13th. November. 2022. Service.
Remembrance Sunday November 13th November 2022
Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost
Call to Worship
On this day of Remembrance, we gather to sing and to pray,
we remember the past and look to the future.
At this time when the guns and canons fell silent,
we come before you Lord, seeking your peace.
On this day of hope in the face of violence
we come before you God, believing in your promise.
Let us worship God together, in peace
Let us worship God.
Hymn 710 “I have a dream a man once said
The Collect for today
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Tryst
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.
The Last Post
Silence for two minutes.
Reveille
In memory of those who died may we be better men and women, and in gratitude to God may we live as those who are not their own, but who are bought with a price.
May God’s blessing surround you each day
Prayer
God our Father, you are the carer of our souls and the source of eternal life in Jesus Christ Today when we commemorate and commend to you those who lived and dies in the service of others we are happy to remember that your purpose for us is only good. You gave Jesus Christ for the life of the world, and that you lead us by his Holy Spirit into the way of righteousness and peace. Your desire is to fold both heaven and earth in a single peace. We want that peace but confess that it is often easier for us to keep alive the passions and pride that lead to hatred conflict and war and ask your forgiveness when we allow strong feelings to rob us of the peace that you offer in Jesus Christ. Forgive us and set us free from every sin and make us more determined to live in the way of eternal life, that is in the way of goodness and love in Jesus Christ. God of wisdom, we seek insight and understanding from your Word read and proclaimed today. Move in us by your Spirit to open our hearts and minds to receive your message in the scriptures and respond in faithfulness. Amen.
Jesus teaches us by his death and resurrection the meaning of reconciliation and forgiveness. Teach us to forgive one another. Heal every division and take away our fears, renew our faith in your unchanging purposes of love, of goodwill and peace on earth. Through Jesus Christ in whom we pray.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever Amen.
Hymn 260 O God our help in ages past
Hymn “Eternal Father, strong to
The Intimations
Inverkeithing Church Fair
The Church Fair will be held on Saturday 26th November from 12 – 2pm in the Church. Admission is £5 which includes soup & mince pies, admission only £1.
There is a list of stalls available in the Church & if you can help in any way, please add you name to the list or speak to Joan More.
Choir for Christmas, we will practise on Saturdays from 10:30-12 noon in the Church.
North Queensferry Scottish Social Evening for Ukrainian Refugees will be held on Tuesday 29th November from 6.30-8.30. in the church and host families are welcome too.
Coffee Morning: Inverkeithing Tuesday 15th 10:00am-noon
Morag Wilkinson will be making ginger wine again this year, both for the sale of work and available in the entryway to the church. If you have any screw-top glass bottles (e.g., wine bottles) that she could use, she would be grateful for any contributions.
The Funeral of our member Mrs Elizabeth McVay, will take place in the Church on Friday 25th November at 12:15 pm thereafter to Dunfermline Crematorium at 1:45pm. Please keep her family in your prayers.
Some members of our Kirk Session have expressed an interest in meeting to discuss how we as Inverkeithing Parish Church might play a part in meeting the needs of our community during the winter months. We seek the help of all elders as well as the involvement of interested members of the congregation to join us in sharing thoughts and ideas.
If you would like to join us, then we would be delighted to welcome you to join our discussion.
Reading Micah 4:1-8
4 In the last days
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
and peoples will stream to it.
2 Many nations will come and say,
‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.’
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
3 He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.
They will beat their swords into ploughshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war any more.
4 Everyone will sit under their own vine
and under their own fig-tree,
and no one will make them afraid,
for the Lord Almighty has spoken.
5 All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,
but we will walk in the name of the Lord
our God for ever and ever.
6 ‘In that day,’ declares the Lord,
‘I will gather the lame;
I will assemble the exiles
and those I have brought to grief.
7 I will make the lame my remnant,
those driven away a strong nation.
The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion
from that day and for ever.
8 As for you, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold] of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored to you;
kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem.’
Hymn 704 “I vow to thee, my country”
Invitation to the Offering
On Remembrance Day, we mark the costly offering of lives given for the sake of others. What we offer today is small in comparison, but with God’s blessing, our gifts can also make a difference for the sake of others—in Christ’s name.
