april 5, 2026

Preacher: Rev. Dr. Boon Lin Ngeo

Please use this Order of Service to easily follow the service online.

CLICK HERE FOR HYMNS (or scroll to the bottom)

TPrelude:    Ricard Harper

Chalice Lighting: 

The chalice we light is a symbol of our faith.It binds us together as one people:a reminder that our strength is in our shared hope for the world,and that our common work is the creation of Beloved Communityamong ourselves and in the world. 

Opening Hymn:       Christ the Lord is Risen Today             NCH 233              

Welcome & Announcements

Call to Worship:  

 Friends, we know what God desires of us:

That we do justice, and love kindness, and walk humbly with God.

We gather this morning to remind each other about that,

To remember that now is always the right time to do these things.

So with thanks in our hearts, let us worship God.

Prayer of Invocation:   

First Sacred Reading        John 20:19

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”  

Passing of the Peace 

Sharing of Our Joys & Concerns

Prayers of the People/Pastoral Prayer

Special Music

Offering & Doxology:    We Give You But Your Own – NCH 785 

We give you but your own, what e'er the gift may be; All that we have is yours alone, we give it gratefully

Second Sacred Reading:    Zhuangzi- Chapter 18   

Zhuangzi's wife died. When Huizu went to convey his condolences, he found Zhuangzi sitting with his legs sprawled out, pounding on a tub and singing. "You lived with her, she brought up your children and grew old," said Huizu. "It should be enough simply not to weep at her death. But pounding on a tub and singing - this is going too far, isn't it?" Zhuangzi said, "You're wrong. When she first died, do you think I didn't grieve like anyone else? But I looked back to her beginning and the time before she was born. Not only the time before she was born, but the time before she had a body. Not only the time before she had a body, but the time before she had a spirit. In the midst of the jumble of wonder and mystery a change took place and she had a spirit. Another change and she had a body. Another change and she was born. Now there's been another change and she's dead. It's just like the progression of the four seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter. Now she's going to lie down peacefully in a vast room. If I were to follow after her bawling and sobbing, it would show that I don't understand anything about life. So I stopped.

Hymn of Reflection:             My Soul Gives Glory to My God    NCH  119

Sermon:   Death is Not the End of the Story              

Closing Hymn:      Lord of the Dance            

Benediction:                           Rev. Dr. Boon Lin Ngeo

Postlude:                                Ricard Harper                           

All Souls Bethlehem Church

An Open and Affirming Congregation

Pastor: Rev. Dr. Boon Lin Ngeo

Ministers: All Members of ASBC

Minister Emeritus: Rev. Bill Nye 

First Time Visitor?  

Please sign our red Guest Book (located near the entrance)

and be our guest at the gathering following the service!

Interested in “Official” Church Membership?  

Please speak with Council President Raquel Irizarry about our next New Member gathering!  

An All-inclusive, Welcoming Community of Faith

born from the traditions of the:

Disciples of Christ - www.Disciples.org

United Church of Christ - www.UCC.org

Unitarian Universalist Association - www.UUA.org 

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