GATHERING OUR HEARTS AND MINDSWelcome to worship! June 21 is National Indigenous Peoples Day, and the Indigenous Day of Prayer may be celebrated the Sunday before or after June 21. I created this worship service to honour the meaning of National Indigenous Peoples Day. It does contain information and words which describe residential school abuse. In the message, I explore the idea of the colonizers as Goliath. I want to clarify that this worship is intended for our use by non-Indigenous communities of faith, especially ours in Annapolis Royal, NS.
Opening Sentences from Leviticus 25 “The land shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you are strangers and sojourners with Me. And in all the land of your possession you shall grant redemption of the land.” Land acknowledgement: Lighting of a candle and Opening Prayer: We light a light in the name of God the Creator who said “Let there be light” and there was light. We light a light in the name of God in Jesus, light of the world. We light a light in the name of God, Holy Spirit: Light in our darkness, a lamp to our path. Thanks be to God. Amen. Creator and Creating God, we are ashamed of our colonial past , but today we begin with a heartfelt act of thanks. You created the diversities of peoples of the world and You gifted indigenous peoples of Canada with many treasures of wisdom, spirit and vision. We are so grateful that the societal misdeeds of the past and the negligence of the present have not succeeded in breaking aboriginal spirits. We give thanks for your sustaining power which shows in the resilience of Indigenous peoples. And, You have showered us in the church, undeservingly, with gifts that Indigenous peoples have brought to the church. We pray thanksgiving for the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people of Canada; and we commit ourselves to be people of reconciliation in the tradition of the golden rule of Jesus in whose name we pray. Amen. “O Great Spirit” is the only song in Voices United composed by a Canadian First Nations person: Doreen Clellamin, a Nuxalk Elder from Bella Coola, British Columbia. Clellamin had strong connections in the United Church in her home community, throughout British Columbia, and across Canada. Doreen’s song is rooted in the singing of her community—the Nuxalk community—as is typical of songs from many First Nations traditions. In place of a prayer of Confession, I invite you to read and ponder the powerful words of a song composed by United Church minister Rick Gunn. He wrote this after last weeks discovery of the mass graves in Kamloops BC. However just as these 215 graves point to an even larger crime, so do the words surpass the immediate context of when they were written. What Words Do I Put Here? (Words & Music by Rick Gunn) What words do I put here? What words do I say? What words do I put here, in the ground where children lay? My words are stifled. My throat is caught. I want to cry out but the children cannot. They’ve been silent being cast aside. No, they were silenced before that by twisted Christian pride. “Don’t you speak Ojibway. Don’t you speak your Cree. Don’t you speak that Mi’kmaq while you’re looking up at me. Don’t you speak Dakota. Don’t you speak Dene. Don’t you use those Shuswap words – You’ll talk the Jesus way.” What words were offered? What prayers were said? No words were offered to the parents of the dead. No urgent letter: “Your child’s unwell.” No “I’m so sorry, but we saved them from hell.” “For we baptized them in the Saviour’s name. God loves savage children but not quite the same. You don’t need Ojibway. You don’t need your Cree. You don’t need that Mi’kmaq to be a version of me. You don’t need Dakota. You don’t need Dene. You don’t need those Shuswap words – You’ll talk the Jesus way.” One word we could put here is ‘genocide.' One word we could put here is the one we’d like to hide. One word: ‘genocide'. No words… May I hear Ojibway. May I hear your Cree. May I hear your Mi’kmaq speaking proud and free. May we hear Dakota. May we hear Dene. May we hear your Shuswap words and listen. May we hear the stories of two hundred fifteen tiny, precious children and the places they have been. May I hear the gospel of Jesus Christ today; the way he cries in agony when Christians lose his Way.
HEARING OUR SACRED STORIES
Sing along Hymn: For the Healing of the Nations
O Siem by Susan Aglukark & Chad Irschick Refrain O Siem, we are all family O Siem, we're all the same O Siem, the fires of freedom Dance in the burning flame 1. Siem o siyeya, all people rich and poor Siem o siyeya, those who do and do not know Siem o siyeya, take the hand of one close by Siem o siyeya, of those who know because they try And watch the walls come tumbling down Refrain 2. Siem o siyeya, all people of the world Siem o siyeya, it's time to make the turn Siem o siyeya, a chance to share your heart Siem o siyeya, to make a brand new start And watch the walls come tumbling down Refrain PRAYING and ACTING our STORYPrayers: Gracious God, who leads your people in the paths of justice, you have shown us so clearly the need for humility lately. We thank you for your guiding hand and for the incredible grace as we realize that despite the horrific moments of history good relations are still possible, healing is possible, truthful action is possible for us. We give thanks for all the work that has already been done in the past decade in our church and in many of your churches across the land. We give thanks for the visions of a more wholistic, family oriented and conservationist lifestyle which many indigenous elders are graciously sharing with settler people. So we pray for our country, that all may realize that a country divided can not stand, and that justice may finally come to Indigenous people and all who are marginalized. May we white people, may our government structures and our churches seek to embrace the truth and clear the path for showing respect. We pray for individuals today, the families who have survivors of residential schools in them, the families who carry the grief and trauma of lost children and missing and murdered young women, the fathers who are incarcerated at a rate beyond average, especially the fathers who are in jail now and are feeling ashamed and long for their children. Be their refuge and stronghold in times of trouble, and may justice come to them. We pray for our indigenous neighbours in Bear River, Annapolis Valley, Acadia, Millbrook, Glooscap, Paktnkek , Indian Brook and Pictou Landing First Nations. May their business ventures be blessed, their children prosper, their Spirits stay strong. We pray for all elders and seniors and all with preexisting health conditions, especially those who have asked for our prayers .....(now in a time of silence) be their refuge and their stronghold, be their calm in the storms of life. We long for the ways of love and justice to spread and therefore we pray with Jesus in the ancient words he left us: Our father, who is in heaven.... Looking ahead: What has been done? What are we doing? What must still be done? This video “A different future” shows the development in relationship between Canadas First peoples and the United Church of Canada, produced in 2018. It is 12 minutes long. If this is too much for you right now, please make sure you come back to it soon. Commissioning and Blessing Written by Rev. Alf Dumont Go now, as the Spirit of life has called you: To be a people of grace To be a people of truth To be a people who pursue peace To be a people who forgive To be a people who remember To be a people who love To be a people who honour others in the pursuit of right relations. Let us move from here to be a reconciled and reconciling people with the assurance that Creator God, Great Spirit accompanies us this day and every day. Amen.
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