On a Sunday full as ever with last-minute liturgy changes and uncertain weather, and difficult questions arising from current events, I had a moment of quiet grace, brought to me by one of our tiny parishioners.
As a thurifer, I spend a bit of time outside the church walls during services, preparing the coals, and loading the thurible. The accompanying smoke often attracts the curious.
This time, it was L, on his way to Sunday school. Very polite, he said, “that’s smoky—is it gonna spark?”
I explained that we safely disposed of spent incense and coals under the heavy in-ground grate he was inspecting near the side entrance to the sacristy, the grate protecting the coals from wayward inflammables.
He joined me on the landing, pointing at my thurible. “Is it hot?”
“Oh, very,” I said, “It has to be, to make the incense melt and smoke.”
He asked, “what’s it for?”
“Well, we believe that the smoke helps take our prayers to heaven,” I responded.
He took this in quite earnestly, but, “It doesn’t look very hot.”
I assured him it was as hot as the barbeque his parents might make on a summer day.
He again asked, “But it’s not gonna spark, is it?” And I answered, “no, not so’s it’ll hurt anybody.”
He very sweetly thanked me, then scampered off to class. And I thought… maybe it will spark something else.
Lisa Churchill is a thurifer and verger.
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