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VICAR’S WINDOW

Dear friends,

In this magazine there is an article which you may consider to be in the wrong month. It is entitled “Holy Thursday” – not a reference to the universal title for the Thursday before Easter (called Maundy Thursday only in this country) but to the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Although many churches now celebrate the feast on the Seventh Sunday in Eastertide, it is really to be kept on the fortieth day. The Acts of the Apostles informs us that Our Lord returned to His Father in heaven forty days after His resurrection. The article is really a preparation for the Ascension – and most of you will read this either on the Sunday when some keep the feast or, at least, soon after. Sad to say, the church was not packed for a really lovely and worshipful mass and a thoughtful sermon from Father Kevin.

In earlier times, before evening masses were introduced (following the relaxing of the “fast from midnight” rule of former centuries) it was the norm, like Kilvert, to attend an early celebration. Anglo-catholic churches in the past would have a Sung Mass at about 6.30am. Others would have a said celebration. Now I know that many of the congregation were away on holiday – some even attending a wedding! (Cheaper than at weekends.) The question still has to be asked, how many would have made the effort to attend had there been masses on the hour, every hour, during the day? How many know what the Feast of the Ascension is all about?

I sat in the congregation, singing the cantors bits, yelling the hymns, and selecting a suitable Taize chant for the communion. All though the mass I was conscious of the Majestas, the Christ-in-glory depicted above the east window. I was concious of Our Lord’s returning to his own place at the right hand of the Father. I was concious of our destiny. Only a few days earlier, Rita Brown, a very faithful worshipper, had died and preparations were being made for her funeral. Rita left instructions that she was to be received into church the night before (the 7^th of this month at 5.30pm) and that her funeral (at 11.30am) was to be a requiem. Hymns had been requested as well. (Did you know that the priest/minister has the final say?) She is called, by God’s grace, to enter into His glory. Not yet, of course. We all need to be cleansed of our sin and made right with God. We need the prayers of the faithful as we make this journey. Rita will not become an angel. She is a human being, “Dust, bound for glory.” as a preacher put it. Mae West once said, “I used to be snow white – but I drifted.” She may have meant that she played Snow White, but I doubt it. We are snow white at our baptism, and immediately on receiving absolution during the Sacrament of Confession – but not the rest of the time. As a nun remarked to me, “I had a wonderful retreat and had grown a lovely halo – only to have it fall off as soon as I left the chapel!” (Funny, I have my most murderous thoughts when I am praying – or driving the car!)

The Ascension is about Our Lord completing His sacrifice. It started with the Annunciation, when Mary said her Yes to the Father. The immolation took place on Good Friday and the offering completed at the Ascension. The gate of heaven, closed to us through the sin of Adam, was opened by Christ “in the flesh” entering by those same gates. This is, of course, put crudely and with picture-language – but it doesn’t stop it being the truth. “No one can come to the Father except through me.” says the Lord. In addition, it is about Jesus returning to His true home. Lovely to go away on holiday – but how lovely to return to the familiar, to home. That is what heaven is. It is what it should be for us. In the Letter to the Hebrews it says, “Here we have no abiding city, but we are after the city which is to come.” (chapter 13 verse14) In fact, having just skimmed through The Letter to the Hebrews I realise that it is one of the most important, and neglected, books of the New Testament. Why not sit down and read the whole thing? By God’s grace, you wouldn’t miss Ascension Day next year!

Every blessing,

P.S. Father Andy Hawes has also written an article about the prevalence of “bad language” in modern society. Speaking as someone who lives in the modern world, I can see how the culture of swearing has affected me. You can get used to anything. I decided to include the article because it makes for uncomfortable reading for someone like myself who gives way to expletives. I suspect that I started swearing when I learned how to ride and drive. Not a thing to be proud about – but so easy to take for granted. A young friend commented about how much he hated the modern age and wished that the fifties were back. He wasn’t born until the end of the 70s! I know what he means, though.

Dear friends,

The whole of March was given over to Lent. The month of May is both entirely Easter-filled – and is also Mary’s month. It ends with the celebration of Mary’s visit to her cousin, Elizabeth, who was about to give birth to John the Baptist. Eastertide ends with the Feast of Pentecost on June 4^th. May is, therefore a cause of great rejoicing. Mary, whose heart was pierced with a sword on Good Friday, rejoices in the risen life of her divine Son, rejoices in the giving of the Spirit at Pentecost, and is called to share Our Lord’s glory in heaven – but that has to wait until the Feast of the Assumption in August.

May 25^th is the Feast of the Ascension. We are told by S. Luke that Jesus returned to His Father forty days after his resurrection. Ascension Island was discovered on that day. (Not that it didn’t exist before then. You could argue that the Vikings “discovered” our own island!) Many churches, including the Roman Catholic Church in this country, have transferred the keeping of the feast to the following Sunday. I’m afraid that I dig my heals in and stick to the proper day. I pray that a goodly number of the congregation will do the same. Our Lord has completed his task and, by His ascension, opens for us the way to heaven. His self-offering, beginning with his taking flesh of Blessed Mary at the Annunciation, is completed by His return to His heavenly Father. How this is accomplished is a mystery. The things of God are not always to be comprehended or understood my mere mortals. The hymns for the day are pretty brilliant, too.

