Break

I'm taking a break from blogging due to busyness. I shall return after some much-needed sleep and rest!

A blessed Advent to you all.

Eastbourne (and further thoughts)

Nave

Sanctuary

Baptistery

Our Lady

Chapel of S. Peter

Stations of the Cross

I understand that my last post on a perceived North-South English divide on the Apostolic Constitution may well have irked some. (Perhaps it's just as well that the combox is still not functioning properly. . .) It was not my intention to cause angst, only to share what I perceive to be going on amongst those with whom I speak and interact. For my part, I speak as a Northern English Anglo-Catholic who, whilst living and working from afar is, nonetheless, in possession of a perspective shared by many in the South, and whilst I do have particular and serious concerns about the integrity of Anglican Orders and worries about the precise hows, whys and wherefores of what an Anglo-Catholic presence within the Roman fold might look and feel like, I am, nonetheless, concerned - as is every other priest - with his own parish and its life, ministry and, importantly, its future.

Certainly, from where I'm sitting, standing and kneeling, things are not as comfortable for me as they are for others, and that leads me - and the parish - to hard questions about our future, but also to joyful possibilities about what it might mean for faithful Anglican Catholics to embrace the fullness of Catholic faith and practice (and, yes, I do mean, specifically, papal primacy - we can't just put the Pope in a cupboard and forget about him, can we?). And before anybody jumps to conclusions, please note the words hard questions, possibilities and might. Nothing has been decided upon. Nothing is to be decided upon, at least at present. But it doesn't hurt to think and to explore, openly and honestly, and, yes, with a certain level of joy (for what else does the possibility of Christian unity inspire?), what has been so graciously offered by the Holy Father.

In response to those who have said that their experience of Roman Catholic reaction to the Constitution has been negative, I certainly can't speak for English Roman Catholic priests or bishops, but I do know that in conversations with two local R.C. priests here (one of whom is the Ecumenical Officer for the R.C. Diocese), the response has been welcome and warm, and the assurance of prayer and support for our Anglo-Catholic community has been firm and reassuring. So, things will be different in different places and in different parishes.

Anyway, lest I prove even more irksome, I shall draw to a close by sharing some nice photos of the parish church of SS. Saviour & Peter, Eastbourne, taken by Wanderer and past parishioner from Darwen, Tom Coucill, during his recent visit there. Hopefully they will pour a bit of cold water on potentially heated discussions!

Finally, my apologies for the intermittent posts of late. Life is busy! We had Solemn Evensong for the Monarchist League last night, followed by a dinner at the largest Royal Canadian Legion Branch in the country. I think I've now sung God save the Queen more times in seven months in my present parish than I ever have in all my previous worshipping communities put together! No bad thing in my book. Today was also busy with an early Mass at a retirement lodge, three pastoral visits and Sext. So, time to take a bit of break now before I have to go out with the children to a pyjama party at a local shopping mall! Fun!

Mirfield Wanderings

The College of the Resurrection, Mirfield

We arrrived on Foundation Day

Surrexit!

Fr. Thomas Seville C.R. and Craig Roters

With Andrew Harding

Mirfield

Chips w'bits - a grand Mirfield institution!

Some final photos of my last stop of our time in England and Wales last month, which took us to Mirfield and to my old theological college. By very happy coincidence one of the present students there, Andrew Harding, is the son of a dear couple who happen to be parishioners of mine here in Calgary. Knowing their aptitude for humility, they won't like the honourable mention, but I shall do it anyway, and say also - to add insult to injury(!) - that they are both a delight and a joy and ever supportive. So, thank you, Felicity and John! It was a real treat to be able to meet up with Andrew, in particular, and see how he is settling into that very 'unique' way of life (I shall say no more than that!)

My parents came along for the ride and much fun was had shopping in the charity shops (for Elizabeth was manager of Sue Ryder Care in the town for over a year), and eating fish and chips on the hill by Upper Hopton overlooking Mirfield, reminiscing about old times and new futures. We did manage a brief conversation with Fr. Seville C.R. and sometime blogger Craig Roters (of Gin Soaked Seminarian fame) about the Apostolic Constitution. I might as well mention it here, but my own sense of the mood in England is that I detect something of an uncomfortable North-South divide. People in the North of England seem to be more cautious and guarded about this offer, whereas those in the South are clearly positive and open to the possibilities of what an Ordinariate might mean. Of course, this is a generalisation and it isn't true across the board, but I do find it somewhat disturbing to see so little hope for Rome's offer amongst Anglo-Catholics in the North. Perhaps, though, I'm looking at it from the wrong perspective and it's actually that those in the North have more confidence in the C of E - and the place of the Catholic Movement within it - than do those in the South.

