Sundays After Pentecostor November 3, 2024 Proper 26[31] (Use scriptures for Proper 26[31] if worship on All Saints Day was not separately observed)
Unifying Themes for Proper 26[31]: |
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All Saints Day |
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| Scripture | Theme | Hymns |
|---|---|---|
| Wisdom of Solomon
3:1-9 or Isaiah 25:6-9 |
The Lord's banquet of the saints |
612: Deck Thyself,
My Soul, with Gladness 702: Sing with All the Saints in Glory 711: For All the Saints 720: Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying |
| Psalm 24 | God, the King of glory | 96: Praise the Lord
Who Reigns Above 715: Rejoice, the Lord Is King |
| John 11:32-44 | Christ is the resurrection | 303: The Day of
Resurrection 315: Come, Ye Faithful, Raise the Strain |
| Revelation 21:1-6a | God, the Alpha and the Omega | 101: From All That
Dwell Below the Skies 384: Love Divine, All Loves Excelling |
Proper 26[31] |
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| Scripture | Theme | Hymns |
| Ruth
1:1-18 --or-- Deuteronomy 6:1-9 |
Loyalty to Love --or-- The greatest commandment is given |
436: The Voice of God
Is Calling 530: Are Ye Able |
| Psalm
146 --or-- Psalm 119:1-8 |
Praise the eternal Creator --or-- Blessings on those who follow |
89: Joyful, Joyful,
We Adore Thee 129: Give to the Winds Thy Fears 152: I Sing the Almighty Power of God 438: Forth in Thy Name, O Lord |
| Hebrews 9:11-14 | The greatest commandement is fulfilled | 306: The Strife is
O'er, the Battle Done 698: God of the Ages 702: Sing with All the Saints in Glory 709: Come, Let Us Join Our Friends Above |
| Mark 12:28-34 | The greatest commandment is heard | 396: O Jesus, I Have
Promised 567: Heralds of Christ |
The Christian year is fast drawing to a close, but there are still wonderful dates and scriptures and themes. This week we observe All Saints Day, when we remember the brothers and sisters and all of the saints who have joined the Church Triumphant. Our scriptures for the ordinary time focus on the greatest commandment and love and loyalty.
When we think of those who have gone before us into the heavenly realms, we can sometimes become fearful about our own mortality. When we think about loving God with all of our heart and all of our soul and all of our mind, it can be intimidating, or even fearful. When we face the daily challenges in our lives, we can become anxious or afraid, too. This week's Lectionary hymn, written by Paul Gerhardt and translated by John Wesley, tells us to give all of those fears to the winds.
Gerhardt, a Lutheran minister in 17th century Germany, faced tremendous challenges, pressures, and fears stemming from strife that had arisen between the Lutheran and Reformed churches. When Gerhardt refused to sign an edict which prohibited Lutheran clergy from preaching about the differences between Lutheran and Reformed teachings, he was stripped of his official status and was prohibited from performing any clerical functions. He wrote many hymns after that time, including Give to the Winds Thy Fears. The words applied powerfully to his own circumstances. How poigniant the words must have been as he penned them.
In the next century, John Wesley was introduced to many of Gerhardt's hymns when he sang with the Moravians on board a ship to the colony of Georgia. The powerful messages of those hymns comforted and inspired Wesley on that journey, and in the following years he translated many of Gerhardt's texts for inclusion in hymnal collections, including this hymn.
Think on your challenges and fears as you read these words:
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1. Give to the winds thy fears; hope and be undismayed. God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears, God shall lift up thy head. |
2. Through waves and clouds and storms, God gently clears the way; wait thou God's time; so shall this night soon end in joyous day. |
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3. Leave to God's sovereign sway to choose and to command; so shalt thou, wondering, own that way, how wise, how strong this hand. |
4. Let us in life, in death, thy steadfast truth declare, and publish with our latest breath thy love and guardian care. |
Know that God will lift you up. Give to the winds your fears.
Grace and peace,
Lection at HymnSite.com
God bless you!
| Passages suggested are from The Revised Common Lectionary: Consultation on Common Texts (Abingdon Press, 1992) copyright © by the Consultation on Common Texts (CCT), P.O. Box 340003, Room 381, Nashville TN 37203-0003. Reprinted with permission of CCT. |