Sundays at All Hallows (Sunday, June 15, 2025)

 

Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows.

This Sunday, the first Sunday after Pentecost is, in the tradition of the Western Church, called Trinity Sunday. Unlike the other festivals of the Christian Year, it does not celebrate an event in the history of salvation. Instead, Trinity Sunday celebrates a core belief of the Christian faith. For a helpful explanation of this belief, I recommend Matt Perman’s article, “Understanding the Trinity: A Christian Core Belief,” on the CRU website.

This Sunday’s message unpacks Romans 5:1-5, the epistle reading appointed for Trinity Sunday.

GATHER IN GOD’S NAME

Open this link in a new tab to hear David Johnson’s arrangement of the shape note tune PROSPECT from his Variations on Hymn Tunes for organ.

Open this link in a new tab to hear James Quinn’s “This Day God Gives Me.”

1 This day God gives me
Strength of high heaven,
Sun and moon shining,
Flame in my hearth,
Flashing of lightning,
Wind in its swiftness,
Depths of the ocean,
Firmness of earth.

2 This day God sends me
Strength as my guardian,
Might to uphold me,
Wisdom as guide,
Your eyes are watchful,
Your ears are listening,
Your lips are speaking,
Friend at my side.

3 God's way is my way,
God's shield is 'round me,
God's host defends me,
Saving from ill.
Angels of heaven,
Drive from me always
All that would harm me,
Stand by me still.

4 Rising I thank you,
Mighty and strong One,
King of creation,
Giver of rest,
Firmly confessing
God in three Persons,
Oneness of Godhead,
Trinity blest.
Oneness of Godhead,
Trinity blest.

Jesus said, "The first commandment is this: Hear, O Israel:
The Lord your God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your
God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your
mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love
your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment
greater than these." Mark 12:29-31

Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.

Silence

Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in your will,
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins
through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all
goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us
in eternal life. Amen.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Christopher Idle’s metrical version of Te Deum, “God, We Praise You! God, We Bless You!”

1 God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
God, we name you sovereign Lord!
Mighty King whom angels worship,
Father, by your church adored:
all creation shows your glory,
heaven and earth draw near your throne
singing 'Holy, holy, holy,
Lord of hosts, and God alone!'

2 True apostles, faithful prophets,
saints who set their world ablaze,
martyrs, once unknown, unheeded,
join one growing song of praise,
while your church on earth confesses
one majestic Trinity:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
God, our hope eternally.

3 Jesus Christ, the King of glory,
everlasting Son of God,
humble was your virgin mother,
hard the lonely path you trod:
by your cross is sin defeated,
hell confronted face to face,
heaven opened to believers,
sinners justified by grace.

4 Christ, at God's right hand victorious,
you will judge the world you made;
Lord, in mercy help your servants
for whose freedom you have paid:
raise us up from dust to glory,
guard us from all sin today;
King enthroned above all praises,
save your people, God, we pray.
King enthroned above all praises,
save your people, God, we pray.

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Let us pray.

Silence

Almighty and everlasting God, you have given to us
your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to
acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the
power of your divine Majesty to worship the Unity: Keep
us steadfast in this faith and worship, and bring us at last to
see you in your one and eternal glory, O Father; who with
the Son and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.

THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD

A reading from the Book of Proverbs.
Proverbs 8: 1-4, 22-31

Listen! Wisdom is calling out.
Reason is making herself heard.
On the hilltops near the road
and at the crossroads she stands.
At the entrance to the city,
beside the gates, she calls:
“I appeal to all of you;
I call to everyone on earth.

The Lord created me first of all,
the first of his works, long ago.
I was made in the very beginning,
at the first, before the world began.
I was born before the oceans,
when there were no springs of water.
I was born before the mountains,
before the hills were set in place,
before God made the earth and its fields
or even the first handful of soil.
I was there when he set the sky in place,
when he stretched the horizon across the ocean,
when he placed the clouds in the sky,
when he opened the springs of the ocean
and ordered the waters of the sea
to rise no further than he said.
I was there when he laid the earth's foundations.
I was beside him like an architect,
I was his daily source of joy,
always happy in his presence—
happy with the world
and pleased with the human race.

