Saturday, April 30, 2016

Colleagues List, May 1st, 2016

Vol. XI.  No. 36

*****


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


Dear Colleagues:

Enhancing your reading experience is very
important to me. I am currently involved in
up-grading the layout and presentation of
Colleagues List, so please bear with me.

I am attempting to reduce the length, but
not the content and quality, of each issue.

Please let me know how I'm doing.

---


Ralph Waldo Emerson and his Essential
Spiritual Writings is the Special Item
book notice I share with you this week.

For those seeking perspective on many
of the modern spiritualities influencing
our world, especially in the West, this
investigation of the writings of an early
American, New England religious figure
should be helpful.

Please scroll down through this letter
to read and learn more about him.

--

Colleague Communications this week
are from regular contributors Marty,
Rolheiser and Taylor. Enjoy them!

--

Net Notes offer 10 items from the
www I found helpful this week.

--

Wisdom of the Week = the reflections
of six special contributors await you.

--

Three big news stories, written as
they took place, are provided from
the archives of the New York Times.

--

We conclude this issue with words
from Anne Frank of Amsterdam.

--

We begin building our fall program
of Adult Spiritual Development at
St. David's United Church, Calgary
and you are welcome to journey
together with us into a new year.

--

Thanks for accompanying me on my
Colleagues List. I hope you find some
of this rich collection to be helpful.

Wayne

*****

SPECIAL ITEM

Book Notice:

RALPH WALDO EMERSON
Essential Spiritual Writings
Introduction by Jon M. Sweeney
Orbis Books, Maryknoll NW
2016. Paper. 153 pages. $32.00 CAD
ISBN #978-1-62698-177-5.

Publisher's Promo:

“Belief consists in accepting the affirmations
  of the soul; unbelief, in denying them.” RWE

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1883),
“the Concord Sage,” was a lecturer and an
essayist, who became the preeminent exponent
of Transcendentalism. After studies at Harvard
Divinity School he became a Congregational
minister, but eventually resigned, judging,
“This mode of commemorating Christ is not
suitable to me.” Strongly influenced by Indian
philosophy and religion, he believed that we
can receive divine truth through nature.

Though he is considered one of the most
significant intellectual figures in American
history, this volume offers a fresh perspective
by highlighting his extensive writings on
spiritual themes. Like his friend Henry David
Thoreau, Emerson is one of those who might
have described himself as “spiritual, not
religious,” thus speaking directly to a
generation of contemporary seekers.

--

Emerson Wikipedia Bio:
http://tinyurl.com/jhevwjp
 
--

Editor's Bio:

Jon M. Sweeney, editorial director of
Franciscan Media, is a scholar, author,
and culture critic with a wide range of
interests. His many books include The
Pope Who Quit: A True Medieval Tale
of Mystery, Death, and Salvation, and
Francis of Assisi in His Own Words.

For the Modern Spiritual Masters Series
he has edited  Phyllis Tickle: Essential
Spiritual Writings.

--

Editor's Words:

The Sage of Concord (Mass.) remains an
enormous figure on the historical spectrum
of American intellectual and cultural life...

Telling the story of Emerson's life, of its
place in the history of American religion and
letters, has (tended in our recent past) to
become a way to avoid his actual writings.

This volume aims to address this (neglect).
This collection of Emerson's words aims to
actually demonstrate why he was Concord's
sage.

All of Emerson's writings in this volume are
taken from his published, written work.

I want to offer a portrait of the mature
Emerson... I want to (share) what would
most faithfully match what was available
to readers during his lifetime about what
this leading light of Transcendentalism
thought and said. He published (a great
deal) in his lifetime and there is much
available upon which an editor might draw.

(Emerson was born (1803) in Boston and
died (1883) in his beloved Concord. He
broke from Unitarianism (his father was
a Unitarian minister and he studied to be
one) and, in a true sense, he pre-dated
the modernist (scientific) challenges to
traditional and doctrinal Christianity.)

Emerson focused on the divinity of the
individual, and many continue to resent
him for this same reason - that he
elevated the individual at the expense of
dismantling just about everything else.

