Palm Sunday 2021

Welcome to this online service of worship from Mayfield Salibury Parish Church. The YouTube playlist may be found here or view below.

Note: Zoom Coffee and Chat after the Service 11:30 am every week on Sundays. The link is:
https://zoom.us/j/91620889282?pwd=SWVlZmQzMk9YZ2lBaTRCVlUvZ215dz09
Bring your own coffee (or tea/juice!) If you prefer to phone in, the number to call is 0131 460 1196.

Palm Sunday

Sunday 28 March 2021

HORIZONS OF HOPE

Words from a friend:
'Don’t give in, but keep
widening the horizons of hope
through your compassion.'
Words for us all
in a world perpetually
tumbling and dancing.
Profound, unmasking words
that break through
our imprisoned vision
and the fears that shadow the planet.
Words for the burdened
who wait for the dawn,
and words for the powerful
who manage the earth.
So hold the words deeply,
and when it’s right
tenderly act upon them
out of joy.

Revd Peter Millar

Crocus

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

Welcome Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

HYMN 279 Make way, make way, for Christ the King

Make way, make way, for Christ the King
in splendour arrives;
fling wide the gates and welcome him
into your lives.

Make way, (make way),
make way, (make way),
for the King of kings;
(for the King of kings);
make way, (make way),
make way, (make way),
and let his kingdom in.

He comes the broken hearts to heal,
the prisoners to free;
the deaf shall hear, the lame shall dance,
the blind shall see.

And those who mourn with heavy hearts,
who weep and sigh,
with laughter, joy, and royal crown
he’ll beautify.

We call you now to worship him
as Lord of all,
to have no gods before him,
their thrones must fall!

Graham Kendrick (b.1950)
Sung by Stuart Mitchell and Julie Morrice

First Reflection Hillary Leslie
and Palm Prayer

Hi everyone! This morning I would like for you to think about your home. Home is a great place – at home you have yummy food to eat, a comfortable place to sleep, special belongings like books and toys, as well as the love of your family. For most of us, home is a good and safe place, and that is a very lucky and special thing. I’m sure this past year you’ve gotten to know your home really well, as that is where we’ve been spending most of our time! Maybe you now know where your absolute favourite place is to study or read, or the best place to eat your lunch, or where to escape from your family and get some alone time.

palm crosses

Before this Sunday, I asked some of our young people to colour in palm branches for the service because today is a special Sunday called Palm Sunday. But what do palm branches have to do with anything, and why do we call it Palm Sunday?

Today, on Palm Sunday, we celebrate the day that Jesus came to Jerusalem and everyone was so excited to see him! There was a big parade, with lots of celebrating, and they enthusiastically waved palm branches as Jesus entered the city, shouting and singing Hosannas, which in Jesus’ time, was a way to express joy and praise. Along with the palm branches, they also took off their cloaks and laid both across the road as a generous sign of what they were giving up, showing how they recognised Jesus’ significance and importance.

But that still doesn’t really answer the question about palm branches. I’m still wondering why they waved around palm branches during the parade. . .

During the time Jesus was alive, the places where he lived and journeyed had a lot of deserts. People had to travel through these dry, desolate, sandy and sometimes very hot places, and it took a very long time to get where they were going. They didn’t have cars or trains or planes like we do!

As they travelled through the hot desert, they would keep their eyes peeled, looking for a safe place to take a rest on their journey, scanning the horizon for the tall, green branches of a palm tree swaying in the breeze. They knew that if they saw these trees in the distance, that they had found an oasis which is a small lake in the middle of the desert. They knew that they could stop here, refilling their jugs with water, and take a nap in the shade of the palm tree. When you have been traveling like that for so long, there is nothing that feels safer and more comforting than a drink of refreshing water, and a place to rest your head. Because of this, palm branches became a symbol of safety and shelter. They symbolised rest and sanctuary from the dry and tiresome heat. It was a symbol of home for a weary traveller.

In our Bible story today as Jesus enters Jerusalem, the crowd welcomes him by waving palm branches, mimicking the way they would sway in the desert breeze. Some were also laying them down on the road along with their cloaks, generously showing their welcome. They wanted to let him know that he was safe and loved, and he was being welcomed home. We know the rest of the story, though, and by the end of Holy Week, Jesus was not as safe and welcome as he was on Palm Sunday. During Holy Week, as we continue journeying through these desert places of Lent accompanying Jesus to the cross, may we come to recognise God as our home and our refuge.

