St Alban's puts the Reformation behind it and looks forward

AT a time when the spirits of those committed to the ecumenical movement are often somewhat "down", St Albans Cathedral and Abbey Church, in Hertfordshire, has just completed a week long celebration of its monastic heritage. Benedictine monks from Britain and Europe formed a 4-strong ecumenical community, sharing the Anglican office and celebrating the monastic "hours", greeting pilgrims and visitors in fact becoming an integral part in the life of the most ancient place of Christian worship and pilgrimage in our land.
The monks came from Anglican and Catholic abbeys, living together and joining in the life of the already large and vibrant abbey community over 400 people of all denominations are involved in voluntary work, from guides and welcomers, to dishwashers and sales staff. Both groups made their impact on one another; the delight of the St Albans' people at the homecoming of the Benedictines, and the joy of the monks to find such a welcome, and the reality of active ecumenism among people in this multi-denominational group.
Three hundred children from local schools filled the abbey for a day of prayer and work, which included illustrating the Psalms, singing, tile and pot-making, and a wonderful service of midday praise, when children and monks came together processing from the shrine of St Alban singing Ubi Caritas, followed by modern settings of the Psalms.
Cardinal Basil Hume preached on the first Sunday evening, reminding all of their commitment as Christians, and later spoke of the "the spiritual path of ecumenism": the opportunity and necessity of praying together where no barrier exists, and where everyone is invited to full participation now. This is the way forward that the Benedictines must encourage, and thereby give a message of hope and support to the existing reality of the churches united in prayer and praise. Tangible witness was given to this fact at Vespers that evening.
The Benedictine Week came to a culmination in Pontifical Vespers, presided over by Abbot Rossiter, assisted by the Dean and Sub-Dean of St Albans; one was aware not of an ecumenical corpse, but of the existence of abundant life, and a sign of great hope and promise for the future. Here was a community brought together by the genius of St Benedict, preferring nothing to the Lord's work, and generating not just enthusiasm for the present, but real hope for the future of ecumenism, under the inspiration of the Father of Europe.
The ecumenical movement may well be a lame duck in many parts of the country. Old forms of services shared by the churches can well be expected to have had their day, but the St Albans experience of monastic life, and its week-in, week-out, commitment to ecumenism, in practice with its Free Church and Roman Catholic chaplains, bears witness to the fact that ecumenism is alive and active, and looking forward to tomorrow.
So, let the dead bury their dead whilst we look for someone who is alive! Christian unity is no longer a "cause", but part of our lives not for an exclusive set, but for all God's people, who rejoice in the claim, "we are the Church!"