Sorry to be "that person", but basing an event around a food containing three common allergens (wheat, milk and egg) risks being somewhat non-inclusive.
Wait til you hear about the (imo bizarre*) number of church/Christian activities based around bacon sandwiches...
*I am a big fan of bacon sandwiches but churches being more inclusive with food choices is more important
Interesting point about the dearth of Saturday evening vigil services in Anglican churches. I've heard of a few which have attempted this, but nothing recently. I daresay there are one or two, though, and maybe another Shipmate has some up-to-date knowledge.
One church in an Anglo-Catholic urban benefice of three churches tried having the main Sunday Mass on Saturday evening, to allow the one-and-only priest then available to celebrate two on Sundays without having to rush, but this was apparently not met with any enthusiasm.
@Pomona is quite right about places with several services on Sunday feeling like separate communites. That is certainly the case at our place where there are three Masses, a Vigil and two on Sunday. They are settled congregations and people mostly don't change the Mass they attend. It has to be said that the most active members of the church tend to attend the main Mass with music and families.
@Pomona is quite right about places with several services on Sunday feeling like separate communites. That is certainly the case at our place where there are three Masses, a Vigil and two on Sunday. They are settled congregations and people mostly don't change the Mass they attend. It has to be said that the most active members of the church tend to attend the main Mass with music and families.
Yes, each of the Sunday services at our Cathedral has its own distinct community. Only the children and caregivers service is specifically tailored to a particular group. The others have their own distinctive and I think people make choices based on their own preferences.
Each service congregation is as large as many parish churches.
But we are a Cathedral so it seems to work.
In a smaller community I agree with so much of what others have said here.
And we can only do our best in our own churches to offer something appropriate to that setting.
The congregation I attend is inclusive. We have 90 year olds and 9 month olds worshipping together. While we do have a children's room available during a service, it is interesting how many of the young parents wish to keep their children with them through the whole service. As one older person told me when we first started attending services there--with kids, then--they loved seeing the kids among the circle (our sanctuary is in the round). We have had young kids take worship leader positions as they grow. I think the youngest chalice bearer was 11 at the time. Middle school kids often assist with the distribution of the elements during the Eucharist. BTW, there is no age for first communion. As soon as a kid reaches for the host, he or she is communed. Our organist teaches both organ and piano. There have been a number of her young students play either a prelude, or an interlude, sometimes a postlude depending on the skills of the student. Here, we do make an exception and applaud the music of the student. We sometimes use an African drum as part of the service A number of the kids have stayed after service to learn the drum and have played with their instructor in a following service.
For us, it is not about a family service exclusively but how we include the family in the service.
Once our pastor asked the kids in confirmation when they felt being part of the church family the most; He was very surprised when to a person, they all said it was our church potlucks because that was when they would meet adults they did not know who would come to sit at their table--no kids tables anywhere.
That model of training is the best way we've found for retaining children and youth in the congregation as they grow up. If they're allowed to do "real work" as soon as they're capable, work that matters (and not "makework" suitable for bored youth groups!), it seems to me they feel both valued and needed--which they are!--and that encourages them to stick around and mature in their faith.
We are lucky in having a well-designed modern building, though it’s quite small - the main church holds about 70 people I think. At the back of the main church are retractable wooden screens which open out into the hall, so each area can be used separately. We used to have a separate Sunday School in the hall area and just open the screens for larger events such as Easter Day, but for some time (I can’t remember how long but at least since Covid) we’ve just kept the screens open, so everyone is visible. Some children prefer to sit with their parents in church, but most of the children and some of their parents tend to stay more in the hall area, where they can do activity sheets related to the readings, colour, draw or write anything of their choice, build with Lego or whatever they like. They tend to drift in and out of the church area and join in with any songs they like.
Before the final blessing they are always invited to come up to the front and share what they’ve been doing. Three of them usually write their own prayers to read out, often interesting and perceptive. One child nearly always draws dinosaurs. One of the older ones usually helps the very youngest.
Two of the older ones have sports events to attend on some Sundays so we’re aware that they need to go up to communion before everyone else so they can dash off straight after.
Four of the regular children have been baptized over the past two years (i.e. not as babies); two of those and two others have asked to be confirmed at the end of this year, alongside four adults in the congregation.
Our church has grown slightly since Covid. I think the flexibility is one of the reasons for this.