My current perspective, though, as much as it pains me, is that those in the South have the better measure of where things are headed. To be blunt, the C of E has signalled, in a very clear and uncharitable manner, that it isn't prepared to tolerate within its ranks - with any sense of due respect and proper legal protection - the traditionalist position any longer. This has clearly riled those - myself included - who have long been part of the Church of their baptism. See Fr. Hunwicke calling a spade a spade in one of his recent posts, here. It's forceful and rather disturbing to read, but it's also painfully true. Similarly, Fr. Tomlinson's recent post, here, expresses a very similar sense of frustration and even anger at the decision of the C of E to signal the final abandonment of that generosity and breadth which has long been one of its hallmarks. He does, however, take wise counsel from the Bishop of Ebbsfleet and his own words are worth sharing as a sort of gentle reminder of what's really important in our own dealings with the oppressiveness of the Church:

However angry and hurt we may be feeling that does not relinquish us from our Christian duty to love and to forgive. The wider Church of England has chosen a liberal protestant identity for the 21st Century. It has also realised, to its own horror in all but the most aggressively progressive quarters, that it leaves us traditionalists totally out of the picture. So be it. We must pray for them and they must pray for us and together we should seek a way forward that is both encouraging and helpful to all. If we Catholics now face a death of sorts we must do so confident in resurrection elsewhere.

Indeed. But it's not just the C of E which has chosen this "liberal protestant identity". It's true of most, if not all, of the western provinces of the Anglican Communion. The difference, though, is that those provinces have little sense of the "horror" of their own actions and how they have affected faithful and loyal Anglicans in - and I'm sorry to keep banging on about this one, but it is a valid experience - isolated Anglo-Catholic parishes such as my own. Yes, "so be it". It is painful. It was painful enough for me when I really did come to see what the true nature of the game was once I had left behind the C of E and entered into the brave new world of Canadian Anglicanism. . . I sense that, yes, a death of sorts does await, but that we must indeed be confident that resurrection elsewhere is on the cards.

So, I will close on this by again borrowing from elsewhere - others seem to do this so much better than I. Bishop Burnham's words are timely :

I think we have to stand back from the conflict a little and remain in the desert of prayer. Anglicanorum coetibus (the Pope’s offer) is either a gracious gift from God, whereby Catholic unity is possible for those Anglo-catholics who have longed and prayed for unity with the Holy See or it is a distraction from the task of bringing the whole of the Church of England and the Anglican Communion safely into the ambit of Catholic Faith and Order.

If this second possibility is ruled out by the Church of England’s own actions – and that seems to be an ever stronger interpretation – then we need to accept the Holy Father’s offer, not as Plan B but as Plan A++. But, if we accept the offer, we need to be careful not to damage our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Church of England and the mission of Reformed Christians in this country – a mission which God also enables and inspires. And we must make the journey in humble faith and trust.

Humble faith and trust must be central to any plan. We, here, sadly, have precious little in the way of "plans" other than the one on the table. As much as we may pledge fidelity to historic Canterbury, others have little regard for what that really means. Answers on a postcard if any (fellow) English Anglo-Catholics can think of a way to enable - yes, again - isolated parishes in unfriendly provinces to have a future which is free, Anglican and Catholic. (My going back to Blighty doesn't count! What about the parishioners? What are they supposed to do?)

Mass and Bible Study await and I need to get a homily written for the former!

Portmeirion and Varia

The Red Dragon keeps watch

Beautiful, unique, Portmeirion

otherwise known as Wiggyville to my children (being fans of Captain Adorable!)

Wonderful nooks and crannies

Italia comes to Wales

What holidays are all about

My sore throat had just started, so this was most welcome!

No visit to Portmeirion would be complete without this sort of visit

I know that sort of feeling(!)

Down to the beach

Hotel Portmeirion

The view from our room

To round off the holiday snaps, an offering of the joys of our all too brief stay in Portmeirion on the Snowdonia Coast. We had a superb time there and intend to return in 2011 for a family holiday. It had been nineteen years since my last visit, and I don't intend to repeat that stretch. The accommodation was gracious and the food was exquisite. How nice it was to escape from the ravages of Church politics and the uncertainties of the future.

My apologies for the lack of posts over the past week. It's been quite the week in the parish. . . but I'm happy to say that things have begun to settle down. We had a good turnout yesterday at Mass and, pleasantly, for Evensong and Benediction too, at which we welcomed three visitors, all seminarians from the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada, with whom it was good to speak about the Apostolic Constitution and the state of the Church (a popular topic of conversation these days, sorry, these decades).

