WORSHIP PLAYLIST: Anoka United Church of Christ
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Welcome
We’re in the “season after Epiphany” now, a season that comes rather unremarkably
for all that it is bookended by Jesus’s Baptism and his Transfiguration. For the next few
weeks in our worship (and for some weeks thereafter) we will focus on a variety of
readings from the Gospels, many of which are prominent and well known. Today we start
with, “In the beginning was the Word…” from the Gospel of John, a “Christmas” story—of
a sort—that involves no angels, shepherds, or magi. We visit also the book of Proverbs to
see how the Logos pairs up with Sophia, the embodiment of Wisdom and a vestige of the
Feminine Divine in our religious tradition. In so doing, you are invited to grapple with the
thorny problem of patriarchy and masculinity as they inform both Scripture and recent
events in the world today. Peace be with you!
WORSHIP PLAYLIST:
If you are inclined to watch every video in this worship service, you may find it convenient to
use this playlist. You’ll only need to pause and unpause playback as needed (you may need to
skip advertisements as usual); the videos will auto-run in the correct order.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL14NES9h705WhMeBmba8rFN-NSVJT4cw4
Prelude Waltz Op. 39 No. 1 J. Brahms
Koki Sato, Pianist
https://youtu.be/6DNf5x1_8wQ
The Church Bell Rings
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAyLgHuPB6QCall to Worship and Opening Prayer
The Call is adapted in part from Psalm 51. Please join Erin and Co. as they lead us.
https://youtu.be/-tUtEH1Dhrk
One: Holy One, you long for us to embrace truth in our innermost selves; teach us
such wisdom!
Many: Expunge from me all deception, that I may shine like the sun on new-fallen
snow.
One: Let my ears receive happy sounds of joy, and let my weary bones rejoice!
Many: Create in me a heart of hospitality and love, O God, and put a fierce and just
spirit within me.
One: Restore to me joy at the Good News of your salvation, that my spirit might
blossom in your embrace.
Many: Then I will witness to your truth and teach those who do wrong the joys of
your way.
One: Let us pray.
Many: In days of bloodshed and hate, O God of my salvation, I will sing loud songs
of your deliverance. My heart is willing; open it with your grace, that I might
do good according to your will. Encourage me and send me out to tell of your
mercies day by day, bringing the news of your healing love to all who suffer in
the grip of lies. Open my lips, that my mouth shall declare your praise!
Alleluia! Amen!
Choir Anthem “O God beyond All Praising” Holst; arr. Hopson
Don Shier chose this anthem for today. The choir sang this on 10/15/2017
https://youtu.be/U_rVFeZQg28
O God beyond all praising, we worship you today
and sing the love amazing that songs cannot repay;
for we can only wonder at ev’ry gift you send,
at blessings without number and mercies without end:
we lift our hearts before you and wait upon your word,
we honor and adore you, our great and mighty Lord.
Alleluia.
Then hear, O gracious Savior, accept the love we bring,
that we who know your favor may serve you as our King;
And whether our tomorrows be filled with good or ill,
we’ll triumph through our sorrows and rise to bless you still:
To marvel at your beauty and glory in your ways,
and make a joyful duty our sacrifice of praise.
Alleluia.
2Children’s Time Tisa Zachau
https://youtu.be/PbiixpPxARA
After watching Tisa’s message, watch the video below,
a reading of Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin (illus. Mary Azarian).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q_-K24Oaas
Prayer of Preparation “Pour Out Your Spirit” Christopher Grundy
Sing along. He sings it through twice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djc888CH_Lc
From the sacred waters of my birth,
to the sacred waters of this hour,
I have leaned upon you who knit me in my mother’s womb.
O pour out your Spirit now.
Scripture Readings
Please listen as Erin reads.
https://youtu.be/L-05cDyPNok
John 1:1-14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2
He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and
without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4 in him was
life, and the life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the
darkness did not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was
John. 7 He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through
him. 8 He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. 9 The true
light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world,
and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. 11 He
came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. 12 But to all who
received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, 13
who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of
God. 14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory,
the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth.
Proverbs 8:22-36
The LORD created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago. 23
Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. 24 When there
were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with
water. 25 Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought
forth-- 26 when he had not yet made earth and fields, or the world's first bits of soil.
327
When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of
the deep, 28 when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains
of the deep, 29 when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not
transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 then I
was beside him, like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him
always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race. 32 And
now, my children, listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways. 33 Hear
instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. 34 Happy is the one who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. 35 For whoever finds me finds
life and obtains favor from the LORD; 36 but those who miss me injure themselves; all
who hate me love death."
