Vol. VI. No. 5
*****
Edited by Wayne A. Holst
*****
Special Item in this Issue:
Book Notice -
"More Everyday Parables" -
by colleague James Taylor
___
Colleague Communication:
Paul Verhoef
Harry Winter
Brian Arthur Brown
___
Colleague Contributions:
Martin Marty
Doug Shantz
___
Net Notes:
New York, New York
Irish Bishops Called to Rome
Joni Eareckson Tada Interviewed
The Press Continues to Misread Pope
Stephen Hawking and Religion Vs. Science
The Reality of the Celibate Life (Nouwen)
Major Holy Site Ruling re Hindus and Muslims
Coptic Pope Apologizes re Comments about Islam
Holy Books Return to Canadian Citizenship Court
Atheists Score Better than Religious in US Survey
_____
Global Faith Potpourri:
9 stories from Ecumenical News International
___
Quotes of the Week:
Bernard of Clairvaux
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel
John McLuckie
Henry David Thoreau
___
On This Day (Sept. 27th - Sept. 30th)
Sept. 28, 1924 - First round-the-world flight completed
Sept. 30, 1938 - Allies allow Germany's annex of Sudetenland.
___
Closing Thoughts -
Story passed along by colleague Jock McTavish
(end)
*****
Dear Friends:
Colleagues List arrives a little later in
the week than I normally send it because
Marlene and I decided to take Friday off
to see the glorious fall colours in Banff
and area while we had an opportunity.
Several weeks ago we saw a lovely array
of colour in some of the Ontario woodlands,
just beginning to appear. Now, the full glow
of golden leaves in Alberta.
We are blessed, and we want to enjoy this
for the few days they are on display!
___
Now, back to our task.
This week, I share with you a book notice
about the arrival of "More Everyday Parables"
by colleague James Taylor. This is the second
study he has written on the parables, and in it
he goes deeper and broader. Please enjoy this!
___
Paul Verhoef - Christian Reformed chaplain at the
University of Calgary is now able to announce the
fall study we have created for faculty and staff.
This year we will be reading "Becoming Human" by
Jean Vanier and we hope for a good response to this
five week program on Thursday noons in October and
November.
Harry Winter - is pleased to announce the selection
of a new superior general of the Oblates which took
place in Rome this week.
Brian Arthur Brown - suggests that there is an
alternative to burning the Qua'ran. He proposes
instead the mutual study of Jewish, Christian and
Islamic scriptures.
___
Colleague Contributions:
Martin Marty - writes of the decline in US church
attendance (Sightings)
Doug Shantz - announces the up-coming lecture -
"Imagining Women in the Early Church" by Anne Moore
this coming Monday evening at St. Andrew's United
Church, Calgary (Chair of Christian Thought)
___
Net Notes:
"New York, New York" - Art Babych, a Canadian
church writer was in the Big Apple to report
on the UN Millennial Goals conference. While there,
he created a photo essay on two major churches
which he visited while there (Anglican Journal News)
"Irish Bishops Called to Rome" - the pope has
called the Irish Catholic hierarchy to the Vatican
to discuss the sex abuse crisis that has plagued
this nation (Irish Independent)
"Joni Eareckson Tada Interviewed" - Evangelical
Christians have long honoured Joni, but her
story is one of general interest and it is told
through an interview with this remarkable woman.
(PBS, Religion and Ethics)
"The Press Continues to Misread Pope" - while some
of the popular press in the UK did quite well in
interpreting the papal visit recently, many articles
demonstrated a sad lack of religious awareness.
(Cathnews Asia)
"Stephen Hawking and Religion Vs. Science" - Again,
we visit the Sightings website for an article on
Hawking's recent published comments on God.
"The Reality of the Celibate Life (Nouwen)" - Twenty
years ago, Henri Nouwen was struggling with his
sexuality. Few knew then of his homosexuality. This
article remains a helpful reflection of Nouwen's
struggles at the time (National Catholic Reporter)
"Major Holy Site Ruling re Hindus and Muslims" -
For many years a battle has raged in Northern India
over the rightful ownership of a holy site as both
Hindus and Muslims have claimed it. Now, a high court
has ruled on a compromise settlement. Will it stand?
(BBC News)
"Coptic Pope Apologizes for Comments about Islam" -
It is hard for the Coptic Church in Egypt under the
best of times, but when a leader of that church makes
disparaging remarks against Muslims, trouble is quite
inevitable. Here is a recent story about such trouble.
(Associated Press)
"Holy Books Return to Canadian Citizenship Court" -
How to make sure that the Bible remains in Canadian
citizenship courts as a book to be respected? Allow
other holy books to be placed there as well. A truly
Canadian compromise for the good (Chrisitanweek.org)
"Atheists Score Better than Religious in US Survey" -
Some real surprises emerge from a recent survey on
religious knowledge in the US (ENI, PBS)
_____
Global Faith Potpourri:
I hope you enjoy the 9 stories from Ecumenical News
International, Geneva that I have collected for you.
___
Quotes of the Week:
Bernard of Clairvaux, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, John McLuckie
and Henry David Thoreau provide insight for us this week.
___
On This Day (Sept. 27th - Sept. 30th)
Stories from the archives of the New York Times:
First round-the-world flight completed (1924)
Allies allow Germany's annex of Sudetenland (1938)
___
Closing Thoughts -
I share humour passed along by colleague Jock McTavish
Blessings on your week,
Wayne
******************
SPECIAL ST. DAVID'S LINKS
Contact us at: asdm@sduc.ca (or) admin@sduc.ca
St. David's Web Address - http://sduc.ca/
Listen to audio recordings of Sunday services -
http://sduc.ca/services.htm
___
ST DAVID'S ACTS WEB PAGE
Created and maintained by Colleague Jock McTavish
http://stdavidscalgary.net/
__
ANNOUNCING:
ST. DAVID'S 50th ANNIVERSARY
TOUR OF CELTIC LANDS - 2011
We plan a 15-day tour of special Celtic sites
in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England -
April 26th - May 10th, 2011.
A highlight of the tour will be a visit to
St. David's Cathedral, Pembrokeshire. Choir
members from our group will sing at various
informal cathedral events through the day
and at Evensong, on Saturday, May 7th!
Details are presently being finalized with
the cathedral dean, Jonathan Lean.
We are also planning to sing while visiting
Iona, Scotland and the Church of Mary Immaculate
in Inchicore, Dublin, Ireland.
38 PLACES ON THE TOUR ARE SOLD OUT
We have a waiting list for this trip; also an
interest list for other, future tours!