Prayer of Dedication
Generous and gracious God, we have received so much from you in Christ and in creation. Bless the gifts we offer this day so they will speak of your love for the world in all its detail, and for people in all our diversity. May our gifts touch the need around us in the name of Christ who makes us one. Amen.
Reading Luke 1:68-79
68 ‘Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a horn[a] of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
71 salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us –
72 to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.’ Amen.
This is the Word of the Lord, to Him be all glory and praise.
Hymn 702 “Lord, in love and perfect wisdom”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr4_SkHODdU&t=40s
Sermon
When I live in Canada, now more than forty years ago, I used to avoid literal talk about the “end of the world,” and preached instead on God’s continual re-creation. My reason then was to counter the almost universal focus on “the last days” which floated over the border constantly on the airwaves from evangelistic radio and television stations. But these days, as we face climate change, war, political populism, the renewed talk of nuclear conflict, the loss of species, the violent persistence of white supremacy, and similar forms of racist violence, and other dangers—well, these are unprecedented, and I can imagine the collapse of civilization as we know it. I don’t mean the literal end of the world, but the collapse of civilisation as we know it today.
The Ukraine war, the COP27 conference with to and fro between oil and gas CEOs and green groups along with an announcement that the 1.5C climate target is dead means that we may or may not escape any of those threats. These words of Jesus don’t sound so far-fetched today: 25 ‘There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.’
When I was in the High School for the Remembrance Day assembly on Friday, the student presentation was about the aftereffects of war. The drama group presented a cameo about the redemption through the love and care of his comrades of an alcoholic soldier survivor with PTSD. That resonated with me because I had not long heard of the death of a 43-year-old Canadian ex-soldier who was badly traumatised by his experiences in Serbia. I met him five years ago when he was struggling to heal. He recently succumbed to illnesses that were too much for his mind and body to overcome. He was the same age as my son.
Our conclusion on Friday was to note that most wars sow the seeds of the next because they rarely resolve the causative issues. Talk of a second American civil war nowadays shows that whilst the slaves were set free, the fruits of that conflict are still seeding and sprouting in the American psyche a hundred and sixty years later.
One wonders if Putin’s claim to Ukraine and Crimea can ultimately be traced to Russian resentment over France’s (and Britain’s) aggression over the care of Palestinian Christians which triggered the Crimean War which Russia lost in 1856. But also note that Russia had been aggressive towards the Ottoman Empire in Turkey which at that time ruled Palestine and from which Russia had taken Crimea in the 18th Century. How will winning any war still the historic angers and resentments that triggered it is a very difficult question to answer.
One minister gave this solution: “Now is the time for preachers to start talking about the end times. We need to be realistic about the future. We need to be motivated to work for justice and healing while there’s time—so maybe it won’t be the end! We need to be prepared. And we need to be faithful. If indeed we are facing the possibility of chaos and collapse, what better way to address it does God have but to send out people full of love, courage, hope and gentleness? Whether we have 5000 years to go or 50, we can be loving to the last sad day. If it is indeed the last day, we and those around us will need love, lots of courageous love. “By your endurance you will gain your lives.”
To supplement that I came across these short reflections on the last days from Unfolding Light by Steve Garnaas Holmes a retired Methodist preacher who lives in Maine. They are poetry
“As for these things that you see the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.”—Luke 21.6
On the eve of a precipitous election
I hear these words with renewed attention.
The destruction of the temple. A changed world.
A dangerous world. The loss of what we count on.
“Wars and insurrections…nation against nation…
arrest and persecution…” “This,” Jesus says,
“will give you an opportunity to testify.”
When things get dark and dangerous
we shine with light. We speak the truth.
We embody resurrection. We bear witness.
Not just with slogans, but with our lives.
Lives lived in subversive love,
with traitorous gentleness and radical courage
in countercultural forgiveness and illegal mercy.
The Empires of this world will always oppose
the Empire of God. Always. But our true belonging,
is in that Realm of Love; and it is eternal.
In the spirit of the Crucified and Risen One,
who is with us always,
we will persist.
Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. —Luke 6.28
The more monstrous a person’s evil,
the more evil their monsters,
and the more unable they are to overcome them.
They need you.
They need you to stand beside them and pray
as they can’t, pray for their redemption.
