Bradford Cathedral

No pictures today but here's the link!

Went to the Bradford Cathedral today for the 10:15am Choral Eucharist.  I arrived a few minutes late and a little old lady at the door offered me her bulletin as she stepped out the door.  Then as I looked around my seat for a hymnal, another little old lady standing behind me gave me her book of Common Songs opened to the hymn being sung and throughout the service she'd point me to the right page in the bulletin because I was having trouble following the liturgy!  And when I went up to the front to be blessed during Communion (I wasn't sure I wanted to share the bread and cup at a new and strange place so I just asked for a blessing), the old lady beside me also laughed at our disorientation because we didn't know which way to go to return to our seats.

The music was gorgeous.  Among the choir's songs and the congregations singing two of my favourite hymns (All Creatures of Our God and King and Be Thou My Vision), we heard Brahms' Geistliches Lied and the organ played a Prelude in B minor by Bach as the clergy and choir walked down the aisle.

Reverend Dave Bookless, former director and co-founder of A Rocha UK, spoke a sermon on "setting our minds on divine things" rather than earthly things (Mark 8).  As he was the keynote speaker for yesterday's A Rocha presentation (which I had forgotten about and missed), his example was of caring for creation and endangered species.  Is it ethical to choose to save the parts of nature that will serve humans best?  One thing that stood out to me was that he said that we cannot see nature as there to serve humans, but we also cannot see humankind as a virus to nature, a species that she could do better without.  Instead, we must see God at the centre of the world, and us looking after what God cares about, not what multinational corporations or governments care about. 

I love liturgies. The rhythm of Prayer of Confession, Prayer of Intercession, and Prayer of Offering is good for my mind and soul, I think.  There is excitement and inspiration at a contemporary church like The Abundant Life Church I went to two weeks ago and ETCBC, but I find a traditional liturgy peaceful and healing, a space for quiet revitalisation.  I think I'll be back.  It's only a block away and around the corner from my place!