May Day

Tis May Day today, and nobody sent me flowers. :(

Went to church at St. John's Lafayette Square this morning. This is the little crackerbox place that's just north of the White House known as the "church of the presidents." There are many things I like about this parish. The rector, Fr. Luis Leon, is a particularly effective leader and preacher, and they have a twelve member professional choir that does a fine job. The parish is friendly without being pushy, and they have strong youth and Hispanic programs. They're also involved in the community—this morning, they were seeking volunteers to help make 1,000 sandwiches to give away to the street people.

On the downside, the church is an old, cramped thing with very uncomfortable, ancient pews—the kind that has a central barrier running down the middle. It's located nearly a mile from home (not a big deal if one had a car, but in the district, since there's no direct bus or subway, that's a long walk). And, the most disturbing thing is their assisting clergy. This morning, the celebrant was a pregnant priestess. If that weren't bad enough, she kept changing the words of the litury, refusing to refer to "God" with masculine pronouns or calling Him "Father." I thought the only people who were in to that inclusive language litury crap were lesbians and feminists. What was particularly amusing during her "inclusive" liturgy was after one of the more egregious examples, a bit of plaster from the cupola above where I was sitting "dripped" down on me, making a splash mark on my blue blazer. Was that a sign of His displeasure?

Anyway, it was a pleasant walk to the church this morning. The ushers were all very chatty, and I found a seat in the "President's Pew"—George wasn't coming today, so it was available for common use—right at the Gerald R. Ford kneeler pillow. The hymns today were Creation, Sloane, Royal Oak, and a weird-word version of Forest Green. The mass setting was a hodge-podge, with a Rutter version of the Gloria (significant because John Rutter is a well-known, self-avowed atheist). They do Anglican chant for the psalms with a congregational antiphon. Offertory anthem was a Magnificat setting by Bryan Kelly that kind of reminded me of a French or English "Broadway" musical chorus with its cadence and modern chords, and the communion motet was a pleasant "I Am the Vine" by Linda Hoffer. They filled in the post-motet time with a Taize chant that the congregation didn't sing along to (I hate Taize) as requested. The postlude was Vierne's "Carillon de Westminster," and I forgot what the prelude was. On the steps outside the church after the service, the rector actually recognized that I wasn't a parishioner and introduced himself!

Don't know where I'll go to church in Albuquerque this week....Thursday is Ascension Day. And, it's also Cinco de Mayo, which may be a more fun thing to observe in Albuquerque! This will probably be my last post until I return Friday night.