St Clement Church Community Sunday Service 24.8.25
Good morning to you all as we celebrate our service, not only the 10th Sunday after Trinity, but also the Festival of St Bartholomew. I shall be taking our Eucharist service in church using our usual service booklets, if you’re unable to be with us in person I hope you will join us in worship at home with this service of the Word. May Christ’s love sustain you always.
With much love and prayers,
Rev Di and family xx
Let us pray;
Almighty God, you search us and know us: may we rely on your strength and rest on you in weakness, now and in all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymn: ‘Father, Hear the Prayer we Offer’
Our prayers of Penitence
Let us recognise those failings in us that undermine relationships, and cause hurt to others…..
We confess the failings that bring hurt and betrayal upon those who trust us. Lord, have mercy.
We confess the failings that cause love to grow cold, and attitudes to harden. Christ, have mercy.
We confess the failings that impede the way to forgiveness and reconciliation. Lord, have mercy.
May our almighty and merciful Lord grant us pardon and forgiveness of all our failings, time for amendment of our lives and the grace and strength of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Let us pray our Collect for the Festival of St Bartholomew
Almighty and everlasting God, who gave to your apostle Bartholomew grace to truly believe and to preach your word: grant that your Church may love that word which he believed and may faithfully preach and receive the same: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Readings:
Acts 5.12-16 1 Corinthians 4.9-15
Hymn; ‘Glorious things of Thee are spoken’
Gospel: Luke 22.24-30
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke
Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
A dispute also arose among them as to which one of them was to be regarded as the greatest. But he said to them, ‘The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.
‘You are those who have stood by me in my trials; and I confer on you, just as my Father has conferred on me, a kingdom, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.’
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Response: ‘Praise to you, O, Christ’)
Reflection
Barbara was a faithful member of her local congregation for many years, she didn’t ever take a formal role in the leadership of the church, but she was always willing to help in the background with anything that was needed.
She loved helping prepare the church building for special occasions, cleaning and arranging flowers, and could be relied upon to bake cakes and make sandwiches for social events. When she died everyone said how much she would be missed in the life of the church.
But in the days before Barbara’s funeral, as the vicar talked to various people about her, she discovered hidden truths about Barbara’s life. There was a man who spoke of how Barbara had helped him with his reading and writing after he left school and gave him advice and guidance about seeking employment.
There was someone from the parish whose husband had become abusive, and Barbara had offered the lady and her dog a home until her family were able to help her. There was a family who never forgot how Barbara had cooked meals for them while one of their children was seriously ill in hospital.
And many more stories emerged of how Barbara had quietly served people around her in ways that changed their lives and brought them love and care when they needed it most.
Bartholomew is one of those Apostles whose work in the service of Jesus, his risen Lord, is known only to God. Matthew, Mark and Luke all name him as one of the twelve disciples called by Jesus to follow him, and he is also named in the Book of Acts, but he isn’t mentioned anywhere else in the New Testament.
There is some suggestion that Bartholomew may have been the same person as Nathaniel who, John tells us, was brought to Jesus by Philip, but we have no way of knowing if that is true.
What we do know for certain about Bartholomew, however, is that he shared the experience of following Jesus throughout his ministry alongside the other disciples. So, he must have witnessed all that Jesus did, and heard all that Jesus said, including his controversial encounters with the religious leaders.
Bartholomew must have heard again and again the teaching of Jesus that; ‘the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves’ and he would have witnessed Jesus living out that teaching, ‘I am among you as one who serves’.
‘You are those who have stood by me in my trials’ says Jesus of Bartholomew and the others, sadly just before they all failed him by running away at the time of his greatest trial.
The greatest thing however, is that Bartholomew was a witness to the resurrection and ascension of Jesus and was therefore able to pass on the Gospel message with the authority of one who had experienced it for himself.
No doubt, after the resurrection, he and the other Apostles tried their best to live following the example of Jesus, thus bearing witness to others of his humility and loving service.
Ancient writers on the history of the Christian faith state that Bartholomew was an apostle to India – possibly in the region of Mumbai, and along with his fellow apostle Jude, is reputed to have brought Christianity to Armenia in the 1st century.
