Thank you all so much for your cards, gifts, prayers and good wishes over the last few weeks. It has been wonderful to meet so many people and feel so welcomed. For those who have asked about the pre-ordination retreat and the ordination service, I've put together a few of my memories and reflections.
On the Wednesday before our ordinations, the eight people to be made priest and the 14 to be made deacon (including me) gathered for a slightly nervous lunch at Bishopscourt. This was a first chance for me to meet some of my fellow ordinands, although there were several that I already knew from our training. After lunch we walked to the cathedral for the rehearsals and to swear our oaths. The rehearsals showed clearly that whatever else we might have learned in our training, liturgical-walking-in-pairs was not our strong suit. Eventually it was decided that it would be easier to change our route through the building than to make our square corners acceptable. The oath swearing in the Lady Chapel was a much more serious event. Hearing the list of our names one after another as we affirmed our beliefs and allegiance was very impressive. I repeated some of these affirmations in St Peter's last Sunday when I was licensed as Assistant Curate.
The (largely silent) retreat at Glenfall House included services, a set of addresses which focused on God's gifts to us, and space and time for us to reflect on our journey. How has God brought us here - and where is He taking us? Personal highlights for me included the service in which Bishop Michael washed our feet. The symbolism reminded us that the deacon is a servant, and all priests - even Bishops - remain deacons.
On Saturday we attended the ordination service for those being made priest. It was exciting and moving and a great preparation for the sights and sounds - and heat - that we would be experiencing the next day. We cheered and applauded the new priests out of the cathedral with enormous joy.
And then it was Sunday. This particular day of rest started very early with a group of newly dog-collared deacons-to-be eating breakfast and fiddling nervously with their new attire. At the cathedral we robed in our cassocks, surplices and red stoles, paced, fretted, prayed and chatted. Soon we were processing behind the choir and executing our square corners (badly). The service was marvellous - somehow we managed to mostly be in the right place at the right time and to stand, kneel and sit at the appropriate points. The moment at which Bishop John laid his hands on my head will stay with me for a long time. Despite our strict instructions about keeping the sharing of the peace brief, we managed to reach the corners of the Cathedral in our excitement. It was lovely to see so many of my friends and family and those who came to support me from Leckhampton.
Then we emerged into the heat for photos, official and otherwise, and to try to catch up with our supporters. I headed back to Leckhampton Village Hall where my parents had prepared lunch - a lovely, happy afternoon to follow the excitements and blessings of the morning.
So now I'm Assistant Curate of St Peter's. I'm the one who looks as though
she's still getting used to the collar and can't quite remember your name. I'm
still trying to be in the right place at the right time. I'm still learning
about how this deacon can best serve you. But if the next 3 years are as full of
warm welcomes as the last weeks have been, I can be sure that I'll enjoy them.
Anne