CONFIRMATION
SERVICE 14 August
in the Bayswater Community Chapel
Elder: Renate Weber
Pianist: Monika Strasser
Hymns: Templer Hymn No 1 “Seek ye first of all God’s Kingdom/Trachtet ruft mit ernstem Worte” Verses 1,3,6,9,10; “Pebbles” Hymn 61all the verses
Other music: “I am the Greatest. R Kelly.
The confirmands process in slowly down the side aisle in alphabetical order, where the candles will be placed
Mieka Decker: “Welcome everyone to our confirmation service. There are 19 of us here today who have this year participated in the journey of Confirmation. Our introductory song was “The World’s Greatest” by R Kelly. After much discussion the group chose it because it tells you that you can be anything you want to be, if you have the will to be it. Don’t be afraid of what you are and let your light shine out
R KELLY LYRICS
"The World's Greatest"
I am a mountain
I am a tall tree
Ohhh, I am a swift wind
Sweepin' the country
I am a river
Down in the valley
Ohhh, I am a vision
And I can see clearly
If anybody asks u who I am
Just stand up tall look
'em in the Face and say
[Chorus]
I'm that star up in the sky
I'm that mountain peak up high
Hey, I made it
I'm the worlds greatest
And I'm that little bit of hope
When my backs against the ropes
I can feel it mmm
I'm the worlds greatest
I am a giant
I am an eagle
I am a lion
Down in the jungle
I am a marchin' band
I am the people
I am a helpin' hand
And I am a hero
If anybody asks u who I am
Just stand up tall look 'em in the Face and say
[Chorus]
I'm that star up in the sky
I'm that mountain peak up high
I made it
I'm the worlds greatest
And I'm that little bit of hope
When my backs against the ropes
I can feel it
I'm the worlds greatest”
Renate Weber I’d like to add my welcome to Mieka’s on this special day in the lives of our confirmands. This day sees the culmination of six months of work for this group of 19 young people. In the Temple Society, a small independent Christian Community, we offer a set of Confirmation classes to our 14-16 year olds. They have been meeting regularly with various Elders to prepare them selves for this big day. I am going to light the first candle for today’s Service. Those of you who know me well know I love using candles both at home and in Services. To me the flame burning brightly represents many things. Physically, the power of one candle is quite amazing. It lights up the immediate area where it stands and it has the ability to radiate out into the farthest corners of a dark room. While it dispels darkness it imbues a softness that doesn’t show all the faults. It leaves some things in shadow. I also see the candle as representing my inner light, my heart light, where my spiritual being resides. Occasionally the flame burns very low like a candle with a faulty wick, and my light, my energy doesn’t radiate out. But if I trim the wick, deal with the problem that is troubling me, I can once again feel my inner strength build up. I can then radiate out my positive energy and can feel much happier and stronger. By sharing my light, my flame hasn’t diminished and when we all radiate our light together it is a wonderful experience and we can hopefully live in an enlightened world. I read the preamble for the constitution for the Temple Society and felt very proud and comfortable that I am an active member of this community. As individual building stones in God’s temple, communally we aim to be tolerant towards others to ensure the world we live in is environmentally, socially and politically harmonious.
Traditionally our first hymn is the Templer Hymn (Seek ye first of all God’s Kingdom/Trachtet ruft mit ernstem Worte Hymn 1 in the hymnbook. Nicholas Herrmann will tell us what its significance is and why we are singing the verses chosen.
Nicholas Herrmann “Christoph Hoffmann wrote the words of this hymn and in German the first word of each verse states the aim of the Temple Society: Trachtet am ersten nach dem Koenigreich Gottes und nach Seiner Gerechtigkeit, in the English version these words have been used in the first line of the first verse “Seek ye first of all God’s Kingdom”. The verses we will be singing are 1.3.6.9 and 10. The reason we’re singing these specific verses are:
Verse 1 explains how Jesus guides us to look towards the future and what it will be like, how we need to set our goals high. We need to make our own choices. Verse 3 tells us that every person is special and how we have changed over time. It also explains that each person has a point in life.
