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Letters from 16 to 22 March 2009

Like all letters to the editor everywhere, these letters are the opinions of the writers and not Anglicans Online. We publish letters that we think will be of interest to our readers, whether we agree with them or not. If you'd like to write a letter of your own, click here.

Helpe them

READING YOUR MONDAY LETTER about a basket for food donations at the font reminded me of Dean John Colet's version of the Lord's Prayer, which is in the Preface of my old school prayer and hymnbook. It's his additional clause to the fourth petition which has always intrigued me. I have added it to my own saying of the Lord's Prayer for the last twenty seven years:

The Seven Peticyons of the Pater-Noster

O father in heuen, holowed be thy name amonge men in erthe, as yt is among angels in heuen.
O father, lette thy kyngedom come: and reygne amonge us men in erthe, as thou reygnest amonge thy angels in heuen.
O father, thy will be fulfylled, that is to say, maks us to fulfyy thy wyll here in erthe, as thy angels do in heuen.
O father, gyue us our dayly sustinaunce always and helpe us, as we gyue and helpe them that haue need of us.
O father, forgyue us our synnes done to the, as we do forgyue them, that trespas agaynste us.
O father, lette us not be ouercome with temtacyon.
But, o father, delyuer us from all euylles. AMEN

The Very Revd Keith Johnson and Mrs. Pat Johnson
Deanery of Linton, Diocese of Ely
West Wratting, Cambridge, UK
16 March 2009

A thousand words

The Revd Cristopher Robinson
Church of the Epiphany
Kingsville, Texas, USA
16 March 2009

My Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, right or wrong

Your footnote in the March 15th front page notes:

*"My country, right or wrong" is a quote attributed to Carl Schurz (1829-1906) and often used to be descriptive of blind patriotism; if applied to parish life and understood in its correct context, though it's much better than it sounds at first." Schurz actually said this: "My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right."

While this may be true, he was obviously influenced by a much earlier famous toast by Stephen Decatur at the time of the Tripolitan Wars. He said:

"In matters of foreign affairs, my country may she ever be right, but right or wrong, my country, my country."

Just thought you should know.

Christopher Hart
St. Mary's, Wayne, Pennsylvania
Rosemont, Pennsylvania, USA
17 March 2009

Wash their mouths out with soap?

May I crave indulgence to respond to Randy Mills' interesting letter?

I was particularly interested by the reference to "A.... song of sweetness".

Some years ago I worshipped in a church which adapted to the modern rite by singing this hymn on the last ordinary Sunday of the year before the start of Lent. It was, however, omitted from the New English Hymnal. (This tome makes some odd choices, such as omitting any proper hymns for some feasts such as S. Stephen's day.) I understand that the publishers now propose a supplementary volume in which the farewell to the A-word will be included.

In my present place of worship, we seriously shot ourselves in the foot over the A-word a decade ago, when the then curate chose "Let all mortal flesh" as communion hymn on Ash Wednesday, the slow and solemn tune blinding him to the triple A-word in the last line!

Alan Harrison
S. Stephen's, Wolverhampton
Walsall, West Midlands, UK
alantharrison@btinternet.com
18 March 2009

Use the press, Luke

John Morrison's letter (last week) is an extraordinary piece of speculation if he is actually serious. Is he suggesting that it would be better if the Archbishop of Canterbury should be "off-limits" to journalists. Journalists keep the church honest because they (and not archbishops) root out much of what is toxic behabviour and practice in the Anglican Church. Archbishops generally don't become Archbishops because they are reformers.
I would remind John of the scandals in the Boston Archdiocese (when Cardinal Law and the clegy did little to address clergy abuse in the Catholic Church) - and also the excesses of some tele-ministries e.g. PTL. Without the intervention of journalists, intolerable situations would have dragged on interminably and indefinitely.
Thank God for journalists who have courage and conviction.

And, I certainly don't see in Archbishop Williams another John Henry Newman. John should read Faber's excellent book "Oxford Apostles" to see how Newman used the British Press of his day.

Michael O'Shane
St Paul's Canterbury/Hurlstone Park.
Sydney, AUSTRALIA
littlemick40@gmail.com
19 March 2009

Earlier letters

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