Vicar interferes with sermon again

Well, my latest sermon, based on “Velvet Elvis” by Rob Bell, seems to have gone down well. This despite the Vicar doing his usual act of interfering and asking me to do things differently form what I had planned. Fortunately I am used to him doing this now, and almost expect it. And to be fair, it is usually an improvement. But it does rile me that he does not implement his recommendations in his own sermons.

My son was on the PA system that night, and resisted all urges to turn me off.

My sermon was primarily about spiritual maturity, not getting dogmatic about things but being able to stretch ones faith and work with people who disagree rather than building exclusive doctrinal walls. Since it was a communion service, I was going to ask people as a practical exercise to approach the table with either a more or a less sacramental idea than they normally would. Mr Vicar extended this, by making me ask people to get up form their chairs and form groups – i.e. transubstantiation in that corner, consubstantiation over there, symbolic remembrance over here, etc. The idea was that people would then discuss these ideas, and possibly move to another group. Of course the groups comprised like-minded people, so it wasn’t 100% successful. But it made people think, and that was the main thing.

The disturbing thing is that our Vicar didn’t really seem to be aware of the range of opinion, and found this line of teaching to be quite informative. Since the Eucharist is central to Christian worship, I would like to think that an ordained minister in the Church of England has been fully trained in the theology around it.

Tight Scehdule III

OK, so I turn up for the 9:30 service at 8:00, since the Vicar has already asked me to be there early.

When I get there, he is having a panic becaue he ahs forgotten that next week there will be no ordained ministers, so they have to do communion this week. (This is one of the shortcomings of the Anglican Church - depriving the laity of its right to preside at communion.) So that measn that they don't need me to lead the service after all. But as a token, they ask me to do the prayers. Oh, and since the people that normally assist with the distribution won't be there owiong to the change, can I do it? Oh, and since nobody has brought any bread (we don't do those wafer things), can I pop out and buy some rolls?

So it seems that I was sent by God to help out in a moment of crisis.

However, one would like to think that these things can be organised a bit better.

Then in the evening service, it is again communion as planned. This time, none of the distibutors on the rota have turned up, and the new warden (whose duty it is to chase them up) hasn't done so. So at the critical moment when they are supposed to go to the front, no one does. and so, I have to step in to the breach once more.

One would like to think that these things can be organised a bit better. But when I am perfect, I can critisise.

At least it wasn't a U2charist!!