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Emanuel Lutheran Church A member of the New England Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (a “Reconciling In Christ” Congregation)

60 Church Street, Manchester, CT 06040 (860) 643-1193 Fax (860) 645-0830

www.emanuelmanchester.org

Sixth Sunday of Easter May 17, 2020

In this time of world-wide crisis, congregations throughout the world are not able

to gather for worship as the body of Christ. While we cannot be together in

person, we can hear the word of God and hold each other in prayer. We offer this

resource as an aid for worship in your home. Those portions marked with a * will

be supplemented with video segments which can be found through the link that

was sent through email or on Facebook. Those portions marked with a +, you are

encouraged to lead/read at home.

Prepare your space, hearts, and minds for worship. Set up your home altar

space. Include a bowl of water as a reminder of your baptism into the death

and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

*Welcome Pastor: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

All: Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!

*Prelude Amazing Grace Jun Lee, piano

+Thanksgiving for Baptism

Leader: Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God,

the fountain of living water,

the Holy God, source of living water,

all life flows out from you.

In this time of uncertainty,

with a future unknown,

let us give thanks to our God who is always with us.

In the days of chaos,

Your voice moved over the water and life sprang forth.

In the days of the flood,

You kept Noah and his family safe from harm.

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In the days of fleeing Egypt,

You separated the sea so your people could pass.

In the days of wandering in the wilderness,

You made water flow from a rock.

Holy God, source of living water,

all life flows out from you.

Through the baptism of Jesus,

all water is made holy.

The water that nourishes the land.

The water we drink.

The water we bathe in.

The water we use to wash our hands so many times a day.

Holy God, source of living water,

all life flows out from you.

We praise you for the gift of baptism that binds us to one another

and to you.

All are invited to touch the water in the bowl.

As we touch this precious water,

remind us of who we are:

your beloved children.

Help us see each person as a member of your body.

Ease our anxieties and strengthen our resolve to care

for each other.

Deepen our faith.

All make the mark of the cross with the water on the forehead.

Holy God, source of living water,

All life flows out from you.

All: Amen.

*Prayer of the Day

Pastor: Let us pray. Almighty and ever-living God, you hold together all

things in heaven and on earth. In your great mercy receive the

prayers of all your children, and give to all the world the Spirit of

your truth and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now

and forever.

All: Amen.

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WORD

+ First Reading—Acts 17:22-31

Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely

religious you are in every way. 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. 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, 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. 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, 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. 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.’

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. While God

has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people

everywhere to repent, 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.”

+Psalm 66:8-20

8Bless our | God, you peoples;

let the sound of | praise be heard.

9Our God has kept us a- | mong the living

and has not allowed our | feet to slip. 10For you, O God, have | tested us;

you have tried us just as sil- | ver is tried.

11You brought us in- | to the net;

you laid heavy burdens up- | on our backs. 12You let people ride over our heads; we went through | fire and water,

but you brought us out into a place | of refreshment.

13I will enter your house | with burnt offerings

and will pay | you my vows— 14those that I promised | with my lips

and spoke with my mouth when I | was in trouble.

15I will offer you burnt offerings of fatlings with the | smoke of rams;

I will give you ox- | en and goats. 16Come and listen, all you | who believe,

and I will tell you what God has | done for me.

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17I called out to God | with my mouth,

and praised the Lord | with my tongue. 18If I had cherished evil | in my heart,

the Lord would | not have heard me;

19but in truth | God has heard me

and has attended to the sound | of my prayer. 20Blessed be God, who has not reject- | ed my prayer,

nor withheld unfailing | love from me.

*Gospel Acclamation

*Holy Gospel John 14:15-21

Pastor: The Holy Gospel according to John. All: Glory to you, O Lord.

Jesus said to the disciples: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you

forever. 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. “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world

will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that

day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 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.”

Pastor: The Gospel of the Lord. All: Praise to you, O Christ.