Verse 6 explains how there is truth, love and justice for those who are willing to work towards these ideals and we need to be examples. Verse 9 explains how strong you must be to succeed in life, to not give up as you strive for your goals.
Verse 10 the final verse, puts a close to all the above verses. Firstly to remember Jesus’ commandments, his faith in all and to answer to the call of Jesus.
Please sing it in English if you can, as that is how we have learnt it.
Jessica Beilharz and Daniel Schlender will now share what Confirmation in the Temple Society is.
Jessica
Beilharz. “Confirmation
is a learning and inner-strengthening experience shared with other young
Templers around the same age. Through the process of confirmation you get to
learn about many different things relating to the Temple Society religion, the
chance to make new friends and not getting the chance to sleep in on Sunday
mornings. Confirmation is a beginning”.
Daniel Schlender “Confirmation
in the Temple Society to me means you are now no longer considered to be a
child; after Confirmation you are considered to be a young adult. We learnt a
greater understanding of the Temple Society's religious beliefs. We now have the
ability to make choices more independently. Now that we have finished
Confirmation, I would like to have the opportunity to participate in more
Templer activities. I would also like to maintain the connections and
friendships that I have gained through the Confirmation lessons.”
Patrick Brown "Our worst fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant gorgeous, talented, fabulous?” Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God: your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking, so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us. It is not just in some of us, it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear our presence automatically liberates others”-Nelson Mandela
Daniel
Beilharz “Nelson Mandela is one of the
great moral and political leaders of our time, he is an international hero whose
life long dedication to the fight against racial oppression in South Africa won
him the Nobel Prize and the Presidency of his country.
Nelson Mandela read these words you just heard at the 1994 Inaugural speech to
inspire his people. His inspiring writings, I think help give us confidence and
diminish our fears, it also helps us to see the bigger purpose of our lives and
inspires and empowers us to do well. It aids us in spreading light, love and
divine grace around the world.
Many people wonder why others can achieve such great things and begin to pity themselves for not being able to be like them. We admire others, but we forget to admire ourselves. As it said in the reading, we have a right to be anything we wish -beautiful successful, as long as we use the unique talents that God gave us we can do anything. You also need to realise not using your talent in this world doesn’t help you or anyone else.
Although the reading suggests we would rather believe in our inabilities than in our greatness, that we are afraid of being wrong, are scared of what we are capable of and are therefore afraid of what we can do rather than what we can’t, the only way to overcome these fears and beliefs is if you spend less time worrying about the results and outcome of something and more in your unique talents, believing that the results will come if you remain true to your own ability. Imagine the world where your self-belief is proportionate to your enormous talent and where your incredible desire to succeed over comes your fear of failure.
When we do good things people see us and follow our example. Other people no longer fear doing good things as well. So as Templers we need to lead by example and let our light shine strongly. One reason that so many spiritual caterpillars never became butterflies is because they were eaten by doubt, fear or intimidation.
I have found some quotes that are quite related to the reading.
“ If you wish the world to become loving and compassionate, become loving and compassionate yourself. If you wish to diminish fear in the world, diminish your own, these are the gifts you can give”
-“Seat of the Soul” by Gary Zukav.
“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” Buddha
“We all walk in the dark and each of us must learn to turn on his or her own light.” -Earl Nightingale”
We will begin with Karl Wennagel and work alphabetically backwards. (I am a W!)
Renate Weber gives him a candle -he can light it from the first candle and then place it on his candle stand. Each Confirmands name is read out they light their candle and places it on their stand.
Karl Wennagel, Michael Schulz, Daniel Schlender, Linden Ruff, Dayne Ruff. Dirk Lubitz. Sam Lingham, Nicholas Herrmann, Jessica
Edelmaier, Mieka Decker, Caitlin Crowe, Patrick Brown, Thomas Blackwell, Riannon Berkeley, Rebecca Beilharz, Lisa Beilharz, Jessica Beilharz. Ingrid Beilharz and Daniel Beilharz
Dirk Lubitz will now read From the Old Testament
Dirk Lubitz “I am reading a text from the Old Testament today, from the book of Jonah, Chapter 3 verse 10 Chapter 4 verses 1to 3.
