Grassroots Liturgist

I am going to tell you three little stories, all true. At my University Chaplaincy, there was a library that doubled as a dining room, particularly on formal occasions.   There was a lovely old Victorian dining table with brass castors on the legs.   One evening, as several of us were gathered for dinner, one of those casters gave way.   Some of us desperately held up the heavy table as our chaplain told the other students to get something to prop up the leg.   They ran back with a book – a copy of the Holy Bible!! “NOT THE BIBLE!” exclaimed the incredulous chaplain. Compare that to an interview with Salman Rushdie that I saw many years ago.   He described how in his family, all books – not just Scripture – were so revered that if one fell to the floor, they were taught to pick it up, kiss it, and put it back in its place. One final anecdote: some months ago, my father died.   As I trawled through his stuff, I came across the last bus pass of his mo...

Any parent worth their salt will teach their children good habits: brush your teeth; don’t eat sweets before meals; don’t stay up late, respect others; pray before you eat and sleep.   The list goes on.   Why do parents do this? Many of these are simply good for our health, such as regularly brushing our teeth and getting into a bedtime routine. Also, habits provide resilience; we may not always feel like brushing our teeth or going to bed on time, but they become part of our daily routine and so we do them regardless. But also, habits form our attitudes.   If you get into the habit of respecting others, you become a respectful person; if you get into the habit of praying, you become a prayerful person. There is one habit that we would do well to adopt as we say the Creed.   Have you noticed how, in small print, we are told that we should bow as we say, “and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man”?   Have you wondered why? ...