Mike's musings

Merry Christmas!

(backposting) Yes, the girls were very excited. We let them open their stocking presents when we got up, and then, after breakfast, headed off to the 1000 at Halstead, where I was deaconing. I hadn't deaconed for a while, and it was good to get my hand back in. We only had around 57 - though no choir - the service seems to have lost out to the crib service on the night before, and we need to find a way to get more families to it, I think. Clergy I've spoken to seem to have churches that split into two camps - those who have large congregations at the main Christmas morning service, and those who have been losing numbers recently.

After the service, we did presents and then had lunch - nibbles and salmon. The afternoon was chilling, playing with presents, and a Leo, a good friend from King's, joined us in around 1600. Lovely, lovely turkey, and a stuffing that really worked beautifully. Good wine, good food, good company, and a good evening. And noone got murdered in an in-law-fuelled killing spree. A near-perfect Christmas. Oh - forgot to mention: Moo did a great ham with black treacle last night. Should have mentioned it.

Labels: Christmas, deacon

My first Midnight Mass

(backposting) Lunchtime with Si, D, Morgs, Boo and Simon, Jo's godfather. Good to see everyone: we need to find a time to get together for some child-free time to chat, eat and drink with Si and D. Simon spent some great quality time with Jo: I suspect he's a very good teacher.

Well, the afternoon brought us the Halstead crib service, which I was attending with the girls. The church was pretty full, and the girls were sheep, which was very sweet. Got them to bed afterwards - as before, took rather a while to get them to sleep. Mum, Dad and Moo went to bed, and I headed off to the Midnight service at St Andrew's, Halstead, where I was to preside at the altar.

We had about 138 people, including choir and clergy, and it was one of the most joyous experiences of my life. Sharing the great gift, as He was shared for the first time with us, was just so special. I just can't begin to explain the emotion, I really can't.

Labels: Christmas, communion, eucharist, god, joy

Preparations

(backposting) I am, in fact, making a major contribution to the Christmas preparations today: I am looking after the children. This might seem like a simple task, but in fact, it is not. This is for three main reasons:

1. they are very excited
2. they are very tired
3. Moo keeps discovering that we've forgotten things that we need

In fact, this last is quite helpful at one level, because it means we had to make a big trip out to Sainsbury's (which was hellish - nearly 10 minutes to park), and this got the girls to sleep.

The girls stayed up until my parents arrived around 1900, and then failed (in Jo's case) to get to sleep for approximately an hour.

The season is upon us!

Labels: Christmas, girls, shopping

Carols by torchlight

Tonight was Halstead's town carol service. We started at the top of town, and were marched down the town by the Salvation Army Band. We formed up at the park, and sang carols by torchlight in the park. It was great, and felt really Christmasy, so the the season's really started for me now.

Labels: Christmas, church, music

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas everyone! We managed to sleep through to 0545, which isn't bad, and Miri had to be woken up 30 minutes or later, as we really couldn't keep Jo from the presents any longer. Father Christmas had left presents in the summer house, and they went down very well. Again, Kate and I took the girls to church - this time the 1000 - and after that we had some nibbles and opened the champagne. Presents, then, of course. Lots of lovely things: I think we've done really well. Things got a little loony by the end of the afternoon - despite Miri and I catching an hour and a quarter's sleep around 1400 - but the girls went to bed fine.

Labels: Christmas

Christmas, early

(backposting) As we're going to be with Kate and Mac for Christmas, and we're down for Dad's 40th anniversary of his ordination, we decided to do presents and have a big meal. All the family were there, and lots of presents were exchanged. The nightmare was that I'd not removed the Flip camera from my Amazon wishlist after Kate and Mac had given it to us, so when I got it out to video proceedings (Kate and Mac had told us to open it early), Mum and Dad were a _little_ surprised. So, Jim and Nina got the one that had been bought for us. Whoops...

Labels: Christmas, family

Christmas tree

It was nearly dark by the time Jo and I went to the (2nd) Christmas tree place, but we bought one and got it home. I put it up and didn't lose my right thumb. Did hurt though, and bled lots. The line "Oh, so you actually did hurt yourself," from Moo was _meant_ in good faith, I'm sure...