Walter Percy, the American Catholic
novelist wrote that "Emerson's was the
mind most singly responsible for
legitimizing the abandonment of tradition,
history, and even society in the name of
the imperial Self and the pursuit of
happiness."

(The editor does a nice job of outlining how
the Calvinist faith of the original Puritan
Christians of New England branched out into
Unitarianism, and then, Transcendentalism.
He leaves it to the reader to reflect on
modern expressions and implications.)

(Reviewing his era in the seminal development
of American religion we learn how traditional
Christianity was transformed. Emerson refined
what eventually became a spirituality of 'nature'
and 'self' worship - which was a substitute for 
classic European Christianity developed by 
Harvard seminarians who were dissatisfied
with how intellectualism had come to dominate
religious life.)

It was Emerson's combination of affability,
determination, and idealism that led him
to being the leader of the Transcendentalist
movement. Emerson believed that the only
way of knowing the Divine, as well as truth -
was by intuition and experience, in the natural,
created world, rather than the inherited special
providence of revealed religion. He believed
that every human mind was imbued with a
divine instinct... and the divinity inside
every person too often had gone untapped...

Many Christians (at the time, and today also)
have retained the classic notion of revelation - 
the idea that there were certain truths revealed
by God in the Bible that "stand outside" any
normal ways of human knowledge... Emerson
believed that Christian faith had dwelled too
much on revelation.

(Emerson also believed that divine exclusivity
in the mission, teachings, and person of Jesus
Christ needed to be jettisoned, and this caused
considerable debate and reaction on the part
of many contemporaries as well as those today
who believe he sought to "dismantle" historic
Christianity. Critics claimed then and do now
that he was too optimistic regarding human
nature. He denied any reality to evil and failed
to acknowledge how the human heart too often
reveals that it is far from divine.)

--

(Emerson needs to be listened  to in our time
if for no other reason than many of his ideas
are evident in currently popular "spiritualisms"
and he is the unacknowledged source of a
lot of these fermentive ideas. To better note
and understand such modern movements
we need to better understand their roots.)

Particularly, later in life, Emerson wrote often
of ways to stimulate growth in the life of the
soul... His writings demonstrate the unique
qualities of the working philosopher, community
organizer, man of letters, and public intellectual.

Lawrence Buell wrote of him: "his writings still
(retain) the power to startle and excite, (and)
to produce unexpected flashes of insight."

- from the Introduction

--

My Thoughts:

To better understand some of the characteristics
of modern North American (and in many ways
global) religion today, I suggest a visit to the
beautiful town of Concord, Massachusetts. Many
of the ideas we contend with, seem to have
germinated there.

Here is the Wikipedia article about the town:
http://tinyurl.com/zrhrbz7
 
For a community numbering less than 20,000
today, Concord has had a hugely disproportionate
influence on human affairs  than its population
over the years might suggest.

My wife Marlene and I spent more than one day
here several years ago while visiting New England.
The magic of this place - for so many reasons -
continues to inspire and haunt us.

Marlene loved the Alcott family home (remember
Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women"?) and I - the
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery where so many New
England luminaries - like Nathaniel Hawthorne,
Henry David Thoreau, and of course, Ralph Waldo
Emerson himself - were laid to rest.

A culture all its own developed here during the
nineteenth century. It was created, I believe,
through a unique blending of nature, people.
and ideas. The resulting influence on the world,
however, has been incalculable.

The tall white spire of the Unitarian Church in
the centre of town indicates that this place was
not your typical Protestant early-American
community. While deeply rooted in New England,
dotted with lovely white-spired churches, the
history of this church is special. Emerson was
never the minister here, or a member, by his
own choice. He moved beyond institutional
religion. Yet his influence is inseparable from
the church building as well as the community.

I could argue that, in many ways, Concord - its
history, as well as many of its surnames and 
facilities - represents the heart of America.
(Please consult the Wikipedia article above
to help you understand what I mean.)

--

But now a little about the book.

Emerson wrote good material all through his
life, and that life has been well documented.
This book focuses mainly on his spiritual writings
and how his spirituality evolved over the years.

