Opening & Greeting
... Today we observe Remembrance Day; we remember from wars past and current global armed conflicts that the healing grace of God is necessary to us all. Violence and war leave deep wounds, not only of body, but of mind and spirit, on all of us; soldiers, citizens, victims. None of us are exempt. ...
Let us open our worship, as we hope that through this worship, we may be open to the way in which the Spirit moves among us and begins its work towards healing and peace. In this time of contemplation and praise, let us hold up to God and remember in our prayers all those who have suffered the pain of armed conflict past and present, among us, in our community, in our country and in the world.
Let us open our worship, as we hope that through this worship, we may be open to the way in which the Spirit moves among us and begins its work towards healing and peace. In this time of contemplation and praise, let us hold up to God and remember in our prayers all those who have suffered the pain of armed conflict past and present, among us, in our community, in our country and in the world.
Call to Worship (by Leader)
We come before God, not to glorify war,
but to honor and celebrate those
who walked into the chaos and evil that is war:
those who were civilians and those who were military;
those who risked their lives for peace;
those who risked their lives for peace;
those who survived and those who did not;
those who were friends and those who were enemies.
None who have waded through evil, death and sorrow
are untouched in body, mind or spirit;
they are beloved of God.
We all are affected and changed by
Military actions, armed conflicts, wars,
And we acknowledge that we all are in need of reflection, renewal, comfort and healing.
Inspired and adapted from A Worship Service of Remembrance and Healing,"Copyright Lisa Frenz. All Rights Reserved. Used with permission."
Opening Prayer
O God, you are a God of Life to us.
You show your Self as our source of compassion
as we struggle for whole relationships in our homes,
our communities, our nation and our world.
We recognize your presence among us in our life and worship,
and ask your gentle Spirit to constantly open our hearts
to the ways of justice and peace. Amen.
Candle-lighting & Blessing
Let us light a candle for remembrance, a light to illumine the darkness, a light to guide us to healing and hope.
Blessing
God bless you and keep you; God’s face shine on you and give you peace.
Prayer of Confession
(Invitation by Leader with picture slides)
As a parent embraces a wounded child so does God reach out and pull all of us close; those who fell the hardest, hurt the most, suffered the worst; no matter if the wounds were self-inflicted, out of terrible deeds done for a greater good, acts of violence or fear. God not only accepts, but welcomes and loves everyone, cleansing, healing, and restoring to wholeness of heart, mind, body and soul those who cry out and run into God’s embrace. ... Our Prayer of Confession is a time of discomfort; in this time, we acknowledge and confess the most aching parts of our lives and of our world. Please join in the prayer of confession, trusting that God accepts our burdens and our desire for wholeness.
Prayer in unison
Lord, we confess that war is a great evil of our world;
and we are all part of it; the citizens of this society and those who fight for those citizens.
That is a reality we face every day we send our fellow citizens to be soldiers for us.
The killing and wounding of all individuals in any war
is a responsibility we all must accept, a guilt we all must bear.
And so we confess to you O God, as you love us.
Lord, we are wounded and we wound,
are hated and hate.
We are the defender and the aggressor.
We are the innocent and the guilty.
We are the victims and the enemy.
All of us – in our acts, our thoughts, our hearts.
O God, take on our guilt, our pain, our debt, our anger.
Forgive us Lord God. Heal us, we pray.
Inspired and adapted from A Worship Service of Remembrance and Healing,"Copyright Lisa Frenz. All Rights Reserved. Used with permission."
Assurance of God's Grace
God is merciful and accepts our confusion, our guilt, our helplessness.
God removes what is evil in us; receives it, takes it, purifies it in the fires of God's eternal love.
God forgives our sins, Christ renews our lives, the Holy Spirit enables us to grow in love and gives us peace. Amen.
Children's Time (the edited version will be soon posted.)
Children’s Time
]
Good morning, my friends.
Last Sunday, we remembered those who have gone before us in the past year in our church family. We remembered them as God’s saints, because God calls every one of us who lives in God’s love God’s saints. And we also learned that another way we are all God’s saints is that we live in faith in the new life in Jesus.
Can anyone tell us who we remember today? (answers.) Today we remember those have fought and those who have died in wars.
(To all; children and adults alike) The United Church has a New Creed; It is a faith statement of our church that helps us understand who we are in today’s world. It begins like this: We Are Not Alone. We Live in God’s World. … We are called to celebrate God’s presence, to live with respect in Creation, to love and to serve others, to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope... In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone.
Today, we remember that we are not alone in God’s world. We are called to love and to serve others, to seek justice and resist evil.
Lord, today and tomorrow, let us take the time to pause and remember your command that we love ourselves, we love our neighbours, we love our enemies. Lord, let us wrestle with the question of how we can truly live out your command and calling for radical love at such a time as it is now - in the era of a globalized war economy, conflict as profit-maker. Lord, let us remember with clear eyes the cost of war. Let us remember with deep sorrow those who killed and were killed. Let us learn how to remember and mourn for all the victims of war. Let us take the time to truly feel their grief.
Lord, bless us today and tomorrow as we remember with compassion and sorrow the bereaved and the wounded. We remember with gratitude those who risked their lives for peace.
Lord, give us tender hearts when we remember the children's longing for freedom. Let us imagine how the face of our world would be transformed if we all truly forgave our enemies.
Let us remember with hope that your peaceful realm is planted with small seeds. Let us always remember with confidence that faith, hope and love abide. Most of all, O Lord, let us remember with joy that You alone are our refuge, and that our Saviour is the Prince of Peace. Amen.
Benediction
May the love of God
the peace of Christ
the communion of the Holy Spirit
lead us, heal us, truly bless us as we go into this week. Amen.
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