Monday (St Theodore of Tarsus)

  • After breakfast, I read Morning Prayer by myself, rather than attending the corporate celebration. I must admit, I like my liturgy pretty straight, and conforming to the Prayer Book. Those who plan worship for House of Bishops meetings apparently prefer to be a little more cutting edge and experimental. I can handle a certain amount of that with equanimity, but eventually a saturation point is reached, and it's not good for my soul's health. I seem to have reached that point.
  • The main business of the morning was a panel presentation by four persons, touching on issues ranging from international migration, the work of the Latin American Council of Churches, third world debt, and factors contributing to climate change.
  • There was a Eucharist in the late morning. See first bullet point above.
  • Lunch was "working," as the handful of Communion Partner bishops present met with the three bishop members of the Standing Commission on Liturgy on Church Music. Our discussion addressed the pastoral damage done by any rites for same-sex marriage that are brought forward (per C056 from 2009) might be minimized in dioceses where the bishop is not likely to permit their use. It was a fruitful time.
  • The first part of the afternoon session was a continuation of the morning's work. Then we had what is styled a Town Hall meeting. This involves various members of the house speaking about work they are involved in, or just making announcement plugging this or that. It is also a time when guests of the house bring greetings. In that category, we heard from the Right Revd Peter Price, Bishop of Bath & Wells (Church of England). His remarks were actually newsworthy, and I have reported them over at Confessions of a Carioca.
  • This was the night for "class" dinners, and the twelve bishops elected during 2010, and now making up the Class of 2011, along with the five spouses present, got into a convoy of five taxis and enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Esmerelda Verde, which features Ecuadoran coastal cuisine. We were told that it was recently written up in the Sunday New York Times, and given a very favorable review.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Spring 2018 House of Bishops, Day 3

The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany

Saturday (St Charles, King & Martyr)