St Ursula's Church
Berne, Switzerland
A Church of the Anglican Communion, welcoming all who seek the Lord Jesus Christ
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| St Ursula's Church A Church of the Anglican Communion, welcoming all who seek the Lord Jesus Christ | ||||||||
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Alleluia. Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed, Alleluia!
1 All hail the power of Jesus' name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown Him Lord of all.
2 O chosen seed of Israel's race,
ye ransomed of the Fall,
hail Him who saves you by His grace,
and crown Him Lord of all.
3 Sinners, whose love can ne'er forget
the wormwood and the gall,
go spread your trophies at His feet,
and crown Him Lord of all.
4 Let every kindred, every tribe
on this terrestrial ball,
to him all majesty ascribe,
and crown him Lord of all.
5 O that with yonder sacred throng
we at his feet may fall;
we'll join the everlasting song
and crown him Lord of all.
Edward Perronet
Grace, mercy and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ be with you
and also with you.
Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Alive, alive, alive for evermore,
Now Jesus is alive, alive for evermore;
Alive, alive, alive for evermore,
Now Jesus is alive!
Sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah;
Now Jesus is alive for evermore.
Sing hallelujah, sing hallelujah;
Now Jesus is alive!
Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed for us. Let us therefore rejoice by putting away all malice and evil and confessing our sins with a sincere and true heart.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father,
we have sinned against you and against our neighbour
in thought and word and deed,
through negligence, through weakness,
through our own deliberate fault.
We are truly sorry and repent of all our sins.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, who died for us,
forgive us all that is past and grant
that we may serve you in newness of life
to the glory of your name. Amen.
Almighty God, who forgives all who truly repent,
have mercy upon you, pardon and deliver you from all your sins, confirm and strengthen you in all goodness, and keep you in life eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
God our redeemer,
you have delivered us from the power of darkness
and brought us into the kingdom of your Son:
grant, that as by his death he has recalled us to life,
so by his continual presence in us he may raise us to eternal joy;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
22 Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, 'Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23 For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, "To an unknown god." What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. 26 From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27 so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him – though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28 For "In him we live and move and have our being"; as even some of your own poets have said, "For we too are his offspring." 29 Since we are God's offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 30 While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.'
13 Who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? 14 But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, 15 but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defence to anyone who demands from you an account of the hope that is in you; 16 yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God's will, than to suffer for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, 20 who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. 21 And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you – not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.
1 Blest are the pure in heart,
for they shall see our God;
the secret of the Lord is theirs,
their soul is Christ's abode.
2 The Lord, who left the heavens
our life and peace to bring,
to dwell in lowliness with men,
their pattern and their King;
3 Still to the lowly soul
he doth himself impart,
and for his dwelling and his throne
chooseth the pure in heart.
4 Lord, we thy presence seek;
may ours this blessing be;
give us a pure and lowly heart,
a temple meet for thee.
John Keble
Alleluia
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
Glory to you, O Lord
Jesus said to his disciples: 15 'If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you for ever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.'
This is the Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you, O Christ
I wonder if you can think of the last time somebody asked you a question about the Christian faith: about why you believe, why you go to church. Maybe a member of your family asked you such a question, or maybe a colleague at work. We might be asked these questions from many different angles: for example, from an atheist position that regards all religion as nonsense, or maybe from the perspective of a different religion. A Muslim might ask how you can believe that God is three-in-one, or that God, the Creator of all things, could become a human being and die on a cross? Someone from an Eastern tradition like Buddhism, or western people who are drawn to alternative, 'new age' spiritualities, might ask quite different questions. Other people might say they just can't understand how anyone can have anything to do with any kind of Christianity, considering all the abuse and corruption the churches have tolerated and covered up.
Or maybe we never – or hardly ever – experience direct inter-personal questioning of that kind. Many people, especially in western societies, see religion as a very private thing and don't expect to discuss it. But even if individuals do not directly ask us about our faith, the world around us, the spiritual and mental climate in which we live, is increasingly, constantly asking us challenging questions about the Christian faith. For example, let me mention some bestsellers from recent years. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, a brilliant scientist and charismatic communicator, has reinforced the assumption of many people that belief in God belongs to a pre-modern, pre-scientific world, and is no longer tenable. On a different front, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown is one of many popular books that have created the impression that the traditional Christian account of Jesus is untrue. Despite the fact that no historian would take it at all seriously, it has sadly shaped the way many people think about Christianity. There are many other popular books one could mention here, for example Philip Pullman's trilogy His Dark Materials, which has a clear anti-Christian agenda.