By tradition, Bartholomew is said to have been flayed alive, poor soul, before being crucified upside down, thus becoming the patron saint of Leatherworkers in their gory trade. In painting and sculpture, he’s often represented as holding a knife, with his own skin neatly draped over his arm, and there was me thinking it was his robe….. Thankfully, Bartholomew has also always been associated with healing, and several hospitals are named after him, Barts Hospital in London being one.
So, we may know almost nothing about Bartholomew except that he was a disciple of Jesus, but far from being a negative thing, I think this is the most important aspect of this rather mysterious man. For he teaches us that the call to serve is nothing to do with fame or status.
All around us we see the reign of the ego and famous, perhaps film stars and music bands are the best known for this. And an increasing number of children, when asked what they want to do when they grow up, say that they want to be famous – being famous for being famous has almost become a vocation. Some of our politicians seem rather the same, but sadly the church isn’t exempt, like those evangelists on American religious TV stations, and, unfortunately, even some bishops and clergy just love being in the spotlight and have become artists of self-publicity.
They must be mad, our role is to point people to God, not to ourselves, me, I prefer to keep my head down when there’s a camera about!
We know, from the life of this mysterious man Bartholomew, that actually, we don’t need to be famous, because God loves us, and that’s all we need – we need no other adulation.
Believe it or not folks, all of us here will join the great ranks of anonymous Christians who have served God through the ages. In 2000 years time – probably even long before that – we will all have been forgotten, except perhaps by ancestor hunters who might still be digging our names out of archives and searching church registers for information.
This might seem rather disheartening, but it needn’t be, because we know we are creatures of God’s making and redeeming, we are each loved by God more than we could ever imagine, and when we understand even a little bit about this love, any anxieties about our status in life lose their hold over us. In God’s love we have everything we need.
So often we see the lives of the rich and famous descend into tragedy or disaster, wealth and fame don’t bring happiness.
The ordinariness of our lives is something to celebrate if, like Bartholomew, our lives are built on the rock of faith, and we have the knowledge of God’s love within us. So, Bartholomew is one of us: a follower, disciple and servant of Jesus Christ. An anonymous, unshowy person who gave of his best. Someone we don’t know much about, but whose soul is now hidden with God where that great love will, at last, be fully known.
Getting back to Barbara, she lived out her faith as ‘one who serves’ others, in her Bible was found a well-worn card with the prayer of St Ignatius written on it.
The prayer was written nearly 1600 years after the life of Bartholomew and over 400 years before our lifetime but perhaps it’s a prayer we can all pray together in a fellowship that extends beyond time, so with Bartholomew, Ignatius, Barbara, and everyone here today, let us pray:
‘Teach us, good Lord,
to serve you as you deserve,
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labour and not to ask for any reward,
save that of knowing that we do your will.’
That is all that is needed. All that matters.
Amen.
Hymn; ‘Lord Jesus Christ, you have come to us’
Affirmation of our faith
Let us declare our faith in God.
We believe and trust in God the Father, source of all being and life,
the one for whom we exist.
We believe and trust in God the Son, who took our human nature,
died for us and rose again.
We believe and trust in God the Holy Spirit, who gives life to the people of God and makes Christ known in the world.
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 are written by Liz Davies
On this St Bartholomew’s Day, we remember and try to follow what he believed in – that we should be ready to profess our faith openly and courageously and remain steadfast in our adherence to Christ’s teachings, no matter in what circumstances.
In the quietness of this ancient place and away from the busyness of the world around us, we bow our heads and still our thoughts and minds.
Heavenly Father who created us to be sisters and brothers in Christ, hear us as we lift our hearts in thanksgiving and praise and hear our prayers and intercessions for those in need. We thank you for the fellowship of the church family around us and as we gather once more in this house of prayer, may our worship not only honour you with our lips, but also with our hearts and minds.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Dear Lord, we have so much to give thanks for and yet, so often we forget to say ‘thank you.’ Not far from us, are those who are homeless, hungry, neglected, and unloved. Open our eyes to the needs of those less fortunate than ourselves and in whatever small way we are able, to give our help. We thank you for all your goodness to us, so freely given, but unearned. May we willingly take steps to pass it on, to share your loving kindness given to us, amongst others.
