A Gibraltar Easter

Our Lady of Europe
The Easter celebrations in the Cathedral in Gibraltar had a couple of significant ecumenical dimensions.

First of all, I was welcomed on Holy Saturday to the Shrine of Our Lady of Europe by Fr Charles Azzopardi, from the RC diocese of Gibraltar. I was accompanied by Fr Michael Wagstaff, the Naval Chaplain in Gibraltar.

Fr Azzopardi, Fr Wagstaff
The shrine has a fascinating history. In 711 General Tariq Ibn Ziyad led his Moorish troops across the straits which separate Africa from Iberia. (Gibraltar actually means in Arabic, "Mountain of Tariq" (jabal ṭāriq). He built a mosque at the southernmost part of the peninsula in thanksgiving. When Moorish occupation of Gibraltar ended in 1309, King Ferdinand IV of Castille converted the ancient mosque into a Christian shrine and dedicated the continent to the Mother of Our Lord, under the title, Our Lady of Europe. The present statue dates from 1462. The feast of Our Lady of Europe is observed on our Diocesan Calendar on 9 May. Interestingly, in recent years, with Saudi Arabian money, a new mosque has been built on this southernmost point of Europe. The photo below shows the minaret.


Later that night as we prepared for the Solemn Vigil of Easter, I learned that the Paschal Candle was a gift from the Roman Catholic Cathedral to ours. This is a long-standing custom, and a gracious ecumenical gesture on this most holy of feasts.


The Easter celebrations included baptism and confirmations. The question at the heart of the rite of Christian Initiation is always a moving one, but it seems to take on more power at Easter, when each candidate is asked individually, "Is this your faith?" To which they respond, "This is my faith!".


Music at the Cathedral is of a high standard and is an important dimension in the liturgy, as is the ceremonial of the Eucharist which is served by a very dedicated and skilled group of acolytes who clearly love their ministry.

The choir and servers, with the Dean and other clergy after the Easter Eucharist

Comments

  1. Anonymous31 March 2016 at 07:45

    It's good to see familiar sights and faces again! Jane :-)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Farewell to the Diocese in Europe

Image
Deacon Frances and I packed up our office yesterday and turned over our official files, emails and equipment. Thus a close working together for 22 years comes to an end. So it is hard to believe that today, St David's day, a new chapter begins, after 44 years of stipendiary ministry, 22 years as deacon then priest and 22 as a bishop.  Here are just a few memories from the last couple of months...   But now it is time to begin a new chapter.  O God, by whose command the order of time runs its course: forgive our impatience, perfect our faith and, while we await the fulfilment of your promise, grant us to have a good hope because of your Word,  even Jesus Christ our Lord. (St Gregory Nazianzus, 330 - 390)
Read more

Archbishop of Canterbury's Pentecost Letter: A European Consequence

Image
In his Pentecost letter, the Archbishop of Canterbury warned of certain consequences for provinces of the Anglican Communion which have failed to stand by the three moratoria . (No authorisation of blessings services for same-sex unions; no consecrations of bishops living in same-sex relationships; and no bishop authorising any ministry within the diocese of another bishop without explicit permission). One consequence would be that representatives from such provinces w ould not be able to participate in the formal international interchurch dialogues of the Communion. One of those dialogues is the Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council ( AOCICC ), the official instrument set up to deepen the relationship of communion established in 1931 between the Anglican Communion and the Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht . As the member Churches of the Union of Utrecht are all European, the AOCICC is effectively a European body. (I am one of the members, appointe
Read more

Advent in Helsinki: Mary, the Church's calling, and the One who brings us out of darkness to light

Image
Outside the Cathedral in Helsinki Yesterday, 8 December, was a very full Advent day, with activities redolent of the themes of the season. It was, of course, the Feast of the [Immaculate] Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary when we contemplate the mystery of the one who was prepared, through grace, to become the Mother of the Redeemer.  At the Vallila Help Centre (above, with Coordinator Eeva and Fr Tuomas) St Ambrose of Milan (whose feast we also celebrated this past week) was the first to refer to the Blessed Virgin as the Mother of the Church,  Mater Ecclesiae,  a title which helps us consider not only her role in giving birth to the Redeemer from whom the Church itself was born, but also how in her own life she responded to God's call in faith and love, as the Church today is also called to respond to the needs of the world.  It was with this in mind that I was so moved by a visit to the Ukraine Vallila Help Centre, a project supported by USPG and this diocese, which provides
Read more