When we look at the palm branches today, I hope that we can imagine the glorious parade that welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem. I think it’s no coincidence that we call the place where we gather for worship inside a church building our sanctuary. Although we are apart from the building just now, we remain together as one worshipping community in spirit, heart, mind and song. Let us remember that here, with our church community, whether inside the building or not, we too have a sanctuary, a home, a place of refuge and safety with God who loves us, and lots of people who care for and love us, too.

We’re now going to spend some time praying together for others and for ourselves. For this prayer activity, you will need a piece of paper, and something to write with. We’re going to be doing a ‘Palm’ prayer! It’s not a palm branch this time, but the palm of our hand.

What you will do is outline your hand on a piece of paper. Each finger is a prayer for a different group of people or things, and you can write any names and thoughts that come to mind on each finger.

Pinkie Finger – A prayer for those who are facing a difficult time or struggle (the unwell, dying, homeless, poor, etc)

Ring Finger – A prayer for those you love (friends and family)

Middle Finger – A prayer for those who stand tall (people in positions of leadership like the first minister, government leaders, teachers, employers, etc.)

Pointer Finger – A prayer for those who lead the way (people who are an example for us of Christian life – ministers, spiritual directors, mentors, other faith leaders, etc.)

Thumb – A prayer for intentions closest to your heart (pray for your worries, plans, hopes, fears, etc.)

Let us pray together:

Loving God, we thank you for Palm Sunday, and for this time to remember Jesus’ celebratory welcome into Jerusalem. As we write our own palm prayers, and pray for the thoughts, situations and people on our own minds this morning, I pray that these all may be lifted up to you.

Guide us, God, as we go forth into Holy Week and journey alongside Jesus to the cross. We pray that we may be able to find our home, sanctuary, refuge and strength in your presence. We pray that your spirit will guide us to share your love with one another, and ourselves. We pray all of this in Jesus’ name, amen.

WE LISTEN FOR THE SPIRIT OF GOD IN SCRIPTURE

Reading Psalm 118, 1 - 4, 21 - 29
The Message Translation Lucy Anderson

Narrative written by Nick Fawcett, from No Ordinary Man (1997)

HYMN Hosanna, hosanna

Hosanna, hosanna,
hosanna in the highest;
hosanna, hosanna,
hosanna in the highest:
Lord, we lift up your name,
with hearts full of praise.
Be exalted, O Lord my God-
hosanna in the highest!

Glory, glory, glory
to the King of kings;
glory, glory, glory
to the King of kings:
Lord, we lift up your name,
with hearts full of praise.
Be exalted, O Lord my God-
glory to the King of kings!

Words and music by Carl Tuttle (b. 1953);
Heather Mole, guitar;
Heather, Freya, and Tom Mole, voice;
Lucia Garland, violin;
Kate Pearson, piano.

Reflection Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

Can you hear it? The sound that’s coming closer like a dull rumble of thunder; growing, rising slowly in its volume, out of the west. On that spring day in AD30. The holy city Jerusalem is packed with 2 million pilgrims for the start of the Passover. The yearly celebration of freedom and liberation from slavery in Egypt for the people of God. The hubbub and the clamour is heavy inside the gates. And iIn the marketplace, there are whispers again of a time of a Messiah, a saviour is coming from the oppressors in the temple and from Rome.

Can you still hear that sound? Coming closer from the coast, from the port of Caeserea Maritima, built by Herod, the collaborator, the ruthless puppet king? Maybe you can just make out on the horizon the swirl of dust in the distance, rising from the shimmering heat, see the neighing war horses approaching, the clanging of their bridles. The majesty and might of the cavalry of Imperial Rome, raised high on their mounts, in their massed ranks. And there’s the Roman infantry close by. The thud of the sandals on the baked earth, the creak of the leather, the beating of drums, the sight of the standards with golden eagles mounted on their poles glistening in the heat, and the glint of the sun upon a thousand swords.

From the west on that Palm Sunday, they came. The column of the Roman Imperial army marching towards the holy city, Jerusalem, and proudly at its head the governor of Idumea, Judea and Samaria, Pontius Pilate himself. It’s a show of force, of power; to be a mighty presence within the very walls of the city during Passover week: to bolster the garrison, to ensure order, to prevent unrest, and to preserve the the Temple administration, the organised Jewish religion, that Rome had manipulated and managed for over ninety years of power.

It’s a startling sight for all the pilgrims within the walls; of an army descending upon the city, that sound of rolling thunder, and the air of fear. Can you see them too, as they approach the West Gate of the city over the open country, if we look out together from the Temple towards the sea?

