Advent in Great Britain
Isaiah 9:6
Dear Reader: Here is an accounting of my most recent trip to my adopted country of Great Britain. Again, the only thing I ask is for you to have an open heart and mind. This is actually Chapter five of my book. Chapter three is written, but because of the nature of the subject, most people will not read it till after my passing and chapter four is a work in progress, the events involved are still on going.
Back in November of 2006 after the Libera website was redesigned, an announcement was made that on Tuesday, the 12 of December 2006, Libera would be appearing in concert with Jose Carraras in the Royal Albert Hall. Upon reading this, I quickly spread the word and there was quite a bit of enthusiasm at first. It soon became apparent that at best, Libera might appear for maybe 10 to 15 minutes of the total time of the concert. One of my friends wrote me an email explaining the trip and all of the cost involved would not be worth it, however, another friend suggested he might be able to get very reasonably priced tickets for this event.
I had started checking airfares and found several very good deals offered. However, it got to the point where I couldn’t wait and because of the doubt of the availability of the tickets to the Jose Carraras concert and the fact nobody could help me out with accommodations this time, I had to make my own arrangements. I bought a plane ticket for a five-day weekend. This “deal” turned out to be a disaster because, the one air carrier failed to get me to Boston on time for a connection and it cost me 220.00 dollars to rebook my flight to London.
I finally arrived in LHR airport and after going through the Immigration and Customs service; I was on the tube to my host home in Forest Hill. My first instinct was to go to London Victoria and transfer to a surface line. I had missed a necessary change over on the tube due to bad directions and wound up taking the tube to Leicester Square where I had to do a number of changes to get to Forest Hill. In the future, I will follow my own gut feeling on how to get around London. I might point out here there were many frustrating moments. There was a time when the air around me would have been somewhat blue with many colorful metaphors coupled with a lot of anger. Instead, I now just take pause, say a small prayer and the door to my problem would be opened for me in a short period of time. Don’t ever try and tell me the power of prayer doesn’t work. I know for a fact, it does.
I finally arrived at my host home where the lady of the house very kindly made me some soup and toast. She also allowed me to install the Yahoo Messenger on her computer which this of course, made communication with friends easier and cheaper than using a telephone. After some rest, I walked about Forest Hill making mental notes of shortcuts for walking to the train station as well as places to eat. After I had a bite to eat, I went back to my host home, emailed my wife and friends and then retired for the night. As you might expect, I was exhausted from the travel and the change in time zones.
The next morning, I went to London Victoria to meet with my friend from Cobham, Kent. After some wait at the Starbucks in the South East Rail Terminal, my friend finally showed up and in a very untypical British manner greeted me with open arms and a very modest hug. I will admit that tears came to my eyes. It was great to see him again and I was very thankful we were given the chance to spend time together. After some tea, we went to visit the Imperial War Museum. The Imperial War Museum has many displays in it showing the machinery that was used in WW1 and WW2. The displays now have a degree of fascination to them, but in all honesty, it is a brutal reminder of just how horrible wars are; of the pain and suffering that we as people inflict on each other; usually over land [money] and power.
After some time there, we went to the Southwark Cathedral for a midday service of Lessons and Carols. This particular cathedral has 31 of these services during the Advent Season. I didn’t know it at the time, but this service was supposed to be a corporate “party”’ and it seems we gate crashed. However, in the true Christian spirit we were allowed to stay and participate. The service was very nice with excellent music provided by Price Waterhouse Coopers Choir. We then left the Cathedral and had some lunch and went back to the Cathedral so I could get some photographs.
After a bit of a rest, we then went to St. Bartholomew’s the great Church founded in 1123 as a Priory of Augustinian Canons. The church has had several uses over the centuries and it hasn’t been till 1923 that it has been in total use as a house of worship. The reason I wanted to see this particular church is it was used as a set for a performance of Libera in a Songs of Praise episode. The history of the church is very interesting and the visit not only gave me more insight as to how the current Great Britain was brought to being, but it also gave me a chance to make votive offerings and have a period of prayer as well.
We then went to a pub for a pint and wound up talking to a gentleman from Ireland who was a tad on the tipsy side. The people in the pub were a younger working class crowd and I found all them to be delightful to talk to. I consider it interesting that the only real difference in us is the name of the country we are from.
The hour started getting late and we had to return to London Victoria so my friend could get home. We had a farewell handshake he went his way and I, mine. I had wanted to attend mass at the Westminster cathedral that night but that was not to be. It seems that same night the feast to St. Lucia was being held and the attendance was by invitation only. So somewhat chagrined, I had a bite to eat and returned to Forest Hill for the night. I had stopped at an Internet Café in Streatham Hill on the way to Forest Hill to have my Camera downloaded and the pictures burned onto a CD. I found out about the “Café” during my Easter visit and I was satisfied their work was trustworthy.
