"Light Prevails"

7/24/2010
Ely

I write this on Saturday evening after a few days off from posting. Today included a well needed day off from bus travel and the daily touring schedule. We have had days filled with fantastic tours, but we were ready for a day to just bum around Ely. Many of us took tours of the higher reaches of the Cathedral, the Octagon and the West Tower, and all of us took in the local market day in the center of town. We ended the day with Evensong and dinner.

On Thursday we spent the morning and lunch time at the Burghley House, one of the finest Elizabethan stately homes. It was built by Lord Burghley, a close friend, mentor and advisor to Elizabeth I. The house and ground were amazing. Soaring rooms with spectacular art and amazing murals led to sprawling grounds populated by a large deer herd. Apparently, the way to keep a large lawn trimmed is to bring in the deer…very effective. They are very tame and come right up to a hand offering a snack. The aptly named Garden of Surprises was, by far, the hit of the day. Filled with many interesting water features that literally surprise you when you venture through, it’s a place where laughter reigns.

When we returned to the Cathedral for rehearsal and evensong we met up with Andrew Thayer. Andy is a priest, former Assistant Rector at St. Mark’s, and current graduate student at Oxford pursuing a PhD (or D. Phil. in local parlance). He came over to say hello to old friends and to enjoy the choir. He and Kelsey and the kids are doing very well and are looking forward the arrival of a new baby boy any day now. After a good visit and dinner with Albert and Kathleen Vale we got him on a late bus home. It is great to meet up with good friends from far away.

Yesterday we were at RAF (Royal Air Force) museum in Duxford, Thursday we were at Burghley House near Stamford. The RAF museum is reportedly the largest in Europe and featured several extensive exhibits. I was transported to my childhood fascination with the B-17, Spitfire, Mustang, Messerchmidt, F-100, Phantom…and the list goes on. The museum houses many working planes and several were in action during our time. It’s interesting to see two World War I era biplanes take off followed by the Vietnam War era F-8 Crusader jet.

We returned from Duxford to rehearsal and choral evensong in the Lady Chapel at the Cathedral. The chapel is an amazing space for choral music. With its box shape, stone and glass walls, stone floor and towering ceiling, the place is made to make the tiniest voice huge. The right choir can make the air shimmer with beauty, and we have the right choir.

When rehearsal began I was just entering the chapel. Coming in behind me was a woman with her camera ready for more vacation photos. At the first notes of the rehearsal she reeled around, stood stock still with her eyes wide and mouth agape. She slowly inched backward to a seat along the wall and slumped against it with teary eyes. A short while later she was joined by a friend (maybe her sister?), whispering excitedly as they sat and listened. I went over to say hello during a break, letting her know that we are a choir from Texas in America rehearsing for the service later that night. She said, in a Spanish accent, “Do you have this music where you live? Because we do not…we do not have this. I have never heard this. It is so beautiful.” Two lives touched by beauty.

The dominant theme from the day at Duxford was the perils, and heroism, of war. In England, World War II remains a vital piece of current history. This story of this tiny island is filled with conquest and re-conquest piled on top of one another. Hitler’s march toward England was the latest in a series of attempts by foreign invaders to claim England for themselves. The attack stalled when his numerically and materially superior air force was met by the cunning heroism of an outmanned RAF. To lose the air war of the Battle of Britain would be to lose Britain itself, and our world map likely would be different as a result.

Juxtaposed with the history of our Ely Cathedral home- a history of conquest, rebuilding, re-conquest, defeat and victory- the day at Duxford adds another to the multiple layers of meaning from this pilgrimage. So much of human history in this place is about war: World Wars, monarchial power-grabs, theological cleansings or Norman conquests. The Cathedral is a living testament to this tumultuous ebb and flow. And yet there remains the promise that even through this tattered history transcendent moments prevail.

Unlikely heroes emerge in war time saving more lives than they can possibly understand.

Unknown builders, masons, architects reach impossible heights of beauty and design after years of building and failure, success and destruction.

An unlikely group of singers, both young and old, both experienced and green, fill a church half the world away with such voice that strangers from foreign countries stop and stare, mouths gaping, tears filling eyes, and whisper in amazement.

Transcendence prevails in the most surprising ways. Light shines even in the darkest hour. And when it does, when we witness and give witness to these glimpses of God’s own presence, we become partners with God, transformed into transcendence ourselves, offering light to the world.

Tomorrow is a long day: rehearsal and Eucharist in the morning followed by a reception by the Dean and Evensong rehearsal at 2:00, Evensong at 4:00 and an all group special dinner at 7:00. Then we head for home early Monday morning. I will post some pictures and a message one more time tomorrow and then further from the states.

God’s Peace be with you, and through you,
- Jonathan