Good Friday - The Liturgy of the Lord's Passion

In a Church like ours where the pattern of the Sunday liturgy is
largely the same the liturgies of the Triduum have an especial power.
What we now simply call The Liturgy of the Lord's Passion used to be
known as the mass of the presanctified because although we do receive
communion we do so from the communion that was used for the adoration
of the Watch, thus it is presanctified. Although this is a beautiful
description I think I prefer the new title as this takes our focus
onto the different ceremonies that help us to adore Christ crucified
for us. Of course we do this on every celebration of the Eucharist
when we enter into the offering of Christ to the Father of his own
self upon the cross, and recieve the Lamb of God who still bears for
us the glorious wounds of his Passion. The ceremonies of the Liturgy
however do not compete with the Eucharist but serve to bring out the
depth of the mysteries contained therein, and is on that sense
complimentary. I was struck once again by an experience isolation and
desolation as I proclaimed the part of Jesus during the dramatic
reading of the Passion Gospel. For me the Liturgy always brings me to
an appreciation of the Lord's love for us. My training incumbent Fr
Roger always wept so much during the Veneration of the Cross that the
cross was almost awash with his tears. Why do we not live more as a
people who know just how much we have to be thankful to the Lord for?

In the evening I watched Mel Gibson's version of the Passion. I know
many people found if hard to watch the violence inflicted on the
Lord's body, (which is precisely why I think we need to watch it
because we often fail to appreciate the depth of what the Lord
suffered put of love for us) I do find it a very devotional depiction
of the Passion.

Walk of Witness

After the Children's Way of the Cross we had our walk of witness.
Photo to follow. I always enjoy this simple act. When I was a child on
Maidenhead there was a huge walk of witness led by the Salvation Army
Band. West Blaychington is a rather smaller affair but it has a real
impact on our small shopping area. Our brothers and sisters at Hounsom
Memorial URC Church always kindly provide us with a soup and roll
lunch - perfect for a collation for those of us keeping the Good
Friday fast (one meal and two collations/snack meals). It is also good
to meet up with the other Christians of our local Churches Together
during the Triduum.

Good Friday - Children's Way of the Cross

Following Fr David's example we have begun our Good Friday devotions
with a Children's Way of the Cross service. This year we had an
especially good attendance, over forty children and adults. (I hope to
post some photos for this and some of the following posts on my return
from my Easter Break.) We are blessed at S. Peter's to have a good
number of young families so services like this are an important way to
help them to participate in the Triduum. Special thanks to Erica for
organising hot cross buns before the service.

The Watch

The Maundy Thursday Eucharist and watch is always a wonderful experience. I think like many priestly activities it is difficult to understand the impact that they have upon the priest. From the outside of the sacrament many people assume that the hearing of confessions must be either a depressing or a prurient experience. Nothing is further from the truth, it is always for me an experience of grace for the one ministering the sacrament as well as for the recipient. All the clergy I have spoken to about this have a similar experience. I would imagine that the same is true of the foot washing. One member of the parish told me that she couldn't possible imagine me washing her feet, it would seem far too intimate! From the outside again one can imagine how it might look that way. However for me the experience is simple and moving. As usual there was a spread of people and feet - from that of a child to that of an older person. What moves one is not the foot - whether it is attractive or less so - but the fact that this is a gesture of love, like a mother caring for a child, or a child caring for a parent in later life. To kneel before another person and perform this simple act of service reminds one of the nature of the priestly ministry - to be an icon of Christ. We are all poor copies of course, but in the sacramental ministry we are to step aside and allow his grace and love to shine through 'the unworthy minister' as I sing during the Exultet at the Vigil. Pray for me, and all clergy, that we may be better witnesses to the Lord than we often are in our frailty. The sign of the foot washing of course is also a sign to us that we need to receive ministry. Like Peter, some of us are not always good at receiving ministry, but if we don't then we are only a step away from Pelagianism, of assuming that we need nobody's help, not even the Lord's..... The body of Christ needs all its members! After the Eucharist I am always humbled by the prayerful devotion with which the Watch is kept. Apart from a brief break to eat I am there for most of the watch, and I usually spend some time in prayer and meditation, and some time in spiritual reading. We don't do enough of this, simply spending time with the Lord. I am convinced that there is great spiritual benefit from doing this (if you believe that the Lord is truly present with us, veiled by the form of bread and wine how can you not), and hope that some of you may be encouraged by your participation in the watch to spend some more time doing this on other occasions.

