Blog

  • Will you continue?

    The posts that I’ve made on this blog which have attracted by far the most comment in recent months have been those connected with whether baptism must necessarily happen to a person before the Eucharist. I think we’ve established that a lot of people care very much about this question. It is my view that…

  • Homily – Music Sunday Orchestral Megasong

    Here’s what I said to wrap up our West End Festival events on Sunday evening: As most of you will know, it is my habit to announce what we are doing at St Mary’s on the internet. Most people who come through the doors of this church these days for the first time have already…

  • Online prayer today – note the change of time

    I can’t manage online evening prayer this evening so instead I’m going to offer online Compline at 9.30 pm. Usual details for access, just a different time. Liturgy here: http://thurible.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/compline-ordinary-time1.pdf – starts on Page 22 for Saturday.

  • Pompoms

    Can I suggest that you all head over to Dieter Philippi’s webpage today to have a look at his post on the difference between the Spanish Pompom and the Italian Pompom. (Yes, we are talking birettas here and Herr Philippi is the expert). http://philippi-collection.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/difference-between-spanish-and-italien.html I’ve been a fan of the Philippi collection for years. Note…

  • Back from Retreat (all perky and ready to go)

    Just back from a week on retreat in a Jesuit house in sunny Spain. It is a while since I’ve made a retreat and four years since I went to this particular place. Like before, I’ve come back all perky and ready to go. I realise as I look back over the last few weeks…

  • Synod Review – things you might have missed

    Here’s a quick review of some of the most significant things that took place at the recent General Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church beyond the headline grabbing news that we rejected the Anglican Covenant. I was heartened to hear a bishop call for an anti-bullying policy. My first “maiden” speech at General Synod, many…

  • Scotland Says No!

    The Scottish Episcopal Church has resoundingly rejected the Anglican Covenant as a way forward for the Anglican Communion. At the same time, the Synod passed a motion rejoicing in our commitment to the Communion itself. What we have said is No to the Covenant, but Yes to the Communion. The vote was decisive – 6…

  • Anglican Covenant Debate

    Bishop Gregor proposes the motion to adopt the covenant Further updates on my twitter stream – twitter.com/thurible

  • Votes for Nuns

    The synod decides (by an extremely close vote in the house of clergy) to allow a religious community to elect a voting member of Diocesan Synod. I speak against on the grounds that religious communities can be a haven from the politics of the church. I also ask whether religious communities will now be expected…

  • Discussion Groups

    Two motions are considered to allow Synod to meet in Discussion Groups sometimes. They clarify the position to ensure that we understand that Synod is still in session when groupwork happens.