St Clement Church Community Pentecost Service
Good morning to you all and Happy Birthday!
She’s finally cracked I hear you say, but no, this great festival, the Day of Pentecost, is considered the birthday of the Church, the giving of the Holy Spirit, the event for which the earthly life of Jesus was the preparation. So make sure you celebrate today, and treat yourself to something special, even like last year, with cake Dave!
I had a lovely telephone conversation during the week from a man called Tony Hardacre who asked if it would be possible to commemorate his late Mother’s 100th birthday in St Clement Church.
His Mother, Margaret Louise Hardacre, nee Wright, was born on May 24th 1921, lived at Malpas, worshipped at St Clement, and was married to her husband Leonard Edgar Hardacre on June 14th 1942 in our beautiful Church. (See photos on the last page of this service)
Margaret and Leonard’s children; Susan and Tony, who now both live up country, were baptised at St Clement, and have donated the altar pedestal flowers arranged by Liz, in remembrance of their beloved Mum.
Tony also told me that Margaret’s parents were called Gwendoline and Frederick Wright, and they met at St Clement Church. Gwendoline was a housemaid in the vicarage here, and Frederick worked in the vicarage gardens.
Isn’t it wonderful what history an out of the blue telephone conversation can reveal about our beloved Church!
Much love and prayers and may Christ’s love sustain you always.
Rev Di and family xx
Let us pray;
What God has prepared for those who Faithful God, who fulfilled the promises of Easter by sending us your Holy Spirit and opening to every race and nation the way of life eternal: open our lips by your Spirit, that every tongue may tell of your glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Our prayers of Penitence
Saint Paul teaches us not to grieve the Holy Spirit of God. Let us therefore confess those sins that hinder his work among us…..
The Spirit brings us life in Christ:
Lord forgive us when we have closed our hearts to his renewing power.
Lord, have mercy.
The Spirit leads us into the truth of Christ:
Lord, forgive us when we have closed our minds to learning something new.
Christ, have mercy.
The Spirit makes Christ known in the world: Lord forgive us when we have failed to bear witness to the gospel of Christ.
Lord, have mercy.
May Almighty God have mercy upon us, forgive us our failings, and bring us to everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Let us pray our Collect for the Day of Pentecost
Holy Spirit, sent by the Father, ignite in us your holy fire: strengthen your children with the gift of faith, revive your Church with the breath of love, and renew the face of the earth, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Readings
Acts 2.1-21
Romans 8. 22-27
Gospel John 15.26-27, 16.4b-15
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark.
Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
‘When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.
But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.
‘I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, “Where are you going?” But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts.
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgement: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgement, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.
‘I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine.
For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
(This is the Gospel of the Lord. Response: ‘Praise to you, O, Christ’)
Reflection
In our gospel reading, we hear that after being touched by the tongues of fire, the disciples went outside into the streets of Jerusalem and mingled with the crowds.
At that time Jerusalem was the same as any city in this day and age, a place where people from many different countries lived, or visited, and each person speaking the language of his or her country.
The reading from Acts gives us a long list of the languages heard, and I’m so grateful I didn’t have to pronounce them all, well done to our reader!
With so many languages, it wasn’t easy to understand what everyone was saying. But something very remarkable happened on that first day of Pentecost.
When the disciples went out into the streets of Jerusalem and mingled with the crowds, they began to talk about what God had done in their lives, about their friend Jesus, about his life and work, his death and resurrection.
The disciples had a fiery enthusiasm and a fresh inspiration to share the good news of God’s love for the world. And as they did so, the people around them began to hear the good news of God’s love in their own languages. People were amazed and puzzled at what was going on. ‘Listen to what these men are saying’, they said. ‘How come ordinary men from Galilee are able to speak to us in our own language about God’s power at work in our world?’
Some people thought the disciples were just mad or drunk. But other people were more thoughtful and asked ‘What does this mean?’ ‘What should we do in response?’
I expect the disciples were just as surprised and shocked at what happened in Jerusalem on that exciting day as their listeners were. But perhaps when things quietened down, they remembered what Jesus had told them the night before he died, as recorded for us in our gospel reading.
On that evening, while they were all having supper together in the Upper Room, Jesus tried to explain to his disciples that he would have to leave them soon and go away, back to his Father; but he promised to send someone else to be with them.
He promised to send the Spirit of truth – the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Comforter, the Bible uses different names.
And Jesus promised his disciples that when the Spirit of truth came, he would do three important things:
Firstly, he told them; ‘the Spirit of truth will help you understand God’s plans for this world; he will help you understand right from wrong. He will touch your minds and remind you of all that I have taught you while I’ve been with you.’
Secondly, Jesus said; ‘even though I’m no longer with you in the flesh, the Spirit of truth will help you feel my presence with you; even though you can’t see me with your eyes, he will help you to hear my voice in your heart.’
And thirdly; ‘the Spirit of truth will help you live out your lives as my friends and followers; he will help you tell others about me, share my love, live together as my church, changing the world around you to make it better, to make it more like the world my Father and I long for it to be.’