The editor provides dozens of literary selections
and groups them under themes such as: Introducing
His Thought,  After Christianity, Divinity and the Soul,
Stoic Values, To Cultivate Virtue, and Encountering
the Holy. The book closes with several worthwhile
pages of Memorable Aphorisms (selected quotes from
his oeuvre.)

I often grow weary of reading so much of the
New Age fluff that is in such abundance today.
While Emerson covers many of the same themes
as trendy New Agers, this author writes with vigor,
clarity and intelligence.  Moderns may mouth
Emerson's themes but most cannot come close
to his substance.

A book like this helps us to understand a lot
of the inherent issues of the modern religious
quest. Even though Emerson has been dead
for 135 years, much of what concerned him
also concerns us - even though we may end
up following different spiritual paths than he.

--

Buy the book from Orbis:
http://tinyurl.com/zp4qchn

Buy the Book from Amazon.ca:
http://tinyurl.com/zd8bx47

***

COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS

Martin Marty,
Chicago, IL

Sightings
April 25th, 2016

"Pornography and Prince"
  http://tinyurl.com/zav8wtt

--

Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX

Personal Web Site
April 25th, 2016

"Marking an Anniversary"

  200 Years Since the Founding of
  the Oblates of Mary Immaculate
  http://tinyurl.com/jahbmrj--

--

Jim Taylor,
Okanagan, BC

Personal Web Log
April 25th, 2016

"Mass Media Fail to Explore Religious Motives"

  http://tinyurl.com/gnxvzs9

***


NET NOTES

REMEMBERING PRINCE
Pop Music Priest
in a Secular World

Christianity Today
April 22nd, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/z6k9b6n

--

INDIAN PRIEST SENT HOME
Not Charged in Canada

UCA News
April 26th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/h7w3oes

--
 
CALLED TO RESIST BIGOTRY
Statement of Faithful Obedience

Sojourners Online
April 28th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jrj66e2

--

FALLING IN LOVE WITH THE BARD
On the 400th Anniversary of His Death

America Magazine
April 21st, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jeznqn2

Choral Evensong
Commemorating William Shakespeare
Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon

BBC Radio 3 (UK)
April 24th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/zw69ghr

--

WHAT OF CONTEMPORARY LITURGIES
Are They Essentially Entertainment?

Christian Week Online
April 24th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jswvtpp

--

LIFTING THE VEIL
OFF THE 'NONES'
"The Nones Are Alright"
  A New Book From Orbis

National Catholic Reporter
April 27th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jsln25r

--
 
GERMAN CARDINAL
TARRED AS 'ANTI-CHRIST'
For Stance Defending Muslims

Religion News Service
April 28th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jb5gu84

--
 
TWO POSSIBLE FUTURES
FOR EVANGELICAL CHURCHES
Living in a Secular Age

The Christian Post
April 28th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jxhnfns

--

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY:
THE COST OF REPORTING A RAPE
Issues at Core of Mormon Identity

New York Times
April 26th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/zjsmdpx

--
 
UNITED AND ANGLICAN CHURCHES
IN CANADA ACCOUNT FOR THEIR
RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL OBLIGATIONS
Challenging News Misunderstandings

United Church of Canada
April 27th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/h8pyftu

Anglican Church in Canada
April 29th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/job2l3d
 
***

WISDOM OF THE WEEK

From Sojourners and the Bruderhof online:

There is a higher law than the law of government.
That's the law of conscience.

 
- Stokely Carmichael

--

The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and
also to love our enemies; probably because
generally they are the same people.

- G.K. Chesterton

--

There are two kinds of people: those who do
the work and those who take the credit.
 
Try to be in the first group; there is less
competition there.

- Indira Gandhi

--

The duties and cares of the day crowd about us
when we awake each day – if they have not already
dispelled our night’s rest. How can everything be
accommodated in one day? When will I do this,
when that? How will it all be accomplished?

 
Thus agitated, we are tempted to run and rush.
And so we must take the reins in hand and
remind ourselves, “Let go of your plans.

 
The first hour of your morning belongs to God.
Tackle the day’s work that he charges you with,
and he will give you the power to accomplish it.”

