BUCKHORN (NM) PASTORAL CHARGE
THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNITED CHURCH APOLOGY
TO FIRST NATIONS PEOPLES
AUGUST 14, 2016
Web Site: http://buckhornpastoralcharge.weebly.com/
Email: [email protected]
MINISTER – ALL OF THE CONGREGATION
Curve Lake – 11:30 a.m.
Leader of Music Secretary
Jacqueline Jacobson Delma Foster
WE GATHER IN HOPE
A TIME OF CENTERING
As you prepare for worship, please pause for a moment of silent contemplation. We encourage you to use this time to make the transition between “getting here” and “being present for worship”. Take a few moments to get in touch with the still deep places that provide you with a sense of calm; that quiet your spirit. Relax your body and ground yourself with a sense of inner peace, strength and love. Be aware of being with others and feel the spirit of community.
LIGHTING THE CHRIST CANDLE
CALL TO WORSHIP[1]
We gather as our Creator’s children, in a house dedicated to God, to offer our praise and wonder.
We gather this day, reminded that the Creator calls us to be holy in mind, body and spirit.
We gather to remember a painful history and an inspiring response.
We come to seek your healing so we may grow together as one body in and of Christ.
We come to give thanks, to love, and to be loved.
We come to bring a unified commitment to healing and justice and reconciliation.
We come once again to dedicate ourselves and our lives to the one who created us, the one who calls us,
the one who sustains us, and the one who guides us in the way of love.
Let us worship our Creator with one mind and one heart in peace.
OPENING PRAYER
HYMN “Joyful, Joyful We Adore You” VU # 232
1ST TESTAMENT READING: Micah 6:1-2, 6-8
LITANY[2]
This litany and story are based on the memories of the Very Rev. Stanley McKay and others who took part in the earliest national Aboriginal ministries consultations in the 1980s. An attempt has also been made to accurately reflect the history; any errors or omissions are not meant to cause harm but are the limitations of the writer, the Rev. Susan Beaver.
Loving Creator, we are your church, practicing your love, justice, and peace in the world.
Guide us by your Spirit.
In 1980, the faithful from Native pastoral charges from across Canada, with the support of the whole church,
held national consultations to gather, share stories, organize, identify needs, find their voice, and to listen to Elders like Gladys Taylor, Lavina Day, Jessie Saulteaux, Gordon Woods, Gordon Steinhauer, and Dora Benson.
We give thanks for the work of your Spirit in your people and in your church.
At the first consultation in 1980 in White Bear, Saskatchewan, the Indigenous people asked the non-indigenous people to leave the consultation for a time because they did all the talking and drowned out the voices of the Indigenous people.
Help us now to speak with and listen to one another in good ways.
The Indigenous people formed the National Native Council, including Thelma Davis, Alberta Billy, Floyd Steinhauer, Gordon Berens, Murray Whetung, and Emily Oake; and hired Stan McKay as a national coordinator to do the work of the consultations between meetings.
We give thanks that you called good and faithful servants to your church.
The Native Council learned and followed the process and protocols of the church, which depended on written reports. In March 1985, the Council’s report to the General Council Executive recommended several important steps, including the formation of All Native Circle Conference and training leadership from First Nations communities.
Inspire us with your vision now, as you did then.
The Council chose Alberta Billy and Thelma Davis to lead the Executive through the Council’s report. As they were about to enter the meeting, Alberta turned to Stan McKay and said, “I think I’m going to ask them for an apology.”
We give thanks for the prophets you send among us and for the persistence of the women.
Alberta’s request was shocking. The request for an apology wasn’t in the report. It was never discussed in the Council. The need for an apology was just in her mind and in her heart.
Stan said to her, “If that’s what you need to do then you need to do it.”
Continue, we pray, to send your Spirit among us,
to startle us and move us in the direction of your justice.
The Executive, who were caught off guard, responded with utter confusion. The Indigenous people did not know how Alberta would be received. Alberta’s request was out of order and not on the agenda. Yet the Executive were moved to respect her request and decided to work seriously on a response.