We turn our heads quickly now! To the east, to the hills near Bethany and the Mount of Olives. There, look! Heading towards the east gate, another procession, this one not of soldiers, but of mere peasants. Planned by their prophet leader Jesus of Nazareth as a counter demonstration. As the start of a challenge, a conflict at the heart of a dramatic week that would change the world. A week of courage in the face of suppression and torture. A week of proclamation, that the son of God had arrived now to bring to the world an alternative vision: the kingdom of God on earth. A week which started here as it was to end, a show of humility, of peace, and of forgiveness and love. Of liberation for the world from all that oppresses its people; true freedom through faith, through non-violence and the reconciliation of enemies under God.

The animals of the kings, the war horses of Pilate are arriving at the west gate, but over in the east onward plods the humble colt, a young donkey.

The donkey, in GK Chesterton’s poem of that name, that links Christmas and Easter, the beast of burden joined to the burden that Christ bears too:

The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient, crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.

Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hours and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.

Even in the simple act of riding the donkey, Jesus was saying, ‘I am the Messiah, the saviour’. No more chariots, no more war-horses, a king of peace as the Son of David, the saviour of Jerusalem and of the world.

He knew the stage was set for the climax. We can see in his words that he was well aware that the donkey colt would be waiting there, readied in Bethany. Go and find them, he said, and if there is any problem, just say the words ‘The Master needs him’; what appears to be a prior signal, a code which meant ‘the time was now’. He knew what he was doing that Palm Sunday and the symbolic meaning and impact of it all. As Marcus Borg and Dominic Crossan put it:

‘Jesus’ procession deliberately countered what was happening on the other side of the city. Pilate’s procession embodied the power, glory, and violence of the empire that ruled the world. Jesus’ procession embodied an alternative vision, the kingdom of God’.

What an act of courage and defiance, to deliberately place himself in the public glare, and in stark contrast to the might and the power of those he knew would oppose him. For in the meaning of the events of Palm Sunday, and of the Passion of Christ, we have a very different sort of ruler or king to all the tinpot dictators of the world.For as Willie Barclay writes, on Palm Sunday, ‘it was not the kingship of the throne which he claimed; it was the kingship of the heart...he showed that he came not to destroy, but to love, not to condemn, but help, not in the might of arms, but in the strength of love’.

This is the king the people had been told of in Psalm 118 – his love never quits, he is the stone that will be discarded, but his turn out to be the capstone, the key stone that holds the whole building, and as the Psalmist said, just like the crowd on Palm Sunday, ‘blessed are you who enter in God’s name’.

And so today as we approach Holy Week, we are challenged – where will we stand in the city of Jerusalem? Are we joining now with the crowds of followers in the east, shouting ‘Hosanna’ or ‘Save us, rescue us’, laying down their coats and waving their palm branches? Or are we marching with the legion of human might to the west? Or perhaps, we are a bit like others inside the city this week, absolutely oblivious, don’t know and don’t really care, ‘whatever’!

If we move towards a gate and the arriving procession, which one do we choose?

Do we walk to the west gate, the gate of order at all costs, the brute forces, the enforced peace by fear of institutions and systems, a necessary evil, a price to be paid? Or do we choose the hardest way, the most challenging journey at the East gate? Do we shout out within us today, like the crowd on Palm Sunday in Mark’s Gospel, echoing that same Psalmist, ‘hosanna, praise God, blessed is he who comes in God’s name, hosanna in highest heaven’, the servant King to humble the mighty and their hollow grand empires, to liberate all people, and usher in an age of rebirth and freedom for the powerful and powerless alike.

At the gate, can your hear now the sound against the road? Is that the sandals of the soldiers you are hearing, or of the coats and the palms going down on the road? And can you hear the noise of braying? Is it the war horse or the donkey in front of you?

Amen.

RESPONSE TO THE SPIRIT OF GOD WITHIN

Prayer Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

Loving God,
we are together today in glad and joyful praise. We welcome Jesus once more as he enters our lives as our King, our Lord, and our Saviour

We shout out in our hearts, like the crowd on Palm Sunday, ‘praise God, God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord’

We bring to Jesus him our love,
we bow to him in worship,
we greet him with wonder.
Hosanna to the Son of David,
and glory in the highest heaven.

PS2021 1

Loving God,
come to us again through Jesus this day.
Speak to us through the familiar words we have read, the praise songs we sing,
as we think again of his triumphal entry into Jerusalem long ago, as we remember all that this week means for us and our world.

