3/15/26 Bulletin
UNION CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF HANCOCK
We respect tradition — and we welcome inclusive language about people and expansive language about God. Please pray using words most meaningful to you.
Open and Affirming of ALL God’s Children
Fuera ICE by Nicolette Faison (Artist Statement at back of bulletin)
Inspired by Deuteronomy 24:17-22 16”x20” Acrylic, marker, paper on canvas
March 15, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. – Fourth Sunday of Lent
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 839 3635 9115
Passcode: 776780
The first pew in front of the pulpit has books and quiet activities for people of all ages.
Please find something that suits you, take it to your pew, and return it after the service.
Fourth Sunday of Lent - the good news is... protection and care for the vulnerable
Silent Prayer
Holy Spirit, open my eyes to the quiet ways your kin-dom is already breaking in. So often I look for big signs when the truth is that you move through small mercies, everyday kindness, and ordinary acts of courage. Help me notice the places where healing is budding and justice is taking root. Let these glimpses of your movement steady my hope and soften my heart. And as I see the work you are already doing, draw me into it with humility and trust. Amen
* Indicates when we stand in body or spirit.
Announcements
Prelude Art Thou Weary, Art Thou Languid? Tune: Stephanos/ Baker/ Diemer
Welcome
*Introit Come and Find the Quiet Center (tune: Beach Spring)
Come and find the qui-et cen-ter in the crowd-ed life we lead; / Find the room for hope to en-ter, / Find the frame where we are freed; / Clear the cha-os and the clut-ter, / Clear our eyes, that we can see / All the things that real-ly mat-ter, / Be at peace, and sim-ply be.
*Call to Worship
One: God loves the field mouse.
All: God loves the crows that take flight when church bells ring.
One: God loves the baby, cooing in the back pew.
All: God loves the child who rocks and claps.
One: God loves the one with wrinkled hands and soft eyes.
All: God loves the bumblebees and the tabby cats.
One: God loves those who walk, crawl, and roll.
All: God loves the giant oaks and the evergreens, standing strong over all of us.
One: God loves the young, the impressionable, and the earnest.
All: There is no bit of creation that God does not love.
One: So let us worship this good-news God!
All: Amen
*Passing the Peace (ASL) and Lighting Peace & Justice Candle
*Hymn Jesus Loves Me R. #103
Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so.Little ones to him belong; they are weak, but he is strong.
Refrain:Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.
Jesus loves me! This I know, as he loved so long ago,taking children on his knee, saying, "Let them come to me."
Refrain:
Jesus loves me! Still today, walking with me on my way,
Wanting as a friend to give light and love to all who live.
Refrain:
*Invocation (in unison)
Holy One, sometimes the simplest of your commands are the hardest for us to hear. You say, “Love your enemy.” “Turn the other cheek.” “Care for the widow and the orphan.” And we want to know: How? When? Where? Today as we turn to your word, open up space in us to simply hear your truth for what it is. Open up space in our hearts to dream new dreams, to imagine new realities, to draw closer to you and closer to love. With hope for a better tomorrow, we listen, we pray. Amen
Children’s Message
Call to Confession
Family of Faith, every week of Lent we are praying the Prayer of Confession, because every week we need to be reminded of God’s abundant grace. Every week we need to be reminded of God’s love. Every week we need to be reminded that we too can grow and change. So join me in this moment of honesty as we seek transformation. Friends, let us pray:
Prayer of confession & Words of forgiveness
(Includes scripture verses from Leviticus 19:33, Matthew 5:9, Deuteronomy 24:21, Matthew 19:14, and Isaiah 43:1.)
God said, “When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them.” Holy God, we confess, we have mistreated the immigrants in our land.
Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”
We confess, we have clung to guns and war more than we have pursued peace. God said, “When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, do not glean what is left; it shall be for the alien, the orphan, and the widow.”
We confess, we have hoarded our resources and failed to care for our neighbors. Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them.”
We confess, we have gatekept the good news in unfair ways.
Fortunately for all of us, God also said, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.”
By God’s grace, despite our sin and shortcomings, we are redeemed, claimed, forgiven, and loved.
May this good news change our lives!
Amen
Scriptures Matthew 19:13-15; Deuteronomy 24:21-22
Special Music I Wander By the Sea Dale Wood
Message Rev. TJ Mack
*Hymn Diverse in Culture, Nation, Race R. #372
Diverse in culture, nation, race, we come together by Your grace.
God, let us be a meeting ground where hope and healing love are found.
God, let us be a bridge of care connecting people everywhere.Help us confront all fear and hate and lust for pow’r that separate.
When chasms widen, storms arise, O Holy Spirit, make us wise.Let our resolve, like steel, be strong to stand with those who suffer wrong.
God, let us be a table spread with gifts of love and broken bread
where all find welcome, grace attends, and enemies arise as friends.
Prayers of the People – Sharing Joys & Concerns
Our Father (Creator, Mother) 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. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen
Lead me Lord, lead me in thy righteousness, make thy way plain before my face.
For it is thou Lord, thou Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety.
Invitation to Offering The New Century Hymnal #842
Having received new life through the generosity of God and the hope Christ brings, let us give thankfully and abundantly that we may be called God’s generous people.
