GadgetVicar

The Pandemic & The Eucharist

No, it's not the title of my forthcoming apocalyptic blockbuster book! Having a swine flu advisor in the family and having received some advice from the powers-that-be on taking communion in the face of the pandemic, it seems we will have to consider how we receive the sacrament. Of course, it only arises if members of the congregation are infected, so at this stage there is no need to panic. It's good to think these things through carefully, without resorting to knee-jerk reactions.

The options are:

Continue as normal with the common cup, but the celebrant uses some alcohol-based handwash.

Take by intinction (dunk the bread in th wine, for those who don't know). This can cause more problems because of the risk of fingers ending up in the common cup.

Receive in one kind (the bread), with the celebrant receiving both the bread and the wine on behalf of the congregation.

A fourth option suggested to me over coffee this afternoon is to dispense with the common cup altogether, and use "those wee cups the Baptists use". I suspect there will be not a few among the flock who will prefer this method.

Here's another controversial suggestion: not having communion for a wee while. That way, at least everyone will have the same complaint: not partaking rather than worrying about the method we use. I don't think the Lord will mind, and it might just make us seek Him that bit more?

What Would You Do If You Were Trapped In Church?

Some non-St Silas' users of our church building allowed a young drunken man of our acquaintance to be locked in on Saturday night. Cue the rectory telephone ringing at 11.30pm. A passerby had heard the man's cries when he awoke in a darkened church. I rushed down to release him from his captivity. He'd smashed a window to call out his predicament to the world.

What I hadn't realised until the next morning was the greater damage he'd caused. For instance, he'd sliced through a lead with a knife. The musicians told me of a strange substance that they discovered on the lectern and microphones. There were also pictures daubed on the walls of the loos, with strange black specks in them. I then discovered an open box of Weedol in the kitchen. In his anger at being incarcerated in the church, he had decided to wreak vengeance by poisoning the singers!

I look forward to his next visit.........

In Prison

Check out Annedroid, a prison chaplain who has some helpful reminders of how important ministry in prisons can really be. I discovered her blog through Feedjit in the bottom left corner of this page, and she kindly links here, so I'll add her to the blogroll. I knew it would be a helpful widget.

My experience of prisons has largely been through visiting Saughton in Edinburgh and Barlinnie in Glasgow.  The chaplains in Barlinnie once offered me a job there, feeling I'd fit in well. I think this was meant as a compliment. 

Visiting jail is a tough experience for your average person. Getting in can be just as hard as getting out. Can you imagine how hard it is for families visiting loved ones month after month? They need a lot of love and support too.

It's something more churches could do better. Even writing letters can be helpful, as I found recently when I wrote to one prisoner on remand. Experience tells me that people in that situation handle it in one of two ways: either they keep their heads down and don't want to talk with or even see anyone, or they want human contact as much as possible. In this case, the person wants to wait and see the outcome of the case. But contact has been made, and should it be necessary, will continue.

Praying tonight for our prisons and their inmates, as well as for their staff. 

It's A Crime

GadgetVicar Boy is sixteen years old tomorrow. To celebrate this event last night, someone had the nice idea that they would attempt to rob him and his pals. In the process, he was assaulted, and has several shining facial bruises as evidence. I'm sure he'll be fine. He seems to have bounced back, but is still a little shocked.

The police who came were very helpful, but it seems unlikely that the perpetrators will be caught.

What's most disturbing is that this happened in daylight, at a busy junction, in the pleasant suburb that is Jordanhill. Someone stopped to offer help and information, which was brave and good. But it's the second time in a week that I've felt the icy tendrils of crime reaching out to affect those around me, and it makes me angry.