Virtual Methodist

An alternate short candle liturgy for Christmas Day based on the less familiar lectionary reading for today from  Isaiah 62:6-12 VOICE 1:  Clear the way! VOICE 2:  Remove the rubble! VOICE 1:  Raise  a flag for the world to see. VOICE 2:  The  Lord  God has made a proclamation to go out to the ends of the earth: VOICE 1:  Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your Saviour comes! VOICE 2:  See, his promised reward is with him, and his blessing comes with him. VOICE 1:  They will be called his Holy People, those Redeemed by the  Lord ; VOICE 2:  The city long deserted will become a place of pilgrimage.      All 5 candles are lit finishing with the central one. Let us pray: Lord we thank you that with the birth of your Son Your promised were proved true. Our saviour has come And we rejoice. May we live our lives as his Holy People. AMEN Selah

A candle liturgy that we will be using at our community carol service in Sandy Row this afternoon and perhaps at other services tomorrow based on Isaiah 9:2-7 VOICE 1:               The people stumbling in the dark have seen a great light; VOICE 2:               on those living in the land shadows the light has dawned. VOICE 1:               You have made the nation greater than they could imagine and increased their joy; VOICE 2:               they rejoice before you   as people rejoice at a bountiful harvest, VOICE 1:               the way that warriors rejoice when the battle is over and they have won. VOICE 2:   ...

The fourth of South and Central Belfast Circuit's Advent Candle liturgies, this week a particularly short one based on Isaiah 7:10-16 (and pertinent whoever came out on top in the election in the UK last week). VOICE 1:              Hear this you who are in government!  VOICE 2:               Is it not enough to try the patience of the people? VOICE 1:               Will you wear out the patience of God as well?  VOICE 2:               The Lord himself will give you a sign:  VOICE 1:               The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son VOICE 2:       ...

The third of our Advent Candle liturgies based on the lectionary readings from Isaiah, this week chapter  35 verses 1-10. VOICE 1:               The desert and dried up ground will be delirious with gladness; VOICE 2:               the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. VOICE 1:               Like the crocus in spring, it will burst into bloom; VOICE 2:                it will be filled with riotous colour and echo with songs of joy. VOICE 1:               They will reflect the Lord ‘s resplendent glory, VOICE 2:                the splendour of our God w...

The second of the Advent Candle liturgies we are using on the South and Central Belfast Circuit, this week based on the lectionary reading Isaiah 11:1-10. VOICE 1: A green shoot will sprout from the seemingly dead stump of Jesse; VOICE 2: from his roots will bud a fruitful branch. VOICE 1: The life-giving Spirit of the Lord will settle upon him— VOICE 2: the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, VOICE 1: the Spirit of guidance and strength, VOICE 2: the Spirit that knows and fears the Lord— VOICE 1: a fear that brings joy and delight. VOICE 2: He will not judge by outward appearances, VOICE 1: Or make decisions on the basis of hearsay; VOICE 2: But will make righteous judgments on behalf of the needy, VOICE 1: He will bring with justice to bear for the sake the poor. VOICE 2: His word will cause upheaval across the earth; VOICE 1: His spirit will slay the unscrupulous. VOICE 2: His stout belt is righteousness VOICE 1: And he is cloaked with faithfulness. VO...

A short candle liturgy for the first Sunday of Advent. This year I am basing them on the Lectionary readings from Isaiah, which today is Isaiah 2:1-5 VOICE 1: The day is coming when the mountain on which the LORD’s temple sits                               will be lifted up over all other mountains; VOICE 2: Soaring high above the hills all nations will flow into it,                               like salmon swimming upstream. VOICE 1: The people will say, VOICE 2: Come, let us climb the mountain of the LORD; VOICE 1: Let us go the House of God. VOICE 2: He will teach us the right path to take VOICE 1: so that we will walk in his way. VOICE 2: The law will go out from Zion, VOICE 1: the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. VOICE 2: He will judge fairly between warring nations VOICE 1: and ...

Our concluding candle liturgy for this year... In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.    He was with God in the beginning.    Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.    In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.    The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome   it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John.    He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.   He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognise him.    He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.    Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believe...

