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THE CHAIRMAN’S COLUMN We all need friends One of the things life teaches us, is that we all need friends. The Friends of Coventry Cathedral are there in the big moments, and provide support in the difficult moments, in the life of this sacred and “extraordinary place - whose story we can’t ignore”. Andrew Paine Brief Encounter If you had a few minutes on a station platform, in a lift, or at a party, to invite someone to become a Friend, what would you say? It’s the ‘brief encounter’ moment. There are probably three or four things you could say. Firstly, Coventry Cathedral is a quite extraordinary place. The only English City with three Cathedrals. The great Priory Church of St Mary, the only Cathedral demolished during the Tudor Dissolution of the Monasteries. The Medieval St Michael’s the only Cathedral destroyed during the Blitz. The new Cathedral recently voted as ‘Britain’s favourite modern building’. Secondly, Coventry Cathedral stands as an authentic and visible witness to the very warp and weft of the fabric of our faith - renewal and reconciliation. The power and message of reconciliation, which has never been more relevant for our fractured world, is the Cathedral’s story and DNA, exemplified in the iconic Coventry Cross of Nails. Thirdly, Coventry Cathedral needs its Friends, as never before, to provide financial and spiritual support, if it is to maintain its heritage and sustain its life. As a modern Cathedral, Coventry doesn’t enjoy endowments, and there are ‘two’ Cathedrals to maintain (the old and the new). If it is to continue to inspire worshippers and visitors, it must depend on donations, subscriptions, legacies, grants and its trading activities. Lastly, Friends receive as well as give. We are a worldwide group of people who choose to support, and keep in touch with, this holy and ‘extraordinary place’. Membership allows unlimited free access to the Cathedral, a discount at the Cathedral Shop, an invitation to the annual Friends Festival Day and AGM, invitations to social events, talks, outings, regular e bulletins, newsletters and above all, the company of friends. “Coventry – Cathedral of Peace” In my book I have tried to convey something of the debt I owe to others, and the gratitude and exhilaration I felt at being called to share in the two “unique” aspects of ministry of the Cathedral. The international ministry was given to us by the events of history – by the inspired response which discerned God’s call in these events. However, that global outreach was rooted, and given its full meaning, in a team ministry, held together by honesty, affection and regular sharing. History can never be repeated, but perhaps Justin Welby has said more clearly what I tried to identify in this book, namely the changed world in which Coventry has still a unique opportunity. Shortly before the announcement of his elevation, I received a lecture he gave in Zurich on 26 October to a gathering of the Gnomes ! He called it “Repair or Replace – Where do we start among the ruins?”, and used the story of Coventry and the nature of the Cathedral’s response as a lesson for a global society and economy in ruins. He said “The question we need to ask is ‘what can finance do to be socially useful’?. In the same way as the ruins of Coventry Cathedral were turned from a hideous symbol of destruction to a symbol of hope, of resurrection. of peace and a new form of civilisation, so finance can move from being the wreckage of a hubris induced disaster, to retrieving its basic purpose of enabling human society to flourish effectively. There is a need for socially useful purposes for banking and financial services” Welby was speaking to financiers, but his prophetic words are surely true for the whole of that human society which was always the object of the Cathedral’s ministry He ended “One principle seems to me to be clear, we cannot repair what was destroyed in 2008, we can only replace it with something that is dedicated to the support of human society”. I believe he puts his finger on the radically changed world in which we minister – on some of the questions of human society which the Cathedral may be uniquely equipped to ask. We have the prospect of an interesting and exciting Archbishop, one who speaks Coventry’s language! Canon Kenyon Wright A Recollection of Justin Welby in Coventry I'd not long been a Church warden, and was standing in the north aisle behind the pulpit before the 10:30 am Eucharist. Justin began the welcome and notices with something along these lines: "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Justin Welby, the Sub-Dean here." He then paused before continuing, "That's silly; I'm Justin Welby to those who do know me as well. Shall