Notes on the Notes – May 4, 2025

U.C.W. Sunday in Celebration of the Centennial of the United Church of Canada

This week’s music:

“Come In, Come in and Sit Down (aka Part of the Family)”
(Voices United #395/Songs for a Gospel People #44)

“Come in, come in and sit down,
You are a part of the family.
We are lost and we are found,
And we are a part of the family.

You know the reason why you came,
Yet no reason can explain;
So share in the laughter and cry in the pain,
For we are a part of the family.
God is with us in this place,
Like a mother’s warm embrace.
We’re all forgiven by God’s grace,
For we are a part of the family.

Come in, come in and sit down,
You are a part of the family.
We are lost and we are found,
And we are a part of the family.

Children and elders, middlers and teens,
singles and doubles and in-betweens,
strong eighty-fivers and streetwise sixteens,
for we are a part of the family.
Greeter and shoppers, long-time and new,
nobody here has a claim on a pew;
and whether we’re many or whether we’re few,
we are a part of the family.

Come in, come in and sit down,
You are a part of the family.
We are lost and we are found,
And we are a part of the family.

There’s life to be shared in the bread and the wine,
We are the branches, Christ is the vine.
This is God’s temple, it’s not yours or mine,
But we are a part of the family.
There’s rest for the weary and health for us all;
There’s a yoke that is easy, and a burden that’s small.
So come in and worship and answer the call,
For we are a part of the family.”

This song became known to United Church congregations in the arrangement made by Darryl Nixon for the hymn book supplement Songs for a Gospel People (1987). Singer songwriter James K. Manley, the composer of this hymn, is a minister in the United Church of Christ (USA). “Part of the Family” reminds both members and visitors that our congregation is an open, diverse group that welcomes people of all ages, every marital status, and all views, interest levels, and stages in the faith journey.

Hear the hymn sung by Strathroy United Church at:  https://youtu.be/gIz4FQYBF04

“Dance With the Spirit” (More Voices #156)

“Dance with the Spirit early in the mornin’,        
Dance with the Spirit throughout the long day.
Work and hope for the new life a-bornin’
Listen to the Spirit to show you the way.

Move with the Spirit early in the mornin’,
Move with the Spirit throughout the long day.
Work and hope for the new life a-bornin’
Listen to the Spirit to show you the way.

Sing with the Spirit early in the mornin’,
Sing with the Spirit throughout the long day.
Work and hope for the new life a-bornin’
Listen to the Spirit to show you the way.

Clap with the Spirit early in the mornin’,
Clap with the Spirit throughout the long day.
Work and hope for the new life a-bornin’
Listen to the Spirit to show you the way.”

This hymn was composed by Jim Strathdee in 1995.   It is from the Strathdee “Mass for the Healing of the Earth.”  This short song (with verses added) celebrates the presence and prodding of the Holy Spirit.

“Called as Partners in Christ’s Service”

“Called as partners in Christ’s service,
Called to ministries of grace,
We respond with deep commitment
Fresh new lines of faith to trace.
May we learn the art of sharing,
Side by side and friend with friend,
Equal partners in our caring
To fulfill God’s chosen end.

Christ’s example, Christ’s inspiring,
Christ’s clear call to work and worth,
Let us follow, never faltering,
Reconciling folk on earth.
Men and women, richer, poorer,
All God’s people, young and old,
Blending human skills together
Gracious gifts from God unfold.

Thus, new patterns for Christ’s mission,
In a small or global sense,
Help us bear each other’s burdens,
Breaking down each wall or fence.
Words of comfort, words of vision,
Words of challenge, said with care,
Bring new power and strength for action,
Make us colleagues, free and fair. 

So, God grant us for tomorrow
Ways to order human life
That surround each person’s sorrow
With a calm that conquers strife.
Make us partners in our living,
Our compassion to increase,
Messengers of faith, thus giving
Hope and confidence and peace.”

This hymn was written by Jane Parker Huber.   The words are a commissioning to go into the world with a deep commitment to live the life of a follower of Jesus, bringing our faith into all of our actions.
The tune for the hymn is BEECHER, composed by John Zundel in 1870 and can be found at VU 528 with a different set of words.

