I managed to wake up early enough to go to the eight o'clock at Kenilworth Parish Church this morning. When I arrived the church was open, but a notice at the entrance announced a grand Pentecost Family Service in the open space of the Abbey Fields below the church at eleven. The church was unusually quiet and empty, apart from the Vicar who greeted me. I said I'd come for the early service as I wanted to spend the rest of the morning with the family. He talked about the later event without actually stating that the eight o'clock was not taking place. "Oh you've come for Communion, sorry." he said, and invited me to stay and enjoy the silence. He seemed preoccupied with the gloomy weather, and whether to move the event indoors. True to form, by eight fifteen it started to rain.
Thank God for a good memory that still retains the old prayer book Liturgy and a church well equipped with decent modern pew Bibles. I prayed the Eucharist by heart, and read the appointed scriptures for the day, enjoying the silence. I've done the same before when visiting places where there's no church. The Vicar came and went several times during the half hour I prayed there - no doubt worrying, the way I used to if I took a risk that looked as if it wouldn't succeed. I felt sorry for him. Was he waiting for me to leave in order to lock up? I wondered. I stayed the full half hour. I'm as allergic to mornings as I ever was. Getting up for early Mass even in bright summer time is always a struggle against Brother Ass. However, even if a little disappointed, I left the church refreshed.
It's a worthy idea, to have a united public open air act of witness, but witnessing to whom? Non-churchgoing parents taking their kids to the swings or dogs for a walk? A better location would be the market place, albeit a lot harder to organise well and successfully. A non-eucharistic service is supposed to appeal to those on the edge of, or outside the church. It goes down well at Christmas with carols making a bridge to popular culture, but on a cold damp English midsummer day, how do you engage any except the most steadfast faithful people?
There's only one service for Anglicans of Kenilworth Parish all day: 'Family Praise in the Open' (like in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost) - non Eucharistic, not in church. Nothing for passers-by like me, or those who can't fit into the main plan for the day. Why pick one of the four Sundays of the year the Book of Common Prayer designates for Communion celebration? There can be every good reason to break with tradition on times, but on some occasions, doing so makes me wonder if were not losing touch with our roots, and aren't looking at the way the world works with sufficient clarity.
I know how difficult it is to be innovative and attractive in the offer of public worship, and how strong is the desire to reach out and share the most important things about life with others outside the community of faith. In the end, the community of the Spirit grows and extends through the relationships people make with each other and with God, and every effort is made to make these meaningful and relevant. Kenilworth Parish is very good at this. An occasonal liturgical flop is survivable, and shouldn't quench creative intiative. However there is still much to be said for maintaining a default pattern of worship, no matter how taxing to ensure this may be.
No comments:
Post a Comment