laudable Practice

On a recent Sunday without duty, I attended Morning Prayer in a nearby parish. It was a fine example of low church Anglicanism: unfussy Morning Prayer Two (1662 structure, contemporary language), metrical canticles (the parish does not have a choral tradition), and a very good sermon from a lay reader, quoting Augustine and George Herbert.  What particularly captured my thoughts and feelings regarding the service was hymn 343 from the Church of Ireland's Church Hymnal , sung after the sermon: ' We love the place, O God '. As we were singing the hymn, I reflected on how it wonderfully captured an Old High piety that was at home in this low church context (remember, Old High can be the New Low ): Prayer Book, surplice and tippet, a relatively plain church building (stained glass, but no candles, no icons, no statues), said service with hymns, a solid expository sermon.  As the hymn gathers up in thanksgiving the various ministrations experienced in the parish church - prayers...

On this Thanksgiving Day in Canada, laudable Practice shares extracts from A Journal of Visitation in Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and along the Eastern Shore of New Brunswick (1843) by Bishop John Inglis (son of Charles). The Journal  provides a quite wonderful insight into how Anglicanism's Reformed Catholic order took root and was nurtured in the Maritimes by the missionary activity of bishops, clergy, and laity. On this Thanksgiving Day, it exemplifies why - not least in light of the profound challenges faced by the Anglican Church of Canada - there is reason to be profoundly thankful for (rather than dismiss, obscure, or forget) the heritage of Canadian Anglicanism. Sunday, May 21. Storm and rain, through which we drove (over a wretched road, with many long and steep hills, and several broken bridges), to the church at Douglas (15 miles). To our surprise the building was well filled by about two hundred persons. The church (St. Peter's) and its burial ground were consecrate...