Hear the hymn sung in worship at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo_SV0r5IHs

“I, the Lord of Sea and Sky (aka Here I Am, Lord)” (Voices United #509)

I, the Lord of sea and sky,
I have heard my people cry.
All who dwell in deepest sin my hand will save.
I who made the stars of night,
I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear my light to them?
Whom shall I send?

 Here I am, Lord.  Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.

 I, the Lord of snow and rain,
I have borne my people’s pain.
I have wept for love of them;
They turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone,
give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak my word to them.
Whom shall I send?

Here I am, Lord.  Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.

I, the Lord of wind and flame,
I will tend the poor and lame.
I well set a feast for them;
My hand will save.
Finest bread I will provide till their hearts be satisfied.
I will give my life to them.
Whom shall I send?

Here I am, Lord.  Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.”

This hymn was written by Dan Schutte in 1981.  “The stirring refrain is perhaps the first part of the hymn to capture the singer’s imagination.…“Here I Am, Lord” recalls immediately Isaiah 6:8: “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’”

An unusual attribute of this hymn is the change in point of view that the singer makes between the verses and the refrain. The verses speak from the perspective of God, while the refrain is from the perspective of the singers of the hymn offering their lives to God.

Each verse reflects a paradox. The powerful God, creator of “sea and sky,” “snow and rain” and “wind and flame” is also the God who hears the “people cry,” bears the “people’s pain” and “tend[s] the poor and lame.” This is a hymn of transformation. God transforms the darkness into light in stanza one, melts “hearts of stone” with love in stanza two and nourishes the “poor and lame” with the “finest bread.”

Each stanza ends with the question, “Whom shall I send?” … The refrain immediately offers the response, “Here I am, Lord.”…”  (Source: http://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-here-i-am-lord)

Original version of the song, sung by the songwriter, Dan Schutte:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBg-yDhM2KY

“What Can I Do?” (More Voices #191)

“What can I do? What can I bring?
What can I say? What can I sing?
I’ll sing with joy. I’ll say a prayer.
I’ll bring my love. I’ll do my share.”

This joyful song of offering and dedication was written by Paul Rumbolt and Michele McCarthy (2005). The arrangement in More Voices is by Alan C. Whitmore.

“The Church’s One Foundation” (Voices United #332/The Hymn Book #146/The Hymnary #166)
Throughout the 100 year history of the United Church, both language and theology have undergone changes.  In order to keep up, yet still maintain our heritage, words are sometimes updated.  In the United Church hymn book, Voices United, we see the original version of this hymn at #332. This hymn was sung at the opening service of the United Church of Canada on June 10, 1925 and will be the version we are using this week. The original words are by Samuel John Stone (1866). The music is by Samuel Sebastian Wesley, grandson of Charles Wesley  (1864).   The hymn is based on the ninth article of the Apostles’ Creed, on “the Holy Catholic Church:  the Communion of Saints.”  It was written in 1866 in defense of the orthodox view of scriptural authority against the challenge to it.

“The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord;
She is his new creation by water and the word;
From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride;
With his own blood he bought her, and for her life he died.

Elect from every nation, yet one o’er all the earth,
her charter of salvation – one Lord, one faith, one birth,
one holy name she blesses, partakes one holy food,
and to one hope she presses, with every grace endued.

‘Mid toil and tribulation and tumult of her war,
she waits the consummation of peace for evermore,
till with the vision glorious her longing eyes are blest,
and the great church victorious shall be the church at rest.

Yet she on earth hath union with God the three in one,
and mystic sweet communion with those whose rest is won.
O happy ones and holy! Lord, give us grace that we,
like them, the meek and lowly, on high may dwell with thee.”

The updated version, with adaptations by Laurence Hull Stooley (1983) can be found at VU #331:

“The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ our Lord;
We are his new creation by water and the Word,
From heaven he came and sought us that we might ever be
His living servant people, by his own death set free…”

Hear the hymn with original lyrics at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKRmncbUMps

“Amen” (Voices United #974)

“Amen, amen, hallelujah, amen!
Amen, amen, hallelujah, amen!”

Our benediction response was written by Jim Strathdee (1985).