Sunday, June 29, 2014

Colleagues List, June 29th, 2014

Vol. IX.  No. 40

*****

CANADA DAY WEEKEND EDITION

GLOBAL AND ECUMENICAL IN SCOPE
CANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE

Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address:
waholst@telus.net

Colleagues List Web Site:

http://colleagueslist.blogspot.com

"Quicklinks" are included with many items
at the beginning of this issue. To get a more
complete picture, however, scroll down to
find your special selection in the body of
the blog. 

Note that not all items here have links.


*****


Dear Friends:

This is the last issue of Colleagues List
in Volume IX. In one year, I will have
completed ten years of electronic
mailings, although the present blog
concept began in 2009.

During the past decade of production
I have created 467 issues, averaging
46.7 issues per year, and almost one
issue per week. During the last seven 
years I have created 279 issues at
the rate of 39.8 issues per year.

At the beginning, I sent out issues
frequently, and not according to a
schedule. I now try to concentrate
on an orderly, thought-out routine
but with fewer, comprehensive issues.

Some of you have received every one
that I have ever sent out!

Thanks to all of you for your loyalty.
I hope you continue to find CL helpful.

--

My Special Item this week is a
self-published book by a relatively
new colleague  but old friend,
John Badertscher of Winnipeg.

He writes a reflection on his life
and development as a social activist
and academic  

It is entitled "Fragments of Freedom"
and I hope you will find it interesting.

http://tinyurl.com/oxa487t
http://tinyurl.com/qh5mm7f

--

Colleague Contributions - 
this week are from: 

Harry Winter
http://tinyurl.com/pd43s36
http://tinyurl.com/m58jhzp

Erich Weingartner
http://tinyurl.com/leqwfx6

Jim Taylor 
 http://tinyurl.com/pfe4g62

Ron Rolheiser
http://tinyurl.com/nwfekhp

--

Net Notes:

"The Decency of a Nation" - here is
a unique rating of national values,
globally compared (The Economist)
http://tinyurl.com/lenolnk

"A Theology of the World Cup" - with
so much focus on this major international
event it is fitting to have a theological
interpretation (The Tablet, UK)
http://tinyurl.com/k34pfb4

"Nanaimo Blocks US Broadcast Group" -
this Vancouver Island community has
decided to block communication that
has a strongly anti-gay philosophy
(The Christian Post)
http://tinyurl.com/kaz4aos

"Meriam Ibrahim Family in US Embassy" -
a Sudanese woman and her family have
suffered much from an intolerant religiously 
biased society (CBC, The Tablet)
http://tinyurl.com/kmkuuss
http://tinyurl.com/pdzp88h

"Humility is Now Best US Option for Iraq" -
a helpful perspective on how America 
might deal with the current crisis in Iraq
(Sojourners Online) 
http://tinyurl.com/onc9uxg

"Large Christian Group Forced Into Exile" -
the problems in Iraq are again causing
severe dislocation for Christians there
(The Tablet) http://tinyurl.com/oceuwbn

"Time to Drop the Term Visible Minorities" -
this Canada Day weekend offers a time
to reconsider how we address our growing
non-European population (Montreal Gazette)
http://tinyurl.com/nddqs56

"Christians in China Have Message for West" -
an insightful article on what the Christians
of China can teach the rest of us (Sightings)
http://tinyurl.com/l2vunta

"Conservative Christians Walling Selves Off" -
the message that many of our churches convey
to the world is not one that invites respect
from persons in the world we seek to reach
(The Atlantic Online)
http://tinyurl.com/nbzphkx

"Eastern Mennonite U. Delays Decision on SSM" -
a well-established evangelical institution is
struggling with an issue that many evangelical
institutions are facing with greater urgency today
(The Christian Post) 
http://tinyurl.com/oq3jrsj

--

Wisdom of the Week - is provided courtesy 
of Sojourners and Bruderhof online and includes 
insights from the following persons -

N.T. Wright, Clare Boothe Luce, Christopher Hill,
William Hazlitt and Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Please scroll down to read these quotes.

