Hove’s Ecumenical Good Friday Walk of Witness

The weather forecast  - ‘heavy rain all morning’ – did not bode well for today's Good Friday annual Walk of Witness with sister churches in Hove, especially since quite a few of the walkers were elderly. And, indeed, it rained all morning, a constant cold shower of rain from leaden grey skies, right up until we reached the final Station at St Andrew’s Church.

Surprisingly, there was a good turnout. Last year I counted about 150 walkers and this year I recorded 164 as we set off from St John’s Anglican Church at Palmeira Square at 11 am. Mind you, I only saw one four-legged marcher this year, compared to at least four dogs last year.   

Umbrellas were the order of the day as the Rev. Paul Doick of St. John’s switched on his megaphone and, after the first Station of the Cross (I. Jesus is Condemned to Death), and five verses of ‘Take up thy cross, the Saviour said,’ we set off in a long and straggly silent procession along Church Road.

As we crossed Church Road via the pedestrian crossing the traffic was forced to stop for a minute or two. Several impatient motorists sounded their horns; being a driver in Brighton & Hove can be a stressful matter without having to cope with a shuffling conga line of the devout.   

Our first stop was in front of the beautiful All Saints Anglican Church in the Drive, renowned for its lunchtime concerts of classical music. The second Station (II. Jesus Falls) was followed by the hymn ‘Crown him with many crowns,’ the words almost swallowed in the roar of traffic and the endless rain.

Then it was off again, dodging the cars until we reached my own church, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Norton Road. Fr. Kevin Dring led the worship and ended with the ‘Hail Mary’, particularly appropriate since the third Station was ‘III. Jesus Meets His Mother.’ After four verses of ‘Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord’ our sodden procession squelched on to the Central United Reformed Church at Ventnor Villas, a couple of streets away.

There is no traffic island or barrier in front of the church so the photograph of this Station (IV. Simon of Cyrene Helps Carry the Cross’) usually gives a good idea of the size of the procession – but not today, the umbrellas obscure much of the gathering. After a more tuneful offering of ‘My Song is Love unknown’ we continued on to George Street, the main shopping street of Hove.

Truth to tell, George Street isn’t much of a shopping street. It has a handful of high-street chain stores such as Boots the chemists, WH Smith books and Robert Dyas for home and garden supplies. Then there is a bank branch, a couple of pubs, several coffee shops, a few small shops and a great many charity shops, more a statement on the present economic situation than the locals’ love of thrift and bargains. (That said, at least George Street saves us from having to travel into Brighton for the essentials in life, like browsing the latest magazine issues).     

Today, George Street was virtually deserted, shoppers were sheltering indoors. We prayed the next Station (V. Jesus is Stripped) and, in the reflection, pondered on our behaviour to others, including the homeless and destitute. At this, one of the homeless men sheltering in the doorway of the closed-down Phones4U shop loudly applauded (see the extreme left of the photo above). Two verses of ‘O sacred head, sore wounded’ and we were on the move again – just a hundred yards further on to the bottom of George Street where we prayed the next Station (VI. Jesus is Nailed to the Cross) and sang ‘Were you there when they crucified my Lord?’ a hauntingly beautiful  American spiritual.    

Then the Revs. Douglas Holt Paul and Phil Ritchie with cross-bearer Michael Rainbow led us on the final stage to our last stop, St. Andrew's Anglican Church. St. Andrew’s is a fine early Victorian structure surrounded by a churchyard (which includes the grave of Sir George Everest, once Surveyor-General of India, whose name was given to the world’s highest mountain).

The rain had finally stopped and we stood outside the church, among the gravestones, praying the final Station ‘VII. Jesus Dies on the Cross’ and singing ‘When I survey the wondrous cross’  probably Isaac Watts’ best hymn. There is a haunting melancholy to the words, a solemn and aching wonder at the extent of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. The lyrics are over 300 years old but they still have the power to move the spirit.

...Love so amazing, so divine

Demands my soul, my life, my all.

