Order Of Worship, Click HERE

Choir Information, Click HERE

Worship Resources, Click HERE

Apartment/House Blessing, Click HERE

SAVE THE DATES:

Next Worship Team Meeting ~  TBD

New Worship Initiatives Team ~ Meets on the Second Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. for a "run-through" and Fourth Thursday at 6:30 p.m. for planning. 

Next Special Worship Service ~ EVERY Second Sunday starting January 2010

Upcoming Special Worship Offerings:

April 2011 – Holy Week at FCCC

The Pastor and Worship Team are planning some creative ways to infuse the ancient rituals that fill Passion Week with innovative symbolism and relevant meaning. We hope you will join us on this journey.

Sunday, April 17 – 10:30 a.m. – Palm Procession and Passion Sunday Service – “Their Plaintive Cries” – Through organ, trumpet, solo, choir, hymns, prayers, and preaching this service will invite worshippers to explore the deep longing of the people of first century Palestine for a Messiah to save them from the horrors of Roman occupation and the complacency of religious collaborators. Likewise, we will lift up the escalating need today for peoples around the world to cry out against their oppressors and seek salvation through democracy, freedom, and perhaps even the Prince of Peace.

Thursday, April 21, 7 p.m. – Maundy Thursday Service – “Urban Tenebrae Service” – To the meditative music of organ, cello, and solo voice we will journey figuratively in our hearts and minds, and literally around the sanctuary, through the classic devotional ritual of the Tenebrae Service, or “Service of Shadows,” exploring the relevancy of Christ’s last few days upon the earth, from the Upper Room to the Cross, to the people and circumstances of the urban core, the city of Cleveland, specifically. Worshippers will have the choice of participating in Holy Communion, Foot Washing, and other rituals to help make this somber service an opportunity for personal and communal reflection and spiritual growth.

Friday, April 22, 5:30 p.m. Meal, 6:30 p.m. Service – Good Friday Service of Solidarity With St. Herman’s House Of Hospitality (4410 Franklin Blvd.) – Our congregation, along with our sisters and brothers from around the Near West Side neighborhood, will gather for our traditional Community Good Friday Service at St. Herman’s, which is a place of nourishment, renewal, and rest for many who are low-income or homeless, as well as a place of service and renewal for many who are gifted with stability and resources. We will gather outside in the pavilion (weather permitting – dress accordingly) to retell the Passion of Christ and sing songs of hope.

Sunday, April 24, 10:30 a.m. – Easter Sunday Celebration! – With joyful voices and thankful hearts, we will gather for our Easter Sunday Celebration, giving thanks for Christ’s Resurrection and for the confirmation that new life is possible for all of us! In addition to our wonderful regular worship leadership, the choir will perform "Songs for the Risen King,” new medley of traditional anthems, a new gospel song and two signature songs from Randy Vader and Jay Rouse. Bring with you something you can hold in your hand that symbolizes new life or resurrection for you.
 

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Two teams, each existing for only one year, are being formed to help continue the transformation God has already begun at Franklin Circle Christian Church. Building on Pastor Allen's Five-Point Plan for the next year, these two groups will seek to draw out the creative strengths and graces from our congregation in order to address two critical needs of our church: 1.) to create another opportunity for persons to worship in new and more interactive ways AND 2.) to get word out about our church in bold and broader ways. Both have the blessings of the Board and the Mission Council.

The New Worship Initiatives Team will explore over the next year how other churches similar to ours, in location, size, and theology, have expanded their worship opportunities to include another service in a different style. In addition to much prayer and Bible study, we will visit "second services" at other churches, read up on the latest literature about creative and transformational worship, and we will experiment with some worship possibilities ourselves. By next June the New Worship Initiatives Team will present a proposal to the church's Board for another worship service, including a budget, space requests, and staffing. If the Board accepts, it is hoped that the new worship service will be in place by fall 2007. Ten to twelve people are needed to make this team most effective.

To join this team, CLICK HERE!

Second Sunday Circle Celebrations Began Sunday, January 10, 2010!

Following two years of offering worship services in a more contemporary and casual format, and with overwhelming positive response to hosting these on Sunday mornings at the regular worship time, the church’s Worship Team has given the “go ahead” to the New Worship Initiatives Team to plan and lead a monthly worship service on Sunday mornings at 10:30 a.m.

This service, which will be on the second Sunday of each month, will use some of the methods the New Worship Initiative Team has explored and offered over the past few years, including more contemporary and upbeat music, extensive lay leadership, digitally-projected images and words to music, testimonials and prayers offered from the congregation, drama, communion with a shared loaf and cup, and a bit more relaxed and casual atmosphere. It may be offered in the Chapel or in the Sanctuary, depending upon circumstance, need, or worship theme.

As part of making this service regular and consistent it was decided to offer it every second Sunday. Thus the new name, “Second Sunday Circle Celebrations” was chosen, or, “Circle Celebrations” for short. Evangelism and publicity efforts for this service will begin in the new year.

Colleen Munley is chair of the New Worship Initiative Team, which will plan these Second Sunday Circle Celebrations, and Carrie Culleen is chair of the Worship Team, which oversees all worship at Franklin Circle Christian Church. Your feedback and participation are always welcome!
 

Order Of Worship

Typical Order for Traditional Worship Service:

Franklin Circle Christian Church

Welcome! Bienvenidos!

10:30 a.m.

Large print hymnals are available. Please ask an Usher.

*Please stand as you are able.