“When God saw that the people had stopped doing evil things, he had pity and did not destroy them as he had planned. Jonah was really upset and angry so he prayed: Our Lord I knew from the very beginning that you wouldn’t destroy Nineveh. That is why I left my own country and headed for Spain. You are a kind and merciful God, and you are very patient. You always show love, and you don’t like to punish any one not even foreigners”
Most of us know about Jonah and the whale, but the message Jonah wants to give the people is that the Lord has mercy on everyone and He is very patient. So rather than punishing or hurting people God always shows love.”
Renate Weber I felt this was an important enough reading to include in today’s Service for two reasons firstly we use very few reading from the old Testament, because we find many old Testament lessons less relevant in our lives today and secondly this reading reinforces the new testament message about loving one another and living in harmony to create a more peaceful world.
Jessica Edelmaier “Our second reading comes from the New Testament from the Gospel according to Luke Chapter 11: verses 33-36
“No one lights a lamp and then hides it or puts in under a clay pot. A lamp is put on a lamp stand so that every one who comes into the house can see the light. Your eyes are the lamp for your body. When your eyes are good you have all the light you need. But when your eyes are bad everything is dark. So be sure that your light isn’t darkness. If you have light, and nothing is dark, then light will be everywhere as when a lamp shines brightly on you.”
This reading was chosen because it ties in with our theme of light. We have a choice of what we see and how we see it. We can chose to see the light, the good, the positives or we can choose to see the darkness, the bad or the negatives.
If you show the good, the light, to others then they see the light too and it can have a ripple effect. So don’t hide your light. Be the best you can be! “If you have light and nothing is dark then light will be every where as the lamp shines brightly on you.”
Templers also built their roads, which are still in use today. One road is still the main road of the city. They also made their wagons to transport their produce locally and for export.
They planted plantation that had not been grown in the Middle East. These included oranges, vines, and apples. They also produced vegetables, made their own bread, produced milk & cheeses from their own cows and meat from their own cattle
The Templers also built and ran their own school. They also built an orphanage, which looked after Arabic children.”
“I learnt about the kind of conditions they lived in, what it was like being a girl or a boy in Palestine and the kind of jobs they could do. I learnt about Confirmation in those days and that many of the boys looked after the family farm or became apprentice blacksmiths, bakers or other tradesmen. The conditions they had were limited by the war and placed restrictions on what they could do. They made friendships as they travelled around during their internships. I also learnt about life in internment -sleeping in tents in Cyprus and in barracks in Tatura. When the internees left the camps many grew their own vegetables and had to make a fresh start each time”.
Ingrid Beilharz, Caitlin Crowe and Linden Ruff come up next
Ingrid Beilharz “At our recent confirmation camp, we created stained glass windows. The person shape represents our inner spirit and we are holding an issue we feel strongly about. These windows are not just works of art!
In my stained glass window the issue that I feel is important is that we should spread love rather than war and hate. In simpler terms you should love your neighbour as your self from the twin commandments from Matthew. Love is very contagious; it spreads when you are around a loving or happy person, the love shines out to everyone. Without it would be hard to live. We should all let our love be the light.”
Linden Ruff "The symbol on my stained glass window represents a snowflake turning into a droplet of water, this represents global warming which is an issue I feel strongly about."
Renate Weber will call up the confirmands in groups and Rolf Beilharz will perform the confirmation Ceremony. Each Confirmand is presented with a certificate of Confirmation containing the verse chosen for them. Each group is blessed before they resume their seats
Group 1 Daniel Beilharz
Ingrid Beilharz
Jessica Beilharz
Lisa Beilharz
Rebecca
Beilharz
Group 2 Riannon Berkeley
Thomas Blackwell
Patrick Brown
Caitlin Crowe
Mieka Decker
Group 3 Jessica
Edelmaier
Nicholas Herrmann
Sam Lingham
Dirk Lubitz
Dayne Ruff
Group 4 Linden
Ruff
Daniel Schlender
Michael Schulz
Karl Wennagel
What I learnt from confirmation
Dayne Ruff “I participated in the Confirmation program because my parents and grandparents thought it would be a great experience. I also participated to strengthen friendships, to have an understanding of the Temple Society and to know what religion means.”