*****
Announcing our New Fall Study at St. David's:
Follow this study by clicking:
http://www.1journey.net/stdavids/SD/BookStudy/25/25.htm
---
LISTENING FOR THE HEARTBEAT OF GOD:
A Celtic Spirituality (Philip Newell)
Including background material from the book:
THE CELTIC WAY (Ian Bradley)
Plus:
INTROS TO CELTIC SAINTS PATRICK, COLUMBA & DAVID
Join our ten week Monday Night Study, which will run
from September 20th through November 29th
Special Guest:
Dr. Wayne Davies, Department of Geography, U of C.
is a native of Wales. He will speak with us at one
session, introducing us to his homeland, and explaining
some of the important sites we plan to visit to maximize
our appreciation of the tour.
This program is being made available for regular
Monday Night study-folk plus those planning to
take the tour of Celtic Lands next spring.
This study series is part of our St. David's fiftieth
anniversary celebrations and is provided for all!
___
STUDY ARCHIVES
A collection of twenty-five+ studies conducted since 2000 can
quickly be found at: http://bookstudies.stdavidscalgary.net/
This collection of study resources represents a decade of
Monday Night Studies at St. David's, plus extra courses too!
You are welcome to use our course outlines, class notes and
resource pages in your personal and group reflections.
*****************************************************
SPECIAL ITEMS
BOOK NOTICE
MORE EVERYDAY PARABLES
Simple Stories for Spiritual Reflection,
by Jim Taylor. Wood Lake Books, Kelowna, BC.
2010. $19.95 CAD. 144 pages.
ISBN #978-1-55145-587-7.
Publisher's Promo:
In this second book of modern parables, author
Jim Taylor takes us... where events are ambiguous,
unsettling, or just plain ordinary... Usually, we
don't notice this place much at all in our rush to
get "the answer."
Yet, every story, every event, however ordinary or
vague, has God in it. "More Everyday Parables"
contains the kind of story that doesn't have an
explanation. Jesus made up his stories on the spot
to respond to questions of his followers. He used
things that had happened to him, or someone he had
heard about and made a story about it... Who will
ever exactly know what Jesus meant?
Taylor uses the "parable without explanation" in
this book to offer an opportunity for the reader
to reflect deeply on what the story evokes for them.
He tells his stories about everyday happenings that
we can all relate to, and then steps back and lets
us notice where and how they touched us, if they
touched us at all. Then, if we wish to go further,
the author offers some of his own reflections on
the story. This may allow new perspectives to open
for the reader.
Jim's accessible story telling style, the reflections
and Biblical references, make this book ideal for
personal study/reflection or group use.
_____
Author's Words:
Why parables? Because they were Jesus' way of
communicating his message. He didn't provide learned
lectures. He told parables.
We tragically, have turned his message into dogma. We
expound theology. We string together this verse and
that in an attempt to prove that there is a single
coherent system connecting writings that happened
1,000 years apart.
We turn the Bible into a coded message, a jigsaw puzzle
that must be put together in just the right way to make
sense. Jesus would have been appalled...
Jesus looked for examples as he walked along (on his
itinerant ministry) - the mustard seed, the village
woman...
The gospels list about 50 parables that Jesus told -
many are figures of speech that relate some commonplace
event or activity to the new kind of life Jesus promised.
---
But Jesus told parables that were more than figures of
speech. They were stories... Stories that everyone knows
about - the good Samaritan, the prodigal son, the wedding
banquet, the workers in the vineyard. I didn't include
story parables in my first book "Everyday Parables."
So I decided, when I was asked to write a sequel that
I would concentrate on that second kind.
I have deliberately not simply paraphrased the old
parables into modern language... we need to break our
imagination free of its biblical prison. The Bible was
written by a desert people who never really outgrew
their nomad roots. They wrote about droughts, not
deluges; about searing heat, not blizzards; about goats,
not supermarkets... if we limit ourselves to the
illustrations that correspond with biblical narratives,
we leave out a large part of our present-day experience.
I believe that God speaks to us through more than the
Bible. The Bible may be about God, but if God is truly
Creator, so is nature. So is science. And history.
For that reason, I have included in these modern
parables some events that would have been inconceivable
to the gospel writers. Because I believe that if Jesus
were telling parables today, he would do as he did
back then - he would talk about things that people
knew in their everyday lives...
All this leaves me with a dilemma. Because when I
choose the stories that I present as modern-day parables,
I want to tell you what their meaning is. I want to be
sure you don't miss the point.
But that is not what Jesus would have done.
So I've compromised. I tell the story, and you can,
if you wish, stop there... Or you can carry on reading
and see what I got out of it. I've included some
reflections of my own on each story. They might
illuminate your thoughts; they might not.
I would appreciate your feedback: jimt@quixoticx.ca
_____
My Thoughts:
What James Taylor does in this second of his books on
the parables of Jesus is what he has always attempted
to do in his writings so long as I have known him. He
seeks to free ancient truth from the encrustations of
time and interpretation. In that effort, there are few
who do better than Jim.
Taylor is frequently more interested in what others
think than in following any "official" explanation.
He has his opinions, of course, and he is forthright in
expressing them; usually, but not always, after due
consideration.
He teaches through his writings that the quest for truth
is a shared, not an individual process.
I have kept Taylor's books close by for the quarter
century that we have known each other and have always
been impressed that he tends to follow the rubric of
a shared truth quest in all his writing. When I first
wrote articles for him as editor of Practice of Ministry
in Canada (the 1980s) I found him only too eager to have
me struggle to express my own views.
He did much to encourage me to be a writer when I had
serious doubts about having anything to say.
Jim helped me to break free of my own tendency to "follow
the lead of others, rather than to think for myself under
the guidance of God's Spirit" (whatever that might be.)
He continues to do that with this his second attempt to
encounter that rich treasure trove of insight that are
the parables of Jesus.
Over the years, I have discovered that if there is anything
about Christianity that many people of other faith traditions
tend to appreciate, it is the stories Jesus told. Jesus is
truly one of history's greatest teachers and that truth has
not been lost on Christian and non-Christian alike.
---
I still believe there is value is approaching the parables
using the contextual methodology I was taught as a student
of theology. Go deep into the time and place of the original
situation (the 'sitz im leben') as my teachers impressed upon
me. Many good things can be learned from doing this.
But there is also much to be gained from taking this process
a step further as Taylor does. Through the use of imagination
and insight, it is possible to work with the implications of
those original stories and to project them in new, currently
applicable directions.
What does it mean to help people who have been abused and
abandoned? What does it mean to choose to go your own way?
What does it mean when you do not fit into the patterns of
accepted social norms? The good Samaritan, the prodigal son
and the wedding banquet are Jesus stories with much more value
and implication that we might often recognize at first glance.
