Today’s service will be offered in 2 formats – view the video below, read the text below or download and print the service from this document – link.
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UCW Get-together – This Thursday, June 8th, the UCW will hold its final meeting before our summer break. All women are cordially invited to meet in Bronte Hall at 1:30 for a chance to chat over tea or coffee, cookies and cake. It will be a casual time with a seated game, something to think about and minimal business.
Exciting news for Grade 3 students! – Each year Walton Church is proud to present our Grade 3 Sunday School students with their own copy of the Action Bible. Bible presentations will take place in person in the Sanctuary during our 10:00am service on Sunday, June 18th, which is also our Father’s Day Ice Cream Sunday. Please mark your calendars for this day as we hope all Grade 3 children and their families can take part in person. If you are unable to attend on June 18, please contact the church office and we will arrange a special delivery to your door.
Cans for camp – As part of our preparations for VBS we are collecting empty small (284ml) soup cans for a craft. If you could clean and save your cans & drop them off at the church we would appreciate it!
Last call to register for VBS! – Registration closes TODAY for Galactic Starveyors, Walton’s Vacation Bible School day camp running July 10-14, 2023. This fun-filled week is open to campers from SK – Grade 5 (select grade entering in Sept/23), junior leaders in Grades 6-8, as well as high school and adult volunteers.
Help send a kid to camp – Over the years the Walton congregation has supported the Kerr Street Mission in sending children from low income families to summer day camp. To ensure that all eligible children are able to be a part of camp this summer we need your support. It costs $32 per day to allow a child to participate. Please sponsor a day or two (or more!) and make a difference in a child’s life. This can be done online at the Walton website or through the church office.
Cleaning out your closet for spring? Please donate any winter coats to the Bronte Coat drive! Donations are now being accepted! This has become a co-operative effort between Church of the Epiphany, St. Dominic’s Church and Walton Memorial primarily; all of us having the betterment of people of our area as our goal. So, sew on that button, empty those pockets, sponge out that stain, and please give us your coats that you will not plan to wear next year or ever again!
Calling all knitters! The Bronte Coat Drive Committee has a need for knitted scarves for our Annual Coat Distribution Event. If you could knit a scarf 5’ – 6’ long in black, grey or navy, we would be most happy to include it as a giveaway on October 14, 2023. As you may know, there are many people in our community who are grateful to receive a coat from this event, and they are delighted to also receive a warm scarf (or hat or gloves)!
New to Walton? Are you visiting today? Welcome! Please feel free to ask the ushers if you have any questions during the service and we invite you to fill out a welcome card in the pew racks and leave it in an offering plate at one of the doors. Please join us for coffee, tea or cold drinks and conversation in Bronte Hall after the 9:30 service ends and before the 11:00 am service begins. There you’ll also find the Welcome Centre with information about Walton and someone to chat with. Walton nametags, hats, pickles etc. are also available for purchase.Children and youth are invited to view this week’s virtual Sunday School lesson online.
Walton’s prayer chain is open. Confidential prayers requests can be sent to office@waltonmemorial.com
If you need Rev. Jim for a pastoral emergency, please email him directly at jamescgillwuc@gmail.com.
As we gather today on these treaty lands, we are in solidarity with Indigenous brothers and sisters to honour and respect the four directions, lands, waters, plants, animals and ancestors that walked before us, and all of the wonderful elements of creation that exist. We acknowledge and thank the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation for being stewards of this traditional territory.
Val: Good Morning and welcome to Trinity Sunday.
Jim: It is a concept that a lot of people have a hard time understanding, and some of us have a harder time explaining than other parts of the faith.
Val Remember one year, you tied a garbage can with a rope to the loop on your pants.
You got so excited talking about Spirit setting us free, and you cut your pants instead of the rope?