--

On This Day - June 22nd - 29th

From the archives of the New York Times:

"Treaty of Versailles Ends WWI"
  http://tinyurl.com/qa7p57x

"Custer Defeated in Battle With Native Americans"
  http://tinyurl.com/ncupzq

"French Sign Truce with Hitler on Site of WWI Armistice"
  http://tinyurl.com/5uy55h2

--

Closing Thought - is from Yelena Bonner
Please scroll down.

Starting  July 13th, you will receive my first
bi-weekly summer issue of Colleagues List.
This schedule will continue through August.

Wayne

*****

SPECIAL ITEM

Book Notice -

FRAGMENTS OF FREEDOM
by John Badertscher. 2014.
McNally Robinson, Winnipeg MB
Self-published, 122 pages.
$18.95 CAD online price
ISBN #9781927533710

Publisher's  Promo:

John Badertscher was born into a family of 
educators in a small industrial town in Ohio 
during the Depression. After serving briefly 
as a Methodist minister, he completed his 
formal education with a PhD from the 
University of Chicago.

He took a position in Religious Studies at 
the University of Winnipeg in 1971 and 
taught there until his retirement. 

"Fragments of Freedom" - is a memoir 
charting his growing awareness of the evil 
of racism, beginning with his childhood. 

The “fragments” trace his engagement 
with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, 
and the refocusing made necessary by 
becoming a Canadian in the middle of his life. 
Because his pursuit of racial justice is entangled 
with his personal life and his faith, the book can 
be taken as a testimonial as well as one person’s 
experience of some of the most significant 
events of our time.

--

Author's  Words:

I was born in Alliance, Ohio in December of 1936. 
I spoke two languages: middle class English at home 
and in church, but hillbilly in the schoolyard. At home... 
we read the Bible and Shakespeare... we sang hymns 
and listened to Handel and Mendelssohn... Otherwise, 
I lived in a world of Gospel and Country music. 

I loved them all equally.

In school, I read what was required for the year in
the first few weeks, and became a lazy student. 
Racial injustice was rarely a topic I considered.

(John writes about the two worlds he inhabited. 
The one of relative privilege for his environment 
at the time, and the tough world of many of his 
school friends.)

(Driving through the nearby towns where others 
lived) you have to be careful here, because if they 
catch you looking at them, they look away as if 
embarrassed, or give you a mean stare. We do not 
drive through that part of town at night very often, 
but when we do, it is a little scary... Once I asked 
my dad why all the Negro people lived in this part 
of town. He said they also lived in other parts... 
but I almost never saw them...

My friend's parents are always complaining about 
"the niggers." They always complain about "the 
niggers"being dirty and lazy... I know my Dad and 
Mom think that "nigger" is a word that should never 
be used, and I never use it around them or otherwise, 
but most of my friends do.

--

My Thoughts:

I suspect that many of you my readers could put
yourselves, in some way, into the place of John
Badertscher.

Every June 10th I try to call my childhood friend
Bill Strauss in St. Jacobs, Ontario. It is his birthday,
and mine falls two days later.

Without fail during the course of the conversation, 
we bring up the fact that, growing up, Billy was a 
member of one of the very few Catholic families in 
a town made up almost entirely of Protestants. I 
then proceed to remind him about how the boys 
would tease him about "worshiping Mary instead 
of God.

Invariably,  I would talk to my dad in a troubled 
way about this.

Dad would say "Billy and his family have their own
way of praying, and we should respect that."

Little did I realize how powerful that advice was
and how it has guided so much of my way of
understanding life. There is so much social,
cultural and spiritual wisdom in that advice.

--

I am enjoying this book because, in many ways,
it is a variation on the theme of my own life.

John tells how he got his education and developed
his values in the US and then migrated to Canada
in the early 1970's. I started in Canada, studied
and worked in Europe, the Two-Thirds World and
the USA and then returned to spend most of my
life in my home country.

