Any time anyone tells you that a dream is impossible, any time you’re discouraged by impossible challenges, just mutter this mantra: Tererai Trent.
By Nicholas Kristof
New York Times, Nov 16, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Recession Drives Surge in Youth Runaways
Running in the Shadows
Children on Their Own
This is the first of two articles on the growing number of young runaways in the United States, exploring how they survive and efforts by the authorities to help them.
Please click on the title for the link
New York Times; The Lede: Ian Urbina
Children on Their Own
This is the first of two articles on the growing number of young runaways in the United States, exploring how they survive and efforts by the authorities to help them.
Please click on the title for the link
New York Times; The Lede: Ian Urbina
Catholic Beliefs Might Give Anglicans Pause
October 22, 2009, 7:46 pm
Catholic Beliefs Might Give Anglicans Pause
By Robert Mackey
When the Catholic Church announced this week that the Vatican would make it easier for Anglicans to convert to Catholicism, much was made of the many similarities between the two faiths. And there are a few Catholic beliefs that might strike Anglicans as foreign, and one or two that could be deal-breakers for potential defectors.
From The LEDE, the New York Times news blog ( click on text to link to the original post)
Catholic Beliefs Might Give Anglicans Pause
By Robert Mackey
When the Catholic Church announced this week that the Vatican would make it easier for Anglicans to convert to Catholicism, much was made of the many similarities between the two faiths. And there are a few Catholic beliefs that might strike Anglicans as foreign, and one or two that could be deal-breakers for potential defectors.
From The LEDE, the New York Times news blog ( click on text to link to the original post)
Just to Be is a Blessing, Just to Live is Holy
“Just to Be is a Blessing, Just To Live is Holy.” These are the words my Spiritual Director spoke to me this morning. I am in a place where Deepak Chopra’s words (from a meditation CD) echo in my head; “slow down, slow down, slow down.” Those of you, who know me, know that while I talk about the importance of simply “being” and slowing down, I personally, have difficulty taking my own advice. I have always been one who is busy, fluttering around, trying to complete my checklist, 7 days a week; or, more succinctly put, “doing”. Adding the job of Senior Warden to my plate offered even more opportunity to “do” and this past year offered a challenge greater than I had imagined.
As Americans we are schooled, from an early age, to “do” and as adults, we are judged by how much we get done and by how much we don’t “do.” Common knowledge holds that just sitting and “being” are not productive. The part we forget is that “being” invites God to connect with our heart to mold and shape us into the gift we can become for the world. Somehow we think that, as an adult, God is finished with us (I mean isn’t it too late once we’re beyond a certain age?) I guess if we look at the age of some of those characters in the Old Testament, who had encounters with God (Elijah and Job for example) we get a clear picture that God works on us well into our old age and beyond.
It has been a rough time for me over the last few years, financial issues, challenges and harsh words at Nativity, a family situation, and now, a wearying illness, which was probably brought on by stress from these problems. It has been very easy for me to cry to God, “Why me?” I, like Job, have uttered those exact words. I guess that’s why you gotta love Job. He’s so easy to identify with. Eugene Peterson, in his commentary on Job (The Message, page 631) says “Job gives voice to his sufferings so well, so accurately and honestly, that anyone who has ever suffered…can recognize his or her personal pain in the voice of Job.”
I marvel at Job’s ability to remain humble and reject his wife’s encouragement to curse God by saying, “We take the good days from God – why not also the bad days?” (The Message, page 636) So, that is what I am doing, accepting what God is giving me at any given moment. I am also realizing the opportunity I have to commune with God, to rest in the Holy Spirit, and to know the peace of Jesus.
It is my time to “be” to allow God to work on me from the inside out; to enter into the mystery of “being-ness” and trust that I can put one foot in front of the other, moving forward, without knowing the answer to where the path may lead; confident that I’ll know when I am ready for the next era in my life-story. For now, I’ll just wait and “be;” comforted in the repetition of my knitting and projects that allow me to rest while God does her work on me.
When is the last time you gave yourself an extended period of time to allow yourself to rest in the Mystery that is God? When is the last time you allowed the silence to wrap you in God’s love? Perhaps you might want to repeat the words, ‘Just to Be is Enough, Just to Live is Holy” during those times when you’re going too fast through your life. It might help you to stop and smell the flowers and truly live.
Mary Lou Johnstone
As Americans we are schooled, from an early age, to “do” and as adults, we are judged by how much we get done and by how much we don’t “do.” Common knowledge holds that just sitting and “being” are not productive. The part we forget is that “being” invites God to connect with our heart to mold and shape us into the gift we can become for the world. Somehow we think that, as an adult, God is finished with us (I mean isn’t it too late once we’re beyond a certain age?) I guess if we look at the age of some of those characters in the Old Testament, who had encounters with God (Elijah and Job for example) we get a clear picture that God works on us well into our old age and beyond.
It has been a rough time for me over the last few years, financial issues, challenges and harsh words at Nativity, a family situation, and now, a wearying illness, which was probably brought on by stress from these problems. It has been very easy for me to cry to God, “Why me?” I, like Job, have uttered those exact words. I guess that’s why you gotta love Job. He’s so easy to identify with. Eugene Peterson, in his commentary on Job (The Message, page 631) says “Job gives voice to his sufferings so well, so accurately and honestly, that anyone who has ever suffered…can recognize his or her personal pain in the voice of Job.”
I marvel at Job’s ability to remain humble and reject his wife’s encouragement to curse God by saying, “We take the good days from God – why not also the bad days?” (The Message, page 636) So, that is what I am doing, accepting what God is giving me at any given moment. I am also realizing the opportunity I have to commune with God, to rest in the Holy Spirit, and to know the peace of Jesus.
It is my time to “be” to allow God to work on me from the inside out; to enter into the mystery of “being-ness” and trust that I can put one foot in front of the other, moving forward, without knowing the answer to where the path may lead; confident that I’ll know when I am ready for the next era in my life-story. For now, I’ll just wait and “be;” comforted in the repetition of my knitting and projects that allow me to rest while God does her work on me.
