The Pilot, September 1994 – Part 3
A Little Faith
By Tony Keogh
CLOCAMORRAN, set where the American Atlantic meets the European continent, is a small village on the west coast of Ireland, lost to the whole world and to any AA map. It is a place where nothing happens and everything happens; the squat grey church leaning into the wind had seen it all; she sat like a cosy mother with her children of past generations gathered around her skirts. It was to her that the villagers came for all the rites of passage — to baptise the babies, to marry the young people and to bury those whose time had come, whatever their ages.
Father Donal, it seemed, had been there in the parish as long as the church had been standing. The highlight of his week was the Saturday night confessions and he lived in hope of hearing something new through the grid of the confessional. For the most part, it was the same dull old sins which he listened to "ad nauseum."
A few years ago, his Saturdays had been brightened by Mona Kelway, a robust widow lady in her sixties. She had acquired a parrot of some indescribable age and dubious ancestry. After confessing her own pedantic misdemeanours, she then spent twice as long confessing the parrot's sins. It transpired that the bird could curse and blaspheme in four different languages, but after about a year, even this novelty began to pall.
However, Father Donal also had a star within his congregation; his name was Daniel. Father Donal often wondered whether Daniel came to confess his sins or to brag about them. In his more mercenary moments, he wished that he was a literary agent rather than a priest; such were the adventures of Daniel. On one occasion, the verger was startled to hear, coming from the priest's box, "How many times?" There were times when Father Donal had to stop himself from breaking into gales of helpless laughter. However, every time he would pull himself together and play the strict and stern pastor. "Daniel, you must try harder," declared Father Donal. "I know, Father, but it is so hard, to try harder," acknowledged Daniel. "Have faith, my boy, have faith." Every week, the same conversation took place and every week, Daniel would turn up to delight the old priest with fresh tales to tell.
It was a cold wet west-of-Ireland morning as Father Donal was pushing his bicycle out of the village when he recognised Daniel's battered old Land Rover. The bonnet was up and Daniel looked like his biblical namesake with his head in the lion's mouth. Daniel did not hear Father's approach and the language grew louder and more purple as he failed to get the vehicle to burst into life. "Daniel, Daniel, such language," said Father. "Sorry, Father," said Daniel, "but I have tried everything to get this beast to go." "Have you tried a little prayer, my boy?" inquired Father. Daniel looked at him as if he had gone dolally tip tap, the wind and the whisky had finally affected Father Donal's brain. So to humour him, he piously knelt by his conveyance and uttered a prayer, kicked the tyre and turned the ignition key. The Land Rover shuddered twice and roared into life.
As Daniel shot off out the village, Father Donal smiled at the retreating vehicle and muttered, "Well, I'll be jiggered, it worked!"
Letters to the Editor
Got any gripes? Here's the place to air them. Comments welcome on anything that irritates you from the Press, national and local (including this magazine!), visual and audio media and so on. Just write to the Editor, Roger Hibbeard — and let off steam
NOT ALL BAD APPLES
Dear Editor,
I despaired when I read the Jersey Evening Post's headline "Vice-Dean attacks uncaring bosses" — the rhetoric of the bad old days of industrial relations. As has been said elsewhere, no doubt there is the odd bad apple in the employers' barrel; and no doubt Michael Halliwell has seen evidence of the kind of abuses he cites. However, to extrapolate from the particular to the general does no more than to draw dangerous, divisive and totally unsupportable conclusions. Let him look around his congregation: does it contain employers? Are they the kind of employer he castigates?
The infrastructure of civilised society cannot exist without enterprise. The Island's revenues are the fruits of enter-prise: there is no other source. Entrepreneurs are the engine of our economy, and the Vice-Dean would serve our community better if he expressed admiration and support for them. "Employers" are not a group of overpaid, uncaring Gradgrinds. Between 85 and 90 per cent of businesses in Jersey employ fewer than ten people, and in such companies the employer is distinguished from his employees only by the risk he has taken and the liability and responsibility he shoulders.
