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Opening Announcement

Sunday Worship today comes from Northern Ireland and is led by Canon Mark Niblock. The preacher is the Dean of Belfast, the Very Rev Stephen Forde, who introduces the service

Good morning, and welcome to the Cathedral Church of St Anne at the heart of the city of Belfast. You join us from around the United Kingdom on this last Sunday of January. We in Belfast, as those of you elsewhere, are living within the restrictions of current lockdown regulations, and with a fresh realization of the enormity of suffering caused by the pandemic with the tragic news this week that over 100,000 people have died in the United Kingdom.听 The regulations mean that our service is broadcast without a congregation present in the cathedral building, and the music is led by just four members of our cathedral choir, socially distanced and singing within the space of the cathedral.

Belfast is a port city and the cathedral parish area extends to the Port of Belfast. Since the beginning of January, many news reports have featured Belfast Port as ferry companies, lorry drivers and customs officials, have all adapted to the new Brexit regulations across the Irish Sea, just as others face similar challenges in ports around our county.

Belfast is a city shaped by the sea.

Today, in our service from this Cathedral, and in the midst of this current pandemic, we remember before God, all who work to keep our lives supplied and safe.

Let us begin this service with the hymn 鈥淎ll my hope on God is founded.

HYMN :All my hope on God is founded听 (MICHAEL)

CANON NIBLOCK The Lord be with you

and also with you.

God who said, 鈥榦ut of darkness light shall shine鈥�, has caused his light to shine in our hearts, the light which is knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6 (REB)

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When we are at our lowest, then God is with us. Let us cry out for God鈥檚 forgiveness.

Out of the depths, O Lord we cry to you. O Lord, hear our voice:

Listen to our cry.

If you kept a record of our sins, who could stand before you? O Lord, hear our voice:

Listen to our cry.

But you offer forgiveness, and therefore we fear you. O Lord, hear our voice:

Listen to our cry.

We wait for you, O Lord, and in your promise we put our hope. O Lord, hear our voice:

Listen to our cry.

We long for you, O Lord, more than the sleepless long for morning. O Lord hear our voice:

Listen to our cry for mercy.

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听听听听听听听听 SINGERS: Kyrie eleison. (Gabriel Faur茅)

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People of God, put your trust in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love, and with him is full redemption. Hear God鈥檚 forgiveness: The Lord himself will redeem you from all your sins though our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

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O Lord, open our lips

and our mouth will proclaim your praise.

O God, make speed to save us.

O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;

as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.

Praise the Lord.

The Lord鈥檚 name be praised.

SINGERS: Psalm 107. 23-30听 (Plainsong)

But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the听Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the听Lord.

听But the听Lord听hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up.听Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten it for them. Jonah, meanwhile, had gone down into the hold of the ship and had lain down, and was fast asleep.听The captain came and said to him, 鈥榃hat are you doing sound asleep? Get up, call on your god! Perhaps the god will spare us a thought so that we do not perish.鈥�

The sailors听said to one another, 鈥楥ome, let us cast lots, so that we may know on whose account this calamity has come upon us.鈥� So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.听Then they said to him, 鈥楾ell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?鈥櫶�鈥業 am a Hebrew,鈥� he replied. 鈥業 worship the听Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.鈥櫶齌hen the men were even more afraid, and said to him, 鈥榃hat is this that you have done!鈥� For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the听Lord, because he had told them so.

Then they said to him, 鈥榃hat shall we do to you, that the sea may quieten down for us?鈥� For the sea was growing more and more tempestuous.听He said to them, 鈥楶ick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quieten down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.鈥櫶齆evertheless, the men rowed hard to bring the ship back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Canticle: The Lord is my shepherd (Schubert)

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On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, 鈥楲et us go across to the other side.鈥櫶鼳nd leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him.听A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped.听But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, 鈥楾eacher, do you not care that we are perishing?鈥櫶鼿e woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 鈥楶eace! Be still!鈥� Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm.听He said to them, 鈥榃hy are you afraid? Have you still no faith?鈥櫶鼳nd they were filled with great awe and said to one another, 鈥榃ho then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?鈥�

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

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Sermon The Very Reverend Stephen Forde听听听听听听听听

On this day, 68 years ago, the Shipping Forecast issued at 0655 hours for Saturday 31st January, 1953 was: 鈥淪ea areas Malin, Faroes, Hebrides. Severe North to North West Gales becoming generally northerly later. Showers with sleet or snow鈥�.

By the end of that day, and the Great Storm of 1953, over 300 people had lost their lives across the United Kingdom. 21,000 people had been made homeless, and over 200,000 acres of land in the East of England had been inundated by the North Sea. And among the losses, on that day, was the Stranraer to Larne ferry, the Princess Victoria. As the ferry left the shelter of Loch Ryan in South West Scotland, mountainous seas breached the stern doors of the exposed car deck. Unable to steer the ship back to Stranraer, the captain ran ahead of the storm for the shelter of Belfast Lough. But the ship foundered near the mouth of the lough. Of 179 passengers and crew who had boarded the Princess Victoria that morning, 135 were lost, including 33 residents of this city.

For a 鈥渃ity shaped by the sea鈥� and the seafarers of her port, the power of nature and the force of the sea is never to be underestimated. It鈥檚 why we frequently use storm words to describe our greatest challenges. In communities struggling most with Covid, people will speak of a Tsunami of infections. In relation to the multiple challenges of Brexit in the midst of a pandemic others will talk about a 鈥減erfect storm鈥�.

This morning, what can we learn from the scriptures we have heard? Let me offer you three words, three ideas, which lie at the heart of today鈥檚 readings, because each reading demonstrates an intimate knowledge of the power of a storm.