One: Hear what the Spirit is saying to the church;
Many: Thanks be to God!
Sermon Rev. Chris McArdle
Look to the end of the bulletin for YouTube links to content referenced in this sermon.
https://youtu.be/T_hDTAnBriY
Special Music “Being Alive” Stephen Sondheim
This performance from the 2019 Olivier Awards features Rosalie Craig as “Bobbie,”
a role written originally as “Bobby” and originated by Dean Jones.
Most roles in this production were gender-flipped, meaning that women played roles written for men,
and men played roles written for women. The pandemic has delayed the staging of this show on Broadway.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDCkZCsvabY
Someone to hold you too close / Someone to hurt you too deep
Someone to sit in your chair / And ruin your sleep
Someone to need you too much / Someone to know you too well
Someone to pull you up short / To put you through hell
Someone you have to let in / Someone whose feelings you spare
Someone who, like it or not / Will want you to share / A little a lot
Someone to crowd you with love / Someone to force you to care
Someone to make you come through / Who'll always be there / As frightened as you
Of being alive…
Somebody hold me too close / Somebody hurt me too deep
Somebody sit in my chair / And ruin my sleep
And make me aware / Of being alive…
Somebody need me too much / Somebody know me too well
Somebody pull me up short / And put me through hell / And give me support
For being alive / Make me alive
Make me alive / Make me confused / Mock me with praise
Let me be used / Vary my days
But alone / Is alone / Not alive
4Somebody crowd me with love / Somebody force me to care
Somebody let come through / I'll always be there / As frightened as you
To help us survive / Being alive…
A Prayer for the People – “A Prayer for a Drowning Nation”
On this day before Martin Luther King Jr. Day and in the midst of unrest and danger,
we look to our denominational leadership for a word of prayer and hope.
The Reverend Shari Prestemon, Conference Minister of the Minnesota Conference of the United Church of
Christ, wrote this prayer in the days following the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
God of magnificent power and tender care, we need you in this hour.
The waters of division and violence have come up to our necks. We are drowning in
waves of lies and unrest. Our feet sink in the mire of evils our nation has not yet
conquered. We are weary with worry and waiting.
O God, grant to us the clear-eyed courage to face the hard truths that haunt this
nation. Focus our gaze on the white supremacy that chokes us, the fear and anger
that hold us in their grip. Help us see our own failings, and not just those of others.
Hear our confessions, and strengthen our reckoning.
You are both staunch defender of justice and boundless vessel of mercy. Grant us
the resolve of prophets in seeking what is righteous and good. But also teach us
grace and fill our hearts with uncommon love. Pour balm on our tattered
spirits. Weave us together. Instill wisdom and hope sufficient to this moment. Make
of us your Church, witnesses to your vision for a better country and future.
We praise you, Mighty God, even now in this chaos and confusion. For you are ever
with us, your steadfast love endures forever. You will deliver us from this trouble of
our own creation. You will rebuild our broken cities and repair our strained
relationships. You journey with us on this rocky, stumbling path.
We offer our thanksgiving, and we call upon your help and presence. Save us from
the waters that overwhelm us. Save us from ourselves. Amen.
Sung Prayer “Take, O Take Me as I Am” John L. Bell
Sing along as you might in church.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGOKRzfK1g8
Take, O take me as I am.
Summon out what I shall be.
Set your seal upon my heart and live in me.
5Prayer of Our Savior
The Prayer has many versions; pray whichever you desire (debts, sins, trespasses, etc.).
We affirm that God has many names, so use one of the suggested or another of your choosing.
Our Father/Mother/Creator, 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, forever. Amen.
Offering Text-to-Give: 844-334-1477
Thank you for your faithful, ongoing support of our church and its ministries!
You may mail your pledges and offering to:
First Congregational Church 1923 3rd Avenue Anoka, MN 55303
We also have an ongoing contract with Vanco Services to provide online contribution support.
If you have not already done so, go to our website and click the DONATE button at the top of the page.
From there, you may set up an online profile and direct funds to the
church from your bank account in a one-time or recurring donation.
http://www.uccanoka.org
Benediction
https://youtu.be/e93HR4oYfWA
If I had words to make a day for you,
I’d sing you a morning golden and new.
I would make this day last for all time,
Give you a night deep in moon shine.
