Feast Day

After Sunday school this morning, I was walking with the kids past the Sacristy (the room where all the wonderful things are kept) and noticed the air was all cloudy. Then I saw someone holding the thurible (see stained glass image). This was my first experience with them using incense.  Supposedly they used to do it more, but some protested.  Puts a bit of a strain on some with their breathing, I imagine.

If you came in off the street today, you might mistake it for Catholic, if you didn't know any better.  And honestly, in Confirmation class, we were told that the Anglican church is the Catholic church in the English-speaking world. Get your head around that if you've been brought up in a traditional Reformed-Protestant manner.

Moving on.

When the procession came down the aisle, they had the incense burning. Lovely.  Then when the rector got to the altar, he waved it over the choir, altar and organist...also faced the congregation and did the same.  Repeated the process before Communion.

And the scent.  Glorious.

Today we were celebrating the Feast Day of St. Michael the Archangel and all of the other angels as well.  The rector made a remark about the angels in Revelation loving incense, and I found this verse.

"And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel."~Revelation 8:4