It is with a heavy heart that I read the news last week that the Revision Committee on Women in the Episcopate, appointed to explore ways of accommodating traditionalists within the New C of E (which is very much like revisionist New Labour) has come down hard against giving any proper provision. The full report can be found here. Other Anglo-Catholic blogs have given comment on what this might mean for the future of the Catholic Movement in England. I am somewhat out of the loop now, but what I do know is that it is a worrying sight for Anglo-Catholics in other Anglican provinces to see the C of E going down the same narrow, illiberal path as their own wayward parts of the Communion. For as long as the C of E has maintained some sense of fairness, balance and mutual respect of integrities, it has, in a limited way, offered a degree of hope to isolated Anglo-Catholics in unfriendlier and less fair provinces, who could, for what its worth, cite the C of E as a place where a certain tolerance for, and indeed encouragement of, Catholicity within historic Anglicanism can exist. Not so any more. And that is a real shame.

Of course, the Apostolic Constitution, Anglicanorum Coetibus - whether people like it or not - has changed things, and it appears that the C of E has responded with a spiteful rebuke aimed at flushing out - for good - those whom it has decided don't fit with its New C of E mentality. It's shameful, but not surprising, because it's happened here in North America, and over a longer period of time.

For my part, I reiterate my applause for the Holy Father's olive branch to those who seek to maintain and bear witness to the Catholic faith as received by Anglicans in provinces throughout the Communion and beyond. The Apostolic Constitution, together with its Complementary Norms, is not the easiest thing for people to digest. Ending decades and centuries of loyalty to Anglican dioceses and provinces will be hard for people, but do those dioceses and provinces want them? They may say so, in sugary terms. But their actions - and their votes in Synod - indicate otherwise. Of course, not all Anglican bishops - even those disposed to women priests and bishops - buy in to the New C of E outlook, and their witness for the defence of fairness is be to thanked, but they are, increasingly, in the minority.

The question I have to keep asking myself is a local one. How can my parish continue to be my parish? How can we maintain our traditions? How can we safeguard and pass on the faith to those who will come after us? Can I be sure that my priest successor will preserve the Anglican and Catholic traditions built up here over many decades? How can we be guaranteed a bishop who will affirm us, celebrate what we are trying to do for the Kingdom, and encourage us in our future efforts? And how, in all conscience, can we as a parish, or I as a priest or as a Christian, ignore the Lord's imperative that the Church is called to be one in Christ as he is one with the Father?

A Busy Week

Being under the weather for most of last week has taken its toll with the extra workload this week. I've been busy catching up on parochial duties, etc. and today, Remembrance Day, promises not to be any different: Morning Prayer, Requiem, Bible Study, a Confession, work on a new Mass booklet, Mass and Vestry to round off the day! Busy. So, my apologies for the lack of posts. I do have pictures from the parish's All Souls Requiem as well as the final two installments of my holidays snaps (please, no more, I hear you say!), and some thoughts and reflections on the newly-released Apostolic Constitution, Anglicanorum Coetibus. So, more later!

Conwy and Bodnant

Approaching Conwy via the Conwy Suspension Bridge (1826)

A view of Tower XIII, the highest point in the Town Walls

Elizabeth enters the town

A handsome view

S. Mary & All Saints Parish Church (12th, 14th, 15th & 16th Centuries)
built on the foundation of the 12th Century Cistercian Aberconwy Abbey
with tomb marked "We Are Seven", containing seven brothers and sisters

East window

Stairs to Rood Loft

Rood Screen (15th Century)

High Altar
(it was very dark, and we couldn't find the lights!)

Llywelyn the Great (c.1173-1240 - him, not the statue!)
Prince of Gwynedd

Surrounded by walls

Walking the walls, with stunning views

Harbour views
Can you spot the UFO? ;-)

Harbour and Castle

Quay House, aka The Smallest House in Great Britain
used as a residence from the 16th Century to 1900

Plas Mawr (1576-1585)
reputed to be the finest surviving Elizabethan town house in Britain

A few snaps of our brief morning in Conwy (we always called it Conway when I was a wee lad), known for its imposing 13th Century castle and almost completely intact and unbroken walls (with twenty-one towers) which surround the town. These structures were built by order of English King Edward I to advance his conquest of the principality and so repel invading Welsh armies. I spent many happy memories in Conwy and neghbouring towns as a child, since North Wales was one of my parents' favourite holiday destinations - and with good reason. It's a very fine town, though the standard of shops has declined in recent years and there are now just too many souvenir shops. How many fluffy Welsh dragons and 'Castles of Wales' guidebooks does one need!?