Congregational Blessing “God Be With You” Dorsey/Hutchins
Sing along.
https://youtu.be/pknh8nOLGAg
Postlude Waltz Op. 39 No. 2 J. Brahms
Koki Sato, Pianist
https://youtu.be/9kSzR2xEPTI
Acknowledgements
The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright
©1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the
U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
6Sermon Text
This week the news came out that Pope Francis had formally amended Canon law to allow women
to serve as Lectors and Acolytes. At least in America, this wasn’t a huge change; regional Bishops already
had that prerogative—but the change made this a mandate across the world. The reactions I’ve seen are
varied. Some have celebrated the moment as a step forward toward justice when it comes to how the
church embraces gender. Others have scoffed, pointing out—accurately—that women are still barred
from ordination and until the Pope changes that, every other change is just crumbs from the table. Would
that there were a Syrophoenician Woman who might point out to the ones in charge, “But sirs, even the
dogs eat the crumbs that fall,” and bring about a change of heart in the Church as profound as the one
that women wrought in Jesus.
Women have long been barred from ministerial service across the Church, with the ones holding
power leaning hard into 1 Timothy 2:12-14, “I permit no woman to teach or have authority over a man; she
is to keep silent; for Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was
deceived and became a transgressor.” Nevermind that a close reading of that story reveals that Adam was
right there all along, and that it had been his job to make sure Eve knew the rules God had spoken directly
to him. The legacy of this terrible verse resounds throughout the church, with many denominational
pulpits denied to women—and even when women have risen up to challenge that, such as in the Southern
Baptist Convention, they are often treated as rebels and lawbreakers.
The sad part about this is that the Bible is very clear about the role and value of women, offering us
dozens of stories of powerful, influential women who change the world for the better. Eve asserts herself
in a way that shows Adam as passive—bending gender roles from the beginning, if we can acknowledge it.
The Hebrew Midwives defy Pharaoh and save thousands of innocent lives. Miriam contributes to her
brother’s salvation and then becomes a vibrant prophet who fulfills the ancient role of victory-singer.
Rahab offers safety and salvation to the Israelite spies. Deborah leads Israelites to victory against the
dread army of Sisera. Rizpah defies David and defends the bodies of her slain children from creatures who
would defile them, earning David’s admiration. And in some of the oldest and most profound writing in
the Bible, the author of Proverbs celebrates the personification of Wisdom, Divine Sophia, who is depicted
as the first of all God’s creations, celebrating and working alongside God in the creation of everything that
follows.
Indeed, in the Gospels women often leave a powerful mark upon Jesus. It’s clear from context that
they bankroll his ministry—much as they did Paul’s. Jesus shows deference to his mother in John at the
Cana wedding. Two of his closest friends appear to be Mary and Martha of Bethany. Women remain
faithful until Jesus’s end, watching and mourning his death, and returning to his tomb on Easter morning
to wash and anoint his body. In all four Gospels, it is to Mary Magdalene that the risen Jesus first reveals
himself. History suggests that Mary was revered in the early church, with some speculating that she was
one of Jesus’s closest companions. That understanding makes it easier to see how the seeds of Titus are
already planted when we begin to see those same women sidelined. The “Twelve” are all men, and divine
power is shared with them, not with women. John’s “birth” story is perhaps the most striking example of
all, for when John argues that Jesus is the eternal Word (Logos), that Word seems very much to
appropriate the role of Divine Sophia. Some deem this erasure.
Nonetheless, the Gospels are a place where the contributions of women are discernible and
important. And perhaps also there, in John’s majestic opening, we receive a grim foreshadowing: “He
came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.” The verse clearly refers to the death he
would face at the hands of the State. But a reading of the New Testament in the likeliest chronological
order invites us to interpret the foreshadowing a bit differently. Even as Jesus seems to supplant Sophia in
the Gospels, his ministry is still one mostly of gentleness. He preaches a peace that comes from justice. He
7preaches nonviolence, telling his followers to “turn the other cheek” and even to lower their swords when
he is arrested. Some interpret the Resurrection a miraculous repudiation of State-sanctioned violence.
As men asserted their control of the Church in its earliest days, did they chafe at a less-masculine
depiction of Jesus? We know the domination of masculinity is ancient—and we know how much authority
the silent-women verses are given in many places in the Church. Did they try to rewrite the script? I’m not
sure how else to explain the transformation of Jesus into the aggressive, sword-wielding, army-
commanding avenger of Revelation. If we see the seeds of that transformation in Sophia becoming Logos,
those seeds definitely sprout and grow as women are told to be submissive to their husbands even as the
church submits to Jesus. If a chronological read of the New Testament begins with women in the pulpit,
by the end that calling has clearly been forcibly withdrawn.
