the law, charged with civil contempt of court by a powerful corporation now owned by the federal government of Canada. This is their way of following Jesus as active witnesses to the truth, because if anyone spoke the truth with their body about where their allegiance was, it was Jesus. Their action was rooted in their faith and allegiance to their understanding of God’s realm.
We may not agree with their actions or their reasons for breaking the law, or we might agree with them but be reluctant to act with such passionate commitment. But surely, in the aftermath of the recent catastrophic storms that can only be the result of global warming and degraded watersheds, we need to think about our responsibility and our actions. We need to think critically about what our leaders tell us, listening for whether they use their power wisely or selfishly, and whether their actions are grounded in facts or in deeper truths. We need to choose who to follow.
Standing in front of Pilate, on trial for his life, Jesus testifies to the truth and calls us to seek the truth and listen to his voice. He challenges us to look beyond the facts, beyond what we only think is true, to the deeper truth. The truth is that, like the children in Dr. Larch’s orphanage, we are all heirs to God’s realm, we are loved beyond reckoning, and we are called to be active witnesses to that truth.
Let us pray:
Holy God, your reign weds justice and love, grace and truth, wisdom and compassion. Help us to listen for your voice that claims us within your reign. From such grace of belonging, launch us to bear witness to your realm with the whole of our lives. Amen.
Questions for reflection:
HYMN: VU#356, “Seek Ye First the Kingdom”
WE RESPOND IN PRAYER AND ACTION
A Shared Time for Reflection, Prayer and Offering
“Be not afraid of the Silence, for Wisdom’s Voice is heard there!”
You are invited to reflect in silence, to light a candle or place a stone or shell as an expression of your intention or prayer, and/or to place an offering in the basket. If you get up to move about, please maintain safe physical distancing.
Offertory Prayer:
Grudgingly or joyfully, dutifully or impulsively, we offer to you, O God, the work of our hands and the plenty of our hearts. Bless us as we continue to become ever more your people of the Way of Jesus. Equip us in our self-giving for your reign here and now. Amen.
Prayers of the People
Loving Creator, who in Jesus of Nazareth showed us an alternative to the kings, queens and emperors of history, help us to revere and emulate Jesus’ leadership: To love, and to seek justice for all people. Help us to recognize the true grandeur and life-changing power based in loving you and all of our neighbors. In Christ Jesus with you and the Holy Spirit, may we co-create a world ruled not through domination, but in that radical and all-powerful compassion and love.
Guiding one, we pray now for our world:
For the people and places impacted by natural disasters such as climate change, droughts and floods, wildfires and earthquakes, and especially all those who are affected by last week’s catastrophic weather and flooding. We lament the suffering and the loss of lives, including our feathered and furred and finned friends, and the damage to our mother the earth that led to this destruction.
For the nations at war, for those who have died and their families and friends,
For the refugees fleeing poverty and violence and looking for sanctuary.
We pray for our nation, that our leaders may make bold decisions out of compassion and love,
and that our national values increasingly reflect God’s all-embracing love.
We pray for our community and our congregation,
that you bring healing to those who are ill and comfort to those who are grieving.
And we name them now aloud or in silence….
And finally, we join our prayer together in the prayer that Jesus taught us:
The Prayer of Jesus (an adaptation by Parker Palmer):
Heavenly Mother, heavenly Father,
Holy and blessed is your true name.
We pray for your reign of peace to come,
We pray that your good will be done,
Let heaven and earth become one.
Give us this day the bread we need,
Give it to those who have none.
Let forgiveness flow like a river through us,
From each one to each one to each one.
Lead us to holy innocence
Beyond the evil of our days,
Come swiftly Mother, Father, come!
For yours is the power and the glory and the mercy—
Forever your name is All in One.
Commissioning and Blessing
Bless to us O God the earth beneath our feet.
Bless to us O God the path on which we go.
Bless to us O God the people whom we meet.
O God of all gods bless to us our lives.
Go in peace and go in love, accompanied by the Holy Spirit, to be Christ’s face and hands and feet in the world. Thanks be to God!
Response: AMEN!
Choral Closing: MV#213, “Take Up His Song” (3X)
Take up his song of peace and go into the world,
Take up his song of peace in every moment.
In every moment of the journey, we’re laying down our lives, lay them down in peace,
Lay them down, and take up his song.
(Verse 2: “hope” instead of “peace”, verse 3: “love”)
Call to Worship by Gord Dunbar, Opening Prayer by Diane Trollope, used with permission from Gathering, Pentecost 2, 2015. Offertory Prayer by Gord Dunbar, used with permission from Gathering, Pentecost 2 2021. Prayers of the People from Fusion www.seasonsonline.ca
Blessing from “Celtic Prayers from Iona” by J. Philip Newell.