When is the last time you gave yourself an extended period of time to allow yourself to rest in the Mystery that is God? When is the last time you allowed the silence to wrap you in God’s love? Perhaps you might want to repeat the words, ‘Just to Be is Enough, Just to Live is Holy” during those times when you’re going too fast through your life. It might help you to stop and smell the flowers and truly live.
Mary Lou Johnstone
Friday, October 9, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Encouraged to talk about it
Troubled youths unused to being asked to share their feelings find an outlet in a local priest's group therapy sessions.
To read the full story click here
By Scott Gold Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
August 16, 2009
http://www.latimes.com
To read the full story click here
By Scott Gold Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
August 16, 2009
http://www.latimes.com
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
My Life as a Dog
Soon it will be time for all the joyous noise and activity that is part of the annual "Blessing of the Pets" and so here is a posting from Dana Jennings' blog about his experience with prostate cancer on nytimes.com, as well as some hard-to-resist photos.
No cats I'm afraid- looking for volunteers to contribute feline postings..
September 15, 2009, 10:40 am
My Life as a Dog
By Dana Jennings
Our creaky miniature poodle, Bijou, and I spend a lot of time together. We both like to curl up in the den at the end of the day, and we both have the uncanny ability to take a nap anytime and anywhere.
I realize now as I take care of Bijou that I even became a kind of a dog myself as I went through surgery, radiation and hormone therapy for advanced prostate cancer. We don’t look anything alike, though. She’s black, snarly and curly. I have a buzz cut.
But after surgery, you’re reduced to a helpless animal state. I needed to be fed and watered. And, when you’re walking the hospital, your I.V. pole is effectively a leash. Bijou and I have both wrestled with issues of incontinence – though I never peed on anyone’s foot.
When I got home from the hospital my wife, Deb, and my sons took me for walks, just as they did Bijou. I managed, however, not to bark and growl at the other dogs in the neighborhood or scarf up dessicated worms off the sidewalk.
During hormone therapy I literally was as hungry as a dog, which gave the two of us plenty of culinary common ground. We both shared an unhealthy affection for Cool Ranch Doritos, and Bijou taught me that if someone is eating something you like – an Italian sub, say – it never hurts to ask: “Are you going to finish that?”
I also learned that cancer time and dog time aren’t so different. We know that our dogs’ lives are compressed into 10 to 15 years, that their brilliant flames burn even more quickly than our own. Time is compressed, too, when you have cancer, and even after. You can’t take 10 years from now for granted, or next year for that matter.
During all of this, Bijou has been a kind of accidental canine Zen master. The more I watch her, the more I learn. And the more I learn, the more I understand my inner dog.
I have learned from her to nap in the sun whenever possible. And if you need to bark and howl, bark and howl. Dogs don’t keep their feelings buried inside. Thus, they rarely take Zoloft.
Another lesson from Bijou: sigh when the spirit moves you, because a sigh is sometimes better than a prayer.
Bijou sleeps later than she used to these days. Instead of waking me up, I’m the one who rouses her. But she’s always ready to go, always happy to see me, when she hears me come downstairs.
We ease outside and troll the sidewalk. She likes to poke along because there are trees and bushes to sniff for new messages, dew to lick off the grass, and Loki, our neighbor’s Halloween of a black cat, with whom to share inscrutable stares. As Bijou does her business, I sniff the air and ponder the weather, fetch my neighbor’s newspaper and toss it onto her porch, and also share inscrutable stares with Loki. Afterward, Bijou takes her pills (snugged in mini-pepperoni), then I take my pills (gulped with orange juice).
As I said, we spend a lot of time in the den. I like it at night, as I’m reading, when Bijou wakes from a nap, stands up, shakes off the sleep, then hobbles over to me. She brushes against me a couple times, as if to make sure that I’m awake, then rests her chin on the cushion of my chair, asking to be scratched on the head.
So often, we — dogs and humans — just need to be near each other. We need the presence of another heartbeat, the inhale and exhale of another soul. Dogs understand the healing power of having your skull kneaded, and constantly raise their heads toward our hands, the way plants turn toward the sun.
We humans like it, too. I never say no when Deb or the boys want to rub my fresh buzz cut — good dog that I am.
No cats I'm afraid- looking for volunteers to contribute feline postings..
September 15, 2009, 10:40 am
My Life as a Dog
By Dana Jennings
Our creaky miniature poodle, Bijou, and I spend a lot of time together. We both like to curl up in the den at the end of the day, and we both have the uncanny ability to take a nap anytime and anywhere.
I realize now as I take care of Bijou that I even became a kind of a dog myself as I went through surgery, radiation and hormone therapy for advanced prostate cancer. We don’t look anything alike, though. She’s black, snarly and curly. I have a buzz cut.
But after surgery, you’re reduced to a helpless animal state. I needed to be fed and watered. And, when you’re walking the hospital, your I.V. pole is effectively a leash. Bijou and I have both wrestled with issues of incontinence – though I never peed on anyone’s foot.
When I got home from the hospital my wife, Deb, and my sons took me for walks, just as they did Bijou. I managed, however, not to bark and growl at the other dogs in the neighborhood or scarf up dessicated worms off the sidewalk.
During hormone therapy I literally was as hungry as a dog, which gave the two of us plenty of culinary common ground. We both shared an unhealthy affection for Cool Ranch Doritos, and Bijou taught me that if someone is eating something you like – an Italian sub, say – it never hurts to ask: “Are you going to finish that?”
I also learned that cancer time and dog time aren’t so different. We know that our dogs’ lives are compressed into 10 to 15 years, that their brilliant flames burn even more quickly than our own. Time is compressed, too, when you have cancer, and even after. You can’t take 10 years from now for granted, or next year for that matter.
During all of this, Bijou has been a kind of accidental canine Zen master. The more I watch her, the more I learn. And the more I learn, the more I understand my inner dog.
I have learned from her to nap in the sun whenever possible. And if you need to bark and howl, bark and howl. Dogs don’t keep their feelings buried inside. Thus, they rarely take Zoloft.
