Busy May

Frederick Leighton, Flaming June

And, at the beginning of June, I can say I've settled in with pleasure.

I'm pretty regular at Christ Church, Walker, and at Common Ground where I've become volunteer volunteer co-ordinator (any enquiries, offers?).

I've been to the Cluny, more than once, the Tyne, and the Free Trade; to the Laing Art Gallery; to Northern Stage (twice) and to the re-opening of the Tyneside Cinema, though not yet to a film. Newcastle is a good place to be.

And I've done my first freelance funeral, to the annoyance of the Anglican Diocese who wish to protect the Anglican brand from boundary crossers.

Specifically I think the diocesan authorities do not want people who are Anglican priests taking non-religious funerals, or people who are not priests claiming to to be so as they take a funeral. From my self-interested perspective it seems to me that the brand they are protecting is not the kind of (and certainly not the quality of) the funeral but is the capacity of the Bishop to control who may and who may not claim to be Anglican. It's about episcopal power.

And I've finished a pamphlet for the MCU about the proposed Anglican Covenant (we're against it). It's been a busy month.

Too many funerals

I've done five funerals in ten days. I've done more, and I know some colleagues do this and more as normal, but it's too many. I'm funeraled-out (and I've two more next week).

Each had their moments, though. It was the first time I've arranged a funeral entirely by email; and the first time the words of committal were entirely drowned out by a piper. (Hint: if you have a piper at a crematorium, keep them outside.)

And taking funerals for people who were nice people, and much loved, is (I find) both emotionally much more demanding and also much more rewarding. Where there is love a funeral can help people forwards, can help them grieve. Where there isn't a funeral just seems to crystalise the barrenness of the relationship, to lock it in place.

One was a small, private, family funeral first thing in the morning followed by a public memorial service later that day attended by, amongst others, the mayor and members of the local authority. (See: keeping vigil.) It was a good service not because of official representation but because the people there genuinely valued the person who'd died. He was a Labour man all his life. A good number of the councillors were Conservatives some of whom, I know, were also close personal friends. The public, impersonal face of politics often does little to show or help the personal reality behind the press releases.

So I need some recovery time. Telling the world here is good - and keeps it private!