You are God, we praise you...

You are the Lord, we acclaim you.

Durham Cathedral, Cloister

I remember walking through the cloister at Durham Cathedral, chanting the Te Deum with Mother Columba. We were carrying manuscripts from the Muniments room under the supervision of the Cathedral librarian. I did not realize it at the time, but I was carrying in my arms a Gospelbook from Lindisfarne with some of the same pigments as those used in the Lindisfarne Gospels.

It was artistically inferior by far and badly damaged. Still, it was a book of the Holy Gospels from that era used in the worship of God. I feel that I should remove my shoes even thinking about that moment, that book, that community from so many years ago.

Here's to Fr. Jake who writes:

...I need community. In my journey, while traveling to the outer edges of spirituality and back again, I stumbled across this Church. As flawed and frail as she is, this is where I have landed. This Church has become my spiritual home. Where else would I go?

The Church is a harlot. But she's all we've got.

Let us pray,

Gracious God, we pray for your holy Catholic Church....

--the BB