The Next day, I first went to Norbury; I had wanted to pay my respects to Canon Washington, The Vicar of St. Philips. I was a bit put out in that the Washington’s were not home. This is a case of shame on me, I didn’t call first and I got exactly what I asked for, disappointment. I decided to stay around for a while to see if they were just out shopping and to pass some time, I went to the small park that is atop Pollards Hill. The clouds were lifting from the previous nights rain and the day was looking very promising for good weather. I took several photos over looking Croydon, Merton and Surrey as well as the Geo Marker. After a while, I decided to proceed with the sight seeing I had planned for the day.
I went to London Victoria, had a bite to eat and proceeded to the London Eye. I had asked for directions and was told to go to Buckingham Palace then walk through St James Park. From St. James Park, The Eye is visible, but what I didn’t know, it was actually quite a distance away. I was later to find out, I could have taken a much shorter walk or about a 10-minute ride on the tube. I’m glad I took the walk, it was a nice sunny day and fairly warm for the time of year. It seems the park is also a wild animal refuge and I was able to see many waterfowl, especially Pelicans who are unusually tame; Tame to the point you can actually touch them. There was also the usual assortment of squirrels. I had one very weird thing occur. Whilst I was walking, a flock of pigeons alit and started flying right for me. I thought for a minute they were going to fly right into me, but at the last second, they would veer off. To me, this was something right out of the late Alfred Hitchcock’s movie “The Birds”. I finally came to the Horse Guards Parade, took a few photos and proceeded to walk down the Victoria Embankment towards the Eye. By the time I got to the bridge to cross over the river to get to it, it was too late. I was supposed to meet a friend in London Victoria. I took a few photos of Big Ben and returned to London Victoria very disappointed I didn’t get a chance to ride on the London Eye. After about an hours wait with this person being a no show, I went to Westminster Cathedral for some sight seeing. Again I had a photo opportunity and was also able to make more votive offerings and have a fairly long period of prayer.
After my self-guided tour of Westminster Cathedral, I went back to London Victoria and whilst I was waiting for my train, I went over to a group of people who were singing Christmas Carols. I had asked a young man who they were and he told me they were the “One Nation Church” which meets in London Victoria. He also told me of how he had found the peace of the Lord through this church. I then told him of my return to the Lord that was influenced by the music of a group of South London schoolboys. He was mildly surprised and he said he never knew of the existence of Libera. He then told me he had witnessed a number of miracles in the past six weeks. My comment to him was “and the first miracle was you finding the peace that passes all understanding”. I’m not exactly sure why, but he almost immediately started to cry and thanked me for my words. I had only meant my words to be congratulatory, nothing more. After he regained his composure, we shook hands and departed company. It’s truly amazing how a few simple words of kindness can have more power than all of the war machinery I saw in the Imperial War Museum.
I finally boarded my train for Streatham Hill and when I got there; I had my camera taken care of. I then took a bus to Wetherspoons in Norbury for a nice supper of Fish and Chips. One thing I will say for the bus ride from Streatham Hill to Norbury, It was a real adventure. Talk about cowboy driving, I thought sure we were going to ram the bus in front of us more than once. But fortunately, that never came to pass. After supper, I returned to Forest Hill for the night.
Sunday Morning finally arrived. This was the day I was to meet my new friends for the first time face to face. I arrived at St. Philips and was surprised to see no choir. I was told they were doing a radio show interview with Aled Jones that morning but would be there for the Lessons and Carol’s service that evening. I went into the church and saw the one new friend sitting with another man whom I did not recognise. I knew the one man from photos we had sent each other. The other man turned out to be another American from Texas. Whilst I was waiting outside for the service to begin, a parishioner came and said to me “Hi Terry! Welcome back” this of course made me feel as if I belong there. Very heart warming, indeed.
The service started with a small choir made up of the older alumni of the boys choir. The hymns we sang from the Songs of praise Hymnal were as follows. 39-Tell out my soul, 30-Come thou long expected Jesus, 48-I cannot tell and 35- O come, O come Emmanuel. Sadly, I don’t have a record of what the choir sang that morning for an anthem, but rest assured, it was very well done.
After the service, we had the normal tea social where not only was I able to talk with my new friends, but was able to speak with people who I already know. It was great to see them as always and after a bit, it felt as though I had never left at Easter.