---
Read Jim Taylor's new book on the parables because, by doing
so, you will grow through expanding your spiritual horizons.
He is good at taking you "one step further."
_____
Order from Wood Lake direct:
http://tinyurl.com/2c74hmy
Purchase at a special web price.
*****
COLLEAGUE COMMUNICATION
PAUL VERHOEF
Wayne:
Here is how we will promote the Vanier
study this fall:
UNIVERSITY FACULTY & STAFF FALL STUDY
"Becoming Human" by Jean Vanier
(the 1998 CBC Massey Lecture Series)
Thursdays, Oct 21 through Nov 25, Noon-1 PM
Native Centre, Small Boardroom (MSC 390)
Oct 21 – Loneliness, Chapter 1
Oct 28 – Belonging, Chapter 2
Nov 4 – From Exclusion to Inclusion, Chapter 3
[skipping Remembrance Day]
Nov 18 – The Path to Freedom, Chapter 4
Nov 25 – Forgiveness, Chapter 5
*****
HARRY WINTER
Dear Wayne:
We just received word that Louie Lougen, provincial
of the USA Oblate province, has been elected our
12th superior general, on his 58th birthday.
---
OMI USA
Sept. 28th, 2010
Oblates Elect New Yorker as New World Leader
http://www.omiusa.org/en/component/content/article/195
*****
BRIAN ARTHUR BROWN
An Alternative to Burning the Quar'an
Wayne:
My September blog entry has been posted:
"An Alternative to Burning the Qur'an" -
Just click on my website (below), move the cursor over
the Three Testaments bar and visit Join the Conversation.
Brian
http://www.brianarthurbrown.com/
*****
MARTIN MARTY
AMERICA'S DECLINE IN CHURCH ATTENDENCE
September 27th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/2cbvpb5
*****
DOUG SHANTZ
The Chair of Christian Thought at the University of Calgary
presents The Bentall Lecture in Christian Theology with:
Dr. Anne Moore
Associate Professor, Department of Religious Studies
University of Calgary:
"Imaging Women in the Early Church:
The Visual/Material Clues to Women's Leadership"
Monday, October 4, 2010 at 7:30pm
St. Andrew’s United Church
924 Heritage Dr. SW, Calgary
Everyone is welcome to join us for this free event!
*****
NET NOTES
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Crosstalk editor Art Babych (Ottawa) was in New York
during the U.N. Summit on Millennium Development Goals
Sept. 20 to 24 and shares his photos.
See the slide show...
http://tinyurl.com/2awpso8
*****
IRISH BISHOPS CALLED TO ROME
Irish Independent
September 29th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/2cuz6k9
*****
JONI EARECKSON TADA INTERVIEWED
PBS Religion and Ethics
September 24th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/332ne9b
*****
THE PRESS CONTINUES TO MISREAD POPE
Cathnews Asia
September 26th, 2010
His Visit to the UK as Case in Point
http://tinyurl.com/26cgu8n
*****
STEPHEN HAWKING AND RELIGION VS SCIENCE
Sightings
9/23/2010
by Colin Bossen
Debate about God continues to be strong
http://tinyurl.com/2dlbjcj
*****
THE REALITY OF CELIBATE LIFE:
REFLECTIONS FROM HENRI NOUWEN
Provided by A.W. Richard Sipe
National Catholic Reporter
October 1st, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/28oybc7
*****
INDIAN HOLY SITE COMPROMISE BETWEEN
HINDU AND MUSLIM COMBATANTS
Attempted Settlement by Indian Court
BBC News
September 30th, 2010
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11441890
---
Holy Site has History of Violence
The Guardian UK
September 30th, 2010
Slideshow:
http://tinyurl.com/2a5ubgn
*****
COPTIC POPE APOLOGIZES FOR COMMENTS ABOUT ISLAM
Associated Press
September 27th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/22v8dre
*****
HOLY BOOKS RETURN TO CANADIAN CITIZENSHIP COURT
Christianweek.org
September 28th, 2010
http://www.christianweek.org/stories.php?id=1129
*****
ATHEISTS DO BETTER THAN RELIGIOUS
IN US SURVEY; JEWS AND MORMONS GET TOP MARKS
Ecumenical News Service
Geneva, Switzerland
September 28th, 2010
Atheists do better than religious in US religious survey
New York (ENI). If you want a question on religion answered
in the United States, ask an atheist. U.S. atheists and
agnostics are among the groups that scored highest in a
recent survey of knowledge of world religions by the
Washington-based Pew Research Centre's Forum on Religion
and Public Life. U.S. Jews and Mormons also got top marks.
The survey of 3412 adults, taken between 19 May and 6 June,
suggests that large numbers of Americans do not know,
"about the tenets, practices, history and leading figures
of major faith traditions - including their own", Pew said
when it announced the survey results on 28 September.
_____
PBS
Religion and Ethics
October 1st, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/28fnhww
*****
GLOBAL FAITH POTPOURRI
Ecumenical News International
News Highlights
28 September 2010
West focus on gays not real issue for Africa,
says Angolan bishop
London (ENI). The 25, not-so-young, white, Christian
supporters of Africa met in an almost empty London
church, which had been partly destroyed in the Second
World War, to hear the Anglican bishop of Angola, Andre
Soares, talk about, "the real issues" facing his
continent. Bishop Soares spoke to ENI News before the
start of the 2010 annual general meeting of the
Mozambique Angola Association, founded 103 years ago
to link Protestant churches in Britain with similar
churches in the then-Portuguese territories of Africa.
"We know a great deal about the challenge of secularism
and materialism. My country became independent from
Portugal 35 years ago on 11 November 1975," Bishop
Soares said outside St John's Church on Waterloo
Road in central London.
_____
Macau bishop says no to garbage dump at UN heritage site
Hong Kong (ENI). The Roman Catholic bishop in Macau has
spoken out against the building by the government of a
garbage storage facility next to the city's Church of St.
Lawrence, an historic building UNESCO listed as a world
cultural heritage site in 2005. Bishop Jose Lai Hung-Seng
told media on 23 September, "This is not at all good." He
explained that the proposed dump would not be in harmony
with the world cultural heritage site. The bishop said his
objection is not that the new storage facility would be
next to a church, and that it would be next to the cultural
heritage site. He hopes and believes the government will
drop its plan.
