A place for Michael to put some thoughts

Travelling west out of Wales, I was due to spend a few days with my dear friend Fr. Ian McCormack in Nottingham. On my way, there were a couple of places I wanted to stop.

First I spent the night in Shrewsbury. Although I know that Br. Cadfael is in fact a fictional character, having read (I think) all 21 novels, I thought that a stop in Shrewsbury would be an appropriate addition to the pilgrimage. Shrewbury Abbey was also the original site of the shrine of St. Winifred (see A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters). I was able to stop by the abbey, now a parish church, just before Morning Prayer. One of the kind folks at the parish explained that the high altar is where the shrine would have been. The choir and the shrine were destroyed in the Reformation, so the church is about half the size it was originally. This kind gentleman also encouraged me to visit Pennant Melangell, and I told him I had been there the day before!

The other stop was in Lichfield to visit the Shrine of St. Chad. Ever since I visited Lastingham about ten years ago, I've had a great desire to visit St. Chad. Unfortunately, I made a key mistake in my planning which you can hear about in the video below:

Asking prayers from St. Chad

Holy Chad, pray for us that God might give us the humility to find in disappointment on opportunity to serve God in new ways.

Collect for St. Chad

Almighty God, you raised up your servant Chad to help bring unity to a divided Church; help us, with his prayers, to live more and more as one Church to better show your love to a divided world. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amn

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Victims of Gun Violence - August 1 - August 31

Rest eternal grant unto them,

And let light perpetual shine upon them.

May they rest in peace.

Click here for a link to the list of names of all people killed with a gun from August 1 through August 31.

Friday, August 9, 2019

Victims of Gun Violence - July 1 - July 31

Rest eternal grant unto them,

And let light perpetual shine upon them.

May they rest in peace.

Click here for a link to the list of names of all people killed with a gun from July 1 through July 31.

Pilgrimage - Saint Melangell, Patron Saint of Hares

This particular shrine was completely unexpected. I needed to get from Caernarfon eventually to Nottingham where I was staying with an old friend. So I looked around for pilgrimage sites along the way and stumbled on this place. It turned out to be one of the absolute highlights of the whole pilgrimage. The drive to get there was pretty crazy itself. The route took me all the way through Snowdonia National Park which was absolutely stunning. The weather that day was spectacular which didn't hurt at all.

Pheasants

There were many things that made this stop so memorable. One of them was that I had to make the last part of the journey on foot. As I was driving up from the little village, I actually had to stop the car and pull off the road by a little sheep gate. The road had become impassible. There was a commercial pheasant farm and the road was completely covered in pheasants. They could fly, but they simply refused. After about twenty minutes of driving at pheasant pace, I gave up and parked the car.

So I had to walk about a mile and and half up to the shrine.

Asking prayer from Saint Melangell

Holy Melangell, your love for creation inspired you to protect one of God's most vulnerable creatures; pray that God will grant us the courage to place ourselves between the vulnerable and those who would do them harm.

Collect for Saint Melangell

Holy God, in the beginning, you created the world, blessed it, and called it good; strengthen the heart of your Church that, through the intercession of Holy Melangell, we might work to protect the creation entrusted to us and preserve its goodness for those who will come after us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pilgrimage - Saint Winifred, Patron of the #MeToo movement?

On the map, it would have made more sense to go to Holywell before St. Asaph's. However, it turned out I was coming through on the day of the opening of the pilgrim season at Holywell, and there was going to be a special mass in the afternoon. Since it's only about 15 minutes away, I decided to head over to St. Asaph's first and come back to Holywell.

This is the only remaining part of the devotion to Saint Winifred. Her shrine ended up in Shrewsbury, about 50 miles away. This shrine was destroyed and desecrated in the Reformation. Today, the Holywell is maintained by the Roman Catholic diocese of Wrexham and Saint Winifred's Church.

On account of her her remarkable story, St. Winifred has, for centuries, been one of the saints invoked against unwanted advances. So she is an ancient saint with a timely role in the Church today.

Asking prayers from St. Winifred

Holy Winifred, pray for us and pray especially for your sisters and all who struggle with unwanted attention and false and degrading expectations; we ask you to pray for your brothers and all who have been taught by the sins of the world to believe that their power and their worth comes from dominating others; we ask you to pray that God will send the Holy Spirit so that true equality and respect will grow among us all.

