Placement at the St. Mary Church in Harmondsworth Village - Essay Example

Placement Report: St Mary’s Virgin Church, Harmondsworth Village Table of Contents C1. Context 3 C2. Content 4 A. Placement 4 B. Values, Mission - Evaluation 6 C. Exploration of Aspect of Work 7 D. Theological Reflection on Organization Work, Experience of that Work 9 E. Comparison and Contrast with Own Organization 10 C3. Conclusion/Challenges 11 1References 13 C1. Context This paper discusses my short placement at the St. Mary Church in Harmondsworth Village, proximal to Sipson, for eight hours or six Sundays beginning in January and ending in April of 2015. The objective was to able to immerse myself in the Church of England and get to know and experience firsthand various aspects of it, from its history to modes of church membership, to its mission plan and its liturgy or worship. This is fascinating for me because of the way the Church of England is different from the worship styles in my own church organization. It is important to note that from a historical perspective, the Church of England saw the Roman Catholic Pope as having dominion over it, until the 16h century Reformation, and it emerged from that a distinctly separate church with its own identity firmly established from the time of Elizabeth I onwards. As such it has retained many aspects of its creed, structures, rituals and ministry patterns from medieval times that share many characteristics in common with the modern Catholic church, while at the same time incorporating aspects of theology that have distinctly Protestant in their inspiration and in their insights. The grand arch of its practices of liturgy too has come to be largely Protestant (BBC 2014; Archbishops’ Council 2015). As the official Church of England, it has direct links with the monarchy, and espouses that the English monarch is the top governor of the church, and that in effect there is a direct link between the English state and the Church of England (The Official Household 2008). As such too, due to its break with the Catholic Church in the 16h century and its becoming a part of the global Anglican communion, there have come to be defining aspects of the Church of England that are tied to its present deep Anglican dimensions, including the centrality of the Bible as constituting the center of all faith and thought in Christianity; the adherence to Book of Common Prayers in terms of following a prescribed lifestyle and manners of worship; the establishment of the Holy Communion and Baptism as Jesus-ordained sacraments; a strict church hierarchical order that has not deviated from times past. There is a prescribed set of practices tied to the conduct of a service in the Church of England, but there is great freedom among the individual parishes with regard to various aspects of holding services, from frequency, of services and Eucharistic services in particular, to the structuring of various aspects of the services themselves- the hymns, readings, sermons, prayers, and the readings. This paper asserts that these distinctly Protestant and Anglican aspects of the Church of England stand out to differentiate and give life and vibrancy to the services, the liturgy, and the mission plan of St. Mary the Virgin Church in Harmondsworth Village (BBC 2014; Archbishops’ Council 2015). C2. Content A. Placement Description I was very blessed to get the chance to have that short placement at the St. Mary the Virgin Church at Harmondsworth Village. This is near Sipson, as discussed above. The placement was for eight hours in total, divided into six Sundays all the way to April from January of 2015. During my stint there, I was very lucky to have been welcomed and supervised by Rev. Con. Amatu Onundu Christian, and his kindness allowed me to gain access to the information that I needed for my placement. The church itself is fascinating on so many levels. On one level, the worship style in the church is different from what I am used to. As I deepened my participation in the different rituals of the church, such as leading the prayers on Ash Wednesday, participating in the Palm Sunday procession, and in the services for Holy Communion, I was able to gain first-hand knowledge of the nature of those rituals and their visual and symbolic significance and impact. So too, as my placement deepened, did my questions grow relating to the mission and action plan of the church. This latter reality is an important aspect of my objective for the placement. Alongside this, I wanted to examine and understand various other aspects of the Church of England in general, including the historical setting of the church, as well as its ways of liturgy or worship, of which I was able to witness and participate during my stint there. Historically, the church is somewhat ancient and dates back to 1067-1069. As a listed structure, it enjoys legal protection, and in light of recent activities there tied to the expanding Heathrow, the church itself is expected to survive any such planned changes to the neighborhood landscape. Many aspects of the structures are very old and date back to the 16th and 17 centuries and even earlier. The evangelical tradition for church membership differentiates this from other parish churches, which are by comparison adherents of the Anglican-Catholic tradition. The vicar presides over funeral rites, as