BELLS CORNERS UNITED CHURCH
2nd SUNDAY OF EASTER
WORSHIP SERVICE
April 19, 2020
[The video recording of this service can be found here]
Verse to Ponder: ‘He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish.’ (John 21: 6)
Gathering: I Know That My Redeemer Liveth – Handel - Messiah
Words of Welcome & Announcements – Kim
Good morning! I welcome and greet you in the name of Jesus Christ on behalf of Bells Corners United Church on this second Sunday of Easter!! Wherever you are, whatever time of the day, whoever you’re with or just by yourself, I am so glad you have joined us in our virtual worship[ service!
In this time of church closure, please know that BCUC offers worship service in a number of ways. Please check our website at bcuc.org, for our worship service in audio, video and text formats along with our weekly announcements and updates.
Beyond worship service, there are other weekly activities and meetings offered online. And in this time of pandemic, I encourage you to make a difference by connecting with each other through emails, phone calls and prayers.
Thanks again for being part of this Easter celebration!
Welcome to our worship service.
Lighting of Christ Candle: Lorrie
We light this Christ candle to remind us that God’s love is with us. May this flame bring warmth into our hearts, hope for others and peace for the world.
*Call to Gather[1]: Lorrie
We come to this place bringing many things:
burdens and joys, weariness as well as celebration.
We come to this place seeking many things:
comfort and strength, answers as well as questions.
We come to this place hoping many things:
peace for the world, hope for the future, life for all creation.
Gather all of our gifts, our prayers and our hopes,
and let them be our worship this day.
[1] Kate Crawford, Gathering, Lent/Easter 2015.
Prayer of Approach[2]: Lorrie
Let us pray.
You come amongst us in surprising ways,
feeding us with joy and gladness.
Come today, we pray:
to feast our minds with wonder,
to feast our eyes with renewed sight,
to feast our hands with your embrace,
to feast our hearts with renewal,
to feast our tongues with praise. Amen.
[2] Gord Dunbar, Gathering, Lent/Easter 2015.
Opening Hymn: In the Bulb There is A Flower VU 703
1 In the bulb there is a flower;
In the seed, an apple tree
In cocoons, a hidden promise:
Butterflies will soon be free!
In the cold and snow of winter
There's a spring that waits to be,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.
2 There's a song in every silence,
Seeking word and melody;
There's a dawn in every darkness
Bringing hope to you and me.
From the past will come the future;
What it holds, a mystery,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.
3 In our end is our beginning;
In our time, infinity;
In our doubt there is believing;
In our life, eternity.
In our death, a resurrection;
At the last, a victory,
Unrevealed until its season,
Something God alone can see.
Words & Music: © Natalie Sleeth 1986 Hope Publishing Co. song #52456
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved
Storytime for the Young at Heart with Lorrie:
Good morning everybody!
This is the first Sunday after Easter. Last week we heard about the empty tomb and how the women were told that Jesus was not dead but was alive in the world. Well, this week, our scripture is a story about the disciples experiencing that!
After Jesus died, I think the disciples really weren’t sure what they were supposed to do. Do you remember that some of them were fishermen when they first met Jesus? Well, in this story, those men have gone back to fishing.
Have you ever gone fishing? It’s something my family really enjoys. We like being out on the water in a boat – especially on a nice summer day. we take our fishing rods and lures or bait, sometimes we take some snacks… We’re happy out there – even if we don’t catch any fish. If we meet other boats, we might wave or call out to each other, “Any luck?”
The kind of fishing the disciples were doing was very different from the kind of fishing my family does though. It wasn’t a leisure activity; it was their work. They needed to catch a lot of fish to sell to make their living this way. So, they didn’t use fishing rods, they used big nets that they threw over the side of the boat in hopes that they could trap a school of fish as they swam by.
In today’s story, those men had been out on the water for hours and they hadn’t caught any fish. They saw someone on the shore waving to them. “Any luck?” the man shouted. “Not a single fish!” was their answer.
“Throw your net over the other side of the boat!” the man on the shore called to them.
Now, these men had been out on the water for hours and hadn’t seen any fish at all. They may have thought this guy was a bit crazy to suggest such a thing. If that was me in the boat, I probably would have just said, “Sure, thanks!” and then just ignored his advice. I would have thought he was joking with me… but the disciples didn’t react that way. They did pull up their empty net – a big, heavy, wet net - and toss it over the other side of the boat…
And, guess what? There were so many fish caught in the net that they couldn’t even pull it in! They had to drag it to shore!