If you want peace in the world,
if you want justice for all the oppressed,
for the abused and enslaved and trafficked,
then you want most of all
the redemption of all wrongdoers.
God’s great justice is not revenge.
That’s too cheap, too human, too small.
No, God’s justice is actual harmony
and fullness of life for everybody.
Not payback, that endless loop,
but transformation (which is harder).
Pray for the bad guys,
even the tyrants and torturers, that with love
God will wrench them out of their hell
and deliver us all.
Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. Love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Mother-Father is merciful —Luke 6. 27-28, 35-36
Cleanse us, O God,
of our errant thoughts (our vain projections)
that your love is in payment of deserving,
that your payback is anything but love.
Holy One, you who love your enemies fully,
deliver us from our fears
that you love only as humans do:
sometimes and incompletely,
diluted with glory and being right.
O God, you who are kind to the wicked,
forgive us for our lack of faith
in your perfect, absolute, unconditional love.
God, you who love and love only,
you who are love and love only,
help us to love,
to love without teaching lessons or getting even,
to love without getting it right and to love anyway.
Purge us of our choosy love.
May your love be in us, not our love, but yours.
Merciful One, perfect your love in us.
Amen.
And as a final encouragement new beatitudes:
Blessed are you who are depleted, who have nothing,
for God will give you everything.
Blessed are you who are broken-hearted,
for in through those cracks seeps God.
Blessed are you who have no power in this world,
for God has power in you.
Blessed are you who despair of justice ever coming,
for justice will come.
Blessed are you who offer grace,
for you will live in grace.
Blessed are you who live by love alone,
for you will meet God.
Blessed are you who bring about healing,
for the name of God will shine in you.
Blessed are you when the world is against you,
for God is for you, so deeply for you.
Remembrance Sunday was instituted not just to remind us of the sacrifices of all who fell. It also serves to remind us of the cost and destructiveness of war. We no longer think of war and its heroes as glorious as people did two hundred years ago. We need instead constant reminders of its horror and pain to inspire us to work for peace and for the personal transformation that alone can neutralise the evils, the resentments, the bitterness and hatred that are the seedbeds of all conflict. Jesus’ words still contain the most potent means that exist of accomplishing this. Amen.
Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession
God of each life and all lives,
in every generation you have been present with your people:
in times of poverty and prosperity,
in times of sorrow and joy,
in times of health and pandemic,
in times of war and peace.
Today, we remember your gracious care in times of crisis,
and give thanks for the courage and sacrifice of the women, men and families of the armed forces who have worked for peace, justice and protection in so many different times and places. Support those who have finished their time of service and still face challenges in civilian life.
God of mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of promise and peace, we thank you for the places where conflicts have ended, peace has been restored and where citizens can enjoy secure freedoms and human rights.
Where people are oppressed and dissent restricted, encourage those who witness and work for justice to be established.
God of mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of wholeness and hope, we thank you for those called to serve others in their home communities, wherever they call home. Especially we give thanks for those in our communities working hard in the face of COVID-19. May they know your protection and show your love in all they do.
God of mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of commitment and courage, we thank you for the many organizations in our nation working to bring hope to people facing social exclusion, discrimination, or exploitation. Inspire leaders in our communities to provide access to the support they need to thrive. May all your beloved children enjoy the life you desire for them.
God of mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of Christ in community, we thank you for the dedication of those who serve in the church. May your church always be a place of hope, healing and welcome. Guide our congregation and denomination through these challenging days so that those who turn to us will find us faithful.
God of mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Eternal God, your promises endure from generation to generation. Knowing your steadfast love, we trust you to answer our prayers according to your generous mercy and infinite wisdom, offering ourselves in service with the words Jesus taught us to pray:
Eternal God, your promises endure from generation to generation. Knowing your steadfast love, we trust you to answer our prayers according to your generous mercy and infinite wisdom, offering ourselves in service through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Let us remember the kindness of God, and his favour to us in our time of need.
Hymn 715 Behold the Mountain of the Lord
The National Anthem
Benediction
God grant to the living, grace; to the departed, peace; to the Church, the King, the Commonwealth and all people, peace and concord; and to us and all his servants, life everlasting.
And the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen