Sunday Service, 14 July 2024
Led by Rev. Dr. Jane Blackall and Olivia Blanning
Musical Prelude: Dorothy Pilling: Philomela (performed by Andrew Robinson)
Opening Words: ‘True Religion’ by Cliff Reed (adapted)
If a religion is true, it sets you free to be your true self;
it nurtures loving-kindness and generosity in your heart;
it humbles you before the Ultimate – and before your neighbour.
If a religion is true, it challenges your conscience and opens your mind;
it makes you responsible for yourself and for your world;
it stirs you to seek the liberation and wellbeing of others.
If a religion is true, it deepens your awareness and nourishes your spirit;
it brings you comfort and strength in times of grief and trial;
it connects you to other people and to the life of the universe.
If a religion is true, it will care less for dogma and doctrine than it will for love;
it will care less for rules and customs than it will for compassion;
it will care less for the gods we make than for the people we are.
As we gather together in community this morning, may ours be a true religion. (pause)
Words of Welcome and Introduction:
These opening words by Cliff Reed welcome all who have gathered this morning for our Sunday service. Welcome to those of you who have gathered in-person at Essex Church, to all who are joining us via Zoom from far and wide, and anyone watching on YouTube or listening to the podcast at a later date. For anyone who doesn’t know me, I’m Jane Blackall, and I’m minister with Kensington Unitarians. I’m glad to be back with you again after a few weeks away.
This morning’s service is titled ‘We All Stand Together’. I’m delighted to welcome our guest speaker, Olivia Blanning of Citizens UK, who will be speaking to us later about the practice of community organising, and the way that different groups can join together to change the world for the better. In a way it’s a natural extension of last week’s service, reflecting on our ‘plot of land to tend’, and the work that is ours to do; this time we’re considering: how can we do that in community with others?
Chalice Lighting: ‘A Safe and Sacred Space’ by Jane Blackall
Let’s light our chalice flame now, as we do each week. It’s a moment for us to set aside any preoccupations that we came in carrying, a time to focus our attention in the here and now, and set our intention for this precious hour of peace, as we co-create this sacred space. This simple ritual connects us in solidarity with Unitarians and Unitarian Universalists the world over, and reminds us of the proud and historic progressive religious tradition of which this gathering is part. (light chalice)
The lighting of this chalice calls us to attention –
as we focus on its flickering light for a moment
let us recall the shared intention that it represents –
to make this a safe and sacred space for prayer and sharing
in which we can re-connect with life’s depths and our highest aspirations –
a community of solidarity and trust to nurture and strengthen us for the days of our lives.
May this little candle be a beacon that lights the way,
guiding us through these still-uncertain times,
and inspiring each of us to paths
of peace, justice, and love.
Hymn 198 (purple): ‘We’ll Build a Land’
Let’s sing together. We’ve got some old favourites today! All very stirring stuff. Our first hymn is number 198 in the purple book, ‘We’ll Build a Land’. For those joining via zoom the words will be up on screen. Feel free to stand or sit as you prefer and let’s sing up as best we can.
We’ll build a land where we bind up the broken.
We’ll build a land where the captives go free,
where the oil of gladness dissolves all mourning.
O, we’ll build a promised land that can be.
Come build a land where sisters and brothers,
anointed by God, may then create peace:
where justice shall roll down like waters,
and peace like an ever flowing stream.
We’ll build a land where we bring the good tidings
to all the afflicted and all those who mourn.
And we’ll give them garlands instead of ashes.
O, we’ll build a land where peace is born.
Come build a land where sisters and brothers,
anointed by God, may then create peace:
where justice shall roll down like waters,
and peace like an ever flowing stream.
We’ll be a land building up ancient cities,
raising up devastations of old;
restoring ruins of generations.
O, we’ll build a land of people so bold.
Come build a land where sisters and brothers,
anointed by God, may then create peace:
where justice shall roll down like waters,
and peace like an ever flowing stream.
Come, build a land where the mantles of praises
resound from spirits once faint and once weak;
where like oaks of righteousness stand her people.
O, come build the land, my people we seek.
Come build a land where sisters and brothers,
anointed by God, may then create peace:
where justice shall roll down like waters,
and peace like an ever flowing stream.
Candles of Joy and Concern:
Each week when we gather together, we share a simple ritual of candles of joy and concern, an opportunity to light a candle and share something that is in our heart with the community. So we’ve an opportunity now, for anyone who would like to do so, to light a candle and say a few words about what it represents. We’ll go to the people in the building first, then to Zoom.
So I invite some of you here in person to come and light a candle and then if you wish to tell us briefly who or what you light your candle for. Please do get up close to the microphone as that will help everyone hear (including the people at home). You can take the microphone out of the stand if it’s not at a good height and have it microphone pointing right at your mouth. And if you can’t get to the microphone give me a wave and I’ll bring it over to you. Thank you.
(in person candles)
And if that’s everyone in the room we’ll go over to the people on Zoom next – you might like to switch to gallery view at this stage – just unmute yourselves when you are ready and speak out – and we should be able to hear you and see you up on the big screen here in the church.
(zoom candles)
And I’m going to light one more candle, as we often do, to represent all those joys and concerns that we hold in our hearts this day, but which we don’t feel able to speak out loud. (light candle)
Time of Prayer & Reflection: based on words by Laura Horton-Ludwig
Let’s take those joys and concerns into an extended time of prayer. This prayer is based on some words by Bruce Southworth. You might first want to adjust your position for comfort, close your eyes, or soften your gaze. There might be a posture that helps you feel more prayerful. Whatever works for you. Do whatever you need to do to get into the right state of body and mind for us to pray together – to be fully present here and now, in this sacred time and space – with ourselves, with each other, and with that which is both within us and beyond us. (pause)
Spirit of Life, God of All Love, in whom we live and move and have our being,
we turn our full attention to you, the light within and without,
as we tune in to the depths of this life, and the greater wisdom
to which – and through which – we are all intimately connected.
Be with us now as we allow ourselves to drop into the
silence and stillness at the very centre of our being. (pause)
As people of faith, we seek to live in a spirit of love,
a spirit of community, justice, and peace.
And yet, in so many corners of the world both far and near,
we see exploitation and coercion, divisiveness and hate.
We struggle to respond to the outer world
and our inner dramas in ways that manifest love.
At times we may fear that love will not be strong enough.
At times we may question whether love really is at the root of all things,
in this world with so much struggle and suffering and discord.
This is the mystery within which we live and die.
These are the questions that haunt our days and nights.
And yet – despite everything – we are not quite without hope.
Our struggles and our questions testify to our longing for peace, for love.
In the stillness and silence of our own heart
we read the imprint of love: a light within.
May it keep hope alive, even through the toughest times.
May it guide us all, through our days, as we seek to act wisely and well.
May it help us to be vessels of compassion for one another and for our world. (pause)
And a few quiet moments let us take some time to pray inwardly the prayers of our own hearts;
calling to mind all those souls we know to be suffering this day, whether close to home, or
on the other side of the world. Let us hold all these sacred beings in the light of love. (pause)
Let us also pray for ourselves; we too are sacred beings who face our own struggles and muddle
through life’s ups and downs. So let us take a few moments to reflect on our own lives, and
ask for what we most need this day – comfort, forgiveness, or guidance – to flourish. (pause)
And let us take just a little longer to remember the good things in life and give thanks for them.
Those moments in the past week where we’ve encountered generosity, kindness, or pleasure.
Let us cultivate a spirit of gratitude as we recall all those moments that lifted our spirits. (pause)
Spirit of Life – God of all Love – as this time of prayer comes to a close, we offer up
our joys and concerns, our hopes and fears, our beauty and brokenness,
and we call on you for insight, healing, and renewal.
As we look forward now to the coming week,
help us to live well each day and be our best selves;
using our unique gifts in the service of love, justice and peace. Amen
Hymn 181 (purple): ‘Wake, Now, My Senses’
Our next hymn is number 181 in your purple books, ‘Wake, Now, My Senses’. If you’re someone who reads music please don’t get confused – we’re singing it to the familiar Irish tune, ‘Slane’, rather than the tune that’s printed in the book – so please do sing up with this stirring hymn.
Wake, now, my senses, and hear the earth call;
feel the deep power of being in all;
keep with the web of creation your vow,
giving, receiving as love shows us how.
Wake, now, my reason, reach out to the new;
join with each pilgrim who quests for the true;
honour the beauty and wisdom of time;
suffer thy limit, and praise the sublime.
Wake, now, compassion, give heed to the cry;
voices of suffering fill the wide sky;
take as your neighbour both stranger and friend,
praying and striving their hardship to end.
Wake, now, my conscience, with justice thy guide;
join with all people whose rights are denied;
take not for granted a privileged place;
God’s love embraces the whole human race.
Wake, now, my vision of ministry clear;
brighten my pathway with radiance here;
mingle my calling with all who would share;
work toward a planet transformed by our care.
Reading: ‘A God with Many Hands’ by Christopher Buice (read by David B)
When I was a director of religious education, I took a Sunday School class to visit a local Hindu temple. There was a statue on an altar of a god with many hands. The god’s arms were outstretched in all directions like the rays of a sun. The hands were open, extended, reaching out to all that lay beyond grasp – stretching to make contact with all who might need the divine touch. Many hands reaching out to those in need.
On another occasion, I saw many hands working to stock the shelves of a food bank. These were young hands, human hands. The church youth had volunteered to work on this project to benefit the hungry in our community. Some sorted the food. Others packed grocery bags. A few took the loaded sacks to a specified area. Finally we formed a column and passed groceries down the line, out of the building, and into the back of a large truck. When the task was complete, we waved as the truck drove off. There was laughter and relaxation. We had done our job. Now the task lay in other hands.
When I became minister of a church, I saw many hands working to rebuild Rice Chapel in Buffalo, South Carolina. All these hands working to reconstruct this African American church that had been burned down by a white arsonist. White hands. Black hands. Brown hands. Hands of many colours doing the work of healing and restoration. It was a powerful experience.
There is a lot of good work that needs to be done in the world – more than any of us can do alone. That’s why it is such a blessing to join together with others to achieve a worthy goal. Saint Theresa once observed, “On earth, God has no hands but our hands with which to do the work of healing.” Therefore, it is good for us to band together to complete a challenging task. After all, it takes many hands to do the work of God.
Meditation: ‘Choose to Bless the World’ by Rebecca Parker
Thanks David. We’re moving into a time of meditation now. To take us into silence I’m going to share a piece I’ve shared many times over the years – some words by Rebecca Parker titled ‘Choose to Bless the World’– slightly longer than our usual words for meditation but worth sinking into I think. Then we’ll hold three minutes of silence will end with the sound of a bell. Then we’ll hear some music for our continued meditation. Let’s do what we need to do to get comfortable – maybe adjust your position – put your feet flat on the floor to ground yourself – close your eyes. As we always say, the words are an offering, use this time to meditate in your own way.
Your gifts—whatever you discover them to be—
can be used to bless or curse the world.
The mind’s power,
the strength of the hands,
the reaches of the heart,
the gift of speaking, listening, imagining, seeing, waiting.
Any of these can serve to feed the hungry,
bind up wounds,
welcome the stranger,
praise what is sacred,
do the work of justice
or offer love.
Any of these can draw down the prison door,
hoard bread,
abandon the poor,
obscure what is holy,
comply with injustice
or withhold love.
You must answer this question:
What will you do with your gifts?
Choose to bless the world.
The choice to bless the world is more than an act of will,
a moving forward into the world
with the intention to do good.
It is an act of recognition,
a confession of surprise,
a grateful acknowledgment
that in the midst of a broken world
unspeakable beauty, grace and mystery abide.
There is an embrace of kindness
that encompasses all life, even yours.
And while there is injustice, anesthetization, or evil
there moves a holy disturbance,
a benevolent rage,
a revolutionary love,
protesting, urging, insisting
that which is sacred will not be defiled.
Those who bless the world live their life
as a gesture of thanks
for this beauty
and this rage.
The choice to bless the world can take you into solitude
to search for the sources
of power and grace;
native wisdom, healing, and liberation.
More, the choice will draw you into community,
the endeavour shared,
the heritage passed on,
the companionship of struggle,
the importance of keeping faith,
the life of ritual and praise,
the comfort of human friendship,
the company of earth
the chorus of life welcoming you.
None of us alone can save the world.
Together—that is another possibility, waiting.
Period of Silence and Stillness (~3 minutes) – end with a bell
Interlude: George Gershwin: Summertime (performed by Andrew Robinson)
In-Person Address: ‘Community Organising’ by Olivia Blanning of Citizens UK
Good morning, My name is Olivia Blanning. I’m a Community Organiser at Citizens UK, and I’ve been kindly invited here today to speak to you and get to know you all. Some of you may be aware – although I’m assuming many of you don’t yet know – that this year, the District council agreed to sponsor membership for all London Unitarian congregations to become members of Citizens UK, and I’m here to talk today about what that means and the opportunities it can bring.
So…. who is Citizens UK? We’re the biggest, most diverse and most effective people-powered alliance in the country. We work in local communities on the issues which matter to our members, and work collaboratively with power-holders and decision-makers to create change.
Imagine a road going through a town. On that road you have a church, a mosque, a primary school, and a foodbank. Day to day, those organisations probably don’t think they have much in common. Actually they might disagree on a number of things. But they might all know that the crossing at the end of the road is really dangerous. Or that the pollution on our road is so bad, our young people are suffering more and more with asthma.