Another lesson from Bijou: sigh when the spirit moves you, because a sigh is sometimes better than a prayer.
Bijou sleeps later than she used to these days. Instead of waking me up, I’m the one who rouses her. But she’s always ready to go, always happy to see me, when she hears me come downstairs.
We ease outside and troll the sidewalk. She likes to poke along because there are trees and bushes to sniff for new messages, dew to lick off the grass, and Loki, our neighbor’s Halloween of a black cat, with whom to share inscrutable stares. As Bijou does her business, I sniff the air and ponder the weather, fetch my neighbor’s newspaper and toss it onto her porch, and also share inscrutable stares with Loki. Afterward, Bijou takes her pills (snugged in mini-pepperoni), then I take my pills (gulped with orange juice).
As I said, we spend a lot of time in the den. I like it at night, as I’m reading, when Bijou wakes from a nap, stands up, shakes off the sleep, then hobbles over to me. She brushes against me a couple times, as if to make sure that I’m awake, then rests her chin on the cushion of my chair, asking to be scratched on the head.
So often, we — dogs and humans — just need to be near each other. We need the presence of another heartbeat, the inhale and exhale of another soul. Dogs understand the healing power of having your skull kneaded, and constantly raise their heads toward our hands, the way plants turn toward the sun.
We humans like it, too. I never say no when Deb or the boys want to rub my fresh buzz cut — good dog that I am.
Friday, September 18, 2009
The Scene at Nativity on Sunday, September 13
The Scene at Nativity on Sunday, September 13 was one of joy, celebration and welcoming. It was Nativity Homecoming Sunday. The music was provided by Reavis Graham, Al Jacquez and Phil Spradlin, and provide it they did! Tunes included, Early in the Morning, Just a Closer Walk with Thee, Peace in the Valley, and the concluding song, This Little Light of Mine had all singing their hearts out to the Lord. The choir provided backup voices for Rev, Phil and Al. Let’s just say all were very moved by the Spirit during the service. Thanks to all the wonderful musicians!!
Vicar Diane Morgan provided us much food for thought from lessons for the day regarding the idea of the tongue and our need to check our words before we speak lest we allow it to be used as, “a restless evil, full of deadly poison… and with it we curse.” (James 31-12)
Following the service all gathered outside for a family style picnic with hotdogs and tea provided by Rick Smith and dishes to pass provided by the members. Steve Bai was chief grill master. Rick Smith ran around doing so many things I couldn’t keep count! Thanks for all your hard work, Rick.
The children played, the adults sat and talked and all went home well fed and content.
Mary Lou Johnstone
Vicar Diane Morgan provided us much food for thought from lessons for the day regarding the idea of the tongue and our need to check our words before we speak lest we allow it to be used as, “a restless evil, full of deadly poison… and with it we curse.” (James 31-12)
Following the service all gathered outside for a family style picnic with hotdogs and tea provided by Rick Smith and dishes to pass provided by the members. Steve Bai was chief grill master. Rick Smith ran around doing so many things I couldn’t keep count! Thanks for all your hard work, Rick.
The children played, the adults sat and talked and all went home well fed and content.
Mary Lou Johnstone
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
"The aim of receiving God is to become more human"
The aim of receiving God is to become more human, not to arrive at some transcendent state in which the difficulties if being human are not present.
The Instruction Manual for Receiving God, by Jason Shulman
“The aim of receiving God is to become more human.” I wonder if you’ve ever thought the aim of receiving God is to become perfect. I did. Actually, I still fight that demon from time to time, O. K., maybe more than I’d like to admit and much less than I used to engage in the conflict. The good news is that I’m more conscious of those thoughts of the need for perfection so I can now stare those thoughts in the face and accept them. I can admit I’m human. Somewhere in me is this ego that has a goal of keeping me from really accepting me warts and all and one way to do that is to keep me thinking God won’t accept me unless I’m perfect.
Shulman is saying, and I believe, God wants you to accept yourself, accept your humanness, stare your fears straight in the face and accept them as well as what you see as your positive attributes. I’ve been reading a book about introverts. I never really got into the whole introvert/extrovert readings. I had a general understanding of what they were and had always labeled myself an extrovert, I realize now mainly because that was what I heard from everyone. I mean really who is always taking charge heading up various projects both at church and other groups I’ve belonged to over the years…me. This in spite of the evidence on The Myers Briggs that I was an introvert; talk about the ego taking charge and hanging on for dear life. I took the Myers Briggs a couple times and one time the results came out I was an extrovert but very close to being an introvert and the next time I took it was the exact opposite and both times I measured very close to the middle line so that techniquely I figured I was in the middle. I know I know it’s hard to believe. The thing is it’s a perfect example of how the ego can get hold and have you thinking you’re perfect or in this case balanced; I was both, how much better can you get! I also couldn’t get more human. Where was my brain during all this? I would guess controlled by my ego and not my heart.
The fact is I never really took the test seriously, I think because it ruined my ego’s need to be thought of as an extrovert, I mean in society they are the ones who are thought of as the winners. I also know it got mixed up with my need to take care of everyone. O. K., enough confessions for the day, I can only batter my ego so much. Suffice it to say I’m learning and accepting a lot about myself in this round of “wake-up, Mary Lou, and smell the coffee!”
So, what is here for us in this story? For me, I became more human. I faced my fear of not being perfect with this experience. Shulman says, “How my ego longs for ease...My real Self longs for ease too…It knows I cannot always be composed and clear…it only wants my humanness.” God does not want perfection God, wants us to be who we are.
How does one go about being human? My first response is taking a deep breath. I’ve learned that whenever fear is starting to grip me the most important thing I can do is take a deep breath and allow the spirit of God to fill me. It clears my head and allows my heart to take control. With my heart in control I can remember that in God’s eyes I am already perfect and loved. William A. Barry, SJ sees God as hopelessly in love with us. So, whenever that shadow side, the side of me that I don’t want people to see because, of course, they will think less of me, shows up in my thoughts I need to remember that is part of my humanness and God loves all of my humanness. We are who we are. We are the parts of ourselves we are comfortable with, proud of, in love with and the parts of ourselves that we want hide and see as not nice, negative, or evil. God doesn’t just love us; God is hopelessly in love with us.
