The great Anglican divine and poet George Herbert (1593-1633) penned the following poem about the Blessed Virgin Mary, called “Anagram.”
How well her name an Army doth present,
In whom the Lord of hosts did pitch his tent!
Short and succinct, it says so very much. It’s called “Anagram” because the word “Army” can be rearranged into the word “Mary.” One online analysis suggests that the power of Mary is like that of an army. So, army is “a reference to the vast number of people who have been saved through her intercession” (https://allpoetry.com/poem/8472553-Anagram-by-George-Herbert). Church tradition has been inclined to find a connection between the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament and Mary, a kind of “Ark” in the New Testament, for Mary bore the Son of God.
In the Anglican tradition (as in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions), we have a high view of the communion of saints. Not only do we believe that they exist in the nearer presence of God, but we pray for them; and they pray for us. Why should this be surprising? Wouldn’t we ask a dear friend to pray for us in a difficult moment? The communion of saints is bound up with us who are still in our earthly pilgrimage. And as the Theotokos (God-bearer) and Mother of God, Mary is known as the “queen of heaven.” Why would we not beseech the intercession of Mary?
Devotion to Mary has always had a place within the Anglican tradition, although it was somewhat suppressed in the immediate years following the English Reformation. Within the Anglo-Catholic tradition of Anglicanism, Mary has always been revered in various ways. The rosary is prayed in many churches. Statues of Mary can be found. Marian antiphons are included as part of worship. In fact, at Good Shepherd, we begin every Morning and Evening Prayer with a Marian devotion (either the Angelus or Regina coeli in Eastertide). Our Tower bells peal the typical series of bells (three sets of three, and then nine) as we recite these devotions. A plaque in our Tower entrance notes that an electric mechanism was installed at some point to ring the Angelus bells in memory of the Incarnation. (We’re currently trying to find a decent mechanism to play the Angelus bells after the original mechanism was removed a few years ago.) On a regular basis at Good Shepherd, our recitation of the Angelus reminds us of the tactile nature of the Incarnation. And this is only fitting, since Mary is the one “In whom the Lord of hosts did pitch his tent!”
At Good Shepherd, we have a beautiful Lady Chapel, in honor of Our Lady, with a lovely statue on the wall. A rack of votive candles (of the color blue, which is Mary’s color) stands in front, and at the end of some days, when I enter the church for the evening Office, I find that some unknown visitor has popped into the church and lit some candles, asking for Mary’s prayers. On the north side of the pulpit in the church, there is a Shrine to Our Lady of Walsingham, remembering the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to a medieval nobleman in the 11th century at Walsingham in Norfolk, England. To this day, there is a shrine (jointly shared by Anglicans and Roman Catholics) in that little village. I have often imagined Mary’s persistent intercession (like an army!) anchoring Good Shepherd, Rosemont, in its roughest moments. The very invocation of her name has great power, as George Herbert so wisely noted.
May is traditionally the month of Mary. Flowers begin to bloom, and we get a taste and scent of new life springing up from the earth. We’re reminded of fertility and abundance. We can imagine that as Mary conceived a child by the power of the Holy Spirit in the most unexpected way, so new life springs among us in surprising ways. May is a time to celebrate Mary. It’s also a time to rejoice in the manifold ways in which God gives flourishing to our lives in times when they seem as dead as the cold of winter.
To celebrate the month of May and the Blessed Virgin Mary, we are hosting a special concert on Friday, May 3 at 7 p.m. in the church, featuring Ruth Cunningham, a marvelous musician who was a founding member of the famed women’s vocal ensemble Anonymous 4. Ruth, who sings ancient chants and improvises new ones, will sing and accompany herself on harp. For some of the chants, she will be joined by our own Robert McCormick on the organ in joint improvisations. You will not want to miss this concert! Not only will you hear glorious Marian music, but you will have a chance to make a donation to support the Rosemont Community Retreat House, which is a major outreach ministry of this parish. It is also a considerable source of revenue (through donations) that supports the overall ministry of Good Shepherd. To enable this ministry to flourish into the future through outreach into the community and wider Church, as well as to further the financial health of the parish, we need your support of the retreat house. And one way you can help is to attend next Friday’s concert. Even better, invite a friend. You can learn more about Ruth and hear her music-making by visiting her website. You can purchase a ticket to the concert online or at the door. The concert will also be livestreamed to Facebook and to our parish website. I hope to see you on Friday, May 3, but before then at church on Sunday!
O God, who by the Resurrection of thy Son, Jesus Christ, didst vouchsafe to give gladness unto the world; grant, we beseech thee, that we being holpen by the Virgin Mary his mother, may attain unto the joys of everlasting life, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Father Kyle