Jesus promised that the power that had been at work in his own life – the power that was to bring him back to life from the dead – would continue to be at work through his Holy Spirit in his body, the church.
So today, just as it was for the disciples of Jesus that first Pentecost, God’s Holy Spirit is with us.
His Spirit of truth helps us remember and understand Jesus’ teachings in our minds. His Spirit of truth helps us feel his presence in our hearts.
And his Spirit of truth helps us as his church in this community to carry the light and love of Christ out into our world.
So there’s a great deal for us to celebrate together today and we are truly thankful we are united by our guidance from the Holy Spirit.
May we have such guidance during our APCM this Sunday as we seek to further the work of Christ’s Church in and beyond our community Amen.
We close this reflection with our words of hope:
Because he lives we can face tomorrow, because he lives all fear is gone.
Because we know he holds the future, and life is worth the living,
just because he lives. Amen.
Affirmation of our faith
Let us declare our faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; he was buried; he was raised to life on the third day and afterwards he appeared to his followers and to all the apostles: this we have received, and this we believe. This is the faith of the Church. This is our faith.
We believe and trust in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Our Intercessions this week are written by Liz Davies
O Holy Spirit, Lord of grace, eternal fount of love, inflame, we pray, our inmost hearts with fire from heaven above.
As thou in bond of love dost join the Father and the Son; so fill us all with mutual love, and knit our hearts in one.
The Spirit of God unites us as a people and enables us to pray and intercede for the needs of others. As we gather together in God’s love, we offer our prayers and thanksgiving to the Father for the sake of the Son and through the Holy Spirit.
Let us pray: Almighty God, on the day when we celebrate the Church’s founding, breathe your power into all the activities of your world - wide Church and to each individual church and worshipping community. Empower all those who minister to your children with the gifts that your Holy Spirit makes available. Give them wisdom in their decision making and the ability to have a deep understanding of the way that actions taken are in accordance with your will.
Lord, hear us Lord, graciously hear us
Creator God, help us to be constantly aware of the world’s needs and problems. Give the leaders of the world the courage to oppose sin and tyranny so that they are always working for the good of their people and not their own empowerment; that there may be a greater unity among nations especially in seeking to halt the threat from the pandemic and that the common good of all humanity may be served by their decisions and actions.
Lord, hear us Lord, graciously hear us
Loving God, we thank you for your amazing power and work in our lives; thank you for your goodness and for the blessings you give us. Thank you that you are able to bring hope through even the toughest times, strengthening us for your purposes.
Thank you for your great love and care. Thank you that you are always with us and never leave us. Thank you for your incredible sacrifice so that we might have freedom and life. Forgive us when we do not thank you enough, for who you are, for all that you do, for all that you have given us. Help us to set our eyes and our hearts on you afresh. Renew our spirits with your Holy Spirit and fill us with your peace and joy.
Lord, hear us Lord, graciously hear us
Merciful God, we pray for the gift of healing to restore those who are sick, injured or suffering. Shine your light on those in the blackness of despair; offer a caring hand to those who are frightened or lost; fill them all with the power of your Spirit so that they may know that you are with them through whatever they may have to face and will be with them always. We especially bring before you at this time; Derek, Ken and Di, Susan, Kate, Sue, Rupert and Linda, Judy, Dennis, Martin, and Brian Dobson. We also pray for Daniel, as he begins his final journey home, for all those we know, and for those who have no one to pray for them.
Lord, hear us Lord, graciously hear us
Holy God, through the death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ, you gave to all of us the wonderful gift of eternal life. Though we mourn their passing, we remember before you all those who have recently died and those long passed but still missed.
Our flower pedestal is in memory of Margaret Hardacre, nee Wright, on her 100th birthday tomorrow. Margaret lived at Malpas, worshipped at St Clement and was married to her husband Leonard in this Church on June 14th 1942. Her children Susan and Tony were baptised here and have donated these flowers in remembrance of her.
Lord, hear us Lord, graciously hear us
Faithful God, as we go out into the world, we pray that this Pentecost may bring our church community a renewed sense of unity with all Christians around the world. May we use the gifts that the Holy Spirit has given us to spread the good news and live the Gospel of Christ.
All glory to the Father be, all glory to the Son, all glory, Holy Ghost, to thee, while endless ages run.
Merciful Father: accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen
Gathering our prayers and praises into one,
let us pray with confidence as our risen Lord taught us;
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 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 Peace
God has made us one in Christ. He has set his seal upon us and, as a pledge of what is to come, has given the Spirit to dwell in our hearts
Alleluia! May the peace of the risen Lord be always with us.
Blessing
May the Spirit of truth lead us into all truth, give us grace to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, and strengthen us to proclaim the word and works of God. And may the presence of God watch over us, the power of God protect us and those whom we love, and may we never forget that wherever we are, God is also. Amen.
Photos of Margaret and Leonard’s Wedding Day at St Clement
June 14th 1942
