Restoration Ministries: Faith & Friendship

LITANY OF THANKSGIVING FOR THE PEACEMAKERS

Song refrain: Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God

We remember and give thanks for all the countless individuals who over the long years prayed silently in their hearts for peace, and those who faithfully and continually made gestures of peace.
We remember and give thanks for so many other individuals in the public eye, like Fr Alex Reid who have persevered and worked tirelessly and courageously because of the hope that was in them.
We remember and give thanks to God for the Corrymeela Community, for all its members past and present and, in particular, for the vision and inspired leadership of Ray Davey (Ray is currently next door to us here in the Nursing Home. We pray blessing and peace upon him tonight), and for the inspiration, dedication and pioneering spirits of John Morrow, Trevor Williams, David Stevens and the current leader Inderjit Bhogal.
We remember and give thanks for the Christian Renewal Centre, Rostrevor, for the vision and commitment of Cecil and Myrtle Kerr, for their vision for unity, for Eric Meyer, for Harry and Dorothy Smith and all those who were part of that community over the years. We give thanks also for WYAM, Ireland who have picked up the mantle.
We remember and give thanks for the Columbanus Community, for the faithful witness of Michael Hurley, Roisin Hannoway and Glenn Barclay and many others over the years.
We remember and give thanks for PACE, one of the earliest of the peacemaker groups, for Eric Gallagher and so many others who risked and challenged and endured.
We remember and give thanks for the Cornerstone Community for the quiet courage and dedication of Sam Burch, Bill Jackson, Sheelagh Livingstone and Isobel Hunter and all those associated with them.
We remember and give thanks for the Lamb of God Community, for Larry and Mary Kelly, Br Patrick Holian, Liam Closkey and all those who have walked with them through dark times with a song of praise in their hearts.
We remember and give thanks for the Irish School of Ecumenics, for leadership past and present, for Johnston McMaster and Cathy Higgins and all others who, along with them, have broken down barriers through new understanding.
We remember and give thanks for ECONI and for its successor The Centre for Contemporary Christianity in Ireland, for David Porter, Derek Poole, Lynda Gould and all those with them who reclaimed the word evangelical, liberating so many minds into a place of hope.
We remember and give thanks for Divine Healing Ministries, for Br David Jardine and Sr Margaret McStay and all those who journey with them on the road to healing and wholeness. And we pray for their day of prayer for revival on Saturday next.
We remember and give thanks for the Clonard/Fitzroy Fellowship, for Ken Newell and Gerry Reynolds and for the quiet witness of their walking together with their communities over the years.
We remember and give thanks for Oak House in Co. Galway, for the vision of Clare Besnoye and Brigid O’Higgins and all those who keep the candle of peace burning in the West, including those with us this evening.
We remember and give thanks for the Community Relations Commission for all its initiatives and for the many times it has encouraged the peacemakers in the very necessary financial and other practical ways, especially now for Duncan Morrow as he hands on the torch to his successor.
We remember and give thanks for the Curragh Community, for the Irish Council of Churches, for the Columba Community in Derry, for Glencree in Co. Wicklow, for Glenstall, for the Greenhills Conference, Drogheda, for Healing Through Remembering, for Focalare, for Pilgrims for Peace, for Embrace, for NIMMA, for L’Arche, Ireland, for the Dromantine and Drumalis Retreat and Conference Centres, the Crossfire Trust, WAVE, Innate, the Edgehill Peace and Reconciliation Group, the Centre for Celtic Spirituality, for the Faith and Friendship Groups, the initiatives of the different churches.
We remember and give thanks for Restoration Ministries, for those here this evening and all those who caught the vision, and stood in the gap of vulnerability so that bridges might be built and relationships restored. And as we pull up the tent pegs and journey on from this beloved place, we give thanks for what is yet to be.
We remember and give thanks for peacemakers around the world, especially for Daniel Das working for nearly forty years on the border between India and Pakistan to foster respectful relationships between people of different faiths
There will be many other groups and names not mentioned. We will now take some minutes for anyone who wishes to come forward, place a name in the basket in front of the cross and lead us in “We remember and give thanks for…”

I remember and give thanks for my father who was a maker of peace and for my mother so recently gone to join him who made the first sacrificial contribution to launch Restoration Ministries.

Since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses, let us strip off every weight that slows us down and let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus on whom our faith depends from start to finish. Thanks be to God. Amen

As Chris plays we are now going to pass around cards for you to take away, to write your own message of thanksgiving and to send it to someone to bless them as a peacemaker.

Hymn: One More Step Along the World I go

Let us now turn to our neighbour on either side, in front and behind and exchange a sign of peace.

Hymn: You Shall Go Out With Joy

OPENING PRAYER (ROSE)

God, in the peace of this House, within these walls, hallowed by the prayers of many, in this gathering place of hospitality:

we come to declare that you are Lord

we come to acknowledge that you are the Great Peacemaker

we come to affirm that all that has been accomplished is only through your empowering and your grace

we come to give thanks for all those who, having picked up the mantle of peacemaker, sacrificially and joyfully travelled through times of darkness to this new day

we come, praying for a new awareness that this day, this moment is what we are now called to live to the full.

we celebrate this evening –

for all that has been – thanks!

for all that will be – yes!

and for this sacred moment – alleluia! Amen.

