Ancient and Modern - and spicy

Nipped along to the Cathedral today for the 11.30 Mass. Piety? No, I'm celebrating it next week and I like to know what it involves, especially when it involves the 1929 Liturgy. "It's just the Prayer Book" hides a multitude of practices. Luckily it was terribly straightforward, just as written and it was thoroughly refreshing to hear the old, beautiful, familiar words which we Scottish Piskies have been using in roughly the same order since 1764, in the moderated splendour of the Lady Chapel of St Mary's Cathedral, with the prayers including a bidding for the repose of the soul of a deceased priest and for the grief of his partner - both male. It's that blend of ancient and modern that inspired me. Glorious language and architecture with an utter rootedness in the reality of the modern world. Don't get me wrong: I love the richness of the modern language 1982 liturgy and its seasonal Eucharistic Prayers. But that classical language speaks to ME deeply and the connection with ages and generations past who have knelt and said exactly the same words touches me. But it is wired to the world and not the moon or the British Museum by the prayers of intercession which say where we are and defines our concerns and intentions. I'm a funny mix of radical and conservative: part right on leftie, part liturgical old fart!

Tonight's soup was one of my better efforts: spicy bean and pepper soup! Ideal for winter. It was the cayenne pepper that made it!