*****
29 September 2010
'Keep train on track' for Sudan peace
pleads world church leader
Nairobi (ENI). The general secretary of the World
Council of Churches has pleaded for the full
implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
for Sudan so that Africa's biggest country can
achieve stability. The Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit said
he understands from visits to the country, made
before the signing of the pact in 2005, how Sudan
desperately needs the peace agreement that ended
a decades-long civil war. "For me, this peace
agreement is such a costly gift and such an
opportunity that should not be lost," Tveit told
ENI news in an interview on 21 September at the
beginning of a seven-day visit to Kenya and
Ethiopia. On 9 January 2011, Sudan is scheduled
to hold referenda in southern Sudan and the
oil-rich Abyei border region between north and
south Sudan.
_____
Japan's Catholic bishops publish
English interfaith guidelines
Tokyo (ENI). Japan's Roman Catholic bishops have published
an English-language version of their guidelines for
interreligious dialogue. "Guidelines on Interreligious
Dialogue - The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan," is
aimed at foreign residents in the country. "In Japan, where
the number of Christians is extremely low, Catholics
frequently have contact with followers of various religions
and attend other religions' events," the bishops explain on
their Web site. "We are often puzzled or bewildered on those
occasions. It must be especially hard for foreign residents,
who are not familiar with Japanese unique rituals, customs,
and manners."
*****
30 September 2010
Christians call for calm after Indian verdict
on holy site
Bangalore, India (ENI). Churches in India have
joined other faiths and political leaders in calling
for calm after a court ruled that a religious site,
vigorously and violently disputed by Hindus and
Muslims, should be split between the two groups.
On 30 September, the high court of northern Uttar
Pradesh state handed down its verdict in the
protracted case that concerns the ownership of the
site of the former Babri mosque at Ayodhya, 700
kilometres (420 miles) south-east of New Delhi.
The case has been pending for more than half a
century. In a majority verdict, two of the three
judges declared that Hindus have the right of
ownership to the main disputed area, where the main
dome of the Muslim Babri mosque once stood. The court
granted Muslims and a Hindu group control of other
parts of the site. Hindus consider the location the
birthplace of the god Ram, and placed a Ram idol
inside the mosque in 1949.
_____
Southern Africa bishops disturbed
by Swaziland's rights abuses
Cape Town (ENI). Bishops of the Anglican Church in
Southern Africa say they are deeply disturbed by news
of growing human rights abuses in Swaziland, a kingdom
sandwiched between South Africa and Mozambique. The
bishops, meeting in Benoni near Johannesburg from 27
to 29 September for their twice-yearly synod, challenged
their church to become more involved in the quest for
democracy in Swaziland. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of Cape
Town, the leader of the church, said on 30 September he
could not remain silent on the issue of democracy in
Swaziland, "where power and wealth is concentrated in
the hands of a few, and political debate is hardly
permitted". A state of emergency has existed in
Swaziland for the past 37 years. Freedom of expression
is severely limited, opposition political parties are
banned, and reports of police arresting and beating up
critics are frequent.
_____
Evangelical Christian pilgrims converge on Jerusalem
Jerusalem (ENI). Thousands of evangelical Christians
from 100 countries have participated in a 30th "Feast
of Tabernacles" event, organized by the International
Christian Embassy Jerusalem, a group strongly supportive
of a united Jerusalem under Israel. The ICEJ says the
event, held from 23 to 29 September to coincide with
the Jewish holiday of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot),
has become Israel's largest annual tourist event, and
the largest solidarity mission to Israel. Organizers
expect the festival to have injected an estimated US$15
million into the local economy. The event takes place
with the assistance of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism,
and, in 2010, about 1000 pilgrims from Brazil made up
the largest group at the embassy event.
*****
1 October 2010
Christian leaders lament during
Nigeria's 50th anniversary
Lagos (ENI). Christian leaders in Nigeria have joined
in marking 50 years of independence in Africa's most
populous nation but have also called for divine
intervention because of their concern for the state
of the nation. "Though it might seem like there is not
much to jubilate about in the nation, prophetically and
by faith, we celebrate Jubilee. We believe that as God
sees our faith, he will give us cause to be jubilant
as we begin the journey of another 50 years," said
the president of the Christian Association of Nigeria,
Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor.
_____
Buzz builds around new unofficial saint of abuse victims
Vatican City. (ENI/RNS). Mother Mary MacKillop won't be
canonised until 17 October but some Catholics already have
an unofficial title for the 19th-century Australian nun:
Patron Saint of Whistleblowers. MacKillop (1842-1909),
Australia's first native-born saint, was co-founder of
the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, an order
of nuns dedicated to the religious instruction of children
and care for the poor. The strong-willed MacKillop, who
worked under harsh conditions in the Australian outback,
was once briefly excommunicated by her bishop for reasons
that have never been entirely clear.
*****
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners Online:
September 28th, 2010
Many of those who are humiliated are not humble.
Some react to humiliation with anger, others with
patience, and others with freedom. The first are
culpable, the next harmless, the last just.
- Bernard of Clairvaux, On the Song of Songs
___
September 29th, 2010
We live in hope because we believe, like St. Paul,
that love never dies. Human beings in the historical
process have created enclaves of love by their active
practice of solidarity throughout the world, and with
a view to the full-orbed liberation of peoples and
all humanity.
- Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, from his Nobel Lecture
___
September 30th, 2010
"This is completely unacceptable. Sacrilege would not
be too strong a word. It's loot, taken violently and
inappropriately in the first place. A tabot is a very
holy object; no one can see it apart from priests.
Westminster Abbey is one of the most visited sites in
London. To have it on public display there is an offence
to Orthodox Ethiopian Christians. For one Christian church
to refuse to return it to another seems profoundly wrong.”
- Rev. John McLuckie, a British priest, on Westminster
Abbey’s refusal to return a tabot, a small tablet that
symbolises the Ark of the Covenant, taken by British
troops in the 19th century, to the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church. (Source: Guardian/Observer)
_____
October 1st, 2010
The heavens are as deep as our aspirations are high.
- Henry David Thoreau
*****
ON THIS DAY -
On Sept. 28, 1924, two United States Army planes
landed in Seattle, Washington, having completed the
first round-the-world flight in 175 days.
http://tinyurl.com/2fgunet
_____
Sept. 30, 1938, British, French, German and Italian
leaders agreed at a meeting in Munich that Nazi Germany
would be allowed to annex Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland.
http://tinyurl.com/38gyrvb
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT
(provided by colleague Jock McTavish)
A bishop had decreed that woman housekeepers for
priests should be at least fifty years of age. He
was startled, in the visitation of his diocese, to
discover a priest who thought he was observing the
law by keeping two housekeepers, each of whom was
twenty-five years of age.
Anthony de Mello, S.J.