EPHESIANS 3: 14-21

When I think of the wisdom and scope of God’s plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvellous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope. May he be given glory in the church and in Christ Jesus forever and ever through endless ages. Amen.

ORDER OF SERVICE

THANKSGIVING FOR THE PEACEMAKERS

WEDNESDAY JUNE 22ND, 2011

7.30 PM

WELCOME
GREETINGS
HYMN: GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS
PRAYER (ROSE)
READING: EPHESIANS 3: 14-21
HYMN: THE LORD’S MY SHEPHERD
READING: MATTHEW 5:1-12
TALK (RUTH)
A MOMENT’S REFLECTION (CHRIS PLAYING)
LITANY OF THANKSGIVING (RUTH)
DISTRIBUTION OF CARDS
HYMN: ONE MORE STEP
SIGN OF PEACE
HYMN: YOU SHALL GO OUT WITH JOY

“God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called children of God.”

WELCOME FOR JUNE 22ND, 2011

You are all very welcome here this evening. As you will probably know, we in Restoration Ministries are having to downsize and move from this House in a few months’ time. We wanted to do something to mark the occasion, so, as well as hosting Open House every day this week, we felt that it would be good to gather with not only our own ‘friends’ of the ministry and volunteers but also to invite others who have been involved over the years as makers of peace, to thank God for them – for you – and to thank you for all that you have contributed to this new day that we are beginning to live out in Ireland. We did not want this in any way to turn into a self-congratulatory evening but rather, along with you, to give thanks for all those, some well known but countless unknown, some dead and some still with us, some getting old and tired and others just starting out on the journey, who have given or are currently giving of themselves for that shalom for which we all yearn – and to say ‘To God be the glory.’

The format of this evening will be a simple service with hymns, readings, a short talk and prayers. After the talk and a hymn we will have a litany of thanksgiving when we will remember and give thanks for the peacemakers. We realise that we will only be touching on some. We will almost certainly leave some people out. This really is just the beginning of what could be a continuing process of thanksgiving. So tonight is not about whether we have left some people out and included others. It is rather to have the generosity of spirit to reflect with gratitude and to have a mindset of thanksgiving. During this service you will be given the opportunity to name some people or groups yourselves and at the end we will give you each a card and an envelope so that you might take it away and write to someone you want to thank for having been a maker of peace. After the service, please stay and ‘be’ community together as we share hospitality together.

GREETINGS FOR WEDNESDAY JUNE 22ND, 2011

From Inderjit Bhogal, Leader of the Corrymeela Community

Thank you for the kind invitation to attend the 22 June event ‘Thanksgiving for the Peacemakers.’ I regret I will not be able to attend as I am away on a course. I’m sure you will remember Ray Davey and all my successors as leaders of Corrymeela, and all the staff, volunteers, members and supporters of Corrymeela’s work to embrace difference, heal divisions and enable reconciliation.

I ask you to give thanks also for a good friend of mine – Daniel Das – who has worked for nearly 40 years on the border between India and Pakistan, in the Diocese of Amritsar, to foster respectful relationships between people of different faiths.

I will light my own candle for you and for all the countless numbers of people who have been Peacemakers in Ireland over many years. Let’s do all we can to keep hope alive, to keep the candle burning, to promote better understanding, relationships of deep mutual respect, and the genuine acceptance of each other as human beings – the children of God, each one made in the image of God. Blessings and peace, Inderjit.

From President Mary McAleese

I am delighted to send my warmest greetings to everyone taking part in ‘Thanksgiving for the Peacemakers.’ I would like to congratulate you all on the wonderful work you do in helping to heal damaged and broken relationships. Your important and selfless contribution to those in need of reconciliation is truly invaluable. I thank you all and wish you a fruitful and enjoyable evening. Mary McAleese, President of Ireland.

From Jonathan Hellewell, Assistant Private Secretary to the Prince of Wales

On behalf of the Orince of Wales, could you please send His Royal Highness’s greetings to all the staff, Trustees and Friends of Restoration Ministries and all those taking part in the service of Thanksgiving for the Peacemakers on 22nd June. The Prince of Wales very well reclls his visit to Restoration House in 2002 when he had the privilege of meeting so many people who were working for reconciliation in Northern Ireland. His Royal Highness was greatly touched by what he heard from those who had been affected by the years of violence and asked me to pass on his own personal thanks to the peacemakers, past and present who sacrificed much and worked so hard through the dark days and who have been such a blessing to Northern Ireland. The Prince of Wales has also asked me to send you his best wishes for all your future work. With many thanks, Jonathan Hellewell, Assistant Private Secretary to the Prince of Wales

From Jean Vanier, Founder of L’Arche and Faith and Light

For Ruth and all on this Thanksgiving Day – thank you. Thank you for all you have struggled and suffered for peace in your land. Jesus is our peace and you have all revealed his face, his love and his forgiveness.

As you know, peace is not just an absence of war. It is communion and love between people who are different. Everywhere there is still a lot to be done and to be revealed. Let us pray for each other. Pray that always we be gentle peacemakers. Love, Jean.