*Reflection Pastor Stephanie Kershner

Love and Revelation By Jan Richardson

Blessing That Knows Your Name By Jan Richardson

+Reflection Questions

What knowledge does your loving lead you to? As you stretch yourself into loving

others, what becomes revealed to you—of them, of yourself, of God? How has love

challenged or changed what you know? How are you opening yourself to its presence

in your life?

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*Song of the Day Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love—ELW 708 Jun Lee

*Prayers of the People

+ Who and what are you praying for right now? What names and places are you

lifting up? Include them as we pray for the whole world.

As we welcome our God into the sanctuaries of our homes, let us pray for all the

needs of the world, responding to each petition with words that echo today’s psalm:

“O God, hear us.”

A brief silence.

Abiding God, come into all the homes around the globe from which your people offer

their prayer. Bless Christian leaders as they guide the church through this pandemic.

Show our pastors and our church councils the way forward. Grant your grace also to

the devout in other religions of the world, and show your kindness to all who search

for you, whether within or outside the church.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

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Creating God, revitalize the health of oceans, rivers, lakes, springs, glaciers, and

other bodies of water that give life to your creatures. Especially we pray for our

local bodies of water. Form us unto a baptized body that protects the waters on

which we rely.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

Righteous God, instill in all the leaders of nations a desire for justice and the will to

serve the oppressed. We pray especially for those nations in which dictatorship

threatens the population. Guide our nation’s governors in their difficult pathway

between the threat of disease and the dangers of scarcity and isolation. Bring our

legislators into agreement about how to assist those in need. Give us patience in

facing our current predicament.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

Compassionate God, visit all who are in great need, those who suffer from the

coronavirus, those living in loneliness and fear, those without jobs, and those who

mourn their dead. Uphold those whose futures have been taken away from them. We

pray for health care workers and for the residents in care homes, prisons, and refugee

camps. For the countless persons who carry heavy burdens on their back, we pray,

and we call out to you these names:

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

Benevolent God, give the world a vaccine.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

Fatherly and motherly God, embrace all orphans. Support the agencies that attend to

the world’s orphans. Shield orphaned children from traffickers. Give to all nations

wisdom concerning the refugees who are children. Watch over all children whose

usual care-givers are absent. Form us into your children who love all your whom you

have made.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

Loving God, once again each of us offers our personal praises and petitions.

A brief silence.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

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Eternal God, your kingdom is here now, and it has no end. We remember the saints

who have gone before us, those who have died of Covid-19, and those who remember

in our hearts. Unite us forever in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

For this we pray:

O God, hear us!

With bold confidence in your love, merciful God, we place all for whom we pray into

your eternal care, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

*Musical Response to the Prayers

You Are My All In All Adam Eskin, saxophone

*Prayer of Blessing

Almighty God, you give us the joy of celebrating our Lord’s resurrection. Give us

also the joys of life in your service, and bring us at last to the full joy of life eternal,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who taught us to pray...

*Lord’s Prayer Emanuel Cruz and Jun Lee

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,

thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread;

and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us;

and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.

Amen.

*Announcements

We recognize that this is an uncertain time for many financially. If you are able

to support our ongoing ministry efforts, please mail your offerings to the

Church Office or give online HERE.

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*Benediction

As You Go On Your Way Linda Jackson and Kathy Purtell

Thanksgiving for Baptism During Global Pandemic © 2020 Rebecca Ajer Frantz.

Prayers of the People © 2020 Gail Ramshaw.

Portions from Evangelical Lutheran Worship and sundaysandseasons.com, © 2020 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress.

Readings from Readings for the Assembly © 1995, 1996, 1997 Augsburg Fortress. Citations from the Revised Common Lectionary © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts. Scripture quotations from NRSV Bible, Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, adapted and edited with permission by Gordon Lathrop and Gail Ramshaw.

