CCOW Guide to Online Worship Resources
CCOW Guide to Online Worship Resources:
Refugees & Forced Migration
Materials for a full service …
Baptist Union of Great Britain
http://www.baptist.org.uk/Articles/448817/Welcoming_the_Stranger.aspx
Brochure (updated 2015) with material including sermon notes, suggestions for hymns, prayers and readings, and Bible studies. Also contains practical information on helping and case studies of what churches have done.
CAFOD
Refugee solidarity liturgy based around the Lampedusa Cross. Also a powerful prayer pilgrimage for young people.
Christian World Service (NZ)
https://cws.org.nz/resources/for-churches/
Refugee Sunday Worship Resources from 2007 to 2023.
Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe
https://ccme.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2018-06-18_Commemoration_Day_June_2018__00000002_.pdf
Materials for a day of intercession in memory of those who lost their lives on the way to seek safety in Europe. Contains background information, prayers and worship idea.
Churches Refugee Network
http://www.urc.org.uk/images/mission/at_home_strange/Vigil_for_Refugees_-_outline.pdf
Service outline for a vigil
Church of Scotland
https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/the-god-who-sees-me-worship-resources-for-sanctuary-sunday Comprehensive material for a Sanctuary Sunday service on 25th June 2023, including sermon notes on the Revised Common Lectionary readings, prayers, litany, children’s resources, all age activity, videos and personal stories.
Further resources, including musical suggestions: https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/weekly-worship/monthly/june-2023/25-june-sanctuary-sunday
CTBI
https://ctbi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/3507-CS-SFAR-Migration-Worship-A5-BOOKLET.pdf
A booklet “God with us – worship resources on the theme of refugees, migration and sanctuary” by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. Includes Bible studies, prayers, liturgies, songs, stories, ideas for young people and more.
European Methodist Council
https://www.methodist.eu/resources
Liturgies for World Refugee Day 2022 and 2023
Methodist Church
Worship resources on the theme of refugees and migrants, including Bible study on the “Stranger”, prayers, suggestions for hymns, Bible readings, and links to other materials.
Refugee Highway Partnership
https://rhpeurope.net/world-refugee-sunday
Children’s resources for World Refugee Sunday, 18th/25th June 2023, focusing on Matthew 25:35 under the theme ‘I was a stranger, and you welcomed me…’. Also a children’s lesson from the Lala’s Journey programme by https://www.firstaidforthesoul.org/ to teach children trauma stabilizing skills.
Welcome Churches
https://welcomechurches.org/refugeesunday2024
Resources for Refugee Sunday 2024, including videos, Sunday service suggestions (themes, Bible passages, sharing stories, songs and prayers) and Children’s groups activities.
Prayers, prayer stations, hymns and reflections …
Baptist Union
https://www.baptist.org.uk/Articles/448640/Refugees.aspx
Refugees: a collection of prayers from different sources.
CAFOD
https://cafod.org.uk/pray/prayer-resources
A collection of CAFOD’s considerable prayer resources relating to refugees.
CCOW
https://www.ccow.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Refugee-Week-Prayer-1.pdf
Prayer poster/slide (made for Refugee Sunday 2023), praying for us to share with refugees the compassion we receive from God.
CTBI
A variety of reflections and prayers are available on the dedicated refugee website for Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (not continued after 2019) – look especially at 28 April 2017, when a delegation went to Lampedusa and Sicily, and 25 December 2018 A Christmas Prayer for Refugees.
Resound Worship
https://www.resoundworship.org/song/our_god_was_a_refugee
A worship song (2017) by Joel Payne “Our God was a refugee”- audio recording, lyrics & chord chart available free; full score and MP3 to purchase.
Songs2Serve
Intercultural songs of worship in a multitude of languages, with lyrics, chords, videos and translations into English.
The Stations
A collaborative project by Marksteen Adamson and Justin Brierley, Krish Kandiah, Lou Dawson, Oy Ralfe and Julie Tomlin, using the traditional fourteen ‘Stations of the Cross’ as a framework for Christian reflection on the journeys refugees make.
United Reformed Church
http://www.urc.org.uk/images/mission/at_home_strange/God_travels_with_us.pdf
A hymn (2016) by Colin Ferguson ‘God travels with us’ that reflects on the experience of refugees moving in faith.