So, another thing we need to do is cut ourselves some slack, realize our responses to life are human. It’s O. K. to lose our temper on occasion or make a mistake or not be so perfect. God loves us anyway; in fact, God is hopelessly in love with us.
Finally, accept the difficulties of being human. I find one of the easiest ways to get beyond what I consider a mistake is to laugh at my humanness. So, I spilled the water on the counter and it soaks my favorite recipe and drips on the floor and causes all manner of chaos in my day. I take a deep breath see the folly of rushing, laugh at my humanness and clean up the mess secure in the knowledge that I am loved just the way I am.
What a joy to be loved for who we are warts and all!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Prayer Group on Thursdays at 2 pm.
Nativity now has a prayer group. Every Thursday at 2 pm a group gathers at Nativity to pray for the church as well as other requests that are made during the gathering time. All are welcome to attend!
Matthew 18:20. Jesus said, “When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action. And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.” The Message.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
In Praise of Activism
About Dot Earth(nytimes.com)
By 2050 or so, the world population is expected to reach nine billion, essentially adding two Chinas to the number of people alive today. Those billions will be seeking food, water and other resources on a planet where, scientists say, humans are already shaping climate and the web of life. In Dot Earth,(New York Times) reporter Andrew C. Revkin examines efforts to balance human affairs with the planet’s limits. Supported in part by a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, Mr. Revkin tracks relevant news from suburbia to Siberia, and conducts an interactive exploration of trends and ideas with readers and experts.Here is a link to his latest posting;
In Praise of Activism
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Faith groups fight for health insurance reform
Faith groups, including the Episcopal Church, are fighting back against those who would keep health care options in the hands of those who have given us the current system of being a country with the most money spent on health care and one that leaves out large numbers of those who cannot afford good health.
Click on the link to read the full article, which appears at episcopalcafe.com
Click on the link to read the full article, which appears at episcopalcafe.com
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Picnic !!!!
We had a lovely picnic on Wednesday. The weather was just perfect, and lots of people came. We were in a perfect spot - on the side by the playground so the children kept busy. Hopefully we can do this more often! Diane did a lovely service for us, and we shared communion.
A of couple people asked me for the recipe of the Asian salad I brought. The list of ingredients is longish, but the directions are easy. I doubled it for the picnic. To give credit where it's due, the recipe comes from Guy Fieri of the Food Network.
Ingredients
- 1 package soba noodles
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon hot chili oil
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced or julienned
- 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced or julienned
- 5 green onions, bottom 4 inches, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced napa cabbage
- 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced or julienned
- 1/2 cup julienned bok choy
- 1 cup bean sprouts, optional
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro leaves
- 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted, for garnish
- 4 tablespoons unsalted peanuts, for garnish
Directions
In a medium stock pot, boil water, add salt and cook noodles. When finished, place noodles in an ice water bath to cool. Drain and set aside.
In a medium bowl combine, sesame oil, vinegar, soy sauce, hot chili oil, hoisin and extra-virgin olive oil. Mix thoroughly and then combine prepared vegetables and noodles.
Garnish with sesame seeds and peanuts.
Suzy Bai
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Martha Cormie
If you would like to send a card to Martha, the address is :
Martha Cormie
Woodward Hills Nursing Facility
39312 Woodward Avenue
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
Direct line to Martha's room: 248-593-7583
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Episcopal Vote
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Episcopal Church voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to open the door to consecrate more bishops who are openly gay, a move that is likely to send shock waves throughout the Anglican Communion, the global network of churches to which the Episcopal Church belongs.
From the New York Times (click on title in orange font to link to the article)
From the New York Times (click on title in orange font to link to the article)
Monday, June 29, 2009
Our Garden
Once again, Gail Davison (aka the miracle worker) has transformed the grounds into a lush green paradise. We hope that these pictures will encourage you to volunteer your talents,both in the garden and in the building.
Our newest member!
Please join us in welcoming Nativity's newest ( and cutest) member- Graham Bai, who was born on June 11th.
Congratulations to Suzy and Steve
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Meet Our Vicar - Article from the Scene
Introducing Diane Morgan
by Susan Bai
Looking at our history, December has brought Nativity many new beginnings. December 1964 saw the first service at our newly built church on Christmas Eve. In December 1991, we completed the addition of our parish hall and kitchen. Recently, December turns out to have ushered in another kind of beginning: Diane Morgan, now our vicar, led us in worship as supply clergy for the first time in December 2008.
I thought it would be nice to conduct a short interview with our new vicar to introduce her to our extended community through The Scene. Diane is incredibly busy! Although she is supposed to be with us part time, it feels more like she is working for Nativity full time. I wanted to discuss her background with her, both for this article and also because John Alexander and I are putting together a new website for Nativity. Diane is a modest person; when I originally approached her about the website, she demurred, stating that our site ought to focus on the community and not on her personally. But there is room for both! We hope to launch the new website by summer.
I thank Diane for finding time to help me put together this article. You will notice a recurring theme of healing in her ministry. It seems her vocation is to aid those in crises physical, personal, and spiritual.
Diane was born and raised in the Detroit area. She was received into the Episcopal church in her late 30’s. She realized she was called to the priesthood because her congregation raised her up. Having grown up Roman Catholic, the idea of women as priests was a foreign concept, but people kept approaching her about it. It took Diane five years of conversation and prayer to accept her call. She took graduate level religious classes at the University of Detroit, then attended Bexley Hall Episcopal Seminary in Rochester, New York.
In 1990, Diane returned to Michigan, where she was ordained as a Deacon and assigned to Grace Church in Southgate. Well, their priest immediately took a sabbatical, so Diane found herself working on her own right away. Simultaneously, she served a one year residency in clinical pastoral education at Children’s Hospital in Detroit. In 1991, she was ordained as a priest at Grace Church.