Why do some churches get a good response when there is a feast day – and others don’t? I think it is to do with the ethos, the culture of a church community or, indeed, the culture of a country. In Malta, people attend the daily mass as a matter of course. Some years ago, I went to the third mass of the day at a church near my hotel (one of many churches) on Holy Cross Day. There were between three and four hundred souls in the church! Village patronal festivals (the day there church’s saint is celebrated) usually attract many hundreds from neighbouring villages and towns. Needless to say, there is drinking and dancing and fireworks – but it is clearly a religious festival and the mass is celebrated in splendour.

Father George has written an article about his impressions of Holy Week. Joe Smith has also written about his week joining in daily worship. Both comment about the commitment and enthusiasm of the congregation in keeping daily acts of worship as well as major celebrations. I am convinced that we do this because there is a strong sense of duty and joy where the things of God are concerned. If I have tried to do anything, it is to restore the disciplined, joyful, catholic, worship that was an hallmark of this church in the earlier part of the twentieth century. Here is an account of worship at Sneyd Church when it was in Nile Street. Notice, the writer is not talking about the priests. It is the community gathered in prayer and fellowship which is important. Of course, from reading the parish history there were the disagreements of any close family, but that does not invalidate a visitor’s observations.

“In the Sneyd Mass…there were certain impressions one could not miss. One could not miss the outstanding impression of having taken part, not in a ‘church service’, but as fellow guests of one host at a lovely party; and all the many stories of Jesus about the feasts of the Kingdom were naturally in one’s mind. One recognised here the exalting of the Christian principles of friendliness, co-operation and sharing; and as we saw each take his share, one felt the attempt to realise the condition of true equality… The Mass is… a real part in the offering of Christ.”*

Can I end by saying a big “THANK YOU” to all the people who work so hard, both front-of-house and behind the scenes, to make our worship and fellowship what it is. (I should have said this at the A.G.M. But time did not allow.) Don’t take it for granted. Ask yourself what you do to make a positive difference in the life of the church – and what you could possibly do more.

Enjoy the rest of Eastertide. Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed. Alleluia!”

Every blessing,

* Geoffrey Keable. Quoted in “Earth and Altar”, an account of Christian Socialism by The Rev’d. Donald Gray.

RUTH WALKER REFLECTS ON HOLY WEEK 2017

It is my favourite time in the Christian Calendar. Every year is the same – but different.

Starting with Palm Sunday, when we meet in the park, hear the Gospel reading for the day, bless the palms, and then set off for church, waving our branches and singing. Thus we re-enact Christ’s entry into Jerusalem.

On Monday evening, Father Kevin was the celebrant. He brought a painting of Our Lord upon the Cross by the Italian artist Giunta of Pisa. We meditated on the painting while Father Kevin told us the story of the drama of the resurrection.

On Tuesday evening, Father Brian played part of the Nelson Mass by Haydn and ended mass with a version of the Lord’s Prayer by Rachmaninov. The latter was particularly beautiful and prayerful.

Wednesday brought Father Ron Whittingham as celebrant. He spoke very movingly about the events of Holy Week.

Maundy Thursday Mass included the ceremonies of feet washing, the stripping of the altar, the journey to the Altar of Repose, the Garden of Gethsemane. We then watched and prayed until midnight.

When we came to the Liturgy on Good Friday evening, we found the church bare apart from the fruits of the children’s activities in the afternoon. The church gate was decorated with coloured ribbons and flowers in readiness for Easter. The (two!) Easter Gardens were there in readiness, complete with decorations and plants. In contrast, the church was stark and bare, reminding us of Our Lord’s death. During the Veneration of the Cross I was so engrossed with the experience of it that I forgot to sing the responses in the Reproaches!

Holy Saturday evening begins outside the church hall with the Easter Fire and the lighting of the Paschal Candle followed by the lighting of hand candles. Then the sitting by candlelight as the Scriptures were read before entering church and the singing of the alleluias – the first since before Ash Wednesday – so moving and inspiring. After mass came the party back in the hall. Lots of food and drink – and people. Easter Day brought more rejoicing, more alleluias – and fifty days of celebration.

You have to attend at least Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday to learn, experience, understand the death and resurrection of the Lord.

“ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED. ALLELUIA!”

R.I.P. Roger Davison, priest. 10/5/20-24/4/17

Sad to report that there will be no more articles written by Father Roger Davison. Two weeks short of his 97^th birthday, he died at S. Barnabas’ Home for the Clergy in Lingfield, Sussex.

I first met Father Roger when he was vicar of Higham Ferrers and I was curate of S. Mary’s Kettering in Northamptonshire. Father Roger’s church was a wonderful medieval pile with lovely statues, carving, and hangings. It looked as though the Reformation had never happened! On one occasion, he took me to see Thaxted parish church (one of his favourites) and told me about Father Conrad Noel, the Catholic Crusade and Christian Socialism. Strange to think that a curate of Thaxted, Father Harold Mason, should come to Sneyd and have a huge influence on the politics and worship of the church in Nile Street.

