Thursday 16 December : 60th anniversary of the dedication of St Philip's church building
"Enlarge the site of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out." Isaiah 54.2.
Based on Isaiah 56.7 and Mark 11.17.
Come build with us a house of prayer:
bring joy, bring grief, bring praise.
Bring every passion, need and care
we human beings raise:
our thirst for faith, our questioning,
our wordless, yearning sighs,
the hymns and anthems that we sing
for all that God supplies.
Then let the temple of the heart
find here in stone and steel
a sign and symbol that impart
the wonder that we feel:
a thankfulness surpassing speech
at knowing we survive
because God's strong, attentive reach
has kept this church alive.
Let all the light that fills this place
a greater light bestow,
the shining of an inward grace
that leads the heart to know:
each building built by human hands
in time to dust returns
but in God's heart a temple stands
that never falls or burns.
— Words from Thomas H. Troeger. God, you made all things for singing: Hymn texts, anthems, and poems for a new millennium. Oxford University Press, 2009. Tune: FOREST GREEN as in "O Little town of Bethlehem."
Isaiah 54:1-10
Sing, O barren one who did not bear;
burst into song and shout,
you who have not been in labour!
For the children of the desolate woman will be more
than the children of her that is married,
says the Lord.
Enlarge the site of your tent,
and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords
and strengthen your stakes.
For you will spread out to the right and to the left,
and your descendants will possess the nations
and will settle the desolate towns.
Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace;
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
and the disgrace of your widowhood you will
remember no more.
For your Maker is your husband,
the Lord of hosts is his name;
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,
the God of the whole earth he is called.
For the Lord has called you
like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
like the wife of a man’s youth when she is cast off,
says your God.
For a brief moment I abandoned you,
but with great compassion I will gather you.
In overflowing wrath for a moment
I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,
says the Lord, your Redeemer.
This is like the days of Noah to me:
Just as I swore that the waters of Noah
would never again go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
and will not rebuke you.
For the mountains may depart
and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,
says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
Psalm 30.1-5
A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the temple. Of David.
I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up,
and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me.
O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.
Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment;
his favour is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
Luke 7:24-30
When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: ‘What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who put on fine clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,
“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.”
I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.’ (And all the people who heard this, including the tax-collectors, acknowledged the justice of God, because they had been baptized with John’s baptism. But by refusing to be baptized by him, the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves.)
Blessèd are you, Sovereign God of all,
to you be glory and praise for ever!
From the rising of the sun to its setting
your glory is proclaimed in all the world.
You gave the Christ as a light to the nations,
and through the anointing of his Spirit
you established us as a royal priesthood.
As you call us into his marvellous light,
may our lives bear witness to your truth
and our lips never cease to proclaim your praise,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
Blessèd be God for ever!
— Celebrating common prayer.
Psalm 30 from the Shenandoah Harmony sung at the Keystone Sacred Harp Convention, 2012. This tune, by Lucius or Amzi Chapin, was originally published in Cincinnati in 1813. Words: Charles Wesley 1763.
Another recording, at the Third Ireland Sacred Harp Convention, Cork Ireland – 2013, led by Michael Walker.
1. And am I born to die?
To lay this body down!
And must my trembling spirit fly
Into a world unknown?
2. A land of deepest shade,
Unpierced by human thought;
The dreary regions of the dead,
Where all things are forgot!
3. Soon as from earth I go,
What will become of me?
Eternal happiness or woe
Must then my portion be!
4. Waked by the trumpet sound,
I from my grave shall rise;
And see the Judge with glory crowned,
And see the flaming skies!
— Charles Wesley
May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting. Amen.