We give thanks for your spirit prodding us.
And so the church formed a working group that included Alberta and Stan to present the request to the 1986 General Council in Sudbury. The group created print materials to educate the church, even as they wondered if anyone cared or would read them. They lived for a year and a half, preparing yet uncertain of the outcome.
Continue to give us the perseverance to serve justice, and open our hearts to follow your prompting.
The Native Council instructed organizers to bring a drum to the sacred fire in Sudbury so the people might dance and greet the apology together.
We give thanks for the heartbeat of life.
Some First Nations people weren’t certain. Some asked, “What if they don’t apologize?” The people did not know if they would be heard. But affirming hope and the call to a task that might fail, the Elders said, “It doesn’t matter. We still dance.”
Continue to send your prophets among us to encourage us always.
In 1986, about 80 Indigenous people gathered in Sudbury for the national Aboriginal Ministries Consultation alongside the General Council. Members of the consultation spoke to the court: “We are asking for this apology from the church.” Then they left the meeting and invited the Indigenous commissioners to join them at the sacred fire kept nearby.
We stand in the silence with only you to hold us, Holy One.
Eighty from the consultation and a dozen Indigenous commissioners gathered by the sacred fire on a cloudy day. Anishnawbe Elders Art Solomon and Jim Dumont offered teachings and led the people in prayer. By dusk, Indigenous people from the surrounding communities joined the circle and doubled the number
who were waiting. They did not know what the church would decide to do. The waiting was not easy.
What a blessing it is to see the circle grow larger and stronger. May it continue to widen.
Elders Edith Memnook, Murray Whetung, Stanley McKay Sr., Dora Benson, Rev. Dr. Johnson Garrioch, and others waited in a tipi near the fire. They were called to be the first to receive the response from the Moderator on behalf of The United Church of Canada.
It is hard to wait and live with uncertainty. Give us strength, hope, and patience now as you did then.
Most of the General Council followed the Moderator down the hill and joined the people at the sacred fire. Hundreds of people were now gathered. After the Moderator met with the elders, he came to the sacred fire and the people and spoke the words of the apology:
Reader:
Long before my people journeyed to this land your peoples were here, and you received
from your Elders an understanding of creation and of the Mystery that surrounds us all
that was deep, and rich, and to be treasured.
We did not hear you when you shared your vision. In our zeal to tell you of the
good news of Jesus Christ we were closed to the value of your spirituality.
We confused Western ways and culture with the depth and breadth and length
and height of the gospel of Christ.
We imposed our civilization as a condition of accepting the gospel.
We tried to make you be like us and in so doing we helped to destroy the vision
that made you what you were. As a result, you, and we, are poorer and the image of
the Creator in us is twisted, blurred, and we are not what we are meant by God to be.
We ask you to forgive us and to walk together with us in the Spirit of Christ so that
our peoples may be blessed and God’s creation healed.
The next morning, the Elders advised the Indigenous people to simply acknowledge
the apology. They told the people to take the apology back home for the people to hear
and discern what it means to live into the apology, and that we are entering a time
that would not be easy.
God of wisdom and grace, continue to walk with us.
In 1988, at the 32nd General Council in Victoria, Elder Edith Memnook, a lay
commissioner for the recently formed All Native Circle Conference, offered this response
to the apology:
Dixie Shilling:
The Apology made to the Native People of Canada by The United Church of Canada in Sudbury in August 1986 has been a very important step forward. It is heartening to see that The United Church of Canada is a forerunner in making this Apology to Native People. The All Native Circle Conference has now acknowledged your Apology. Our people have continued to affirm the teachings of the Native way of life. Our spiritual teachings and values have taught us to uphold the Sacred Fire; to be guardians of Mother Earth,
and strive to maintain harmony and peaceful coexistence with all peoples.
We only ask of you to respect our Sacred Fire, the Creation, and to live in peaceful coexistence with us.