well as baptisms and marriages. There are two services, one at 9am said in traditional English, with Holy Communion, and one at 11am, said in modern English. The different parts of worship are as follows: welcome; commandments summary; general confession; absolution; collections; reading from the Old Testament; psalms; hymns; reading from the gospels; sermon; the intercession; and finally the Holy Communion. As I said the placement is fascinating on many levels, and the structural aspects, the mission plan, the worship and liturgical services and even its doctrinal aspects are all very intriguing and fascinating in their own ways, partly too due to the way they are different from what I am used to in my own organization (Inel 2008; Institute of Historical Research 2014). B. Values, Mission - Evaluation The embodiment of the church values for the Church of England rests on several declarations and professions, one of them being the so-called Declaration of Assent, which in essence ties the member of the Church of England to canonical rituals and documents, with explicit mention of the Church of England and of its witnessing of the historical formularies that are contained in the Holy Bible, on which the faith of the church rests primarily. This reliance on the Bible as the primary bedrock of the church is the foundational value of the church, in other words, and the adherence to canonical practices, rituals, sacraments and prayers, as well as the way they are administered, reflects the formal values that govern the way the church exists and functions in relation to the state and to its members. It is a formal faith in other words, Anglican in its spirit, and acknowledges its inherent unity with the so-called Anglican communion. The foundational texts of the Church of England too are embodiments of the values of the church, and reflect its mission to continually affirm those values, as well as the principles that have been elucidated in the 17th century and the century prior to that. Those foundational values are those that are embodied in the Thirty Nine Articles; the Ordinal, which contains the prescribed services necessary for the ordination of priests, bishops and members of the deaconate; and the so-called Book of Common Prayer (Archbishops’ Council 2015 (b); Bicknell 2008). In terms of mission, the Church of England defines its own as extending the mission work of Jesus Christ in all aspects of human life in social settings, and that primarily refers to English society, to which it is intrinsically bound with the monarchy (Archbishops’ Council 2015 (c); Cray 2009, p. 42).. As well, part of its mission includes engagement with the rest of the world and with other religious movements, both new and old, and here the central tenet is that the Church of England generally stands firm in its belief of the Church being on a mission that originates from God, and emanates from the Church of England being a Christian church, following the Christian mission. As such, the church says it sees its mission in terms of transformative language, individuals and whole countries, into the vision of the Church of England of Jesus’ vision for the world (Archbishops’ Council 2015 (c); Archbishops’ Council 2015 (d)). Evaluating the church mission and values in the context of St. Mary’s rituals, mission plan, liturgy and services, one can see that there are various aspects of the mission relating to its Anglican emphasis on ritual and on the following the canonical ways of undertaking all aspects of church activities that resonate strongly with the formal aspects of worship and the emphasis on the Bible and on the canons of the Church are manifestations of this (Hull 2006; Moorman 1980). C. Exploration of Aspect of Work There is vibrancy in the way the mission of the Church of England, which is a vital aspect of its work, is being debated upon, with critical reflections on the failure of the church for instance, to properly recast its mission of evangelization in the modern world being a kind of failure tied to inertia, or being too attached to the past. There are criticisms about how the present church, in the manner even of the Catholic church, basically going through the motions of the blind pursuit of the expansion in church numbers, without a proper regard for the Christian implications of the growth in churches, and how the churches ought to be spending its energies (Hull 2006, p. 36). On the other hand, looking at the mission of the Church from the perspective of an insider, within the Church of England itself, it is clear on the other hand that its one mission of continuing the work of Jesus Christ, consistent with its canonical rituals, theologies and doctrines, have not changed (Archbishops’ Council 2015 (b); Archbishops’ Council 2015). On the surface such lively debate and the critical dissent from some of its members in major publications no less seem to indicate that there are tense divisions within the Church of England. On the other hand, going by the spirit of the Reformation on which the Church of England was able to establish its identity apart from the Roman Catholic Church, it is not difficult to see too that such dissent and such fierce debate are in the very nature of Protestant values. As in other churches, it seems, there is a healthy tension when it comes to discussing the mission of the church, one