I was there for Liz's ordination. From Holy Trinity, Redhill, my last parish, she has trained at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, got married, now got ordained, and today she begins her new job as a curate. Fantastic.
But back to the service.
It was clear to anyone that the reading of the Gospel was very important indeed. The Gospels were carried in during the opening procession by the Deacon, held aloft so that everyone could see them. For the Gospel reading the congregation stood, turned to face the reader, who was flanked by candles and a person holding the processional cross.
The Gospel was solemnly read, responses were made, the organ sounded and then there was no further mention of Matthew 16.13-19 (or indeed the epistle reading) for the rest of the service.
In my view this was a shame for two reasons: (1) the service seemed to be saying two contradictory things - the Gospel reading is very important (candles, crucifer etc) and the Gospel reading is very unimportant (no need to mention it); (2) The actual text of Matthew 16.13-19 contains just the kind of crucial teaching about the person of Christ that an ordinand needs to hear and to have at the heart of his or her ministry.
I think we gave up any expectation that anything challenging from the Bible would be taught at Southwark Cathedral long ago.
ReplyDeleteI don't think JJ's comment is fair.
ReplyDeleteGary, I take your point, and I've noticed that myself in other 'high church' situations.
A classic is Remembrance Sunday.
I. not recognised in the lectionary
ii. attended by people who often want to hear a Christian take on the nature of war: should it happen at all, and what of remembrance/ glorification
iii. how to hold that service together.
There's an argument that you abandon the lectionary and do a separate Gospel for the day, but another argument that there can be some good in hearing the Gospel of the day even if the sermon doesn't reference it.
That's what I tend to do, and I guess happened at the ordination service.
I can see why it felt weird, and I wouldn't want it to happen often, and maybe we should adapt our liturgy a bit more when we aren't preaching on the Gospel (e.g. when we preach on the epistle) but sometimes systems are just systems...
Robert S