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| 2087: St Paul's,
Grangetown, Cardiff, Wales |
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Mystery Worshipper: Hermione.
The church:
St
Paul's, Grangetown, Cardiff, Wales.
Denomination:
The
Church in Wales, Diocese
of Llandaff.
The building:
The church building is famous for being used in the filming
of the Father's
Day episode of the new Doctor Who. However, it
is up for sale and we worshipped in the hall, a rather unimpressive
building to the side of the church. Mention was made of heating
problems being sorted by Christmas.
The church:
There is a church school nearby and a Cylch Meithrin (a nursery
for Welsh education) that meets each morning in the church
hall.
The neighbourhood:
Grangetown is a suburb south of Cardiff. Not far from the
church is the old grange. It's a really old building in the
midst of much more recent ones.
The cast:
The Revd Canon Graham Francis, parish priest. The names of
readers and intercessors were in the notice sheet, but I'm
sure at least one was incorrect, as Nigel is not usually a
woman's name!
The date & time:
Third Sunday of Advent, 12 December 2010, 10.00am.
What was the name of
the service?
Sung Eucharist and Sunday School followed by Coffee.
How full was the building?
About half full. I counted about 40 in the congregation. Then
three adults and about ten children emerged from Sunday school
at the end, which was more than had gone out at the start.
Did anyone welcome you
personally?
Yes. I came in through the gate opposite the west end of the
church and was slightly thrown by the fact that the church
doors were shut. I saw one person entering the hall and more
coming up the side street. I slowed down so that they got
ahead of me and they called out that they were in the hall
and to come on in. I nearly walked past the books, but headed
back and was given them with a smile. The priest emerged a
bit later and said hello.
Was your pew comfortable?
It was a fairly basic folding chair, but it wasn't exceptionally
uncomfortable.
How would you describe
the pre-service atmosphere?
There was a certain amount of bustle at the front, sorting
things out and some level of greeting amongst the regulars,
but I was able to prepare myself as I like to by glancing
through the liturgy. I failed to spot the pieces of paper
with the hymn numbers so I couldn't check out what we'd be
singing.
What were the exact
opening words of the service?
"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit."
What books did the congregation
use during the service?
Locally based liturgy booklet for Advent (with a red cover)
based on the Church in Wales 2004 book Mission Praise.
The words for the readings and the collect were on the notice
sheet if you wished to follow them.
What musical instruments
were played?
Some form of electronic organ.
Did anything distract
you?
I was wondering why one of the servers hadn't been persuaded
to remove his blue hoodie before putting on his cassock alb,
or at least to hide the hood with the hood of the alb!
Was the worship stiff-upper-lip,
happy clappy, or what?
Slightly ragged Anglo-Catholic. People knew what they were
doing and did it, but presentation could have been sharper.
There was a robed choir of eight women, one of whom sang the
responsorial psalm. They came in and sat down before the service.
Although it was Gaudete Sunday, the priest's vestments were
not the traditional pink. A teenaged server looked rather
bored. There was a gospel procession to the lectern and that
was where the sermon was delivered. This always strikes me
as a bit odd, but it's modern Roman. Singing was OK, but not
particularly loud and I was frustrated by having no voice
due to a cold.
Exactly how long was
the sermon?
11 minutes.
On a scale of 1-10,
how good was the preacher?
6 – Canon Francis was conversational and I don't think
he had a written script. That said, he spent several minutes
talking about the bishop's Advent letter and asking if the
congregation wanted to hear it (they apparently didn't) –
whereupon he mentioned a story he had in his pocket.
In a nutshell, what
was the sermon about?
The story was about a priest
in civvies chatting to people in a pub. When they asked him
what he did for a living, his answer was "Guess."
After several wild guesses, he admitted to being a priest.
One of the pubgoers then said, "You represent what I
hate most." There followed a few thoughts about vocation,
but I really don't think it went anywhere.
Which part of the service
was like being in heaven?
Possibly rehearsing "Creator of the Stars of Night"
after communion and before the blessing. They were having
their Advent liturgy that night and the organist wanted to
make sure it was sung well. It's one of my favourites and
getting to sing it at a sensible speed was good, although
we only did the first and the last verse.
And which part was like
being in... er... the other place?
Probably the awkward feeling over the bishop's letter. I think
that it should have been read aloud as the bishop had requested.
We are an Episcopal church, after all. But I didn't feel comfortable
as a visitor to say anything, especially because of the way
the question was asked.
What happened when you hung
around after the service looking lost?
When I stood up I got drawn into conversation with the people
behind, a family of regulars and her mum who was visiting
from West Wales. The husband returned with coffee and invited
me through to the back room where the coffee was (which wasn't
obvious from any other source). I chatted to him and the women
serving the coffee about various things, including the Jesse
tree that the children had decorated in Sunday school
and the acting project I was involved in which had caused
me to visit that church rather than my usual church.
How would you describe
the after-service coffee?
There were proper mugs (stacking ones from IKEA) but the coffee
was a common commercial brand that I certainly wouldn't buy.
It didn't even taste nice, and on the ethical scale scores
very low.
How would you feel about
making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 =
terminal)?
5 – It's convenient, but even though I was welcomed,
I have friends who had a more unwelcoming experience in the
past, and that has me slightly worried.
Did the service make
you feel glad to be a Christian?
On the whole, yes, but I was disappointed in the non-adherence
to tradition. They did, however, light the pink candle on
the Advent wreath at the end.
What one thing will
you remember about all this in seven days' time?
The discussion about the Jesse tree. |
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| The Mystery Pilgrim |
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| One of our most seasoned reporters makes the Camino pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Read here. |
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