Sunday Bulletin
Celebration Service
Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 13th, 2026 9:30 am
Prelude Prelude on “Detroit” (Forgive Our Sins as We Forgive) Gardner Read
Welcome & Announcements
Call to Worship Lay Leader: David Roy
Welcome this day to the house of our God.
We are greeted in peace and in love.
Welcome this day to the worship of our Creator.
We worship in hope and with grace.
Welcome this day to our community of faith,
Where we are sisters and brothers in Christ.
Friends, let us worship God.
Hymn “Let the Whole Creation Cry” #21
Unison Prayer
God of grace, help us live and give in your kingdom of love, where
there are no enemies, only brothers and sisters, and kindness is
the air we breathe.
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Children’s Message
Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains
tremble with its tumult.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the
holy habitation of the Most High.
God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will
help it when the morning dawns.
The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters
his voice, the earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Israel is our refuge.
Come, behold the works of the Lord, see what desolations he
has brought on the earth;
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the
bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
“Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the
nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
The Gloria Patri #35
Passing of the Peace*
The first words of the risen Christ to his followers were “Peace be with you.” May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
And also with you.
Please share Christ’s peace.
Congregation greets one another and shares the peace of Christ.
Anthem “Thanks Be to Thee” Handel
Prayers of the People
Hymn “When Morning Gilds the Skies” #100
Reading John 14:1-14
Message “The Way…of Jesus” Rev. Dan Haugh
Offering
Offertory “March” from The Musical Clocks Haydn
Doxology* #46
Offertory Prayer*
Hymn “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee” #2
Benediction
Closing “Walk with Me”
Postlude “Praise the Lord with Drums and Cymbals” Karg-Elert
Calendar of Events
Monday, 9/14 Noon AA meeting in Fellowship Hall
Tuesday, 9/15 3:30 Annie rehearsal
7:30 AA meeting in Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, 9/16 Noon AA meeting in Fellowship Hall
5:30 Choir Rehearsal in Organ Loft
Thursday, 9/17 3:30 Youth Choir rehearsal
5-7 Annie rehearsal
Happy Birthday this week to:
Kenneth Jennings today 9/13
Joseph Couto, Margery Rains, Anne Salvas and Heather Stowe on 9/15
Anne Alley, Catherine Copeland, Madison Dahl and Barry Kerrigan on 9/16
Katie Kerrigan and Evie Song on 9/18
Guillaume Bouramia on 9/19
Happy Anniversary this week to:
Spencer & Lisa Macalaster on 9/14
Brett & Erica Loomis on 9/17
Bill & Heather Stowe on 9/18
Announcements
Welcome back Dan, Lauretta, Blake and Jack. You were missed.
The ushers today are Annie-Vera Frye and Chris DeRienzo. Thank you for helping today.
Save the Dates:
September 20. 2026 at 4:00 pm service for Blessing of the Animals led by Pastor Dan and Rev. Barbara Purinton at Trapp Family Concert Meadow, rain site Trapp Family Wedding Tent. All well-mannered pets, live and stuffed are welcome! Dogs should be on leashes 6’ or shorter, no flexi leashes, please. Cats and other small animals should be crated. Be sure to bring your own chair or blanket to enjoy the outdoor service.
The Mission and Service Committee is pleased to highlight the North Country Animal League (NCAL) as our September Mission of the Month. NCAL’s mission is to promote compassionate and responsible relationships between people and animals. For more than 30 years, NCAL has cared for vulnerable animals, helped them find loving homes, and provided education and community programs that support animal welfare.
Jacques Du Preez, NCAL’s Executive Director, will speak to our congregation on September 27th during worship. He will share more about NCAL’s work in our community and the many ways we can support their mission.
We are also grateful to NCAL for sponsoring our Blessing of the Animals on September 20th at the Von Trapp Family Lodge & Resort. We hope you and your four-legged friends will join us for this special celebration!
Finally, we invite our congregation to participate in NCAL’s Walk for Animals on Saturday, September 12th. It’s a wonderful way to support NCAL while enjoying a walk with friends, family, and perhaps your favorite canine companion. To register, visit: NCAL Walk for Animals registration.
Musical Notes by Karen Miller
Prelude: Gardner Read (1913-2005) was a composer, teacher, conductor, and author. He was known to his composition students at Boston University as a gruff, demanding, formidable curmudgeon. And yet he did not demand any more from his students than he required of himself. Underneath this persona was really a warm, witty, and charming man. His musical achievements are many and have garnered a substantial number of awards: first prize for his two symphonies, the Eastman School of Music Alumni Achievement award, first prize in the 1986 National Association of Teachers of Singing Art Song Competition. As a conductor he led the St. Louis Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, the Kansas City Philharmonic, and other university orchestras. As a teacher of music composition he taught at the St. Louis Institute of Music, the Kansas City Conservatory of Music, the Cleveland Institute of Music and Boston University. He composed nearly 250 works including an oratorio, numerous works for organ and organ with instruments. He wrote two collections of preludes on old Southern hymns for organ. His "Detroit" is from his first collection.
Anthem: George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) was a German-born composer and and organist who based most of his career in England where he became a citizen in 1726. He wrote numerous operas and oratorios. His "Thanks Be to Thee" is a choral piece celebrating God's bringing forth his people Israel safely through the sea. The text reads:
Thanks be to Thee, Lord God of Hosts; Thou broughtest forth with mighty hand Israel safe through the sea.Lord, Thou hast led us as a shepherd; Lord, with Thine hand tenderly in ages past Thy people has led.
Offertory: Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) was an Austrian-born composer of pure German stock. He was not from a musical family but his musical precocity was evident early on and at age 5 he was given into the care of a schoolmaster who taught him the rudiments of music. After a struggling start he entered the wealthy Esterhazy household where he remained for 30 years. He was responsible for the orchestra and chamber ensembles for which he wrote many symphonies, string quartets, and chamber works. He did not write for the organ, but he did write some works for musical clocks that were later adapted for the organ. His "March" is a good example.
Postlude: Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933) was a German composer, pianist, and organist who was professor at Leipzig Conservatory from 1919, succeeding Max Reger. He performed concerts on piano, harmonium, and organ and wrote extensively for keyboard instruments. Between 1913 and 1923 he wrote his Portraits, 33 short pieces in the style of different composers. Volume 1 - Palestrina to Berlioz; Volume 2 - Chopin to Schonberg. His "Praise to the Lord with the Drums and Cymbals" is his piece depicting his concept of the style of Handel.