Welcome to St Mary Magdalene's Church, Rusper

February thoughts from Nick ...

Not afraid to learn from his mistakes Bishop Lindsay would squirm whenever I teased him about his advice that I move to a country benefice for ‘rest and reflection’ and I think it fair, if a little pointed to venture that the sum total of rural parish experience between senior clergy in our diocese suggests a reason for this blind spot! What is life really like for modern clergy in our ‘sleepy’ slow paced villages? I decided to do a diary of a normal week while reflecting on the seasons of the Church Year. The proposed article soon took on the life of a mini series. So here it is...

  Life in the Fast Aisle - Day 1 Sunday


Advent is the church’s annual time of waiting, reflected for me at the start of every Sunday, the start of every week. Advent resonates at many levels; excitement, mystery, preparation. I like to begin the week early before the house wakes up and at this time of the year that means it is dark when I creep into the study to start the Lord’s Day in contemplative mood. I don’t know how I would get through a busy Sunday without a couple of hours’ stillness. I get to church half an hour before the first service begins. There is a palpable sense of warm togetherness at the 8am service that is a strong spiritual foundation to the day. Having waved people off and grabbed a quick breakfast I jump into the car and am off to the 9.30am service, praying that the cyclists will not be out in force, which as you all know is quite a Summer phenomenon round the villages. The four or five miles from the 9.30am to the 11am service is often a journey through time from Cranmer’s Prayer Book and traditional chants to an altogether less predictable style of service. From delivering a measured conventional sermon I have to switch to a different style of informal delivery with an ‘off the cuff ‘feel. Arriving only 15 minutes or even less time before a service begins I don’t personally find conducive to worship, particularly when there are questions, information or anything unforeseen to assimilate. Anyone who has suffered the frustration of giving me a notice 5 minutes before the service only to watch me forget has shared that frustration!

Lunch is usually a hasty sandwich, especially when there is a Christening, and again the turnaround seems short as I make sure I am prepared before heading back again and to the farthest reaches of Colgate again for an evening service at Cottesmore School Chapel. I usually manage to be back for a meal before 9pm and am more than ready to unwind, once I have given at least some thought, if not actual preparation to school assembly.

  Nick

You are viewing the text version of this site.

To view the full version please install the Adobe Flash Player and ensure your web browser has JavaScript enabled.

Need help? check the requirements page.

Get Flash Player