The Rt. Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton
Presider

The Rev. Brian D. McLaren
Preacher

J. Veronica Biggins
Reader

The Chautauqua Choir

Joshua Stafford
Director and Organist

Sunday Morning Worship
We invite you to quietly prepare your hearts for worship during the Prelude. *Denotes that the congregation is invited to rise in body or spirit.It is our custom to sing the first and last verses of hymns in unison;the interior verses may be sung in parts.

Prelude
Prelude in G Major, BWV 541 

J.S. Bach, ca. 1712, rev. 1733

Welcome & Announcements

The Rt. Rev. Eugene Sutton

Call to Worship*

Psalm 103:1–5

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless God’s holy Name! 

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all the gifts of God. 

O God, you forgive all our sins. 

You heal all our diseases. 

You redeem our life from the grave. 

You crown us with mercy and loving-kindness. 

You satisfy us with good things, 

and our youth is renewed like an eagle’s. 

Bless the Lord, O my soul! 

And all that is within me, bless God’s holy Name! 

Hymn*
"Holy, holy, holy!"

Nicæa, John Bacchus Dykes, 1861
Reginald Heber, 1827, alt.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty;
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore thee,
casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea!
Cherubim and seraphim, falling down before thee,
who wert, and art, and evermore shall be.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea!
Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty;
God in three persons, blessed Trinity! Amen.

Prayer of Confession

Psalm 51, para. Stephen Mitchell 

Forgive me, Lord, in your mercy; in your great love blot out my sin. 

Lighten the weight of my offense; free my mind from its burden. 

I am deeply conscious of my guilt; my sin is almost unbearable. 

My heart is breaking with remorse and the shame of what I have done. 

I know that you love the truth; teach me to live in wholeness. 

Cleanse my spirit; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 

Take away my guilt; wipe out every last trace of my sin. 

Return me to myself and make me as pure as a newborn child. 

Fill me with peace and gladness; let the bones that you crushed rejoice. 

Create a pure heart within me; let my soul wake up in your light. 

Open me to your presence; flood me with your holy spirit. 

Then I will stand and sing out the power of your forgiveness. 

Assurance of Pardon

John 4:14

Hear these words from holy scripture, “Those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of living water.” Our sins are forgiven. 

The Passing of The Peace

May the peace of God be always with you. 
And also with you. 

You are invited to greet your neighbor saying, “Peace be with you.”

Anthem
“Break thou the bread of life” 

David M. Kellermeyer, 1983
“Study Song for Chautauqua,” Mary Lathbury, 1877

Break thou the bread of life, dear Lord, to me,
as thou didst break the loaves beside the sea. 
Beyond the sacred page I seek thee, Lord.
My spirit pants for thee, O living Word!

Bless thou the truth, dear Lord, now unto me,
as thou didst bless the bread by Galilee.
Then shall all bondage cease, all fetters fall.
And I shall find my peace, my all in all.

Thou art the Bread of Life, O Lord, to me,
Thy holy word the truth that saveth me;
Give me me to eat and live with thee above;
teach me to love thy truth, for thou art love.

Prayers of the People

Gracious and loving God, 
we come before you with hearts full of gratitude, 
with beauty before our eyes, 
and Light shining on us and in us. 

In you there is no shadow of turning; 
your compassion never fails, 
and new mercies greet us every morning. 

In summer’s lush green and spring’s bloom, 
in fall’s golden yield to winter’s silence, 
in every season, 
all of creation sings of your love and goodness. 

We join with all nature in witness to your love, 
for the peace that settles our restless hearts, 
and for your guiding presence with us each day. 

Gracious and Loving God, 
We thank you for all the blessings of this life. 

Grant us strength for today, 
wisdom from yesterday’s lessons, 
and a hope that carries us into tomorrow. 

You have supplied us with all that we need 
to do the work you have given us to do; 

Great is thy faithfulness, O God! 
Amen.

The Prayer that Jesus Taught

Our Father, 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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

Hymn*
“Great is thy faithfulness” 

Faithfulness, Thomas O. Chisholm, 1923
William Marion Runyan, 1923

Invitation to the Offering

Offeratory Anthem
Antiphon from Five Mystical Songs

Ralph Vaughan Williams, 1911 
George Herbert, The Temple, 1633

Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing, 
My God and King.

The heav’ns are not too high,
His praise may thither flie:
The earth is not too low,
His praises there may grow.

Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing, 
My God and King.

