What is in Kelvin's Head?

The Beatitudes of Livestreaming

13/09/2024

Blessed are they who livestream their church services
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs to share with others and they know it.

Blessed are the sick and the dying in churches which livestream
for they shall be comforted by still being able to be part of their congregations
in addition to receiving the personal and pastoral care of their friends and clergy.

Blessed are those who are meek enough to know that audio matters more than video
for they will inherit the online audience.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for life-changing worship both online and in-person
for their love of God will be counted as righteousness.

Blessed are the joyful
for their joy online will light up the world.

Blessed are the purposeful
for they will make their livestreaming easy to find and they will ensure that
no-one needs to download a hymnsheet, a liturgy book and a pdf version of the notices.

Blessed are the livestream makers
for they are counted amongst the evangelists of today.

Blessed are the congregations who rejoice in the technical and digital skills of those who are often overlooked
for they shall reap a harvest of plenty.

Blessed are those who know that their worship would be better not livestreamed yet
for they know that they need to concentrate on renewing their in-person worship first.

Blessed are you when people make snarky comments about your livestream
for they are telling you they want it to be better for the honour and the glory of the Lord our God.

beatitudes, churches, livestream, online worship

6 responses to “Here or there?”

Gary

01/04/2007

Up there. High altar. No doubt.

Reply
Tom Allen

01/04/2007

I am very much with Richard Giles on this one – there should liturgically only be one main altar – ideally this is achieved by romoving the former High altar and dedicating that space to some other purpose – where that is not possible as in historic cathedrals then it should be left dormant (covered in a simple cloth perhaps) and only the altar which is being used for worship should be dressed since this is in fact THE altar.

Despite all the reservations about removing former altars in the end it solves long-term problems, and provides a single visual focus for Eucharistic worship. At times when a high altar is needed then the new altar can moved there.

This kind of fuzziness illustrates that our liturgical practice has become dominated by hertiage criteria.

I am about to replace our main altar with something moveable and aesthetically more appropriate, but am facing a Registrars ruling that the current altar (and former eastward facing number more recently provided with wheels and moved to the chancel!) must be burnt, and that the wood frontal cannot be used for a screen.

Dont’ we get ourselves tied up in knots!
Tom

Reply
Stewart

01/04/2007

A thought came to my mind this afternoon. At the Creed we all face east. This results in the choir turning their back on the Nave Altar and in most cases put the High Altar in their sight.

Considering Tom’s comments, another thought thinking about some English Cathedrals which have multiple altars around the building, it is not usually possible to see more than one at a time. Some have a chapel behind the High Altar – behind a screen.

Turning back to St Mary’s – all the action at the 10:30 service is centred and focused around the Nave Altar. However there is still the High Altar, the Pheobe Traquair Reredos and Gwyneth Leach mural of Our Lady at the East End. To my mind their presence enhances the worship around the Nave Altar and does not detract from it.

Reply
Andrew

02/04/2007

The Altar is a table, where we commemorate a meal together. Clearly (to my mind) we should all be sitting round it, as we do (more or less) at present. The table reminds me that Jesus instituted the Last Supper when he was among us (HERE), not somewhere else (THERE).

I very much hope that the Altar in St. Mary’s can be left where it is.

Reply
kelvin

03/04/2007

It seems to me curious that the practice that I inherited was to light and dress the high altar whilst using the nave altar. It makes no sense, except perhaps to highlight St Mary’s puzzling parallel worlds of deep conservatism mingled with radical liberalism.

Whist tending to agree with Andrew’s sentiments, it is worth remembering that the nave altar could hardly be said to have stayed in one place these last 20 years.

Reply
Elizabeth

17/04/2007

Here. Both. Loving the paradox.

But maybe I only say that beccause the only church I’ve regularly worshiped in where there are clearly two visible altars is St Mary’s and that’s what I’m used to. I’ve never found it distracting that the high altar is dressed and lit, even though the nave altar is where the action is, so to speak. But then, would I notice if the high altar wasn’t dressed and lit? Probably not.

I do love the nave altar, peripatetic as it is!

Reply