The Holy Eucharist
Bishop Thomas Ken (1637-1711)
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A meditation by the Bishop of Bath And Wells on the Lord's Supper in the 1662 Book Of Common Prayer.
The Royal Banquet
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Come To My House: St Michael's Church, Helston, Cornwall |
THOU art invited, O my soul! to a royal banquet; put on thy best apparel, then, for the King, that bids thee, will take great notice of thy dress. It is the marriage-supper of the great King; let us then get on the wedding-garment, that we may go out to meet the bridegroom of my soul. Take care that thou appear like a guest, lest the Lord of the feast should look upon thee as an intruder.
But come away, all things are ready; fly to meet thy Bridegroom, thy beloved, who not only invites thee with all the soft expressions of his love, but is so earnest for thy company, that he bids his messengers "compel them to come in."
Surely thou dost not stand doubtful whether thou shalt go or not, nor make excuses to put it off till another time! Art thou sure thou shalt be again invited? And after thou hast rejected this solemn invitation, and refused thy company to the great Master of the feast, who does now so passionately desire it, art thou sure to be accepted another time? May not these delays provoke the slighted King to cry out in his anger, that "thou which wert in vain bidden, shall not taste of my supper?"
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Unabridged, from "The Retired Christian, Exercised In Divine Thoughts And Heavenly Meditations", By Thomas Ken (1637-1711), Bishop of Bath And Wells.
Ken was Chaplain to King Charles II, who appointed him to the See of Bath And Wells in 1684. Although critical of James II's membership of the Roman Catholic Church, fearing it would lead to loss of sovereignty, after the Revolution brought in William of Orange in James's place Ken refused to break his oath of allengiance to James, and was forced into retirement.
Of a modestly Catholic tendency himself, Ken was unmarried and something of an ascetic. He wrote many Sermons, and was a hugely popular preacher. Ken also composed many delightful prayers and also some well-loved poetry, including the morning hymn "Awake My Soul, And With The Sun".
See more on my Inspiring People page, and Ken's Prayers and Hymns.