Work doesn't necessarily stop at 5 pm: deadlines have to be met; some tasks are seasonal or cyclical. Just as employers have responsibilities, employees have duties, and I should have liked the Vice-Dean to have balanced his remarks in this respect. The Protestant Ethic -- the identification of Christian duty with hard work — is the foundation of the economic powerhouse that Northern Europe has been since the Reformation. When Martin Luther translated the New Testament he translated the Greek word 7tOVOS (ponos) — which means hard work — as "duty." To the Christian, work is a form of worship
It is pure fantasy to lay the collapse of modern society upon uncaring bosses. The Church would do well to look at its own success rate in holding the fabric of society together. If the Church had succeeded in instilling and cultivating clearly defined moral standards there would be fewer broken families, fewer one parent families, less need for entrepreneurs to generate more and more taxes to pay for the social services which support those failures and which has spawned a dependency culture.
The reason it hasn't succeeded is because it is perceived to be largely irrelevant and almost totally lacking in authority: rather like Prince Charles commenting on architecture. Fewer than three per cent of the population of the UK ever go to church.
I disagree that the "spirit of compassion" is dying in Island life. Jersey is packed with charitable and caring people and organisations who give unstintingly of their time and resources; there are countless individual acts of kindness daily; we raise vastly more per head of population in charitable funds than the UK.
The Vice-Dean looks to the "charismata" to combat the evils he describes: in my opinion he looks in vain; at least as currently used by most churches. The charismatic gifts were given with the specific purpose of empowering the disciples and early Christians to deliver Christ's Gospel. They changed the world for ever. Today these gifts seem largely to be squandered: far from changing the world they are more often the excuse for creating a club of welcoming Church of England into an exclusive clique whose form of worship is often a self-indulgent entertainment where the still small voice has no chance of being heard.
Let the Church put its own house in order before it presumes to castigate that section of our community which has the courage and commitment to provide the comfortable context within which the Vice-Dean and the rest of us live.
Yours faithfully
IAN THOMAS
Getting the young to pull out the stops
Dear Editor,
Here we are again in the holiday season with the usual panic to find someone to play the organ for Divine Service — whilst the otherwise unnoticed regular organist takes his break. In my occasional capacity as peripatetic (or should it be pathetic?) organist — that is one who stands in for those who are ill or away for any reason —there are none of the Island's Anglican churches and a number of others at which I have not been asked to help. At my own Parish Church we are fortunate in having a regular organist and others besides myself who are able to "stand in." In other places the situation with regard to deputising is more serious.
Where are the (young) organists of the future? Will pipe organs survive into the next century in our churches? Should they be allowed so to do bearing in mind their high capital outlay, maintenance required and problems when things go wrong — which always seem to happen at a particularly important moment in a service. Should they be replaced by a cheaper and trouble free electronic organ? (With modern digital technology very few can, in fact, detect the difference). These are weighty matters for Parish Church authorities to consider in these days of financial difficulty.
Keyboard skills nowadays are learnt by many youngsters and if we are serious about bringing them into active participation in the life of the Church we must (however difficult live individually may find it) unbend a little and encourage them. Due to their extensive educational pressures on time available most young people do not have the time to prepare concert performances of pre- and post-service music.
Nor is it necessary for them so to do. What is required is a small nucleus, say three or four young players, in each church to form part of the music team with the organist. (It is only in the British Isles that the organist is regarded so lowly. Elsewhere he is the local music expert giving tuition and advising at schools and colleges, organising concerts, training choirs). All that is required is the ability to draw a single stop and play the music for a hymn accurately on a single keyboard. If playing only once a month this would not require too much practice. The more difficult matters of psalms and canticles can follow later when confidence and competence have been established. The service should be shared with the organist, the novice gradually taking on more and more until that day when he takes his first complete service.
So come on you keyboarders! Let's have some action now to ensure that we will still hear the "King of Instruments" in our churches during the next century. Having been given the ability to play, such a small commitment cannot really be so much to ask can it?
Yours sincerely
DR J J TAYLOR
President, Jersey Association of Organists
Trip to Iona
After a 25 hour journey, we arrived in Iona on Saturday 23rd July for a week-long youth festival, set up by the Iona Community. There were roughly 200 16 to 25-year¬olds present, who were accommodated either in the Abbey or the Macleod centre. Some people chose, very unwisely, to camp in the Abbey grounds, but as their tents either flooded or blew away, they had to move inside anyway.
