It has been almost two weeks since the gathering of faithful Anglicans in San Antonio.  Soon after the meeting there were several posts and many more comments related to our time together.  Before I posted my personal reflections, I wanted to let the proverbial dust settle, allowing for time to prayerfully consider my own perceptions regarding the event.  So, without further ado, allow me to add my two cents.

Initially, let me say that just the mere invitation to such a gathering was for me an overwhelming opportunity for a much needed respite from the almost non-stop conflict that has existed since the Portsmouth petition.  I shared with some of my fellow clergy that I would not have missed this get-together for the world, as it would be the first time in some years that I would travel to an ecclesiastical assembly without actively preparing for "battle" upon arrival.  I actually had some trouble contemplating enroute that I was going to a place where everyone was on the same sheet of music, where there was true unity of purpose, or just plain unity, true unity as is simply defined, not the abstract (often articulated as "spiritual") unity.  I must say that upon our arrival, I was not disappointed.  I cannot heap enough lauds upon Fr. Phillips and his congregation.  They treated us as if we lived there, and we wanted for nothing.  They did not act toward us as if we were outsiders wanting and/or waiting to be accepted.  We were family.  I was particularly taken aback by an oft-repeated statement by parishioners of Our Lady of the Atonement regarding our current situation of waiting for the establishment of an Ordinariate.  This statement was, "You have to get through this because we need you."  How many times have I heard naysayers accuse those of us who desire communion with Rome as having ulterior motives?  To the contrary, at least some of those already in communion with Rome view us as a benefit for themselves.  It should be noted that such remarks were not made during one of the prepared sessions, they were made by lay people during one-on-one conversations.   Our time together was truly refreshing, a veritable "R&R from the battle front" as one attendee remarked.

The one area that did evidence a sense of heaviness for us was our inability to share the Lord's Table.  I view this as a two-edged sword.  First, it placed before us the divide that still exists.  Second, it provided a foretaste of what awaits us, and I, for one, concentrate on the latter rather than the former.  This being said, although the aforementioned circumstance exists, it should be noted that our time together was replete with even liturgical unity.  Morning Prayer, Solemn Vespers, and Compline were events of total commonality.  It should also be noted that the Sacrifice of the Mass celebrated in accord with the Book of Divine Worship left no one familiar with the Anglican Missal a stranger.  By way of example, I had the honor of serving for Fr. Phillips while he celebrated his Mass when visiting our parish a couple of weeks prior to the meeting in San Antonio.  I had no time to prepare, or review the BDW.  The liturgies of the BDW (Rite I) and the Anglican Missal are so similar that, after just a few minutes, I realized I need not fret over the possibility of a major flub (that's a very technical liturgical term for those uninitiated).  Seriously, I know there are those of you out there who take great pains in parsing liturgical nuance, and I appreciate your zeal.  I also realize that there is always room for improvement regarding things liturgical (except for the Tridentine Mass, duh…), but I speak as a shepherd of a flock that dearly love their Anglican liturgy, and these folks would feel right at home in any Anglican Use parish.

There is one last area I would like to address after contemplating the event at Our Lady of the Atonement, and that is the spiritual point at which we find ourselves.  During the course of the gathering there were several excellent presentations ranging from the historical to the forthcoming, the objective to the conjectural.  However, the area of the utmost import at this time is the spiritual warfare in which we must be engaged.  As the Apostolic Constitution comes to fruition and we witness an ecclesiatical reconciliation the likes of which the secular world must even take notice, be very aware that Satan and his minions will become more and more enraged.  You are going to see assaults upon us the likes of which we have yet to see.  We are going to be assailed in our health, our temporal concerns, our affections, and our enjoyment of life.  The devil is going to make this road toward communion with the Vicar of Christ a path of the greatest resistance.  The fight has been costly up to this point, and I would be prepared for it to get even worse.  All this being said, we must ensure that we not be caught up in the theoretical facets of this matter, but place our emphasis on the combat at hand.  Particularly during this Advent season, attend at least one additional Mass per week with a special intention offered for the establishment of the Ordinariates and the choosing of the most holy Ordinaries.  Pray for the Ordinariates specifically during your Daily Offices, and beseech Our Lady's intercession for them through Her Most Holy Rosary.  Finally, to the clergy, I would recommend that the Prayer to St. Michael be said either publicly or privately at the end of every Mass offered in Anglican Use and Ordinariate-bound congregations.

Sancte Michael, ora pro nobis!

Related posts:

1. Reflections on Liturgy and Much More
2. More Reflections on the English Situation
3. More Reflections on Liturgical Language
4. Reflections about another kind of Anglican patrimony
5. Liturgical Reflections on Attending a Proms Concert