(end)
COLLEAGUES LIST
Vol. VI. No. 5
Oct. 2nd, 2010
*****
Edited by Wayne A. Holst
*****
Special Item in this Issue:
Book Notice -
"More Everyday Parables" -
by colleague James Taylor
___
Colleague Communication:
Paul Verhoef
Harry Winter
Brian Arthur Brown
___
Colleague Contributions:
Martin Marty
Doug Shantz
___
Net Notes:
New York, New York
Irish Bishops Called to Rome
Joni Eareckson Tada Interviewed
Reading the Bible in South Africa
The Press Continues to Misread Pope
Stephen Hawking and Religion Vs. Science
The Reality of the Celibate Life (Nouwen)
Major Holy Site Ruling re Hindus and Muslims
Coptic Pope Apologizes re Comments about Islam
Holy Books Return to Canadian Citizenship Court
Atheists Score Better than Religious in US Survey
_____
Global Faith Potpourri:
9 stories from Ecumenical News International
___
Quotes of the Week:
Bernard of Clairvaux
Adolfo Pérez Esquivel
John McLuckie
Henry David Thoreau
___
On This Day (Sept. 27th - Sept. 30th)
Sept. 28, 1924 - First round-the-world flight completed
Sept. 30, 1938 - Allies allow Germany's annex of Sudetenland.
___
Closing Thoughts -
Story passed along by colleague Jock McTavish
(end)
*****
Dear Friends:
Colleagues List arrives a little later in
the week than I normally send it because
Marlene and I decided to take Friday off
to see the glorious fall colours in Banff
and area while we had an opportunity.
Several weeks ago we saw a lovely array of
of colour in some of the Ontario woodlands,
just beginning to appear. Now, the full glow
of golden leaves in Alberta.
We are blessed, and we want to enjoy this
for the few days they are on display!
___
Now, back to our task.
This week, I share with you a book notice
about the arrival of "More Everyday Parables"
by colleague James Taylor. This is the second
study he has written on the parables, and in it
he goes deeper and broader. Please enjoy this!
___
Paul Verhoef - Christian Reformed chaplain at the
University of Calgary is now able to announce the
fall study we have created for faculty and staff.
This year we will be reading "Becoming Human" by
Jean Vanier and we hope for a good response to this
five week program on Thursday noons in October and
November.
Harry Winter - is pleased to announce the selection
of a new superior general of the Oblates which took
place in Rome this week.
Brian Arthur Brown - suggests that there is an
alternative to burning the Qua'ran. He proposes
instead the mutual study of Jewish, Christian and
Islamic scriptures.
___
Colleague Contributions:
Martin Marty - writes of the decline in US church
attendance (Sightings)
Doug Shantz - announces the up-coming lecture -
"Imagining Women in the Early Church" by Anne Moore
this coming Monday evening at St. Andrew's United
Church, Calgary (Chair of Christian Thought)
___
Net Notes:
"New York, New York" - Art Babych, a Canadian
church writer was in the Big Apple to report
on the UN Millennial Goals conference. While there,
he created a photo essay on two major churches
which he visited while there (Anglican Journal News)
"Irish Bishops Called to Rome" - the pope has
called the Irish Catholic hierarchy to the Vatican
to discuss the sex abuse crisis that has plagued
this nation (Irish Independent)
"Joni Eareckson Tada Interviewed" - Evangelical
Christians have long honoured Joni, but her
story is one of general interest and it is told
through an interview with this remarkable woman.
(PBS, Religion and Ethics)
"Reading the Bible in South Africa" - Times change.
A generation ago the Bible served as a major tool
in the liberation of South Africa from racist rule.
New, a new look at the Bible is needed (Sightings)
"The Press Continues to Misread Pope" - while some
of the popular press in the UK did quite well in
interpreting the papal visit recently, many articles
demonstrated a sad lack of religious awareness.
(Cathnews Asia)
"Stephen Hawking and Religion Vs. Science" - Again,
we visit the Sightings website for an article on
Hawking's recent published comments on God.
"The Reality of the Celibate Life (Nouwen)" - Twenty
years ago, Henri Nouwen was struggling with his
sexuality. Few knew then of his homosexuality. This
article remains a helpful reflection of Nouwen's
struggles at the time (National Catholic Reporter)
"Major Holy Site Ruling re Hindus and Muslims" -
For many years a battle has raged in Northern India
over the rightful ownership of a holy site as both
Hindus and Muslims have claimed it. Now, a high court
has ruled on a compromise settlement. Will it stand?
(BBC News)
"Coptic Pope Apologizes for Comments about Islam" -
It is hard for the Coptic Church in Egypt under the
best of times, but when a leader of that church makes
disparaging remarks against Muslims, trouble is quite
inevitable. Here is a recent story about such trouble.
(Associated Press)
"Holy Books Return to Canadian Citizenship Court" -
How to make sure that the Bible remains in Canadian
citizenship courts as a book to be respected? Allow
other holy books to be placed there as well. A truly
Canadian compromise for the good (Chrisitanweek.org)
"Atheists Score Better than Religious in US Survey" -
Some real surprises emerge from a recent survey on
religious knowledge in the US (ENI, PBS)
_____
Global Faith Potpourri:
I hope you enjoy the 9 stories from Ecumenical News
International, Geneva that I have collected for you.
___
Quotes of the Week:
Bernard of Clairvaux, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, John McLuckie
and Henry David Thoreau provide insight for us this week.
___
On This Day (Sept. 27th - Sept. 30th)
Stories from the archives of the New York Times:
First round-the-world flight completed (1924)
Allies allow Germany's annex of Sudetenland (1938)
___
Closing Thoughts -
I share humour passed along by colleague Jock McTavish
Blessings on your week,
Wayne
******************
SPECIAL ST. DAVID'S LINKS
Contact us at: asdm@sduc.ca (or) admin@sduc.ca
St. David's Web Address - http://sduc.ca/
Listen to audio recordings of Sunday services -
http://sduc.ca/services.htm
___
ST DAVID'S ACTS WEB PAGE
Created and maintained by Colleague Jock McTavish
http://stdavidscalgary.net/
__
ANNOUNCING:
ST. DAVID'S 50th ANNIVERSARY
TOUR OF CELTIC LANDS - 2011
We plan a 15-day tour of special Celtic sites
in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England -
April 26th - May 10th, 2011.
A highlight of the tour will be a visit to
St. David's Cathedral, Pembrokeshire. Choir
members from our group will sing at various
informal cathedral events through the day
and at Evensong, on Saturday, May 7th!
Details are presently being finalized with
the cathedral dean, Jonathan Lean.
We are also planning to sing while visiting
Iona, Scotland and the Church of Mary Immaculate
in Inchicore, Dublin, Ireland.
38 PLACES ON THE TOUR ARE SOLD OUT
We have a waiting list for this trip; also an
interest list for other, future tours!
