Sunday in Bath

The choir has arrived at the historic city of Bath. Situated on the Avon River, Bath is widely known for its Roman baths. Nourished by natural hot springs, Bath spa offered the Romans a perfect place to set up camp in 43AD. Much later, it became popular as a spa town during the Georgian era, which led to a major expansion that left a heritage of exemplary Georgian architecture crafted from Bath Stone.

We were singing at the historic Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul, or more well known as Bath Abbey. We will be singing evensong on Saturday and Sunday, as well as Sunday morning services. The Abbey, completed in 1132, has been left to ruin and rebuilt many times, with a major restoration in 1860 by Sir George Scott. It's walls are 80% windows, which give the Abbey a light, airy feel. The Abbey is built in a cruciform, which was not a common building style at the time, but being a cross formation, has been copied by many other churches since.

The choir did the choral matins in the morning and a mid-afternoon evensong. We filled the cathedral with Healey Willan's O How Glorious and ended the day with Rise Up My Love. We experienced the traditional choral matins which focused on the passage from Matthew 14 reading of the feeding of the 5000. The bishop of the Diocese of Bath and Wells offered a moving reflection inspired by Jesus's words "Let none of it be wasted."
The vicar theologian skillfully bridged the message and the prayer, inviting the congregation to meditate in silence when they believed times in their life which there was waste.

After the service we were free to go on our own to explore the city of Bath. Next we are off to Oxford for a few days to take in the sights, with a quick return to London on Tuesday.

Glen Warren
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