Incense and all that Jazz...

Well tonight, I went to my first ever High Anglican Mass, at St.Martins in Roath. Its a very High Anglican Church, and apparently is more Catholic than most Catholic Churches. Exciting eh?! I've been to Mass before...but this was very very different. It was the Annunciation of the Lord...exactly 9 months before the birth of Jesus...so apparently its the day that God made Mary pregnant. (Obviously not literally...I know that, just can't think of another way to say it.)

For a start, I had never thought about the day Jesus was placed in Mary's womb, and never before have I been in anything that was so centred on Mary. It was very surreal. As soon as I walked in I thought it was a little strange. I kind of liked the incense..and the stillness. It felt quite reverent, and in that way I liked it. One of the things I find off-putting at Army, is that sometimes I think we chat too much before the meeting starts, and don't get into a place of stillness and peace before beginning certain acts of worship. It's not always possible, but sometimes I think it would be an amazing way to start worship.

In some ways, a lot of the Mass seemed quite robotic. People repeating things because thats the "done thing". But in other ways, it was nice. The fact that their Doctrine is so well-known by the congregation was lovely, and seeing people kneel in prayer was pretty cool.

I'm not quite sure how I feel about the idea of Communion. In some senses, tonight affirmed for me that I don't think its completely necessary. It kinda seemed surplus to requirements if that makes sense? As a physical act, its not something I feel we need to do. But the representation of what its supposed to mean spiritually is something we need to be doing regularly. In some ways every meal we eat should be representative of the Eucharist...that's something that I don't feel we really have in the forefront of our minds when we eat.
I think there's such a huge danger in placing too much emphasis on the actual ritual act. Symbols and Rituals that are repeated too repetitively CAN become empty.

It's not that taking Communion is wrong or un-christian, thats definitely not what i'm saying at all. It can be a deeply spiritual experience, that can enrich a person's relationship with God when used with the right mindset.

On the whole I did enjoy it. It was strange, and probably the most Catholic Aglican Church i've ever been in. But mainly the reason I enjoyed it was because it affirmed that I don't need to partake in certain rituals. I don't feel inspired to take communion, suddenly since going to Mass. And, no Gemma I haven't converted :)
But the reverence of the whole thing was inspiring, and the music was pretty lush. I think that the only way to really know what I think, is to try it a few times, so i'll let you know on Sunday...;) I'm hoping my Army hoody will recover from all the incense...if not Jeannie will kill me on Sunday!