I was looking at the websites of a few churches I used to know and noticed a predominance of occasions for eating, not as one-off social events or add-ons such as refreshments after a meeting, but as a focal point for ( part of) the community, a deliberate opportunity to engage both socially and spiritually.
One of these churches is in an inner-city area, so I wondered if the church is in fact helping those who cannot afford to eat well, or maybe do not have cooking skills or lack cooking facilities.
Messy Church arrangements normally incorporate a meal.
Another church has moved its midweek communion to late morning, followed by lunch, followed by a study group.
A meal can be a very inclusive activity. It also facilitates conversation which might not otherwise occur.
Another person pioneered the building up of relationships with individuals in a small town by purposefully hanging around in a pub and a cafe on a regular basis in order to get to know individuals. He became someone they looked to for support in times of crisis. He eventually opened a cafe in a church hall to extend this work.
New ways of being / doing church? Food for thought?
I've heard of a place in the Sheffield Diocese which has some sort of *Breakfast Church* as its one and only Sunday service - there are other churches in the benefice offering different styles of worship.
The service includes communion, though it's not clear whether this happens every Sunday, and is reported to have a mixed congregation of 30 or so most weeks.
I think @Puzzler is right about the beneficial effects of shared meals, especially in deprived inner-city UPA churches.
There are quite a few places offering *Cafe Church* in Our Town, usually (as you say) on a monthly basis. The church I mentioned earlier may be unusual insofar as *Breakfast Church* on Sundays is their only service each week.
Shared meals, outside the main service, but perhaps following on from it (again, on a monthly basis) are also common around here. We have one at Our Place on an occasional basis, and our monthly Saturday *Community Cafe* offers tasty refreshments at a modest price. I did once suggest making the refreshments free of charge, but with donations invited, to test the water as it were. The reaction was similar to that which I would have received, had I suggested introducing the worship of Mithras...
Rev Son officially started his ministry in a coffee shop in a planned community outside St Louis, Mo called New Town. Small shop, but very active community. He still makes a mean latte.
Wait til you hear about the (imo bizarre*) number of church/Christian activities based around bacon sandwiches...
*I am a big fan of bacon sandwiches but churches being more inclusive with food choices is more important
Food that "everybody" can eat (no gluten, no dairy, no nuts, no meat, no fish / seafood etc.) is unlikely to be food that many people want to eat. I think one does better on food inclusivity to have a range of foods rather than one all-inclusive dish (and a range of foods is more likely to accommodate more people's taste preferences as well).
We have an annual event on a Tuesday in February or March which is based around pancakes. We have a small number of gluten & dairy-free pancakes available; those are typically eaten by one or two people. People who don't like pancakes probably don't come to a pancake supper.
Disappointingly, I don't think I've ever been to a church activity based around bacon sandwiches. I'm feeling rather like I've been missing out, now.
Unfortunately none of the five rural churches in our group has the facilities to do meals, though two have adjacent village halls that could be and are hired on specific occasions. ( Easter breakfast, Hog roast for Harvest for example)
Wait til you hear about the (imo bizarre*) number of church/Christian activities based around bacon sandwiches...
*I am a big fan of bacon sandwiches but churches being more inclusive with food choices is more important
Food that "everybody" can eat (no gluten, no dairy, no nuts, no meat, no fish / seafood etc.) is unlikely to be food that many people want to eat. I think one does better on food inclusivity to have a range of foods rather than one all-inclusive dish (and a range of foods is more likely to accommodate more people's taste preferences as well).
We have an annual event on a Tuesday in February or March which is based around pancakes. We have a small number of gluten & dairy-free pancakes available; those are typically eaten by one or two people. People who don't like pancakes probably don't come to a pancake supper.
Disappointingly, I don't think I've ever been to a church activity based around bacon sandwiches. I'm feeling rather like I've been missing out, now.
Do people not enjoy fruit? At berry harvesting time some kind of BerryFest would be good. @Puzzler perhaps in your rural area you could have a church gathering going blackberrying and then having apple and blackberry crumble for Harvest.
Before the pandemic, every month, the church fellowship committee would through a birthday party for everyone born that month. It was always well received. After the pandemic it was dropped. Right now we are in transition. Once a new pastor is in place, I think I will bring it up again.
Do people not enjoy fruit? At berry harvesting time some kind of BerryFest would be good. @Puzzler perhaps in your rural area you could have a church gathering going blackberrying and then having apple and blackberry crumble for Harvest.