I value the way John describes how his theology
evolved; often because of his life challenges.
He is open about his mistakes and failures, and
that is salutary for me as well as for him.

The author and I collaborated in Winnipeg more 
than forty years ago, and I appreciate how his life
during the intervening years has evolved, because
it shines light on my own.

This is not a lengthy book. Nor does it attempt to
be a 'magnum opus.' Still, it is a window into
another's experience - thoughtfully presented.
It is a worthy testimony to how one man started
in a very different time and place than he is
ending it. He has grown so much in the process,
and I hope I am doing the same.

Since he has retired from formal teaching, John
continues to lead an active life. From time to time
he visits Calgary.

I am grateful that his daughter, Dr. Betsy Woolner,
a fellow-member at my church here in Calgary,
put me on to this book and made the connections
to have it introduced here.

It is a meaningful testimony, worth considering.
Thanks, John!

*****

Buy the book from McNally Robinson
http://tinyurl.com/oxa487t

More on John's teaching career:
http://tinyurl.com/qh5mm7f

Contact him:

Dr. John Badertscher
62-25 Shorehill Dr
Winnipeg, MB, R3X 0A9
204-219-2839

*****

COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS

HARRY WINTER
St. Paul, MN

June 25th, 2014

Wayne

If you want to call attention to my item 
"Vatican II Continues" in your fellow 
Canadian (and colleague) Tom Ryan's 
Paulist summer issue of Koinonia, the 
link is below, after a comment by another 
Canadian, from the Scarborough Mission 
Society.

(plus an article on Bruderhof members visit
  with Pope Francis)

Harry

The Paulist
Summer, 2014

"Vatican II Continues - Catholic and Orthodox"
  http://tinyurl.com/pd43s36

"Proclaiming the Gospel With One Voice"
  http://tinyurl.com/m58jhzp

--

ERICH WEINGARTNER
Calendar, ON.

June 25th, 2014

Wayne

You might add this to your next list.
I attended the meeting and gave the 
keynote address.

Cheers,
Erich

World Council of Churches News
Geneva, Switzerland

"Global Gathering to Discuss Peace
  in the Korean Peninsula"
  http://tinyurl.com/leqwfx6

--

JIM TAYLOR,
Okanagan, BC

Personal Web Log
June 25th, 2014

"Controlling Our Thoughts"
  http://tinyurl.com/pfe4g62

--

RON ROLHEISER
San Antonio, TX

Personal Web Site

June 22nd, 2014

"On Being Perpetually Distracted"
  http://tinyurl.com/nwfekhp

*****

NET NOTES

THE DECENCY OF A NATION
National Benevolence Rated

The Economist
June 24th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/lenolnk

--

A THEOLOGY OF THE WORLD CUP
Church and Soccer Not Incompatible

The Tablet
June 27th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/k34pfb4

--

NANAIMO BLOCKS US BROADCAST GROUP
Its Pro-Traditional Marriage Stance Rejected

The Christian Post
June 28th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/kaz4aos

--

MERIAM IBRAHIM FAMILY IN US EMBASSY
Fear of Reprisal from Sudanese Community

CBC News
June 27th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/kmkuuss

"World Needs to Act on Meriam Ibrahim"

The Tablet, UK
June 24th, 2014


http://tinyurl.com/pdzp88h

--

HUMILITY IS NOW BEST OPTION FOR IRAQ
America Can Still Learn from Experience

Sojourners Online
June 27th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/onc9uxg

--

LARGE CHRISTIAN GROUP FORCED INTO EXILE
Iraqi Community Suffers from Recent Fighting

The Tablet
June 27th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/oceuwbn

--

TIME TO DROP THE TERM "VISIBLE MINORITIES"
Canada a Different Country than 50 Years Ago

Montreal Gazette
June 27th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/nddqs56

--

CHRISTIANS IN CHINA HAVE MESSAGE FOR WEST
Focus on Our Values, Not Our Oppression