Jim: Yes, I do remember that, thanks so much for bringing that up yet again…. But Val that wasn’t
about the Holy Spirit, that was about giving up your garbage and then not really giving it up you
just keep dragging it around with you everywhere you go…
Val: Oops, I guess I was laughing too much about the fact that you cup your pants… not the lesson
necessarily? ha.ha..But that is what I mean Jim, it is a concept that is more difficult than others to explain. One God described, as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. No wonder I was having a hard time trying to figure out how a garbage can, a rope and your pants described the Trinity….ha,ha..
Jim: Here is a concept that might help Val… Look at a triangle. Three corners correct…. Father, Son
and Holy Spirit. With out all three corners, it wouldn’t be a triangle, and it wouldn’t sound so
beautiful, and harmonious would it? It is a triangle and to be this shape they all need to do their part.
Val:Kind of like the tripod here. Without all three sides being there it would tip over and fall. I get it
now each part of the Trinity does its part to make it a whole!
Jim: Let us now each do our part in worship today to sing, pray and grow in the Trinity.
One: For God so loved the world;
All: The sparrows, the mountain lions, the fish and the people.
One; For God so loved the world;
All: In success and failure, in sickness and health, in mediocrity and extraordinary.
One: For God so loved the world;
All: Enough to become one of us, enough to suffer along with us, enough to offer new life for us.
One: For God so loved the world;
All: Let us worship God!
by Katherine Hawker, and posted on her Liturgies Outside website
One: Majestic Creator God, God before time, we find you in the heavens above us:
All: Light beyond light, our beginning before all beginnings.
One; God With Us, we find you here on earth, all around us:
All: You make your home in our fellowship and communion, our daily bread, and in your church, the body of Christ.
One: Spirit of Pentecostal fire, Holy Ghost, we find you burning in truth, ministering with comfort,and interceding with us with sighs too deep for words.
All: God, stretch our imaginations!
One: Open our eyes to see you in your majesty above us,
All: your mystery around us,
One: and your Spirit is always with us.
All: Together we pray as you taught your disciples to pray:
posted on Literature & Liturgy
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, forever and ever. Amen.
Val: What a special treat to watch Thomas get baptized. Before you know it, he and Isla will be in Sunday School and hanging out with you guys! Did you notice what Rev. Jim said when he put the holy water on Thomas’ head? Jim, what did you say?
Jim: I said I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Alison: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – we call those 3 things the Holy Trinity. And it just so happens that today is a special day called Trinity Sunday. Trinity means three, and we talk about that because we have a 3 in 1 God. Val, what does that mean?
Val: We have God the Father in heaven, God the Son Jesus, who lived here on earth, and God the Holy Spirit, who Jesus sent to be in each of us. Not 3 separate gods, because we all know there’s only 1 God. But that 1 God comes in 3 parts, with 3 different roles.
Alison: Is that confusing? Kind of. Maybe the best way to understand that idea is with this apple and this book. Do you want to hear a story? I’m going to read you “3 in 1: A Picture of God” by Joanne Marxhausen.
Val cuts open the apple to demonstrate the different parts as Alison reads
Now it makes sense! Three different parts make up 1 apple: seeds, flesh, and peel. Three different parts make up 1 God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What a great deal! Let’s say a prayer together:
Loving God, thank you for being our Father in heaven. Thank you for being Jesus, and living with us here on earth. Thank you for being the Holy Spirit, so we can keep you inside us always. Amen.
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him, but they doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Be restored; listen to my appeal;[b] agree with one another; live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of[c] the Holy Spirit be with all of you.
One: The Trinity restores you;
Two: they make their face to shine all around you
All: so that you are saved.
One: The Father loves you;
Two: He makes his face to shine down on you
All: so that you are saved.
One: The Son graces you;
Two: He makes his face to shine right beside you
All: so that you are saved.
One: The Spirit lives in you;
Two: He makes his face to shine inside you
All: so that you are saved.
One: The Trinity empowers you;
Two: they make their face to shine through you
All: so that others are saved.
written by Bill & Kristi Gaultiere, inspired by Psalm 80. Posted on Soul Shepherding.
