Grace Cathedral

Dear Friends,

All week I have been listening to Dean Emeritus Alan Jones… I’ve been listening to Alan singing. Today we are celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. As a boy, on June 2, 1953, Alan sang at her coronation in Westminster Abbey. The recording of the music at that event has been inspiring me.

Perhaps Alan has told you about his memories of that day. It was an impossibly grand occasion. I love his stories about the stirring music and the elegant nobility who were there. They gave each of the choristers a special meal ticket, but Alan was too shy to get in the line for food. I can imagine doing the same thing as a child.

Although our buildings may seem large, the world of cathedrals is much smaller than you might think. We are part of a global family of Anglican and other cathedrals, and there are many invisible ties that connect us.

This summer, Heidi and I will be going on a cathedral tour of England and France. We will be learning from leaders about every aspect of church life but focusing especially on how they have moved programs online and greet visitors. This is a moment of historical change, as the time of Gutenberg’s Bible, and we have a lot to learn from each other.

We plan to visit Chartres Cathedral with our Honorary Cathedral Canon Lauren Artress. We will learn more about the global practice of walking the labyrinth and its modern rebirth here at Grace Cathedral.

We will also spend time in London and Paris with our 2022 Artist in Residence, Lee Mingwei. You can see a recent project that he was working on at the Metropolitan Museum of New York on YouTube. I think you are going to enjoy meeting Lee Mingwei very much. I am confident that after all that we have been through with COVID, he will renew our spirits here.

As we travel, Heidi and I will record videos and share photographs and stories, so please stay tuned to share what we are learning as we travel. In every holy place we go, we will be praying for you!

Love,
Malcolm

The Very Rev. Malcolm Clemens Young, ThD
Dean of Grace Cathedral