Journals

A forthcoming lecture by J S Whale at the Society’s AGM
The 800th anniversary of St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall
The tercentenary of the Tron Kirk, Edinburgh
“Laud’s Liturgy” of 1637
A paper on The Choirmaster and his Choir
The distinction between stole and scarf
The proclamation of Banns of Marriage
Varying use of hands and arms when pronouncing the Benediction.

Richard Roberts, of the newly United Church of Canada, describes retreats planned with the constituent parts of the Church [Presbyterian, Methodist and Congregationalist] and a proportion of immigrant eastern Europeans in mind.  These were a reaction against the decay of reverence (“God as primus inter pares”) and, he believes, the decline in the quality of preaching.  The quarry which led to the pattern for these retreats was the Abbé Poulain’s The Graces of Interior Prayer, adapted for “Protestant novices”.   He further describes the necessary adjustments required to introduce such a retreat to those - majority of participants - who were unfamiliar with this practice, and he outlines the original timetable.  The results, in varying circumstances, were moving.

D H  Hislop quotes Karl Adam: “The eternal light of revelation is differently reflected in the prism of each age with different angles of refraction.”  He takes seriously the insights of psychology in respect of (a) the people at worship and their interaction;  (b) method of worship; and (c) the Being to whom worship is offered.  He draws attention to the will to worship expressing itself in the means to worship;  yet not all worshippers are (and cannot be) equally involved.  Attitude, he suggests, helps to unite a disparate worshipping congregation.  He goes on to examine the subconscious and its meaning for worship, and sees worship as a liberating experience.  Lastly, and interestingly, he considers the psychological aspects of liturgy and forms of worship. 

John Wilson Baird refers to Ethiopia as a “pathetic island in the sea of Paganism and Islam which surrounds it” (the Italo-Abyssinian war was then in progress).  Its Christian history, as he unfolds, renders it much less “pathetic”.   Its isolation accounted for many features peculiar to itself (e.g. circumcision, ritual dancing).  The Ethiopic Liturgy is distinctive, not least in the priest’s prayers of preparation, quoted at length.  Other prayers are examined, notably that leading to the consecration at the Eucharist, the offertory, the intercessions and the thanksgiving.

Our Heritage in Public Worship (1933 Kerr Lectures)  by D H Hislop;   Edinburgh, T & T Clark:  
reviewed by Thomas Marjoribanks
Vital Elements in Public Worship by J Ernest Rattenbury, Epworth Press;  reviewed by Millar Patrick
Divine Worship, Epworth Press;  reviewed by Millar Patrick
The Cathedrals of England by Harry Batsford and Charles Fry, London: B T Batsford Ltd
The English Abbey by F H Crossley, London: B T Batsford Ltd
The Parish Churches of England by    J Charles Cox, ed. Charles Bradley Ford, London: B T Batsford Ltd

Dalmeny Church, from the South  -  Frontispiece
Dalmeny Church, Interior  -  Facing page 11
St Mary’s, Whitekirk, from the South  -  Facing page 28
St Mary’s, Whitekirk, Interior  -  Facing page 30
St Mary’s, Whitekirk, The Holy Table  -  Facing page 32
St Mary’s, Whitekirk, The Tithe Barn  -  Facing page 32

Patrick Millar looks at the recent origins of this ‘miniature cathedral’ of numerous architectural styles.  He refers to the legends of St Conan which moved Walter Douglas Campbell to plan and build the kirk; and of how his vision was shared and later carried forward by his sister, Helen.  The eclectic architecture, acquired furnishings and the association of Celtic saints’ names with its constituent parts are all described in a sympathetic manner, although the writer is aware of  reasons for the criticisms of the “purist” at every turn.