INVOCATION, CONFESSION, AND LORD'S PRAYER (using "debts" & "debtors") Unison

TODAY'S LESSON  [Pastor Allen typically uses the Revised Common Lectionary to choose his scripture lesson.  This is a three year cycle of major scripture readings created by the ecumenical church.  For a listing of upcoming lectionary texts, please go to http://www.disciples.org/Resources/Lectionary/tabid/231/Default.aspx ]

    This benediction was inspired by Bishop John Shelby Spong's discussion of non-anthropomorphic images of God, as discussed in his book:  Why Christianity Must Change or Die: A Bishop Speaks To Believers In Exile, Harper Collins, 1999.  The phrase "Ground of our very being" is directly from theologian Paul Tillich.

Our Choir Needs Your Voice!!!
We rehearse every Sunday after morning worship!

Franklin Circle Christian Church debuted it’s very own gospel choir way back in April, and we’re still going strong! With a handful of performances under our belt, we’re rip-roaring and ready to go. Look for YOUR choir to start appearing during regular Sunday morning services soon. There are also plans in the works for a special Christmas celebration filled with music and merriment to celebrate the birth of our Lord.

We’re still searching for a full-time choir director, so keep your eyes and ears open and be sure to alert Pastor Allen if you know of anyone who may be interested! What those of us in the choir would love more than anything is to have you join us!
No previous experience is required, and you don’t even have to know how to read music. The only requirements are a willing heart and the desire to sing to and about our Lord! We’re an easy-going group that strives to worship God with our hearts and voices, and have fun doing it.

We rehearse every Sunday after morning worship, and you are more than welcome to show up and sing with us, or just hang out in the sanctuary to watch a practice or two. If you’re interested in joining our choir, or just want to learn more, please see Jake Pruitt. You could also let Pastor Allen or any other worship team member know, and they’ll be sure to pass along the message!
 

Worship Resources

Some wonderful liturgical pieces from the September 26, 2010 worship by Janelle Eccleston

Welcome:

Good Morning!

Welcome to Franklin Circle Christian Church! It is always a pleasure to see members and guests
alike, and to welcome our visitors. Please take the time to read our Mission Statement on the back of your bulletin. It is not there because it sounds nice or is politically correct - we have made the statement not merely for inclusion of all, but because we believe inclusion offers an opportunity for transformation! At FCCC we act to assert our common humanity and equality as the children of God. May I welcome you all with a poem I found from an author unknown:

He never asks me to go anywhere He has not gone -
To face anything He has not faced.
To love anyone He does not love
Or to give anything He has not given!

We are glad the Lord led you here this morning!

Offertory:

Lord Jesus Christ:
We pray for the gift of freedom in Christ.
Lord, allow us to always recognize the value of all persons - to nourish others with the gifts You have given us.
We pray that we may all receive the gift of open hearts and attentive ears.
We pray for the poor and the homeless in our communities.
We pray that we might not invest in temporal things or become too attached to worldly treasures!
Only as we allow You to fill us and renew us will others see in us a treasure of immeasurable worth.
In Your Holy Name we pray, Amen

Offering Prayer:

Lord, May these gifts that we now offer :
Be resources which ensure growth and peace in the lives of others.
We affirm our trust in You, building up equity in our faith.
When we doubt, give us the joy of renewed faith.
Within the four walls of this sanctuary we come humbly before You to do faithfully and well that to which we have pledged ourselves.
May these offerings we give back to God reveal our heart’s condition; in You we have everything,
May we love each other with the same unselfish love with which You have loved us.
It is with great joy and gladness of heart that we come to dedicate this offering for Your service.

Amen

 

Center For Transforming Worship

(click the logo for more info.)

Cokesbury Bookstore's Worship Connection Site

(click the logo for more info.)

This website and book were recommended to us:

http://www.experientialworship.com/home.html

GREAT Liturgies At Seekers Church

http://www.seekerschurch.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=147&Itemid=70

Especially powerful for contemporary/relevant worship.  Pastor Allen visited this church as part of his Study & Renewal Leave in May of 2008.

Cathedral Of Hope Worship Services Online

This is a listing of the worship services online for this amazing congregation in Dallas, Texas which is part of the United Church of Christ.  Click on any of the Mid-Week Worship Services to see services in a contemporary format. 

Click on any of the Sunday Worship Services to see services in a more traditional format.

http://www.cathedralofhope.com/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=666&srcid=203

Apartment/House Blessing
Rev. Allen V. Harris
(Written on the occasion of the blessing of Jay Cheiky's apartment, November 2, 2008)

We gather here today to recognize God’s presence and invoke God’s blessings upon this dwelling place, so that all who live here and all who visit here might be reassured of God’s eternal love and ever present grace.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

We recognize that not all God’s children are fortunate to have homes, and some do not even have certainty of a shelter over their heads. For this, we are humbled, and commit ourselves to finding safe homes, such as this one, for everyone.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

We acknowledge all the activities that go on in a home; the daily acts of a life well lived, and the special events that mark the passages of our life’s journey. May God’s name be praised in both simple moments and major celebrations alike.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

We trust that visitors will come to bring this home their blessings and the gifts of their time, attention, and presence. The God of Abraham and Sara, the God of Mary and Martha, the God of Jesus of Nazareth is a God of hospitality, and makes holy all acts of welcome, kindness, and warmth.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

We are aware that there are many people in our world who make housing a possibility, from banks and mortgage companies, to landlords and building supervisors, from repair people to maintenance crews. May each one who makes this place a reality, and maintains it, do so with wisdom, honesty, skill, and grace.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

We know too well that there is evil in the world, sometimes challenging us from within, and sometimes from without. We call upon God to calm the demons within us, drive them from this place, and ward off all malevolence so that it may never enter this space.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

Finally, O God, we ask that you continue to bless the one who will live in this apartment, __________, that she/he might always know that housing is both a gift and a responsibility. Keep her/him ever-mindful of the beauty of this gift and ever vigilant in taking care of this place, that she/he might thrive and flourish now and forevermore.

Bless, O God, this place and fill it with your love.

Amen!