Chrism Mass Maundy Thursday 13.4.06.doc

Chrism Mass – renewal of ordination vows for me and for our clergy tomorrow.  The basin and towel are, of course, the standard for servant ministry.  Inevitably, much of what I do is to work with relationships in congregations.  How do we exercise ‘servant leadership’?  What does authority mean when ministry is shared?  How do we deal with people who wish to act as masters rather than servants?  How do we take responsibility without taking it away from others?  If there is a magic in all of this, I suspect that it lies somewhere in the growth of grace which happens when we learn to give ministry away – rather than holding onto it to make ourselves feel useful.

Seen in Perth this afternoon:

‘Huge bird flu exclusion area concern’

I’m working on Good Friday at present – the traditional Three Hours from 12-3 pm.  It sounds like a lot and it is – and the problem is that to fill three hours with words doesn’t really meet the need.  Traditionally, it is words – the seven last words of Jesus.  But, for me, it is sounds – clinking of Judas’ 30 pieces of silver, the shouting of crowds, the sound of Pilate washing his hands,  banging in of nails … and finally the words of the Centurion, ‘Truly this was the Son of God’

I’m still working through the boxes and trying to make books self-destruct and vanish rather than continue to breed.  Came across a BCP given to my paternal grandfather, David Hare Chillingworth, ‘from the congregation of Holy Trinity Church, Cloudesley Square, as a mark of their esteem, affection and respect ……   June 29, 1915.  My maternal grandfather was also a priest – as was his father-in-law.  No wonder I sometimes have that ‘been here before’ feeling.  Fortunately, my own children seem to have it well squeezed out of the system.

I hope I have got better at squeezing Ireland out of my system.  But I’ll allow myself one grumble at the performance of the NI politicians this week when challenged by Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern to find agreement by November or face close-down.  I listened to Martin Maguinness on the Today programme talking, talking .. until they thanked him and faded him out.  And the Unionist politicians were little better.  I know better than most how difficult it is and the record of the churches is less than wonderful.  But somewhere at some time some real leadership is going to have to enter into the situation.  What people outside find difficult to understand is how the ending of violence has actually made the gap and the bitterness between the communities seem greater than before.  It’s because enhanced expection of change [in the Catholic/nationalist/republican community] meets enhanced fear of change [in the Protestant/unionist community]

Three contacts with the world of vocation.  One bringing real joy at the end of long struggle.  Two bringing struggle and pain.  I’ve lived inside my own sense of calling for so long that I hardly know how to think of myself as separate from it.  Yet one of the constants of a bishop’s life is contact with people for whom vocation is objective reality and driving force – and I thank God for that.  They amaze me and humble me.  Yet, knowing what I know and having seen what I have seen, it’s all I can do not to say, ‘If you could just squeeze this germ out of your system … just go and get on with your life and forget about this … just be content to be …. you would be so much happier.  But there is no point.  I didn’t listen either.

Strange that in my by now fairly exhaustive knowledge of central Scotland in general and Fife in particular …. I have never been to Cellardyke.  But how amazingly beautiful the villages of the East Neuk are.  One feels for the poultry farmers – while noting abstractly that the bird population of the wild bird risk area is 163 times the total membership of the Scottish Episcopal Church.

Work expands, etc., etc.

All meetings end at the same time regardless of their starting time.

The length of a sermon is often in inverse proportion to the strength of its content.

When you keep track of money carefully, there seems to be more of it.

When you keep track of money carefully, there seems to be less of it.

When you give money away, there seems to be more of it.
No matter what speed they begin, all hymns revert to 75% of their optimum pace

Pickfords cardboard boxes breed in the night.

One day I shall go to bed early.

Black Dyke Mills Band was, of course, amazing.  Virtuoso playing and exuberant with it.  They drew a huge and very different audience.  Two interesting things about it.  One is that brass banding is a competitive movement and they brought the silverware with them.  The other is that, like Welsh Male Voice Choirs, this is the pinnacle of a movement which has its roots in the old mining and mill communities of the north of England.  It remains, obviously, a vibrant movement – although everybody is now middle class ….  And then it’s Sunday again.  I spent this morning with our small congregation in Kinghorn – directly across the Firth of Forth from Leith.  They did the brave thing of letting go of their building last year.  They now continue to worship in a side chapel of the [Church of Scotland] Parish Church and find themselves very welcome there.  How sensible – one building less to maintain.