Emergency stand-in

After breakfast this morning I had an email from Emma, asking if I could celebrate Mass at St Luke's and then do a baptism at St Catherine's. She'd spent six hours in the night with one year old Ned in A&E at the Heath - a worrying painful rash following tonsillitis a few days ago, and no idea what it was. Poor boy was inconsolable and clinging to his mother. I was pleased that I was free to be asked, and had an hour and a half to get a sermon together, and walk over to St Luke's in good time, since Clare had the car in Dinas Powis. 

The challenge would be getting back to St Catherine's, meeting the baptismal party and getting things ready for 12.30 start. I learned that Clare was returning for the St Catherine's Eucharist, and arranged with her to pick me up by car and ferry me over. Thankfully it all worked perfectly.

There were only three dozen communicants at St Luke's in a church that holds two hundred. People stand around the walls of the nave to receive Communion, which sort of works when there's a large number, but doesn't feel right with so few. Instead of gathering for Communion, if feels as if people are scattering. Changing liturgical habit is notoriously hard however, as I recall from my first Curacy,  in Caerphilly. We had a tin tabernacle mission church that held fifty. It usually hosted 6-8 people. They'd all sit in the same places as they had since childhood, scattered about the church, resentful if they were begged to move. St James' Tredegarville was like that too, until circumstances forced a move for the 12-15 congregation into the choir stalls, once the nave was set up for other purposes. Neither church was sustainable, neither survived despite the best pastoral care offered to them.

There were about forty in the congregation at St Catherine's for the baptism of a one year old boy, who was wide awake, alert, following everything with big wondrous eyes. At the baptism rite, when I had given the customary blessing with arms extended, the child waved his arms in the air like wings, perhaps imitating my gesture. Everyone was charmed and laughed fondly. A delightful conclusion to an unexpectedly active morning. 

I expected to feel drained of energy after lunch, as I have on previous occasions, and surprised that I wasn't. Last Wednesday's acupuncture session seems to have done me a power of good. Martin and Chris invited us to lunch, as Chris' parents are visiting from Canada. I was good to see them again both looking well and enjoying a change of scene. Martin is Newport Mayor's Chaplain this year and getting to know some of local councillors. Another guest was Kate, a Ward Councillor, and very much a kindred spirit. As ever, the food was amazing and I had to be careful to resist over-eating, as I certainly suffer for it if I do these days.