Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence – Season 1 Episode 12 Recap & Review

The Shape of Their Relationship

Episode 12 of Saint Cecilia & Pastor Lawrence begins with Cecilia and Lawrence visiting Eric and Rebecca at their shop. While Lawrence tutors Eric, Cecilia will assist Rebecca with shop duties. Eric asks Lawrence what Cecilia means to him but Lawrence isn’t sure how to respond. Eric suggests Lawrence consider Cecilia as a family to him since he notices how concerned he is for her well-being all the time.

Lawrence and Eric take a break and Lawrence ponders Eric’s comments about family. Lawrence spots Cecilia wearing new attire and compliments her. Afterwards, Lawrence converses with Mell about what Eric told him about families. Lawrence feels it’s disrespectful to consider Cecilia as family. Mell informs Lawrence that Cecilia’s looking at them from afar, startling Lawrence. Eric arrives and asks Lawrence to continue their lesson. Cecilia wants to observe their session and Eric allows it. After helping Eric study, Rebecca brings up the Winter Market, interesting Cecilia.

Lawrence explains it’s a festival that hosts different shops for people to visit. Lawrence and Cecilia walk home together. Lawrence asks her for her thoughts about family. Cecilia gives Lawrence her opinion on the matter and he thanks her for making things clear for him. Lawrence meets with Hazelita and Abel and tells them that he considers Cecilia a family to him. This upsets Hazelita strongly, but Abel doesn’t mind it since Lawrence’s not taking Cecilia for granted. 

Hazelita suggests Lawrence prove to them that she’s like family to him. Lawrence asks Hazelita for tips on the matter. Cecilia, Lawrence, Hazelita, and Abel attend the Winter Market event. They visit everything from food to antique shops. Abel and Hazelita head off somewhere during the night, leaving Lawrence and Cecilia to wander the event alone. They bump into Eric, Mell, and Rebecca’s Winter Market stands.

Rebecca requests Lawrence and Cecilia to visit her at her clothing shop. She shows them a new clothing piece she completed and Cecilia loves it. Rebecca asks Lawrence how’d Cecilia look in it and he says she’d look great with this piece of clothing on. Eric notices Cecilia’s giddiness when Lawrence says that. Before he could ask Lawrence about his feelings for Cecilia, Mell stops him. Mell tells Eric it’s best for Lawrence to naturally realize Cecilia’s dormant feelings for him. 

Thereafter, Lawrence takes Cecilia somewhere far. Suddenly, people start lighting up a tower and Cecilia’s amazed at the spectacle before her eyes. Lawrence asks Cecilia if it’d be okay for her to consider him like family. Cecilia tells Lawrence she considers him as family to her, resulting in him hugging her close to his chest. Cecilia gets nervous, causing Lawrence to stop hugging her. However, Cecilia ensures him that she appreciates the hug and would like him to hug her again. 

As they hug, Cecilia realizes Lawrence seems tense. She asks him if he’s seeking something particular with a family. We cut to a flashback of Lawrence conversing with his grandfather, Oswell. Oswell tells him he’ll regret leaving him alone when he passes away. In the present, Lawrence tells Cecilia he felt lonely when Oswell died. However, Cecilia’s appearance in his life made him feel less lonely and more happy. Lawrence feels if they were family, then Cecilia would remain by his side. 

Cecilia reassures Lawrence that she’ll always be by his side. The next morning, Cecilia, Lawrence, Hazelita, and Abel eat a meal together. Abel comments that his egg’s burnt and Lawrence and Cecilia humorously argue over it. We cut to a girl named Lily visiting Lawrence and Cecilia at the church and observing them. Before Lily leaves with her mother, she tells Cecilia she can have Lawrence, causing Cecilia to blush. The episode closes with Lawrence and Cecilia smiling at each other. 

The Episode Review

Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence finally come to a close and this finale will leave many fans divisive. After giving fans a glimmer of hope that Lawrence would catch on to Cecilia’s feelings for him, the anime ends up having our couple teeter toward the more familial relationship route instead of a romantic one. While unfortunate, many won’t mind the outcome. 

Moreover, this episode encapsulated everything fans loved about this series. From its intimate conversations to its stills depicting our characters participating in fun-filled Winter Market activities, it all morphs into a warming sensation that’s too adorable to ignore. However, the episode doesn’t wrap everything up under a solid bow.

This will give viewers hope that there’s still more to Lawrence and Cecilia’s endeavors in this world than what we received in the season finale. Furthermore, another season could have our characters visit the Great Lady Saint since she’s been alluded to countless times throughout this series. Nevertheless, we’ll have to wait for Studio Doga Kobo to announce what the future holds for Cecilia and her friends. Although this wasn’t a masterful season finale for the series, it’s sure to lighten fans’ moods and hopes for more to come.