And that's just books. Film is doubtless a much more pervasive influence. It's in the air that we breathe, a wide-spread questioning of the beliefs and practices of Christianity, that reaches and affects us through many different media as well as through the people we know. And I don't say this to complain. If the world around us doesn't believe the Christian faith, why shouldn't it say so, why shouldn't it ask hard questions?
There is nothing new in all this. Today's readings remind us that Christians have always faced questions and criticisms about their faith. The first Letter of Peter states a basic principle: (translating slightly differently from the version we heard read) 'Always be ready to give reasons to anyone who asks you to explain the hope that is within you.' But do this, Peter goes on, 'with gentleness and respect'. This is a vital reminder that Christianity can only be authentically commended in a spirit of humility, not in an attitude of superiority and condescension. We are commending Christ, not ourselves. But in that spirit of humility, that attitude of knowing we have received a gift we do not remotely deserve, we are told to be prepared to defend our faith to those who ask us about it: to give reasons for the hope that is within us.
And in our reading from the Acts of the Apostles we see St Paul doing just that. Paul is in Athens, an intellectual centre, a place buzzing with new ideas. Before today's reading, he has been in debate with philosophers. This is the first time the Christian message has been heard in Athens. Some ask mockingly: 'What does this babbler want to say?' Paul's message is new to them; it doesn't make much sense. They are confused and think he is proclaiming two gods, Jesus and Anastasis (the Greek for 'resurrection'), but they are intrigued enough to want to know more, so they arrange a further meeting with Paul, who now finds himself addressing some of the most high-powered people of the day.
What does Paul say to these Greek philosophers? Interestingly, he doesn't quote the Bible at all, which is very unusual for him. When he's talking to fellow Jews, who know the Bible, Paul refers to it all the time. But now he's talking to Greeks. They don't know the Bible and it holds no authority for them. So he starts where they are. He refers to the way religion is practised in Athens, mentioning an altar dedicated to an 'unknown god'. He then goes on to make some general points about how God might be understood and how God might relate to the human race. He talks in terms that should make sense to an educated Greek. He speaks their language. He even quotes their poets: 'In him we live and move and have our being'. That isn't from the Bible; it's from a Greek poet. Paul engages with their mental and cultural world. He does this to open up a space in their thinking, a willingness to hear the Christian message. But, crucially, Paul doesn't leave his listeners with generalities about God; in the end he says something quite new and very specific: the God we can reason and speculate about in all kinds of ways has acted decisively in this world through Jesus Christ and his resurrection. Paul starts where the Athenians are; he shows that he understands their social and mental world – he shows them that respect. But then into that world he introduces something quite new that that world could never have found by itself. He speaks to them about what God has done. He speaks about Jesus and his resurrection from the dead.
And how does his sophisticated audience respond? Some scoff; some are interested and ask to hear Paul again; some become believers and join the church.
Over the two thousand years since Paul preached in Athens many have followed in his footsteps: deeply convinced Christians who have also had an intelligent understanding of the wider world, a sympathetic grasp of where people are coming from, of how they see Christianity and what they might struggle with in it; Christians who have been able to connect the unchanging truth of the Gospel to the changing questions of the world.
An outstanding example of just such a Christian communicator was C.S. Lewis. Many of us probably know him chiefly for his Narnia stories. Both in those stories and in many other books he was a very effective communicator of the Christian faith, with a unique capacity to blend reasoned argument and imagination. Lewis was so effective partly because he had struggled hard with the faith himself. In his twenties he was an agnostic, but intelligent believers like his friend J.R.R. Tolkien challenged him; if they believed, maybe it was worth thinking about. And he argued and wrestled until finally he came to believe in Christ himself. If you only know Lewis' children's stories, you might consider reading one of his other books like Mere Christianity. They are in some ways a little dated now and they're not everyone's cup of tea, but countless people have found them enormously helpful.
There are different ways of speaking about the Chrstian faith, of defending and commending what we believe. There is more than one way of giving reasons for the hope that is within us. To take a very local example, Karl Barth, one of the greatest of all Christian theologians, who grew up just ten minutes walk from St Ursula's here in Bern, and who took a very different approach from Lewis. While Lewis seeks contact points in the thinking and sense of moral obligation of his readers and tries to draw them from there by stages to Christian faith, Barth thinks that's a mistake. For him, we should not waste time trying to show that Christianity is somehow in line with what people already dimly know. If we try to do that we will be tempted to please the world rather than be faithful to the Gospel, and we will end up distorting the Christian message by fitting it into godless ways of thinking. For Karl Barth, from beginning to end we should simply point to Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord. God will do the rest.
