BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
November 24, 2024
Thanksgiving

Christ Candle Lighting

Centering Music—Morning Has Broken [VT 495] (arr. R. Lau)—Will Wiebe-Friesen

Welcome & Prayer—VT 864—Megan Kohlman, Addison Zerger

*Hymn—Come Away from Rush and Hurry— VT 9

Children’s Conversation—George Leary & BCMC Youth Group

Worship Music—Cum Sancto Spiritu (Antonio Vivaldi)         
       Chancel Choir; Joel Garber, director; Will Wiebe-Friesen, accompanist Chancel Choir

Scripture Reading— Joel 2:21-27; Matthew 6:25-33—Lee Suderman

*Hymn—Sometimes a Light Surprises— VT 618—Rebecca Schloneger, violin

Sermon—Thanksgiving, Poetry & the Sun—Nathan Koontz

*Hymn—Nothing Is Lost on the Breath of GodI—VT 653

Prayers of God’s People—Heather Zerger, Lily Schloneger

*Hymn—For the Fruit of All Creation—VT 124—(People with November birthdays come forward for a blessing, please bring a hymnal) 

*Birthday Blessing & Benediction

Postlude—Now Thank We All Our God (J.S. Bach/Virgil Fox)—Will Wiebe-Friesen

* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Keyboard- Will Wiebe-Friesen
Audio visual—Ken Lamp

Today’s choir anthem is the final movement from Vivaldi’s Gloria, a setting of the fourth century hymn text Gloria in excelsis Deo. This movement’s text, Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris, amen, is translated: With the Holy Spirit in the glory of God the Father, amen. The postlude is derived from Bach’s cantata Nun danket alle Gott (Now Thank We All Our God, VT 114). This setting of the hymn, arranged by the American organist Virgil Fox (1912-1980), was made popular through Fox’s flamboyant organ, smoke, and light shows of the 1970’s. Perhaps not the most authentic Bach, it remains an enthusiastic presentation of this hymn of thanksgiving. 

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
  November 17, 2024
 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music—We Gather Together (Raney)—Chancel Bells, Verlene Garber, director            
 
Welcome & Prayer—Karen Ediger
                                   
*Hymn—”Could It Be That God Is Singing”—VT 42
           
Children’s Conversation—Jeanette Leary
 
Worship Music—Acclamation of Praise (Raney)—Chancel Bells
 
*Hymn—God of the Fertile Fields—VT 750
 
Scripture Reading—Luke 16:1-13—Judy Kliewer and Naomi Koontz
 
Sermon—Serving God, Not the Economy”—Joanna Harader
 
*Hymn—”God Whose Giving—VT 745
 
Prayers of God’s People—Karen Ediger
 
*Hymn—”People That on Earth Do Dwell”—VT 5    
 
*Benediction    
                                                  
Postlude—Allegro (J.S. Bach)—Karen Schlabaugh                

* You are invited to stand
VT = “Voices Together”
Audio visual—Ken Lamp

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
November 10, 2024

Christ Candle Lighting

Centering Music—Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr [VT 38] (J.S. Bach)– Will Wiebe-Friesen                              

Welcome & Prayer—Marlene Faul

*Hymn—Come, Thou Fount— VT 563

Children’s Conversation

Worship Music— Praise the Lord (George Frederic Handel)
Chancel Choir; Joel Garber, director; Will Wiebe-Friesen, accompanist

Scripture Reading—Mark 12:38-44; Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17; 1 Kings 17:8-16—Bonnie Epp and Elizabeth Schmidt

*Hymn—I Bind My Heart This Tide—VT 556

Sermon—Generosity, Power, & Wealth 
—Nathan Koontz

*Hymn—Lord Jesus, You Shall Be My Song— VT 581

Prayers of God’s People

*Hymn—Eternal Light, Shine in My Heart—VT 554

*Spoken Benediction–Nathan Koontz

Sung Benediction—The Peace of God  (John Rutter)—Chancel Choir     

Postlude—Precious Lord, Take My Hand [VT 610]  (arr. Jack Schrader)
Will Wiebe-Friesen

* You are invited to stand

VT—Voices Together
Keyboard- Will Wiebe-Friesen
Audio visual—Ben Lichti

Sunday’s centering music is an excerpt from a chorale prelude by J.S. Bach from his masterpiece 18 Leipziger Choräle. The original tune derives from the Gloria section of the mass, which is normally set to very energetic, thrilling music. Instead, in this setting of the tune, Bach’s writing conveys comfort, a balm for the soul. The gentle, slow accompaniment and pedal line provide a foundation for the richly ornamented chorale melody. This 16-century tune was set to a new text in Voices Together [VT 38] by Catholic composer and librettist Sister Delores Duffner in 2013 and is worth taking a moment to read. I have found working on this beautiful piece a good way to calm my mind after a stressful day or week, and I encourage you to look up the full work by searching “BWV 662” on youtube. I hope that it will be a balm for your soul, too.