Some people do not enjoy fruit, and I know at least one person who is allergic to almost all fruit. I like fruit well enough, and I like apple and blackberry crumble very much, as long as it's not over-sweetened, but I'd want to eat it for pudding with lashings of custard after a meal, rather than as the focal point of a gathering.
Is Saturday evening Mass the first Mass of Sunday, or is it a Saturday calendar Mass? I ask as sunset marks the start of a new liturgical day in Orthodoxy; not sure of other churches.
In Eastern Orthodoxy you get one Divine Liturgy (Mass) per day and that's it. I heard, perhaps someone can correct / confirm, that some Canon states only one Liturgy per altar per day.
So you get what they dish out. As there tends to be movement in and out by anyone, people taking children out if they get a bit rowdy doesn't seem an issue. I'm now (well, should be, haven't been for a while) at a parish with extensive use of a tongue not understanded of this person so I often took myself out to to sit on a bench under a tree to take a break.
It's been interesting reading people's comments, as usual. I tend towards the more formal. The RC Cathedral in the town I spent a few months in had Latin Masses, Solemn Evensong and Benediction, NO masses of varying musical and non-musical accompaniment... Should hand in my Orthodox card as I wish I were still there as it was all very beautiful and people very friendly, and a broad range of ages and dress -- it was clear people felt comfortable in whatever service they were at. Saw some tradies in their work outfits and boots to a very sophisticated-looking couple with hats and long, dress coats.
To add, I'm not against languages other than English. I've been to many and they have their place. Just after having all-English, then English with a drop of Ukrainian, moving to a very large majority of Slavonic is a bit of an adjustment to be honest. For me at least: many Anglos there who seem to cope.
The vigil mass on Saturday evening is considered as fulfilling the Sunday obligation under RC rules.
The liturgical day starts at sunset the day before, so the Vigil Mass on Saturday counts as Sunday, and major feasts have First Vespers the evening before. I think it might be a hangover from Judaism.
I agree with your hangover from Judaism comment, and Genesis ("evening and morning the xth day") has been quoted to me which seems to confirm it, Alan29.
As has been pointed out already the traditional ecclesiastical day begins at the end of the previous day, roughly at sunset. In the traditional biblical lands sunset is approximately at 6pm all year with only a slight difference between the seasons.
For Muslims living outside of Arabia it can often be difficult to regulate fasting during Ramadan as at times the sunset can be quite late at night. Usually there is some adjustment made to fasting laws if you live in a place where sunset is at 11pm and sunrise about 3.30 a.m..
In the same way those Christians who ,at least for ecclesiastical purposes, have the new day beginning at sunset, have somewhat elastic readjustments with distinctions between the ecclesiastical calendar and the civil calendar which marks the transfer from one day to another on the stroke of midnight.
In the RC church a Vigil Mass fulfilling the obligation for the following day can be held as early as 12 noon though it would normally at least 4pm.
I remember many years ago in Moscow (USSR) Sunday Mass could be celebrated anytime between Friday and Sunday.
Until fairly recently Sunday obligatory Mass was celebrated principally on Fridays (and on Saturdays and Sundays )in the Arab Emirates as Friday was the principal free day of the weekend.
In the RC Church the times for 'obligatory'(Sunday) Masses are decided by the local bishop
(obviously in consultation with the Vatican). (By 'times' I don't mean 10 a.m. as opposed to 9 a.m. but rather the days)
Even in so called 'Christian' lands a priest could choose to celebrate a Saturday Mass on a Saturday evening though it is possible that a number of participants would be counting it as a Vigil Mass of Sunday
Climacus - in a recent post while talking about the RC cathedral you visited you mentioned 'NO Masses of varying musical and non-musical accompaniment' It took me some time to puzzle over what you meant by 'NO Masses' Obviously it is Novus Ordo, even although I did not understand at first.
On several occasions I have asked local Catholic Mass-goers what they understood by 'Novus Ordo' and most people would simply look blank. It is well over 50 years that Novus Ordo was introduced into the Latin rite and so fewer and fewer people will be aware that there was a Vetus Ordo.
Those who frequent these boards will often know (and care about) things which the ordinary Mass goer will be unaware of.
Climacus - in a recent post while talking about the RC cathedral you visited you mentioned 'NO Masses of varying musical and non-musical accompaniment' It took me some time to puzzle over what you meant by 'NO Masses' Obviously it is Novus Ordo, even although I did not understand at first.
