Unsuspecting worshipper....

My source has to remain anonymous to protect his identity and the sensibilities of the diocese involved, but someone I know attended an Ordination Rite in one of our Cathedral Churches this year. From what he reported it is small wonder that the wider public see us as out of touch.

As is usual at a Rite of Ordination many of the congregation are not regular worshippers as they have come to support a member of their family who is being ordained. For a good many of these "relations and friends" this may well be their first experience of Christian Worship for a very long time. In such circumstances, and given that the Dioceses always go to the expense of having Service Booklets printed especially for the occasion, you could be forgiven for thinking that the Principal Celebrant would stick to the Order and not interject with notices, explanations and inane asides at every possible opportunity.

You might also think that the music would befit the setting of one of our cathedral churches with glorious and well known hymns and spiritual songs. You might also think that the most cherished prayer of the Christian Church: the Our Father would be the traditional version.

Instead what were this congregation with a high proportion of irregular worshippers (at best) subjected too? Yes, you've guessed it music that was some of the worst examples of the modern and banal individualistic choruses - the sort of me, me, me claptrap that might provide some sort of spiritual high for one or two selfish individuals, but do precious little for the vast majority who find them badly written, musically discordant and, of course, impossible to sing as they have never heard of them and, in all likelihood, would not mind if they never heard them again.

Given that a Rite of Ordination is a longer liturgy than one would expect in the average Parish Church on a Sunday Morning the constant interjections by the Principal Celebrant made it far longer than it needed to be. The preacher, who had never been heard of before by most of the congregation, gave an omelette (rather than a Homily befitting the occasion) which betrayed a lack of education (not to mention theological formation) and the fact that Christian content in sermons is no longer expected.

So the unsuspecting worshipper is sitting, standing and kneeling through all this and wondering what on earth has become of the Church of England they remember from when they attended worship some years ago now. As they reach the end of the Eucharistic Prayer they may spot the heading "The Lord's Prayer" and breathe a sigh of relief for at last there is something they can join in with only to find that as usual the Cof E has decided to do what many other denominations had the sense not to do and use the modern version of the Our Father. Chaos ensues as the unsuspecting worshippers begins to say what they would normally expect to say and those wired for sound booming over them with the modern version, and all find that "art" is gone and "sesspasses" ensue!

So in this liturgy those unsuspecting worshippers will surely have wondered even more why their relation or friend wanted to join this outfit. Most of our relatives think we are most odd wanting, as they put it, "to enter the Church", this sort of pratice will only confirm that view and make prophets even less honourable in their own country.