WHAT A heart-warming Mass BBC brought us from Clifton Cathedral on Christmas Day — sixty minutes of joyful celebration. Bishop, choir, priests and people participated as one happy family, who were at home with God, and with each other.
We saw a congregation who moved beyond the rigidity of words and overflowed into communion. This was personified in the warmth, serenity and simplicity of their good Bishop.
Obviously this was not just a special TV effort. The camera showed us a Father and his people who had worked out a way of using their modern Cathedral, and their own talents, for the up-dating of the liturgy, and the greater glory of God. We saw a committed and prayerful congregation, composed mainly of young families.
The cameras gave us many closeups of these exceptional children. Their composure and naturalness must have raised the hearts of many viewers, and perhaps, the envy of some. Could such 'goodies' be real? I'm convinced they were 'naturals'.
I saw in their eyes a confidence and peace that was, I suggest, the fruit of love and grace in homes that were truly Christian. For one old man this was a Mass of Joy — a foretaste of Renewal.
Frank Stephens Bournemouth