The Congregations of St. Mark’s and St. David’s
United
Church of Canada
Port
Hawkesbury/Port Hastings, NS
Easter Sunrise Service
Easter Sunrise Service
April
20 2014
6:00
a.m. Outdoors St. David’s United Church
Ministers:
Each one of us
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WE GATHER TOGETHER
- OPENING WORDS
- Before new life springs from the ground
- there is a seed… (silence)
- Before the sun shines on a new day
- there is the setting of the moon… (silence)
- Before we know the joy of community
- there is aloneness… (silence)
- Before music is heard
- there is stillness… (silence)
- Before Easter alleluias are shouted
- there is a time to remember… (silence)
LIGHTING
THE NEW FIRE
This
is the dawn of a new creation: come to the new fire!
WE APPROACH GOD
CALL
TO WORSHIP (inspired by
Psalm 118:19–24)
One:
Open wide the way to renewed life
that
all may enter and give thanks to God.
Two:
Our prayers have been answered,
and
God has become our salvation.
One:
This is Love's doing;
it
is marvellous in our eyes.
Two:
This is the day that God has made;
let
us rejoice and be glad in it.
Easter
Greeting 3 times
One
& Two: Alleluia! Christ is risen!
Response:
Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
HYMN This
Is the Day
1,
4 This is the day, this is the day
that
our God has made, that our God has made;
we
will rejoice, we will rejoice
,
,
and
be glad in it, and be glad in it.
This
is the day that our God has made,
we
will rejoice and be glad in it.
This
is the day, this is the day
that
our God has made.
2 Open
to us, open to us
your
gates, O God, your gates, O God;
we
will go in, we will go in,
to
your holy place, to your holy place.
Open
to us your gates, O God,
we
will go in to your holy place.
Open
to us, open to us
your
gates, O God.
3 You
are our God, you are our God,
we
will praise your name, we will praise your name;
we
will give thanks, we will give thanks,
for
your faithfulness, for your faithfulness
.
.
You
are our God, we will praise your name,
we
will give thanks for your faithfulness.
You
are our God, you are our God,
we
will praise your name.
OPENING
PRAYER
Response:
All: Thank you, God of
life!
PASSING
THE PEACE We
share the Easter Greeting as above
WE LISTEN FOR GOD'S WORD
Psalm
118:1-2, 14-17 (a candle) God's steadfast love endures
forever. A Candle is brought forward.
forever. A Candle is brought forward.
Sing
(echo): Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen!
Psalm
118:18-24 (a stone) The rejected stone becomes the
cornerstone. A Stone is brought forward.
cornerstone. A Stone is brought forward.
Sing
(echo): Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen!
Colossians
3:1-4 (empty cross) Set your mind on things above.
An
empty Cross is brought forward.
Sing
(echo): Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen!
HYMN Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Give Thanks VU#179
Hallelujah,
hallelujah.
Give
thanks to the risen Christ;
hallelujah,
hallelujah!
Give
praise to God's name.
1 Jesus
is Lord of all the earth,
firstborn
of all creation. R
2 Spread
the good news o'er all the earth:
Jesus
has died and is risen. R
3 We
have been crucified with Christ,
now
we shall live for ever. R
4 Come
let us praise the living God,
joyfully
sing to our Saviour. R
Matthew
28:1-10 Mary and the Empty Tomb
WE RESPOND TO GOD'S WORD
PRAYER
God
of uprisings, God of the rising sun, the rising tide, the rising
wind, the rising mist, the rising crocuses, you have raised Jesus
Christ from the dead, raising our hopes to the skies, opening up
glorious new possibilities for our living, for our dying, for our
living again. Raise us to new life here and now, that we may walk in
faith and love every day. We ask it in the name of the Risen One, the
One who taught us to pray saying: Our Father who...
Written
by Jeanne Manning Stright, St. Paul’s U. C., Halifax, N.S.
Gathering,
Lent/Easter 2013, page 39. Used with permission.
PRAYERS
OF THE PEOPLE & LIGHTING OF CANDLES
Consider
a person or a situation that the power of new life can
transform. Light a tealight and place it near the Christ candle.
transform. Light a tealight and place it near the Christ candle.
SENDING
OUT AND BLESSING
Let
us go forth in the name of the risen Christ,
rejoicing
in the new life open before us this Easter day.
And
may the blessing of God,
Creator,
Redeemer and Sustainer of all life,
be
with us now and always. Amen.
HYMN
Fresh As the Morning MV28
1.
God of the Bible, God in the Gospel,
hope
seen in Jesus, hope yet to come,
you
are our centre, daylight or darkness,
freedom
or prison you are our home.
REFRAIN
Fresh
as the morning, sure as the sunrise,
God
always faithful, You do not change.
Fresh
as the morning, sure as the sunrise,
God
always faithful, You do not change.
2.
God in our struggles, God in our hunger,
suffering
with us, taking our part,
still
you empow’r us, mothering Spirit
,
,
feeding,
sustaining, from your own heart.
REFRAIN
3.
Those without status, those who are nothing,
You
have made royal, gifted with rights,
chosen
as partners, midwives of justice
,
,
birthing
new systems, lighting new lights.
REFRAIN
4.
Not by your finger, not by your anger,
will
our world order change in a day,
but,
by your people, fearless and faithful,
small
paper lanterns, lighting the way.
REFRAIN
5.
Hope we must carry, shining and certain
through
all our turmoil, terror and loss,
bonding
us gladly, one to the other,
‘til
our world changes, facing the cross.
REFRAIN
Words:
Shirley Erena Murray. Music: Tony E. Alonso.
Words
copyright © 1996 Hope Publishing Co., Carol Stream, IL 60188.
All
rights reserved. Used by permission.
Music
copyright © 2001 by GIA Publications, Inc.
All
rights reserved. 7404 S. Mason Ave., Chicago, IL 60638.
www.giamusic.com.
800-442-1358. Used by permission.
The
light is carried into the church as we sing the last verse.
