Dean's Blog

Easter Eve

Easter EveOn Easter Eve we used readings on the theme of water and baptism and for the second part of the service gathered round the font for the renewal of baptism promises. I am beginning to collect a series of disaster stories relating to the lighting of the Paschal candle. This time the wick of the candle had fallen down the middle of the candle. A few years ago, with the Bishop of Rochester present, someone tried to light a taper from a very hot charcoal barbecue fire and it just melted in their hands!

We remembered the victims of the Al Dana Dhow tragedy in which 58 people died seven years ago in Bahrain, which the press were much more interested in than the fact of it being the Easter Eve and a press photographer who hasn’t learnt discretion in his career wanted a photo op in the early part of the service.