Sightings
June 25th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/l2vunta

--

CONSERVATIVE CHRISTIANS WALLING SELVES OFF
When Religion Does This Everyone Loses

The Atlantic
June 25th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/nbzphkx

--

EASTERN MENNONITE U. DELAYS DECISION ON SSM
Seeks to Respect Church Stance on Sexuality

Christian Post
June 25th, 2014


http://tinyurl.com/oq3jrsj

*****

WISDOM OF THE WEEK 

From Sojourners and Bruderhof Online:

"Here is the mystery, the secret, one might 
almost say the cunning, of the deep love of 
God: that it is bound to draw on to itself the 
hatred and pain and shame and anger and 
bitterness and rejection of the world, but to
draw all those things on to itself is precisely
the means, chosen from all eternity by the 
generous, loving God, by which to rid his 
world of the evils which have resulted from 
the human abuse of God-given freedom." 

- N. T. Wright

--

"I am for lifting everyone off the social bottom. 
In fact, I am for doing away with the social bottom
altogether." 

- Clare Boothe Luce

--

"Only very slowly and late have [people] come 
to realize that unless freedom is universal it is 
only extended privilege."


- Christopher Hill

--

"The love of liberty is the love of others; 
the love of power is the love of ourselves."

- William Hazlitt

--

"Love in action is a harsh and dreadful thing 
compared with love in dreams. Love in dreams 
is greedy for immediate action, rapidly performed 
and in sight of all. People will give their lives if only 
the ordeal does not last long but is soon over, with 
all looking on and applauding as if on the stage. 
But active love is labor and fortitude.

- Fyodor Dostoyevsky

*****

ON THIS DAY
June 22-29th

From the Archives of the New York Times:


"Treaty of Versailles Ends WWI"
   http://tinyurl.com/qa7p57x

"Custer Defeated in Battle With Native Americans"
   http://tinyurl.com/ncupzq

"French Sign Truce with Hitler on Site of WWI Armistice"
  http://tinyurl.com/5uy55h2

*****

CLOSING THOUGHT - YELENA BONNER

"Just as there are no little people
 or unimportant lives, there is no 
 insignificant work."


(end)

Saturday, June 21, 2014

Colleagues List, June 22nd, 2014

Vol. IX.  No. 39

*****

GLOBAL AND ECUMENICAL IN SCOPE
CANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE

Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address:
waholst@telus.net

Colleagues List Web Site:

http://colleagueslist.blogspot.com

"Quicklinks" are included with many items
at the beginning of this issue. To get a more
complete picture, however, scroll down to
find your special selection in the body of
the blog. 

Note that not all items here have links.


*****


Dear Friends -

As I announced last week I am going to 
need  your co-operation to help me continue 
sending  my weekly Colleagues List.

Included below is an important 
"Permission Statement" for your use
 (in a basic format borrowed from 
  colleague Jim Taylor.)

-----

Colleagues List Subscribers:

Canada has recently passed some anti-spam 
legislation which imposes special requirements 
on anyone sending out electronic messages 
(like me) with whopping fines for failing to 
comply.

Basically, the law says that I cannot e-mail 
my articles to you unless I have your express 
or implied consent. Since all or most of you, as 
far as I know, voluntarily subscribed to my list, 
I’m assuming your implied consent.

If I do not hear back from you with a formal
request to remove your name from Colleagues 
List mailings, I shall assume that you want to 
continue receiving it.

IF someone added your name without having
your consent, or if you no longer want to receive 
Colleagues List, please write to me at:

 waholst@telus.net 

Tell me that you want to unsubscribe from 
Colleagues List. Of course, I hope that none 
of you want to unsubscribe!

*****

This week's Colleagues List -

Begins with my Special Item:

"A Visit to Temple Square -
  Reflecting on the LDS Today"

http://tinyurl.com/m6u6zma

To fully read this reflection, please scroll down.