Offertory Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross Tune: William Doane/ R. Hebble
*The Doxology
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below;
Praise God for all that love has done; Creator, Christ, and Spirit, One. Amen
*Prayer of Dedication The New Century Hymnal #845
O God, most merciful and gracious, of whose bounty we have all received: accept, we pray, this offering of your people. Remember in your love those who have brought it and those for whom it is given; and so follow it with your blessing that it may promote peace and goodwill among all people and advance the realm of our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen
*Hymn O For A World R. #500
O for a world where everyone respects each other's ways,
where love is lived and all is done with justice and with praise.
O for a world where goods are shared and misery relieved,
Where truth is spoken, children spared, and equality achieved.
We welcome one world family and struggle with each choice
that opens us to unity and gives our vision voice.
The poor are rich, the weak are strong, the foolish ones are wise.
Tell all who mourn; outcasts belong, who perishes will rise.
O for a world preparing for God's glorious reign of peace,
where time and tears will be no more, and all but love will cease.
*Benediction
*Sung Benediction Go With Us, Lord R. #336
Go with us, Lord, and guide the way through this and every coming day,
That in your Spirit strong and true our lives may be our gift to you.
Postlude Fantasia on “Salvation” The Southern Harmony David Paxton
(Please remain seated for the Postlude)
If you are visiting with us today, please sign our Guest Book
in the back of the sanctuary.
Support our Church Financially
Please visit Hancock (Maine) UCC on Facebook or our webpage www.hancockucc.com
or visit this link to our PayPal account: paypal.me/hancockucc
or mail offerings to:
Union Congregational Church, PO Box 443, Hancock, ME 04640 (Attention: Treasurer)
Contact Us
Vicky – hancockmaineucc@gmail.com – 207.422.3100
Jennifer – treasurer@hancockucc.com
TJ – revtjmack@gmail.com – 207.323.6743
Many thanks to those who make this service possible –
in front of the camera and behind the scenes.
Music Minister – Debbie Riley
Deacons – Nick & Mary Angela Davis
Liturgist – Cindy Fox
Audio-Video Support – Mike Summerer
Office Administrator – Vicky Espling
Settled Minister – Rev. TJ Mack
The Body of Christ – You
Resources: A Sanctified Art
The New Century Hymnal (B.) Hymns of Truth and Light (R.)
Copyright © 1995 The Pilgrim Press Copyright © 1998 First Congregational
Church of Huston, Texas
"Permission to podcast / stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE, License #A-738532. All rights reserved.
Come and Find the Quiet Center (BEACH SPRING)
Words and Music - ©1992, 2021 Hope Publishing Company
Contributors: Shirley Erena Murray, Joe Galyon
Jesus Loves Me
Words and Music - © Oregon Catholic Press
Contributors: JESUS LOVES ME, William Bradbury
Diverse In Culture, Nation, Race
Words - ©1992 GIA Publications, Inc.
Contributors: Ruth Duck
Go with Us, Lord
Words - ©1990 Hope Publishing Company
Contributors: Mary Jackson Cathey
Fuera ICE15 by Nicolette Faison
Inspired by Deuteronomy 24:17-22 16”x20” Acrylic, marker, paper on canvas
They keep taking my neighbors. Chicago and other cities associated with the Democratic party are going through a humanitarian crisis under a fascist regime. Cars are being left vacant on random blocks and parking lots. People are being disappeared while their children are being zip-tied at 3 a.m. We clergy and religious leaders have been shot with pepper spray and rubber bullets while demanding the freedom of our neighbors. No one deserves to live like this. This piece does not truly capture the pain I hold every day, between keeping track of what is happening in Gaza, resisting fascism, and dealing with yet another economic collapse under capitalism.
But let me tell you something good. . . I still believe in humanity. When I watched people in Gaza prepare basic meals to break their fast during Ramadan during a genocide, I saw something good. When local neighbors saw our public vigil for disappeared people and chose to join us for a time of lament, I saw something good. When Colin Kaepernick paid for the independent autopsy of one of the Black men recently lynched,16 I saw something good. The good is people still choosing to be empathetic and compassionate in times of crisis. That is what Christ calls us to be.
The stranger who enters foreign land is often forced to flee their own home. It is rare for people to risk their entire livelihood and their family for anything other than necessity. For that reason, each portrait has a halo deeming them holy, sacred, and divine. I used sparkling gold paper to break up each distinct image. Look deeply at these portraits. The top left is inspired by the Maasai people, a nomadic group that dwells across borders. The top right image is an indigenous woman and her child, a nod to Mary and Jesus. She has a red palm across her mouth which is a tribute to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and “Two-Spirit” people. The bottom left is a slightly aging man from Mesoamerica. The bottom right is a woman in hijab, which is commonly targeted in Islamophobic spaces. Look at the people some consider to be a threat. Look at our neighbors. Migrants are sacred. Fuera ICE.17 —Rev. Nicolette Faison
Look - Look deeply at each portrait. What do you feel as you study each face?
15 - The artist originally titled this piece, “F**k ICE,” conveying the pain and emotions behind this work of art.
16 - usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2025/09/19/colin-kaepernick-independent-autopsy-trey-reed/86244594007
17 - “Fuera” can be translated to “out” or “away.” ICE is an acronym for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, which began enacting raids in US cities at the time these resources were created (2025).
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