Lord, hear us; Lord, graciously hear us
We live in a troubled world where there is so much unrest, violence, injustice, and hardship. We pray that the turmoil in many parts of the world will not escalate into a multi country full-scale wars. May everyone take a step back and take time to find a resolution without the use of missiles and further loss of life. We pray for the people of Ukraine as they continue to fight for the right to be an independent country not controlled by Russia. They have paid a high price with so much loss of life and destruction. We pray for Israel and Gaza that cooperation may prevail for the good of all. May all countries – however large or small, all leaders, and all governments across the world make a determined effort to work for peace where all nations can live in harmony with each other and not subject to the dominance of any other.
We pray for peace in the world. We pray for a time when the weapons of war will be replaced by your protection; when oppression will be overcome by justice; when lies and deceit will be replaced by truth and integrity; and when hatred and cruelty will be replaced by your Spirit of love and justice.
We pray for our own country where tragedy seems to be an almost daily occurrence. May all, no matter how young or old, understand that carrying a weapon is not acceptable, is not the way to sort any problems and certainly should not be for fun. We live in a multi-cultural society brought about by our own history. Help us all to value each other and to celebrate the varied diversity and culture.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Gracious God, thank you for our friends and neighbours and those around us with whom we work and share our daily lives. We thank you for the joys and blessings of family life. Help us when we quarrel or fall out to quickly put things right and forgive one another.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Loving Father, we bring before you all those who will be beginning the next stage of their lives in the next few weeks – the children who will be starting school for the first time; the primary school children moving on to secondary education; those who have received exam results in the last two weeks which now determine what they move on to; those beginning work after years of study or unemployment. Be with them all and instil in them the courage and enthusiasm to do their best in all they do.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Gracious God, we bring before you all who are struggling in any way; those who cannot see any light at the end of a very dark tunnel, whether due to physical, mental, financial or life issues. We pray for all who we know who are housebound and in nursing homes; those in hospitals, in recovery and rehabilitation. We give grateful thanks for all the doctors, nurses, healthcare workers and every single person who works to help keep us safe. We pray for all those who work in health centres and clinics and for all those who work in sheltered accommodation and care homes. We pray for all those who work in our hospitals. We especially remember at this time: Reverend Diane and Ken, Brian, May, Susan, Tony, Jan, Lynda, Dot, Maureen, Jan, Pam and David, Sandra, Roger, Michael and Patricia, Rob and Alison, Mary, Jeremy, Anita and Stephen, Callum and Elaine, Sue and Martin, Margaret and John, Barry, Coral and Paul, Lawson, Barbara, Simone, and Dinah, those known to us and all who have no one to pray for them. Be with them all and envelop them in your ever-loving kindness.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
Loving God, we bring before those who have come to the end of their earthly journey. Please welcome them into your eternal kingdom. We pray for those whose hearts have been saddened by the death of someone close and dear to them, for members of our families who have died and whose anniversary we remember. Help us to experience the comfort of the Holy Spirit within us, and the fellowship of the church family around us until we are reunited once more in your heavenly kingdom.
We remember: Elsie Vivien and Frederick Davies whose year’s mind occurs this week.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer
As we leave this place this morning, we ask that the world-wide Church be strengthened in faith, love, and hope, and that it may become a sacrament of salvation for all nations. We ask for unfailing help and protection, and for the grace to remain loyal to God’s will. We ask for the grace to grow closer to Christ and to have a deep friendship with Him, emulating St Bartholomew’s devotion.
Rejoicing in the fellowship of St Andrew, St Allen, St Clement, we commend ourselves and the whole of creation to your unfailing love.
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 Jesus 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.
Hymn; 'For all the Saints...'
The Peace
We are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptised into one body. Let us then pursue all that makes for peace and build up our common life. May the peace of God be always with us. Amen.
Blessing
May God the Holy Trinity make us strong in faith and love, defend us on every side and guide us in truth and peace. And may the presence of God watch over us, the power of God protect us, those whom we love, and may we never forget that wherever we are, God is with us always. Amen.