Second Sunday of Easter 2021

William

Welcome to this online service of worship from Mayfield Salibury Parish Church. View the video below or alternatively directly on YouTube HERE

Second Sunday of Easter

Sunday 11 April 2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew5zlhyMkng

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Led by Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth and Kate Pearson, Christine de Luca, the 28^th Braid Scout Group, the Mayfield Salisbury Parish Choir & the Chamber Group, and the congregation in church and online

A downloadable PDF order of service is available here

AS A DIVERSE PEOPLE, THE CHURCH GATHERS TO WORSHIP ALMIGHTY GOD

Organ Voluntaries
Jesus Christ, our Saviour, who conquered death Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706)
Reflection on Savannah/Herrnhut David Blackwell (b. 1961)
Victory Alan Bullard (b. 1947)

Welcome & Intimations

The Grace

Preparatory Silence for Worship

Call to Worship

Leader: In the joy of Easter mornings and in the fear of the night
All: The risen Christ is amongst us
Leader: Behind closed doors and in public streets
All: The risen Christ is amongst us
Leader: When all alone and in community
All: The risen Christ is amongst us
Leader: In deepest faith and in the questioning of doubt
All: The risen Christ is amongst us
Leader: On this day and with us all now
All: The risen Christ is amongst us,
So let us be beside Him in our worship and praise

Hymn 425 - The Saviour Died but Rose Again (t. St Andrew)
(Paraphrase 19)

The Saviour died, but rose again
triumphant from the grave;
and pleads our cause at God's right hand,
omnipotent to save.

Who then can e'er divide us more
from Jesus and his love,
or break the sacred chain that binds
the earth to heaven above?

Let troubles rise, and terrors frown,
and days of darkness fall;
through him all dangers we'll defy,
and more than conquer all.

Nor death nor life, nor earth nor hell,
nor time's destroying sway,
can e'er efface us from his heart,
or make his love decay.

Each future period that will bless,
as it has blessed the past;
he loved us from the first of time,
he loves us to the last.

Prayer of Approach, Praise and Confession & Lord’s Prayer

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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Scout Video
Thanks to Mayfield Salisbury by the 28th Braid Scout Group on their centenary, by Scout Leader Alan Dickson and scouts past and present

The Collect for Easter Sunday – said by all
Risen Christ,
for whom no door is locked, no entrance barred:
open the doors of our hearts,
that we may seek the good of others
and walk the joyful road of sacrifice and peace,
to the praise of God the Father.

Old Testament Psalm 133 Christine de Luca

The Blessedness of Unity. A Song of Ascents.
1 How very good and pleasant it is
when kindred live together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil on the head,
running down upon the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
running down over the collar of his robes.
3 It is like the dew of Hermon,
which falls on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord ordained his blessing,
life for evermore.

New Testament St John 20:19 - 31

Jesus Appears to the Disciples
19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

Jesus and Thomas
24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ 27 Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ 28 Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ 29 Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’

The Purpose of This Book
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Sermon Faith and doubt: life together after Easter Sunday
Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

Anthem Cantata Domino

Text: From Psalm 149
Music: Guipeppi Pitoni (1657 to 1743)

Cantate Domino canticum novum;
laus ejus in ecclesia sanctorum.
Laetetur Israël in eo qui fecit eum,
et filii Sion exsultent in rege suo.

[O sing unto the Lord a new song:
let the congregation of saints praise him.
Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
and let the children of Sion be joyful in their King.]

Prayer of Dedication and Intercession

Hymn 417 Now the Green Blade Riseth (t. Noël Nouvelet)

Now the green blade riseth, from the buried grain,
Wheat that in dark earth many days has lain;
Love lives again, that with the dead has been:
Love is come again like wheat that springeth green.

In the grave they laid Him, Love who had been slain,
Thinking that He never would awake again,
Laid in the earth like grain that sleeps unseen:
Love is come again like wheat that springeth green.

