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| 1961: Gloucester
Cathedral, Gloucester, England |
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Photo: Andy Dolman |
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Mystery Worshipper:
Reverend Mother.
The church:
Cathedral
Church of St Peter and the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Gloucester,
England.
Denomination:
Church of England, Diocese
of Gloucester.
The building:
An imposing 11th century Norman abbey with additions in a variety
of Gothic styles. There are massive pillars in the nave. Noteworthy
are the 14th century misericords in the quire, with a few 19th
century replacements. There is a canopied shrine of King Edward
II. Henry II is also buried here. The cathedral was used as
a location for filming the first, second and sixth Harry Potter
films as well as the 2008 Doctor Who Christmas special.
The church:
The cathedral welcomes 350,000 visitors each year. Their Education
Centre provides specialised tours for school parties. The Cathedral
Breakfast Club operates every Thursday morning in the winter
months, offering a hot breakfast to the homeless of the city.
The choir school provides musical training to young singers
from all over the country, and sponsors programmes at the local
schools. Each day of the year, the cathedral celebrates the
eucharist and offers both morning and evening prayer.
The neighbourhood:
Gloucester, founded in Roman times, is in southwest England
close to the Welsh border. The core street layout dates back
to the reign of Ethelfleda in late Saxon times. The city has
seen its share of notoriety over the years: In 1555, Queen Mary
ordered the execution by burning of John Hooper, bishop of Gloucester.
In 1991, the murder of a city council worker by a resident of
a bail hostel led to changes in the laws affecting those held
on bail. In 2003, police evacuated more than 100 homes as they
searched the James Street house of one Saajid Badat, who was
an accomplice of the notorious "Shoe Bomber" Richard
Reid, but had backed out of the plot. On the good side, in 1780
England's first Sunday school was founded in Gloucester. Beatrix
Potter, one of the best selling children’s writers of
all time and the author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit,
set her book The Tailor of Gloucester in a little house
leading to the cathedral close. The house can still be recognised
as the same building she described in her book. Neglected for
years, it has recently been refurbished and now operates as
a museum and souvenir shop.
The cast:
An elderly canon whose name was not given. Music was provided
by a visiting choir, the Open University Chapel Choir.
The date & time:
Saturday, 10 April 2010, 4.30pm.
What was the name of the service?
Choral Evensong.
How full was the building?
The quire was probably a third full – mostly, I would guess,
friends and family of the visiting choir.
Did anyone welcome you personally?
Yes. A verger approached us and asked, "Are you joining
us for evensong?" He directed us to the quire entrance
and told us which seats we might occupy.
Was your pew comfortable?
Yes. All seats in the quire had padded cushions and kneelers.
How would you describe the pre-service
atmosphere?
A quiet reflective atmosphere. We felt protected from the buzz
of tourists in the rest of the cathedral.
What were the exact opening words of the
service?
"We welcome you all to our cathedral in Gloucester for
our service of evensong."
What books did the congregation use during the
service?
An in-house service book that guided those unused to the service
step by step. For some, this might have been seen to teeter
on the edge of patronising.
What musical instruments were played?
Organ.
Photo: Andy Dolman
Did anything distract you?
The microphone wasn't switched on at one point, but that was
soon rectified. The wrong psalm was announced, but apologies
were made shortly after (to chuckles from the congregation).
Was the worship stiff-upper-lip, happy clappy, or
what?
Traditional choral evensong with a sleepy post-Easter evening
dust sprinkled over. The visiting choir seemed very devout but
were also rather elderly (read: slow). I suspect the usual cathedral
choir sounds rather different.
Which part of the service
was like being in heaven?
There was a very poignant moment when the officiant walked slowly
through the choir as they were singing the Nunc Dimittis - and
I felt as if I were seeing Simeon as his eyes beheld Christ
in the temple.
And which part was like
being in... er... the other place?
Generally the choir tended to sing very slowly. All versicles
and responses were taken very slowly indeed, and I wasn't sure
whether they would survive singing Vaughan William's "Let
All the World Rejoice and Sing." But they made it –
just! It was very interesting to see so many local youngsters
– at least 80, I would guess – outside the cathedral,
playing football and otherwise putting themselves at ease. They
obviously didn't feel unwelcome, but I wonder what the cathedral
community does to relate to them. Needless to say, none of them
ventured inside!
What happened when you
hung around after the service looking lost?
As is customary at this service, people tended to drift away
into the evening twilight. I didn't get the feeling there were
many regulars there. But there was plenty of evidence of Easter
celebrations in the floral decorations inside and out.
How would you describe the after-service
coffee?
There was none.
How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
5 – I would like to visit on a day when the resident choir
sings. Evensong rather depends on its singers.
Did the service make you feel glad to be a
Christian?
Yes. It gave me time and space to reflect on the Easter journey
and a quiet 40 minutes to pray without hurrying.
What one thing will you remember about all this in seven days' time?
The canon and his walk through the Nunc Dimittis. |
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| The Mystery Pilgrim |
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| One of our most seasoned reporters makes the Camino pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Read here. |
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