USPG
https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/uspg/content/pages/documents/1594212911.pdf
There are prayers at the end of each session of the ‘Migration and Movement’ study course (see below)
Welcome Churches
“United in Hope” prayer resource pack for organising a prayer event focusing on the needs of refugees and people seeking asylum in the UK and around the world. Includes advice on planning the event, visuals of facts and figures, and ideas and printable resources for prayer stations.
Bible readings and Bible studies …
Baptist Union of Great Britain
http://www.baptist.org.uk/Articles/448817/Welcoming_the_Stranger.aspx
As noted above. Bible studies focus on Mary and Joseph, and ‘Strangers and Aliens’
Bible Society
Series of 4 Bible studies (2016) ‘Refugees and the Bible – Welcoming the stranger’, with short (1-2 minute) video introductions
BRF Ministries
https://www.brfonline.org.uk/products/gods-heart-for-refugees-guidelines-sampler
A week-long series of biblical reflections “God’s Heart for Refugees”, based on refugees, God’s heart for them and how we, as the body of Christ, can enable the stranger to belong in our communities.
Commitment for Life
http://www.urc.org.uk/images/mission/at_home_strange/Journeying_-_Bible_Study_and_Worship.pdf
Journeying Bible Study, including one of Elizabeth’s reflections from the Pilgrimage to Paris.
Singing the Faith Plus (Methodist)
http://www.singingthefaithplus.org.uk/?p=14384
An annotated list, explaining why passages have been selected and giving links to the actual readings.
USPG
https://d3hgrlq6yacptf.cloudfront.net/uspg/content/pages/documents/1594212911.pdf
‘Migration and Movement’ a six-week study course with Bible studies, stories and prayers.
Poems and other readings …
Brian Bilston
https://brianbilston.com/2016/03/23/refugees/
‘Reversible’ poem “Refugees”, which offers two perspectives on refugees and our response – a bottom-to-top reading challenging the attitudes found in a top-to-bottom reading
Write to Life
Freedom from Torture shares six poems reflecting a variety of person experiences depicting what it’s like to be a refugee. Four are by members of their Write to Life group for former and current clients, and two are by other authors – including Warsan Shire’s poem including the lines “no one leaves home unless home is the mouth of a shark” and “no one puts their children in a boat unless the water is safer than the land.”
Videos …
CAFOD
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_P9huLYmS0
3 minute animation about forced migration, suitable for children, aimed at Catholics and encouraging supporting CAFOD to help refugees
Churches Together in Britain and Ireland
2 minute video of three participants (a Catholic, a Quaker and a Presbyterian) on the CTBI visit to Mediterranean Hope refugee projects in Lampedusa and Sicily (2017).
Home for Good
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MX9b1ldWpo
6 minute video (Jan 2018) by Dr. Krish Kandiah calling on Christians in the UK to welcome refugee children and young people in response to the war in Syria.
Inscape Animations
https://inscapeanimations.com/roots-inscape-animation.html
9 minute beautifully drawn, reflective and thought-provoking animation, on migration from the earliest times, refugees’ experience, what makes us secure and our common roots
Jesuit Refugee Service/Mercy in Motion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziz9a-2Zhvs
‘Open Minds, Unlock Potential’ 12 minute video in which refugees speak in their own words about their experiences, interspersed with words of theological reflection from Pope Francis.
Refugee Highway Partnership
https://rhpeurope.net/world-refugee-sunday
Nine diverse videos on the theme of refugees, between 1 and 45 minutes long, produced between 2016 and 2021 by different organisations – documentary, interview, Biblical teaching, introductory facts
Welcome Churches
https://www.tfaforms.com/5121776
Sign up to receive resources for Refugee Sunday 2024. These will share stories of home from refugees and people seeking asylum in the UK, and also celebrate the incredible contribution that churches are making in welcoming those who are being displaced to find home again within God’s family.
UNHCR
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvzZGplGbL8
Who is a Refugee? 3 minute animation video sutiable for age 12+
Theological resources to give background for preaching …
World Council of Churches
http://www.urc.org.uk/images/mission/at_home_strange/The_Other_Is_My_Neighbour_WCC.pdf
‘The Other Is My Neighbour: Developing an Ecumenical Response to Migration’ – theological reflection paper.
World Evangelical Alliance
‘Justice and Compassion: Responding to the Refugee Crisis in Europe’ – sets out some basic context (as of 2015) and offers theological reflection.