We recognize the hurts and feelings will continue amongst our people, but through partnership and walking hand in hand, the Indian spirit will eventually heal. Through our love, understanding, and sincerity the brotherhood and sisterhood of unity, strength, and respect can be achieved.
The Native People of The All Native Circle Conference hope and pray that the Apology is not symbolic but that these are the words of action and sincerity. We appreciate the freedom for culture and religious expression.
In the new spirit this Apology has created, let us unite our hearts and minds in the wholeness of life that the Great Spirit has given us.
Thirty years later we are still waiting to see what the apology means. What effect has it had? Have relationships changed? How have we acted? What healing remains to be done? The church has taken many steps, but many of us still wonder what the apology really means.
We are not there yet—not all is forgiven or made whole between us.
Great Spirit, unite us as we continue to walk together towards justice, reconciliation, being family, and living with respect in creation.
TELLING OUR STORY
1ST TESTAMENT READING: Psalm 137:2-3
STILL, WE MUST DANCE[3] by the Very Rev. Stan McKay
MOMENTS OF REMEMERING:
Dixie Shilling
Murray Whetung
GOSPEL READING Matthew 5:21-24
1ST TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 58:9b - 12
MEDITATION:
WE RESPOND WITH LOVE TO WALK THE PATH
HYMN “This Path We Walk[4]”
This path we walk, through joy and tears,
a living Way of faith and fears,
through each step’s risk, each sorrow’s pain,
when walked in love, we’ll rise again.
When life is shared, together, free
we’ll grow to be all we can be:
a circle wide will call us home,
when wrapped in love, we’re not alone.
These gifts we bring, this light we hold,
our songs of grace, our stories told,
remain un-done, told just in part,
till shared in love, and known by heart.
When life is shared, together bound,
God’s richest gifts, together found;
together walk the Spirit’s Way
when love’s the guide, we shall not stray.
This life we share, a blessing deep;
a promised gift, now ours to keep.
God grant our words were spoken true,
now clothed in life, each day anew.
INVITATION TO OFFERING
*DEDICATION HYMN
Mah mwih yuh wuh mah dah mah buh
Wain je shuh wain dah go ze yung
Wa yoo se mind wa gwe se mind
Kuh ya pah ne zid O Je Chog
*PRAYER OF DEDICATION
Creator God, through our offerings of time and talent in our everyday lives and through these monetary offerings, may we live in peace, justice and reconciliation with all, so that every place we go and every person we meet will know your love. This we pray in the name of Jesus the Christ. Amen.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE – Great Spirit, Show Us the Path
Written by Rev. Maggie McLeod, Executive Minister, Aboriginal Ministries and Indigenous Justice, United Church. This prayer was inspired by the late Mrs. Edith Memnook’s 1998 words in acknowledgement of the 1986 Apology.
Creator, we thank you for the spiritual teachings that guide us.
Mould us and shape us to be guardians of Mother Earth.
May we envision harmony and peaceful coexistence with all peoples.
We acknowledge the hurt within our hearts.
We pray that through partnership and walking together in the Spirit of Christ that we will be healed. Guiding One, it is through you that respect, mutuality, and equity will be achieved.
May we engage in your calls to act with justice and compassion.
We are grateful for the possibility of new life.
We celebrate that you call us to our authentic selves, our beginnings, our roots.
Great Spirit, show us the path that will unite our hearts and minds in the wholeness of life. In Jesus’ name we pray. All My Relations.
WE COME TO THE FEAST[5]
HYMN “Here, O my Lord, I See You Face to Face” VU #459
INVITATION TO THE TABLE
Welcome, friends and relations!
We meet here in the house of the Creator at the great feasting table.
The Holy One who walked with our ancestors,
walks with us now, and will walk with our children for years to come.
In the very air that we breathe, in the sound of whistling wind
and in the gentle lapping of the waves on the shore
we give you thanks for your presence.
In the sound of children’s laughter,
and in the songs of our elders,
we give you thanks for your presence.
Lift up your broken hearts:
We lift them up to God.
Let us honour our Creator.
It is right to honour God.
It is right to honour Creator God and to give our thanks.