So through the practice of community organising, we build relationships between people in their own organisations and between organisations so we find out those issues that we all share. We build teams of people who are angry about the injustice that they or their loved ones are facing, and who are willing to turn that anger into action, so that they can get a seat at the negotiation table where decisions about our lives are made.
I want to tell you a bit about me and my story.
I grew up in a very privileged context. I grew up in Kent, going to a stuffy private school my whole life, and deeply unconnected to the problems of the world. My school was founded in 604 and saw itself as a real pillar of the community – we had after all been there for centuries. But when it came to actually interacting with the community around us – well, we didn’t. The school was situated in a pretty impoverished area – Medway, if anyone knows it. And there was a deep inequality between what we had inside the walls of the school and what there was outside of them. And yet every year, our idea of “giving back” was to name a charity of the year that we’d fundraise for, which would invariably be Guide Dogs or the local homelessness shelter.
At the same time, it was also a Christian school, and so we were taught to imagine this beautiful world that God wanted for us. A world that’s equal, just, fair, sustainable. The world as it Should be. We were taught to love our neighbour, to serve others, to sacrifice for the common good. In particular they were very good at teaching us about having Mercy for others. If someone has no food, we give it to them. If someone has nowhere to sleep, giving them shelter. What we were not taught about was Justice. Asking why. Of course when someone is drowning in the river, it is a good and honourable thing to pull them out. But we must also ask – what pushed them in?
I think I really learnt this lesson a few years ago, when I was working at a foodbank. It was April 2020, everything felt like an emergency, we were inundated with requests for food, and, I’ll be honest, I felt quite important. It felt good to use my hands, to interact with people every day, to feel like I was making a tangible difference every day I went to work – to have purpose. At the same time, these ideals that had been drilled into me at school, especially of selflessness and self-sacrifice were being triggered in a big way. And I worked and worked and worked myself into the ground. After 18 months, I had to quit because I was so burnt out. But not before learning a very valuable lesson:
The pandemic had made food poverty feel like an unprecedented emergency. And in some ways it was, but more than anything it just exacerbated the reasons that had always brought people into poverty. I kept having the same conversations with people day after day after day of why people needed our help, and they all came down to the same fundamentals: that the benefits system was unfit for purpose; elderly people whose pension just didn’t stretch far enough; that people couldn’t find work; or that they were in work, but being paid minimum wage on a zero-hours contract – who can support a family on that? And all I could say in those moments was: “I’m so sorry. Come back next week.”
I felt completely powerless. And it dawned on me that I was part of the problem. I knew that food banks weren’t the ultimate answer to poverty, but as long as I allowed the status quo to continue, how would they ever stop being needed? To what extent did I enjoy the power dynamic of giver-receiver? To what extent did I take the time to truly build relationships with our customers? Would I have felt angrier about the injustice they were facing if I’d spent the time to know them? What I needed to do was go up-stream, and fight whatever it was that was pushing them in. But I was far too busy pulling people out of the river over and over. Too busy submerged in mercy that I hadn’t given a thought to the injustice.
I wonder how many of us have been in that position. Where we can’t see the wood for the trees, or where the world feels so messy and unfair that we bury our heads in the sand. Where we feel like we can’t stop, because we’re doing it all alone, and if we don’t do it, it won’t get done. That’s another place where organising can help.
Through the process of listening, we find leaders from unexpected places. We were working with a church in Stamford Hill a few years ago, St Andrew’s N16. The church was really small, probably about 12 people on a Sunday, and it felt quite isolated in Stamford Hill, like it didn’t fit in in the predominantly haredi community. The reverend there, Rev Charis, has desperate for some help running the church, but couldn’t find anyone to step up. At that church was a lady called Keisha and her children, who had attended St Andrew’s for years, but had never got involved in the running of it at all. She said she was too busy, she had work, her kids, her social groups, she just couldn’t take on any more.
One day during the pandemic, a Covid Testing centre was opened on Keisha’s estate. Residents were, understandably, really concerned about this, and they were scared. And Keisha asked us: what can I do? So we said, bring together a team of 10 people, let us know when you’ve done it. Well, she came back to us and said “I’ve got 7.” It was good enough!
And Keisha and her team jumped into action: they went round the estate with a petition, getting hundreds of signatures. But we knew it wasn’t enough to show the council that we weren’t happy, we had to give them a solution. So Keisha and her team also did some research, and identified a number of alternate sites where the testing centre could be moved to which they thought were more appropriate. They got a meeting with Hackney council, gave them the petition, showed them their research, and the council agreed to move the site immediately.