Father Roger was trained for the priesthood at Kelham Theological College. This was near Nottingham and was run by The Society of the Sacred Mission, a men’s religious community. The regime was austere and the students expected to do cleaning and cooking. Prior to entering Kelham, Father Roger had worked at Maples, a department store in Tottenham Court Road, London. During the war he served in the army in North Africa. His curacy was at Tonge Moor, Bolton, becoming its vicar for eleven years and being granted a canonry of the cathedral. He then moved to Higham Ferrers in 1965 and remained there until he retired in 1988. He then moved to Higham in Kent and assisted at the local church before fully near ill-health took him to S. Barnabas Home. He was a long-serving Guardian of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham and a fervent supporter of the Catholic Cause.

Father Roger was a keen observer of people and life – and had a great sense of humour:

“E’er, Father. Why isn’t our Cheryl in the Queen’s Retinue this May?” (A burly miner to the young curate.)

“A young Tonge Moor mum pushing a pram, fag-a-dangle…”

“Look at that red-brick chapel. Glowering dissent into the market place.” (A comment when passing through a pretty Northants. Village.)

“I’m moving to S. Barnabas’s Home before I start thinking that I am Napoleon Buonaparte.”

In a letter. “I remember cycling thirty miles to Coventry before the war. That dreamy, beautiful, medieval, city of spires and half-timbered houses.” Can you imagine that?

“S. Barnabas’s chapel is very Church of England – but I am quickly introducing disloyalty in all its forms. The powerful three-stepped brass cross is now in the cupboard and a decent crucifix in place. The next thing is to ‘improve’ the liturgy.”

He was very supportive of Sneyd Church and almost his last article included references to myself and this church. He was wonderful person and I am glad to have been one of his acolytes for so many years.

A mass of requiem will be offered on Saturday, 6^th May at 0930. (This will also include Bishop Keith Sutton, a former Bishop of Lichfield, who also died recently.)

Rest, eternal, grant to them, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them.”

Dear friends,

Holy Week and Easter are fast approaching. (The notion that time can expand or contract is not I can remember the football results on Saturday TV taking an age while Doctor Who flashed by in seconds!) Once again we gather in the park to commemorate Our Lord’s entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Once again we gather in the Upper Room with Jesus and the disciples as we re-enact the events of that aweful night. Once again, we have our feet washed and Watch with the Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane. Once again we gather at the close of Good Friday to hear the Gospel of the Passion and Crucifixion of the Lord and to kneel at the Foot of the Cross. Once again, we wait in vigil for the Risen Christ on Holy Saturday evening – and rejoice in His glorious Resurrection in the darkness of that first Easter. (None of the sunrise nonsense. Mary Magdalene came to the tomb “while it was yet dark” and found the tomb empty.) Easter is the start of FIFTY DAYS of celebrations and must be celebrated as such. I won’t use the “A” word yet, it still being Lent when I write this. If you don’t know what the “A” word is then ask me – or come to church and find out. Pray for fellow Christians throughout the world as they keep, with us, these celebrations.

 
At this stage in Lent I would like to say how well-supported the prayer-times before mass have been, I was determined not to allow parish busyness to take over from prayer and adoration of the Lord in his Holy Sacrament. Having people to join in Morning and Evening Prayer at various times has also been an encouragement. Jesus made very clear that “Where two or three are gathered in my Name, there I am in the midst of them.” Speaking to Joe Smith (an aspiring priest-to-be from S. Paul’s, Burslem) about his week spent in our parish and church, I asked him what had been most significant. The Sunday Mass apart (Joe is from an evangelical background so the experience of worship here was new ground!), Joe spoke about the daily round of worship and the fact that the church building is open and used each day. As Joe will learn, clergy spend a lot of time operating a solitary ministry, even if it is among many people. Having a community of praying people, people who believe it is important to pray together and support the worship of the church, is a huge encouragement to any priest. Sadly, the absence of fellow worshippers can be an equally huge discouragement. In most of my time at Sneyd Church there has been much encouragement – and not least during the days of Holy Week. The great Triduum (the three days of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday) are a source of joy as we share in the Lord’s deep sorrow and come to the glory of the Resurrection.

 
While on the subject of sorrow, I can’t conclude without a comment about the non-appointment of the Bishop of Sheffield. Father Philip North, a traditionalist bishop from Blackburn Diocese was appointed to be Bishop of Sheffield. As the news spread, so an evil campaign against his appointment was started via Twitter and Facebook (Whatever they are!) by those in the Church of England who do not wish to abide by the General Synod’s declaration that all members of the CofE, regardless of their theological position over women priests and bishops, are full and valued members of that church. The highly personal attack on Father North (who is an excellent person, priest, and bishop) was conducted by those who would like to see all opposition to womens’ ordination crushed. I am sorry that Father North didn’t stick to his guns – but I am not he. As someone observed, “The very qualities that make him a good bishop are the qualities that would make him feel unable to minister in the face of opposition.” What this says about mob rule in the Church of England remains to be seen. It was a pity that the two archbishops didn’t speak out immediately and strongly once the campaign began. Keep Father Philip and his persecutors in your prayers.

