“We will be authentic, inspiring, and exploratory in nurturing spiritual growth and health. We will focus on our gratitude for the God who calls us to right relations in living faith, knowing love, and voicing hope, modeled in Jesus Christ and enabled by the Holy Spirit. We will be comfortable in questioning, exploring the depths of God’s grace and mercy as we discover it in our multi-cultural neighbourhoods and draw on it to reform (and re-form) our understandings and practices of the faith. We will craft a variety of forms and times of worship that will nourish a joyful Christian faith and unity among all generations. We will continue and enhance the centrality of high-quality music in our worship.”
Excerpt from Stronger Together: Co-creating a New Community, approved 2015.
The Worship Core Ministry Group task is to oversee the worship life of the congregation.
Our responsibilities are: Weekly worship services * Pulpit supply * Music *Choir * Sacraments * Lay readers * Prayer leaders * Offering * Monthly service at St. Michaels * Responding to feedback from the congregation * Accessibility ( children, L’Arche, newcomers , seniors ) * Worship décor, supplies, banners and paraments * Baptism * Communion * Greeters * Connections team * Welcoming of new members
What to expect on Sunday morning
When you arrive at Jubilee United for worship, there are a limited number of parking spaces underneath the church with an entrance off of Hazel. There is some street parking around the church and 4-hour parking at Metrotown. When you enter the church you will be met by greeters who will provide you with a service bulletin if you wish. The greeters will answer any questions you have, or introduce you to others. If you are an introvert, you can also sneak into the back of the church quietly; however, we can’t promise that you will go unnoticed. If you would like the opportunity to be a greeter please contact the office and your name will be forwarded to the person who does the scheduling!
Our worship is outlined in the service bulletin and on the overhead at the front. You can follow the friendly people around you for cues on when to participate. As a general rule, the bold print in the bulletin, is for everyone to say together. Hymns come from the two hymn books in the pew, and we usually stand to sing. The hymns marked with an “MV” are from the spiral bound hymn book, “More Voices.” The hymns marked with a “VU” are from the larger red hard cover hymn book, “Voices United.” We always say that we want you to be comfortable: if people are standing and you wish to remain sitting, or you feel like standing while others are sitting, you do you!
Offering
There are offering plates at the door; you are invited to leave your offering there. Visitors envelopes are available in the entry way. Monetary offerings are not expected from visitors, though we never say no! Any donation of more than $20 is considered tax-deductible by the CRA. Offering can be designated in several ways; it can support the local church and its programs, upkeep, staff, and ministries. Offering can be designated to support the United Church of Canada’s Mission and Service Fund which supports the work of the United Church in Canada and the world. Offering can also be designated to support local outreach programs, including First United Church, Burnaby Christmas Bureau, Burnaby Homeless, Fairhaven, St. Michael’s Centre, among many others. Finally, your offering can be designated to support the World Development and Relief Fund (WDR). The United Church of Canada has partner organizations all over the world, and when a natural disaster strikes, money in the WDR fund of the United Church immediately is sent via these partner organizations to support and aid in immediate and ongoing relief efforts.
You can also donate by PAR (pre-authorized remittance) whereby your donation is debited from your bank account on the 20th of the month. You can find the PAR Authorization Form here.
Alternately, you can e-transfer a donation to office@jubilee-uc.ca
Prayer and visitation requests
There are prayer request forms and visitation request forms available in the entry way of the church. These forms can be filled out and placed on the offering plate and will be given to the minister. Information on the visitation request form will be passed along to a member of our pastoral care team.
Communion
Communion is (typically) celebrated on the first Sunday of each month at Jubilee United. Our communion table is an open table. Anyone of whatever faith, denomination, age, or condition is invited to take communion. Most regularly, Sunday School children and youth rejoin the rest of the congregation to take communion. At Jubilee we use a variety of methods to serve communion. When we serve in the pews, you will be served while seated, first the bread then the grape juice. Coming forward you will come to the front and be served both the bread and the juice at the same time. Once a year, Communion involves having several stations available, following the same process as coming forward. If you prefer, you may always be served at your seat.
Reading The Lesson
It is a tradition at Jubilee for members of the congregation to read the scripture lessons at Sunday worship. The lessons may be from the Old Testament, the Gospels, the Epistles, and the Psalms (which might also have musical interludes). If you are reading the lessons, you will be provided with the lesson in advance. If you would like the opportunity to read the Scriptures during worship please contact the office and your name will be forwarded to the person who does the scheduling!
How Can I Help?
You can offer your time and talents through participation in worship, church groups, and church committees. In worship, you can read scripture, offer a story for the children, or participate in providing the prayers. There are many groups you can participate in, including UCW (United Church Women), Family Matters (for families with school or preschool aged children), or several Core Ministry Groups based on your interests and gifts.
Jubilee United Church 