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Seventh Sunday of Easter
- Date: Sunday, May 21, 2023
- Time: 10:30am–11:30am
- Location: Sanctuary
May 21, 2023 | Seventh Sunday of Easter
Participate In worship
Events and Announcements
Explore the calendar of events and recent announcements to take another step into our life together this week.
Prelude
“Prelude on a Chant Tune,” Jeanne Demessieux
Marcel Dupré called his young protegé Jeanne Demessieux (1921-1968) “the greatest organist of all generations.” He predicted that she would be “one of the greatest glories of France.” Maurice Duruflé said that “compared to her, the rest of us play the pedals like elephants.” Jeanne Demessieux was a French international concert organist, composer, and church organist and is remembered today for her astounding virtuosity. She is the first woman organist to sign a record deal, and she paved the way for women concert organists such as Marie-Claire Alain and Gillian Weir. Her promising status floundered after her mentor Marcel Dupré abruptly cut off contact and sabotaged her career due to unfounded rumors. She died young, at the age of 47 from cancer. Though she is known for her virtuosity, today’s prelude is a simple setting of a lovely chant tune.
Call to Worship
(The congregation responds aloud with the bold text)
Shout for joy, sing songs of praise,
for God reigns over all the earth!
God has gone up with a shout!
Sound the trumpets and sing songs of praise!
Hymn #475, “COme, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”
1. Come, thou Fount of every blessing;
tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above;
praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
mount of God’s unchanging love!
2. Here I raise my Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I’m come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.
3. O to grace how great a debtor
daily I’m constrained to be!
Let that grace now, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
prone to leave the God I love;
here’s my heart; O take and seal it;
seal it for thy courts above.
Prayer of Invocation
Lord, set your blessing on us
as we begin this day together.
Confirm in us the truth
by which we rightly live;
confront us with the truth
from which we wrongly turn.
We ask not for what we want
but for what you know we need,
as we offer this day and ourselves
for you and to you,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.
Call to Confession
Prayer of Confession
Living God,
we confess that our faith is sometimes weak,
our love for others can be faint,
our prayers are often timid,
and our gratitude is frequently unconvincing.
When we stand looking towards heaven yet feel far from you,
you draw near in mercy to forgive us,
and fill us with your power,
through the grace of Jesus,
our resurrected Savior.
Silent prayer of confession
Silent Prayer
Assurance of Pardon
Sisters, brothers, and siblings,
as Christ is our witness,
God’s power to pardon is immeasurable.
Therefore, proclaim this good news to the ends of the earth:
through the mercy of Christ, our sins are forgiven.
Response of Praise: Hymn #619, “Praise, My soul, the King of Heaven” (vv. 1-2)
1. Praise, my soul, the God of heaven;
glad of heart your carols raise;
ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
who, like me, should sing God’s praise?
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Praise the Maker all your days!
2. Praise God for the grace and favor
shown our forebears in distress;
God is still the same forever,
slow to chide, and swift to bless.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Sing our Maker’s faithfulness!
Passing of the Peace
Life in Community
Thank you for joining us for worship! Explore the calendar of events and recent announcements to take another step into our life together this week. If you’re joining us for the first time or would like to learn more about Catonsville Presbyterian, you’re welcome to share your email with us. We’ll send some information that will help you get connected.
Honoring Jeff Scharf
Recognition of Graduates
Children’s Message
Prayer for Illumination
Come Holy Spirit,
open our minds to see the power of Scripture to give life;
enlighten our hearts that we might see Christ in all whom we meet;
in the name of the one, holy, and living God,
to whom we give all glory.
Amen.
Scripture: Luke 24:44-53
Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple blessing God.
Scripture: Numbers 6:22-26
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: Thus you shall bless the Israelites: You shall say to them:
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Sermon: “May” day
Hymn #544: “Bless the Lord, My Soul”
Bless the Lord, my soul,
and bless God’s holy name.
Bless the Lord, my soul,
who leads me into life.
Ordination and Installation
Opening words
There are different gifts,
but it is the same Spirit who gives them.
There are different ways of serving God,
but it is the same Lord who is served.
God works through different people in different ways,
but it is the same God who achieves God’s purpose through them all.
Each one is given a different gift by the Spirit,
To use it for the common good.
Together we are the body of Christ,
And individually members of him.
Though we have different gifts,
together we are a ministry of reconciliation led by the risen Christ.
Questions for the Officer-Elect
Questions for the Congregation
Q: Do we, the members of the church, accept this person as a deacon, chosen by God through the voice of this congregation to lead us in the way of Jesus Christ?
A: We do.
Q: Do we agree to pray for her, to encourage her, to respect her decisions, and to follow as she guides us, serving Jesus Christ, who alone is Head of the Church?
A: We do.
Call to Offering
God has given us the gift of Christ,
risen and ascended for the life of the world.
Therefore, let us offer our gifts in return,
that others may know this glorious news.
Offertory: “You Raise me Up,” (Marty Haugen and John Bell)
Refrain:
Halle, halle, hallelujah! (3x)
Hallelujah! Halelujah!
Oh, God to whom shall we go? You alone have the words of life.
Let your words be our prayer and our song we sing:
Hallelujah, hallelujah. (Refrain)
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord. When I call them, they follow me.
I will lead them to rest by the restful streams:
Hallelujah, hallelujah. (Refrain)
I am the light of the world says the Lord. Walk in the light of life.
All who follow my words shall have life indeed:
Hallelujah, hallelujah. (Refrain)
Doxology #607, “Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow”
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Christ, all people here below;
Praise Holy Spirit evermore;
Praise Triune God, whom we adore. Amen.
Prayer of Dedication
Holy God, these offerings are only a portion of all that you have given us.
We gratefully present these gifts and entrust them to your work in this world. May our gifts share the Good News of the gospel to those who are in need. May these gifts help unburden those with the heaviest of loads. Amen.
Prayers of the People and the Lord’s Prayer
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 and the power
and the glory, forever. Amen.
Hymn #546: “Lord, Dismiss Us with Thy Blessing”
1. Lord, dismiss us with your blessing;
fill our hearts with joy and peace;
let us each, your love possessing,
triumph in redeeming grace.
O refresh us,
O refresh us,
traveling through this wilderness.
2. Thanks we give and adoration
for your gospel’s joyful sound;
may the fruits of your salvation
in our hearts and lives abound.
Ever faithful,
ever faithful
to your truth may we be found.
3. Savior, when your love shall call us,
from our struggling pilgrim way,
let no fear of death appall us,
glad your summons to obey.
May we ever,
may we ever
reign with you in endless day.
Benediction
Postlude
“Sing Praise to God Who Reigns Above,” Neil Harmon
This hymn tune was first published in the Bohemian Brethren hymnal in 1566 and is one of the great hymn tunes of the Reformation. Composer organist Neil Harmon gives this wonderful melody a fresh new look with frequent meter changes, which bring a lively and energized setting to this favorite tune.
Participants
- Dorothy Boulton, Associate Pastor
- Keith and Kathy Glennan, Ruling elders, Video Production
- Wendy Johnston, Organist and Assistant Director of Music
- Greg Knauf, Director of Music
- Kenneth E. Kovacs, Pastor
- Jeff Bolognese, Ruling elder, liturgist
- Vickie Lord, Social media support
- Dottie Marshall, Sanctuary set up
Sources
- A Wee Worship Book, Wild Goose Worship Group, (Chicago: GIA Publications, 1999).
- Feasting On the Word: Year A (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2014).
- Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2013).
- Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-734388; CCLI Copyright License B 20481088 + Streaming License B 481071