The first word is 鈥淩espect鈥�. In each passage we encounter a respect for power of the sea, and the forces of nature. Psalm 107 declares 鈥淭hose who go down to the sea in ships, they have seen the works of the Lord, his wonders in the deep鈥�.

Jonah thought he could hide from God and God鈥檚 call for him to rescue the people of the city of Ninevah. He thought if he ran away to sea, God would not be there to catch up with him. Only when trapped by the force of the storm did Jonah admit 鈥淚 am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who created the sea and the dry land鈥�

And the disciples of Jesus, although each was an experienced sailor, even these men feared for their lives. How could Jesus be asleep on a cushion, when they were in danger of drowning as the waves crashed over the sides of their boat?

In face of the power of nature, whether that is climate change, a world pandemic or setting sail in the teeth of a storm, we are called to a place of respect, of awe. We are to know that God is not absent from the storm, but present at the very heart of it, not absent but present in Intensive Care Units, and vaccination centres across this country and across the world.

The second word we are given in the face of these storms is 鈥淐o-operation鈥�. In the Psalm, the crew cry out together to God for their rescue. In the story of Jonah, the other sailors are appalled that Jonah is asleep. The very least he could do is call on his god for rescue, as they are calling on theirs. And the most he can do is to return to the God he has been avoiding, and seek God鈥檚 partnership to overcome the peril.

And for Jesus, standing in the stern and commanding the storm to be silenced, Jesus wants to know why his disciples did not believe that because they were together they would survive?

Faced with whatever storm in life we confront, we are called to co-operation and shared responsibility. Whether that is wearing face coverings for the sake of all, or ensuring a fair distribution of precious vaccines, to the poorest countries as much as to those which can pay most. The writer John Donne famously reminds us that 鈥渘o man is an island鈥� unconnected to others. Whether our storm is personal, racial or national, God calls us to know the importance of co-operation, of fellowship, because our rescue is always a shared rescue.听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听

And finally, 鈥淭rust鈥�, faith. The Psalmist declares 鈥淗e brought them to the haven they desired鈥�. When Jonah finally placed his utter trust in God and God鈥檚 purposes, Jonah allowed the other crew members to throw him overboard, not to drown but to be rescued by the God he worshipped.

And Jesus鈥� challenge to his closest disciples was this: 鈥淲hy are you afraid? Have you no faith in me?鈥�

Throughout the current pandemic, many people have said 鈥淥ur faith is in science and in the miracle of the vaccine鈥� And of course it is. But behind the science, which unlocks our knowledge of truth which already exists, and behind the miracle of a vaccine, developed out of unprecedented co-operation, there stands a greater faith and a greater hope. God鈥檚 love and care and belief in our humanity.

We strive because in the storm God is more present than anywhere else. We hope because we are made to co-operate, because in fellowship we are always more. And we believe, because God believes in us, because in every storm Jesus does not sleep, he is in command. And in every storm he calls us to greater trust and greater faith in him

HYMN; Jesu, lover of my Soul (ABERYSTWYTH)

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The Lord be with you

and also with you.

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Let us pray.

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

CANON NIBLOCK 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, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Creator God, who in the beginning commanded the light to shine out of darkness: we pray that the light of the glorious gospel of Christ may dispel the darkness of ignorance and unbelief, shine into the hearts of all your people, and reveal the knowledge of your glory in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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This morning鈥檚 intercessions are led by the Reverend Colin Hall-Thompson, Chaplain to Belfast Port and to the Belfast Mission to Seafarers.

Let us pray to the Lord for all who face the storms of life, that in the midst of every storm God鈥檚 call will be heard and Christ鈥檚 presence sensed ever more deeply:

Lord of Land and Sea, we hold to your care all who work off shore and in danger: we pray for all fishermen, and the seafarers of every nationality who crew ferries and cargo vessels, tankers and bulk carriers. Protect them from danger at sea, and from loneliness in port. Through the Mission to Seafarers and other support missions protect them from danger or exploitation, and hold them in your care,

Lord of All, hear our prayer.

Lord of Storm and Calm, we hold to your care all who face danger to rescue others: we pray for Lifeboat Crews and their supporters, for search and rescue teams at sea and on land, for Helicopter pilots and crew members who risk their own lives to save others.

Lord of All, hear our prayer.

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O Heavenly Father, who by your Son Jesus Christ has taught us the glory of self-sacrifice and service: bless all who care for the sick, and those suffering from or recovering from Coronavirus. Give your strength to all who work in hospitals and nursing homes, and all who give care in the community. Guide all scientists seeking to understand this new wave of infection we pray, and give wisdom to all who have responsibility in church, politics and society for leading through this pandemic.

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Merciful Father, accept these our prayers in the name of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

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Hymn: Eternal Father, strong to save (MELITA)

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O God our defender, storms rage about us and cause us to be afraid: rescue your people from despair, deliver your sons and daughters from fear, and preserve us all from unbelief; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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Christ the Son be manifest to you, that your lives may be a light to the world: and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be with you and remain with you always. Amen.

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听 SINGERS: An Irish Blessing (Chilcott)

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The Lord be with you

and also with you.

Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

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ORGAN: Improvisation Number 7 (Saint-Sa毛ns)听听听听听

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Closing Announcement Improvisation Number 7 Saint-Sa毛ns ends today鈥檚 Sunday Worship from St Anne鈥檚 Cathedral in Belfast and was led by the Canon Mark Niblock. The preacher was the Very Rev Stephen Forde. The Director of Music was Matthew Owens, the organist Jack Wilson and the producer Bert Tosh.

Sunday Worship next week will mark Chinese New Year.

During Lent Sunday Worship and the Daily Service on 91热爆 Radio 4 will be taking inspiration from Ignatian spirituality. A link to an online retreat for Lent provided by the Jesuit order can be found on the Sunday Worship web page.听听

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