 
- Edith Stein

--

The great and golden rule of art, as well as of life,
is this: that the more distinct, sharp, and wiry the
bounding line, the more perfect the work of art,
and the less keen and sharp, the greater is the
evidence of weak imitation, plagiarism, and bungling.


What is it that distinguishes honesty from knavery,
but the hard line of rectitude and certainty in the
actions and intentions? Leave out this line and you
leave out life itself; all is chaos again, and the line
of the Almighty must be drawn out upon it before
man or beast can exist.

- William Blake


--

Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has
to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without
getting tired. How does a lamp burn?


Through the continuous input of small drops of oil.
If the drops of oil run out, the light of the lamp will
cease, and the bridegroom will say, “I do not know
you” (Matt. 25:12). What are these drops of oil in
our lamps? They are the small things of daily life:
faithfulness, small words of kindness, a thought
for others, our way of being silent, of looking, of

speaking, and of acting. These are the true drops
of love that keep your religious life burning like a
living flame.

- Mother Teresa

***

ON THIS DAY

From the archives of the New York Times

"World's Worst Nuclear Reactor Disaster"
  http://tinyurl.com/3cl93s

"UN Founding Meeting in San Francisco"
  http://tinyurl.com/n7jxxwh

"South Vietnam Falls to Communist Forces"
  http://tinyurl.com/nxslscu 

***

CLOSING THOUGHT - Anne Frank
 
The final forming of a person's character
lies in their own hands.


(end)

*****

For Those Interested:

Beginning a New Program Year - 2016-17
Adult Spiritual Development/ ACTS Ministry 
at St. David's United  Church, Calgary

NEW SEASON,
NEW SPIRITUAL TRAVEL PROJECT

The Planning Cycle Begins With a Question:

"Where Would You Like to Travel Next?"

Beginning our process to find a destination
for a trip somewhere in the world in 2017.

*****

Saturday, April 23, 2016

Colleagues List, April 24th, 2016

Vol. XI.  No. 35

*****


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


Dear Colleagues:

Enhancing your reading experience is very
important to me. I am currently involved in
up-grading the layout and presentation of
Colleagues List, so please bear with me.

I am attempting to reduce the length, but
not the content and quality, of each issue.

Please let me know how I'm doing.

--

This has not been a good week for many
Catholic and Evangelical Christians in Canada.
The previous and current governments of
Canada are also implicated in seemingly
questionable behaviour.

The new Liberal government has withdrawn
an appeal against the Catholic Church for trying
to evade a multi-million dollar commitment to
compensate First Nations communities for
damage done by their historic residential schools. 

Backstory: http://tinyurl.com/hktg8kf


(Mainline Protestant groups have been working
hard on their "healing fund projects," but
Catholics are the big players in that tragedy.)

Will this decision get Catholics off the hook?

The "not-guilty" verdict by an Ontario justice
in favour of Senator Mike Duffy casts negative
dispersion on the behaviour of former Prime
Minister Stephen Harper, a member of a
Christian and Missionary Alliance mega-church
in Calgary. One church or denomination cannot
be blamed for the behaviour of one of its members
but many conservative Canadian Christians have
faithfully supported the Harper government in three
federal elections over the past decade or so.

Backstory: http://tinyurl.com/jzr47hy

Church loyalty is compromised when words and
deeds lack integrity.

Church and state are legally separate in Canada
but such news can nevertheless prompt a negative
attitude on the part of the Canadian public toward
the churches.

All this leads to my book notice for this week.

I introduce a just-appearing title by Toronto
author Michael Coren. For years Coren was
a super-conservative on matters of church
doctrine and he took a strong stand against
the movement to liberalize Canadian laws
in favour of the LGBT community.

Now Michael has dramatically reversed his
former gay stance in the book:

"EPIPHANY: A Christian's Change of
  Heart and Mind Over Same Sex Marriage"

Repeating past journalistic tactics, this is a
dramatic but differing kind of testimony by
a well-known Canadian author.

Please scroll through this letter to read about
the book and my thoughts concerning it.

--

Colleague Communications this week are from
Marjorie Gibson, Ron Rolheiser, Jim Taylor and
Martin Marty. Thanks for sharing these items!