 
ON an in-house note, lovely to see Mavis Hollinshead back with us in church. She is staying with her daughter and family in Canada and is back for three months to worship both here and at PVFC, not to mention stocking up with oatcakes. Flew in Tuesday afternoon — at mass on the Wednesday evening. Praise the Lord!

Every blessing for the rest of Lent, Holy Week, and Easter.

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

The title of a TV programme where various well-known people are invited to search out their family tree. It can be a bit revealing as delving into the past reveals family “black sheep” which can be embarrassing to those who are well-known and “pillars” of society. Tracing back in the family’s line can reveal thieves, cheats, jail-birds and murderers etc.

Grand delusions. There is usually someone in the family who reckons kinship with titled landowners, admirals, royal favourites, famous Artists and Composers and so on. There is one extraordinary exception as a result of the discovery of the 600 year old grave of King Richard III who was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field. His skeleton was subjected to various DNA tests and the result was that the bloodline lay with a craftsman who constructed the coffin to take the royal remains for final burial in Leicester Cathedral. The undoubted royal link with the King has not made any difference to his way of life. What is a historic fact is that the Secretary of Queen Elizabeth I was a man called Davison. The Queen, well-known for her dillying and dallying would not sign the death warrant of Mary, Queen of Scots. It was an act of regicide which repelled her. Davison managed to slip the death warrant in between a sheaf of papers waiting for the royal signature. When the Queen found out that her Secretary was responsible for slipping the death warrant into a pile, she was furious, fined the luckless secretary £100 and sent him to the Tower of London. Nothing further is recorded and the modern Davison family has to content with a line of farmers and green grocers!

What’s in a name? It is obviously important to teach children, when they begin to talk, to identify objects around them e.g. cup, plate, jug, spoon, along with its surroundings e.g. door, window, table, dog, cat … to say nothing of Mummy and Daddy. Remember Cash printed labels to sew in to school kit? Vital when it comes to claim them as yours? Families likewise are recognised by a name. How this came about is hidden in the mists of time. Certainly the Roman aristocracy had family names. How far that extended into the peasant world would be impossible to evaluate. What is a fact is that in medieval times when few travelled beyond their immediate surroundings, they would have a Christian name given at Baptism. That would be followed by the name of the village or town where they lived.

An interesting example of a family name is Henry Chichele Archbishop of Canterbury and Chancellor of England in the time of Henry V. It has been traced that this family came from the Bedfordshire village of Chichele, moving at some time to Higham Ferrers in Northamptonshire where the boy Henry would go to school. So in the first place, the family would simply be name “of Chichele”. By the time they were settled in the town the “of” was dropped and Chichele became the surname.

Steps foward. Linking a family with their trade would help to recognise individuals. This has come down to present day as we have scores of surnames linking with the original family trade. So there is Carpenter, Taylor, Colman, Butler, Shearer, Butcher, Baker, Fisher, Weaver, Mercer, Clark, Gold, Booker, Dyer, Boot, Church, Beer, Carter, Wood… and so on. A complete list of names originating in worthy trades, skills, could fit several pages. Some, outside that category could be embarrassing … Death becomes De’Arth and Sidebottom is adjusted to (phonetically) siddibothoame. A Cotswold hamlet in the 1930’s had the Gotobeds!

The New World. The 17th century Pilgrim Fathers settled in North America; English Puritans, they were prepared to emigrate to avoid persecution at home. At first the going must have been horrid and unrewarding. Disease took its toll, but in the end they prospered and spread. Present-day Boston took pride in its roots and there grew up a Boston elite, proud of their origin in the English founders.

Immigration, immigration, immigration. The human flood from perhaps every European country, must have left the native American Indians bewildered as the human tide flowed over their land with its sacred places. One record of interest is that a sailor from Gravesend in Kent, brought home an Indian bride named Pochahontas. It must have been a nine-day wonder in Gravesend. How did she get accustomed to an English house after her life in a skin-covered wigwam? Her grave is in a churchyard in Gravesend.

Name strain. By the mid 19th century North America would be rapidly settled by European (mostly) immigrants some with outlandish family names. Some countries had a language which seemed to have a reluctance to use vowels a,e,i,o,u. This produced family names which were simply unpronounceable to their neighbours of a different race. In the end families changed or simplified their name – so that a name, for example, ending Czhrort! Some immigrant families quickly rose to fame, wealth and power and had no need to “adapt” their names, such as Vanderbilt, Roosevelt, Guggenheim.
DRUMP-H, One Heinrich D left his native Germany sometime in the late 19th century. Settling down to do well, he made a fortune. Going up in the world the family name was “gentrified” into TRUMP. Donald T has now risen to be President of the U.S.A. as well as a considerable property owner and a billionaire, his tall German stock with fair hair atop, typically solidly built. If / when he makes a Russian trip, Vladimir PUTIN will be dwarfed when side by side.

