As I walked out this morning towards the moor all the church bells rang. Bells all around the country rang at 8.12 for 3 minutes, to mark the official start of the Olympics. Even Big Ben in London rang for the 3 minutes. Martin Creed had the brilliant idea for this mass bell ring and what a wonderful way to wish all the athletes success.
There is something wonderfully English to hear church bells near and far, tolling across the open countryside. As I walked The Collie along the footpath to the moor, passing the grazing sheep, I felt stirred by the peel of bells from our local church. The resonance of the sound signified the excitement and importance of the London Olympics, even for those of us that live so far away from the venues.
Today has a far more British feel to it, we have lost the Mediterranean heat that made the road surfaces shimmer even at 8 o'clock in the morning. The burst of welcome continental heat broke the wet weather that was draining away our summer but it has now lost its intensity. The farmers have taken advantage of this break in the weather and been frantically harvesting hay crops and ripened wheat and barley fields. We have heard the tractors working late into the night.I quickened my pace towards the open space because I was sure I could hear other church bells - one, maybe two other churches were ringing out across the countryside. It was a wonderful experience to stand under a blue sky, surrounded by ponies and sheep (and a collie dog) and have the air reverberate with bells ringing. It truly felt like a celebration.
We have just returned from a two week holiday in Norfolk where there is the largest concentration of medieval churches in the world. Norfolk is a very flat county and the church towers stand out. We could count six churches when we stood on the sand dunes near to where we were staying. We visited many of these churches and climbed Ranworth and Happisburgh church towers. While the climbs seemed a little perilous( the towers were narrow and the steps plentiful!) both climbs were worth it for the view. At Ranworth you can get a proper understanding of the Norfolk Broads and a sense of their size. At Happisburgh (which we visited just before a thunderstorm) you can appreciate how flat Norfolk is and see the effects of coastal erosion and coastal tourism. |
| Ranworth |
 |
| Happisburgh |
 |
| Happisburgh |
 |
| Happisburgh |
What a phenomenally beautiful country you have! I'm very proud to have a big portion of my ancestral roots there :) I think the games will be fantastic and your description of the bells made me feel like I was there! (Btw, years ago I had the experience of climbing up the Boston Stump-the view at the top was worth the claustraphobic, scary climb up!).
ReplyDeleteHi Elizabeth Yes it is a beautiful country and ....wet - good for the skin I'm told.
DeleteNo bells in this part of SW London, well I leant out of the window and shook the bells that live on my key ring, heard nothing else. Was disappointed that couldn't hear any bells from the church I attend, less than half a mile from here.
ReplyDeleteI suppose I am not surprised, there was nothing for the Jubilee, apart from the prescribed prayer and the National Anthem. At the April APCM I offered to provide a tree to be planted somewhere in front of the church - there is plenty of space for it - and I am having to chase up to establish how this could be done. No one, least of all the vicar, seems interested. Feel a bit sad, my connection goes back over 50 years when I was confirmed there, it was where we were married, our children were baptised and sang in the choir and served. Don't want to wait until I die to give something back.
The other parish at the other end of the High Street celebrated the Jubilee with special services and a lunch. The difference in the two parishes is amazing, they have 2 women's group, we have none, their church is open at all times, they have monthly Saturday coffee mornings, social events, a dining club, children's holiday activities. It all comes down to two very different priests.
Hi - I agree with you - it does seem that parishes often depend on the energy, enthusiasm and personality of their vicar. I'm not sure whether it depends on if they see themselves as 'high' church or 'low' church and if that affects how they see they should interact with the parish. This detached approach seems to kill off the church in places or keep it for a Sunday club for the regulars. I hope The Curate is a 'roll up his sleeves' and muck in type of vicar. I think it helps that he didn't have anything to do with church (not baptised or 'Christian in any shape or form!)until much later in life. He remembers how he saw churches in the community.
Delete