I had the privilege of presiding at Mass today in the Catholic Church where my sister and brother-in-law belong; the Parish Priest is on holiday at the moment. We celebrated the First Martyrs of the Church at Rome, honouring those who gave their lives in the bloody persecution of the Emperor Nero in 64 AD. I used the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer 1) which is less familiar perhaps to modern Catholics than Prayers 2 & 3. It is long, but those of us who were there had come to pray and worship – and it was a lovely day. It has two lists of saints all connected with the early years of the Faith in Rome, and the Prayer as a whole demands of the Celebrant careful and attentive articulation if it is not to sound rushed and incomprehensible. But prayed quietly and thoughtfully, by people and priest, it takes one back to those early years and to the brave people who chose an awful death rather than deny the Lord Jesus Christ. Among my most special moments I include serving a Mass in the crypt of St Peter’s, Rome, where the priest used the Roman Canon. Now that was something else, as they say.
About Scott Anderson
Formerly an Anglican priest (ordained 1975) received into the Catholic Church in February 2012, and ordained to the Diaconate on 27th July 2013. I took early retirement, and divide my time between London and northern France. I am deeply committed to the Ordinariate as a gift of the Holy Spirit in the search for unity. Like many Ordinariate members I feel a personal gratitude to Pope Emeritus Benedict, together with loyalty to our Holy Father, Pope Francis. My blog tries to make a small contribution to the growth of the Ordinariate by asking questions (and proposing some answers) about the 'Anglican Patrimony'.
I have always been fascinated by the whole issue of growth and decline, and therefore concerned for appropriate means of evangelisation in western Europe. I believe that the Holy Spirit is constantly renewing the People of God and that we must be open to him.
On Saturday 19th October 2013, I was ordained to the Priesthood at Most Precious Blood, Borough, by the Most Revd Peter Smith, Archbishop of Southwark, for the service of the Ordinariate of our Lady of Walsingham. I continued to serve the Ordinariate group and Parish at Most Precious Blood until the end of 2014. Subsequently, I helped in the care of the Ordinariate Groups at Hemel Hempstead and Croydon, and in the Archdiocese of Southwark, until the beginning of September 2015. With the agreement of my Ordinary, , the Bishop of Amiens appointed me Administrator of the Parish of Notre Dame des Etangs (Pont Remy) in Picardie, France.
After nine years as parish priest, with wonderful and supportive parishioners, I decided that the time had come to retire and return to the UK. A nasty accident four years ago and contracting COVID has left me physically rather feeble! I shall be ever grateful for the years in France, a wonderful ending to the years of parish ministry. So here I am back in the UK, taking a long rest, setting up home, coping with all the new Safeguarding procedures - and wondering what next.
Ordinariate Pilgrim 