Trump has several meanings in English, as follows:

Turning up “Trumps” means an unsuspected success.
“Trumped up” charge, in law means false, made-up accusations.
“Trump” Cards, an advantage in card games when breaking into the suit in hand.
“Trump,” a “fine fellow” as used in Dickens’ Pickwick Papers.
“Trumpery,” rubbish, as used in the trial of Joan of Arc way back in the 14th century when the Bishop of Beauvais so dismissed her visions/voices when presiding at her trial.
“Trump” (slang) The loud and uncontrolled noise when stomach wind forces its way out of the body. Never, of course to apply to Royals, who do not cough, sneeze, blow the nose, in public.

Summing up – With all the meanings of Trump, some good, some crafty but, it would be fair to give the new President a chance. If, and when he first meets the Queen, it could be both historical and hysterical.

Who do you think they are? A recent “shock” to some was a newspaper heading “Church of England’s remorse for the Reformation’s lasting damage.” This was the heading for a joint statement by the Archbishop of Canterbury and York. An important admission at the time of the 500th anniversary of the revolt triggered off by Martin Luther’s nailing to the door of Wittenberg Castle a list of the corruption in the Church of Rome. Luther, a monk, could no longer bear to conceal some very tricky developments both in the faith, morals and corruption in the Vatican and widely spread, including paying cash down to release souls from Purgatory.

Fatal failure. Attempts to call a council of catholic and Lutheran theologians came to nothing, probably because Rome had perhaps a guilty conscience with no wish to wash “dirty linen” in public. The inevitable split divided Europe’s Christians. Lutheran followers were divided among the various German Principalities whose rulers were sympathetic, a matter of “cuius religio, eius religio, in other words “follow the ruler.” Soon bloodshed and riots smothered the Lutheran movement. In one German town there was a sudden outbreak of claims to be spirit-filled. Riots and bloodshed resulted, and military intervention brought about wholesale massacre of the citizens.

Henry v Luther. There seems to exist, deeply rooted in the nation’s racial memory, that on a certain date in the reign of Henry VIII England went to bed Catholic and woke up “Protestant.” The truth is that Henry was no protester and had such a hatred of Luther that he wrote a book in defence of the Church’s faith, which delighted the Pope and awarded the King with the title Defender of the Faith.

After Henry’s head-on collision with the Pope who would not permit a divorce from Queen Catherine, it is clear that the decision to break with Rome was political and not doctrines like Luther’s. From now on Henry’s inflated self-importance would make him supreme over everything. He demands that all the bishops should sign a document of acceptance. Such was the reign of terror, all bishops, except one, the Bishop of Rochester, gave in and the saintly Bishop John Fisher was beheaded. Meanwhile the Church with its traditional apostolic ministry carried on, with some English permitted and an English Bible in 1538. Luther’s break-away became the Lutheran Church and lost the traditional ordained ministry. Here we had no “Henrician” break-away, but the Church in England continuing.

Too late. The tragedy is that in 1563 the RC Council of Trent declared “the utter extinction of abuses of holy observances and practices and that all superstition involving the saints be put away.” Nowadays R.C biblical studies abound and the Bible is held in esteem. The tragedy is that Christians become more and more divided with violence, bloodshed and drawn out war persisted.

Who do they think they are? The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have rightly risen above all the bigotry, ignorance, narrow-mindedness, even downright hostility, which the Reformation caused, even to this day. A high price to pay for a well-meant search for truth and to Worship God in the beauty of holiness.

Fr. Roger

Dear friends,

S. David’s Day is overtaken by Ash Wednesday this year. This, of course, is the beginning of Lent and a time to take spiritual stock. We live in an amazingly complex world – very different to when I was ordained. Occasionally, I boor young people with stories about walking to a friend’s house two miles away, only to find that he had gone out. I would happily trudge back home or go somewhere else. His family didn’t have a telephone. We didn’t have one. Apart from the telephone box at the end of the road, I only had access to one phone. A relative who was an electrician. A “business phone”. In those days there were dial-less phones and the operator would “try to connect you”. Wonderful!

Now we have a report of people suffering measurable stress because their mobile phone is more than arms-length away. Apparently there is some connection with mice and rewards – and fruit machines. (Keep up!) Being an insomniac, I regularly listen to the World Service at about 3am. A recent science programme informed me that mice, trained to get their food by pressing a button, only pressed the button when hungry. When the food box only delivered after several attempts at button-pressing, the mice became obsessed with the task. Addiction to fruit machines is caused, apparently, by the randomness of receiving a prize. (Solitaire or Patience is equally addictive because of the chance of winning/losing.) So too with mobile phones. The constant checking for e-mails etc. The inability to cope with not having the phone at hand. The fear of “missing something”.