On several occasions I have asked local Catholic Mass-goers what they understood by 'Novus Ordo' and most people would simply look blank. It is well over 50 years that Novus Ordo was introduced into the Latin rite and so fewer and fewer people will be aware that there was a Vetus Ordo.
Those who frequent these boards will often know (and care about) things which the ordinary Mass goer will be unaware of.
I think this something where local mileage varies, though my experience in small town/provincial England is that everyone is well aware there’s the ‘Latin one’ or ‘the old Latin one’ and ‘the English one.’
I’d be mildly astonished if most mass goers didn’t know it used to be different (even if just from parents/grandparents), though I’d agree that many will not know Novus Ordo or Tridentine as terms.
As a professional researcher, I think this is a case where the response will depend on the question!
There’s a very similar dynamic in the CofE where most people will I’d guess look pretty blank if you said ‘Common Worship’ or ‘BCP’* - but that’s not because they’ve forgotten one of them exists, or that there’s a difference. It’s far more likely to be ‘normal’ vs ‘the old words’
*stand fast parishes with regular BCP service provision
After 50 years its no longer so Novus. Its officially the Ordinary Form, and the Tridentine Mass is the Extraordinary Form (a term that Traddies seem to avoid, either because they find it a bit disparaging, or maybe because its in that new-fangled English.)
We have a Tridentine place thats officially part of our parish. Its run by a Traddie order of priests who seem to have access to huge funds, the Institue of Christ the King. They have taken over several important church buildings in the UK that were no longer in use, and have restored them to look like they would have in the 1950s. Their clergy have nothing to do with our parish clergy and don't come to any of our celebrations, not even things like the silver jubilee of our priest's ordination. Because they are a religious order, they are not under the authority of our bishop. There is just zero contact. Their regular congregation seems to travel in rather than being locals.
It's over 50 years since the C of E authorised contemporary-language services - the Church Of My Youth introduced the then-new Series 3 Communion service in 1973.
There was some opposition, but the 1662 BCP service was retained for the 8am slot on Sundays.
Apologies for my confusing and incorrect term; I heard it referred to that many years ago (this century) and thought that was its name. Thank you for the correction.
Climacus - your term may have been confusing but it was not incorrect. It is simply not a term which most Catholics would be aware of now. There is absolutely nothing wrong in knowing these terms,but you should be aware that most people will not.
Yes,I do agree with betjemaniac that most Catholics will be aware that the form of Mass before the Second Vatican council was quite different from what it is today.
Perhaps off topic, sorry, but I thought I'd ask here. I was perusing my local Catholic church's website, as one does, and came across this:
SCAE’S are held in our Parish. Please view the SCAE Roster under the ‘Weekly Bulletin’ tab.
Searching isn't helping, or I'm not using the right keywords. This is in the Newcastle-Maitland diocese in Australia in case it may be an Antipodean thing.
You’ve done better than me: best I managed was “Society of creationists against evolution”. An unlikely mob in the RC diocese of Newcastle and Maitland for sure!
You’ve done better than me: best I managed was “Society of creationists against evolution”.
I didn’t find many Google hits, but a “Dictionary” section of this 2006 thesis—“The Theory and Practice of Extended Communion with particular reference to parishes within the Anglican Diocese of Oxford,” by Phillip Noel Tovey—includes:
Sunday Celebrations in anticipation of the Eucharist
Another term for Sunday Worship in the Absence of a Priest used by French speaking Roman Catholics in France and Canada, see Hibbard[, J.] (1998) [Sunday Worship in the Absence of the Eucharist. In: Bernstein, E., ed. Traditions and Transitions. Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications.]
That document, and the no-longer available pdf from the Diocese of Newcastle-Maitland were about the only references I found.
Comments
Wait til you hear about the (imo bizarre*) number of church/Christian activities based around bacon sandwiches...
*I am a big fan of bacon sandwiches but churches being more inclusive with food choices is more important
One church in an Anglo-Catholic urban benefice of three churches tried having the main Sunday Mass on Saturday evening, to allow the one-and-only priest then available to celebrate two on Sundays without having to rush, but this was apparently not met with any enthusiasm.
Yes, each of the Sunday services at our Cathedral has its own distinct community. Only the children and caregivers service is specifically tailored to a particular group. The others have their own distinctive and I think people make choices based on their own preferences.