Our days there began and ended with a service in the Abbey. These acts of worship were simple but very meaningful and most took place lit only by candlelight. We found the most moving and enjoyable one to be the healing service, which, took place on Tuesday evening. Two services in the week were planned by the young people attending the worship workshops.
A Little Faith
By Tony Keogh
CLOCAMORRAN, set where the American Atlantic meets the European continent, is a small village on the west coast of Ireland, lost to the whole world and to any AA map. It is a place where nothing happens and everything happens; the squat grey church leaning into the wind had seen it all; she sat like a cosy mother with her children of past generations gathered around her skirts. It was to her that the villagers came for all the rites of passage — to baptise the babies, to marry the young people and to bury those whose time had come, whatever their ages.
Father Donal, it seemed, had been there in the parish as long as the church had been standing. The highlight of his week was the Saturday night confessions and he lived in hope of hearing something new through the grid of the confessional. For the most part, it was the same dull old sins which he listened to "ad nauseum."
A few years ago, his Saturdays had been brightened by Mona Kelway, a robust widow lady in her sixties. She had acquired a parrot of some indescribable age and dubious ancestry. After confessing her own pedantic misdemeanours, she then spent twice as long confessing the parrot's sins. It transpired that the bird could curse and blaspheme in four different languages, but after about a year, even this novelty began to pall.
However, Father Donal also had a star within his congregation; his name was Daniel. Father Donal often wondered whether Daniel came to confess his sins or to brag about them. In his more mercenary moments, he wished that he was a literary agent rather than a priest; such were the adventures of Daniel. On one occasion, the verger was startled to hear, coming from the priest's box, "How many times?" There were times when Father Donal had to stop himself from breaking into gales of helpless laughter. However, every time he would pull himself together and play the strict and stern pastor. "Daniel, you must try harder," declared Father Donal. "I know, Father, but it is so hard, to try harder," acknowledged Daniel. "Have faith, my boy, have faith." Every week, the same conversation took place and every week, Daniel would turn up to delight the old priest with fresh tales to tell.
It was a cold wet west-of-Ireland morning as Father Donal was pushing his bicycle out of the village when he recognised Daniel's battered old Land Rover. The bonnet was up and Daniel looked like his biblical namesake with his head in the lion's mouth. Daniel did not hear Father's approach and the language grew louder and more purple as he failed to get the vehicle to burst into life. "Daniel, Daniel, such language," said Father. "Sorry, Father," said Daniel, "but I have tried everything to get this beast to go." "Have you tried a little prayer, my boy?" inquired Father. Daniel looked at him as if he had gone dolally tip tap, the wind and the whisky had finally affected Father Donal's brain. So to humour him, he piously knelt by his conveyance and uttered a prayer, kicked the tyre and turned the ignition key. The Land Rover shuddered twice and roared into life.
As Daniel shot off out the village, Father Donal smiled at the retreating vehicle and muttered, "Well, I'll be jiggered, it worked!"
Letters to the Editor
Got any gripes? Here's the place to air them. Comments welcome on anything that irritates you from the Press, national and local (including this magazine!), visual and audio media and so on. Just write to the Editor, Roger Hibbeard — and let off steam
NOT ALL BAD APPLES
Dear Editor,
I despaired when I read the Jersey Evening Post's headline "Vice-Dean attacks uncaring bosses" — the rhetoric of the bad old days of industrial relations. As has been said elsewhere, no doubt there is the odd bad apple in the employers' barrel; and no doubt Michael Halliwell has seen evidence of the kind of abuses he cites. However, to extrapolate from the particular to the general does no more than to draw dangerous, divisive and totally unsupportable conclusions. Let him look around his congregation: does it contain employers? Are they the kind of employer he castigates?
