After visiting what was once St. Paul's church (and now a somewhat upmarket-looking bar), we delved deeper into the Jericho district of Oxford, and a polite young man directed us towards St. Barnabas church.
Being inside St. Barnabas church was an amazing experience for both my (Anglican) friend and I, because it's now becoming increasingly more difficult to encounter High Church Anglicanism.
With its high altar, crosses, and many religious images, this Anglican church wasn't too different from the Traditionalist (pre-Vatican II) Catholic churches that I attend.
Overall, I felt quite at home with all the images of saints:
the Stations of the Cross:
the elevated pulpit:
the ornate arches and altar area design:
And, of course, the crucifix:
As might be expected, I thought that this High Church Anglican interior put most (sadly bare) post-Vatican II Catholic churches to shame.
While walking round the church, without any Service taking place, an organ was masterfully being played, which added to the grandeur and solemnity of the setting.
But what else had made us seek out St. Barnabas church?
Well, it's commonly viewed as being the model for the High Anglican church that Sue Bridehead attends in Thomas Hardy's classic, Jude the Obscure.
For me, Jude the Obscure is the most harrowing novel ever written in English language, a tragic story of how one man's academic and religious dreams are smashed by systematic institutional boundaries, with his whole life descending into a gradual, complete disillusionment process.
The legendary late cricket commentator, John Arnott, believed that Jude the Obscure was the greatest ever novel written in English. By comparison, I would say that it competes with Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles and D.H. Lawrence's The Rainbow for such an honour.
No comments:
Post a Comment