The Church Of Ireland
News Briefing

OMAGH SERVICE OF REFLECTION
Order of Service

2:45pm Saturday 22 August 1998

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Today, we stand together as a united community.

We are here to remember our dead with dignity, to pray for their families and for all who have been injured and traumatised;

To pay tribute to all who have worked tirelessly to save lives, to heal wounds, to comfort the broken-hearted.

 We are also here to reclaim our town:

To reclaim it for the people of Omagh,

To reclaim it for our children and grandchildren,

To reclaim it for the Kingdom of God.

And we declare that evil will not triumph.

The pain and the loss will remain but our community will not be torn apart.

In the Name of Jesus resurrection will come.

THE LORD'S MY SHEPHERD

The Lord's my shepherd, I'll not want
He makes me down to lie
In pastures green he leadeth me
The quiet waters by.

My soul he doth restore again
and me to walk to doth make
Within the paths of righteousness
Even for his own name's sake.

Yea, though I walk in death's dark vale
Yet will I fear none ill
For thou art with me and thy rod
and staff me comfort still.

My table thou has furnished
In presence of my foes;
My head thou dost with oil anoint
and my cup overflows.

Goodness and mercy all my life
Shall surely follow me:
and in God's house for evermore
My dwelling-place shall be.

PRAYERS

Heavenly Father, we pray for all who are bereaved. We thank you for the love they shared with those they lost. May they feel the comfort and support of your everlasting arms underneath them, to carry them in their time of grief.

Our Father in heaven, we pray for all those injured on Saturday. We ask for wholeness and healing in body, mind and soul. May they feel your Presence especially at this time.

Father, we thank you for the community in this place, for the strength and love that has been shown in these days. We ask that as a community, through our love, we may become a sign of light and hope instead of the darkness and despair of this week. Shower us with your love in the days, weeks and months ahead.

SOLO

BROKEN THINGS

words and music by Julie Miller
sung by Juliet Turner

 (based on The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and crushed in spirit Psalm 34:18 and A bruised reed He will not break and a smoking wick he will not snuff out Isaiah 42:3).

You can have my heart
Though it isn't new
It's been used and broken
and only comes in blue

It's been down a long road
and it got dirty on the way
If I give it to you will you make it clean
and wash the shame away

You can have my heart
If you don't mind broken things
You can have my life if you don't mind these tears
Well I heard that you make old things new
So I give these pieces all to you
If you want it you can have my heart

So beyond repair
Nothing I could do
I tried to fix it myself
But it was only worse when I got through
Then you walked right into my darkness
and you speak words so sweet
and you hold me like a child
'Til my frozen tears fall at your feet

You can have my heart
If you don't mind broken things
You can have my life if you don't mind these tears
Well I heard that you make old things new
So I give these pieces all to you
If you want it you can have my heart

SCRIPTURE READING - Isaiah 40:28-32

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

PRAYERS OF THANKSGIVING

Gracious Father, fountain of all that is merciful, we offer our thanks for the mercy shown to us last Saturday. The mercy of those in the emergency services, the police and the army. All extended your hand of mercy to us in our darkest moment, to help and offer words of hope, light and comfort to all those injured and dying. May they have mercy shown them for the rest of their days.

Father, the self-sacrificing love of your Son, Jesus, is our call to generosity. We thank you for the generous and selfless response of the medical services, and all those who work in hospitals. They shared our pain and trauma, yet still gave their all, and more, as they helped all those injured and those dying. May their generosity of service be richly rewarded both now in this present life and in the life everlasting.

Father of all compassion, we thank you for your compassion to us. For the compassion shown to us by the staff at the Leisure Centre, the compassion of those in the social services, the clergy and all the community workers. Their compassion, and work on our behalf, helped us to express compassion to each other, and to bear our cross of pain, a little better. May they who showed and gave such compassion be shown it a hundred fold when they themselves need it.

Heavenly Father, source of all love, we thank you from our deepest being for the love and care you have shown us through our brothers and sisters throughout the world. For all who have written, or spoken words of comfort and shared our distress; for those who have communicated our story to the world; for all those who showed love in quiet embrace or hug or handshake; for all those who have left candles and flowers. Your love is shown in all these acts. May they who have loved us so, be forever blessed by you.

Names of the deceased

John McKinney

SILENCE

The Lord's Prayer

Led by Kevin Mullan

Distribution of flowers to hospitals

We remember our dead and their bereaved.

We reach out now to the injured and those who love and care from them.

From the heart of this gathering we send flowers to our own hospital that gave its all and to its sister hospitals across the North who reached out to save our beloved people and still care for them.

PRAYER OF HOPE

Louise Scott and Jody Sharkey

BLESSING

Robert Herron