St Luke honoured nevertheless

It's St Luke's Day, and I confess my sadness at not having an opportunity to celebrate this fiesta at Mass with a worshipping community. We know more about the kind of man he was from his Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, than from any biography that might be constructed about him. I'd like to think that the attention his writings give to people, and what they had to endure in life, has had lasting influence on how pastoral care is  understood among Christians.

The morning's overcast weather turned briefly to thunder and rain by lunchtime. After rain, a fresh outbreak of birdsong from the trees in this neighborhood. The distinct voice of the blackbird among the hosts of starlings and doves. Once the skies began to clear, I walked out across the charco road bridge, then up and around the periphery of the Marina del Torre Golf course, where last year I spotted hoopoes and took several photos. No such luck this time. 

Rain threatened, which brought me back downhill quite fast. I hung around the area for three quarters of an hour, waiting to inspect the small array of shops servicing golf course apartments to reopen after siesta, listening meanwhile on my Blackberry to St Luke's Day Evensong, broadcasted on BBC Radio Three. It was strangely soothing at the end of a dull uneventful afternoon.

The shops, in the basement of an apartment block were half shoe and clothing outlets, most of the remaining space was taken by a Chinese dry goods store. I love the Greek term 'pantopoleion' which describes such comprehensive retailing. The corner nearest the street was a mini-market whose stocks reflected current lack of demand from holiday visitors. Few people I imagine, apart from staff live in this area out of season. Interesting to see, nevertheless. 

The economy in leisure resorts is by nature, cyclical. Only those who are good at long term planning will profit from investing in property and infrastructure here. There's always money to be made around the staging of big one-off leisure events, like festivals and tournaments, but those investing time and energy in those activities are not so likely to be there long term. 

It's interesting to compare different kinds of economic enterprise, with the diversity of inter-relationships between species in the natural world. Inter-dependency, balance and resilience under external and internal pressure enable all kinds of species to flourish. Disasters happen when any part of any dynamic system fails to take into account its connection to the whole. 

It's what see now in relation to brexit, and in America's relationship to everything which isn't of America, as defined by the Trump presidency. The world is in the process of re-learning essential lessons at the moment. The harsh way, unfortunately.

 

Sunday at Mojacar and Aljambra

This morning, my first assignment to celebrate the Eucharist at the Ermita de San Pascual, some 6km from Mojacar Playa centre and 10km from where I'm staying. I got there in good time, and found already a dozen or more people were organising and getting ready to welcome people to the service. By eleven o'clock sixty people were gathered for worship, and some of them had come a long distance to pray together. The service was conventionally Anglican Common Worship, with hymns that were sung with enthusiasm.

Afterwards there were refreshments on the church terrace - there's no church hall, but there is an outside servery, nicely tiled, integrated with the exterior of the building, from where refreshments are served. It's an ingenious arrangement, and characteristic of what's possible in an environment where the sun shines and it's not too hot for most of the year. Anglicans have use of this Ermita, with the practical support of the local Alcadesa (Mayor) On occasions the place is used for Catholic celebrations, but maintained and run for Anglican services - a superb attractive community asset.

In the afternoon, I drove inland to Aljambra to officiate and preach at Evensong, leaving early enough to give myself half an hour to look around Albox, and take a few photos. I found the east side parish church of St Francisco, and talked in English  with two foreign visitors, who were looking for a place for Sunday worship, but was unable to help them, as it was impossible to  find a noticeboard with local Mass times. 

In by brief walk, I found the place where there was a local mosque. There were two buildings on the site, one which was apparently the original, and another in front of it, a lot more imposing, representing a substantial funding investment. A social expression of confidence by the Muslim community, in this town whose development a millennium ago was due to the conquest of southern Spain by Arabs (Moors), but whose resurgence reflects immigration over the past quarter century.

At Aljambra I had the pleasure of officiating and preaching at an English Prayer Book Evensong. It's a long time since I last sang the English office in its entirely, though we did the Church in Wales edition in St John's City Parish Church most Sunday when I was Vicar. My guess is, that the last time I did a full BCP Evensong was September 2000 just before I left Geneva for my sabbatical in Jerusalem. I still relish speaking Prayer Book language. It's not a performance, like participating in a Shakespearean work of art. Memory and understanding connect heart and mind differently. These ingrained words date back to childhood, well before the Church in Wales started work on revising it, to create its own version. I'll be here, doing Evensong here again next month, and that'll be another pleasure to savour.

After the service, two thirds of the congregation went to a Chinese restaurant a few kilometres away for supper. It ranks as one of the busiest I ever recall visiting. We had to wait to occupy tables and then wait for over an hour to be served. Having had a big lunch I wasn't that hungry, but enjoyed the company. Sweet and sour aubergines with ham 'n egg flavoured rice was as much as I could manage to eat. It's the second time this week I've driven this road back to Mojcacar. It gets easier every time.