We give our thanks to God.
GREAT THANKSGIVING PRAYER
Creator and Giver of all life, Source of love:
We bless you for all your gifts.
You brought creation to birth and sent prophets to awaken us to your great dream--
a dream in which everyone is treated with dignity and love, justice and mercy, honour and hospitality.
We praise you for elders and prophets, visionaries and leaders, teachers and preachers,
all who have shared the great truth of your love.
We praise you for our brother Jesus,
Love in Human Form, who showed to us in womb and tomb,
in cradle and cross, in tenderness and compassion,
your Great Heart of Love.
With the flying ones, the swimming ones, the four-legged ones and crawling ones,
with rocks, and trees, mountains and plains,
with all Creation, we humans raise our voices to you as we rejoice, saying together:
Holy, holy, holy are you, Giver of all goodness.
Creation’s heart overflows with joyous praise to you.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One who is full of the Spirit.
Hosanna in the highest!
As we gather at this feasting table,
we remember that on the night before he died,
Jesus feasted with his friends.
He took bread, thanked you as we have thanked you,
broke the bread, and gave it to them, saying:
“Take, eat. This is my body, given for you.
Whenever you feast together, remember me.”
Then, he took a cup, and after giving thanks,
passed it to his friends, saying:
“Drink. This cup is the promise of God, made in my blood.
Whenever you drink together, remember me.”
Remembering your boundless love
shown to us in Jesus Christ,
we offer you our praise,
as we proclaim the great mystery of our faith
saying together:
Christ died, trusting in the Creator’s loving presence;
Christ was raised, the first fruits of resurrection;
Christ will come making no distinction, but welcoming
all into the kingdom overflowing with mercy and hope.
Holy Spirit, unite us at this feast and may it strengthen us
to live the resurrected and reconciled life of Christ in creation.
LORD’S PRAYER
Through, with, and in Jesus, united in love by the Holy Spirit,
we offer all glory to you, Creator, Source of Love, now and always. Amen.
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
Christ’s body broken and healed for you.
The cup of rich blessing poured out for you.
INVITATION
Come, for all things are now ready.
Come to the table with all your kin and share with all in need--
the gift of healing for those of us in pain,
the gift of reconciliation for those of us estranged,
the gift of assurance for those of us in doubt,
and the gift of hope for those of us in tears.
May we who share these gifts,
share Christ with one another and with all our kin.
CLOSING BLESSING: PRAYER FOR THE JOURNEY[6]
Holy One, Creator God, God of many tribes and nations
by every name you are known, you bless the earth!
By your spirit and imagination
light the path to right relationships.
Banish inaction, and bring justice. End the long apart-ness.
Help us to understand each other clearly
and rejoice in one another’s strength;
help us to listen to each other deeply
and join in the friendship dance;
help us guard each other’s rights
and walk long together in good company.
Help us find your direction for us.
Help us risk building right relationship.
Give us courage, creativity, and commitment for our journey.
Help us keep faith with each other and so with you.
Holy One, Creator, God beyond tribes and nations,
be with us all. Amen.
CLOSING HYMN “In Christ There Is No East or West” VU #606
CHORAL BLESSING
May the Lord, Mighty God, Bless and keep you forever. Grant you peace, perfect peace, courage
in every endeavour. Lift up your eyes and see God’s face, take his grace forever. May the Lord, Mighty God
bless and keep you forever.
[1] Lyrics by S. Curtis Tufts a United Church minister in Spruce Grove Alberta. April 2016. Used with permission
[2]The Communion Liturgy was prepared for a service recognizing the 1986 Apology by Rev. Teresa Burnett-Cole, Glebe St. James United Church, Ottawa. Used with permission.
[3] Stan McKay. Longing for Home (Kindle Locations 1771-1773). United Church Publishing House.