Collect for St. Winifred

Loving Father of us all, send your holy angels to protect all those who suffer from unwanted advances so that, with the intercession of your daughter Winifred, we my all grow into the fullness of the love you have for all your children. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pilgrimage - Saint Asaph of Wales

After leaving Mirfield, I headed southwest into Wales. In part, my original motivation was simply that I really wanted to go to Wales. We never found a chance to get over there when we were at the College, and I had a lot more freedom in this trip. One of the places I really wanted to see was Castle Caernarfon, one of the defensive castles built by Edward I. But this really had nothing to do with the pilgrimage except that it meant that I would be spending most of my time in northern Wales. From there I looked around and few a few important pilgrimage sites.

The first I visited was St. Asaph's Cathedral, originally the site of St. Asaph, the principal saint and evangelist of northern Wales. I had a small personal interest in going to St. Asaph's. In my first job after I left my undergraduate studies, I was working for a firm in Bala Cynwyd, PA. Keeping with the Welsh tradition, the local parish was dedicated to St. Asaph. So I was very glad to visit St. Asaph's Cathedral, the smallest cathedral in Britain, and to learn a little more about it's role in the history of the Church in Wales.

Asking prayers from St. Asaph

Holy Asaph, pray for your fellow servants that God may put the words of the Gospel on our lips and that we might proclaim God's love in the communities we call home.

Collect for St. Asaph

Come Holy Spirit who sets our hearts aflame with the fire of love; help us to see the people in our lives who have lost their faith or who have never known your presence, that our faith may be strengthened when we share it with others. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Recorded at the Travelodge in Canterbury.

Friday, July 5, 2019

Victims of Gun Violence - May 30 - June 30

Rest eternal grant unto them,

And let light perpetual shine upon them.

May they rest in peace.

Click here for a link to the list of names of all people killed with a gun from May 30 through June 30.

NB - Due to my sabbatical travel schedule and limited access to the internet, I was not able to record the names of victims from June 16 - June 21.

Monday, June 17, 2019

Pilgrimage - Saint Cedd of Lastingham

I visited Lastingham a few times when we were at Mirfield. The town itself is sort of nestled into the southern foothills of the North Yorkshire Moors. So it's only a hop, skip, and a jump away from Rievaulx. It's also sort of on the way to Whitby. Since those first visits, I've been fascinated with the figure of Cedd. I love the idea of a lesser known older brother who also played such a significant role in history, but whose contribution is almost completely forgotten.

While I was there, I found myself thinking about the Council of Whitby and the emotions that must have been in play. Whichever side won out, there were people whose spirituality would be changed. So many of the figures that emerged as saints from that time used their gifts to find compromise. They found ways of preserving what was good while also staying together as one family.

Asking for prayers from Saint Cedd

Holy Cedd, pray for us that God may grant us humility in times of conflict so that we might serve as those who build bridges and those who mend broken relationships. Amen.

A Collect for Saint Cedd

Holy God, grant wisdom to all whom you call to the councils of the Church, and especially to our delegates to General Convention, that following the example of your servant Cedd, they may always seek your will and not their own, for the benefit of all your Church. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Pilgrimage - Saint Ceolfrith and the Codex Amiatinus

When I was in Durham Cathedral, I made the call to skip Ripon and the shrine of St. Wildrid in order to head north up to the town of St. Paul's Monastery in Jarrow on the banks of the Tyne River. St. Paul's was one of two monasteries that played a critical role in the foundation of Christianity here in the north of England. Even though these monasteries were very far away from Rome and the seats of power, they had an impact well beyond their size and location. One of the early abbots, a monk named Ceolfrith, was one of those folks with an outsize impact. And there's a great story about a book.

I had hoped to be able to get to Jarrow, and I am so glad that I did. There's a small chance I might be able to get to Ripon later in the trip, so I hope to be able to share Wilfrid's story. To be completely honest, part of why I was so tempted was because I'd been to Ripon when I was at the College, so I wanted to do something new.

Prayer follow the video!

Asking prayers from St. Ceolfrith

Holy Ceolfrith, your love of learning brought light and wisdom into the world through those whom you taught; pray for us that God might give us the grace to be an example to others so that God might be glorified through them.

A Collect for St. Ceolfrith

O Holy Spirit, you burn in the hearts of all your servants; inspired by the witness of Blessed Ceolfrith, help us to know and love you as you are revealed in Holy Scripture and help us to order our lives according to the same, to the praise and glory of the Father and the Son with whom you dwell in everlasting glory. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pilgrimage - Saint Aelred of Rievaulx

In the southern edges of the North Yorkshire Moors are two places I wanted to share with you all. The first is the ruined Cistercian Abbey at Rievaulx. At its height, this abbey supported over 600 monks and lay brothers. They abbey was also held the shrine of St. Aelred, the second abbot who lived in the middle of the 12th century.

Prayer for St. Aelred follow the video!