Over the last 20 years or so, I’ve noticed how some theatrical productions will make nontraditional
casting choices. The most prominent example of this must be the musical Hamilton, in which Lin-Manuel
Miranda cast people of color as the Founding Fathers and Mothers. The original staging of Harry Potter
and the Cursed Child featured Noma Dumezweni—a black woman—as Hermione Granger, a role played by
white actor Emma Watson in the movies. While these examples are recent, this year also saw the 20th
anniversary of MisCast, an annual fundraiser of the MCC Theater in New York. MisCast is a concert-style
presentation of musical theatre songs, performed by some of the most popular Broadway stars of the
year, in which songs usually sung by men are sung by women, and vice versa. Another organization,
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, does the same thing when they raise money for AIDS-related charities
and the Actors Fund for financially insecure theatre veterans.
Thankfully, gender-bent Broadway is more than just an occasional one-off to raise money. From
time to time, we see casting directors choosing someone of a different gender to play certain roles. The
2017 revival of Once on this Island cast Alex Newell, a genderfluid veteran of the television show Glee who
uses he/him pronouns, as the god Asaka, Mother of the Earth. In 2015, Patina Miller won a Tony for the
role of “Leading Player” in Pippin, a role originated by Ben Vereen. Whoopi Goldberg took over for Nathan
Lane as Pseudolus in the 1996 revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum by Stephen
Sondheim. The one that thrills me the most, though, is how a London cast of Sondheim’s Company
gender-bent the show, casting people of different genders for nearly every role. Sadly, the opening of the
Broadway production, still directed by Marianne Elliott, was delayed indefinitely by the pandemic. In that
production, the lead role of Bobby, a devoted bachelor with an extensive dating history originally played in
1970 by Dean Jones, was to be played by Tony-winning Katrina Lenk. The influence of this production was
so profound that Stephen Sondheim himself told the director that he could no longer imagine the show
cast any other way.
If only gender roles in the rest of the world were so easy to change. I remain convinced that one
factor feeding the frenzy at the Capitol last week was the reality that the next Vice President of the United
States will be a woman. Old friends of mine have even shouted on social media that Kamala Harris is
pulling the strings, and they expect President Biden to either die or resign quickly. Given how evangelical
culture has so avidly embraced a President who revels in masculinity, I cannot help but see that in our
society, the masculinization of the New Testament has played a role in leading us to this moment. Is it
time—or even long past time—for us to gender-bend the Gospels? For someone to produce a Hollywood
production of Jesus Christ: Superstar or Godspell with a woman as Jesus. Such a choice would no doubt
reveal exactly where the friction points are in our world, even as it demonstrated that the Good News will
not be limited by our too-often-harmful traditions about gender. To our exceeding detriment, that is a
lesson we as a people still resist. Our fear of emasculation causes us to reject the gift of demasculinization.
Come to think of it, it might be that the Church has already opened one door toward reversing
some of those ancient steps. For each Advent, we embrace a hymn that celebrates Divine Wisdom, albeit
not with her name “Sophia.” You know it:
8O Come, O Wisdom from on high
and order all things far and nigh
To us the path of knowledge show,
and help us in that way to go…
Come, O Wisdom, O Sophia. Help us see how the ways we have ordered our world have led to ruin. Show
us the path of knowledge. Strengthen our resolve, that we might set our feet on a Way that embraces
gender without demonizing any expression of it. Show us that, in the end, there has always been far more
about Being Alive than our limited, mortal minds have understood. In your holy name we pray; Amen!
You can watch the referenced performances on YouTube:
Patina Miller in Pippin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X28j-m_11lc (If you ever watched
Madam Secretary you may recognize her!)
Whoopi Goldberg in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syF10SAWXZo
Here’s an official video of Alex Newell singing, “Mama Will Provide” from Once on this Island:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBl9ooH-W5E (You can see more of Alex in the current show
Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.)
Here’s a commercial for the aforementioned Broadway staging of Company:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFtJsSYa1A8 (It features cuts from the London production and
interview clips from the director and creator.)
First Congregational Church UCC, Anoka, MN
1923 Third Avenue, Anoka, MN 55303 (763) 421-3375
Pastor – Rev. Chris McArdle
Director of Music Ministries – Don Shier
Keyboardist – Koki Sato
Pastor of Ministerial Support – Rev. Curt Johnson
Moderator – Mike Nelson
Website: http://www.uccanoka.org Email: office@uccanoka.org
Text-to-Give: 844-334-1477
First Congregational Church, UCC of Anoka is an Open and Affirming Christian Community for all. We affirm
that the image of God is most fully reflected in diversity. We invite all people to share their energy and talents
in full participation with our community. We welcome all individuals and families of any sexual orientation,
gender, gender identity, gender expression, relationship status, race, national origin, socioeconomic status,
age, mental and physical health or ability, or belief. Together, we celebrate these and all other facets of one’s
essential being.
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