Amidst the Busyness

A busy couple of days. I caught the train from Clitheroe to Manchester on Monday morning and from there to Stockport to join a meeting of minsters at Grace Baptist Church. That evening, I had a dinner appointment in Leeds with a man in his mid-20s whose Head of Sixth Form I once was; he was keen to tell me about his recent trip to the east and his successful career. The following evening there was a meeting of the Hetton Chapel Steering Group after a day spent looking around Leeds and Armley. By the time I got home today, I shall have been on seven trains and four buses. I had elected to wear smart shoes but was required to run between Piccadilly and Victoria to catch one of the trains, so my feet were hurting. I found myself muttering how “I need to go and put my feet up” and “I could just do with a good cuppa”, thus sounding remarkably like the old folk who raised me.

Despite the busy schedule, I walked past a parish church yesterday that advertised a 12.30 communion service. I explained to the friendly lady on the door that I might not partake; I am wary of Anglo-Catholic ‘masses’ and even more guarded against woke Anglican clergy and their preoccupation with gender and climate. Walking into a Church of England establishment in the 2020s, one really does not know what to expect. A surprisingly stylish young vicar presided, an African man gave a short but helpful exposition of Jesus’ authority, and then the simple act of communion. It was refreshing to sit in a large but quiet building and repeat liturgical responses, share prayers and hear the scriptures. It was not my preferred style, but it was refreshing and a pleasant contrast with the frenetic checking of rail timetables, vandalised bus stops and crowds of commuters.  

Worship at Salem Chapel I do not find relaxing. You may sometimes hear me singing the wrong verse or line of a song as my mind is flitting onto the next item, or mentally noting something I must do. Then again, who said worship was about relaxation? It ought to be an acute focus upon the Lord, His attributes and actions. Yet my half-hour sojourn in that parish church was a calming and rewarding experience. There were only 7-8 of us, and it is a wonder that more city workers do not make room for something that is spiritual and exhilarating, relaxing yet intensive: the worship of Almighty God.

I guess they are just too busy.

A.  D