we start again?" My recollection of the wording may be dodgy, but I clearly remember recognising how relaxed he was in what appears superficially to be a very formal atmosphere. Dave Goodall The Secretary, The Friends, Coventry Cathedral, 1 Hill Top, Coventry CV1 5AB Email: secretary@friendsofcoventrycathedral.org.uk Registered Charity Number: 1061176 A CHALLENGE TO COVENTRY TO CREATE A CATHEDRAL QUARTER Speaking to a capacity audience of Friends in the Cathedral Lecture Hall last month, Dr Jonathan Foyle, Chief Executive of the World Monuments Fund (WMF) Britain, said that ‘he had a high regard for Coventry’, but that ‘it continued to ignore its glorious heritage and greatest assets’. Since its Watch listing in 2012, WMF has secured over £350,000, to repair more of the crumbling Ruins of the Old Cathedral, to fund the development of a Tourism and Management plan for the Hilltop and to enable the conservation of Britain’s largest collection of loose medieval glass. ‘What we need’, he said, ‘is a compelling narrative to tell the story of Coventry’s central role in British history. Don’t let’s talk about the City Centre, but the Cathedral Quarter. Our perception is immediately changed by the name. During the 14th and 15th Centuries Coventry was Britain’s fourth City (after London, York and Bristol) and at the heart of Lancastrian lands and power and adjacent to the great the Castles of Warwick and Kenilworth’. ‘Coventry is the only city in the country to have three Cathedrals’. ‘The Parish Church of St Michael was the largest, by area and had the tallest spire, in England. It’s chantry chapels were built from the proceeds of the 14th century trades, including the dyers and weavers of the City’s famed blue cloth, the cappers and the button makers’. ‘Bayley Lane is a remarkable example of an unspoiled medieval street. The Guildhall is arguably the finest surviving guildhall in the country, with a contemporary dynastic tapestry and surviving heraldic stained glass. It was here that Henry VI brought the Court, and Parliament, during the Wars of the Roses in 1455, secure within the ancient walls of the City.’ ‘The hidden story of medieval Coventry is in the glass, which was salvaged from the clerestory of the Old Cathedral before the Blitz. Around 7,000 fragments remain and have been painstakingly catalogued and conserved this summer’. ‘Modern scholarship has recognized that some of the pieces are comparable to the work of Coventry craftsman, John Thornton, England’s greatest 15th Century glazier, who created the great East Window of York Minster’. ‘The next stage’ he said ‘is to reinstate the Coventry Cathedral Quarter, and it’s overlooked assets, as the cultural heart of the City of 300,000 people’. Andrew Paine Amici at Berkswell AMICI (the Latin word for “Friends”) is an informal group of singers founded in 2009, under the direction of Cathedral Organist Kerry Beaumont. Some of the singers are members of the Cathedral’s various choirs and other singers are, or have been, connected with the Cathedral. One member, who used to sing in the Cathedral’s Chapterhouse Choir, regularly travels up from Southampton to sing with Amici. The choir’s objectives are to support the Friends and Cathedral in their outreach to the Diocese, to raise funds, to support the Cathedral Music and to provide an opportunity for leading singers to perform in a small ensemble. Amici’s main programme is ‘Inspiration from Coventry Cathedral’, which is an introduction to the Cathedral Story with music, words and stunning big screen images. The music comprises a capella (ie unaccompanied) works drawn from the English choral repertoire and spans the centuries from Blitheman and Byrd in Tudor times to works by Paul Leddington Wright, Adrian Daffern and Kerry Beaumont himself. The works have been chosen specifically to reflect the history and art of both Cathedrals, and are complemented by readings selected by John Brassington. So far we have taken this programme to churches in Arrow, Batsford, Bedworth, Berkswell, Kineton, Kenilworth, Shottery, Whatcote and Wootton Wawen. This year has seen the launch of a new Advent programme, featuring carols and motets from the famous Coventry Carol to Paul Mealor’s A Spotless Rose, and including Poulenc’s four Christmas motets as well as carols by Britten, Leighton, Sweelinck, Tavener, Praetorius and Eric Whitacre. Amici has also performed at Holy Trinity, Coventry and has sung Evensong in the chapel of Blenheim Palace, as well as giving a number of performances at the Cathedral. If your church, is in the Coventry Diocese, and would be interested in hosting Amici in 2013, please contact Amici’s Honorary Secretary Julie Burt: julie.burt@tiscali.co.uk REMINDER An exhibition of some of the glass can be seen at the Sir John Soane Museum in London until 26th January. 2 7