Renate Weber Each Confirmand was asked to write a letter of introduction to the teaching elders, they were given a set of guiding questions and asked to include a song or a poem to express an opinion they hold as important or relevant to them. Educators are telling us this generation of young people are going to see many changes in their lives. They will live in a global community. Distance will no longer be a barrier. They may work overseas. The technology they will have to work with and understand hasn’t even been invented yet! They may have a number of different careers; they will need to be flexible and adaptable. They are developing some understanding about religion, spiritualty and the Temple Society. The important thing we can give these young people is a secure and sound base from which they can venture forth. By encouraging them to be the best they can be, to let their light shine out, to be guided by their conscience, to treat others as they want to be treated we are providing them with a set of values they will be able to draw on wherever their life leads them.
Riannon Berkeley “When we wrote our introductory letters, we had to nominate a piece that meant something to us. I nominated the following prayer – written by John Marsden – that I will read to you. He brings forth some important wishes that I share. A prayer for the 21st Century.”
A PRAYER FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY JOHN MARSDEN
May the road be free for the
journey,
May it lead where it promised it would,
May the stars that gave ancient bearings
Be seen, still be understood.
May every aircraft fly safely,
May every traveller be found,
May sailors in crossing the ocean
Not hear the cries of the drowned.
May gardens be wild like jungles,
May nature never be tamed,
May dangers create of us heroes,
May fears always have names.
May the mountains stand to remind us
Of what it means to be young,
May we be outlived by our daughters.
May we be outlived by our sons.
May the bombs rust away in their bunkers,
And the doomsday clock never be rewound.
May the solitary scientists, working,
Remember the holes in the ground.
May the knife remain in the holder,
May the bullet stay in the gun,
May those who live in the shadows
Be seen by those in the sun.
“Many of us went to Sunday school when we were younger. I can always remember so clearly, sitting on the floor of the room with Renate Beilharz playing her guitar and us singing. As we got older we began to realise what the song meant. To us it means every action or emotion that we experience will affect everyone around us like ripples, whether it is in a good way or a bad way.
Please turn to hymn number 91, we will sing both verses.
I’d now like to invite family members of the confirmands to light a candle from our candles. Each one of us has a shining light inside of us and we, as confirmands, would like to spread the light. We would like you to support our special light, we invite the family members of the confirmands to light a taper from their child’s candle and place it in the boxes.
Monika Strasser will play some music.
Great spirit who is over us, in us and around us, be with us today as we celebrate the Templer Rite of Passage called Confirmation. These young people, with the support of the Elders and their families have been asking and seeking to answer the big deep questions about faith.
Let them each be talented, brilliant, gorgeous and fabulous, let their unique precious inner light radiate out in to the world
May they have the humility to listen, the strength to stand up for what they believe is right, and the wisdom to know when they are wrong! Be there in whatever form they need you when they ask for help, guidance and support, be it as a divine force, as their conscience, as a friend. Let us say the Lord’s Prayer together led by
Our father in Heaven,
Hallowed be your name,
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done on earth as in heaven
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
As we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us when in temptation and deliver us from evil.
For the Kingdom the power and the glory
Are yours forever. Amen.
The Choir will conclude by singing the German version of the Lord’s Prayer.
Renate Weber All that now remains is to say a few thankyous! To Monika Strasser for her music. To the teaching Elders, Rolf Beilharz, Harald Ruff, Herta Uhlherr, Renate Beilharz and Mark Herrmann. The Klinks for facilitating our star gazing, to the “living treasures” who made our history come to life, to the parents who cared enough to bring their children and support us in the confirmation program, to the extended families and friends who came today to share in this special celebration, to the choir for their wonderful contribution. Confirmands you are encouraged to take home your stained glass window and your candle with its uniquely crafted stand. The offering today is for Canteen. I hope you all enjoy the rest of Sunday.