Bishop Crispian and Fr Keith Newton flank the new priest and Jane
Yesterday he laid hands on me in Ordination; today he was visiting the Parish as part of his farewell tour of the diocese. So of my three Catholic masses, two have been concelebrations with Bishop Crispian - the other was at Brockenhurst, where they told me apologetically that everyone was away for the end of Half-Term. With sixty communicants and a good number of children it did not seem very empty! Maybe they are used to a squash most Sundays. There certainly was not room for many more at Lymington, where latecomers usually find they have to stand throughout. There was a great farewell reception for Bishop Crispian after the Mass.
We had the Sevenoaks photographer Fr James Bradley, in attendance, so until I get copies of the official Portsmouth Diocesan photos, here is a link to a great series of pictures he took and has published on Flickr:
http://ordinariateportal.wordpress.com/2011/03/05/photos-from-the-ordination-of-fr-edwin-barnes/
I have written about an aspect of the Ordination at the Anglo-Catholic blog (see link at the side of this blog). Meanwhile, since some of my American readers still seem to misunderstand what a Bunfight is, here is a picture of the one they put on for the Bishop today in Lymington. Very good it was, too.
Fr Danny was a little nervous, I fancy, before the Bishop's visit; but all went very well, and the Bishop reassured us all that he was not here to tear us off a strip! Below you will spot Fr Danny in the doorway, trying to shepherd some of the flock into the other room where a presentation was to be made to the Bishop.
Congratulations.
ReplyDeleteAd Multos Annos !
Congratulations, Fr Edwin. I was going to attend but circumstances contrived at the last minute to prevent me going. I shall instead drop in to Lymington next trip back to old Blighty.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Padre, on your ordination!! The chaps from the Mess wanted to celebrate your priesting, so we arranged a Mess trip to Portsmouth. The local Royal Naval Reserve kindly put us up Friday evening. That’s when the trouble started. They hadn’t heard of our signature tipple, the Rum Pansy. Our Bar Steward got cracking with the potion making, and soon afterwards bucketfuls of the stuff were flowing, with your good health being toasted, with increasingly bizarre incantations, at each round. Needless to say, by next morning we were still ‘seven sheets to the wind’. The RNR chaps had arranged for us to come aboard their minesweeper, from where they suggested we fire your twenty-one gun salute. As we were about to kick off the action the local coastguard cutter started to make a nuisance of himself. The RNR Captain explained that the coastguard is a nasty little puritanical low churchman who is always spoiling their fun. Bodger, my gunnery officer, had been allowed by the RNR chaps try out their gun. He claims that the live and blank rounds were labelled differently from the way we do it. For a bit of fun the RNR Captain suggested that we fire off your twenty-one gun salute as the coastguard cutter was passing close to us. Bodger obliged, but unfortunately sunk the coastguard! We had a bit of explaining to do when we reached shore and so missed your bun fight.
ReplyDeleteHugo, we missed you. The thought was there, though. And at least you didn't miss the coastguard. Fine bit of gunnery; keep the Ensign aloft. E
ReplyDeleteAd multos annos, indded; many congratulations, Fahter. It is wonderful news! Robert
ReplyDeleteIt was a lovely, warm service at Lymington on Sunday;very welcoming for those of us visiting from other parishes. Your ordination has been mentioned in dispatches in St Mary Mag's blog as well, obviously! I was at mass in Lym with a C of E friend and have (hopefully successfully) explained the Ordinariate to her, and the gathering momentum. You were knee deep in well wishers on Sunday, so Congratulations! The spread for the Bishop was fantastic, although none of the dignified ladies I was sat with threw any food.
ReplyDeleteAd Multos Annos Father: from Catholicism Pure & Simple.
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