Some of them realized that this stranger on the beach must be Jesus! Peter was so excited that he jumped in the water and started swimming to shore. When they got to the beach, there was a nice fire going with breakfast cooking. Can you imagine it?
But imagine if they hadn’t listened to him and didn’t bother throwing the net over the other side of the boat… They would have gone home with no fish to sell – and they would have missed this picnic on the beach with Jesus!
Sometimes we’re asked to do things that aren’t normal for us – like right now during this pandemic. You have to go to school in a way that isn’t what you are used to. Your teacher isn’t there with you nor any of your friends. It’s hard when you don’t understand what to do and you can’t ask the teacher to explain it a different way. But, you are doing it – even though it’s uncomfortable sometimes – and we’re all really proud of you for that! Hopefully you are learning some new things about yourself too – that you can figure things out if you try… that you can work independently… that your teacher is pretty great at finding new and interesting ways for you to learn… I hope there are lots of other good surprises coming out of this time too. I think sometimes we have to look carefully for those good things, but I know they are there.
Maybe we are being asked to fish on the other side of our boat these days. It’s hard work and it might even make us grumble sometimes – but I think it will all be worth it in the end when this virus goes away. Maybe then we can even have a picnic on the beach!
Children’s Hymn: Hey Now! Singing Hallelujah! MV 121 vs. 1, 3, 5
Refrain
Hey now! Singing hallelujah!
Hey now! The morning has come!
Hey now! Singing hallelujah!
The tomb was empty at the rising sun.
1. Jesus loved people and he made them friends, Hey now, the tomb was empty.
He called to the children and the women and men. Hey now, the tomb was empty.
3. Jesus loved people and they said he was a king. Hey now, the tomb was empty.
He turned all the tables on everything.
Hey now, the tomb was empty.
5. Jesus loves people and he lives again!
Hey now, the tomb was empty.
Calls us disciples and he calls us his friends.
Hey now, the tomb was empty.
Words & Music: © Linnea Good 1998 Borealis Music LinneaGood.com song #97084
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved
Prayer for Illumination:
Holy God, fill us with openness, faith and hope. Fill our hearts with love, laughter and peace. Fill our hearts with your Word and your wisdom. Amen.
Gospel Reading: “Jesus Appears to Seven Disciples” John 21: 1-19 (NRSV)
After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. 2 Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. 3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” 6 He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. 7 That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. 8 But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.
9 When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. 10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” 19 (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
May we find ourselves renewed in this story of hope. Thanks be to God!
Sermon: “Back to Square One!” Rev. Kim Vidal
Things have calmed down quite a bit from those holy moments of Easter Sunday. Things have settled way down from the exalted cries of “Alleluia, we are made alive in Christ” to the more practical “let’s get back to life as usual”. Back to square one. Back to normal like a pair of old slippers waiting to be used under the bed. But in this life we call normal, there are still moments of sadness and grief. Just in the last few days, Canada’s official death toll from COVID-19 passed 1,000, of which the centre of attention is on the long-term care facilities and nursing homes that are being ravaged by the virus. While government officials claim the epidemic is slowing down, there are still outbreaks in many parts of the country particularly here in Ottawa. How do we deal with this alarming news after we have just celebrated a joyful Easter? How do we proclaim life when our community continues to be in the midst of Good Friday? The experience of emotional overload comes in many forms and these are at times overwhelming. Theology professor Craig Dykstra gave a very good description of what it feels like to be overwhelmed with grief. He said: "Sometimes we are overwhelmed by the sheer hugeness or complexity of something. We can't get our arms around it. We can't get it figured out. We are unable to organize it or to bring it under control. We are overwhelmed in a way that makes us feel small, weak and inadequate".
That’s what happened to Peter and the six disciples. With Jesus, their leader dead, without their friend and rabbi on their side, life gets difficult and uncertain. They were overwhelmed with grief and fear. They felt lost, confused, and scared of what might happen to them. The changes of life are not what they expected and they went back to the way it was before – back to square one - to something safe, something familiar. They reverted to old patterns of behaviour and thinking. It seems easier for them to go backwards than moving forward.