Some years ago I went on holiday, alone, without my phone. I didn’t realise it until a day later. (It was in the early days – for me – of such machines.) I can only describe the effect as a mini panic attack. There was nothing I could do. No possibility of turning back. By day three I realised that I was on proper holiday. It wasn’t so much the missing others ringing me, more the fact that the sense that I ought to contact people was removed. Now people ask, “But what if something had happened?” I can only reply that things “happened” (or didn’t) since the beginning of human history until about twenty years ago and we mostly survived.

Given that the majority of people turn their phones off when they are in church (and the concert hall – but not the cinema) I suspect that it is one of the few places where people are relatively undistracted. Year by year I recommend that Christians come to church more regularly and faithfully during Lent. Year by year I have tried to get to church in time for Morning/Evening Prayer and the half hour of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. Busyness and distraction get in the way, not least because they are demanding gods. This year I am going to try and do better. (Famous last words.) The purpose of the exercise is the put distraction (the mobile phone etc.) to one side and to “rest in the Lord”. For this reason I would like to emphasise these times of prayer (half-an-hour before all masses). I would also like to revisit the Daily Office, the prayer book that some of the congregation use in order to learn from those who use it and encourage others to do so. This “re-visiting” will take place after mass on Tuesdays and alternate Wednesdays.

Can I also recommend the early mass on Thursdays? In the (good) old days there were no evening masses. Feast days were celebrated at 6am or thereabouts. Fasting before mass started at midnight. This meant that people came to mass before the clutter of the day took over. (I used to attend mass Tuesdays and Fridays at 7am when I was a school boy.) To arrive at church and sit in the quiet before mass began gave a whiff of monastic calm and recollection.

We need to do that on Sundays as well. Please don’t stand in the porch chatting. Not only does it disturb those who are praying in church, it means that the opportunity for prayer, the opportunity for the adoration of the Lord who gives Himself in the Eucharist, is lost or curtailed.

Have a good Lent.

Dear friends,

The second day of February brings the wonderful feast of Candlemass. This marks the fortieth day after Christmass and originates in the Jewish custom of presenting the first-born male child as an offering to God. In principle, the child would be handed over to the Temple authorities to be nurtured and trained for service in the temple. The first-born male was seen as belonging to God. When Mary and Joseph brought the child Jesus to the Temple they made an offering as a substitute for their son. The wealthy would sacrifice two doves. The poor would offer two pigeons. The fact that the latter were offered would indicate the low social status of the Holy Family.

According to the account in Saint Luke’s Gospel, Simeon, an old man who worshipped in the Temple, took up the child and uttered the words which we now know as the “Nunc Dimittis” (the opening words in Latin of Simeon’s prayer). These words are said or sun at Compline (the final prayer for the day) or at Anglican Evening Prayer, commonly referred to as Evensong. These are the words:

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word.

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which though has prepared before the face of all people.

To be a light to lighten the Gentiles and to be the glory of thy people Israel.

It is the reference to light which caused the commemoration of the event to include the lighting and carrying of candles. This we do year by year.

In addition to the prophesy contained in the Nunc Dimittis, Simeon also predicted that a sword would pierce Mary’s heart, Jesus, himself, being a cause of joy and scandal through his preaching, actions, and presence. Anna, a prophetess, also joined in Simeon’s foretelling of the future.

Because Easter is relatively late this year, Candlemass falls some weeks before the beginning of Lent. Very often the words of Simeon about Our Lord and Our Lady’s suffering form a link to the beginning of Lent and the journey to the Cross. This year the connection is less obvious. Lent, however, is not that far away. The first of March is Ash Wednesday and the Church bids us turn from Bethlehem to Calvary.

Our celebration of Candlemass is going to be especially blessed by the Saint Cecilia Singers. They will be performing a mass setting (the bits of the service that the congregation normally sing – and that never change, unlike the hymns) by the Spanish composer Natividad. This is highly appropriate, given that Candlemass concludes the Christmass cycle and the composer’s name means birth or Christmass.

I hope that the singers will be made aware that the statue above the organ case is none other than Saint Cecilia herself. She is shown carrying a small organ and, presumably, playing it. Why she became the patron saint of musicians it is difficult to work out. Cecilia was an early Christian martyr who refused to deny the Lord and shed her blood for Him.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 2^nd

1930 CANDLEMASS PROCESSION, MASS & PARTY

The S. Cecilia Singers will be joining us in worship.

Father Paul Edward Hutchinson 1933-2017

Father Paul Hutchinson died in the evening of Sunday 15^th January at Leek Moorlands Hospital. Most of his close family were with him when he died. He received Last Rites on the previous Friday evening. His body was received into Sneyd Church on the evening of Thursday 26^th January and the funeral requiem was celebrated the following afternoon. His body was interred in the graveyard at Tunstall.

Needless to say, the church was packed for the funeral mass and most people stayed behind for refreshments. It was a wonderful celebrate of a good man’s life. Father Paul was not a saint but he was saintly. Luke the rest of us, he was, and is, a sinner in need of the Lord’s redeeming love.

