GA06115
Water, water everywhere
Tuesday evening worship features baptismal font and memories of flooded New Orleans
by Janet Hilley
The Stillman College Concert Choir provides gathering music during Tuesday’s worship service. Photo by Joseph Williams
BIRMINGHAM – June 20, Welcomed by the Stillman College Concert Choir for worship on Tuesday evening, the stage was set for a vibrant gathering. From the baptismal font to the fluidity of dance to memories of a flooded New Orleans, water set the tone for the night.
After greetings by the Rev. Tom Evans, executive presbyter of the Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley, the congregation confessed sin and rested in a duet of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Pie Jesu, sung by sopranos Janet Ort and Beth Middleton. The duet was accompanied by a liturgical dance performed by On Angel's Wings of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Tuscaloosa, AL. Wearing flowing blue gowns, the dancers' balletic moves recalled the waters of baptism.
Becky Bane’s an interpretation of Ann Weems’ poem “It’s About Jesus.” Photo by Joseph Williams.
The Rev. Michelle Freeman generously offered pardon as she showered the gathering with water from the baptismal font of Grace Presbyterian Church in Trussville, AL. The choirs of the Independent Presbyterian Church and Mountain Brook Presbyterian Church responded with, "Come thou font of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy praise."
After hearing 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 read by Evans, the Rev. Jean Marie Peacock, vice moderator of the 216th General Assembly, read Mark 1:1-11 in advance of her sermon.
Peacock began the sermon by setting the stage in early dawn New Orleans as a work team arrives to gut a flooded home. She spoke of the gift of joining hands to "affirm God's life-giving presence in the midst of devastation." Referring to the Gospel reading, Peacock likened the workers wading into the rubble of that ruined house to Jesus wading into the waters of baptism.
"His ministry is marked by participation," she said. "Wade in the waters where we lift each other in prayer and embrace each other. Wade in the waters into relationships that change and transform us."
Peacock called attention to a mission group working out of a Presbyterian Disaster Assistance camp in Gautier, MS. This group held bake sales and garage sales to raise funds to donate toward the relief effort. They were from Mexico and donated 5,000 pesos.
"These friends know what it means to wade in the water," she said.
Finally, she pointed out that those in the church need one another. "Our home is here among diverse members of the body of Christ," she declared. Then she invited worshipers to "wade in the waters of unity and oneness as Christ's body; wade in the waters of shared ministry and witness; wade in the waters that connect us to each other."
Following the sermon, the Stillman College choir returned with "Give Me a Clean Heart," conducted by Phillip Westgate, director of choir activities at the college.
The congregation, silent until the final note, responded with "Amen!"
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