after I had admired it in an exhibition. It’s a picture of extraordinary beauty and stature. Come and see it in the Deanery! Who is your favourite composer/what is your favourite piece of music? It’s really hard to pick just one. I was taken to hear the Halle orchestra as a child, and I’ve always loved Britten’s ‘Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra’, which was my first concert. As a teenager I enjoyed Prog Rock – and was most excited to find a video of one of my favourite pieces, ‘Ricochet’ by Tangerine Dream, played live in the Cathedral. More recently I’ve come to enjoy the classic choral repertoire, and will be enjoying Gibbons’ ‘This is the Record of John’ at my farewell Evensong in Gloucester. Last summer I went to hear Paul Simon perform his ‘Graceland’ album in Hyde Park – and I’ve just bought tickets for Springsteen in the Ricoh stadium next June! How do you spend your days off? Walking! Oh yes – with a pub lunch tucked into the middle somewhere. How do you plan to develop the relationship between the Cathedral and the Diocese? The first thing is to get to know people across the diocese – I’ve asked to visit all the clergy chapters in my first few months, to hear what the clergy would like to see the cathedral doing for them, and to listen to what they could offer the cathedral. The cathedral needs to be a flexible space, secure enough in its own identity to offer genuine hospitality, but also able to express the character of the whole diocese, so that people genuinely feel it is their home. What role do you see the Friends of Coventry Cathedral playing over the next few years? I hope, a crucial one. The cathedral presents many challenges – relational and physical. There is plenty of scope to strengthen relationships between the cathedral and the city and county, and I hope the Friends might be active in that area, helping everyone to feel that the cathedral is ‘theirs’. And of course the fabric of the building needs a great deal of upkeep, which means a great deal of money – not just to maintain, but also to develop, to imagine new ways of using the two wonderful spaces that we have. I very much hope that the Friends would recognise their own unique role in safeguarding the future of the cathedral at every level. You say that you will be open to invitations for meals - do you have any special culinary likes, or dislikes? Well, you’ll have gathered that I am a person of diverse tastes and interests – I’m not especially keen on bland, and I’m always open to new experiences. Really, it’s the company that counts (mostly!) Finally, what should our prayers be for you? Taking on this new role is a privilege, an honour, an adventure – but it is also really stretching. So, like Solomon, my prayer would be for wisdom. And also for the very practical business of managing two households for a year or so, and then settling into the busyness and bustle of the Coventry city centre, finding that a resourcing and refreshing place, building good and life giving friendships, and maintaining a sense of humour! Perhaps above all to know that I am walking with God, and that together we are discovering the paths that he has set out for us. “The Cross of Nails” by Oliver Schuegraf When Canon Adrian remarked breezily, three years ago, “Gren, you’re the very man to translate Oliver’s book!” I must confess that I was rather in the dark. It had been researched and written during Dr. Oliver Schuegraf’s 4yearsecondment to Coventry Cathedral from the Lutheran Church in Bavaria; the German edition of the book was funded by the Community of the Cross of Nails in Germany (whose continuing kind support has also made the English edition possible). It is about the spirit of reconciliation that motivates the Community of the Cross of Nails and its 160 or so centres around the world. The title of the original German edition spells out the message: ‘Vergebt einander wie Gott Euch vergeben hat’ (Forgive one another, as God has forgiven you). Oliver’s text falls into three main sections: part one is a very readable summary of the historical roots of the CCN and the astonishing developments that occurred in the wake of the destruction of 14th November 1940; in the second part, the reconciliation work carried out by several Cross of Nails Centres is described, highlighting some recent and current projects in specific centres; and in its last section, the author formulates a ‘theology of reconciliation’ out of the examples quoted – offering a practical template, a starting point for each new attempt to bridge a gap of hatred, greed or envy and seek reconciliation. Copies are available via the websites of all good booksellers, or from the Cathedral gift shop. It