Memorial Service Program
to honor deceased classmates
Prepared, coordinated and
presented by
Elwyn Luber
WELCOME
CALL TO WORSHIP
We
come together from the diversity of our grieving,
to gather in the warmth of this community
giving stubborn witness to our belief that
in times of sadness, there is room for laughter.
In
times of darkness, there always will be light.
May we hold fast to the conviction
that what we do with our lives matters
and that a caring world is possible after all.
INVOCATION
Creator God: We acknowledge that, like grass, we flourish
briefly and fade all too soon. This very day we mourn the
departure from this earthly life of high school friends we
have known and loved. We humbly pray for you to make your
presence felt among us and within us. We need courage to
control our fears, and they are many. We are afraid of
failure -- and of success. We are afraid to love -- and to
be unloved. We are afraid of life -- and even more of
death. Help us during this time of reflection to build up
fresh resources of faith and assurance. Let the spirit of
those who are now beyond fear, safely at home with you,
inspire us to live more bravely, trusting in the love you
have shown us which conquers fear and death. Amen.
SONG: O God, Our Help in Ages Past
FIRST READING—William Wordsworth
Our
birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:
The soul that rises with us, our life’s’ star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar;
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But
trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home.
Though nothing can bring back the hour
Of splendour in the grass, of glory in the flower;
We will grieve not, rather find
Strength in what remains behind;
In the primal sympathy
Which having been must ever be;
In the soothing thoughts that spring
Out of human suffering;
In the faith that looks through death,
In
the years that bring the philosophic mind.
Thanks to the human heart by which we live,
Thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and fears,
To me the meanest flower that blows can give
Thoughts that do often life too deep for tears.
SECOND READING—S. Hall Young
Let
me die, working.
Still tackling plans unfinished, tasks undone!
Clean to its end, swift may my race be run.
No laggard steps, no faltering, no shirking;
Let me die working!
Let
me die, thinking.
Let me fare forth still with an open mind,
Fresh secrets to unfold, new truths to find,
My soul undimmed, alert, no question blinking;
Let me die thinking.
Let
me die, giving.
The substance of life for life’s enriching;
Time, things, and self on heaven converging,
No selfish thought, loving, redeeming, living;
Let me die, giving.
A
READING FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES—Job
19:23-27
23 “I
wish now my words were written.
I wish they were inscribed on a scroll.
24 I
wish they were forever engraved on a rock
with an iron stylus and lead.
25 But
I know that my defender lives,
and afterwards, he will rise on the earth.
26 Even
after my skin has been stripped off my body,
I will see God in my own flesh.
27 I
will see him with my own eyes,
not with someone else’s.
My heart fails inside me!
A
READING FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES—Revelation
21:1-7
1I
saw a new heaven and a new earth, because the first heaven
and earth had disappeared, and the sea was gone. 2Then
I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God
out of heaven, dressed like a bride ready for her
husband. 3I
heard a loud voice from the throne say, “God lives with
humans! God will make his home with them, and they will be
his people. God himself will be with them and be their
God. 4He
will wipe every tear from their eyes. There won’t be any
more death. There won’t be any grief, crying, or pain,
because the first things have
disappeared.”
5The
one sitting on the throne said, “I am making everything
new.” He said, “Write this: ‘These words are faithful and
true.’” 6He
said to me, “It has happened! I am the A and the Z, the
beginning and the end. I will give a drink from the
fountain filled with the water of life to anyone who is
thirsty. It won’t cost anything. 7Everyone
who wins the victory will inherit these things. I will be
their God, and they will be my children.
SONG—I
Can Only Imagine" Mercyme
HOMILY by Larry Norris
A
LITANY OF REMEMBRANCE
L: In the rising of the sun and in its going down,
we remember them.
P: In the blowing of the wind and in the chill of
winter, we remember them.
L: In the opening of buds and in the rebirth of
spring, we remember them.
P: In the blueness of the sky and in the warmth of
summer, we remember them.
L: In the rustling of leaves and in the beauty of
autumn, we remember them.
P: In the beginning of the year and when it ends, we
remember them.
L: When we are weary and in need of strength, we
remember them.
P: When we are lost and sick at heart, we remember
them.
L: When we have joys we yearn to share, we remember
them.
P: So long as we live, they too shall live, for they
are now a part of us, as we remember them.
REMEMBRANCE OF CLASSMATES
PRAYERS
O
God of hope and healing, we gather in your presence
because we don’t know what to do with our hearts in this
time of loss. We call upon you by many names. Some of us
do not call on you at all, but we are here, together, on
this day. Help us to recall that we come into the world
in mystery and we go away the same.
Be
with our deceased classmates, their families and their
friends. Save us from bitterness or hardness of heart.
Keep us open to feeling the love that remains for us, ever
renewing in the world. In our grief, help us to remember
always their gifts and to cherish the memories that came
from knowing them.
May
all here present carry forward the goodness, the love, and
the courage of our classmates, whose lives and deaths have
brought us together today. Keep us safe, and may we who
love and miss our friends rest assured of what is most
true, that their goodness and beauty are at rest in the
healing and sustaining heart of God.
Touch those who through this service are reminded of the
cumulative losses of our lives: parents and siblings,
husbands and wives, children and grandchildren, neighbors,
co-workers, friends of long ago and of the present who
have died. Grant that each of us may hold on to a shining
moment of memory, that we may carry it in our hearts as a
candle, to companion us in the darkness of our grief and
sorrow.
Keep
us mindful always of the brevity of our life, so that we
may be more attentive to essentials and less preoccupied
with trivia. Let us close each day, as far as we are
able, forgiving and forgiven, since you may call us home
before the next day breaks. Enriched by the memory of our
brothers and sisters, let us move forward with our trust
in you deepened and our love for you increased.
And
when our earthly journey is ended, lead us rejoicing into
your kingdom, where one day we will all be brought
together again to serve you forever.
SONG: Abide with Me
BLESSING
L: May the love and peace of God bless and console
us and gently wipe every tear from our eyes.
P: Amen.
Our
thanks to Bruce Roberts for his efforts in locating
information about our deceased classmates and to all who
provided him with information which was used in this
memorial booklet. We are deeply sorry if we have
overlooked any classmate.
Our
thanks also to the administration of Lawrence High School
for allowing us to conduct this service in the music room.
We appreciate their friendly cooperation and help.
Webmaster's Note:
And many, many thanks to Elywn for his compassion and hard
work in putting together this lovely and most appreciated
memorial service for our departed classmates.