I love Lewis and I love Barth and I won't try to resolve the tension between their different approaches. They show us different ways of speaking faithfully about Christ in a questioning and sometimes hostile world. Learning from great Christian teachers like Lewis and Barth can be one way we can develop confidence in giving reasons for the hope that is within us. And even if other people don't ask us for such reasons, we may need to develop them for our own sake, as we experience in our own hearts and minds the impact of the many ways in which the credibility of Christianity is challenged today.
Finally, let me add that I might have given the impression that the task of defending and commending our faith in Christ is ultimately a burden on the individual Christian. Of course, there may be times when, as an individual, we each need to stand up and be counted as a believing Christian. But ultimately it is to a community, not lone individuals, that our Lord has entrusted the task of making him known to the world. And that suggests that alongside everything else I've said, one other fundamental way of commending the Christian faith is simply to invite people to Church: to hear the story of Jesus Christ; to see the celebration of the eucharist that draws us into the reality of his death and resurrection; to see the community which the Gospel creates.
And when we say that, we are reminded of just how important it is for us to meet together as Church and for each of us to contribute to the building up of this community. Of course, in recent weeks it has been a great challenge to maintain our sense of being the Body of Christ, though we have tried to do so in many ways. Along with all of you, I look forward to the time when we can resume meeting in person to be nourished by word, sacrament and fellowship. May God give grace to us all, as individuals and as a community, to grow in confidence in our faith, so that we can indeed give reasons for the hope that is within us and point others faithfully to Christ.
Revd David Marshall
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is,
seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,
was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Let us pray to God, who alone makes us dwell in safety:
Bless your whole church at this time, and especially those who are trying to do your work in the face of this present disruption. Bless our Bishops Robert and David, and bless Helen, David and all our clergy as they discuss how best to worship you and to minister to others in these challenging times. And be with us all as we meet together on line or in our homes, and bring us safe to your heavenly home.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.
Be with those who are guiding this nation and shaping national policies, that they may make decisions for the common good, and for the good of the world around us.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.
We pray for all our neighbours, and for all working at this present time. We ask your special blessing on doctors, nurses and medical researchers, especially those whom we know, that their skill and insight will bring safety and full health:
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.
We ask for your healing hand on all who are affected by this virus, through illness or isolation or anxiety, that they may find relief and recovery. We pray for the vulnerable and the fearful, for the gravely ill and the dying, and for those known to us. We name them in our hearts or out loud ... and we ask they may know your comfort and your peace.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.
And we remember all those who have died in the faith of Christ, and those who have died without, asking that we with them may know in you the gift of everlasting life.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.
And we commend ourselves, and all for whom we pray, to the mercy and protection of God.
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said,
'Peace be with you.'
Then were they glad when they saw the Lord. Alleluia.
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.
1 God is Love: let heav'n adore him;
God is Love: let earth rejoice;
let creation sing before him,
and exalt him with one voice.
He who laid the earth's foundation,
he who spread the heav'ns above,
he who breathes through all creation,
he is Love, eternal Love.
2 God is Love: and he enfoldeth
all the world in one embrace;
with unfailing grasp he holdeth
every child of every race.
And when human hearts are breaking
under sorrow's iron rod,
then they find that selfsame aching
deep within the heart of God.
3 God is Love: and though with blindness
sin afflicts the souls of men,
God's eternal loving-kindness
holds and guides them even then.
Sin and death and hell shall never
o'er us final triumph gain;
God is Love, so Love for ever
o'er the universe must reign.
Timothy Rees
As our Saviour has taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours now and for ever.
Amen.
God our Father,
whose Son Jesus Christ gives the water of eternal life:
the spring of life and source of goodness,
through him who is alive and reigns, now and for ever. Amen.
1 Father, Lord of all Creation,
Ground of Being, Life and Love;
height and depth beyond description
only life in you can prove:
you are mortal life's dependence:
thought, speech, sight are ours by grace;
yours is every hour's existence,
sovereign Lord of time and space.
2 Jesus Christ, the Man for Others,
we, your people, make our prayer:
give us grace to love as brothers
all whose burdens we can share.
Where your name binds us together
you, Lord Christ, will surely be;
where no selfishness can sever
there your love the world may see.
3 Holy Spirit, rushing, burning
wind and flame of Pentecost,
fire our hearts afresh with yearning
to regain what we have lost.
May your love unite our action,
nevermore to speak alone:
God, in us abolish faction,
God, through us your love make known.
Stewart Cross
The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of his Son Jesus Christ, our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you now and always. Amen.
Go in the peace of Christ. Alleluia, Alleluia
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, Alleluia.
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