--

Colleague Contributions - this week

Monica Kilburn-Smith
http://tinyurl.com/pzf73vf

Arthur Bauer
http://tinyurl.com/ltqggu8

Jim Taylor
http://tinyurl.com/ms8l79j

Ron Rolheiser
http://tinyurl.com/nolukdf

--

Net Notes - and links are as follows:

"Pagan Britain"  - a valuable book
review on a volume that tells the
story of Britain before the Romans
(The Tablet, UK)
http://tinyurl.com/kdl9u2j

"Return of Hare Krishna"  - an
eastern religious group first
noted on our city streets in the
60s and 70s is back in a new way
(Washington Post on Faith)
http://tinyurl.com/kv2m8p6

"Mormons Sue BC Polygamists"  -
evidence of a public feud between
sectarian and mainstream Mormonism
in Canada (Castanet News)
http://tinyurl.com/lsx8reg

"How Bob Jones U Handles Rape" -
a dramatic presentation on an issue
that has plagued the whole church 
and is slowly, fully, revealing itself
(Al Jezeera America)
http://tinyurl.com/pdzraps


"UK Bans Teaching of Creationism" -
the British government is coming out
strongly against the teaching of
creationism in its schools today
(Christian Post)
http://tinyurl.com/pd7fls5

"Is the Brain Hard-Wired for Faith?"  -
this is the continuation of a scientific
probe into the nature of the brain
which integrates religion and science
(US Catholic)
http://tinyurl.com/pbkfevu

"Flood Recovery is Slow on Reserve"  -
on the weekend remembering the
first anniversary of the Calgary Flood
here is a story from a local native 
reserve near the city (Castanet News)
http://tinyurl.com/kocnqct

"As Others Decline Pentecostals Grow" -
even the US Southern Baptists are
admitting decline, but the Assemblies of
God continue to grow (Christian Post)
http://tinyurl.com/lqw63m4

"200 Nigerian Schoolgirls are Still Missing" -
the tragedy in Nigeria appears to be
losing attention, though unresolved
(Reuters) http://tinyurl.com/mzqgdlu

"Trinity Western Law School Hits New Snag"  -
a Canadian Christian university continues
to run afoul of human rights legislation
(Globe and Mail) http://tinyurl.com/p7maer9

--

Wisdom of the Week comes from -

Sam Levenson, Søren Kierkegaard,
Desiderius Erasmus, I. Carter Heyward
and Frances Harper - courtesy of
Sojourners and Bruderhof online

Scroll down to read this.

--

On This Day - from the archives of
the New York Times -

UN Adopts Charter of Human Rights
http://tinyurl.com/83wo9bn

Igor Stravinski, Composer, is Born
http://tinyurl.com/yzkmbo7

--

Closing Thought - Nelson Mandela

Please scroll down for this.

After next week's issue of Colleagues List
I will enter my summer schedule of sending
it to you every other week until September
when I return to a weekly routine.

Blessings,

Wayne

***********

Continuing a series on spiritual
experiences from our recent trip
down the Pacific coast of the USA,
returning via the mountain states.

SPECIAL ITEM

A VISIT TO TEMPLE SQUARE
IN SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
Reflecting on the LDS Today

To begin, it is important to develop
a sense of what Temple Square is
all about. To get that, please click -

http://tinyurl.com/m6u6zma

--

Marlene and I spent a day and a half
visiting the various parts of the square
on the north-west side of downtown
Salt Lake City. 

The main buildings in the square proper
are the Salt Lake Temple, the Tabernacle,
the Assembly Hall (original temple) and
two well-developed visitor's centers. 
Only Mormons can worship in the temple 
but all are welcome to enter the tabernacle.

Beautiful gardens, memorial statuary and
resting places are also included here.

In addition to buildings within the square,
there are a number of significant facilities 
outside it, including a large conference 
center,  a hotel, a family history library 
(containing ancestry records), a church
history museum and administrative buildings. 

This is truly the 'Mormon Mecca' and it is
usually not hard to distinguish LDS folk
(at least the men) from the rest because
of their characteristic white shirts and ties.