The infrastructure of civilised society cannot exist without enterprise. The Island's revenues are the fruits of enter-prise: there is no other source. Entrepreneurs are the engine of our economy, and the Vice-Dean would serve our community better if he expressed admiration and support for them. "Employers" are not a group of overpaid, uncaring Gradgrinds. Between 85 and 90 per cent of businesses in Jersey employ fewer than ten people, and in such companies the employer is distinguished from his employees only by the risk he has taken and the liability and responsibility he shoulders.
Work doesn't necessarily stop at 5 pm: deadlines have to be met; some tasks are seasonal or cyclical. Just as employers have responsibilities, employees have duties, and I should have liked the Vice-Dean to have balanced his remarks in this respect. The Protestant Ethic -- the identification of Christian duty with hard work — is the foundation of the economic powerhouse that Northern Europe has been since the Reformation. When Martin Luther translated the New Testament he translated the Greek word 7tOVOS (ponos) — which means hard work — as "duty." To the Christian, work is a form of worship
It is pure fantasy to lay the collapse of modern society upon uncaring bosses. The Church would do well to look at its own success rate in holding the fabric of society together. If the Church had succeeded in instilling and cultivating clearly defined moral standards there would be fewer broken families, fewer one parent families, less need for entrepreneurs to generate more and more taxes to pay for the social services which support those failures and which has spawned a dependency culture.
The reason it hasn't succeeded is because it is perceived to be largely irrelevant and almost totally lacking in authority: rather like Prince Charles commenting on architecture. Fewer than three per cent of the population of the UK ever go to church.
I disagree that the "spirit of compassion" is dying in Island life. Jersey is packed with charitable and caring people and organisations who give unstintingly of their time and resources; there are countless individual acts of kindness daily; we raise vastly more per head of population in charitable funds than the UK.
The Vice-Dean looks to the "charismata" to combat the evils he describes: in my opinion he looks in vain; at least as currently used by most churches. The charismatic gifts were given with the specific purpose of empowering the disciples and early Christians to deliver Christ's Gospel. They changed the world for ever. Today these gifts seem largely to be squandered: far from changing the world they are more often the excuse for creating a club of welcoming Church of England into an exclusive clique whose form of worship is often a self-indulgent entertainment where the still small voice has no chance of being heard.
Let the Church put its own house in order before it presumes to castigate that section of our community which has the courage and commitment to provide the comfortable context within which the Vice-Dean and the rest of us live.
Yours faithfully
IAN THOMAS
Getting the young to pull out the stops
Dear Editor,
Here we are again in the holiday season with the usual panic to find someone to play the organ for Divine Service — whilst the otherwise unnoticed regular organist takes his break. In my occasional capacity as peripatetic (or should it be pathetic?) organist — that is one who stands in for those who are ill or away for any reason —there are none of the Island's Anglican churches and a number of others at which I have not been asked to help. At my own Parish Church we are fortunate in having a regular organist and others besides myself who are able to "stand in." In other places the situation with regard to deputising is more serious.
Where are the (young) organists of the future? Will pipe organs survive into the next century in our churches? Should they be allowed so to do bearing in mind their high capital outlay, maintenance required and problems when things go wrong — which always seem to happen at a particularly important moment in a service. Should they be replaced by a cheaper and trouble free electronic organ? (With modern digital technology very few can, in fact, detect the difference). These are weighty matters for Parish Church authorities to consider in these days of financial difficulty.
Keyboard skills nowadays are learnt by many youngsters and if we are serious about bringing them into active participation in the life of the Church we must (however difficult live individually may find it) unbend a little and encourage them. Due to their extensive educational pressures on time available most young people do not have the time to prepare concert performances of pre- and post-service music.
Nor is it necessary for them so to do. What is required is a small nucleus, say three or four young players, in each church to form part of the music team with the organist. (It is only in the British Isles that the organist is regarded so lowly. Elsewhere he is the local music expert giving tuition and advising at schools and colleges, organising concerts, training choirs). All that is required is the ability to draw a single stop and play the music for a hymn accurately on a single keyboard. If playing only once a month this would not require too much practice. The more difficult matters of psalms and canticles can follow later when confidence and competence have been established. The service should be shared with the organist, the novice gradually taking on more and more until that day when he takes his first complete service.