[4] Adapted, by Rev. Susan Beaver, Grand River United Church, used with permission
[5] Ibid (adapted)
[6] (adapted from Toward Justice and Right Relationship: A Beginning (UCPH, 2003))
THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNITED CHURCH APOLOGY
TO FIRST NATIONS PEOPLES
AUGUST 14, 2016
Web Site: http://buckhornpastoralcharge.weebly.com/
Email: [email protected]
MINISTER – ALL OF THE CONGREGATION
Curve Lake – 11:30 a.m.
Leader of Music Secretary
Jacqueline Jacobson Delma Foster
WE GATHER IN HOPE
A TIME OF CENTERING
As you prepare for worship, please pause for a moment of silent contemplation. We encourage you to use this time to make the transition between “getting here” and “being present for worship”. Take a few moments to get in touch with the still deep places that provide you with a sense of calm; that quiet your spirit. Relax your body and ground yourself with a sense of inner peace, strength and love. Be aware of being with others and feel the spirit of community.
LIGHTING THE CHRIST CANDLE
CALL TO WORSHIP[1]
We gather as our Creator’s children, in a house dedicated to God, to offer our praise and wonder.
We gather this day, reminded that the Creator calls us to be holy in mind, body and spirit.
We gather to remember a painful history and an inspiring response.
We come to seek your healing so we may grow together as one body in and of Christ.
We come to give thanks, to love, and to be loved.
We come to bring a unified commitment to healing and justice and reconciliation.
We come once again to dedicate ourselves and our lives to the one who created us, the one who calls us,
the one who sustains us, and the one who guides us in the way of love.
Let us worship our Creator with one mind and one heart in peace.
OPENING PRAYER
HYMN “Joyful, Joyful We Adore You” VU # 232
1ST TESTAMENT READING: Micah 6:1-2, 6-8
LITANY[2]
This litany and story are based on the memories of the Very Rev. Stanley McKay and others who took part in the earliest national Aboriginal ministries consultations in the 1980s. An attempt has also been made to accurately reflect the history; any errors or omissions are not meant to cause harm but are the limitations of the writer, the Rev. Susan Beaver.
Loving Creator, we are your church, practicing your love, justice, and peace in the world.
Guide us by your Spirit.
In 1980, the faithful from Native pastoral charges from across Canada, with the support of the whole church,
held national consultations to gather, share stories, organize, identify needs, find their voice, and to listen to Elders like Gladys Taylor, Lavina Day, Jessie Saulteaux, Gordon Woods, Gordon Steinhauer, and Dora Benson.
We give thanks for the work of your Spirit in your people and in your church.
At the first consultation in 1980 in White Bear, Saskatchewan, the Indigenous people asked the non-indigenous people to leave the consultation for a time because they did all the talking and drowned out the voices of the Indigenous people.
Help us now to speak with and listen to one another in good ways.
The Indigenous people formed the National Native Council, including Thelma Davis, Alberta Billy, Floyd Steinhauer, Gordon Berens, Murray Whetung, and Emily Oake; and hired Stan McKay as a national coordinator to do the work of the consultations between meetings.
We give thanks that you called good and faithful servants to your church.
The Native Council learned and followed the process and protocols of the church, which depended on written reports. In March 1985, the Council’s report to the General Council Executive recommended several important steps, including the formation of All Native Circle Conference and training leadership from First Nations communities.
Inspire us with your vision now, as you did then.
The Council chose Alberta Billy and Thelma Davis to lead the Executive through the Council’s report. As they were about to enter the meeting, Alberta turned to Stan McKay and said, “I think I’m going to ask them for an apology.”
We give thanks for the prophets you send among us and for the persistence of the women.
Alberta’s request was shocking. The request for an apology wasn’t in the report. It was never discussed in the Council. The need for an apology was just in her mind and in her heart.
Stan said to her, “If that’s what you need to do then you need to do it.”
Continue, we pray, to send your Spirit among us,
to startle us and move us in the direction of your justice.
The Executive, who were caught off guard, responded with utter confusion. The Indigenous people did not know how Alberta would be received. Alberta’s request was out of order and not on the agenda. Yet the Executive were moved to respect her request and decided to work seriously on a response.