Whenever we were looking for directions
or explanations a pair of 'sisters' with 
sunny dispositions would suddenly appear.

'The missionaries' - both male and female,
are everywhere and are treated with great
respect by those who recognize them.

There is no question that this is a sacred
place - not just for Mormons - but for people
with a sensitivity to things holy. We did 
not have to gain access to the temple proper
to realize this. People, history, building design 
and lay-out create a sanctified impact.

--

Here are a few impressions from our visit.

Attending an organ recital and a choir 
presentation in the tabernacle was special.
These performances of religious music -
while not worship per se - were exquisitely
handled and well-worth attending.

(Because of the crowds on Memorial Day
weekend in May we had to attend an
adjacent facility to hear a simultaneous
live telecast of the choir on Sunday, but
we did hear the organ program in the
tabernacle proper on Saturday.)

The Relief Society Building is headquarters
for a vast global service agency that grows
out of the real-life experience of the LDS
who had to learn self-sufficiency and 
were appreciative of the help they 
received from others during their early
history in Utah.

See the following articles on the famous 
Mormon Trek from the mid-western US 
to what became their Zion in Utah Territory 
during the first half of the nineteenth century =

Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormon_Trail

US National Historic Trail Link:
http://www.nps.gov/mopi/index.htm

The Family History Library was an
eye-opening experience. Both Marlene 
and I were, after an hour of research,
(and aided by two most helpful and 
enthusiastic sisters) able to trace our
family histories much more extensively
than we had done previously. Marlene's
tree now extends to 10th century Scotland
and mine to when my German antecedents 
came over on the boat in the early 19th
century. New leads for extending our trees 
were provided to both of us as we departed. 
These searches are offered gratis and are
amazing. You don't have to go to Salt Lake 
City either. Regional ancestry centers are 
located in many places, like Calgary.

Why not check one out for yourself?

The fact that the LDS got into ancestry
because of their belief in baptism for
the dead should not discourage us from 
taking advantage of their generous
ancestry search offer to all.

http://tinyurl.com/ouvyk

Our discussions with 'the missionaries'
we encountered everywhere in the
square and beyond it - was always on
a mutually respectful level and most
helpful. Never did I feel pressured
and my views were always addressed
respectfully and helpfully.

The fact that I noted 'indoctrination'
in a number of the women's responses
did not prevent me from saying that
I looked forward to the time - some
years hence - when their views about
the role of women in the Mormon
church might be different!

The great new awareness for us with 
this visit was the strong and growing
influence of women in the LDS. A brief 
review of how Mormon doctrine has 
adapted in light of changing social 
conditions - and because of it's world-
wide outreach and inclusion - I see the
day when there will be ordained women 
in the Mormon church, just as I see it 
coming in the RC church.

(See the Colleague Contribution
article below from Catholic woman-
priest Monica Kilburn-Smith. It is-
not surprising that modern women 
in both churches are currently finding 
sorority and common cause.)

--

A final word about Brigham Young
University, located south of Salt Lake 
City in Provo, Utah. This school has one
of the largest student bodies of any 
private American academic institution. 
(34,000 students, 98% Mormon)

http://tinyurl.com/z62ku

The motto of the school speaks for itself 
" Enter to Learn - Go Out to Serve"

Our experience in Temple Square and 
beyond it reminded us of Jesus' words - 
"by their fruits you will know them." 

*****

COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS

MONICA KILBURN-SMITH
Calgary, AB

June 18th, 2014

Monica Shares the following -

MORMON WOMEN FACING EXCOMMUNICATION
Ordination Seekers Banned from Temple Square

Religion News Service
March 18th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/pzf73vf

Catholic Women in Solidarity with Mormon Women
Women's Ordination Conference Blog
June 19th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/ltqggu8

--

ARTHUR BAUER 
Pompton Plains, NJ

June 18th, 2014


Wayne:

Save this for when you have time, 
but this man's pictures and message 
is phenomenal!