force pulling the church towards orthodoxy, doctrine, and canonical values, doctrines and services, and a contrary force pushing for reforms, for renewal, and for adapting to the changing contexts and times in which the Church of England finds itself. There are aspects of the mission too, that relate to the international dimensions of the mission of the Church of England, and though this has little do to with the mission of the church as it pertains to my designated church in Harmondsworth Village, it is worth noting that the differences in worship services that are in my placement are surface differences, and as an Anglican church and as a member of a Church of England that puts heavy emphasis on canon and adherence to canonical practices, it makes sense too that aspects of the Church relating to local and international missions must have some foundational similarities as well (Walker 1847; Welch 2008). D. Theological Reflection on Organization Work, Experience of that Work The mission aspect of the work of the Church ultimately cannot be delinked from the foundational values of the Church of England, and those values are, in the words of the Church, truly catholic, Christian, Anglican, and Protestant. That said, the underlying principles of the faith stress adherence to canon, to prescribed ways of rendering services, to formal structures, to the ultimate authority of the Bible, to extending the work of Jesus Christ, and to the observance of the principles that have been evolved out of the Anglican tradition within the Church, as distinct from its Catholic heritage prior to the Reformation. Its alignment with the Anglican mission as an intrinsic aspect of its own mission speaks volumes too of the way the Church of England sees its own mission as being distinct, and is marked by a break with the past true, but also by its own medieval Catholic and Christian heritage. As well., its direct link with the English monarchy and the formal structures of political and social power in England also impact and shape its mission and the way it sees its role in English society and the rest of the world. In my own experience of the mission work, I saw firsthand how despite the outward differences in worship, at its heart the church of St. Mary at Harmondsworth is orthodox in its adherence to the articles of faith, the doctrines, and the ritual and services prescriptions of the Church of England. In this way the mission of this church is revealed partly in terms of the observance of the prescriptions and the orthodox observance of its canons, even as other aspects of its mission as reflected in other parishes and other Anglican churches are not so evident in my chosen placement. Scripturally it is easy to find Biblical foundations for the mission of the Church of England relating to continuing the work of Jesus Christ, and those relate in part to the prescriptions in Matthew to spread the good news to the world. In the context of Church values and its adherence to its doctrines and principles, one can say that those doctrines and principles are the distilled wisdom of the Anglican tradition and the unique tradition that grew out of the Church of England, and those are marshaled in support of the vital work of spreading the message of salvation of Jesus Christ. Scripturally, therefore one finds support for the church mission in such passages relating to this as Matthew 28:19 and Matthew 24:14 (Bible Gateway 2015; Bible Gateway 2015(b); Archbishops’ Council 2015). E. Comparison and Contrast with Own Organization As discussed above, part of the thrill of this placement is in first hand witnessing of the execution of a part of its established mission plan, implied in its adherence to the canons of the Church of England and in its adherence to prescriptions relating to theology, to following the canons and principles of the church, and to preserving the formal sanctity of the services in accordance too with doctrine. Outwardly too, there are many differences in liturgy and in the way the services are conducted, but in the final analysis those differences are within the conventions or the liberties and variations that are to be found within the Anglican fold anyway, and are not in any way to be considered as signs that my church of placement is deviating from the Church of England canon. In other words, the liberties that are to be found in the rendering of the services and rituals are not to be confused in the final analysis with unorthodoxy. Looking at my own organization, I can see that indeed, there are major differences too in some aspects of liturgy, and the differences are refreshing in the way that they allow me to appreciate aspects of worship in my own organization that I have lone taken for granted because of a lifetime of repetition and familiarity. The services and ways of worship at my church of placement at St. Mary therefore provide a refreshing change from what I am used to, and gives me a first-hand glimpse of the kind of variations and diversity in rituals and in the liberal interpretations of aspects of worship that can occur within the different parishes. All these variations on the other hand, are cosmetic in the final analysis, and the outward signs of diversity mask a hidden orthodoxy and adherence to formal structures, to the distilled wisdom in the canonical doctrines, and especially in