The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God

Silence

Open this link in a new tab to hear Kiran Young Wimberly’s “Majestic (Psalm 8)”

1 Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
When I see the work of your fingers
The moon, the stars, the sun
All things on earth are in their place
Majestic is your name

2 Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
Who are mortals that you consider
Or that you think of them
They are underneath the angels
Majestic is your name

[Instrumental interlude]

3 Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
Majestic is your name O God
Your name in all the earth
You have placed creation in our care
All that has life and breath
May we show respect and dignity
Majestic is your name

A reading from Paul’s Letter to the Romans.
Romans 5:1-5

Now that we have been put right with God through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He has brought us by faith into this experience of God's grace, in which we now live. And so we boast of the hope we have of sharing God's glory! We also boast of our troubles, because we know that trouble produces endurance, endurance brings God's approval, and his approval creates hope. This hope does not disappoint us, for God has poured out his love into our hearts by means of the Holy Spirit, who is God's gift to us

The Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God

Silence

Open this link in a new tab to hear Christopher Walker and Fintan O’Carroll’s “Celtic Alleluia.”

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

The word of the Lord lasts forever
What is the Word that is living?
It is brought to us
through God’s Son
Jesus Christ.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.
John 16:12-15
Glory to you, Lord Christ.

“I have much more to tell you, but now it would be too much for you to bear. When, however, the Spirit comes, who reveals the truth about God, he will lead you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own authority, but he will speak of what he hears and will tell you of things to come. He will give me glory, because he will take what I say and tell it to you. All that my Father has is mine; that is why I said that the Spirit will take what I give him and tell it to you.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Christ.

The Reason for Our Hope

In this Sunday’s reading from his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul points out a positive way we can look at the troubles we may be experiencing. He is not suggesting we need to feel happy about the circumstances in which we find ourselves or we should be eager to be in such a situation.

Rather he is pointing out a bright side to our suffering as believers, as those who have put our trust in Christ. It presents us with opportunities to become the people God is calling us to be, to grow more like Christ himself. It can lead to a deepening of that trust, growth in maturity of our character, expressed in words and actions that honor God, and an increase in our confident feelings about God’s favor and good-will toward us and what God has in store for us. God is “saving the best to last.”

This hope, Paul tell us, will never make us feel ashamed. God will not disappoint us for hoping to be recipients of his goodness forever.

What assurance do we have of God’s lasting goodwill and favor? Paul goes go to tell us that God has poured his love in our hearts by the means of the Holy Spirit. This shows that God truly cares about us. God loves us so much that he has filled each of us with his own love. Take a moment to think about it. You have God’s love inside you!

God has also given everyone who puts their trust in Christ his own Holy Spirit to live in our hearts—in our innermost being. God himself is living in you!

We certainly have good reason for our hope.

Silence

[Let us affirm our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed]

We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.

THE MINISTRY OF PRAYER

Let us pray for the Church and for the world.

Particular intentions may be mentioned before this litany, or petitions added at appropriate points.

Grant, Almighty God, that all who confess your Name may
be united in your truth, live together in your love, and reveal
your glory in the world.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

Guide the people of this land, and of all the nations, in the
ways of justice and peace; that we may honor one another
and serve the common good.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation,
that we may use its resources rightly in the service of others
and to your honor and glory.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours, and grant
that we may serve Christ in them, and love one another as he
loves us.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or
spirit; give them courage and hope in their troubles, and
bring them the joy of your salvation.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

We commend to your mercy all who have died, that your will
for them may be fulfilled; and we pray that we may share
with all your saints in your eternal kingdom.

Silence

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, you have promised to hear what we ask in
the Name of your Son: Accept and fulfill our petitions, we
pray, not as we ask in our ignorance, nor as we deserve in our
sinfulness, but as you know and love us in your Son Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Richard Leach’s “Come, Join the Dance of Trinity.”

1 Come, join the dance of Trinity
Before all worlds begun
The interweaving of the Three
The Father, Spirit, Son
The universe of space and time
Did not arise by chance
But as the Three, in love and hope
Made room within their dance

2 Come, see the face of Trinity
Newborn in Bethlehem
Then bloodied by a crown of thorns
Outside Jerusalem
The dance of Trinity is meant
For human flesh and bone
When fear confines the dance in death
God rolls away the stone

3 Come, speak aloud of Trinity
As wind and tongues of flame
Set people free at Pentecost
To tell the Savior′s name
We know the yoke of sin and death
Our necks have worn it smooth
Go tell the world of weight and woe
That we are free to move!

4 Within the dance of Trinity
Before all worlds begun
We sing the praises of the Three
The Father, Spirit, Son
Let voices rise and interweave
By love and hope set free
To shape in song this joy, this life
The dance of Trinity

THE SENDING FORTH OF GOD’S PEOPLE

[Let us pray in the words our Savior Christ has taught us.]

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, the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us. Amen.

or

The peace of the Lord be with you.
And also with you.

All greet one another in the name of the Lord.