Lord Jesus Christ,
you came to Jerusalem and were greeted by shouts of joy,
welcomed as God’s promised deliverer,
the one he had chosen to rescue his people.
But when the nature of your kingdom became clear,
when the sort of freedom you offered became known,
the response changed.
The shouts of ‘Hosanna!’
turned to cries of ‘Crucify!’
The hands outstretched in friendship
became fists curled up in hate.
The declarations of loyalty
became voices raised in mockery and rejection.

PS2021 3

Lord Jesus,
You come to our lives
and we welcome you too with gladness.
We have accepted you as our Saviour,
the one who sets us free.
But we can also so quickly change our tune
when you overturn our expectations,
when you do not act as we hope,
when you turn out to have different ideas from our own.
We, too, can push you aside, be swayed by the noise of the crowd, and walk away from you for an easier life,
preferring our own way to yours.

Lord Jesus,
forgive us when we do so.

Lord Jesus Christ,
on this day we are reminded of how easy it is
to welcome you as King of kings,
but how hard it can be to follow in the Way of the Cross.

PS2021 4

Lord Jesus Christ,
you knew, as you entered Jerusalem,
that the welcome of the crowd would turn to rejection, yet still you came and still you died for them.
We praise you for that truth,
and we thank you that still you come to us, inviting us to respond and share in your kingdom.

Come again now into our hearts, take away all that is wrong, all that keeps us from you.

In these times as we all struggle with lockdown and the pandemic,

Come to this your Church, fill it with love, harmony,
humility,
and faith.

Come to your world, bless it Lord with wellbeing, justice,
and hope.

Come to our friends and our families, bring them healing where they are unwell, peace where they are struggling, hope where they are sad

PS2021 2

Lord God,
we praise and welcome Jesus Christ today as the Prince of Peace, the King of kings,
the Servant of all,
the Lord of all,

In his name’s sake, using His words to pray to you together,

The 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.

HYMN Sanna Hillary Leslie and Sandy Forsyth

Everyone to join in, sung three times through!

Benediction Revd Dr Sandy Forsyth

As we enter Holy Week,
May the grace of God thrill your hearts
The mercy of God transform your minds
The peace of God flood your souls
And the love of God flow through your lives,
And may his blessing be with you, today and for evermore, Amen.

HYMN 825 Amen

Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen.

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INTIMATIONS

Note: Zoom Coffee and Chat after the Service
11:30 am every week on Sundays. The link is:
https://zoom.us/j/91620889282?pwd=SWVlZmQzMk9YZ2lBaTRCVlUvZ215dz09
Bring your own coffee (or tea/juice!) If you prefer to phone in, the number to call is 0131 460 1196.

A CANDLE IN THE WINDOW Journeying with Covid 19 Revd Dr Peter Millar
Early in January of 2016 (as many of you already know) I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (cancer in the bone marrow). Myeloma is at the present time incurable but it is treatable and I am deeply grateful for the last five years of life. More than grateful! However, from the start of the pandemic it has been made clear to me in various circular letters from the Scottish Government and the National Health Service that I would have to ‘shield’ and that if I did get the virus it may present real health difficulties, given that I survived the virus. Naturally I was delighted that I kept free of the virus in 2020 but in mid-February I was told I was positive. A few days later I became very ill and was admitted to hospital where I was soon receiving oxygen. Initially the outlook was not great, but I have pulled through and am now back home - full of gratitude to the amazing NHS, to the Source of Life who holds us all each day, to my loving and supportive family and to the many friends around the world who held me in their prayers. The Spring sunshine streaming through my windows at home has never felt more beautiful and comforting! For me a new chapter has opened as my strength returns day by day.

The full article may be read here

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SUPPORT US Regular and one-off donations, now possible through: www.give.net/20311853

YOUTH GROUP Tonight (28th March), we will be having a Netflix Watch Party for all ages at 7pm on Zoom. Please join the call at 6:50pm for a 7pm film start. To participate in the doodle poll for selecting a film, and for accessing the Zoom log-in information, please contact Hillary.

'Alleluia' Art display at church for all ages - All ages are invited to decorate the church with 'Alleluias' as we look forward to Easter Sunday. Please email Hillary for the Alleluia colouring sheet, which you can print out at home and colour-in. At the main entrance of the church, there will be a big cross in the window. From today, 28th March up to 4th April, bring your creation (and some sellotape!) so that you can attach your drawing to the cross on the outer window! By Easter morning, we hope to have the cross covered in Alleluias!

