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January 10, 2005
Epiphany Carols
Every year, on the Sunday nearest the Epiphany, the Abbey hosts a Carol Service. It is essentially a Deanery service, but it has long attracted a congregation from far wider afield than this corner of Gloucestershire. One of the attractions is the fabulous displays set out in every chapel by a team who strive to create displays representing every guild and activity at the Abbey.
This year's service was held last night, attended by the Bishop of Gloucester and the Archdeacons of Gloucester and of Cheltenham and a congregation of over 700. Deanery clergy and Readers were all robed and the choristers did the Church, the congregation, and the Lord proud.
The Choristers and Musicians display in the Lady Chapel nave.
Nor were recent events overlooked; a special display was created at the foot of a sculpture entitled "Our Lady of Sorrows" to commemorate the Asian tsunami victims. The total number of candles used in all the displays were also carefully calculated to give a representative figure of 50 victims representated by each candle.
The display for the tsunami victims.
The old stone walls rang to the music, accompanied and unaccompanied, of some well-known and some less well-known carols. When it was all over, the congregation remained to walk around and admire, contemplate, and to add their prayers to those represented by the displays. The interior of the Abbey lit by candles is, unfortunately, beyond the scope of my camera, but I give you one more view of the Lady Chapel to consider.
This display in the Lady Chapel Apse represents the Mother's Union. To the right can be seen the "Florentine Cope" recently restored to its full splendour, having originally been created in Florence around 1730.
Posted by The Gray Monk at January 10, 2005 09:55 AM