Scripture Readings for (Seventh Sunday of Easter) next week:

Acts 1:6-14 Jesus' companions at prayer after his departure Psalm 68:1-10, 32-35

Sing to God, who rides upon the clouds. (Ps. 68:4) 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11 God will sustain and restore those who suffer John 17:1-11

Christ's prayer for his disciples

Music images and song selections in this bulletin are reprinted under one of the following licenses: CCLI #1857476; Sundays and Seasons, Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License # 45905. All Rights Reserved.

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Emanuel LUTHERAN CHURCH Staff Church Office: 860-643-1193

Stephanie Kershner, Pastor

Dr. Jun Lee, Director of Music

Danielle Berneski & Julie Kamp,

Co-Directors of Family Ministries

Nancy Whiton, Administrative Assistant

Anne Heinrich, Church Secretary

Lynne Gustafson, Parish Nurse

Kathy Hatch, Property Supervisor

Brianna Gustafson & Berk Little,

Worship Support Specialists

The Church building is CLOSED.

This includes worship, all meetings & events that

are held at the Church.

If you need pastoral assistance, please call the

Church Office at 860-643-1193 and the voicemail message will

instruct you as to how you can contact Pastor

Stephanie.

Emanuel’s Rocks of Kindness Garden has proven to be a popular community destination! We currently don’t have any rocks in the garden, so if you are looking for something to do while you are home with the kids or as an adult would like to pass the time as you social distance yourself at home, we invite you to paint rocks for the garden! If you are in need of blank rocks, there is a plastic box (with a lid) of rocks outside the community room door at the base of the flagpole. PLEASE WEAR GLOVES WHEN HANDLING AND PAINTING THE ROCKS.

Do you need a mask? Please contact Lynne Gustafson, Parish Nurse at 860-646-0006 or cgustafson01@snet.net.

Click HERE to read a letter from Bishop Hazelwood about Worship Updates.

Click HERE to read a letter from Bishop Eaton about

Returning to in-person worship.

These organizations are available to assist older, disabled, frail and/or home bound residents in the area with shopping and other tasks.

Mutual Aid Initiative Website: bit.ly/CTMutualAidEastofRiv

Email: CTMutualAidEastofRiv@gmail.com Hotline (224) 334-3233

Facebook Group: CT Mutual Aid East of the River

UR Community Cares

860-430-4557 www.URCommunityCares.org

Shopping Angels

https://shoppingangelsglobal.org/

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MACC's Emergency Food Pantry is in continuous need of the following items.

When you choose to donate to MACC it fills a real need in our community.

Pantry is in need of:

Fresh meat

Fresh Produce

Jelly

Mayonnaise

Toiletries (adult and child) shampoos, body wash, deodorants

Sugar

Baking mixes

Pork and beans

Baked brown beans

Gluten free foods

Feminine Products

Egg cartons

Paper Bags

Food and other donations will be gratefully received at the Community Pantry,

460 Main Street, Manchester during these times:

Monday through Thursday 9 AM - 4 PM and Friday 9 AM - 2 PM

Community Mental Health Programming from the Community Child Guidance Clinic

Click HERE for information on Telehealth Services

Click HERE for information on Virtual Group Therapy Sessions for children ages 5-12.

Click HERE for information on Virtual Family Focused Therapy Sessions for children and

adolescents up to age 18.

Click HERE for information on Virtual Therapy Sessions for adolescents up to the age of 18

with serious behavioral and emotional struggles.

An apartment is available to rent through the Emanuel Housing Corp.

It is a one bedroom apartment on the second floor and the rent is $750/month with heat and hot

water included. Contact Kathy Hatch at 860-597-6257 if you are interested.

Thrivent Matching Gift Thrivent held a campaign for their members to give money to a charity to help them out during

the COVID-19 pandemic and several of our members, who are also members of Thrivent gave

money to Emanuel as their chosen charity. Thrivent gave a 50% matching gift to the chosen

charity as part of this campaign.

Emanuel received a matching gift in the amount of $3,775 through this campaign.