UNION CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF HANCOCK
Open and Affirming of ALL God’s Children
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 25, 2022
This service will be at the Gazebo in Monument Park (adjacent to the Town Office)
and on Facebook Live at 10:00 a.m.
Silent Prayer
Hear our humble prayer, O God, for our friends the animals, especially for animals who are suffering, for any that are hunted or lost, or deserted or frightened or hungry; for all that must be put to death. We entreat for them all thy mercy and pity and for those who deal with them we ask a heart of compassion and gentle hands and kindly words. Make us, ourselves, to be true friends to animals and so to share the blessings of the merciful. -- Albert Schweitzer
* Indicates points in the service when we stand in body or spirit
Announcements
Prelude This Is My Father’s World Arr. Summers
Welcome
*Introit Simple Gifts PL Hymnal #29
'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free, 'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be, And when we find ourselves in the place just right, it will be in the valley of Love and Delight. When true simplicity is gained, to bow and to bend we will not be ashamed. To turn and to turn will be our delight, 'till by turning, turning we come 'round right.
*Call to Worship (Prayer of St. Francis)
One: Lord, make me us instruments of your peace, where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy;
All: O Divine Master, grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen
*Hymn Place in the Choir PL Hymnal #50
Refrain: All God's critters got a place in the choir. Some sing low, some sing higher, Some sing out loud on the telephone wire, and some just clap their hands, or paws,
or anything they got now.
Listen to the bass, it’s the one on the bottom, where the bullfrog croaks and the hippopotamus
moans and groans with a big t’do. And old cow just goes ‘moo’.
Refrain:
Dogs and the cats they take up the middle, where the honey bee hums and the crickets fiddle.
The donkey brays and the pony neighs - the old coyote howls (ooww!)
Refrain:
Listen to the top where the little birds sing - on the melody with their high notes ringin’.
The hoot owl hollers over everything - the jaybird disagrees.
Refrain:
Singin’ in the night time, singing in the day - the little duck quacks and is on his way.
The possum ain’t got much to say - the porcupine talks to himself.
Refrain:
It’s a simple song of living sung everywhere - by the ox and the fox and the grizzly bear,
the grumpy alligator and the hawk above - the sly raccoon and the turtle dove.
Refrain: All God's critters got a place in the choir. Some sing low, some sing higher, Some sing out loud on the telephone wire, and some just clap their hands, or paws,
or anything they got now.
*Invocation (spoken in unison) Christine Valters Paintner—Abbey of the Arts
God of surprises, infuse us with your wild wonder, sustain us in the daily practice of opening our hearts to grace. Expand our imaginations to see more widely than before. Open our hearts to experience compassion beyond our dreams. Call us to begin again and again.
*Passing of the Peace (ASL)
Old Testament Reading (Hebrew Scriptures) Job 12:7-10
“But ask the animals what they think—let them teach you; let the birds tell you what’s going on. Put your ear to the earth—learn the basics. Listen—the fish in the ocean will tell you their stories. Isn’t it clear that they all know and agree that God is sovereign, that God holds all things—Every living soul, yes, every breathing creature? Isn’t this all just common sense,as common as the sense of taste? Do you think the elderly have a corner on wisdom, that you have to grow old before you understand life?
Special Music Deep Peace John Dixon
Message Rev. TJ MackPet Blessings*Hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful (vs. 1 & 2) R. #63
Refrain: All things bright and beautiful - All creatures great and small All things wise and wonderful - 'Twas God that made them all
Each little flower that opens - Each little bird that sings God made their glowing colors - And made their tiny wings
Refrain:
The purple headed mountains - The rivers running by The sunset and the morning - That brightens up the sky
Prayers of the People – Sharing Joys & Concerns
Lead Me Lord
Lead me Lord, lead me in thy righteousness, make thy way plain before my face.
For it is thou Lord, thou Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety.
Offering – Free will offerings are joyfully given and accepted. Special envelopes are available for donations to the SPCA of Hancock County (Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).
Offertory His Eye Is on the Sparrow Arr. C.E. Walz
*The Doxology
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below;
Praise God for all that love has done; Creator, Christ, and Spirit, One. Amen
*Prayer of Dedication (spoken in unison)
All good gifts come from you, our Creator God. We thank you especially this morning for the gifts of companionship shared between people and animals of all sorts. May our offerings be blessed and upheld by your love for all living things.
*Hymn For the Beauty of the Earth (vs. 1,2,5) R. #54
For the beauty of the earth, for the splendor of the skies,
For the love which from our birth over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the beauty of each hour of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower, sun and moon, and stars of light,
Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For each perfect gift of thine unto us so freely given,
Graces, human and divine, flowers of earth and buds of heaven,
Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
*Benediction of St. Francis (adapted)
May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships,
so that you may live deep within your heart. May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, hunger, and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in the world, so that you may bring justice and kindness to all creatures on the earth, in the sky and in the waters. Amen
Postlude With Joyful Hearts Faye Lopez
(Please remain seated for the Postlude)
Please visit Hancock (Maine) UCC on Facebook or our webpage www.hancockucc.org
or visit this link to our PayPal account: paypal.me/hancockucc
or mail offerings to:
Union Congregational Church, PO Box 443, Hancock, ME 04640 (Attention: Treasurer)
207.422.3100 207.323.6743
Many thanks to those who helped make this service possible –
in front of the camera and behind the scenes.
Music Minister – Debbie Riley
Deacons – Nick Davis, Pat Summerer, & David Wildes
Worship Assistants – Jennifer, Arthur, Amelia, & Lucy Ashmore
Graphics Minister – Cynthia Wood
Audio-Video Support – Mike Summerer
(Mike Summerer is happy to teach others this simple task. Please inquire…)
Office Secretary – Vicky Espling
Settled Minister – Rev. TJ Mack
The Body of Christ – You
To view the service on Facebook after it has been uploaded
(type this into your web browserà) Hancock UCC Maine @ Facebook or click below
You may also click on this link to find the service on our YouTube page.
Resources:
Thanks to both Rev. Janet Adair Hansen and Rev. Susan Moran for sharing
their storehouses of resources with me back in the Autumn of 2020.
"Permission to podcast / stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE, License #A-738532. All rights reserved.”
Simple Gifts
Shaker Hymn, 1848. Public Domain.
Place in the Choir
1978 Mineral River Music, BMI.
All Things Bright and Beautiful
Public Domain.
Words: Cecil F. Alexander, 1848, alt.
Music: English Melody, 17th century; adapt. Martin Shaw, 1915.
For the Beauty of the Earth
Public Domain.
Words: Folliott S. Pierpoint, 1864, alt.
Music: Conrad Kocher, 1838; adapt. William H. Monk, 1861.
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