The Priest in Eastward Worship

“We could take a cue from Orthodoxy, whose priests stand with their backs to their congregation, leading a liturgy that is neither clever nor impassioned, but simply beautiful, like stone smoothed by centuries of rhythmic tides. It’s an austere ritual, in the sense of – there’s nothing new here; it’s sublime, in the sense of – creating a clearer view into Heaven. The priest can be any priest. Who he is, what he looks like, how he speaks, and what he thinks matter little. He hasn’t written the service that he officiates. It isn’t about him or his prowess. He’s an interchangeable functionary draped in brocaded robes, obscured by incense, and, as such, never points to himself, a flawed human, pointing ever and only to the Perfection of the Mysterious Divine. That is the role of every priest or preacher – invisibility, while making God seen.”

From HERE

The more I think about it, the more I like it. Brian+

The Eucharist : Today and Forever

"For the Divine Liturgy, the Eucharist, is nothing other than the very meal at the End of the World. It is the marriage feast of the Lamb; the feast of the Kingdom of God – our participation in the very Body and Blood of God." Father Stephen Freeman

I believe this to be true. O Lord, forgive my unbelief.

LORD, have mercy, Brian

The Decay of Identity

The more I learn about the riches of liturgical Christianity, the more I lament the loss of Common worship and Identity. I see an ever increasing congregationalist attitude among clergy and bishops. It is as if we are embarrassed about our traditions and our past. We must be new and ever changing because 'change is good and inevitable." More and more we are sucked in by our egos and fallen desires. In the recent Bishop's Charge at our Synod the bishop mentioned the lament of many in the House of Bishops about the loss of Common Worship. I have said it before and I'll say it again, "The only thing boring about our liturgical worship, is my fallen heart and desires."

I saw this today in a post regarding the Book of Common Prayer from the Rectors Corner HERE

"Many ancient liturgical innovations failed; many new forms of worship tell us more about ourselves than they do about God. Often, the more “relevant” we seek to be, the more dated and shallow we become. The notion of a shared identity starts to look much more valuable when amnesia becomes more common amongst us than does anamnesis."

LORD have mercy, Brian+

What I Fear!

"I do not fear the God who is Holy Trinity. I fear my own freedom to turn from this God, to hide myself in an impenetrable egotism and despair which will forever close me to the roar of his love. I fear that my self-will will ultimately triumph over my desire for the supreme and ultimate Good. I fear that I am becoming, have become, a person who declares to infinite Love, “My will, not thine, be done.” I fear also the purifying suffering that I must endure, both in this life and beyond, to free me from my bondage to self and the goods of this world. But I do not fear the God of Jesus Christ. I know that if God does truly exist, then at the moment of my death he will meet me as the Crucified, still bearing the marks of his sacrifice on his hands. Judge and Judged, Priest and Victim, absolver of sins and victor over death—to this Jesus I entrust my future; to his Father I commend my spirit. Amen."

Fr. Al Kimel - recently ordained priest in the eastern Orthodox Church after stint in the Episcopal Church, then Roman Catholic.

From HERE