Paul Edward Hutchinson was born in Leicester in June 1933. He has, to all intents and purposes, an only child. (He had a sister who died in infancy before he was born.) Paul’s family were stalwarts of S. Andrew’s, Jarome Street – an Anglo-Catholic stronghold then as it still is. His parents ran a grocers’ shop. He later studied at King’s College, London and S. Boniface’s College in Warminster prior to ordination at S. Paul’s Cathedral and a first curacy at S. Michael’s, Bromley-by-Bow in the East End. Meanwhile, he had met Doreen Hutchinson when she was talking to the young people of S. Andrew’s about the work of the A.Y.P.A. (Anglican Young People’s Association) They were not allowed to marry until after Paul’s priesting. It was during the time at Bromley that Michael and Andrew were born.

The family then moved to S. Michael’s Mill Hill for a second curacy (a sort of apprenticeship). Mary was born and, later, Stephen at Marshalswick. Marshalswick was a suburb of St. Albans. Father Paul was sent to establish a new parish and he became the first vicar. This was from 1966-1980.

Meanwhile, the new Bishop of Stafford, John Waller, had moved from St. Alban’s to take up his post as suffragan in Lichfield Diocese. He persuaded Father Paul to move to Christ Church, Tunstall. (The Bishop of st. Alban’s was none too pleased!) He remained at Christ Church for ten years, five of those years being spent as Rural Dean. (Bishop’s rep. And shop steward for the clergy.) It was during this time that he became involved in the appointment of Father Brian Williams as priest-in-charge and, later, vicar of Sneyd.

Father Paul and Doreen then moved to another edge of Lichfield Diocese – to the parish of S. James, Lower Gornal, near Dudley. So much on the edge that it was soon transferred to Worcester Diocese. They remained there from 1991-1998. Returning to Stoke on Trent to be near the children and their families, not to mention the various Angl0-Catholic churches which are scattered around the area.

Their new home was, and is, called “Nashdom” – “Our House or Place” in Russian – and the title of the house formerly occupied by an Anglican Benedictine Religious Order to which Father Paul was attached as an oblate. It was soon after arriving that they joined in worship at Holy Trinity – and have remained ever since. During his time at Sneyd he gave considerable assistance to parishes between priests, S. Paul’s Newcastle being a notable one. He also continued to lead the Lower Gornal pilgrimage to Walsingham, the new vicar being unfamiliar with the shrine and its pattern of worship.

During his time at Holy Trinity he attended the daily mass, preached and taught, led spiritual addresses during Lent. He continued to read a great deal. Loved listening to church music. He and Doreen went on many holidays – mostly to visit churches, convents, monasteries, and shrines! He loved wine and good food and was great pourer of G+Ts and whisky.

In 2015 he started to be noticeably forgetful and was diagnosed with dementia. He later moved to Claybourne House, a wonderful Methodist nursing home not far from Tunstall parish. He had a fall and broke his hip and, although an operation was successful, his general health wasn’t. He spent the last weeks and days in relative peace before his quiet death.

–oo0oo–

On a personal note, I can remember going for a drink with Father Paul to the Ryan Hall Catholic Club in Tunstall to talk about Sneyd and its direction and needs. At Christmass, Father Paul would invite the clergy and spouses to a party at the vicarage and Doreen would produce the most wonderful food, especially the puddings. He was always an huge asset to the church (along with Doreen) and was very generous of his time and money, not to mention the vestments he and Doreen brought back from various Italian holidays! Taking Father Paul communion was always a joy – even when he occasionally fell asleep during the prayers. At the hospital he would respond by joining in the various hymns I could remember.

–oo0oo–

His family asked me to remember him as a gentle man who liked things done right.

May Mary and the saints pray for him. May he rest in peace and rise in glory. May God bless Doreen and the family, at home and in church.

Dear friends,

As a concession to modernity, I switched the church flashing lights on for the schools’ carol service

(which was lovely, as usual) and left them on throughout the last bit of Advent. Some of the neighbours have had theirs performing since November! Now we are among the few outdoor decorations still proclaiming that Christ was born in Bethlehem. What is it about our society that demands the celebration of an event before its due date? I even had a series of e-mails proclaiming “The first day of Christmas.” etc. This referred to December 1^st (Which would make Christmass Day the 25^th day of Christmass.) and was solely about reminding me that I had a certain number of shopping days left. (See Father Smith’s article in this magazine,)

People can’t wait to put up the decorations – and can’t wait to take them down again. Your lucky to see decorations in the shops after New Year’s Day, or even Boxing Day. I remember when Christmass trees were decorated on Christmass Eve – and left in place until Twelfth Night. (I have to admit that I am not sure if that is January 5^th or 6^th – Epiphany.) Many churches (and individual Christians) leave their decorations up until February 2^nd – The Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, commonly called Candlemass. At least it creates a talking point.

