We joined the congregation of St Luke's Canton for the Parish Eucharist this morning, visiting the third and final church of the parish in which we now live. We were welcomed warmly by several people we knew, including the Warden of St Michaels and his wife Jan, priest in charge of Glanely. This is where they attend church together when they're on leave. There was a congregation of around fifty there, quite decent for a summer vacation.
St Luke's is the least traditional and best attended of the churches in the benefice of Canton. Modern liturgy was practiced here ahead of anywhere else in the diocese, twenty five years ago. It has an altar in the round placed in the middle of the nave, crafted in wood to resemble a table with a cloth hanging over it. The chairs are arranged in blocks on three sides facing inwards. Fine when it's full, no doubt, but the church is like a barn. One third full in that space feels like we're rattling around in it.
The congregation sang well and prayerfully. Another unappealing setting of the ordinary of the modern language rite of Mass was used, hard to sing without the music text to follow. I've heard very few modern Mass settings for congregational use that don't sound dated (as opposed to being a decent period piece), which is a pity. But at least the effort at a musical offering to God is made here. For Communion we stood in a circle encompassing the entire nave. It was well organised, and took less time than all of us processing to the altar, but it felt less than intimate to me. It's all a question of what you are used to, I suppose. I wondered how comfortable other complete newcomers might be with this departure from convention. It all depends upon the welcome, I guess.
My only real niggle was that the external church notice board has not been up-dated since the service time changed from ten to ten thirty. To say "everybody knows" is no alibi. I was quite taken aback as we arrived at ten twenty-nine to see ten o'clock advertised outside.
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