At last the trainee preachers, for that is what we are really, are given the opportunity to practice. So its off to st Mary's for the first one of our tutor group to have a go. It is fair to say that each of us has had some practice in our own home setting, but this is the first time we've been released to an unsuspecting world. The first time you see St. Mary's its big. When you get inside its bigger. I arrived early, fearing parking problems, but it wasn't too bad. Inside I'm greeted by the tutor, he seems genuinely pleased to see me. The 'victim' for today is already preparing. I go and choose a seat, four rows from the front. Later I find myself sitting further forward than anyone else, some are at least 12 rows back. Why are church people so afraid to sit next to each other? In our church tradition we do not put on robes - but here they do, so borrowed robes are required. They are very loose fitting, and can be dangerous to the uninitiated. Neither do we preach from a pulpit - but here they do. We are not used to BCP*, but here they are. We do not chant Psalms (or anything else), but here they do. You get the picture - its about as different as it can be and still be church. The sermon is before the last hymn, and the preacher gets to read all the lessons. Its a long time to wait. When it finally comes its a well constructed, thoughtful sermon, easy to follow and relevant to today. "Not bad." Is out tutors only comment - I'm not sure but was there an unsaid "not good" there as well? He and I retire to the pub and play "Name that tune" with the seventies tracks that are playing - This we're both good at - too good.
* BCP = Book of common Prayer ( a service book of the church of England, first published in the 1660's
No comments:
Post a Comment