So what has caused this change in recent years? It can only be the dominance of supermarkets and chain stores. They dictate what we wear, like, dislike, when, how, and where. Hallowe’en was a very small affair involving apples and not much else until Asda (owed by the American company, Walmart) and other large stores started importing American practises – Trick-or-Treat etc. Very hard to take children around a store without them demanding this outfit or that. Schools are just as bad with non-uniform days and other money-making scams. (Don’t get me on to the dreadful “Prom”!!!) Perhaps it started with Christmass cards. I have never known such a cause of stress – until I decided not to send any more. What a relief! And before you ask, I don’t send anything extra to charity. A nourishing bottle of gin is a far better use for money saved. (I’m sure that juniper berries must count as part of the five-a-day dictat.)

Well, nothing like a little rant for the festive season. The state and the powerful, the newspapers and the television, tell us what to think and do and wear. That is how the Reformation changed religion in this land. I will leave you with the final words of Eamon Duffy in his wonderful book, “The stripping of the altars”.

“By the end of the 1570s , whatever the instincts and nostalgia of their seniors, a generation was growing up which had known nothing else, which believed the Pope to be Antichrist, the Mass a mummery, which did not look back to a Catholic past as their own , but another country, another world.”

Every blessing for the Christmass season.

Dear friends,

Every year, a group of Christians from Holy Trinity go on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. Generally speaking, it is the same group, while the majority of the congregation don’t seem particularly interested. Some have called in to the shrine while on holiday in the area – but that is not the same as actually taking part in a pilgrimage. (A bit like visiting a country church when a wedding is taking place. Not the same as knowing the couple and being part of the proceedings.)

One of the problems with Walsingham could be the cost. Many years ago, the nuns dished out stew and potatoes and rice pudding in a pre-fab hut– and that was it. A cooked breakfast had to be paid for separately if required. Now there is a plush dining hall, a fairly wide choice of menu – and cooked breakfasts are the norm.

If there is a problem then it is that of over-eating. It is all paid for and to forego a meal seems to be a waste of money. (You can, of course, have half-board, but that excludes pilgrims from an important part of pilgrimage – table fellowship.) I wish that the meals were simpler, smaller – and cheaper.

It is the same with the accommodation. It is all very smart and there is nothing for the pilgrim to do. Again, in the “old days”, pilgrims changed the bedding and brought their own towels. As with so many religious establishments, the employing of staff makes it very hard to make redundancies. What about a more “cheap and cheerful” regime, complete with the wielding of the vacuum cleaner at the end of a visit? (There are cheaper ways of being at Walsingham, but it tends to be for teenagers. Camping out in the pilgrim hall, for example.)

Enough criticism – and I may be completely wrong about people’s perceptions. I don’t, generally, like eating out. I look at the plate of food (or the service station sandwiches) and can’t help but add up how much the ingredients cost. (I even take a flask of coffee with me on my travels. I think it might be called meanness – but I will spend a fortune on operas and books – and am more than happy to use a lay-by cafe!) Walsingham is, without doubt, a place of prayer and renewal, a place for rest and contemplation, a place of religious activity and human interaction.

The time is a combination of worship, devotion, laughter, discussion, food, glorious country and sea side. It is not all worship and not all relaxation. A pilgrimage is not an holiday, nor is it a religious retreat. There is very little silence – until the pub closes. What happens to the pilgrim at Walsingham probably needs to be digested back home.

I have been trying to organise a pilgrimage abroad (Lourdes, Assisi etc.) but the Pope has declared 2016 an Holy Year – which means that all the prices go up! Just imagine if the whole congregation (or a goodly number) made pilgrimage to Our Lady’s Shrine, England’s Nazareth. That those who couldn’t afford to go were supported by those who could. What a wonderful experience that would be. Those who go on the Mothers’ Union pilgrimages always say that the experience was far more positive than they expected – and that goes for the parish priest too! Rather like being on holiday, the worries associated with home and the home church are put aside. Worship and fellowship are, generally speaking, unimpeded. Perhaps I am wrong about wanting Walsingham cheaper. There is something about being looked after for a couple of days – no cooking, no washing-up, no chores.

Then there is the heart of Walsingham itself. Devotion to the Son of God and his Holy Mother. Mary always points us to Jesus. If we come to Mary in prayer, then we come to Jesus. If we show our love to Mary, then we are showing our love to Jesus. Too much of English Christianity is about being a good and moral person. “Jesus the example of good living” is not what Christianity is about. “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” says Jesus at the close of S. John’s Gospel. That is what the Faith is about. As one hymn-writer wrote, “Shall we not love thee, Mother dear, whom Jesus loves so well?” I remember many years ago visiting the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Bristol (Clifton), a concrete box but not unattractive and certainly prayerful. Before the statue of Our Lady someone (a child?) had placed a margarine tub with some daisies and dandelions. No one had attempted to remove it. The action was, I think, more effective and devotional than the string of pearls given to the statue of Our Lady in Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. Lighting candles before our own Marian shrines could be seen as a gift from ourselves to the Lord’s Mother as well as being a sign of prayer requested for a person in need.

“Shall we not love thee, Mother dear?” LET’S!

Every blessing.