We give thanks for your spirit prodding us.
And so the church formed a working group that included Alberta and Stan to present the request to the 1986 General Council in Sudbury. The group created print materials to educate the church, even as they wondered if anyone cared or would read them. They lived for a year and a half, preparing yet uncertain of the outcome.
Continue to give us the perseverance to serve justice, and open our hearts to follow your prompting.
The Native Council instructed organizers to bring a drum to the sacred fire in Sudbury so the people might dance and greet the apology together.
We give thanks for the heartbeat of life.
Some First Nations people weren’t certain. Some asked, “What if they don’t apologize?” The people did not know if they would be heard. But affirming hope and the call to a task that might fail, the Elders said, “It doesn’t matter. We still dance.”
Continue to send your prophets among us to encourage us always.
In 1986, about 80 Indigenous people gathered in Sudbury for the national Aboriginal Ministries Consultation alongside the General Council. Members of the consultation spoke to the court: “We are asking for this apology from the church.” Then they left the meeting and invited the Indigenous commissioners to join them at the sacred fire kept nearby.
We stand in the silence with only you to hold us, Holy One.
Eighty from the consultation and a dozen Indigenous commissioners gathered by the sacred fire on a cloudy day. Anishnawbe Elders Art Solomon and Jim Dumont offered teachings and led the people in prayer. By dusk, Indigenous people from the surrounding communities joined the circle and doubled the number
who were waiting. They did not know what the church would decide to do. The waiting was not easy.
What a blessing it is to see the circle grow larger and stronger. May it continue to widen.
Elders Edith Memnook, Murray Whetung, Stanley McKay Sr., Dora Benson, Rev. Dr. Johnson Garrioch, and others waited in a tipi near the fire. They were called to be the first to receive the response from the Moderator on behalf of The United Church of Canada.
It is hard to wait and live with uncertainty. Give us strength, hope, and patience now as you did then.
Most of the General Council followed the Moderator down the hill and joined the people at the sacred fire. Hundreds of people were now gathered. After the Moderator met with the elders, he came to the sacred fire and the people and spoke the words of the apology:
Reader:
Long before my people journeyed to this land your peoples were here, and you received
from your Elders an understanding of creation and of the Mystery that surrounds us all
that was deep, and rich, and to be treasured.
We did not hear you when you shared your vision. In our zeal to tell you of the
good news of Jesus Christ we were closed to the value of your spirituality.
We confused Western ways and culture with the depth and breadth and length
and height of the gospel of Christ.
We imposed our civilization as a condition of accepting the gospel.
We tried to make you be like us and in so doing we helped to destroy the vision
that made you what you were. As a result, you, and we, are poorer and the image of
the Creator in us is twisted, blurred, and we are not what we are meant by God to be.
We ask you to forgive us and to walk together with us in the Spirit of Christ so that
our peoples may be blessed and God’s creation healed.
The next morning, the Elders advised the Indigenous people to simply acknowledge
the apology. They told the people to take the apology back home for the people to hear
and discern what it means to live into the apology, and that we are entering a time
that would not be easy.
God of wisdom and grace, continue to walk with us.
In 1988, at the 32nd General Council in Victoria, Elder Edith Memnook, a lay
commissioner for the recently formed All Native Circle Conference, offered this response
to the apology:
Dixie Shilling:
The Apology made to the Native People of Canada by The United Church of Canada in Sudbury in August 1986 has been a very important step forward. It is heartening to see that The United Church of Canada is a forerunner in making this Apology to Native People. The All Native Circle Conference has now acknowledged your Apology. Our people have continued to affirm the teachings of the Native way of life. Our spiritual teachings and values have taught us to uphold the Sacred Fire; to be guardians of Mother Earth,
and strive to maintain harmony and peaceful coexistence with all peoples.
We only ask of you to respect our Sacred Fire, the Creation, and to live in peaceful coexistence with us.
We recognize the hurts and feelings will continue amongst our people, but through partnership and walking hand in hand, the Indian spirit will eventually heal. Through our love, understanding, and sincerity the brotherhood and sisterhood of unity, strength, and respect can be achieved.