Maundy Thursday

I know that our individual circumstances don't always allow us to attend all of the services of the Triduum, but it is for me always the high point of the liturgical year, as it should be. In many ways the fact that I spend a large portion of each day setting up for the services to come helps, because it keeps me firmly centered in the liturgical action. So Maundy Thursday began with the celebration of the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer as normal, and then I began to set up the Altar of Repose. The finishing touches are of course provided by Maggie Keeling who so ably coordinates the work of our flower arranging team. Also posted is a picture of the notice board, once again restored by Peter Elliott after the latest spate of Vandalism. 

The Passion (BBC) Episode 2

I caught up with the second episode on Wednesday, and found this to be a much better on the whole than the first. This episode was shorter, and led us up to the beginning of the Last Supper. On the whole it seemed more faithful to the Gospels. This episode however did read as if someone had been reading a little bit too much liberation theology. Now of course there is some good liberation theology, but, especially in the earlier phase of this theological movement there was a tendency to cast Jesus too much as a revolutionary leader of a failed uprising. i.e. the way in which Jesus' disciples followed the man with the water jar in order to find the 'upper room.' In many ways this was a good scene, and drew out the unusual fact that it was a man carrying the jar. (This has led some commentators to posit a link with the Essene tradition of celibacy). However, it had a heavy emphasis of skullduggery..... The intention of course is to flesh out the characters in the dram of the passion, make them seems a little more human and ordinary, and to provide more psychological motivation. Thus there is an emphasis on presenting Jesus' teaching in a way that makes it difficult for Caiaphas not to see Jesus in this light. Here we see the downside of this kind of dramatization.  It provides us with an apparent window in the events of Holy Week, a fly on the wall documentary - surely we think this must help us to get closer to Jesus in those final days than the written accounts in the Gospels. Except, (and leaving aside the divinely inspired nature of the Gospel accounts) what we find is that the media of TV requires us to provide a lot of interpretation. Thus Jesus' teaching often seems reduced to a sort of religious egalitarianism - down with organised religion and be nice to everybody. Now Jesus is certainly critical of aspects of contemporary Judaism, but he is also a faithful Jew who comes to fulfill the Torah and the Prophets. Fr Hunwicke in his blog draws attention to the interesting writings of Jacob Neussner who is clear that the cleansing of the Temple has to be interpreted as leading to the end of Temple Sacrifices. And the Gospels are full of other actions of Jesus which lead to similar conclusions, such as his forgiving sins. This episode drew attention to this as well. However, because we can't be expected to draw these subtle conclusions ourselves the drama has to make them in unsubtle ways - and this it seems to me leads to a distortion of what Jesus actually said and did. In passing it worth noting that Pope Benedict in his excellent book on Jesus engages in a discussion with some of Neussner's writing on Jesus. So on the whole a good episode, but again one which must be read with close attention to the Gospels. So brothers and sisters this is a reminder to you that you need to read your Bible and be aware of the Gospel accounts actually say - then you will be in a position to watch programs such as this is a positive and yet also critical way.

Mystagogic Catechesis

As an addendum to my post on the Chrism Mass I came across this lovely quotation from Cyril of Jerusalem's Mystagogic Catechesis. Cyril was Bishop of Jerusalem in the 4th Century and much of what we do in the special ceremonies of Holy Week goes back to the liturgies he celebrated for the pilgrims who gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate Easter. The Mystagogic Catechesis were the addresses given to the newly baptized after Easter explaining to them something of the meaning of the 'mysteries' they had experienced. 