Sally asked about my PhD plans. They're not really plans yet, but I'm missing doing some academic work, and I have some thoughts that I'd like to be following up. They're on authority within Anglicanism: historical, present and future. How we form it, understand it, and negotiate it, and the sources: Bible, tradition, revelation, culture, etc.. I want to start doing some reading, so that's what I'm going to do.

Labels: bible, Christmas, PhD

Christmas

As I'm going to be away from my home parishes, staying with my in-laws, I've been in contact with their local priest, and it looks like she'll be able to use me for something. I'm pleased about that, as it's difficult juggling work, family and ministry. And Christmas is an important time.

On a different note, I'm supposed to be preaching on "stewardship". This is what the Church of England means by "encouraging our congregations to give to the church". This is a hard thing to preach about for me, and I need to work hard on it.

Labels: Christmas, ministry, money

Christmas Day!

(backposting) Not up too late, and not up too early, to be honest. But Jo just had a lovely Christmas. Mainly because she got to open pretty much every present, whether it was for her or not. She's not desperately well, but thanks to sleeping through half of the service that we attended at Cheddar church this morning, managed the day OK.

Presents included:

• 20 balls of wool (me, from Moo): so that she can knit me a jersey
• a scooter (Jo, from my parents): something she decided a couple of weeks ago that she wanted from Father Christmas (my Dad had a quick word with him)
• a spa day (Moo, from me): she really needs a pampering day
• The Scouting for Girls CD (me, from Moo): marvellous
• multifarious small presents for Jo, which kept her happy opening things through the day

Labels: Christmas, church, family

Caga Tio

It's amazing what you can learn from Teletubbies. Today we learnt that in Catalonia, they take a log into their home around the 8th December, warm it in a blanket, feed it food and generally welcome it as a member of the family. On Christmas Eve or Christmas morning, they beat it with sticks, exhorting it to "shit nuts, not sardines", and then look under the blanket to see what they've got. Traditionally, it seems, they get nuts if they've been good, and sardines if they haven't, but more modern interpretations seem to involve sunglasses or jigsaw puzzles. Then they set fire to it.

There's a parable there, I think, about the dangers of being welcomed into a stranger's home around Christmas. Or maybe not.

At least we don't do anything stupid like warn children against the dangers of talking to strangers, then waiting until the Christmas season and exhorting them to sit on the knee of any bloke with a beard and a red suit, who will give them presents and tell them to "be good" and "keep secrets" for him. And who will (if they're lucky), enter their (normally secure) home at night via a (frankly Freudian) domestic orifice which is closed to all "normal people" and make a special delivery in a set of underclothing.

Labels: Christmas

Carols

We went to a service of lessons and carols this morning at Great Yeldham, and I was reading Luke 1:26-38 (the Annunciation). Jo dressed up as an angel and stood next to me. It was very sweet.

We did the cards today. Not feeling _very_ Christmassy about it.

Labels: Christmas

Christmas starts

We got the tree, and decorated it today, so the Christmas season has really started. I think we're finished with all the present-buying, too, with the exception of presents for each other, but I know what I'm getting Moo, so that's easy.

Labels: Christmas

Redeeming the Season

What did John the Baptist mean by "Produce fruit in keeping with repentance"? (Matthew 3:8). That's what he told his doubters to do, and if we're going to be ready for Christmas, that's what we're supposed to do, according to received church wisdom and tradition. Being ready for Christmas, of course, is being ready to accept the gift of God's Son, here on earth. So, whatever views we have of the season - the commercialism, particularly, that's probably what we should be about. The last couple of Christmas seasons have been different for me: I'm less interested in getting things, acquiring, shopping, consuming. I suspect this is largely to do with having children, one of whom is beginning to get the wonder, and is very aware of what Christmas is actually about. I suspect it's also to do with my journey towards ordination - God, ERMC and my bishop willing - and my spiritual growth. It's not that I'm disgusted by it: just not very interested, and unsure what it's all for. Maybe that's the first step down the road of redemption.

But I'm not sure that I'm producing the right kind of fruit yet. Maybe that'll have to wait a couple more years.

