It’s Holy Cross Sunday, and all parts of our Liturgy - our Hymns, Prayers, Readings (which include the famous passage John 3:16), and Sermon all reflect this, focussing on the gift of sacrificial love we’ve received, and our calling to take up our cross, sharing this love by giving ourselves, and follow Jesus, which will mean running toward, rather than away from, the world in its need.
We’re blessed to have in-person Betty assisting, Doreen sharing a Children’s Time Talk, Kerry giving the First Reading, and John L. leading the Prayers of the People. These Prayers include Litany 8 from the BAS, the second in a series of Prayers for Social Justice, a Prayer for the Human Family from the BCP of the Episcopal Church, and a Prayer for the Safe Return to School, penned by the Moderator of the United Church of Canada. We’re receiving in our hearts with thanksgiving the One who loves us enough to lay down his life for us, through sharing Communion together, physically or spiritually. And at the end of the Service, we're having our third annual Blessing of the Backpacks. We’re placing tags on the Altar, containing the words of Jesus to be the light of the world, and praying for God's blessing to be poured out upon and through our students. Appropriately, after this, all of us are invited to embrace the same call to be the light, as the Liturgy ends and the service begins.
Today’s Service of Holy Eucharist will be livestreamed on our main Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/stpaulscalgary) at 9:30 am. Following the service, the video will be posted on our YouTube Channel, and a link to the service will be added here. To watch this service in full screen mode, please click on the “Watch on YouTube” button in the lower left-hand corner of the video. Please download the Order of Service in the Sermon Notes above if you would like to follow along. If you are sharing this Service online and don’t have Reserved Sacrament, you are invited to say the Prayer for Communion for those receiving Spiritual Communion also available above.
Permission to reprint, podcast, and/or stream the music in this service obtained from:
(a) ONE LICENSE with license # A-713985, and/or
(b) CCLI with Streaming License # 20351479.
All rights reserved.