Be sure, however, not to regard the Chrism as a mere ointment. Just as after the invocation of the Holy Spirit the Bread of the Eucharist is no longer just bread but the Body of Christ, so when the Holy Spirit has been invoked on the sacred Chrism it is no longer merely an ordinary ointment. It is Christ's gift which instills his divinity into us through the presence of the Holy Spirit. With a symbolic meaning it is applied to your forehead and sense organs. Just as the body is anointed with a visible ointment, so the soul is sanctified by the Hidden Holy Spirit.

Chrism Mass

Yesterday was largely taken up with the Chrism Mass. For those of you who don't know this is when the clergy of the Diocese gather together, renew their commitment to their ministry and celebrate the Eucharist with their Bishop before the Triduum and receive the Holy Oils for anointing those to be baptized, the sick, and those being baptized, confirmed and ordained. This last oil is the oil of Chrism - thus the tradition name for this celebration. Sometimes the day can feel like a bit of a chore - simply something that has to be done - but at its best it is a very symbolic occasion, and a time for prayerful renewal. St Saviour's Eastbourne is a stunningly beautiful Church which reminds me a bit of All Saint's, Boyne Hill where I spent so many formative years as a child and young man and I was especially struck by the lovely frescoes of the Doctor's of the Church. Bishop John preached well and encouraged us not to neglect our own spiritual life as clergy - something which many clergy struggle with in the midst of the busyness of ministry. Will the CARM process encourage us to make time to be still and pray - I hope so though I think inevitably with its measurable targets it will the practical... I was especially struck by Bishop John quoting Augustine while standing directly beneath the fresco of that Holy Doctor. Members of the parish will know from frequent sermon references that Augustine is my favourite of the Fathers. It was also good to catch up with my training incumbent Fr Roger Russell SSC who was himself a good model of a prayerful priest to me during my curacy.

Agape

Although the Agape is not one of the key liturgical events of Holy Week it is nonetheless one of the ways in which we manage to celebrate Holy Week together with our brothers and sisters from S. George's. There remains much scholarly debate as to exactly what form the Agape took in the early church took, and whether it preceded the eucharist or was something entirely separate from it. For us it is simply an opportunity to hare together in a meal in Holy week with prayers and readings and the opportunity to break bread and share wine together. It is not a Eucharist, though it carries of course echoes of the Eucharist in it, and it is not a passover meal, though in this week it of course carries echoes of that meal too. Fr David took as his text the Gospel reading of the day (John 12: 1-11), which I had enjoyed preaching on at the morning Eucharist, and also took the opportunity to share some of his thoughts on the BBC Passion, not too dissimilar to my comments already posted on the Blog. For him the disappointment was not the interpretation (inevitably perhaps it is going to try to balance some of the religious and secular agendas already mentioned) but the fact that it departs so much from the text of the scriptures. No disagreement here! Last year I was impressed by Pope Benedict's book on Jesus, which has an excellent introduction about how to read scripture in a way that takes into account the usefulness of modern historical criticism without forgetting to read the scriptures prayerfully. I'm still recommending it as the best book to buy on Jesus! I hope he is able to write the second part for us.

I am especially grateful to the many people who worked so hard to prepare the meal, especially Erica and Lynne among many others, not least those from S. George's who helped us as we used their Hall, which is bigger than ours! You can see from the pictures how hard (and blurrily fast!) people worked to clear up afterwards.

The St Peter's Festival

Hopefully many of you will know about the St Peter's Music Festival which is Anthony Roberts' brainchild. His enthusiasm  seems boundless and those of you who have experienced the Bella Voce concerts he has organized over the last couple of years will know that the festival is likely to be well worth attending. As often happens with new projects we have had a few teething problems over dates, but these seem to have now been resolved, and the festival will take place over three weeks.

On Friday 20th June there will be a Variety Performance.

On Friday 27th June there will be a Bella Voce evening.

On Saturday 5th July there will be a Gilbert and Sullivan Evening.

Auditions for the Variety evening for all you talented performers will be held on Saturday 10th and 17 May in the Church from 10.00 am until 12.00 noon. So there is plenty of time to start rehearsing!