Peter and the other six disciples have returned to the sea. They have come home to the Sea of Tiberias, the place where it all began. It was the place where Simon Peter and his brother Andrew were called by Jesus. It was there where brothers John and James left their father and their big boat and followed Jesus - the beginning of discipleship. Back to square one. Back to the sea of Tiberias.
Now that Jesus is gone, apparently, they went right back to doing what is comfortable, normal, and usual. They got back in the boat and did what they do best. To fish. Peter, leading the way, decides to go fishing at night. Perhaps it takes him back to life before Jesus. The others are quick to join him. They fished all night, but nothing comes close to the surface or into the net. The fishermen come up empty on all counts—no fish, no food, no future. Back to square one!
My hunch, however, is that Peter is not really trying to catch fish as much as he is fishing for answers. Peter may have left Jerusalem but he cannot get away from those years of discipleship, those years of following Jesus, the last supper, the arrest, the denials. He cannot leave behind the cross, the empty tomb, the house with locked doors, the echoes of “Peace be with you.” So Peter fishes. Peter fishes for answers. What have I done? What will I do now? Where will I go? What will happen to me? Where is Jesus now? Peter is searching for meaning, a way forward, a place in life. Peter, bereft with grief, went fishing in the dark night. Some of us have spent time fishing in the dark; asking the same questions as Peter did, looking for our place in life, seeking peace, and some sense of understanding and meaning. We have all been there, fishing for answers in the dark.
According to John’s story, just after the daybreak when the fog is dense along the lakeshore and the water shines bright and blue, someone stood on the beach. Nobody knew at first that it was the Risen Christ. “Children, you did not catch any fish, did you?” This is more a statement of fact than a question. Jesus is not asking for a fishing report. He is commenting on the reality and emptiness of Peter’s and the other disciples’ lives. They were living the pain - fishing on the Good Friday side of the boat and the net is empty. There are no fish, no answers, no way forward. Nothing to feed or nourish life. Jesus tells the disciples to drop their nets to the right side of the boat. Instantly those tired old nets are filled with fish jumping out of the water to get into them. A hundred fifty-three of them! Feast! Fullness! Abundance! New life! The movement of the net from the left side of the boat to the right is symbolic of the disciples’ moments of Easter: from weeping to moments of joy; from fear to hope; from emptiness to wholeness; from feelings of guilt to being forgiven. “It is the Lord,” cries John, the beloved disciple, always first to recognize his best buddy, Jesus. Peter flops out of the boat, put on some clothes over his nakedness – puts on a new perspective, a new mindset over his old self, ready to be challenged and to be inspired again by his leader, Jesus.
The smell of fish being broiled and the wondrous sight of bread caught the disciples’ attention. If you have been up fishing all night, you are grateful for fire and food and the hands that prepared and cooked it. A warm welcome for the hungry souls. “Come and have breakfast,” was the invitation. The Christ of the table not the Christ of the tomb was the host. We get the message, whenever Jesus is involved, chances are - you are going to be fed. In that morning of resurrected hope, there is plenty for everyone - there is more than enough to go around. With the presence of Jesus, there is always food for the journey. A meal of bread and fish is provided by the Christ of the table, telling us that Good Friday of scarcity and death is over. New life has come!
After a hearty breakfast, Jesus pulled Simon Peter on the side and the question and answer come. “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Three times Jesus asked the same question. Frustrated, but earnest, bewildered, but trusting, Peter’s story is unfolding from beginning to end. How confusing life was for him as he tried to follow, tried to do the right thing. Peter denied Jesus three times and three times Jesus redeems him. Peter answers yes, all three times. The meaning of the relationship between Jesus and Peter shifted from philios or brotherly love to agape – unconditional, truth-seeking love. A love that blesses Peter to shift his vocation from fishing to shepherding. Peter left his old self and became a new being. Everything that Peter and the disciples need to make this shift has been provided: new perspectives, new mind set, a new heart; a warm hearty breakfast for the journey; a new life. From Good Friday people they became Easter people. Thomas Troeger writes: “The epilogue awakens memories of the darkness—the darkness of our hunger, the darkness of our failure to recognize Christ, the darkness of our denial—but at the same time it reminds us that none of this darkness has overcome the light. For the risen Christ still calls, still feeds, still empowers, even doubters and deniers for the ministry.” And Jesus closes with a resounding “Follow me.” A preacher once said: "Follow me, is more about the future than the past. With Jesus, it's not where you've been that matters, but where you will go, not whether you have made mistakes, but whether you are ready to try again, not about whether you have been wounded in the past, but about how you will help create a future."
