A new blog post from the Vicar – please keep reading to see the Notices below.
Last time I wrote this blog it was accompanied by a picture of the lovely old altar frontal I had discovered in the cupboard. Now here we go again – same altar, different look.
A very different look. Gone is the magnificent painting behind the altar, gone the altar frontal with its bright seasonal colours. Now all we can see is a huge expanse of undyed blank cloth and some red ribbon. What is going on?
There is a tradition in the Church of England which is known as Lenten Array. It is a tradition in which churches veil all the images in the church, cover all the crosses – hide everything bright, symbolic or pictorial under undyed cotton or linen. Often simple images are added to the cloth – images which remind us of the coming suffering of Christ, images of nails, of a crown of thorns, a wooden cross. The images are almost always in bold red and black.
Lenten Array is bold and stark. It disrupts our expectations – we look for the familiar images, the cross, the crucifix, in our case the glorious image of the Ascension behind the altar, but we do not find them. Instead we find something less, something bleak, something which might be beautiful but is also a reminder of death and suffering.
On Sunday evening at the Lent service in which we hosted our sister churches in Edmonton we thought about the need for us to veil even images of Christ on the cross in order to ready ourselves to see God’s glory on Easter morning. We reminded ourselves that even the angels around God’s throne veil their faces in the presence of the glory of God. We admitted our own sinfulness and our need for forgiveness and we turned our faces away from the images of hope and glory in our church.
This is the Lenten Array in our church – it hides the image of God’s glory as Jesus ascends to heaven. And in our Lent, as we journey to the cross with Jesus, we are called to live out our own version of Lenten Array, veiling our faces from the resurrection, the ascension, the confident hope we have of eternal life in Christ Jesus. We walk in metaphorical undyed cloth, marked with blood-red symbols as we watch Jesus travel to Jerusalem where he will be killed after a crowd of people just like us call for him to be crucified.
On Easter Day we will once again rejoice in the empty tomb and our Lenten Array will be gone. Until then, let us walk in penitence to the tree on a hill where our Lord will suffer and die.
During the service we looked at this poem. I hope it is helpful.
Lent
Lent is a tree without blossom, without leaf,
Barer than blackthorn in its winter sleep,
All unadorned. Unlike Christmas which decrees
The setting-up, the dressing-up of trees,
Lent is a taking down, a stripping bare,
A starkness after all has been withdrawn
Of surplus and superfluous,
Leaving no hiding-place, only an emptiness
Between black branches, a most precious space
Before the leaf, before the time of flowers;
Lest we should see only the leaf, the flower,
Lest we should miss the stars.
Jean M. Watt
Notices
PSD Nursery The PCC has taken the decision not to renew the hire agreement for PSD nursery, which has operated from St Aldhelm's Church hall since 2012, with the latest three-year hire agreement having been signed in 2022. The decision was taken following a breakdown in the working relationship between the PCC and the operator of PSD and is in the best interests of both parties. The PCC has provided significant notice ahead of the contract ending on 31st August 2025, to allow PSD the time to make alternative arrangements which best suit their ongoing needs. Please refer all enquiries about this matter to the Vicar.
Lent evening services
Thank you for coming to our Sunday evening service this week as we veiled our altar, crucifixes and reredos. Forthcoming Sunday evening services all held at 6pm:
Sunday 23 March: St John’s Dysons Road
Sunday 30 March: St Alphege’s
Sunday 6 April: All Saints
Holy Week at St Aldhelm’s
Sun 13th April – Palm Sunday, 10am service with procession
Mon 14th, Tues 15 th, Weds 16 th – 5pm Evening Prayer and Eucharist
Thurs 17th – Maundy Thursday, 8pm service with footwashing and incense, vigil until midnight
Fri 18th – Good Friday Passion and Vigil, 12 noon – 3pm
Sat 19th – Holy Saturday, church cleaning and preparation
Sun 20th, 7am morning vigil and breakfast
10am all-age worship with chocolate eggs
Music in March Our Music Director Tosin is taking some time off in March so our music will focus on hymns and not worship songs this month
New parish newsletter If you have not received our new parish blog by email you can either subscribe on our website or email Tom admin@aldhelms.org.uk to be added to the list.
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