So we said to Keisha: you’ve had her first taste of winning. What do you want to do next? “Well” she said, “I want to use these skills for my church. It’s given me so much over the years, and maybe I can help somehow.” And so off she went to make a plan with the reverend. Keisha started building relationships with everyone in the area: with people who used to attend the church but had stopped, with people who’d never interacted with any church in their life, with the women in the haredi community there. And soon enough, after listening to what people wanted from their community, St Andrew’s started an all-ages messy church once a month. Keisha and Rev Charis built a small team of local mums who took turns running the service. After 6 months, attendance had gone up to 40 on a Sunday, and the church was hosting big events in their gardens which 50, 60, 70 people – from the church and from the wider community, were attending.
If you’d asked Keisha at the beginning of that journey if she was a leader, I’m sure she’d have said no. But by finding an issue that she and others deeply cared about, by identifying other leaders and moving them into action, she has led a revival at her church.
Fundamentally, organising is about three things: developing leaders, strengthening community institutions, and creating change together. Building relationships across difference, being in communion with one another, understanding one another – not always agreeing – but being able to work together for the common good, we not only bring the world as it is that bit closer to the world as it should be, we also safeguard our own institutions, like this chapel, for the next generation – to be place of healing, of community, and of action.
Hymn 200 (purple): ‘What Does the Lord Require?
Thanks so much Olivia. You’re doing some great work and I hope we can find some projects to join in with in the coming months. And I also want to thank David Brewerton who’s been one of the key players in building links between Unitarians and Citizens UK. Do have a chat with David if you’re interested in getting more involved in this. Time for our last hymn, it’s number 200 in your books, ‘What Does the Lord Require?’. A stirring one to close with. Please sing up for our closing hymn.
What does the Lord require
for praise and offering?
What sacrifice desire,
or tribute bid us bring?
But only this: true justice do,
love mercy too, and walk with God.
True justice always means
defending of the poor,
the righting of the wrong,
reforming ancient law.
This is the path, true justice do,
love mercy too, and walk with God.
Love mercy and be kind,
befriend, forgive, always,
and welcome all who come
to sing with us in praise:
and in this way, true justice do,
love mercy too, and walk with God.
Yes, humbly walk that way,
free from all pompous pride,
in quiet simplicity,
God always at our side:
thus evermore, true justice do,
love mercy too, and walk with God.
Announcements:
Thanks again to Olivia for sharing her introduction to Citizens UK with us today. Thanks to Ramona for tech-hosting. Thanks to Jeannene for co-hosting and welcoming everyone online. If you’re joining on Zoom please do hang on after the service for a chat. Thanks to David for reading. Thanks to Andrew for playing for us today. Thanks to Juliet for greeting and Liz for making coffee. For those of you who are here in-person – please do stay for a cuppa and some berry lime drizzle cake after the service – that’ll be served in the hall next door.
We’ve got an in-person ‘Heart & Soul’ Contemplative Spiritual Gathering here at church on Wednesday at 7pm. Let me know if you’re planning to be there. We’ll also be online on Friday at 7pm and our theme this week is ‘Trust’. We gather for sharing and prayer and it is a great way to get to know others on a deeper level. Sign up with me if you’d like the link.
Looking a bit further ahead: On Sunday 28th July the ‘Better World Book Club’ will be reading ‘Loving Our Own Bones’ by Rabbi Julia Belser. We’ve still got a few copies of that in the church library if you’d like to borrow one. And looking even further ahead a date for your diary: there will be another tea dance coming up on Sunday 8th September.
Next Sunday we’ll be back here at 11am when I’ll be leading the service and we’ll be drawing on Buddhist wisdom to mark ‘Dharma Day: Perspectives on the Three Jewels’.
Details of all our various activities are printed on the back of the order of service, for you to take away, and also in the Friday email. Please do sign up for the mailing list if you haven’t already. The congregation very much has a life beyond Sunday mornings; we encourage you to keep in touch, look out for each other, and do what you can to nurture supportive connections.
I think that’s everything. Just time for our closing words and closing music now.
Benediction: based on words by Lindsay Bates
With faith in the creative powers of life,
With hope for the future of life in this world,
With love for all others who share this life with us,
Let us go forward together, in peace, to seek justice.
Our gathering has ended; let our service begin.
May it be so, for the greater good of all. Amen.
Closing Music: Paul McCartney: We All Stand Together (performed by Andrew Robinson)
Rev. Dr. Jane Blackall and Olivia Blanning
14th July 2024
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