*****
Announcing our New Fall Study at St. David's:
Follow this study by clicking:
http://www.1journey.net/stdavids/SD/BookStudy/25/25.htm
---
LISTENING FOR THE HEARTBEAT OF GOD:
A Celtic Spirituality (Philip Newell)
Including background material from the book:
THE CELTIC WAY (Ian Bradley)
Plus:
INTROS TO CELTIC SAINTS PATRICK, COLUMBA & DAVID
Join our ten week Monday Night Study, which will run
from September 20th through November 29th
Special Guest:
Dr. Wayne Davies, Department of Geography, U of C.
is a native of Wales. He will speak with us at one
session, introducing us to his homeland, and explaining
some of the important sites we plan to visit to maximize
our appreciation of the tour.
This program is being made available for regular
Monday Night study-folk plus those planning to
take the tour of Celtic Lands next spring.
This study series is part of our St. David's fiftieth
anniversary celebrations and is provided for all!
___
STUDY ARCHIVES
A collection of twenty-five+ studies conducted since 2000 can
quickly be found at: http://bookstudies.stdavidscalgary.net/
This collection of study resources represents a decade of
Monday Night Studies at St. David's, plus extra courses too!
You are welcome to use our course outlines, class notes and
resource pages in your personal and group reflections.
*****************************************************
SPECIAL ITEMS
BOOK NOTICE
MORE EVERYDAY PARABLES
Simple Stories for Spiritual Reflection,
by Jim Taylor. Wood Lake Books, Kelowna, BC.
2010. $19.95 CAD. 144 pages.
ISBN #978-1-55145-587-7.
Publisher's Promo:
In this second book of modern parables, author
Jim Taylor takes us... where events are ambiguous,
unsettling, or just plain ordinary... Usually, we
don't notice this place much at all in our rush to
get "the answer."
Yet, every story, every event, however ordinary or
vague, has God in it. "More Everyday Parables"
contains the kind of story that doesn't have an
explanation. Jesus made up his stories on the spot
to respond to questions of his followers. He used
things that had happened to him, or someone he had
heard about and made a story about it... Who will
ever exactly know what Jesus meant?
Taylor uses the "parable without explanation" in
this book to offer an opportunity for the reader
to reflect deeply on what the story evokes for them.
He tells his stories about everyday happenings that
we can all relate to, and then steps back and lets
us notice where and how they touched us, if they
touched us at all. Then, if we wish to go further,
the author offers some of his own reflections on
the story. This may allow new perspectives to open
for the reader.
Jim's accessible story telling style, the reflections
and Biblical references, make this book ideal for
personal study/reflection or group use.
_____
Author's Words:
Why parables? Because they were Jesus' way of
communicating his message. He didn't provide learned
lectures. He told parables.
We tragically, have turned his message into dogma. We
expound theology. We string together this verse and
that in an attempt to prove that there is a single
coherent system connecting writings that happened
1,000 years apart.
We turn the Bible into a coded message, a jigsaw puzzle
that must be put together in just the right way to make
sense. Jesus would have been appalled...
Jesus looked for examples as he walked along (on his
itinerant ministry) - the mustard seed, the village
woman...
The gospels list about 50 parables that Jesus told -
many are figures of speech that relate some commonplace
event or activity to the new kind of life Jesus promised.
---
But Jesus told parables that were more than figures of
speech. They were stories... Stories that everyone knows
about - the good Samaritan, the prodigal son, the wedding
banquet, the workers in the vineyard. I didn't include
story parables in my first book "Everyday Parables."
So I decided, when I was asked to write a sequel that
I would concentrate on that second kind.
I have deliberately not simply paraphrased the old
parables into modern language... we need to break our
imagination free of its biblical prison. The Bible was
written by a desert people who never really outgrew
their nomad roots. They wrote about droughts, not
deluges; about searing heat, not blizzards; about goats,
not supermarkets... if we limit ourselves to the
illustrations that correspond with biblical narratives,
we leave out a large part of our present-day experience.
I believe that God speaks to us through more than the
Bible. The Bible may be about God, but if God is truly
Creator, so is nature. So is science. And history.
For that reason, I have included in these modern
parables some events that would have been inconceivable
to the gospel writers. Because I believe that if Jesus
were telling parables today, he would do as he did
back then - he would talk about things that people
knew in their everyday lives...
All this leaves me with a dilemma. Because when I
choose the stories that I present as modern-day parables,
I want to tell you what their meaning is. I want to be
sure you don't miss the point.
But that is not what Jesus would have done.
So I've compromised. I tell the story, and you can,
if you wish, stop there... Or you can carry on reading
and see what I got out of it. I've included some
reflections of my own on each story. They might
illuminate your thoughts; they might not.
I would appreciate your feedback: jimt@quixoticx.ca
_____
My Thoughts:
What James Taylor does in this second of his books on
the parables of Jesus is what he has always attempted
to do in his writings so long as I have known him. He
seeks to free ancient truth from the encrustations of
time and interpretation. In that effort, there are few
who do better than Jim.
Taylor is frequently more interested in what others
think than in following any "official" explanation.
He has his opinions, of course, and he is forthright in
expressing them; usually, but not always, after due
consideration.
He teaches through his writings that the quest for truth
is a shared, not an individual process.
I have kept Taylor's books close by for the quarter
century that we have known each other and have always
been impressed that he tends to follow the rubric of
a shared truth quest in all his writing. When I first
wrote articles for him as editor of Practice of Ministry
in Canada (the 1980s) I found him only too eager to have
me struggle to express my own views.
He did much to encourage me to be a writer when I had
serious doubts about having anything to say.
Jim helped me to break free of my own tendency to "follow
the lead of others, rather than to think for myself under
the guidance of God's Spirit" (whatever that might be.)
He continues to do that with this his second attempt to
encounter that rich treasure trove of insight that are
the parables of Jesus.
Over the years, I have discovered that if there is anything
about Christianity that many people of other faith traditions
tend to appreciate, it is the stories Jesus told. Jesus is
truly one of history's greatest teachers and that truth has
not been lost on Christian and non-Christian alike.
---
I still believe there is value is approaching the parables
using the contextual methodology I was taught as a student
of theology. Go deep into the time and place of the original
situation (the 'sitz im leben') as my teachers impressed upon
me. Many good things can be learned from doing this.
But there is also much to be gained from taking this process
a step further as Taylor does. Through the use of imagination
and insight, it is possible to work with the implications of
those original stories and to project them in new, currently
applicable directions.
What does it mean to help people who have been abused and
abandoned? What does it mean to choose to go your own way?