So come on you keyboarders! Let's have some action now to ensure that we will still hear the "King of Instruments" in our churches during the next century. Having been given the ability to play, such a small commitment cannot really be so much to ask can it?
Yours sincerely
DR J J TAYLOR
President, Jersey Association of Organists
Trip to Iona
After a 25 hour journey, we arrived in Iona on Saturday 23rd July for a week-long youth festival, set up by the Iona Community. There were roughly 200 16 to 25-year¬olds present, who were accommodated either in the Abbey or the Macleod centre. Some people chose, very unwisely, to camp in the Abbey grounds, but as their tents either flooded or blew away, they had to move inside anyway.
Our days there began and ended with a service in the Abbey. These acts of worship were simple but very meaningful and most took place lit only by candlelight. We found the most moving and enjoyable one to be the healing service, which, took place on Tuesday evening. Two services in the week were planned by the young people attending the worship workshops.
There were a variety of workshops to choose from, each taking place on the mornings of Monday and Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Each person covered two different workshops over the four mornings, choosing from subjects such as communicating with God, relationships, drama, media and art.
Afternoons consisted mainly of free time, during which planned activities were also available. These included a visit to a nearby island called Staffa, a football match (which was highly amusing!), and a time of learning new songs. It was also possible to simply enjoy being with new friends and take pictures of the beautiful scenery.
After the evening service each night, there were organised events, such the concert, which turned out to be very interesting, as everyone went in drag! There was also a ceilidh (the Scottish equivalent of a barn dance!) which was great fun, and a cabaret. On two nights there was a dance in the village hall, which finished very late and left us very tired the following mornings.
We feel that the time which we spent on Iona was very valuable as we made many new Christian friends, with whom we could share our ideas and faith. Going to Iona was a unique experience that we wish everyone in the church could share.
'FEEL THE SPIRIT'
NATIONAL TOUR PRODUCTION COMES TO JERSEY
This widely acclaimed two-hour revue captures the heady revival days of the late 19th century, taking in music hall, gospel and a dose of Victorian vulgarity.
"Feel the Spirit" tells the story of the partnership of Moody and Sankey, mainly in song. Although their songs made Victorian England a nation of whistlers their message is relevant to us all today — we all know "Blessed Assurance" to name just one of their songs. So you can imagine the audience participation is high.
The production has been produced by Tony Jasper, who plays D L Moody, and is performed by a London cast of eight professional actors. It is to be staged at the Arts Centre on Tuesday and Wednesday 11th/12th October and starts at 8 pm. There is also a matinee performance on the Wednesday at 2.30 pm.
The reviews for "Feel the Spirit" are excellent — "There is a timelessness about the play which makes sense today . . . quite stunning" (Methodist Recorder); "Remarkable" say The Stage; "at times electrifying" recorded the Baptist Times; "Wonderful Evening" from. Church of England Newspaper; "A night of hope and inspiration" say Church Times.
This is an event which everyone can enjoy and a great opportunity to spread God's word.
SO BOOK THESE OATES NOW!
NATIONAL TOUR PRODUCTION COMES TO JERSEY
This widely acclaimed two-hour revue captures the heady revival days of the late 19th century, taking in music hall, gospel and a dose of Victorian vulgarity.
"Feel the Spirit" tells the story of the partnership of Moody and Sankey, mainly in song. Although their songs made Victorian England a nation of whistlers their message is relevant to us all today — we all know "Blessed Assurance" to name just one of their songs. So you can imagine the audience participation is high.
The production has been produced by Tony Jasper, who plays D L Moody, and is performed by a London cast of eight professional actors. It is to be staged at the Arts Centre on Tuesday and Wednesday 11th/12th October and starts at 8 pm. There is also a matinee performance on the Wednesday at 2.30 pm.
The reviews for "Feel the Spirit" are excellent — "There is a timelessness about the play which makes sense today . . . quite stunning" (Methodist Recorder); "Remarkable" say The Stage; "at times electrifying" recorded the Baptist Times; "Wonderful Evening" from. Church of England Newspaper; "A night of hope and inspiration" say Church Times.
This is an event which everyone can enjoy and a great opportunity to spread God's word.
SO BOOK THESE OATES NOW!
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