--

Net Notes - provide eleven links to stories I
thought would interest you this week.

--

Wisdom of the Week is provided by six people
whose insights should be helpful to you.

--

The New York Times offers two intriguing
news items from their archives - On This Day.

--

Closing Thought is from - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

(end)

For those interested, at the end of this blog, we
begin to build our new 2016-17 program year
of Adult Spiritual Development ACTS Ministry 
at St. David's United Church, Calgary

"Where Would You Like to Travel in 2017?"
  Please let me know: waholst@telus.net

--

Thanks for joining me this week.

Please keep the constructive critique coming!

Wayne

*****

SPECIAL ITEM

Book Notice -

EPIPHANY
A Christian's Change of
Heart and Mind Over
Same-Sex Marriage
by  Michael Coren

McClelland and Stewart; Signal
Release Date: April 26th, 2016
Hardcover. 221 pages. $24.00 CAD
ISBN #9780771024115

Publisher's Promo:

From the poster boy of Catholic conservatism, 
a major change of heart and soul on one of the
Church's most controversial and intractable
stances.

What happened was that Michael Coren
had
a profound spiritual and personal change of
heart.

Epiphany is about how and why that happened;
the reaction from both sides of the fence; and
how the Christian doctrine, when studied closely
and without bias, heartily supports Michael's
findings.

As a middle - aged, very white, very straight,
very Christian man, he was obliged, first
reluctantly and then eagerly, to explore
the complex dynamic between faith and
homosexuality and to work out a new
narrative.

The crux of that narrative: God is love. 

Honest, brave, and rigorous in its scholarship,

Epiphany is a groundbreaking book on one of
society's most pressing issues.

--

Author's Words:

"This past February, a conservative Roman
Catholic blog, Contra|Diction, gave me perhaps
my best headline ever: 'Michael Coren Complicit in
Destruction of Souls Who Practice Homosexuality,
Pt 1' (I'm still waiting for part two). It was one of
countless posts, tweets, and articles that have
condemned me for coming out in favour of same-
sex marriage. I've also been fired from columns
that I wrote for years, been banned from various
Catholic TV and radio stations, had speeches
cancelled, and been accused of cheating on my
wife. My children have been called gay, and I
have been compared to a child molester and a
murderer. These are new experiences for me.

Until last year, I was considered something of
a champion of social conservatism in Canada
and was well known among politically active
Christians.

I hosted a nightly show on Crossroads Television
for twelve years, was a syndicated Sun columnist,
and wrote briskly selling books with such titles
as Why Catholics Are Right. Today, I am working
away at a new book, Epiphany: Changing Heart
and Mind on Same-Sex Marriage.

How and why did it go so terribly wrong?"

(Coren encourages you to read his book)

--

Author's Bio:

Michael Coren is the best-selling author of
fifteen books, including biographies of
G.K. Chesterton, H.G. Wells, Arthur Conan
Doyle, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, as well
as Why Catholics Are Right, Heresy, and Hatred.

He has contributed to the Dictionary of National
Biography and several other anthologies, and his
journalism is published in many countries and in
more than a dozen languages.

The author lives in Toronto.

More extensive Wikipedia bio:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Coren

--

My Thoughts:

To live is to change, and to be perfect
is to have changed often.

- John Henry Newman

I have always valued this statement by
Cardinal John Henry Newman, a wise
nineteenth century English Catholic prelate.

But I would have never until now applied
this insight to English-Canadian journalist
and writer based in Toronto, Michael Coren.
He is the notorious author of "Epiphany"
but, after engaging it, I would like to suggest
a change of heart in me as well.

Michael has been trying to influence public
opinion on many issues for some decades.
He is quite well known, at least in some circles,
for conservative, arrogant and intransigent
positions on religious and moral matters.

Because I tend to support softer and more
balanced arguments from those by whom 
I am influenced, Michael was never high on
my list of advisors. He tended to resort to
journalistic self-promotion and made his
points by articulately devastating adversaries
with his poisonous pen.

Now comes his latest book "Epiphany - A
Christians Change of Heart and Mind Over
Same-Sex Marriage." While a leopard
can never fully change his spots, I am now
inclined to view the author differently.