Her residency complete, Diane was called by St. Martin in Detroit to serve as rector. It was a part time position. She came to bring healing to that congregation following conflict; she worked there for 6.5 years. During that time, she also worked part time as a chaplain at Beaumont Hospital and in 1997 was made department head there. She also did occasional supply work. Then the Bishop asked her again to tend to a parish community: Grace Church, where she had served as a deacon, was a community in grief. They were hurt when their Priest didn’t stay long with them. So, in addition to her full time position at Beaumont, Diane spent 26 months serving as long term supply for Grace.
Diane’s Beaumont ministry was her longest held ordained position. She handled crisis ministry well; Beaumont is a tertiary care hospital, and no day was ever slow. In June 2006, Diane retired from Beaumont and took a one year sabbatical. She travelled to northern Michigan, Mexico, Florida, and the Smokey Mountains. 2007 was dedicated to the care of two beloved people: Diane’s aunt and her partner Karen’s mother. Then she travelled to Arizona for three months, taking time to grieve.
Since then, Diane has done supply work, notably spending 4 months at Trinity in Belleville while their priest was on sabbatical. And here we arrive at the present; Nativity is the next step of Diane’s journey. Diane came here as supply in December, and now the Bishop has appointed her to serve as our vicar. We are blessed that she brings her vast talents and experience to our community. We are in a transformative time in our parish history. I look with excitement and anticipation to see in what direction our community moves under the leadership of both Diane and our fine Bishop’s Committee.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Work Zone
As you approach Nativity on 14 Mile road, you will see a sign that says " Work Zone Begins". No street signage could be more appropriate- as a Parish we have our work cut out for us; rebuilding Nativity as a vibrant, caring and progressive community.
At the same time, this is not something that Rev Diane and a few parishioners can achieve by themselves. We need your ideas and labor! Whatever your talents- we will find a use for it. Get in touch with Rick Smith to help with maintenance projects, Gail Davison for the garden, Tim Wittlinger to be a counter or any of the Bishop's Committee members.
John Alexander
"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." Galatians 6
At the same time, this is not something that Rev Diane and a few parishioners can achieve by themselves. We need your ideas and labor! Whatever your talents- we will find a use for it. Get in touch with Rick Smith to help with maintenance projects, Gail Davison for the garden, Tim Wittlinger to be a counter or any of the Bishop's Committee members.
John Alexander
"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." Galatians 6
America, Religious Values, and the Death Penalty; Or, If it Was Good Enough for Jesus and Socrates
Louis A. Ruprecht Jr. is William M. Suttles Chair of Religious Studies at Georgia State University in Atlanta. The author of six books, his two most recent are: God Gardened East: A Gardener’s Meditation on the Dynamics of Genesis (Wipf and Stock, 2008) and This Tragic Gospel: How John Corrupted the Heart of Christianity (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
Friday, April 24, 2009
The Well Meaning Bad Parent
Psychologist Richard Weissbourd contends that parents who are obsessed with their children's happiness are ignoring other important values — like goodness, empathy, appreciation and caring — that are necessary to a well-rounded personality. Weissbourd is the author of The Parents We Mean to Be: How Well-Intentioned Adults Undermine Children's Moral and Emotional Development.
A lecturer in education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Kennedy School of Government, Weissbourd has founded several interventions for at-risk children, including ReadBoston, WriteBoston and Project ASPIRE.
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But for anyone who is willing to enter children's worlds and look hard at what shapes their development, there is much about these explanations that is mystifying, if not deeply unsettling. At best they miss the point; at worst they are a kind of massive cover-up and cop-out. Blaming peers and popular culture lets adults off the hook— and dangerously so. It dodges a fundamental truth that is supported by a mountain of research. Children's moral development is decided by many factors, including not only media and peer influences but their genetic endowment, birth order, gender, and how these different factors interact. Yet we are the primary influence on children's moral lives. The parent-child relationship is at the center of the development of all the most important moral qualities, including honesty, kindness, loyalty, generosity, a commitment to justice, the capacity to think through moral dilemmas, and the ability to sacrifice for important principles.
While there's nothing wrong with exhorting adults to be better role models and to teach values, this by itself does nothing to help people actually be and do these things. I don't know any adult who became a better role model simply by being told to be one. Nor do these exhortations reach the heart of what it is to be a person who is an effective parent, a true moral mentor.
What I am acutely aware matters most as a parent is not whether my wife and I are "perfect" role models or how much we talk about values, but the hundreds of ways — as living, breathing, imperfect human beings— we influence our children in the complex, messy relationships we have with them day to day.
This knowledge came to me gradually in the first years of my children's lives, but there was one specific afternoon when it struck me most sharply. Sunday afternoons were sacrosanct, reserved for family outings. My three kids are three years apart, and it was often hard to find something that was fun for every one.
One blustery, sunny Sunday, we went to a park near the ocean. My oldest son, then about seven years old, was withdrawn and seemed listless. The park was not his favorite place. My week had been stressful, and I'd been looking forward to this outing. I lashed out at him for sulking. We had done what he'd wanted to do the Sunday before, I reminded him, and I expected him to rally, to cheerfully participate. It also seemed to me that this was an opportunity to reinforce a basic notion of reciprocity.
My wife certainly agreed with me that our son should be expected to engage in activities for the sake of the family. But, she pointed out, he seemed more tired than unhappy, and she reminded me that I, too, could seem less than enthusiastic during family activities I didn't enjoy. She added, gently, that perhaps I should rethink whether the real issue in this case was teaching my son a moral standard. Instead, maybe I'd gotten angry because I'd been expecting this family event to pull me out of my own bad mood.