Why is Lakeshore Road West closed for part of this morning? Why did some of you park away from Walton’s lot today? The reason is that on June 6, 1944, the order of the day was issued by Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force General Dwight D. Eisenhower to Allied forces on the eve of D-Day, the first day of the invasion of Normandy. Eisenhower had been drafting the order since February, 1944 and recorded a spoken version on May 28 that was broadcast on British, American and Canadian radio on D-Day. The marching orders for the liberation of Europe had been given. Canadian soldiers headed to Juno Beach.
Today the Bronte Legion and our community commemorate D-Day across the street from the church at the Bronte Cenotaph. In our scripture passage today Jesus gives his marching orders to his followers in the Great Commission:” Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” This is exactly what we did in the baptism of Thomas this morning. It was what we did last Sunday, May 28th which was Pentecost, in receiving 11 new members by transfer and welcoming nearly 40 newcomers to Walton since COVID at the breakfast before the service that day.
In our second reading today, from Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, Paul also gives some marching orders to the people in Corinth. Paul orders or maybe a better term is “advises,” in these timeless words. Let’s hear what he has to say, Paul begins with the word, “ finally.” Do you watch murder mysteries? Often during the interrogation of the prime suspect when the investigator says, “ finally,” it is not over at all, for the best part is really yet to come.
Paul’s best part is this: “Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice!” What one of us would not like more rejoicing? Especially this year, with no Stanley Cup parade in Canada, from Vancouver to Montreal. The term “rejoice” was commonly used among early Christians. It was an authentic call to a deep-hearted joy. It was often used as a salutation or greeting. Rather than, “Hey guys,” it was “Rejoice!” Sometimes, Jesus would walk into a room and immediately call people to “joy” instead of using the standard “hello.”
Joy is more than just happiness; it is an inner joy, beyond the immediate circumstances we find ourselves in, be it good or not so good. Sort of what we talk about on the Third Sunday of Advent, in the lighting of the Advent Wreath, with the third candle of Joy.
Paul’s marching orders continue for us when they talk about the desire to strive for “full restoration” for the Corinthian Church. This is not the type of restoration we have done here at Walton over the decades and will do some more this year. I am talking about the restoration of our outer red bricks, white blocks and the mortar that holds together this, Town of Oakville historically-designated Sanctuary.
The need for restoration “was a major problem for the church in Corinth” which would not be solved by a mason or brick layer’s skills. The restoration included healing those rifts that existed in the Corinthian Church family. There were some major issues in that first-century AD church. They were those ones that were ego based with some of the Corinthian folk feeling they were superior to others spiritually. There were those suing each other. On top of that the poor in the congregation were being abused by some wealthier members. There was sexual abuse, particularly of minors. The Corinthian Church Paul was writing to sounds like it could be in Canada in 2023, but it was during the first century in what today is Turkey.
You see, technology changes but the basic issues of right and wrong do not change over the centuries. Paul is saying to heal these rifts, actively address these concerns, sincerely repent and change. Finally, Paul reminds these believers that the God of love and peace will be with them even in the midst of rift and discord. Whatever had gone on in Corinth, they were not alone. God had not abandoned them in their internal struggles nor will God desert them or us in our 2023 struggles.
Paul also offers these additional Marching Orders with these words, “encourage one another.” We are called to encourage others in the faith. We know that encouraging others can help people to stand firm in their faith when difficulties arise.
Jeanne Zornes says, “Encouragement is more than prayers and notes. God can use us to encourage one another through many verbal, emotional, practical, and spiritual ministries.” There is a power in the ministry of encouragement. It is why the informal visiting before and after each Sunday service and the coffee hour which follows is so important. There is lots of encouragement taking place over the cup of Joe.