The church with psalms must shout,
No doore can keep them out:
But above all, the heart
Must bear the longest part.

Let all the world in ev’ry corner sing, 
My God and King.

Presentation of the Offering

Our Sunday offering supports not only the ministry of Chautauqua Institution’s Department of Religion, but also a tithe of your contribution is directed to organizations that meet the urgent needs of our neighbors in Chautauqua County. We thank you for your generosity! Gifts and offerings may be made by check payable to the Department of Religion, or you may donate online by visiting https://giving.chq.org/religion

The Doxology*

Old 100th

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; 
Praise Christ, all creatures here below; 
Praise Holy Spirit evermore; 
Praise Triune God, whom we adore. Amen.

Reading From Scripture
Genesis 1:24–31 

J. Veronica Biggins, Reader

God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind and the cattle of every kind and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 

Then God said, “Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” So God created humankind in his own image, in the divine image God created them; male and female God made them.

And God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth - and be responsible for it!” Watch over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all living things on the earth. And God said, “Look! I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to all the animals of the earth and the birds of the air and to everything that crawls on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 

God saw everything that had been made, and proclaimed that indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

The Word of God for the People of God.
Thanks be to God. 

Sermon
Rediscovering the Bible for Our Troubled Times 

The Rev. Brian D. McLaren

Hymn*
“I love to tell the story” 

Hankey, William G. Fischer, 1869
Katherine Hankey, 1866; ref. William G. Fischer, 1869

Blessing and Dismissal

John 15:13, 17

No one has greater love than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
We are given this commandment so that we may love one another.

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord and each other. 
Thanks be to God! 

Postlude
Fugue in G Major, BWV 577 

J.S. Bach, 1707

You are invited to remain seated for the postlude.

Flower Dedications

The flowers on the stage are given by the Department of Religion in loving memory of The Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell.

Weekday Morning Worship at 9:15 A.M.
Amphitheater, The Rev. Brian D. McLaren

Mon 8/18 The Biblical Law as Traditioned Innovation *

Tues 8/19 The Biblical Prophets as Visionaries of a Renewed Tradition *

Wed 8/20 Jesus as Interpreter of Tradition 

Thu 8/21 Paul’s Tradition in Travail 

Fri 8/22 Apocalypse as Tradition Disrupter

*Please note: gates will close Monday and Tuesday at the beginning of the sermon in anticipation of high attendance at the Chautauqua Lecture Series

Happening Today

10:15 a.m. Sunday School (Ages 3–Grade 6) Children’s School

4:30 p.m. Blessing of the Animals Miller Park, Weather Permitting

5 p.m. Palestine Park Tour Near Miller Bell Tower, Weather Permitting Sponsored by The Reverend Noel A. Calhoun, Jr., D.D. Fund

5:30 p.m. Massey Organ Tour Amphitheater Stage

8 p.m. Sacred Song Service: Ever Living, Ever Striving, Ever Forming Amphitheater

Interfaith Lectures at 2 P.M.
Hall of Philosophy, Past Informs Present: Traditioned Innovation in Spiritual Life 

Mon 8/18 Elan Babchuck 

Tues 8/19 Wendy Horwitz

Wed 8/20 Becca Stevens

Thu 8/21 Haroon Moghul

Fri 8/22 Russell Moore

Wednesday Organ Concert at 12:15 P.M.
Amphitheater, Joshua Stafford, organist

Join the Chautauqua Choir

Thu 6:15 p.m. Rehearsal at Fletcher Hall
Fri 6:15 p.m. Rehearsal at Fletcher Hall
Sat 6:15 p.m. Rehearsal at Fletcher Hall

We invite you to join us and sing with the Chautauqua Choir this season. This group is open to anyone who has experience singing in choirs and the ability to read music, and requires members attend at least one out of three weekly rehearsals, though two or more rehearsals are preferred. Our preference is for members to sing both Sunday Morning and Sunday Evening services, though it is possible to sing only one or the other. Questions can be directed to choir@chq.org or by calling the choir library at 716-357-6321. To register ahead of rehearsals, scan the QR code above.

Chautauqua Institution
Department of Religion

Melissa Spas
Vice President of Religion

The Rt. Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton
Senior Pastor

Joshua Stafford
Director of Sacred Music & The Jared Jacobsen Chair Organist

Owen Reyda
Organ Scholar

Laura Smith
Organ Scholar

Carolyn Snider
Administrative Assistant

Annie Leech
Coordinator of Religious Education

Alicen Roberts
Student Minister