The Native People of The All Native Circle Conference hope and pray that the Apology is not symbolic but that these are the words of action and sincerity. We appreciate the freedom for culture and religious expression.
In the new spirit this Apology has created, let us unite our hearts and minds in the wholeness of life that the Great Spirit has given us.
Thirty years later we are still waiting to see what the apology means. What effect has it had? Have relationships changed? How have we acted? What healing remains to be done? The church has taken many steps, but many of us still wonder what the apology really means.
We are not there yet—not all is forgiven or made whole between us.
Great Spirit, unite us as we continue to walk together towards justice, reconciliation, being family, and living with respect in creation.
TELLING OUR STORY
1ST TESTAMENT READING: Psalm 137:2-3
STILL, WE MUST DANCE[3] by the Very Rev. Stan McKay
MOMENTS OF REMEMERING:
Dixie Shilling
Murray Whetung
GOSPEL READING Matthew 5:21-24
1ST TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 58:9b - 12
MEDITATION:
WE RESPOND WITH LOVE TO WALK THE PATH
HYMN “This Path We Walk[4]”
This path we walk, through joy and tears,
a living Way of faith and fears,
through each step’s risk, each sorrow’s pain,
when walked in love, we’ll rise again.
When life is shared, together, free
we’ll grow to be all we can be:
a circle wide will call us home,
when wrapped in love, we’re not alone.
These gifts we bring, this light we hold,
our songs of grace, our stories told,
remain un-done, told just in part,
till shared in love, and known by heart.
When life is shared, together bound,
God’s richest gifts, together found;
together walk the Spirit’s Way
when love’s the guide, we shall not stray.
This life we share, a blessing deep;
a promised gift, now ours to keep.
God grant our words were spoken true,
now clothed in life, each day anew.
INVITATION TO OFFERING
*DEDICATION HYMN
Mah mwih yuh wuh mah dah mah buh
Wain je shuh wain dah go ze yung
Wa yoo se mind wa gwe se mind
Kuh ya pah ne zid O Je Chog
*PRAYER OF DEDICATION
Creator God, through our offerings of time and talent in our everyday lives and through these monetary offerings, may we live in peace, justice and reconciliation with all, so that every place we go and every person we meet will know your love. This we pray in the name of Jesus the Christ. Amen.
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE – Great Spirit, Show Us the Path
Written by Rev. Maggie McLeod, Executive Minister, Aboriginal Ministries and Indigenous Justice, United Church. This prayer was inspired by the late Mrs. Edith Memnook’s 1998 words in acknowledgement of the 1986 Apology.
Creator, we thank you for the spiritual teachings that guide us.
Mould us and shape us to be guardians of Mother Earth.
May we envision harmony and peaceful coexistence with all peoples.
We acknowledge the hurt within our hearts.
We pray that through partnership and walking together in the Spirit of Christ that we will be healed. Guiding One, it is through you that respect, mutuality, and equity will be achieved.
May we engage in your calls to act with justice and compassion.
We are grateful for the possibility of new life.
We celebrate that you call us to our authentic selves, our beginnings, our roots.
Great Spirit, show us the path that will unite our hearts and minds in the wholeness of life. In Jesus’ name we pray. All My Relations.
WE COME TO THE FEAST[5]
HYMN “Here, O my Lord, I See You Face to Face” VU #459
INVITATION TO THE TABLE
Welcome, friends and relations!
We meet here in the house of the Creator at the great feasting table.
The Holy One who walked with our ancestors,
walks with us now, and will walk with our children for years to come.
In the very air that we breathe, in the sound of whistling wind
and in the gentle lapping of the waves on the shore
we give you thanks for your presence.
In the sound of children’s laughter,
and in the songs of our elders,
we give you thanks for your presence.
Lift up your broken hearts:
We lift them up to God.
Let us honour our Creator.
It is right to honour God.
It is right to honour Creator God and to give our thanks.
We give our thanks to God.