Synchroblog

Today is a "synchroblog" on the subject of "Redeeming the Season". If you've liked what you read here, or, more particularly, if you didn't, and you'd like to read some other opinions, please visit one of the other participating blogs:

• Marieke's Grace Rain
• John Smulo
• Sally's Journeys
• Brian Heasley - 24/7 Ibiza
• Webb's Stumbling's
• More Than Stone
• Steve Hayes' Notes from the Underground
• Adam Gonnerman's Firey Stone Feather Pen
• Kirk Bartha
• Mike's Musings
• I'm In Over My Head
• Hello Said Jenelle
• Be the Revolution
• Fernando's desk
• Cindy Tracks the Edge
• Calacirian
• Billy Calderwood
• Carl's Personal Bubble
• John Morehead's Musings
• Matt Stone Journeys in Between
• Handmaid Leah
• Tim Abbott
• Josh Rivera

Labels: Christmas, synchroblog

Eighteen Lessons and Carols

I listened to the King's Nine Lessons and Carols on Radio 4 today. The first time for a while: I find it difficult, not being there, and particularly at the moment, as I'm missing the amount of music - certainly live liturgical music - that I'd like in my life. But that was a good enough reason to listen to it, in fact. So although I didn't catch all of it - old relatives, young daughter, pregnant wife and all, but I caught most of it. The treble was very nervous at the start of "Once in Royal", but did very well once he got into it.

We then went to Rempstone church for their local one. Jo did pretty well, but found it difficult keeping still - and quiet, come to that - but it didn't matter. Enjoyed the service, and I'm gearing up for the Gift.

Labels: Christmas, Jo, singing

Christmas and laughter

It's not always easy to laugh, but having a 22 month old daughter certainly helps things along sometimes. She's a big fan of reading her bible in the morning ("Jesus in it"), and this morning, as most mornings, she wanted to read the Christmas story. So we opened it up. "Angel, Mary". We agreed. "What," I asked Jo, "did the angel say to Mary?" "Boo!" she replied. Which probably pretty much sums it up, from Mary's point of view. How she had the presence of mind to come up with Magnificat, given the fact that she'd just been informed - completely out of the blue, by an angelic being - that she was not only going to give birth to a child out of wedlock, but that he'd be God's own son, is beyond me, but all credit to the girl/woman.

They must have been almost at Bethlehem, or maybe already installed in a stable, trying to make the most of a bad job. As a father, I can imagine Joseph, scared witless (think about infant and female mortality rates in childbirth at the time), and being as positive as possible: "it's not too dirty, darling, and I can get some softer hay to replace the straw, and maybe we can use the manger: we'll feed the ox and the ass on the floor, or by hand. At least the animals will keep us warm, and we've got the swaddling clothes that your cousin gave us after their little John was born." And all the time, knowing that the baby was not entirely his. We pay less attention to Joseph than we ought to do.

I'm finding it easier to explore the godly and the theological at the moment. And I don't know why. The obviously spiritual aspects of my life are close to missing, but God provides. Through family, through this blog, through the blogs of others, through the other media, particularly the radio. I have an essay to write, and no idea where it's going to come from, but that's the way of the world. God's world.

Jo knows to say "Amen" now. And "Alleluia", though her pronunciation's a little bit off. We'll take her to carols tomorrow.

Labels: Christmas, Jo, Joseph, Mary, theology

Happy Easter

You must remember that the clergy have a lot to do in the lead up to Christmas, and it can all get too much. That didn't stop me laughing, however, when Keith, our rector, left me a message this morning to wish us a happy Easter. He said "Christmas" later in the message, and didn't seem to have noticed the switch, but I told Dorothy, his wife, who has agreed to rib him about it.

Jo is at a stage where she really, really wants to tell you things, and, when she tries hard, she can get there, but it takes her a lot of thought and hard work. She's coming out with some fantastic and surprising things. "What are the balloons doing?" "Floating in the sky." Wow. She was sick a few times last night, and ended up with Moo in our bed (so I wnet off to the spare room again). We think it was because I took her swimming and she drank too much water.

We did a secret Santa with the other kids after swimming, and Jo got a "Mr Potato Head". To my surprise, she loves it, and calls it "Monster Egg". When it doesn't have any of its accoutrements (eyes, ears, nose, etc.) attached, it does look like an egg. And it _is_ kind of monstrous.

Moo's still not well - but I took Jo out card-delivering this afternoon, and Moo got a little more sleep.

Labels: Christmas, clergy, Easter, Jo