Towards the end of the tea, I gave out some Christmas gifts that I had brought with me. My friend from Hoddesdon regretted he had nothing for me. I told him not to worry, for he; the friend from Westbury as well as my friend from Cobham had already given me a gift that was priceless. They had been behind me 100% in the struggles that I had recently been through and the gift they had given me was their friendship and love. No one, In my opinion, could ever hope to have any greater gift from another person.
We went to Wetherspoons for lunch and had a very nice time getting to know each other and yes, this was a period of male bonding. After lunch, we proceeded to St Paul’s Cathedral for their evensong. We had hoped to hear their boys choir, however, this was not to be.
We arrived at St. Paul’s and I was awed by the magnificence of the building. This is a Christopher Wren designed church that was erected about 1660. The man who had been there before told us not to look up till after we were seated. After we were seated we looked up and I will say, three jaw dropped open a once when we saw the inside of the “Whispering Dome”. The reason the dome has been given this name is one can be in the gallery that is located in the dome and whisper. These words can be heard plain as day on the main floor. The acoustics are interesting in that the building has an 11 second reverberation time. It was all very nice and I hope someday to hear an evensong with the boy’s choir.
After the Evensong at St. Paul’s, we went back to Norbury for the Evensong at St. Philips. After we arrived, I had time to chat with members of the congregation and some of the parents I had met at Easter. It was good to see them, as I have said before, while I am in Great Britain, St. Philips is indeed my home church and I have been made to feel very welcome there.
The service started with Canon Washington welcoming all of the attendees. The service started with a soloist singing “Creator of the Starry Night”, a traditional song followed by all singing the hymn “Once in David’s Royal City”. Canon Washington then gave the formal introduction and Bidding Prayer where we also recited the Lords Prayer. The choir then sang “Angel Tidings” another traditional song and then the first lesson from Genesis 3 was read. The choir then sang “Dormi Jesu” by Rutter after which the second lesson was read from Genesis 22. Next was the “Shepherds Pipe Carol” again by Rutter. The congregation and choir then sang the hymn “O Little Town of Bethlehem”. Lesson Three was then read from Isaiah 9. The choir then did “Wolcum” by Britten and “O Holy Night” by Adam? The fourth lesson was again from Isaiah 9, followed with the choir singing “A Maiden most gentle” a traditional song by Carter. We then sang the hymn “Silent Night”. I might point out here, the congregation held back because we wanted to hear the boys sing it to the arraignment that was done for their new CD, “Angel Voices” and as you might expect, we were not disappointed with what we heard. The fifth lesson was read from Luke 1. The choir then did “And the Glory of the Lord” by G.F. Handel along with “Lully Lullah” by Leighton. Lesson six was read from Matthew 1 after which we sang the hymn “While Shepherds watched their Flock”. The seventh lesson was from Luke 2 and the choir then did “There shall be a Star” by Mendelssohn. The eighth lesson was read from Matthew 2 with the choir then singing “Mary’s Lullaby,” another piece by Rutter. The ninth lesson was read from John 1 with the final hymn being “O come All Ye Faithful” after which Canon Washington gave the Blessing. There was an Organ Voluntary afterwards with refreshments being served in the fellowship hall.
It was at his time I had a chance to speak with Robert and thank him for the wonderful music we were treated to that night and I was also fortunate to get some of the boys autographs on the insert for my copy of “Angel Voices” I also had a chance to chat more with my acquaintances there and have a word of prayer with a parishioner who is a cancer survivor like myself [she is in paradise now]. As the evening came to a close, I had the opportunity to pray with my friends individually before they left. Whilst I was outside chatting with one of my friends, one of the parents came to me and wished me a Merry Christmas and inquired if I would be around for Christmas Eve. I explained it would not be possible this year and his reply was “ That’s a shame, we would have loved to have had you here”.
I will admit I almost lost it at those words. All of a sudden, all of the hardships of an torn Meniscus in my left knee and the extra expense I endured for the cost of my flight became moot. Like I have said before, its what you get out of an expense that matters and what I had just been given was priceless. After the final farewells, my friend from Cobham took me to my room let in Forest Hill. Before I got out of his car, I had a period of Prayer with him. It is my sincere prayer, hope and wish that I would someday escort this very dear friend of mine to the Communion Rail at St. Philips.
Again, I consider it amazing, how one simple word could have so much impact on not only my life, but those around me as well. The best part is, a 12-year-old choir member who was just there for the music and no other reason sang it. To me, this is indeed the Holy Spirit at work.
As always, you are in my Prayers.
Yours in Christ,
Terry
Canon Washinton and his wife are now in paradise +
