I’ve begun to feel a little guilty that I have not written about the beginning of the Anglican Use in Kansas City. Perhaps that is because I have only a series of unlinked impressions and no coherent story to tell. But let me share with you what I’ve got.
Matt Teel gave a wonderful presentation on the Gift of Authority from his experience as a former priest in the Episcopal Diocese of West Missouri and now a Catholic layman. As we spoke afterwards, he said that our Gospel Mass was the first time he he found happy people during a Catholic liturgy – that previously he had decided that Catholic liturgy was something to be endured because it is good for us – like fasting. He said that the Gospel Liturgy was filled with joy and happiness from the first greeting as he entered the church to the last. He also shared that our Anglican Use liturgy – as simple as we may be at this beginning stage – was gave him a taste of the beauty he used to enjoy at St. Mary’s. I think I also saw signs of happiness on the faces of those in the Anglican Use congregation.
My second impression is that we may be stirring up something that is trying to trip us up – sometimes literally. On the first Sunday I had a wardrobe malfunction. Let’s just say that my first experience with a lavalier mike and battery pack connected through cassock, surplice and cope was not as graceful as it could have been. Humility is an essential ingredient of good liturgy. On our second Sunday we had just enjoyed started Willan’s Gloria when the organ died and all the lights went out. The cantor and congregation didn’t miss a beat and the organist slipped around to the piano and we continued the liturgy by candlelight.
My third impression is from a comment by an Episcopalian woman who has gone to mass with the Catholic husband and children for the past 15 years. She said, “My husband is a cradle Catholic and because he was raised in the Church he is able to pick and choose what he agrees with and disagrees with. When I come into the Church as an adult, I have to be able to accept it all.” She hit the nail on the head, I thought.
My fourth impression is from a comment made by our organist last Sunday, Tyler Henderson, and our cantor the past two Sundays, Sandy Prothman. “This Anglican Use Liturgy is a lot of work!” It is not easy, even for gifted liturgical musicians, to provide leadership at an Anglican Use Liturgy. I don’t think it is ironic that liturgy means work.
And finally, all the recent attention has not brought an outpouring of new people for the Anglican Use liturgy. But it seems like our earlier Gospel Liturgy is benefiting greatly from the attention.
All of these pieces will find their proper place, given God’s grace, when we can get enough perspective to see how they fit together.
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3 comments:
I was positively giddy over my first Anglican Use service last Sunday, I guess it didn't show too much! The organist and cantor both performed beautifully, even under less than optimal conditions.
Compromises, compromises, compromises. From the younger Catholic standpoint, this IS very different. For the modern Episcopalian, I assume this is very different. (I've never attended an ECUSA service). From my traditional Anglican catholic viewpoint, it is very much a marriage of the newer Roman Catholic and the Anglican, with possibly some Episcopalian thrown in. I'm not assessing too much at this point, as we are so much a work in progress. When we can have an actual Eucharist, then this will be the best liturgy in Kansas City, by my opinion.
It takes a while for people to find their way to something new. This is why a new business needs to be able to afford two years before they show a profit. The more curious Catholics may wait until we have a Mass, that is understandable. I hope all involved are willing to give this the proper chance time wise. In the meantime, it is good news (I think there is a pun in there somewhere) that the Gospel Mass is attracting new attention!
Our worship is rather contemplative, if we seem a solemn lot to newcomers, just know that we can be very friendly. Give it enough time to hang around after the class when we can get to know you!
I can't wait for more! Dr. Teel's talk was excellent.
Fr., do you know if any of the musical settings are online?
I looked online to see if I could find the actual music for Willan's "Missa Sancta Maria Magdalena" which was a staple of Episcopalian high church but not necessarily Anglo Catholic liturgy. I found some of it from a worship leaflet from Grace Church Newark which can be accessed at www.gracechurchinnewark.org/Leaflet%20Proper%2015A%202008.pdf
From what I can tell by a google search it is now in use by a number of Anglo Catholic Episcopalian parishes and hardly anybody else.
Our Sunday liturgy is different in several ways from what one would have experienced in a parish using the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. the Catholic Book of Divine Worship is adapted from the 1979 BCP. The 1979 liturgy follows the same structure as the Novus Ordo Catholic Mass. The Gloria, Creed, Homily, Prayers of the Faithful, Offertory, and Eucharistic Prayer were arranged differently in the 1928 BCP.
In addition, because our catechetical presentations are by laypersons as well as priests, they do not take the place of the homily, which we are omitting at this point. They are take place after the Prayers of the Faithful and Peace.
In other words, it seems different because it is different, but the structure will be more familiar when we begin the Eucharist. But even then, the order will be not be the same as the 1928 BCP.
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