Welcome!

We extend a special welcome to those who are single, married, divorced, widowed, gay, confused, filthy rich, comfortable, or dirt poor.

We extend a special welcome to wailing babies and excitable toddlers.

We welcome you whether you can sing like Pavarotti or just growl quietly to yourself.

You’re welcome here if you’re ‘just browsing,’ just woken up or just got out of prison.

We don’t care if you’re more Christian than the Archbishop of Canterbury, or haven’t been to church since Christmas ten years ago.

We extend a warm welcome to those who are over 60 but not grown up yet, and to teenagers who are growing up too fast.

We welcome keep-fit mums, football dads, starving artists, tree-huggers, latte-sippers, vegetarians, junk-food eaters.

We welcome those who are in recovery and those who are still addicted.

We welcome you if you’re having problems, are down in the dumps, or don’t like organized religion.

We offer a welcome to those who think the Earth is flat, work too hard, don’t work, can’t spell, or are here because granny is visiting and wanted to come to the Cathedral .

We welcome those who are inked, pierced, both, or neither.

We offer a special welcome to those who could use a prayer right now, had religion shoved down their throats as kids, or got lost in the city center and wound up here by mistake.

We welcome pilgrims, tourists, seekers, doubters… and YOU!

– Welcome sign at Coventry Cathedral, origin unknown.

 

 

 

Anthony Ruff, OSB

Fr. Anthony Ruff, OSB, is a monk of St. John's Abbey. He teaches liturgy, liturgical music, and Gregorian chant at St. John's University School of Theology-Seminary. He is widely published and frequently presents across the country on liturgy and music. He is the author of Sacred Music and Liturgical Reform: Treasures and Transformations, and of Responsorial Psalms for Weekday Mass: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter. He does priestly ministry at the neighboring community of Benedictine sisters in St. Joseph.

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Comments

6 responses to “Welcome!”

  1. jeff armbruster

    Gotta love it. Coventry was founded by a Benedictine. It seems that it remains welcoming to this day.

    Reply
    1. James Anderson Murphy

      @jeff armbruster:
      “All visitors who call are to be welcomed as if they were Christ…” RB:53

      Amen.

      Reply
  2. Mary Wood

    We welcome, (or maybe they don’t?), the blind, the lame, the deaf and those in any way disabled.

    Reply
  3. Edward Morris

    “You’re welcome here if you’re ‘just browsing,’” … but there’s a charge for admission!

    Prayer is free though.

    Reply
  4. Tony Barr

    Many moons ago, in the early 1960s shortly after its consecration, I was walking through the Cathedral and ventured beyond the ropes to inspect the choir stalls. An officious little guy with the nametag ‘Verger’ scolded me, ‘You cannot be here, this is the sanctuary. It is consecrated ground. I stared at him and said, ‘But I have consecrated feet’. More recently, in 2012, I was in the Cathedral for Evensong, was greeted by a multitude of smiling faces, got into animated conversation with the Archdeacon (who was also strolling around), and then invited to sit up in the choir stalls for Evensong right across from the console of that mighty Harrison organ. As a global shrine to reconciliation, the Cathedral has grown in stature throughout the world.

    Reply
  5. Gerard Flynn

    Until I reached the reference to Coventry I had given Anthony the credit for the wit, wisdom and welcome (to Pray Tell) of the piece. Like is meeting like when this post appears on this blog. I love it.

    Reply

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