PASTORAL CARE AND PRAYERS Thank you to all of you who are continuing with your phone chains. They are still very much appreciated by those receiving them. We are still not able to visit you in your home, but we have hope that change is on the horizon.

Remember to inform the Ministry team if you are due to go into hospital or you know of anyone who would value us being in contact with them. Maybe you would like us to hold you in prayer? Please contact Kay with your details on 07903 266 307.

CROSSREACH PERINATAL SERVICES – MARCH GIVING This covid period, and all of the associated restrictions, has been a particularly hard time for those with new babies and small children. CrossReach Perinatal Services (Mayfield Salisbury’s local charity) continue to offer support to families remotely, as has been the case since the first lockdown last year. They hope to return to face to face work in July.

In addition to their existing services including couple and individual counselling and group therapy, CrossReach has some new initiatives. They are launching a new group specifically for fathers managing anxiety, they also hope to extend their offer of infant massage so that more families have access to it, and in addition they are planning a new birth trauma group for mothers who have given birth during lockdown.

Once again, instead of our usual bucket collection to support the work of CrossReach Perinatal Services, we are asking you to help by giving direct to CrossReach in one of the following ways:

· Online giving Visit the www.crossreach.org.uk page and click the purple 'Donate' button at the top right of the page. This takes you to a Just Giving page which is for general CrossReach donations but there is a box in which you can “Add a message of support” and please would you type in there that the donation is for Perinatal Services (or PNS) which will ensure funds are routed to PNS. Please note that Just Giving automatically adds a platform fee but this can be changed to zero if preferred (with no reduction in the amount that is then routed to PNS). There is also the opportunity to gift aid your donation.

· Postal giving CrossReach would be happy to receive any cheques by post which should be payable to “CrossReach” and sent to Supporter Development, CrossReach, Charis House, 47 Milton Road East, Edinburgh, EH15 2SR. If you could send cheques with a covering letter to let CrossReach know that the donation is for perinatal services, and if you wish to gift aid then please note that in your letter. In order to gift aid, CrossReach needs a note of your name and address.

Please continue to show your support for the very worthwhile work of Crossreach PNS, either financially in one of the ways highlighted above, and/or by keeping the staff, volunteers and families supported in your prayers. Finally, CrossReach would welcome any new volunteers for their creche (which they plan to reopen when they return to face to face work) and any new volunteer counsellors.

HOW ETHICAL IS YOUR EASTER EGG? We all love chocolate don’t we? And at this time of year the shops are full of tempting Easter eggs - from mini to enormous! How can we choose an egg that delights our taste buds, while conforming to our ethical and eco values?

The Ethical Consumer magazine in April 2019 rated their Best Buys according to several ethical and eco standards. These are environment, people, animals, politics, product sustainability, and company ethos.

Cocoa Loco F, O, P, (V); Plamil F, O, V, (P); Divine F, P, (V); Traidcraft F, (V, P); Booja Booja F, O, P, V; Montezuma F, O, P, (V); Moo Free F, O, P, (V). F-Fairtrade; O-organic; P- palm oil free; V- vegan

A more recent addition to this list is an online company, Tony’s Chocolonely.

Companies to avoid: Cadbury’s; Creme Egg; Twirl; Green and Black’s; Nestle; Terry’s; Aero; KitKat; Smarties.
Source: www.ethicalconsumer.org

You might like to check out two UTube video documentaries, that give an eye opening account of the child trafficking and exploitation that goes on within the cocoa trade. The Dark Side of Chocolate, and its sequel Shady Chocolate.

PASTORAL CARE Remember we need you to inform us if someone is ill or due to go into hospital. Perhaps you would now like to have a pastoral visitor or receive a regular phone call?We would be delighted to hear from you and will respond to your request. Contact Kay on 07903 266 307.

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

Recommended Daily Meditations: Fr Richard Rohr at www.cac.org Also, see www.pray-as-you-go.org

Books for the Journey

A Literary Christmas British Library Publishing 2018 and

The First Biography of Jesus: Genre and Meaning in Mark’s Gospel by Helen K Bond WB Eerdmans Publishing 2020

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Forthcoming Deadlines

Order of service for next week: Thursday at 6.00pm.

Next Grapevine: Friday 23 April at 6.00pm.

Please send submissions to the Church Manager, William Mearns.

Phone: 0780 801 1234 or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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