 Then it was hot drinks and food in the parish hall - Deo gratias!

Hove's Ecumenical Walk of Wintness on Good Friday

It was a cool and windy day with scudding clouds and sudden bursts of sunlight. We assembled in front of St John’s Anglican Church at Palmeira Square for the start at 11.00 am. There were over 150 people present - yes, I did a count - the majority being middle-aged and older, but with a substantial number of younger marchers, including some children, infants in wheelchairs - and three dogs.

I presume most of the marchers were Anglican as we began from and halted at three Anglican churches, but the Catholic Church and the United Reformed Church were also represented. I imagine the only thing we had in common is that we were all Christians.- with the exception of our four-legged friends. Mind you, it’s impossible to tell a Christian from appearance alone, I guess the behaviour should be a clue: friendly, kind, loving...so, maybe these well-behaved dogs were recent converts?

Anyway, the Rev. Paul Doick of St. John’s switched on his megaphone and, after the first Station of the Cross we set off in a long and straggly procession along Church Road.

If you have ever seen a ‘crocodile’ line of school children going on an outing, marshalled by their teachers, you will have some idea of our procession. However, it is also fair to say that we were not as disciplined at marching in step, or even walking side by side. On the other hand, we did walk in silence, very conscious that the walk itself was a witness to the public, a very small but important way of saying ‘He is risen, He is risen indeed – Alleluia!’

Our first stop was in front of the old and beautiful All Saints Anglican Church in the Drive.

The Rev. Phil Ritchie, our cross bearer, put down his cross and we were led through the second Station. The format was now well-established and included the Kyrie eleison, a reading, a reflection, prayer and a hymn. A robust and tuneful ‘Crown Him with Many Crowns..’ swelled out.

Then it was off again, dodging the traffic until we reached Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Norton Road.

Fr. Kevin Dring led the worship and ended with the ‘Hail Mary’, particularly appropriate since the third Station was ‘Jesus Greets His Mother.’ By now the scorching sun had overcome the freezing sea breeze and hats were the order of the day, even Fr. Kevin had a nifty tropical bush hat.

The next stop was the Central United Reformed Church at Ventnor Villas.

This was the first time I managed to get a photo of the entire group. Truth to tell, I felt a little awkward, lurking on the edges of the procession, taking many pictures (with a tiny compact camera). I also felt awkward counting the numbers of people present as they passed, I suspect that my flickering gaze and silent mouthing of the numbers must have made me appear like an eccentric, praying hard.

Here, in our fourth Station, we contemplated Simon of Cyrene who helped carry Jesus' cross and thought about the many times we had failed to notice, far less help, those in need.

In George Street, shoppers stopped and stared as we assembled, first in the middle of George Street, then at the bottom, outside a branch of Barclays Bank.

Buskers paused, open-mouthed, struck silent; mothers with pushchairs asked each other what was happening; small children pointed. As we prayed the fifth (Jesus is Stripped) and sixth (Jesus is Nailed to the Cross) Stations, a silence descended on the street. Then we sang that old spiritual ‘Were You There When they Crucified my Lord?’ a simple but powerful reflection that was a favourite of Mahatma Ghandi.

Afterwards, the Revs. Paul and Phil led us past the Tesco superstore to our last stop, St. Andrew's Anglican Church.  

 St. Andrew’s is a fine old Victorian structure surrounded by an ancient churchyard (including the remains of Sir George Everest, once Surveyor-General of India, whose name was given to the world’s highest mountain). We stood outside the church, next to the old tombstones and prayed the final Station, ‘Jesus Dies on the Cross.’

Then, the concluding song ‘When I Survey the Wondrous Cross...’, which is probably Isaac Watts’ best hymn. There is a haunting melancholy to the words, a solemn and aching wonder at the extent of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. The lyrics are over 300 years old but they still have the power to move the spirit.

The procession and prayer over, we walked slowly to the church hall where refreshments and hot cross buns awaited, contemplating the final words of the hymn....  

...Love so amazing, so divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.