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
November 3, 2024 
 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music— If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee (Bach)— Karen Unruh
 
Welcome with Land Acknowledgement—Dianne Epp
 
*Hymn—O God, We Read the Holy Law—VT 571
 
Children’s Conversation—Joanna Harader and Suzanne Burch, Lucy Burch
 
Hymn—Come What May—VT 768
 
Scripture Reading—Psalm 146; Mark 12:28-34—Lois Preheim
 
Sermon—Do Not Trust in Rulers—Joanna Harader
 
*Hymn—This Is My Song—VT 710
 
Prayers of God’s People—Dianne Epp
 
*Hymn Come What May—VT 768
 
*Benediction
 
Postlude— O God, Our Help in Ages Past (Fleischer)— Karen Unruh
 
* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
 
Keyboard- Karen Unruh
Audio visual—Francis Toews

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
October 27, 2024

Christ Candle Lighting

Centering Music— Morning Song [VT 623] (arr. Joseph Martin) (piano)                                                    
Will Wiebe-Friesen

Welcome & Prayer—Elaine Schurr

*Hymn—All Things Bright and Beautiful—VT 177

Children’s Conversation—Jim Robb

Scripture Reading—Genesis 1:1-5—Janet Friesen

*Hymn—Joyous Light of Heavenly Glory—VT 504

Scripture Reading—John 3:17-21—Janet Friesen

Worship Music—True Light (Hampton)—Chancel Choir; Joel Garber, director; Will Wiebe-Friesen, accompanist

Sermon—Connecting the Night and Day—Nathan Koontz

*Hymn—Darkness Is Not Dark to You, God—VT 200

Prayers of God’s People—Dale Schrag, Mara Oswald

*Hymn—Now, on Land and Sea Descending—VT 503
(People with October birthdays come forward for a blessing, please bring a hymnal)

*Birthday Blessing and Benediction

Postlude— Toccata from Suite Gothique (L. Boëllmann) (organ)
Will Wiebe-Friesen

* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Audio visual—Ken Lamp

Sunday morning’s choral anthem melds the energetic spiritual “This Little Light of Mine” with a 10th century text excerpted from Grigor Nerekatzi’s Book of Mournful Chants: “Don’t let the light that you’ve given me die, and don’t desert my mind, but let the one who serves you praise you again and again.” The piano centering music is a setting of the shape-note tune MORNING SONG, found in our hymnal (VT 623) with a moving text by Adam Tice, text editor of Voices Together. The postlude, a spooky and sinister toccata by French composer Léon Boëllmann, brings to mind the line from the anthem, “Hide it under a bushel? No! I’m gonna let it shine!” There’s a lot of hiding under a bushel in this piece, but listen for the final chord when that light really gets to shine. 

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
             October 20, 2024

 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music                    Blessed Jesus (Faure)  
                                                              Chancel Bells; Verlene Garber, director
 
Welcome & Prayer                                     Crystal Gaeddert, Maisie Brubacher

*Hymn                                 I Sing the Mighty Power of God                    VT 182

Children’s Conversation                                                               Verlene Garber
 
Worship Music       Somebody’s Knocking at Your Door (Page)     Chancel Bells
 
*Hymn              O Worship Our God, All Glorious Above                            VT 74
 
Scripture Reading                Job 38:1-7; Psalm 104: 1-9, 24, 35c
                                                                                                     Marion Deckert
 
Sermon                 The Foundations of the Earth                        Joanna Harader
 
*Hymn               We Plow the Fields and Scatter                                       VT 747
 
Prayers of God’s People                                        Adam Robb, Emerson Gering
 
*Hymn                            There’s a Wild Hope in the Wind                        VT 828
 
*Benediction    
                             
Postlude                                                                                     Meghann Rogers
 
* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Keyboard—Meghann Rogers
Audio visual—Francis Toews

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
October 13, 2024 
 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music—There is no shadow... [VT 419]  (Brenda Portman)
Will Wiebe-Friesen
 
Welcome & Prayer—Payne Claassen and Mary Ellen Hodge—VT 854—Mentee/Mentor
           
*Hymn —We Long to Know Her—VT 44
           
Children’s Conversation—Joanna Harader
 
Worship Music—Et in terra pax hominibus– [excerpted from Vivaldi’s Gloria (ca. 1715)]–
Chancel Choir; Joel Garber, director; Will Wiebe-Friesen, accompanist                              
Scripture Reading—Psalm 22:1-15—Hugo Boschmann
 
*Hymn—My God, My God—VT 696
 
Scripture Reading—Job 23:1-9—Hugo Boschmann
 
Sermon—When God Goes Missing—Joanna Harader
 
*Hymn—Joyful Is the Dark—VT 281
 
Prayers of God’s People—Emma Gering and Jill Robb— Mentee/Mentor
 
*Hymn—God, Be the Love—VT 43
 
*Benediction
 
Postlude—I Know That My Redeemer Lives [VT 347] (arr. Dale Wood )
Will Wiebe-Friesen

* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Keyboard- Will Wiebe-Friesen
Audio visual—Ben Lichti

Today’s choral and instrumental music features some creative settings of familiar hymns as well as some unfamiliar languages. The anthem, Et in terra pax hominibus, is excerpted from Vivaldi’s Gloria (ca. 1715), a component of the Latin mass. In English, its text reads: and on earth, peace to persons of good will. The organ setting There is no shadow… was written in 2021 by Brenda Portman and is built on the first verse of the hymn Great is Thy Faithfulness. The postlude, an energetic Easter hymn from the Sacred Harp, continues the themes expressed in the anthem and Psalm reading.