Thankfully, it was quiet in Conwy and it felt as though we had the walls to ourselves. It was very peaceful indeed. Sadly, the Smallest House in Great Britain (for the record, where is the smallest in Northern Ireland?) was closed, as was Plas Mawr, so we were a little disappointed that these two gems were closed. The fine Aberconwy House, the only surviving medieval merchant's house in Conwy, is now owned by the National Trust, and is their shop, and we didn't really fancy looking at yet more souvenirs. So, we moved on and walked some more. Conwy is a nice place to walk around.

We did, however, manage to gain access to the parish church. We were looking forward to being there, not least because it was listed in the Forward in Faith directory as the only FiF-friendly parish in the Diocese of Bangor. We thought that there might even have been a Midday Mass. The parish priest, residing in his modern vicarage next door - in the shadow of its much-grander Edwardian forebear - was obliging enough, but seemed mildly confused at the request to look inside his church; even more so when I told him I was a priest. (Ah, perhaps he was right, and I am mad to ask to look inside churches during my hols!) Still, he handed over the keys. Upon entering the dark and somewhat dank church, however, I began to see what he might have meant by his reluctant welcome. The exterior seemed promising enough, but the interior was frightfully depressing and cold and lacked any visual signs of Catholic influence, save for a crucifix above the pulpit. The church did have some nice ancient features, but the holy water stoup was empty and I couldn't find the reserved Sacrament anywhere. Given the venerable history of a parish such as this, together with its prime location in the very centre of a walled medieval town, it seems utterly remarkable that it isn't open to the public during the day, at least for private prayer. I think there could be immense potential for a parish such as this in a town such as Conwy. Sadly, I left the church wondering what merited its inclusion in the FiF directory. . . (I have since been told that the Vicar of Conwy is a good and sound man, a conservative evangelical - which helps explain the church furnishings - who is very active in Credo Cymru. My apologies for any unintended offence).

A short drive later and we were in the 80-acre Bodnant Garden, close to Tal-y-Cafn, a place we had earmarked for a visit after watching the BBC's recent Bodnant: A Garden in Snowdonia. The estate is undergoing a £2 million improvement. It is certainly beginning to show signs of that improvement and we were suitably impressed with our visit. The Garden has been in the hands of the National Trust since 1949, but the House, originally built in 1792 but remodelled in the late 19th Century, together with the Bodnant Estate, are still in the hands of the Aberconway family, who reside there to this day.

Bodnant Hall and neighbouring Snowdonia

Shopping

Traditional British fare
(this followed the Welsh hotpot)

Lunch was taken in the Tea Rooms at Bodnant, and I think the pictures tell the rest of the story perfectly!

And some news just in. Many congratulations to fellow-blogger, Fr. Ed Tomlinson and to his wife, Hayley, on the birth of their son, Benedict Peter, who I am sure will be a wonderful little brother to sister Jemima. Wonderful news! Wonderful name!

Remember, remember

Guy Fawkes Night in Newfoundland, Canada

For the first time in living memory, last night was peaceful and the air was as clear and as fresh as it has been for the preceding nights. No fireworks. No smell of smoke. No Protestant-based commemoration of Guy Fawkes' 1605 Gunpowder Plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament in an effort to reconcile - albeit in a roundabout way - England with the Holy See. Although Bonfire Night is still, in a limited way, kept in parts of the provinces of British Columbia and Newfoundland & Labrador (the latter being a British colony until 1947), it is left largely unobserved in Canada.

Whilst Harvest Festival, Battle of Britain Sunday, Remembrance Sunday, the Queen's official birthday, Mothering Sunday, Boxing Day, and other (British-influenced) cultural and religious observances are maintained here in Canada, Guy Fawkes Night is not really kept. A quick look at Wikipedia - reliable and trustworthy source that it is(!) - reveals that Guy Fawkes Night has all but disappeared in Britain's former colonies, with restrictions on the purchase and useage of fireworks having put paid to traditional 'celebrations.' In Colonial America, George Washington banned any commemoration of it amongst his troops, though up until the 1730s it was popular in Boston, with street parades which "mocked Catholicisim and the Catholic Stuart Pretender".

Notwithstanding objections to the origins of Guy Fawkes Night, I do miss the revelry and community spirit of standing around a bonfire, eating a toffee apple and waving a sparkler. . . Fr. Michael Gollop, in a post today, found here, offers a salutary reminder of the danger of neglecting one's cultural and religious past :

I did go through a period of thinking one shouldn’t celebrate 5th November because of its historical connotations, but now think that was just a strangely aberrant form of PC-ism too: we can’t alter our country’s often tragic religious history, or in any meaningful way apologise for the events of the distant past, but perhaps we do now have an opportunity to change its trajectory – what can I be thinking of now!

