Madeleine Davies Church Times Clergy Discipline Measure: a harsh discipline?
Laudable Practice ‘And take this holy Sacrament to your comfort’: the heart of the 1662 rite
Stephen Parsons Surviving Church Religious Trauma Syndrome. When Faith causes Harm
The Church Times report on the CDM is very telling. It describes very closely some of the experiences of friends who have been subject to the heavy-handedness of the Measure. In one case, a priest was overhead swearing in the vestry by the flower arrangers when he hit his head on the sharp corner of a cupboard. Another, after a parishioner spotted him parking on double-yellow lines outside a fish & chip shop, after being with a dying person for 9 hours in hospital, and not having eaten since the previous evening. Both resulted in no action being taken, but… Read more »
I don’t wish to add anything specific to Laudable Practice – I am unworthy to add to it – but equally I didn’t wish it to pass unremarked. It’s unusual for a link on Thinking Anglicans but I hope we see more like it.
Much of this discussion about the meaning of where to stand at the altar seems to be after-the-fact rationalization of 17th century developments in church arrangements. The 16th century reorganization of space involved removal of altars and replacement of them with tables. The tables were brought into the Choir for Holy Communion. People who wished to receive came up into the Choir from the Nave and gathered at the table. The priest stood on the north side of the table, facing the congregation across the table. As we move into the 17th century, tables were left in the space where… Read more »
I stand at the ‘north end’ for two reasons. One, I’m right handed and if I stood at the other end I’d have to reach across myself all the time to turn the pages of the Prayerbook (Still praying for King George…. ) Two, even in high summer our barn of a medieval church is cold. From Michaelmas onward despite resorting to my winter cassock it is not much above freezing at 7.30 am when I open up for the early service. I have been known to wear a clerical black beanie hat on occasions. If I can persuade our… Read more »