Dear Friends,
Spring is here! When I walked Bertie in Central Park earlier in the week, I was amazed how many Spring flowers were in bloom. The trees are bursting their buds and, soon, the cherry trees will be in full blossom. How significant that the word Lent means Spring! It is a joyful season, when we prepare to celebrate Holy Week and, in particular, the holy three days of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday, known as The Triduum. As I said last Sunday in my sermon, we are halfway through Lent and, if you have not availed yourself of some of the extra devotions, services, and opportunities for study this Lent, now is the time to do so. In particular, dropping into the Church even for just a few minutes on a Wednesday afternoon to pray for Ukraine in the Chantry Chapel, or to walk the way of the Cross on Saturdays at 12 p.m., are two excellent ways of deepening your devotional life. Remember, too, that a priest is available to hear your confession, give spiritual advice, to listen, or to pray with you for healing; do take advantage of that opportunity. On Good Friday, priest will be available to hear confessions and give absolution 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. – 5 p.m.
We welcome our new organist colleague, Maks Adach and his wife this Sunday. There will be not one, but TWO coffee hours for the Fourth Sunday in Lent, also known as Laetare Sunday, when the traditional color of the vestments and altar hangings is Rose Pink. There will be a coffee hour after the 9 a.m. mass in the Parish House Living Room, and after the 11 a.m. mass in the Narthex.
Congratulations to the Noble Singers who are leading our 9 a.m. worship so skillfully already. This Sunday, they will receive their first ribbon and RSCM Medal. The children are following the Voice for Life scheme of the Royal School of Church Music, to which our Church is affiliated.
Parish Hospitality. We will be welcoming our Holy Week Preacher, Archbishop Sentamu and his wife very soon. If you would like to host Bishop Sentamu and Margaret for dinner on Palm Sunday, April 10, or on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of Holy Week, April 11-13, please contact my assistant Lizette. Before the pandemic, our Holy Week Preachers enjoyed meeting parishioners very much during their stay in New York.
Recently, I was asked why the congregation is instructed to kneel for the Eucharistic Prayer after the Sanctus, rather than giving people the option to stand as the Book of Common Prayer states in a rubric. In fact, Rite 1 (the traditional language version) says ‘The people kneel or stand,’ whereas the Rite 2 (contemporary language version) says ‘The people stand or kneel,’ thus indicating a preference. So that there can be no doubt, if a member of the congregation wishes to stand for the Eucharistic Prayer, that is absolutely fine, though if the majority of the congregation choose to kneel, it is a kindness to stand closer to the pillars so that those kneeling do not have the view of the altar obscured.
For those who are interested, standing was (and remains) the usual way to pray in the synagogue and in the Eastern Orthodox Churches. It was the way that Jesus prayed in the Temple and in the Synagogue. Kneeling became more popular in the Western Churches during medieval days as a mark of piety and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, the elevation of the host and what would become known as “ocular reception” being the high-point of the liturgy rather than Holy Communion, which resulted in infrequent communion. During the Reign of King Edward VI, the people were instructed by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer to stand, but the Elizabethan settlement restored kneeling for Communion (as you can see in this early Lutheran image of the Lord’s Supper).
Interestingly, there are vestiges of the ancient tradition of standing in traditional ‘good manners’ since, when someone superior to you enters a room, it is customary to stand. And, standing also is a mark of respect to the person being received at, for example, the dinner table. How often do people say “Please don’t get up!”
So, the rubrics in our leaflets do give an indication of the posture appropriate, but we also recognize that, for some, physical disability or frailty is as important a reason to assume a particular posture as a theological or liturgical reason. To that end, we want our visitors to feel comfortable and welcomed. Standing, sitting, and kneeling rubrics do help our visitors who do not know our traditions, but all of us should feel comfortable to adopt the posture that helps us to pray.
I have just received the electronic version of the newsletter of the Anglican Center in Rome, which we support with a small grant each year.
Finally, please do pick up your handy Holy Week postcard from the Church that has details of all the Holy Week services for this year. I am delighted that many of our traditions can be restored this year. One change, however, is that we will not have a sermon at Easter Day Evensong (actually, last year we did not have a sermon but had Benediction); rather, we will have a procession around the church with three ‘stations’ – at the Font, at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fifth Avenue, and at the Easter Garden – where the choir will sing anthems.
Affectionately,
Your Priest and Pastor,
Carl