Each service congregation is as large as many parish churches.
But we are a Cathedral so it seems to work.
In a smaller community I agree with so much of what others have said here.
And we can only do our best in our own churches to offer something appropriate to that setting.
For us, it is not about a family service exclusively but how we include the family in the service.
Once our pastor asked the kids in confirmation when they felt being part of the church family the most; He was very surprised when to a person, they all said it was our church potlucks because that was when they would meet adults they did not know who would come to sit at their table--no kids tables anywhere.
Before the final blessing they are always invited to come up to the front and share what they’ve been doing. Three of them usually write their own prayers to read out, often interesting and perceptive. One child nearly always draws dinosaurs. One of the older ones usually helps the very youngest.
Two of the older ones have sports events to attend on some Sundays so we’re aware that they need to go up to communion before everyone else so they can dash off straight after.
Four of the regular children have been baptized over the past two years (i.e. not as babies); two of those and two others have asked to be confirmed at the end of this year, alongside four adults in the congregation.
Our church has grown slightly since Covid. I think the flexibility is one of the reasons for this.
One of these churches is in an inner-city area, so I wondered if the church is in fact helping those who cannot afford to eat well, or maybe do not have cooking skills or lack cooking facilities.
Messy Church arrangements normally incorporate a meal.
Another church has moved its midweek communion to late morning, followed by lunch, followed by a study group.
A meal can be a very inclusive activity. It also facilitates conversation which might not otherwise occur.
Another person pioneered the building up of relationships with individuals in a small town by purposefully hanging around in a pub and a cafe on a regular basis in order to get to know individuals. He became someone they looked to for support in times of crisis. He eventually opened a cafe in a church hall to extend this work.
New ways of being / doing church? Food for thought?
It could be argued that gathering around a meal is the original way of being/doing church.
The service includes communion, though it's not clear whether this happens every Sunday, and is reported to have a mixed congregation of 30 or so most weeks.
I think @Puzzler is right about the beneficial effects of shared meals, especially in deprived inner-city UPA churches.
Shared meals, outside the main service, but perhaps following on from it (again, on a monthly basis) are also common around here. We have one at Our Place on an occasional basis, and our monthly Saturday *Community Cafe* offers tasty refreshments at a modest price. I did once suggest making the refreshments free of charge, but with donations invited, to test the water as it were. The reaction was similar to that which I would have received, had I suggested introducing the worship of Mithras...
Food that "everybody" can eat (no gluten, no dairy, no nuts, no meat, no fish / seafood etc.) is unlikely to be food that many people want to eat. I think one does better on food inclusivity to have a range of foods rather than one all-inclusive dish (and a range of foods is more likely to accommodate more people's taste preferences as well).
We have an annual event on a Tuesday in February or March which is based around pancakes. We have a small number of gluten & dairy-free pancakes available; those are typically eaten by one or two people. People who don't like pancakes probably don't come to a pancake supper.
Disappointingly, I don't think I've ever been to a church activity based around bacon sandwiches. I'm feeling rather like I've been missing out, now.
We do this on Maundy Thursday. it's lovely.
Do people not enjoy fruit? At berry harvesting time some kind of BerryFest would be good. @Puzzler perhaps in your rural area you could have a church gathering going blackberrying and then having apple and blackberry crumble for Harvest.
Some people do not enjoy fruit, and I know at least one person who is allergic to almost all fruit. I like fruit well enough, and I like apple and blackberry crumble very much, as long as it's not over-sweetened, but I'd want to eat it for pudding with lashings of custard after a meal, rather than as the focal point of a gathering.
In Eastern Orthodoxy you get one Divine Liturgy (Mass) per day and that's it. I heard, perhaps someone can correct / confirm, that some Canon states only one Liturgy per altar per day.
So you get what they dish out. As there tends to be movement in and out by anyone, people taking children out if they get a bit rowdy doesn't seem an issue. I'm now (well, should be, haven't been for a while) at a parish with extensive use of a tongue not understanded of this person so I often took myself out to to sit on a bench under a tree to take a break.
It's been interesting reading people's comments, as usual. I tend towards the more formal. The RC Cathedral in the town I spent a few months in had Latin Masses, Solemn Evensong and Benediction, NO masses of varying musical and non-musical accompaniment... Should hand in my Orthodox card as I wish I were still there as it was all very beautiful and people very friendly, and a broad range of ages and dress -- it was clear people felt comfortable in whatever service they were at. Saw some tradies in their work outfits and boots to a very sophisticated-looking couple with hats and long, dress coats.