was a pleasure to have the privilege of translating Oliver’s German text. If performed correctly the translator should leave the reader feeling that he/she is reading the author’s original words. How far I have succeeded in this I cannot tell; but if the book fails to move you, I can only ask you to blame that on me, because Oliver’s original text is intensely moving. Gren Hatton YORK MINSTER, 1 December 2012 'A personal memory of the Installation of The Very Rev Vivienne Faull, a former Sub Dean of Coventry, as the new Dean of York' The towers of the Minster glowed, seen through the bare early December trees as I approached. They appeared to be lit up in expectation; indeed, history was being made here today for the whole Church. Our Vivienne, whom we shall never forget as a breath of fresh air in her work as Canon Pastor in Coventry in the 1990s, who left us to become the first woman Cathedral Dean in the Church of England, in Leicester, and who today would reach the highest position of authority a woman has yet attained in the Church as Dean of York MInster. As you sit waiting you try to absorb the sheer size, the soaring vaulted stone roof, the colours of the great east window behind, the stone screen that is fronted with exquisite gothic canopies over the gilded figures of crowned kings. We stand as the procession enters. First the choirs of York and Leicester, the Chapter of Leicester, Cathedral Deans or other representatives, Bishops of the Church of England. Then the great forces of the archdiocese of York, suffragan bishops and archdeacons, followed by the Archbishop in full splendour of mitre and cope. The procession already fills the long side aisle and the whole of the nave, but there is more to come. Behind another cross and lights came the officers and Chapter of the Minister, and, one step behind them, revelation of the new Dean. Archbishop John Sentamu and Dean Vivienne in conversation. It was explained that an ancient ceremony had taken place in the Chapter House an hour earlier, when the prospective Dean was admitted to the Chapter of York. 'The Letters Patent from Her Majesty The Queen, granting to Vivienne Faull the place and dignity of Dean of the Cathedral and Metropolitan Church of Saint Peter in York were read.' Oaths were sworn on the York Gospels, brought to York in 1018 from Canterbury and dating from the year 1000. The long procession had been accompanied by "How shall I sing that Majesty which angels do admire?' Its rapturous evocation of the heavenly choir and the thousands that stand around resonated with what we were experiencing. There was Vivienne as the culminating point of all this 'majesty', almost a diminutive figure, shyly and courteously approaching, smiling as she always does, slightly bemused, no doubt at being at the end of this hierarchical queue; awed no doubt as well, at the journey she has come to reach this point; but certainly not over-awed. For some reason Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese leader, came into my mind. An absurd comparison, of course, but why was it there? The same quiet tenacity and dignity; and the long debarment of women in the Church has been a form of 'house arrest'; there has been the same long wait, steadfast resolution not to give up, and moral conviction now rewarded. The Evensong that followed underlined what her role will be in York, to foster this daily worship in all its beauty, and the life and mission of this glorious place. The Bishop of Leicester talked of her sterling work in his Cathedral. Her legacy too. It might be the recently found remains of a dead monarch, Richard III. He roguishly suggested that the people of Leicester would be glad to trade these 'relics' to York, if they could keep their Dean. There appeared to be no deal! L-R Canon Margaret Sedgwick, Ken Sedgwick. Dean Vivienne and Canon Tim Pullen In his sermon Archbishop Sentamu spoke of what we were all feeling, the joy somewhat marred by the negative decision of the Synod on women bishops. His news that the Synod would be asked to reconsider next July drew wild applause. After we had sung '"Lo He comes with clouds descending" the moment came for Vivienne to stand at the High Altar and to give her first blessing as Dean. She spoke a few words letting us in a little on how she felt with her customary crisp eloquence and grace; a style of leadership for empowerment, that will perhaps be the gift that women's ministry will bring to the Church. As she descended into the nave at the end of the retiring procession, applause began that rippled through the vast crowd along the nave to the West Door. In the streets outside it fused with the celebrations of the St Nicholas Fair. Denis Baylis 6 3
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