What does it mean when you do not fit into the patterns of
accepted social norms? The good Samaritan, the prodigal son
and the wedding banquet are Jesus stories with much more value
and implication that we might often recognize at first glance.
---
Read Jim Taylor's new book on the parables because, by doing
so, you will grow through expanding your spiritual horizons.
He is good at taking you "one step further."
_____
Order from Wood Lake direct:
http://tinyurl.com/2c74hmy
Purchase at a special web price.
*****
COLLEAGUE COMMUNICATION
PAUL VERHOEF
Wayne:
Here is how we will promote the Vanier
study this fall:
UNIVERSITY FACULTY & STAFF FALL STUDY
"Becoming Human" by Jean Vanier
(the 1998 CBC Massey Lecture Series)
Thursdays, Oct 21 through Nov 25, Noon-1 PM
Native Centre, Small Boardroom (MSC 390)
Oct 21 – Loneliness, Chapter 1
Oct 28 – Belonging, Chapter 2
Nov 4 – From Exclusion to Inclusion, Chapter 3
[skipping Remembrance Day]
Nov 18 – The Path to Freedom, Chapter 4
Nov 25 – Forgiveness, Chapter 5
*****
HARRY WINTER
Dear Wayne:
We just received word that Louie Lougen, provincial
of the USA Oblate province, has been elected our
12th superior general, on his 58th birthday.
---
OMI USA
Sept. 28th, 2010
Oblates Elect New Yorker as New World Leader
http://www.omiusa.org/en/component/content/article/195
*****
BRIAN ARTHUR BROWN
An Alternative to Burning the Quar'an
Wayne:
My September blog entry has been posted:
"An Alternative to Burning the Qur'an" -
Just click on my website (below), move the cursor over
the Three Testaments bar and visit Join the Conversation.
Brian
www.BrianArthurBrown.com
*****
MARTIN MARTY
AMERICA'S DECLINE IN CHURCH ATTENDENCE
September 27th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/2cbvpb5
*****
DOUG SHANTZ
The Chair of Christian Thought at the University of Calgary
presents The Bentall Lecture in Christian Theology with:
Dr. Anne Moore
Associate Professor, Department of Religious Studies
University of Calgary:
"Imaging Women in the Early Church:
The Visual/Material Clues to Women's Leadership"
Monday, October 4, 2010 at 7:30pm
St. Andrew’s United Church
924 Heritage Dr. SW, Calgary
Everyone is welcome to join us for this free event!
*****
NET NOTES
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Crosstalk editor Art Babych (Ottawa) was in New York
during the U.N. Summit on Millennium Development Goals
Sept. 20 to 24 and shares his photos.
See the slide show...
http://tinyurl.com/2awpso8
*****
IRISH BISHOPS CALLED TO ROME
Irish Independent
September 29th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/2cuz6k9
*****
JONI EARECKSON TADA INTERVIEWED
PBS Religion and Ethics
September 24th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/332ne9b
*****
THE PRESS CONTINUES TO MISREAD POPE
Cathnews Asia
September 26th, 2010
His Visit to the UK as Case in Point
http://tinyurl.com/26cgu8n
*****
STEPHEN HAWKING AND RELIGION VS SCIENCE
Sightings
9/23/2010
by Colin Bossen
Debate about God continues to be strong
http://tinyurl.com/2dlbjcj
*****
THE REALITY OF CELIBATE LIFE:
REFLECTIONS FROM HENRI NOUWEN
Provided by A.W. Richard Sipe
National Catholic Reporter
October 1st, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/28oybc7
*****
INDIAN HOLY SITE COMPROMISE BETWEEN
HINDU AND MUSLIM COMBATANTS
Attempted Settlement by Indian Court
BBC News
September 30th, 2010
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11441890
---
Holy Site has History of Violence
The Guardian UK
September 30th, 2010
Slideshow:
http://tinyurl.com/2a5ubgn
*****
COPTIC POPE APOLOGIZES FOR COMMENTS ABOUT ISLAM
Associated Press
September 27th, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/22v8dre
*****
HOLY BOOKS RETURN TO CANADIAN CITIZENSHIP COURT
Christianweek.org
September 28th, 2010
http://www.christianweek.org/stories.php?id=1129
*****
ATHEISTS DO BETTER THAN RELIGIOUS
IN US SURVEY; JEWS AND MORMONS GET TOP MARKS
Ecumenical News Service
Geneva, Switzerland
September 28th, 2010
Atheists do better than religious in US religious survey
New York (ENI). If you want a question on religion answered
in the United States, ask an atheist. U.S. atheists and
agnostics are among the groups that scored highest in a
recent survey of knowledge of world religions by the
Washington-based Pew Research Centre's Forum on Religion
and Public Life. U.S. Jews and Mormons also got top marks.
The survey of 3412 adults, taken between 19 May and 6 June,
suggests that large numbers of Americans do not know,
"about the tenets, practices, history and leading figures
of major faith traditions - including their own", Pew said
when it announced the survey results on 28 September.
_____
PBS
Religion and Ethics
October 1st, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/28fnhww
*****
GLOBAL FAITH POTPOURRI
Ecumenical News International
News Highlights
28 September 2010
West focus on gays not real issue for Africa,
says Angolan bishop
London (ENI). The 25, not-so-young, white, Christian
supporters of Africa met in an almost empty London
church, which had been partly destroyed in the Second
World War, to hear the Anglican bishop of Angola, Andre
Soares, talk about, "the real issues" facing his
continent. Bishop Soares spoke to ENI News before the
start of the 2010 annual general meeting of the
Mozambique Angola Association, founded 103 years ago
to link Protestant churches in Britain with similar
churches in the then-Portuguese territories of Africa.
"We know a great deal about the challenge of secularism
and materialism. My country became independent from
Portugal 35 years ago on 11 November 1975," Bishop
Soares said outside St John's Church on Waterloo
Road in central London.
_____
Macau bishop says no to garbage dump at UN heritage site
Hong Kong (ENI). The Roman Catholic bishop in Macau has
spoken out against the building by the government of a
garbage storage facility next to the city's Church of St.
Lawrence, an historic building UNESCO listed as a world
cultural heritage site in 2005. Bishop Jose Lai Hung-Seng
told media on 23 September, "This is not at all good." He
explained that the proposed dump would not be in harmony
with the world cultural heritage site. The bishop said his
objection is not that the new storage facility would be
next to a church, and that it would be next to the cultural
heritage site. He hopes and believes the government will
drop its plan.