The liturgical day starts at sunset the day before, so the Vigil Mass on Saturday counts as Sunday, and major feasts have First Vespers the evening before. I think it might be a hangover from Judaism.
If we can have an ecclesiastical full moon we can have an ecclesiastical sunset.
I agree with your hangover from Judaism comment, and Genesis ("evening and morning the xth day") has been quoted to me which seems to confirm it, Alan29.
Indeed. Maybe its a bit like "liturgical East?"
Yes, although to be fair, many churches seem to refer to such a service as *First Mass/Eucharist/Holy Communion of Christmas*.
Similarly, I think churches with a Saturday evening Vigil Mass refer to it as *First Mass of Sunday*, which chimes in with what @Alan29 said.
FWIW, I believe 4pm is the earliest that a Mass can fulfill the Sunday obligation.
For Muslims living outside of Arabia it can often be difficult to regulate fasting during Ramadan as at times the sunset can be quite late at night. Usually there is some adjustment made to fasting laws if you live in a place where sunset is at 11pm and sunrise about 3.30 a.m..
In the same way those Christians who ,at least for ecclesiastical purposes, have the new day beginning at sunset, have somewhat elastic readjustments with distinctions between the ecclesiastical calendar and the civil calendar which marks the transfer from one day to another on the stroke of midnight.
In the RC church a Vigil Mass fulfilling the obligation for the following day can be held as early as 12 noon though it would normally at least 4pm.
I remember many years ago in Moscow (USSR) Sunday Mass could be celebrated anytime between Friday and Sunday.
Until fairly recently Sunday obligatory Mass was celebrated principally on Fridays (and on Saturdays and Sundays )in the Arab Emirates as Friday was the principal free day of the weekend.
In the RC Church the times for 'obligatory'(Sunday) Masses are decided by the local bishop
(obviously in consultation with the Vatican). (By 'times' I don't mean 10 a.m. as opposed to 9 a.m. but rather the days)
Even in so called 'Christian' lands a priest could choose to celebrate a Saturday Mass on a Saturday evening though it is possible that a number of participants would be counting it as a Vigil Mass of Sunday
On several occasions I have asked local Catholic Mass-goers what they understood by 'Novus Ordo' and most people would simply look blank. It is well over 50 years that Novus Ordo was introduced into the Latin rite and so fewer and fewer people will be aware that there was a Vetus Ordo.
Those who frequent these boards will often know (and care about) things which the ordinary Mass goer will be unaware of.
I’d be mildly astonished if most mass goers didn’t know it used to be different (even if just from parents/grandparents), though I’d agree that many will not know Novus Ordo or Tridentine as terms.
As a professional researcher, I think this is a case where the response will depend on the question!
*stand fast parishes with regular BCP service provision
We have a Tridentine place thats officially part of our parish. Its run by a Traddie order of priests who seem to have access to huge funds, the Institue of Christ the King. They have taken over several important church buildings in the UK that were no longer in use, and have restored them to look like they would have in the 1950s. Their clergy have nothing to do with our parish clergy and don't come to any of our celebrations, not even things like the silver jubilee of our priest's ordination. Because they are a religious order, they are not under the authority of our bishop. There is just zero contact. Their regular congregation seems to travel in rather than being locals.
It's over 50 years since the C of E authorised contemporary-language services - the Church Of My Youth introduced the then-new Series 3 Communion service in 1973.
There was some opposition, but the 1662 BCP service was retained for the 8am slot on Sundays.
Yes,I do agree with betjemaniac that most Catholics will be aware that the form of Mass before the Second Vatican council was quite different from what it is today.
Perhaps off topic, sorry, but I thought I'd ask here. I was perusing my local Catholic church's website, as one does, and came across this:
Searching isn't helping, or I'm not using the right keywords. This is in the Newcastle-Maitland diocese in Australia in case it may be an Antipodean thing.
I didn’t find many Google hits, but a “Dictionary” section of this 2006 thesis—“The Theory and Practice of Extended Communion with particular reference to parishes within the Anglican Diocese of Oxford,” by Phillip Noel Tovey—includes:
That document, and the no-longer available pdf from the Diocese of Newcastle-Maitland were about the only references I found.