Asking Prayers from St. Aelred

Blessed Aelred, pray for us that we might grow in holy friendship with the people in our lives so that we can come to see in them a glimpse of the intimacy and joy God wants each of us to enjoy with him.

A Collect for St. Aelred

Lord Jesus, on the night before you died, you called your disciples friends: help us to know your presence in our lives, and inspired by Aelred, our friend and yours, we may grow in love with you. Amen.

Monday, June 10, 2019

Pilgrimage - The Venerable Bede

Cuthbert isn't the only saint at Durham Cathedral. The Venerable Bede, a scholar and priest from also from the seventh and early eighth century. Bede is often called the Father of English History for his work The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, but he is much more than that. Bede is one of those lesser known figures (at least lesser known in the wider world) who was key to holding on to and even advencing learning in the early medieval period.

On a production note, this another one of my early attempts. I recorded the introduction at Mirfield but the reaction at Lastingham. I also recorded Bede and Cuthbert together, and my original thought was to do one reaction video all at once. Later I figured I would edit each saint into one coherent video, but I'm not sure Bede's all that coherent.

Moving forward, I'm going to try to do one single video with everything in it, but I've still got a few more to edit and post before we get there.

Prayers for St. Bede follow the video!

Asking prayers from Saint Bede

Holy Bede, your example of learning and dedication is an example to the Church. Pray for us that we might use the gifts of learning and technology not to divide us but to bring us more deeply together in love.

A Collect for Saint Bede

Holy Father, Eternal Light, give us the grace of your wisdom, that, inspired by your servant Bede, a Teacher in the Church, we might bring the knowledge of your love into the dark places of the world. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Pilgrimage - Saint Cuthbert of Lindisfarne

Saint Cuthbert (and a little Saint Oswald)

The first major stop on my pilgrimage was Durham. There are several saints buried here at Durham Cathedral. I was planning to visit the Venerable Bede and Saint Cuthbert, but I had forgotten that the head of Saint Oswald is also here, buried with Cuthbert. I don't really talk much about Oswald, so I've got a little information below the video. Also following the video are the prayers I wrote at the shrine.

This is my first attempt at doing the whole video editing/YouTube thing, so please bear with me. I think I probably added more images than I'll be able to keep up in later videos, but we'll have to see. I'll probably be posting my video on St. Bede tomorrow.

Asking Prayers from Saint Cuthbert

Holy Cuthbert, pray for us today who carry the Gospel of Christ amidst our own divisions. Pray that we might, by your example, learn to bend where we must bend and hold on to the things that sustain our faith.

A Collect for Saint Cuthbert

Holy God, creator of all things, we give thanks for your servant Cuthbert, whom you raised up as an example of devotion and fidelity to your Church; kindle in our hearts that same fire of love and give us a zeal for the salvation of not just our own souls, but the souls of all you have given us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Saint Oswald

Oswald was a prominent king of Northumbria in the north of England during the 7th century. He united several smaller kingdoms, and he worked to establish Christianity. Oswald features prominently in Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Oswald died in battle fighting one of the non-Christian kingdoms. Although this sometimes causes him to be regarded as a martyr, Bede focuses more on the holiness of his life and his care for the poor in his kingdom.

Asking for Prayers from St. Oswald

Holy Oswald, we ask you to pray for your fellow servants that God may give us the strength to hold on to our faith firmly in a world whose temptations are always at hand to take it away.

A Collect for St. Oswald

Almighty God and King, we give thanks for your servant Oswald who use the gifts given to him to protect your church; help us to use our gifts to defend the weak from the weapons of this age and, at the last, grant us a share of your kingdom with your saints. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pilgrimage - Introduction

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share some of my sabbatical experiences with you as I go. Over the next few weeks, I'll be travelling around to some of the shrines and holy places in England and Wales. As I go, I'll be putting together some videos about the people I'll be visiting and what it's like to visit them. Afterwards, I'll be writing a prayer based on my experiences.

A couple of thoughts about pilgrimage. Pilgrimage is a popular topic in the Episcopal Church today. You can find a lot of people writing about it. For me, pilgrimage has a couple of dimensions.

The first is place. My pilgrimage will take me to the places where holy men and women have lived and worked and walked their own path as Christians. It will take me to the places where holy men and women are buried, the actual places where they are still present here in this world. The sense of place is important to me.

The second dimension is prayerful intention. As I come to each of these place, I come as a pilgrim. The journey is a prayer, and not a general one. At each shrine, before I visit, I reflect on what I want to bring to that place, what I want to ask God.

The last dimension is intercession. At each of these shrines, I will be asking these saints to pray for me and with me to God.