Forth He came at Easter, like the risen grain,
Jesus who for three days in the grave had lain;
Quick from the dead the risen One is seen:
Love is come again like wheat that springeth green.

When our hearts are wintry, grieving, or in pain,
Jesus' touch can call us back to life again,
Fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been:
Love is come again like wheat that springeth green

Closing Responses

Leader: In our coming and going
All: The peace of God
Leader: In our doubt and believing
All: The love of God
Leader: Upon our heads and in our hearts
All: The blessing of God

Benediction

Organ Voluntary

Easter Carol Alan Bullard

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INTIMATIONS

TODAY’S ANTHEM MUSIC Guiseppi Ottavio Pitoni was a prolific Italian choral composer of the Baroque period. From the age of twenty until his death sixty six years later he was the Maestro di Cappella at the Basilica of San Marco in Rome. This psalm setting, and another of Psalm 150, are examples of the few of his works now heard. The piece is in a brisk dance rhythm in triple time interrupted by occasional bars where the time is doubled to emphasise the text.

SUPPORT MAYFIELD SALISBURY CHURCH Regular and one-off donations, now possible through: give.net/20311853

PLEASE NOTE Due to current restrictions, the Minister, Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth, is regrettably unable to meet after the service today. Please feel free to be in contact by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by telephone 0131 667 1286. Please do not congregate in the car park at close of worship. Many thanks.

CALLING ALL THOSE WITH AN INTEREST IN DEVELOPING THE CHURCH’S ONLINE AND SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE! We’re delighted to be hosting a Zoom session to explore how we can better express our faith and our church through our website and social media, particularly in these times as we emerge from the pandemic. We would love you to be there. It will be on Wednesday 28^th April at 7.30pm and will be led by Dr Pete Phillips. Pete is Research Fellow in Digital Theology at Durham University and Head of Digital Theology at Premier Radio. He advises the Scottish online church, Sanctuary First, and local churches and denominations in England on their digital presence. All very welcome – please contact Sandy on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to be part of it.

OUR E-MAIL PRAYER CHAIN IS BEGINNING! From this week, if you or anyone that you know would like prayers to be offered to God for a particular person or situation, there is a group of members waiting to do so. Our Pastoral Assistant, Kay McIntosh, has kindly agreed to be the initial co-ordinator, and all prayer requests should be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or handwritten and placed in the prayer box at the church door. An email will go out from Kay once a week with the prayer requests set out. If you would like to receive the weekly email and to pray for those situations, please also get in touch with Kay.

The prayer request that you send could either be confidential (e.g. ‘please pray for a woman who…’), or it could name the person if you have their permission for that to be so. It could also be for a local or world situation. Praying for others within and beyond Mayfield Salisbury via the prayer chain will be a powerful way to build relationships of care within our church and in the wider community, and to see prayer answered. It would be wonderful to see the prayer chain flourish, so please do engage with it as much as possible.

PASTORAL CARE The pastoral care team would like to wish everyone a Happy Easter. We are still not able to visit you, but you are all in our thoughts and prayers. We are maintaining contact by telephone, video calls and letters. Hopefully we will see many of you in the church soon. Please contact Kay if you are due to go into hospital or would now like to be allocated your own pastoral visitor. 07903 266 309

YOUTH GROUP There will be no Youth Group on11 April - enjoy your Easter break! The youth programme for the month of April can be found on the 'Young People' page on our website.

ECO UPDATES Please read our Eco Group page on the church website here: www.mayfieldsalisbury.org/eco

CORNERSTONE BOOKSHOP If you are looking for a book to help you on your inward journey, expand your knowledge of Christian history, doctrine or the Bible, then please support our local bookshop Cornerstone Books.

The physical store is closed during Level 4 restrictions, but purchases can be made at www.bookshop.org - nominating Cornerstone for all your book buying needs. More information at: www.cornerstonebooks.org.uk