True, his self-promoting exhibitionism is
still evident, but his dramatic articulation
is now used to describe detractors who
were his friends a short while back.

What to make of this dramatic about-face?
I am inclined to think of myself as Ananias
in Acts 9:16-19 after Saul's Damascus road 
conversation.

You will recall that the Lord appeared to
him and told him to go to Saul and help
him. Ananias protested "Lord, many people
have told me about this man, about all the
terrible things he has done to your people
in Jerusalem." But the Lord persisted and
Ananias went. "The Lord has sent me in
order that you might see again, and be
filled with the Holy Spirit," he told Saul.

The rest, of course is history.

Am I also ready to bless, and not curse,
Michael Coren for all the nasty things
he has written about gay people? (and
that's just the beginning). He has written
that Catholics are right, and by implication,
I am wrong. He has been a darling of
conservative Catholics and Protestants
alike for some of his doctrinal, social
and moral stances - widely publicized,
but now also called into question by the
new "love" criteria he has discovered.

By the way, he now considers himself
an Anglican and not a Catholic. He has
suffered some real abuse from former
allies. Some might say he should expect
as much. To my mind, few Catholics are
the arrogant bigots he was and now
the chickens have come home to roost.

I, however, like the proverbial Ananias
am inclined to advise supportive caution
when dealing with this man. Coren has
taken strong stands in the past (as he
now does in "loving" support of gays.)
He has flip-flopped once, and can change
his mind again.

And yet again, I, like Ananias, have a
positive strong urge to believe Michael
and suggest we treat him compassionately
and give him a chance.

First, the author is very honest and 
apologetic about the hurt and abuse
some of his previous views have heaped
on people. I believe his remorse is not
grand-standing but authentic. He has
had to pay a big price for his change
of heart and mind.

Second, he chronicles carefully and
clearly this change of heart and mind.
At base, he does not now believe that
a loving God would create gay people
"in His own image" only to condemn
them. He offers a gut-wrenching story
of transformation and it is believable.

While hetero with wife and family, and
not gay himself, he  has worked hard to
identify with the reality and spirituality
of gayness.

Finally, he invites the reader to hold
him accountable, not only for his past,
but for his present and future positions
on the matter.

I will not promote Michael's book as
testimony to his "seeing the light"
after all these years.

But I do encourage you to read it is
"a work in progress" - demonstrating
how one thoughtful and I believe -
sincere man - has "sought once more
to be perfect and has therefore
changed."

I suspect that Cardinal Newman would
approve.

----

Globe and Mail review by John Semley:
http://tinyurl.com/jfn97h3
 
Buy the book from Amazon.ca:
http://tinyurl.com/z2ydmmf

***

COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS

Marjorie Gibson,
Vancouver, BC

Marjorie Remembers Blog
April 22nd, 2016

"Morality and Multi-Culturalism"
  http://tinyurl.com/ze5hb4o

--

Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX

Personal Web Site
April 17th, 2016

"Loyalty and Patriotism Revisited"
  http://tinyurl.com/zqrry9h

--

Jim Taylor,
Okanagan, BC

Personal Web Log
April 17th, 2016

"Aboriginal Suicides, Loss of Hope"
  http://tinyurl.com/z7nd5rx

--

Martin Marty,
Chicago, IL


Sightings
April 18th, 2016

"Religion Coverage"

  http://tinyurl.com/j3ayj63

Deseret News (Marty reference)
(March 30th, 2016)

"Why Faith-Based Media Outlets and
  Coverage Matter More than Ever"
  http://tinyurl.com/zlbmrsu

***

NET  NOTES

ELIZABETH II - at 90
Significant Life Mark

The Guardian, UK
(a video review)
April 21st, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/zavfndf

--

IS THE POPE CATHOLIC?
Now, a Serious Question

Religious News Service
April 20th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jcxlykk

--
 
HOW ISLAM CREATED EUROPE
Muslim-Christian History Redux

The Atlantic Online
May 2016

http://tinyurl.com/zyrerpd

--

'POPE'S REFUGEES' TELL THEIR STORY
They Believe Experience was a Miracle

Religion News Service
April 18th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/hxdzf9l