GREAT THANKSGIVING PRAYER
Creator and Giver of all life, Source of love:
We bless you for all your gifts.
You brought creation to birth and sent prophets to awaken us to your great dream--
a dream in which everyone is treated with dignity and love, justice and mercy, honour and hospitality.
We praise you for elders and prophets, visionaries and leaders, teachers and preachers,
all who have shared the great truth of your love.
We praise you for our brother Jesus,
Love in Human Form, who showed to us in womb and tomb,
in cradle and cross, in tenderness and compassion,
your Great Heart of Love.
With the flying ones, the swimming ones, the four-legged ones and crawling ones,
with rocks, and trees, mountains and plains,
with all Creation, we humans raise our voices to you as we rejoice, saying together:
Holy, holy, holy are you, Giver of all goodness.
Creation’s heart overflows with joyous praise to you.
Hosanna in the highest!
Blessed is the One who is full of the Spirit.
Hosanna in the highest!
As we gather at this feasting table,
we remember that on the night before he died,
Jesus feasted with his friends.
He took bread, thanked you as we have thanked you,
broke the bread, and gave it to them, saying:
“Take, eat. This is my body, given for you.
Whenever you feast together, remember me.”
Then, he took a cup, and after giving thanks,
passed it to his friends, saying:
“Drink. This cup is the promise of God, made in my blood.
Whenever you drink together, remember me.”
Remembering your boundless love
shown to us in Jesus Christ,
we offer you our praise,
as we proclaim the great mystery of our faith
saying together:
Christ died, trusting in the Creator’s loving presence;
Christ was raised, the first fruits of resurrection;
Christ will come making no distinction, but welcoming
all into the kingdom overflowing with mercy and hope.
Holy Spirit, unite us at this feast and may it strengthen us
to live the resurrected and reconciled life of Christ in creation.
LORD’S PRAYER
Through, with, and in Jesus, united in love by the Holy Spirit,
we offer all glory to you, Creator, Source of Love, now and always. Amen.
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
Christ’s body broken and healed for you.
The cup of rich blessing poured out for you.
INVITATION
Come, for all things are now ready.
Come to the table with all your kin and share with all in need--
the gift of healing for those of us in pain,
the gift of reconciliation for those of us estranged,
the gift of assurance for those of us in doubt,
and the gift of hope for those of us in tears.
May we who share these gifts,
share Christ with one another and with all our kin.
CLOSING BLESSING: PRAYER FOR THE JOURNEY[6]
Holy One, Creator God, God of many tribes and nations
by every name you are known, you bless the earth!
By your spirit and imagination
light the path to right relationships.
Banish inaction, and bring justice. End the long apart-ness.
Help us to understand each other clearly
and rejoice in one another’s strength;
help us to listen to each other deeply
and join in the friendship dance;
help us guard each other’s rights
and walk long together in good company.
Help us find your direction for us.
Help us risk building right relationship.
Give us courage, creativity, and commitment for our journey.
Help us keep faith with each other and so with you.
Holy One, Creator, God beyond tribes and nations,
be with us all. Amen.
CLOSING HYMN “In Christ There Is No East or West” VU #606
CHORAL BLESSING
May the Lord, Mighty God, Bless and keep you forever. Grant you peace, perfect peace, courage
in every endeavour. Lift up your eyes and see God’s face, take his grace forever. May the Lord, Mighty God
bless and keep you forever.
[1] Lyrics by S. Curtis Tufts a United Church minister in Spruce Grove Alberta. April 2016. Used with permission
[2]The Communion Liturgy was prepared for a service recognizing the 1986 Apology by Rev. Teresa Burnett-Cole, Glebe St. James United Church, Ottawa. Used with permission.
[3] Stan McKay. Longing for Home (Kindle Locations 1771-1773). United Church Publishing House.
[4] Adapted, by Rev. Susan Beaver, Grand River United Church, used with permission
[5] Ibid (adapted)
[6] (adapted from Toward Justice and Right Relationship: A Beginning (UCPH, 2003))