*****
29 September 2010
'Keep train on track' for Sudan peace
pleads world church leader
Nairobi (ENI). The general secretary of the World
Council of Churches has pleaded for the full
implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
for Sudan so that Africa's biggest country can
achieve stability. The Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit said
he understands from visits to the country, made
before the signing of the pact in 2005, how Sudan
desperately needs the peace agreement that ended
a decades-long civil war. "For me, this peace
agreement is such a costly gift and such an
opportunity that should not be lost," Tveit told
ENI news in an interview on 21 September at the
beginning of a seven-day visit to Kenya and
Ethiopia. On 9 January 2011, Sudan is scheduled
to hold referenda in southern Sudan and the
oil-rich Abyei border region between north and
south Sudan.
_____
Japan's Catholic bishops publish
English interfaith guidelines
Tokyo (ENI). Japan's Roman Catholic bishops have published
an English-language version of their guidelines for
interreligious dialogue. "Guidelines on Interreligious
Dialogue - The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan," is
aimed at foreign residents in the country. "In Japan, where
the number of Christians is extremely low, Catholics
frequently have contact with followers of various religions
and attend other religions' events," the bishops explain on
their Web site. "We are often puzzled or bewildered on those
occasions. It must be especially hard for foreign residents,
who are not familiar with Japanese unique rituals, customs,
and manners."
*****
30 September 2010
Christians call for calm after Indian verdict
on holy site
Bangalore, India (ENI). Churches in India have
joined other faiths and political leaders in calling
for calm after a court ruled that a religious site,
vigorously and violently disputed by Hindus and
Muslims, should be split between the two groups.
On 30 September, the high court of northern Uttar
Pradesh state handed down its verdict in the
protracted case that concerns the ownership of the
site of the former Babri mosque at Ayodhya, 700
kilometres (420 miles) south-east of New Delhi.
The case has been pending for more than half a
century. In a majority verdict, two of the three
judges declared that Hindus have the right of
ownership to the main disputed area, where the main
dome of the Muslim Babri mosque once stood. The court
granted Muslims and a Hindu group control of other
parts of the site. Hindus consider the location the
birthplace of the god Ram, and placed a Ram idol
inside the mosque in 1949.
_____
Southern Africa bishops disturbed
by Swaziland's rights abuses
Cape Town (ENI). Bishops of the Anglican Church in
Southern Africa say they are deeply disturbed by news
of growing human rights abuses in Swaziland, a kingdom
sandwiched between South Africa and Mozambique. The
bishops, meeting in Benoni near Johannesburg from 27
to 29 September for their twice-yearly synod, challenged
their church to become more involved in the quest for
democracy in Swaziland. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of Cape
Town, the leader of the church, said on 30 September he
could not remain silent on the issue of democracy in
Swaziland, "where power and wealth is concentrated in
the hands of a few, and political debate is hardly
permitted". A state of emergency has existed in
Swaziland for the past 37 years. Freedom of expression
is severely limited, opposition political parties are
banned, and reports of police arresting and beating up
critics are frequent.
_____
Evangelical Christian pilgrims converge on Jerusalem
Jerusalem (ENI). Thousands of evangelical Christians
from 100 countries have participated in a 30th "Feast
of Tabernacles" event, organized by the International
Christian Embassy Jerusalem, a group strongly supportive
of a united Jerusalem under Israel. The ICEJ says the
event, held from 23 to 29 September to coincide with
the Jewish holiday of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot),
has become Israel's largest annual tourist event, and
the largest solidarity mission to Israel. Organizers
expect the festival to have injected an estimated US$15
million into the local economy. The event takes place
with the assistance of the Israeli Ministry of Tourism,
and, in 2010, about 1000 pilgrims from Brazil made up
the largest group at the embassy event.
*****
1 October 2010
Christian leaders lament during
Nigeria's 50th anniversary
Lagos (ENI). Christian leaders in Nigeria have joined
in marking 50 years of independence in Africa's most
populous nation but have also called for divine
intervention because of their concern for the state
of the nation. "Though it might seem like there is not
much to jubilate about in the nation, prophetically and
by faith, we celebrate Jubilee. We believe that as God
sees our faith, he will give us cause to be jubilant
as we begin the journey of another 50 years," said
the president of the Christian Association of Nigeria,
Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor.
_____
Buzz builds around new unofficial saint of abuse victims
Vatican City. (ENI/RNS). Mother Mary MacKillop won't be
canonised until 17 October but some Catholics already have
an unofficial title for the 19th-century Australian nun:
Patron Saint of Whistleblowers. MacKillop (1842-1909),
Australia's first native-born saint, was co-founder of
the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, an order
of nuns dedicated to the religious instruction of children
and care for the poor. The strong-willed MacKillop, who
worked under harsh conditions in the Australian outback,
was once briefly excommunicated by her bishop for reasons
that have never been entirely clear.
*****
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners Online:
September 28th, 2010
Many of those who are humiliated are not humble.
Some react to humiliation with anger, others with
patience, and others with freedom. The first are
culpable, the next harmless, the last just.
- Bernard of Clairvaux, On the Song of Songs
___
September 29th, 2010
We live in hope because we believe, like St. Paul,
that love never dies. Human beings in the historical
process have created enclaves of love by their active
practice of solidarity throughout the world, and with
a view to the full-orbed liberation of peoples and
all humanity.
- Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, from his Nobel Lecture
___
September 30th, 2010
"This is completely unacceptable. Sacrilege would not
be too strong a word. It's loot, taken violently and
inappropriately in the first place. A tabot is a very
holy object; no one can see it apart from priests.
Westminster Abbey is one of the most visited sites in
London. To have it on public display there is an offence
to Orthodox Ethiopian Christians. For one Christian church
to refuse to return it to another seems profoundly wrong.”
- Rev. John McLuckie, a British priest, on Westminster
Abbey’s refusal to return a tabot, a small tablet that
symbolises the Ark of the Covenant, taken by British
troops in the 19th century, to the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church. (Source: Guardian/Observer)
_____
October 1st, 2010
The heavens are as deep as our aspirations are high.
- Henry David Thoreau
*****
ON THIS DAY -
On Sept. 28, 1924, two United States Army planes
landed in Seattle, Washington, having completed the
first round-the-world flight in 175 days.
http://tinyurl.com/2fgunet
_____
Sept. 30, 1938, British, French, German and Italian
leaders agreed at a meeting in Munich that Nazi Germany
would be allowed to annex Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland.
http://tinyurl.com/38gyrvb
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT
(provided by colleague Jock McTavish)
A bishop had decreed that woman housekeepers for
priests should be at least fifty years of age. He
was startled, in the visitation of his diocese, to
discover a priest who thought he was observing the
law by keeping two housekeepers, each of whom was
twenty-five years of age.
Anthony de Mello, S.J.
(end)
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