A remarkable presentation by a 
world famous time-lapse photographer. 
Have sound up.  Lasts about 5 minutes


"Beauty That Surrounds Us" 
  http://tinyurl.com/cqba8lf

--

JIM TAYLOR
Okanagan, BC

Personal Web Log
June 18th, 2014


"Abstract Principles in Real Life"
  http://tinyurl.com/ms8l79j

--

RON ROLHEISER
San Antonio, TX

Personal Website
June 15th, 2014

"On Not Being Stingy With God's Mercy"
  http://tinyurl.com/nolukdf
*****

NET NOTES

PAGAN BRITAIN
Life Before the Romans

The Tablet, UK
June 20th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/kdl9u2j

--

RETURN OF HARE KRISHNA 
Faith Becoming Evangelistic

Washington Post on Faith
June 16th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/kv2m8p6

--

MORMONS SUE BC POLYGAMISTS
Claim Copyright Infringement

Castanet News
June 20th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/lsx8reg

--

HOW BOB JONES U. HANDLES RAPE
Victims Counseled to Repent
(Watch videos, read story)

Al Jazeera America
June 18th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/pdzraps

--

UK BANS TEACHING OF CREATIONISM
Government Says it is Not Science

Christian Post
June 20th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/pd7fls5

--

IS THE BRAIN HARD-WIRED FOR FAITH?
Two Perspectives - Common Phenomena

US Catholic
June, 2014


http://tinyurl.com/pbkfevu

--

RECOVERY SLOW ON NATIVE RESERVE
Alberta Flood at First Anniversary

Castanet.net
June 19th, 20124

http://tinyurl.com/kocnqct

--

AS OTHERS DECLINE, PENTECOSTALS GROW
US Assemblies of God Not Like Most Churches

Christian Post
June 18th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/lqw63m4

--

200 NIGERIAN SCHOOLGIRLS STILL MISSING
Government Wraps Up Investigation

Reuters
June 20th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/mzqgdlu

--

TRINITY WESTERN LAW SCHOOL HITS NEW SNAG
BC Law Society Reverses Decision

Globe and Mail
June 10th, 2014

http://tinyurl.com/p7maer9

*****

WISDOM OF THE WEEK

Provided by Sojourners and Bruderhof Online -

"You must learn from the mistakes of others. 
You can’t possibly live long enough to make 
them all yourself."


- Sam Levenson

--

"Eternity is a very radical thought, and thus 
matter of inwardness. Whenever the reality 
of the eternal is affirmed, the present becomes
something entirely different from what it was 
apart from it. This is precisely why human 
beings fear it (under the guise of fearing death). 
You often hear about particular governments that
 fear the restless elements of society. I prefer to 
say that the entire age is a tyrant that lives in fear 
of the one restless element: the thought of eternity.
 It does not dare to think it. Why? Because it 
crumbles under – and avoids like anything – 
the weight of inwardness."


- Søren Kierkegaard

--

"Let us look at the past ten years...

What land and sea did not witness warfare? ...
We must look for peace by purging the very 
sources of war – false ambitions and evil desires. 
As long as individuals serve their own personal 
interests, the common good will suffer."


- Desiderius Erasmus 

--

"In the Spirit which draws us into honest 
engagement with one another, including those 
who may be very different from us in various 
ways, God calls us to wake up and learn how 
to love and respect one another, period."


- I. Carter Heyward

--

"My hands were weak, but I reached them out 
to feebler ones than mine, and over the shadow
 of my life, stole the light of a peace divine."


- Frances Harper

*****

ON THIS DAY

From the pages of the New York Times
June 15th - 21st

UN Adopts Charter of Human Rights
http://tinyurl.com/83wo9bn

Igor Stravinski, Composer, is Born 
http://tinyurl.com/yzkmbo7
(obituary)

*****

CLOSING THOUGHT - NELSON MANDELA

"It always seems impossible until it’s done."


(end)