The fourth of our Advent Candle Liturgies at Belfast South... You know it's source and pattern by now... Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.   Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.    This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. I John 4: 7-10   (NIV-UK) Love is the wick that is central to the candle. Love is the flame that burns continually in the heart of God. Love is the unquenchable light given by God to burn in the darkness. Love is the light given by God to burn in our hearts. (The candle is lit.) Let us pray: Source of light, shine in our lives and in your world with your eternal and infinite love. Through Jesus in whose name we pray. Amen....

The third of Advent Candle Liturgies we are using this year at Belfast South Methodist, based on  the  work of Rev. Mary Whitson, for the Canadian Presbyterian Church's World Service & Development Department. Those the   Lord   has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing;   everlasting   joy   will crown their heads. Gladness and   joy   will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. Isaiah 51: 11 (NIV-UK) Joy is the celebration of the dawning of the light of the world. Joy is the celebration of the coming of the Christ Child. Joy is the celebration when the angels sang “Glory to God in the highest.” Let us celebrate and sing and shout for joy. Christ is coming again. (The candle is lit.) Source of light, shine in our lives and in your world with your life-giving joy. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen. Shalom

Here is the Candle Liturgy we will be using tomorrow morning in our Advent Communion Service at Belfast South Methodist. Once again it is based on the  work of Rev. Mary Whitson, who produced this year's material the Canadian Presbyterian Church's World Service & Development Department. The Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel, meaning: God with us. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder,      and his name will be called "Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." From Isaiah 7:14; 9:6 (RSV) Peace is the flame given by God to be a light in the darkness. The flame of peace is the promise of God. Peace is the flame given by God to bring justice to the world. The flame of peace is righteousness and equity. Peace is the flame given by God to bring order ...

I noticed from my hit counter that quite a few people have been rootling around in the VM archives to find an appropriate Candle-Lighting Liturgy for this year... Some even trying to find something for tomorrow, proving that I am not, contrary to popular opinion, the worst organised person in the western world... I haven't published anything in advance for Advent this year because I have been a bit distracted over recent months (hence the lack of posts in general), and am largely making use of someone else's hard work this year, namely Rev. Mary Whitson, who produced them for the Canadian Presbyterian Church's World Service & Development Department... You can find the original here (and leave a donation as a thankyou) ... But below is the adapted version we are going to be using tomorrow morning: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion,...

Here is the candle liturgy that we will be using in our brief Christmas morning service in Belfast South Methodist... Come and join us if you are in the vicinity at 9.30am this morning. But wherever you are may you know the blessing of the King of Kings. CHRISTMAS CANDLE LITURGY VOICE 1:      The Lord himself will give you a sign: VOICE 2:      A virgin girl will become pregnant and will give birth to a son; VOICE 1:      She will call him Immanuel, meaning “God with us.” VOICE 2:      The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; VOICE 1:      on those living in the land of death’s deep dark shadow  a light has dawned. VOICE 2:      You have broadened the bounds of the nation and magnified their joy; VOICE 1:      they rejoice before you as the starving rejoice at the harvest, VOICE 2:  ...

Here we have the fourth of the advent candle liturgies that we've been using in Belfast South Methodist Church derived from the Hope and History material. This is the only one that diverges from the current year's lectionary reading from Isaiah (we are using today's reading on Christmas Day)... By the way, today's illustration is one of the wonderful David Esler windows in our sanctuary entitled "Hope". VOICE 1:      Behold, my servant, whom I endorse, VOICE 2:      The one I chose, in whom I take joy; VOICE 1:      My Spirit is in him and he will bring justice to all nations. VOICE 2:      He won’t seek publicity for himself, VOICE 1:      or raise the rabble with his speeches. VOICE 2:      He won’t brutalise the bruised VOICE 1:      or discount those who bring him no benefit, VOICE 2: ...

This is the second of the Hope and History Advent Candle Liturgies that we will be using in Belfast South Methodist this morning. The feedback was good from last week, particularly from some enterprising folks in North Belfast who had adapted the whole thing into an ecumenical advent carol service. Again, this week I have included part of my sermon for the morning for those of you who are REALLY late in getting your thoughts together for this morning or have decided to give this morning's service a miss... I hope that doesn't apply to any folks from South Belfast Methodist.   VOICE 1:      A green shoot will one day sprout                         from what seems to be the shrivelled stump of Jesse; VOICE 2:      from his roots a branch will bear fruit. VOICE 1:      The Spirit of the ...