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Honouring the Memory-

A service following the Royal Liverpool Children's Inquiry

November 10th 2001 at 2.00 p.m.

The Gathering

At 2.00 p.m we stand as the choir and clergy enter in procession
from the East.

The organist plays: Adagio by Samuel Barber

When all are in their places,
we sit for:

The Welcome and Opening Prayer
by the Dean of Liverpool, the Rt Revd Rupert Hoare

Father eternal, Creator of all that is,
Whose mystery is beyond and around us,
Whose love enfolds and seeks us
Have mercy upon us
And hear our prayer.

Jesus, Son of Mary,
Sharing our life and our afflictions;
Word of the Father, taking our flesh upon you;
Lamb of God in whom is our peace
Have mercy upon us
And hear our prayer.

Most Holy Spirit of God, bringing order out of chaos,
Spirit of truth, overcoming falsehood;
Spirit of love dwelling in your people
Spirit of life, renewing and restoring
Have mercy upon us.
And hear our prayer

We stand to sing:

HYMN

Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our foolish ways!
Reclothe us in our rightful mind,
In purer lives thy service find,
In deeper reverence praise.

In simple trust like theirs who hear,
Beside the Syrian sea,
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word
Rise up and follow thee.

Drop thy still dews of quietness,
Till all our strivings cease;
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of thy peace.

Breathe through the heats of our desire
Thy coolness and thy balm;
Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;
Speak through the earthquake, wind and fire,
0 still small voice of calm.

We sit

Mr John O'Hare, Chair of the Pity II Parents' Group,
expresses some of the concerns that have led to this day.

We remain seated for:

The Remembering

A procession of young people moves from the Nave Bridge to the High Altar. The young people carry baskets of cards on which are written the names of children whose memory is being honoured today.

During the procession, Living with angels written and recorded by
Ryan G is played. This song has been released for charity.
Proceeds go to the Pity II Parents' Group and Alder Hey Hospital 's
Rocking Horse Appeal.

We stand to sing:

HYMN

Jesus good above all other,
Gentle Child of gentle Mother,
In a stable born our Brother,
Give us grace to persevere.

Jesus cradled in a manger,
For us facing every danger,
Living as a homeless stranger,
Make we thee our King most dear.

Jesus, for thy people dying,
Risen Master, death defying,
Lord in heaven, thy grace supplying,
Keep us to thy presence near.

Jesus, who our sorrows bearest,
All our thoughts and hopes thou sharest,
Thou to us the truth declarest;
Help us all thy truth to hear.

Lord, in all our doings guide us;
Pride and hate shall ne'er divide us;
We'll go on with thee beside us,
And with joy we'll persevere.

All sit.

The expression of our feelings

Dancers present a sequence which expresses in movement the distress
and turmoil felt by so many caught up in the tragedy.

Quotations from the Psalms reflect sonic of the feelings which shape the dance.

At the end of the sequence, streamers symbolic of the feelings that have been expressed are placed in a vessel at the Nave Altar.

Our prayer in the darkness

The Canon Precentor introduces the prayers which are led by three parents Canon John Roberts, Mrs Kerri Fowler and Mrs Janet Dacombe.

The following response is used

Look in mercy, Lord
All: and be a light in our darkness.

At the end the Canon Precentor says.

Lord, when we are down
All. Lift us up
When we do not understand
All. Lighten our darkness
When we draw near to you
All. Draw near to us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

We stand to sing:

HYMN

I watch the sunrise lighting the sky,
Casting its shadow near.
And on this morning bright though it be,
I feel those shadows near me.

But you are always close to me
Following all my ways.
May I be always close to you.
Following all your ways, Lord.

I watch the sunlight shine through the clouds,
Warming the earth below.
And at the mid-day, life seems to say:
"I feel your brightness near me."

For you are always...

1 watch the sunset fading away,
Lighting the clouds with sleep.
And as the evening closes its eyes,
I feel your presence near me.

For you are always...

I watch the moonlight guarding the night,
Waiting till morning comes.
The air is silent, earth is at rest -
Only your peace is near me.

Yes, you are always...

Helping us to think about these things

We remain standing for

THE GOSPEL READING

read by the Most Revd Patrick Kelly
Archbishop of Liverpool

Hear the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ according to John
All: Glory to you, 0 Lord.

Later that day, the first day of the week, when the disciples were to gether behind locked doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. 'Peace be with you!' he said; then he showed them his hands and his sides.

One of the Twelve, Thomas the Twin, was not with the rest when Jesus came. So the others kept telling him, 'We have seen the Lord.' But he said 'Unless I see the mark of the nails on his hands, unless I put my finger into the place where the nails were, and my hand into his side, I will never believe it.'

A week later his disciples were once again in the room, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them, saying 'Peace be with you!' Then he said to Thomas, 'Reach your finger here; look at my hands. Reach your hand here and put it into my side. Be unbelieving no longer, but believe'.

Thomas said, 'My Lord and my God!' Jesus said to him, 'Because you have seen me you have found faith. Happy are they who find faith without seeing me.'

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise to you, O Christ.

We sit for:

THE SERMON
by the Rt Revd James Jones
Bishop of Liverpool

We remain seated as the choir sings:

THE ANTHEM

Set me as a seal upon thy heart,
as a seal upon thine arm:
for love is strong as death:
many waters cannot quench love,
neither can the floods drown it.

Music. Sir William Turner Walton
Words:Song of Solomon, chapter 8, verses 6 & 7

We remain seated for:

Our Prayer for the future

The prayers are led by the Revd Graham Cook, Moderator of the URC Mersey Synod.

During the prayers, candles are lit by young people to create a crown of light around the High Altar.

The prayers end with the Lord's Prayer:

Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
In 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.

We stand to sing:

HYMN

Ye holy angels bright,
Who wait at God's right hand,
Or through the realms of light
Fly at the Lord's command,
Assist our song,
For else the theme
Too high doth seem
For mortal tongue.

Ye blessed souls at rest,
Who ran this earthly race,
And now, from sin released,
Behold the Saviour's face,
His praises sound,
As in his light
With sweet delight
Ye do abound.

Ye saints who toil below,
Adore your heavenly King,
And onward as ye go
Some joyful anthem sing;
Take what he gives
And praise him still,
Through good and ill,
Who ever lives.

My soul, bear thou thy part,
Triumph in God above,
And with a well-tuned heart
Sing thou the songs of love.
Let all thy days
Till life shall end,
Whate'er he send,
Be filled with praise.

We remain standing for

The Blessing

The loving mercies of the risen Lord Jesus Christ who ever dwells in our hearts, enter into your heart, your soul and your body and bring you and those you love everlasting peace. And the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

Go in the peace of Christ.
All: Thanks be to God

Please remind standing as the Procession of Clergy moves to the West End of the Cathedral.

After the service

Candles

Everyone present is invited to take a votive candle from one of the stewards standing by the Nave Bridge.

The candles are lit and placed on tables at the West End of the Cathedral. Each candle is a symbol of our prayers for those whose memory we have honoured.

Listeners

A number of trained listeners are available near the font (on the left hand side of the Cathedral as you move towards the back of the building). They will be glad to assist anyone who would like to spend some time talking to them.

Outside the Cathedral

Balloons will be released outside the West End of the Cathedral after the service.

This service is Copyright and includes material from other sources- for information about reproduction in any form, please contact the staff at Liverpool Cathedral (UK) directly.

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