This series “Liturgy as language” is going in a direction that will be relevant to other contexts (trust me – I know what I’m doing). But this particular post continues and completes the previous post in outlining briefly the New Zealand Anglican context that has brought us to this place. If you are not in
Liturgy as language (part 3) Read More »
On twitter and on facebook I have been asking for resources for historical background and commentaries for hymns – especially online ones. I collect those resources here (thanks for all your help – some of the comments are pasted here in quotes). If you know of others please add them in the comments. This site
This Sunday Roman Catholics and Episcopalians (Anglicans) are once again praying essentially the same prayer. The source is from at least the eighth century: Protector in te sperantium, Deus, sine quo nihil est validum, nihil sanctum: multiplica super nos misericordiam tuam; ut, te rectore, te duce, sic transeamus per bona temporalia, ut non amittamus aeterna.
July 26 Catholics & Anglicans share prayer Read More »
Tomorrow, July 22 is the feast of St Mary Magdalene: Almighty God, whose blessed Son restored Mary Magdalene to health of body and mind, and called her to be a witness of his resurrection: Mercifully grant that by your grace we may be healed of all our infirmities and know you in the power of
Today 40 years ago Buzz Aldrin had the first communion on the Moon. I am delighted that Rev. Mark Cooper, the senior pastor of Webster Presbyterian Church in Webster, TX, wrote to this site in response to my post: “Greetings, All: I have the honor of serving as senior pastor of Webster Presbyterian Church in
First communion on the moon anniversary Read More »
I consider the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) as a gift from the Holy Spirit to the church. Although at the grass-roots level relationships between people of different denominations are healthy, at the power levels of institutional Christianity ecumenism has pretty much, in spite of innumerable meetings and reports, come to …. nought. Yet, Sunday by
The Lectionary (part 1) Read More »
On Sunday July 20, 1969 the first people landed on the moon. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were in the lunar lander which touched down at 3:17 Eastern Standard Time. Buzz Aldrin had with him the Reserved Sacrament. He radioed: “Houston, this is Eagle. This is the LM pilot speaking. I would like to request
First Communion on the Moon Read More »
In preparing for a blog post I was re-reading some of CS Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters in which a senior devil called Screwtape is writing to his nephew, a junior devil named Wormwood, giving him advice on how to entrap a human called “the Patient.” In my reading I noticed again this passage (from letter