So, perhaps next year, we shall resurrect Guy Fawkes Night, or at least Bonfire Night, in the Province of Alberta (whose British roots are impeccable, for it was named for Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and husband of the Marquess of Lorne, Governor-General of Canada, and the province currently has 200,000 expatriate British), if only for the sake of the toffee apples.

St Asaph

St. Asaph Cathedral

North Transcept and Tower

West end

West front

Nave, looking east

Pulpit and Ikea table

High Altar and Quire

Quire, looking west

Cathedra

Our Lady & Child behind glass

Exquistie angel, but not part of a riddel post
(sounds like a cryptic crossword clue)

High Street, with mock Tudor betting office!

Elizabeth outside the Parish Church of SS. Asaph & Kentigern

Our post-Chester travels took us to the small town of St. Asaph in historic Flintshire (modernists would have you believe it was in Denbighshire!), and to its 13th Century Cathedral Church, built on site of the monastic foundation established by S. Kentigern ca.560. The medieval cathedral is only less charming than its diocesan bishop, the Rt. Revd. Dr. Gregory Cameron who, as cited in Ruth Gledhill's Times blog, recently accused Pope Benedict XVI of "ecumenical bad manners" in promulgating the Apostolic Constitution for former Anglicans wishing to enter into full communion with the Holy See. You can read his views here.

Episcopal silliness aside, the cathedral was, in my view, a mixed bag. It was small and intimate - reputed, like its neighbour St. David's, to be the smallest cathedral in Wales - and it is very old. It sits in a community which is very proud of its past city status and the local authority refers to itself as the 'City of St. Asaph Town Council'. Quaint! The Choir and High Altar were stunning. Warm, Victorian, and lush, but I take serious issue with the glass nave altar and the rotting Christus - he didn't rot on the Cross! There were some nice nooks and crannies, but it did feel rather bare and somewhat secular in parts - the chairs certainly didn't help - though this might be because it's so small and thus difficult to adequately provide for a secluded bookshop, etc. The setting, however, was idyllic. We walked down the high street to the parish church, dedicated to SS. Asaph & Kentigern, and listed in the Domesday Book, but, alas, it was closed.

I am still in a period of confinement, as it were, with many sniffles and a bad head cold. I haven't ventured out since All Souls' Day, so this is all I can offer at present. Blessings!

Chester

Chester Cathedral

Lady Chapel (13th Century)

Shrine of S. Werburgh, sans relics (14th Century)

North Choir Aisle
and stunning window of the Nativity by Michael O'Connor (1857)

Beautiful High Altar, with mosaic reredos by J. R. Clayton (1876)

Baptistery (1140)

A view from the Cloister Garden

Cloister (13th Century), with its wonderful Church Year in stained glass (20th Century)

A final view on a warm evening

Chester Town Hall (1867)

Iconic mock Tudor Chester

Our recent trip to England took in Chester and its Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, which became the cathedral church of the new Diocese of Chester in 1541. Prior to the Reformation, the Cathedral was S. Werburgh's Abbey, a Benedictine foundation which dated from 1093. It's a very beautiful cathedral and its sandstone walls give a very warm pinkish glow to all things. The High Altar is well-appointed, but seldom used for the principal Mass on Sundays. Like other cathedrals a westward-facing nave altar has been erected beyond the Quire, though I noted that the High Altar was still used for the early Mass on Sundays, as well as for Mattins and Evensong.

We attended Choral Evensong on a Sunday evening and encountered an initial shock. After the bell rang, the Choir entered andthey were all in green hospital gowns (well, it's the closest thing I can think to say they looked like). Thankfully, we were reassured that these singers were visitors and that the real Choir were in Bruges. Just as well, because I was ready to snap at what I thought was a retro-60s look, similar to the nonsensical liturgical garb adopted by the powers that be at places like Coventry Cathedral.

We are all under the weather here, so I shall sign off for now. Before I do, please take time to sign this petition organised by C-FAM (the Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute), based in the United States, which is seeking to present 1,000,000 signatures to the United Nations in December asking member states to begin interpreting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as protecting the unborn child from abortion. Thank you.

P.S. Teething trouble on the Comments. . . back soon.

Success?

I don't know if this will work, but I've being trying to get Comments on the blog now for what feels like and eternity. It's not perfect, but I think I've managed to do something that will allow people to leave comments. Let me know if it works . . . or doesn't! Just click 'Comments' below and you should be able to leave a comment.

What a pain.