After some grumbling, I came to see that my wife was right. I apologized to my son and explained to him that I had had a rough week. But what dawned on me suddenly was that under the guise of teaching my son a principle, I had made it harder for him to care about how I thought or felt, more self-protective, and perhaps a little less willing to pitch in for the family. What also hit me was that while this single event wouldn't do lasting damage, many times a week we had interactions with our kids in which my wife and I succeeded— or failed— in disentangling and balancing our needs and theirs and in enabling them to take other perspectives, and that these interactions, cumulatively, defined their notion of what a relationship is and powerfully shaped their capacity for caring, respectful relationships. Our children's moral qualities were also shaped day to day by what we registered, or failed to acknowledge, in the world around us, and what we asked them to register— whether we let them treat a store clerk as invisible, or commented when a child in a playground had been treated unfairly, or pointed out to them a neighbor's good deed. We were, too, constantly affecting their moral abilities by how we de fined their responsibilities for others, and by whether we insisted that those responsibilities be met. Our effectiveness as moral mentors has hinged, most basically, on whether we have earned our children's respect and trust by, among many things, admitting our errors and explaining our decisions to them in ways that they see as fair. It was these day- to- day details of our relationship with our children— far more than our talk about values— that formed their moral core.
What has clearly been hardest for my wife and me— and for every parent we know— is being vigilant about these things when we have been stressed or depleted or outright depressed. There are "strategies" that can help us with our children during these critical moments, to be sure. But what is fundamentally being challenged at these times are our moral qualities and maturity— including our ability to manage our flaws— qualities that can't be feigned. The reason many children in this country continually lack vital moral qualities is that we have failed to come to grips with the fundamental reality that we bring our selves to the project of raising a moral child. That makes being a parent or mentor a profound moral test, and learning to raise children well a profound moral achievement.
From; NPR.org
A lecturer in education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Kennedy School of Government, Weissbourd has founded several interventions for at-risk children, including ReadBoston, WriteBoston and Project ASPIRE.
-------------------------------------------------
But for anyone who is willing to enter children's worlds and look hard at what shapes their development, there is much about these explanations that is mystifying, if not deeply unsettling. At best they miss the point; at worst they are a kind of massive cover-up and cop-out. Blaming peers and popular culture lets adults off the hook— and dangerously so. It dodges a fundamental truth that is supported by a mountain of research. Children's moral development is decided by many factors, including not only media and peer influences but their genetic endowment, birth order, gender, and how these different factors interact. Yet we are the primary influence on children's moral lives. The parent-child relationship is at the center of the development of all the most important moral qualities, including honesty, kindness, loyalty, generosity, a commitment to justice, the capacity to think through moral dilemmas, and the ability to sacrifice for important principles.
While there's nothing wrong with exhorting adults to be better role models and to teach values, this by itself does nothing to help people actually be and do these things. I don't know any adult who became a better role model simply by being told to be one. Nor do these exhortations reach the heart of what it is to be a person who is an effective parent, a true moral mentor.
What I am acutely aware matters most as a parent is not whether my wife and I are "perfect" role models or how much we talk about values, but the hundreds of ways — as living, breathing, imperfect human beings— we influence our children in the complex, messy relationships we have with them day to day.
This knowledge came to me gradually in the first years of my children's lives, but there was one specific afternoon when it struck me most sharply. Sunday afternoons were sacrosanct, reserved for family outings. My three kids are three years apart, and it was often hard to find something that was fun for every one.
One blustery, sunny Sunday, we went to a park near the ocean. My oldest son, then about seven years old, was withdrawn and seemed listless. The park was not his favorite place. My week had been stressful, and I'd been looking forward to this outing. I lashed out at him for sulking. We had done what he'd wanted to do the Sunday before, I reminded him, and I expected him to rally, to cheerfully participate. It also seemed to me that this was an opportunity to reinforce a basic notion of reciprocity.
My wife certainly agreed with me that our son should be expected to engage in activities for the sake of the family. But, she pointed out, he seemed more tired than unhappy, and she reminded me that I, too, could seem less than enthusiastic during family activities I didn't enjoy. She added, gently, that perhaps I should rethink whether the real issue in this case was teaching my son a moral standard. Instead, maybe I'd gotten angry because I'd been expecting this family event to pull me out of my own bad mood.
After some grumbling, I came to see that my wife was right. I apologized to my son and explained to him that I had had a rough week. But what dawned on me suddenly was that under the guise of teaching my son a principle, I had made it harder for him to care about how I thought or felt, more self-protective, and perhaps a little less willing to pitch in for the family. What also hit me was that while this single event wouldn't do lasting damage, many times a week we had interactions with our kids in which my wife and I succeeded— or failed— in disentangling and balancing our needs and theirs and in enabling them to take other perspectives, and that these interactions, cumulatively, defined their notion of what a relationship is and powerfully shaped their capacity for caring, respectful relationships. Our children's moral qualities were also shaped day to day by what we registered, or failed to acknowledge, in the world around us, and what we asked them to register— whether we let them treat a store clerk as invisible, or commented when a child in a playground had been treated unfairly, or pointed out to them a neighbor's good deed. We were, too, constantly affecting their moral abilities by how we de fined their responsibilities for others, and by whether we insisted that those responsibilities be met. Our effectiveness as moral mentors has hinged, most basically, on whether we have earned our children's respect and trust by, among many things, admitting our errors and explaining our decisions to them in ways that they see as fair. It was these day- to- day details of our relationship with our children— far more than our talk about values— that formed their moral core.
What has clearly been hardest for my wife and me— and for every parent we know— is being vigilant about these things when we have been stressed or depleted or outright depressed. There are "strategies" that can help us with our children during these critical moments, to be sure. But what is fundamentally being challenged at these times are our moral qualities and maturity— including our ability to manage our flaws— qualities that can't be feigned. The reason many children in this country continually lack vital moral qualities is that we have failed to come to grips with the fundamental reality that we bring our selves to the project of raising a moral child. That makes being a parent or mentor a profound moral test, and learning to raise children well a profound moral achievement.
From; NPR.org
An issue that concerns us all
GORE APPEALS TO HOUSE COMMITTEE ON CLIMATE BILL.