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
October 6, 2024
Bethel College Fall Fest

Prelude–We Praise Your Name (Emma Lou Diemer)–Christopher Shaw                                                       
Christ Candle Lighting

Land Acknowledgment—Lyn Krause

Centering Music—Gloria (Vivaldi)—Bethel College Concert Choir; Dr. Henry Waters, director

Welcome & Prayer—Michael Unruh, Bethel College Campus Pastor

*Hymn–Summoned by the God Who Made Us–VT 1

Children’s Conversation Joanna Harader and Sarah Augustine

Worship Music—I’ll Be On My Way (Shawn Kirchner)—Bethel College Concert Choir

*Hymn—The Church of Christ Cannot Be Bound—VT 392

Scripture Readings—Ephesians 4:1-6 and John 6:35, 41-51–Michael Unruh

Sermon—Bread of Life—Sarah Augustine

Choral Response—A Little Song of Life—(Reginald Unterseher)— Bethel College Concert Choir

Prayers of God’s People—Joanna Harader

*Hymn—Beauty for Brokenness—VT 712

Choral Benediction—The Lord bless you and keep you (Peter C. Lutkin)—
Bethel College Concert Choir

Postlude—Allegro assai vivace, from Sonata No 1 (Mendelssohn)–Christopher Shaw

* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Audio visual—Ben Lichti and Francis Toews

Land Acknowledgement by Mark Charles and VT #878 
As we do on the first Sunday of each month,  
  we acknowledge that we worship  
  on the land of the Kanza, Osage, and Wichita.   
We thank them for their care and respect for this land      
  and acknowledge the injustice of their forced removal. 
We ask the Spirit to heal our histories 
  and find new paths of right relationships with them 
  and all of creation.   

Going Beyond Land Acknowledgement
Join Quarterly Repair Call October 8, 6-8 p.m. for truth-telling legislation on the history of Indian boarding schools.
The Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery is asking advocates for Indigenous justice to join Indigenous organizers from the Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) in supporting this important truthtelling legislation on the history of Indian boarding schools. As this bill makes its way to the floor in both the House and Senate in the coming weeks, now is the time to contact your representatives! We will be specifically focused on learning more about this legislation during our next Quarterly Repair Network Call, and we will also likely hear from a representative from NABS. I hope you can join us for this call on October 8!

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
September 29, 2024
World Communion Celebration
 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music—Morning Song of Praise (Hakes)—Chancel Bells, Verlene Garber, director
 
Welcome & Prayer—Dale Horst
 
*Hymn—From North and South, from East and West—VT 460
 
Children’s Conversation & Birthday Blessing—Jim Robb
 
Worship Music— Abide with me (Moklebust)—Chancel Bells; Lucy Burch on flute
 
Scripture Reading—Psalm 19:7-14; Mark 9:38-50—Pam Epp
 
Sermon—Gatekeepers of God?—Nathan Koontz
 
*Hymn—I Come with Joy—VT 478
 
Communion—Joanna Harader, Elizabeth Schmidt
 
Prayers of God’s People
 
*Hymn—Put Peace into Each Other’s Hands—VT 485
 
*Benediction
 
Postlude—Karen Unruh
* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Keyboard- Karen Unruh
Audio visual—Francis Toews

BETHEL COLLEGE MENNONITE CHURCH
September 22, 2024
International Day of Peace
 
Christ Candle Lighting
 
Centering Music— Give Me Jesus (arr. Lau)— Will Wiebe-Friesen
 
Welcome & Prayer— Lucy Burch & Marlene Ewert
 
*Hymn— In Christ There Is No East or West—VT 390
 
Children’s Conversation— Joanna Harader
 
*Hymn— Come Now, O Prince of Peace— VT 391
 
Psalm & Antiphon—Psalm –Chancel Choir; Joel Garber, director; Will Wiebe-Friesen, accompanist
 
Scripture Reading—Isaiah 26:1-4 & 1 Peter 5:6-9—Ben Janzen
 
Sermon— Cultivating a Culture of Peace— Joanna Harader
 
Worship Music—Verleih uns frieden  (Mendelssohn)—Chancel Choir
 
*Hymn— For the Healing of the Nations— VT 705
 
Prayers of God’s People— Adah Hodge & Barb Koontz
 
Choral Benediction— Peace I Leave You (Amy Beech)— Chancel Choir
 
*Benediction
 
Postlude—Fugue from Sonata No. 6 “Our Father Which Art in Heaven”—(Mendelssohn)—
 Will Wiebe-Friesen
 

* You are invited to stand
VT—Voices Together
Keyboard- Will Wiebe-Friesen
Audio visual—Ken Lamp