Easter was never meant to go back to square one but to move on with intentions to make things new. Still, there is no special immunity, no vaccine to protect us from the COVID-19. Jim Wallis, Sojourners writer commented that “this pandemic has become very revealing of the inequities in our society, the gaping holes in our safety net, and the disparities in our health care and other systems, and the reality of our relationships across racial and economic lines.” We ask over and over again when we will go back to normal. But we won’t and we really can’t. This historical crisis will change us forever. How we act now, and with whom, and for whom, will shape and even determine what that new normal will look like or will be when this current pandemic begins to pass. But in this COVID-19 moment, we are still Easter people. We continue to love our neighbours by social distancing – by not putting their health and safety at risk. We continue to show kindness, to act with integrity, to pray for others, to offer support in many ways.
The disciples followed Jesus. Peter was transformed. A movement began and continues to proclaim that all things can be made new. It will not be the same. But it is a new beginning. “Follow me,” Jesus says, “and live as Easter people.” "Follow me." Whatever doubts or questions come to mind, whatever troubles our conscience, whatever pain, worry and fear that bind us up, whatever walls we have put up or doors we have locked securely to isolate us from others, whatever pandemic halts us in our normal, comfortable living, whatever hunger and need we feel deep in our souls, Jesus says, “follow me”. May your life be a witness to your answer to Jesus’ call. Amen.
Sources:
BCUC Lectionary Group, Karyn Wiseman, Craig Dykstra, Thomas Troeger, Jim Wallis.
Prayers of the People & The Lord’s Prayer:
I invite you to listen and reflect on a prayer entitled Lockdown written by Capuchin Franciscan brother Richard Hendrick in response to the COVID-19 pandemic:
Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open
so that those who are alone
may hear the sounds of family around them.
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.
Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
So that the elders may have someone to call on.
Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples
are preparing to welcome
and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary
All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting
All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up to a new reality
To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have.
To what really matters.
To Love.
So we pray and we remember that
Yes there is fear.
But there does not have to be hate.
Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness.
Yes there is panic buying.
But there does not have to be meanness.
Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul
Yes there is even death.
But there can always be a rebirth of love.
Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.
Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic
The birds are singing again
The sky is clearing,
Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,
Sing.
Let us now recite the prayer that Jesus taught his followers:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen.
The Offering:
This is now the time to offer our gifts of time, talents and resources as expressions of our gratitude to God’s blessings. If you are not on PAR and wish to send in your offering and donations, you can drop them in the slot by the kitchen door of the church or mail them to BCUC. You can also send in your support through e-transfer or canadahelps.org. Thank you for your continued love and support to BCUC.
Offertory Prayer:
Here is the work of our hands.
Here is the love of our hearts.
Here is our prayer to make a better world.
Bless our offering so that it may be used to further your reign on earth. Amen.
Sending Forth:
Go out into the world as bearers of a holy life that knows no barriers;
mindful of how demanding this call can be;
yet alive to its vision of goodness and beauty.
May the wisdom of God,
the compassion of Christ
and the friendship of the Spirit
bear us up and fill us with renewed strength for the journey. Amen.
Departing Music: Jesus You Have Come to the Lakeshore VU 563
1 Jesus, you have come to the lakeshore;
looking neither for wealthy nor wise ones;
you only asked me to follow humbly.
Refrain:
O Jesus, with your eyes you have searched me, and while smiling have spoken my name; now the boat’s left on the shoreline behind me, by your side,
I will seek other seas.
2 You---know so well my possessions;
my boat carries no gold and no weapons;
you will find there my nets and labour.
Refrain
3 You---need my hands full of caring
through my labours to give others rest,
and constant love that keeps on loving.
Refrain
4 You, who have fished other oceans,
ever longed for by souls who are waiting,
my loving friend, as thus you call me.
Refrain
Words & Music : 1979 Cesáreo Gabaráin, harmony: 1987 Skinner Chávez-Melo
translate: 1987 Gertrude C. Suppe, George Lockwood, Raquel Gutierrez Achón
Words and music © Oregon Catholic Press, United Methodist Publishing House
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733214. All rights reserved