After a marathon week of panels and testimonies on the discussion draft of the 2009 American Clean Energy and Security Act, former Vice President Al Gore spoke this morning in hopes of summarizing all that was debated concerning the climate bill. Speaking before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Gore said the proposed legislation has "the moral significance equivalent to that of the civil rights legislation of the 1960's and the Marshall Plan of the late 1940's."
It seems people have lost all shyness about defining their representative issues as "the civil rights" of our generation. Gore's wording -- "moral significance equivalent to" -- seemed, though, a more genuine and accurate phrasing, compared to defining the issue as such. But, what Gore proceeded to describe, in explaining why the challenge of fighting global warming is no longer something for partisan trifling about, illustrated something much bigger than a staging for civil rights. Among the examples of evidence of climate change catastrophe, Gore cited:
"New research, which draws upon recently declassified data collected by U.S. nuclear submarines traveling under the Arctic ice cap for the last 50 years ... has told us that the entire Arctic ice cap may totally disappear in summer in as little as five years."
"A recent study in the journal Science has now confirmed that the entire West Antarctic Ice Sheet is warming. Scientists have told us that if it were to collapse and slide into the sea, we would experience global sea level rise of another 20 feet worldwide."
"The American West and the Southeast have been experiencing prolonged severe drought and historic water shortages. A study ... from the Scripps Institute estimated that 60 percent of the changes in the West's water cycle are due to increased atmospheric man-made greenhouse gases."
"A number of new studies continue to show that climate change is increasing the intensity of hurricanes. Although we cannot attribute any particular storm to global warming, we can certainly look at the trend. Dr. Greg Holland from the National Center for Atmospheric Research says that we have experienced a 300 to 400 percent increase in category five storms in the past 10 years."
Such catastrophes, if left unchecked, will result in challenges much larger than presented in a civil rights context. And since the climate bill won't be moving with any speed on economic principles -- if rebuttal from Republicans on the committee are any indication -- then moral appeal may have to figure stronger in the bill's advocacy.
From Tapped; the group blog of the American Prospect (www.prospect.org)
After a marathon week of panels and testimonies on the discussion draft of the 2009 American Clean Energy and Security Act, former Vice President Al Gore spoke this morning in hopes of summarizing all that was debated concerning the climate bill. Speaking before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Gore said the proposed legislation has "the moral significance equivalent to that of the civil rights legislation of the 1960's and the Marshall Plan of the late 1940's."
It seems people have lost all shyness about defining their representative issues as "the civil rights" of our generation. Gore's wording -- "moral significance equivalent to" -- seemed, though, a more genuine and accurate phrasing, compared to defining the issue as such. But, what Gore proceeded to describe, in explaining why the challenge of fighting global warming is no longer something for partisan trifling about, illustrated something much bigger than a staging for civil rights. Among the examples of evidence of climate change catastrophe, Gore cited:
"New research, which draws upon recently declassified data collected by U.S. nuclear submarines traveling under the Arctic ice cap for the last 50 years ... has told us that the entire Arctic ice cap may totally disappear in summer in as little as five years."
"A recent study in the journal Science has now confirmed that the entire West Antarctic Ice Sheet is warming. Scientists have told us that if it were to collapse and slide into the sea, we would experience global sea level rise of another 20 feet worldwide."
"The American West and the Southeast have been experiencing prolonged severe drought and historic water shortages. A study ... from the Scripps Institute estimated that 60 percent of the changes in the West's water cycle are due to increased atmospheric man-made greenhouse gases."
"A number of new studies continue to show that climate change is increasing the intensity of hurricanes. Although we cannot attribute any particular storm to global warming, we can certainly look at the trend. Dr. Greg Holland from the National Center for Atmospheric Research says that we have experienced a 300 to 400 percent increase in category five storms in the past 10 years."
Such catastrophes, if left unchecked, will result in challenges much larger than presented in a civil rights context. And since the climate bill won't be moving with any speed on economic principles -- if rebuttal from Republicans on the committee are any indication -- then moral appeal may have to figure stronger in the bill's advocacy.
From Tapped; the group blog of the American Prospect (www.prospect.org)
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Thought for the Day
Two essays by the Rev John Bell from the BBC Radio program-Thought for the Day. We hope the first one encourages you to join the Choir!
It may not belong before the tabloids sport headlines such as 'Mendelssohn on the Mersey' or 'Rachmaninov in Raploch'…and all because there are 'More than Maracas in Caracas.'
Last week, the Simon Bolivar Orchestra from Venezuela performed in Britain. Its first concert earned a rare five star rating in the Guardian. All the instrumentalists in this ensemble are under 24. And many come from backgrounds where classical music would not have been a life choice were it not for a project called El Sistema which, in 30 years, has tutored 400,000 children and set up 150 orchestras in what is still regarded as a 'developing nation.'
The scheme is now being introduced in Britain. It has already started in Scotland, in the Raploch, a neighbourhood on the outskirts of Stirling. The project there is called 'the Big Noise' And last week the project's chair commented, 'It costs about £2,000 per year for a child to be taught in the Big Noise. If the child ends up in the criminal justice system, it costs £18,500 per year.
Does this mean that classical music is the antidote to criminality? No, that would be a naïve assertion. But I'm reminded of a comment made by the head teacher of a primary school I once visited in Yorkshire. Its 190 strong choir included every child who did not go home for lunch. The head had prioritised class singing as an essential feature of the curriculum and commented that one result was a noticeable decrease in behavioural problems.
'Why so?' I asked her and she said, 'You can pay a fortune for sports equipment and instructors and one of the by-products is to make children competitive. You hire a part time singing teacher and you make children cooperative.
Maybe this is why within Christian churches, music has had such a high priority… not just the practised music of performers, but the sound of untutored voices doing something magnificent together.
For, of all the arts, music is the most participative. We can't all paint or perform a play together. But we can all sing; and the Bible sees this cooperative activity not as an option, but as a response to a divine command: "Sing me a new song…" says God.
In a highly competitive society, there's something to be treasured in a pursuit which costs little apart from time.