The next marching order is to “be of one mind.” This may seem to work for us today in our very individualistic society, where we treasure our freedom of choice in so much of life. Are we to be all sheep thinking and acting the same way as each other? No, this is not what is being said here. In one of Paul’s other letters to the Philippians, he fleshed out what being of one mind means. “Then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” This gives us a better sense of being of one mind. We are to be rowing in the same direction.
Today is Trinity Sunday. Depending on when Easter falls we have each spring a triple hitter of important Sundays. First Ascension, Sunday, May 21, then Pentecost, Sunday, May 28 and today, June 4, Trinity Sunday. Paul concludes his marching orders with this trinity of simple words: “Live in peace.” We could describe peace with three words, “tranquillity, harmony, or security.” That peace can come to us individually in our personal relationship with God through the Trinity.
Trinity Sunday is a Christian festival widely celebrated across Western churches. It falls on the first Sunday after Pentecost, which is the 50th day after Easter. Trinity Sunday, in its essence, celebrates the mystery of divine faith and miraculous unity on and of the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity is not explicitly mentioned in Scripture, but it is still powerfully present in the Bible. We see it in the Matthew passage read earlier: “ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” For this reason, Christians belonging to Western churches celebrate Trinity and God’s love for humans because of their faith and utmost appreciation for the Trinity itself. Many Western churches celebrate the occasion with the symbols of fire, wind, and a dove.
This peace is not to be tightly held as something to be experienced exclusively by us. Henri Nouwen asks us, “Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come”.
So let’s now be off into this day, this week, this month and this year. We have our marching orders, and the Triune God is with us.
Almighty God known as wisdom before the dawn of creation,
Lord Jesus Christ – perfect love made flesh,
Holy Spirit of God – ever present,
O Hidden Source of Life wrapped up in perfect Trinity, we meditate upon the great and gracious plan which you have brought to pass, that women and men like us should look beyond creation to worship you the Creator of all things.
In the beginning, You the uncreated moved across the face of deep and brought out space and time
and then material substance:
The atom and the molecule and the crystalline form:
Then the first germ of life and the long upward striving of all things: that swim and creep and fly:
And then the miracle of intelligence and consciousness ;
The beginning of mystery and the building of the first altar; And then the saying of the first prayer;
O hidden love of God, forgive us for those times when we have taken this mystery for granted
and forgive us all the more for the times when we thought that we had unravelled the mystery
and thought that we knew it all – the how, the where and the why.
Almighty God, let us not harbour anything in our hearts that might spoil our fellowship with you
or with one another; work with us and within us:
Do what you will with us;
Make of us what you want of us;
Change us as we need changed
Use us as your will requires –
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
adapted from John Bailie “A Diary of Private Prayer” Thirteenth Day: Morning by the Very Rev. John Chalmers.
We have gathered in the name of the One who moves around and within us, the One who breathes life into us as individuals and into this community, and the One who brings warmth, hope, and love. In gratitude for the One at work in our lives, we present our offering.
Peter Chynoweth, The Gathering Pentecost 1, 2023
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All: With thanks, we dedicate our offerings to you, God the Parent, God the Child, God the Spirit, the triune God of our faith. Accept these gifts of time, talent, and treasure.
Use them as a blessing, these gifts given today with love and gratitude for all that you have shared with us. Amen.
Diane McKenty, The Gathering, Pentecost 1, 2023
God, who created you in the divine image, sends you forth:
we go, to reflect the presence of our Creator to everyone we meet.
Jesus, who has redeemed you, has established the reign of God in our midst:
we go, to bring healing to the broken of the world.
The Holy Spirit, who calls you to be God’s people, goes with you to many places:
We go to tear down the walls that divide us, and to build lives of hope for all of God’s children.
And now, may the peace of the rolling waves, the peace of the silent mountains, the peace of the singing stars, and the deep, deep peace of the Prince of Peace, be with you now and forever. Amen.
by Thom Shuman, and posted on his Lectionary Liturgies blog.
Here is Rev. Jim’s mid-week update for Wednesday, May 31st