the observance of the Bible as the ultimate bedrock of the faith. Moreover, I can see that within my own organization too, an outsider coming from St. Mary’ Church would see various differences that may be refreshing or confusing, but this is to be expected. It is interesting to get to experience the diversity in the ways that other parishes within the Anglican fold conduct various services and aspects of worship, as well as the way they pursue aspects of their mission work (Archbishops’ Council 2015). C3. Conclusion/Challenges The placement was fun and a great learning experience on many levels, as I keep repeating throughout the paper. On one level it made me look at my own organization and aspects of our worship and mission that I have come to take for granted because of a lifetime of exposure and the lack of a contrary perspective with which to view them. This placement at the St. Mary the Virgin Church in Harmondsworth Village provided that contrasting perspective, and on this level alone I have already learned many things. This placement gave me the lens with which to understand what are superficial differences and what are non-negotiable, bedrock aspects of the Church of New England’s doctrines, principles, rituals and theology. I learned that within the Anglican fold there is a deep wisdom deposited in the canonical principles and doctrines, and in the foundational texts in the Book of Common Prayers, the Declaration of Assent, the Ordinal, and the 39 Articles. There is a deep orthodoxy here that hides underneath the surface differences in the ordering of aspects of worship and of rituals, and in the wide variety of ways by which the different parishes and Anglican churches observe minor aspects of those. Underneath the surface differences one can see great consistency. In terms of usefulness, the placement is a very great learning opportunity for me, and a great eye-opener about these and other aspects of my Christian faith. The main take I want to impart to my own organization are these great orthodoxies that we take for granted because they have always been there, hiding in plain sight, and made manifest here in the contrasting and in the comparison of our own organization with my church of placement. Finally, this paper is able to demonstrate that looking at the foundational articles, doctrines, and values of the Church of England, those Anglican and Protestant values stand out as clearly defining and differentiating the church from what it was prior to the Reformation (BBC 2014; Archbishops’ Council 2015). 1 References Archbishops’ Council (2015). About the Church of England. The Church of England. [online]. Available at: https://www.churchofengland.org/about-us/history.aspx [accessed 4/25/2015]. Archbishops’ Council (2015 (b)). Being an Anglican. The Church of England. [online]. Available at: https://www.churchofengland.org/our-faith/being-an-anglican.aspx [accessed 4/25/2015]. Archbishops’ Council (2015 (c)). Mission. The Church of England. [online]. Available at: https://www.churchofengland.org/our-faith/mission.aspx [accessed 4/25/2015]. Archbishops’ Council (2015 (d)). Mission and Evangelism. The Church of England. [online]. Available at: https://www.churchofengland.org/our-faith/mission/missionevangelism.aspx [accessed 4/25/2015]. BBC (2014). Church of England. BBC .co.uk. [online]. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/cofe/cofe_1.shtml [accessed 4/25/2015]. Bible Gateway (2015). Matthew 28:19. BibleGateway.com. [online]. Available at: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+28%3A19&version=ESV [accessed 4/25/2015]. Bible Gateway (2015 (b)). Matthew 24:14. BibleGateway.com. [online]. Available at: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+24%3A14&version=ESV [accessed 4/25/2015]. Bicknell, E. J. (2008). A Theological Introduction to the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England, Third Edition. Wipf and Stock Publishers Cray, G. (2009). Mission-shaped Church: Church Planting and Fresh Expressions of Church in a Changing Context. Church Publishing House. Hull, J. (2006). Mission-shaped Church: A Theological Response. Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd Inel (2008). St. Mary the Virgin Church service highlights Heathrow concerns. Inel Blog. [online]. Available at: https://inel.wordpress.com/2008/05/25/st-mary-the-virgin-church-service-highlights-heathrow-concerns/ [accessed 4/25/2015]. Institute of Historical Research (2014). Harmondsworth: Church. British History Online. [online]. Available at: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/middx/vol4/pp17-19 [accessed 4/25/2015]. Moorman, J. (1980). History of the Church of England: Third Edition. Church Publishing Inc. Walker, S. (1847). The Church of England Mission in Sierra Leone: Including an Introductory Account of that Colony, and a Comprehensive Sketch of the Niger Expedition in the Year 1841. Seeley, Burnside and Seeley. Welch, P. (2008). Church and Settler in Colonial Zimbabwe: A Study in the History of the Anglican Diocese of Mashonaland/Southern Rhodesia, 1890-1925. BRILL. The Royal Household. (2008). Queen and the Church of England. The Official Website of the British Monarchy. [online]. Available at: http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/QueenandChurch/QueenandtheChurchofEngland.aspx [accessed 4/25/2015]. Read More