--

MORMON MEMBER RETENTION
IS SLIPPING
Young Adults Dropping Out

Religion News Service
April 14th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jhccobu

--
 
AFTER ISIS -
STILL NO PEACE IN IRAQ
Chronic Inter-Islamic Conflict

The Atlantic Online
May, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jog46l3

--
 
HOPEFUL SIGNS THAT
DARE US TO BE THE CHURCH
Discovery Amid Confusion

Christian Week Online
April 19th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/gws27zm
 
--

DYING CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS
CONSIDERED CHRISTIANITY
New Book Claims

Religion News Service
April 20th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/zbx3ym6

--
 
MORE INDIAN TRIBAL PEOPLE
CHOOSING CHRISTIAINITY
This May be Cause for New
Conflict With Hinduism

UCA News
April 20th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/js9j2np

--

PALMYRA'S ARCH OF TRIUMPH
RECONSTRUCTED IN LONDON
One Way to Defeat ISIS

The Guardian, UK
April 19th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/jsqbzbc

--

US HAS 'OVERWHELMING FRUSTRATION'
WITH ISRAEL ON POLICY TRAJECTORIES

The Guardian, UK
April 18th, 2016

http://tinyurl.com/go5jtfh

***
 
WISDOM OF THE WEEK

Provided by Sojourners and Bruderhof online:

Who am I to judge?
 
- Pope Francis

--

It requires less mental effort to condemn
than to think.

- Emma Goldman

--

Hate is a wasteful emotion.

Most of the people you hate don't know
you hate them and the rest don't care.

 
- Medgar Evers

--

The earthly-minded person thinks and
imagines that when he prays, the important
thing – the thing he must concentrate upon –
is that God should hear what he is praying for.

And yet in the true, eternal sense it is just
the reverse: the true relation in prayer is not
when God hears what is prayed for, but when
the person praying continues to pray until he
is the one who hears – who hears what God
is asking for.

- Søren Kierkegaard

--

Earth teach me stillness
as the grasses are stilled with light.
Earth teach me suffering
as old stones suffer with memory.
Earth teach me humility
as blossoms are humble with beginning.


Earth teach me caring
as the mother who secures her young.
Earth teach me courage
as the tree which stands alone.
Earth teach me limitation
as the ant who crawls on the ground.


Earth teach me freedom
as the eagle which soars in the sky.
Earth teach me resignation
as the leaves which die in the fall.
Earth teach me regeneration
as the seed which rises in the spring.


Earth teach me to forget myself
as melted snow forgets its life.
Earth teach me to remember kindness
as dry fields weep with rain


- A Ute Prayer.

--

It is not only prayer that gives God glory
but work. Smiting on an anvil, sawing a
beam, whitewashing a wall, driving horses,
sweeping, scouring, everything gives God
some glory if being in his grace you do it
as your duty. To go to communion worthily
gives God great glory, but to take food in
thankfulness and temperance gives him
glory too. To lift up the hands in prayer
gives God glory, but a man with a dung
fork in his hand, a woman with a slop pail,
give him glory too. He is so great that all
things give him glory if you mean they
should. So then, my brethren, live.


- Gerard Manley Hopkins

***

ON THIS DAY

From the archives of the New York Times

"Major Earthquake Hits San Francisco"
  http://tinyurl.com/67ormh

"American Writer Mark Twain Dies at 74"
  http://tinyurl.com/2g8eqa
 
***
 
CLOSING THOUGHT - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

If only it were all so simple! If only there were
evil people somewhere insidiously committing
evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate
them from the rest of us and destroy them.

But the line dividing good and evil cuts through
the heart of every human being. And who is willing

to destroy a piece of his own heart?

(end)

*****

Beginning a New Program Year -
2016-17 Adult Spiritual Development
ACTS Ministry at St. David's
United 
Church, Calgary

NEW SEASON,
NEW SPIRITUAL TRAVEL PROJECT

The Planning Cycle Begins With a Question:

"Where Would You Like to Travel Next?"

Beginning our process to find a destination
for a trip somewhere in the world in 2017.

*****