Maybe this is what differentiates us from the beasts… that we make music not to attract suitors or display skill, but because cooperation is what we need to learn in order to prevent our race from dying.
copyright 2009 BBC
It may not belong before the tabloids sport headlines such as 'Mendelssohn on the Mersey' or 'Rachmaninov in Raploch'…and all because there are 'More than Maracas in Caracas.'
Last week, the Simon Bolivar Orchestra from Venezuela performed in Britain. Its first concert earned a rare five star rating in the Guardian. All the instrumentalists in this ensemble are under 24. And many come from backgrounds where classical music would not have been a life choice were it not for a project called El Sistema which, in 30 years, has tutored 400,000 children and set up 150 orchestras in what is still regarded as a 'developing nation.'
The scheme is now being introduced in Britain. It has already started in Scotland, in the Raploch, a neighbourhood on the outskirts of Stirling. The project there is called 'the Big Noise' And last week the project's chair commented, 'It costs about £2,000 per year for a child to be taught in the Big Noise. If the child ends up in the criminal justice system, it costs £18,500 per year.
Does this mean that classical music is the antidote to criminality? No, that would be a naïve assertion. But I'm reminded of a comment made by the head teacher of a primary school I once visited in Yorkshire. Its 190 strong choir included every child who did not go home for lunch. The head had prioritised class singing as an essential feature of the curriculum and commented that one result was a noticeable decrease in behavioural problems.
'Why so?' I asked her and she said, 'You can pay a fortune for sports equipment and instructors and one of the by-products is to make children competitive. You hire a part time singing teacher and you make children cooperative.
Maybe this is why within Christian churches, music has had such a high priority… not just the practised music of performers, but the sound of untutored voices doing something magnificent together.
For, of all the arts, music is the most participative. We can't all paint or perform a play together. But we can all sing; and the Bible sees this cooperative activity not as an option, but as a response to a divine command: "Sing me a new song…" says God.
In a highly competitive society, there's something to be treasured in a pursuit which costs little apart from time.
Maybe this is what differentiates us from the beasts… that we make music not to attract suitors or display skill, but because cooperation is what we need to learn in order to prevent our race from dying.
copyright 2009 BBC
Thought for the Day
There's a phrase I heard twice on this programme on Friday and read several times in the newspapers over the weekend. It has become almost a ritual saying when something has gone wrong in the economy, in politics, or in welfare, educational and health services. It is…. 'Lessons will be learned'.
I would gladly censure that convenient aphorism. It is convenient news-speak, diplomatic flannel, a multipurpose euphemism. In nearly every case what the speaker means to say is: I can't believe our failsafe system has failed; or I don't know who's to blame yet, but heads will roll
It inevitably leads to a committee of enquiry being set up to scrutinise and make recommendations. It is always post factum...after the event. And it nearly always happens in situations where the prophetic voice has been ignored.
In the season of Advent, we are encouraged to listen for such voices. They are not the meanderings of fortune tellers whose palms have been greased to flatter the client. The prophet is someone who reads into the present state of society and discerns two things….the consequence of present actions in advance of a crisis...and an alternative reality which is worth striving for.
I suspect that if Isaiah were around today he wouldn't be surprised at the disquiet surrounding Social Work departments.
10 years ago he would have said to unsympathetic ears:
If you burden social workers with case-loads they can't manage,
and require them to spend as much time on paper work as on client contact,
and then use them and teachers as whipping boys when things go wrong,
they will never give of their best.
I suspect that if Amos were around today he wouldn't be surprised by the global financial crisis.
Ten years ago he would have said...
If you encourage a culture of debt, put few restrictions on what people can borrow;
if you allow unbridled consumerism to run wild, the economy will crash.
If Jeremiah were around today, he wouldn't be surprised by the fragility of the ecosystem caused by a cavalier approach to conservation. He would point to what he said two and a half millennia ago...
Your wrongdoing will upset nature's order,
and your sins will terminate her generosity.
Sometimes for good and honourable reasons, sometimes for reasons of political expediency, the prophetic voices are not given the hearing that they deserve as necessary correctives to the prevailing norms in politics as in faith. But it's at our peril that we ignore them. For they remind us not just that prevention is better than cure, but also that insight is better than hindsight.
copyright 2008 BBC
I would gladly censure that convenient aphorism. It is convenient news-speak, diplomatic flannel, a multipurpose euphemism. In nearly every case what the speaker means to say is: I can't believe our failsafe system has failed; or I don't know who's to blame yet, but heads will roll
It inevitably leads to a committee of enquiry being set up to scrutinise and make recommendations. It is always post factum...after the event. And it nearly always happens in situations where the prophetic voice has been ignored.
In the season of Advent, we are encouraged to listen for such voices. They are not the meanderings of fortune tellers whose palms have been greased to flatter the client. The prophet is someone who reads into the present state of society and discerns two things….the consequence of present actions in advance of a crisis...and an alternative reality which is worth striving for.
I suspect that if Isaiah were around today he wouldn't be surprised at the disquiet surrounding Social Work departments.
10 years ago he would have said to unsympathetic ears:
If you burden social workers with case-loads they can't manage,
and require them to spend as much time on paper work as on client contact,
and then use them and teachers as whipping boys when things go wrong,
they will never give of their best.
I suspect that if Amos were around today he wouldn't be surprised by the global financial crisis.
Ten years ago he would have said...
If you encourage a culture of debt, put few restrictions on what people can borrow;
if you allow unbridled consumerism to run wild, the economy will crash.
If Jeremiah were around today, he wouldn't be surprised by the fragility of the ecosystem caused by a cavalier approach to conservation. He would point to what he said two and a half millennia ago...
Your wrongdoing will upset nature's order,
and your sins will terminate her generosity.
Sometimes for good and honourable reasons, sometimes for reasons of political expediency, the prophetic voices are not given the hearing that they deserve as necessary correctives to the prevailing norms in politics as in faith. But it's at our peril that we ignore them. For they remind us not just that prevention is better than cure, but also that insight is better than hindsight.
copyright 2008 BBC
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