conjectural navel gazing; jesus in lint form

belated memorial

This tune has been runing through my head today.

The Green Fields of France
Eric Bogle

Well, how do you do, young Willie McBride,
Do you mind if I sit here dawn by your graveside,
And rest for a while heath the warm summer sun,
I've been worldng all day and I'm nearly done.
I see by your gravestone you were only nineteen,
When you joined the great fallen in nineteen sixteen,
I hope you died well and I hope you died clean,
Or young Willie McBride was it slow and obscene.

Chorus
Did they beat the drum slowly, did they play the life lowly.
Did they sound the dead march as they lowered you down,
And did the band play the Last Post and chorus,
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest.

And did you leave awife or a sweetheart behind,
In some faithful heart is your memory enshrined.
Although you died back in nineteen sixteen,
In that faithful heart are you forever nineteen.
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Enclosed and forever behind the glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn and battered and stained
And faded to yellow in a brown leather frame.
Chorus

The sun now it shines on the green fields of France
There's a warm summer breeze, it makes the red poppies dance.
And look how the sun shines from under the clouds
There's no gas, no barbed wire, no guns firing now.
But here in this graveyard it's still no-man's-land.
The countless white crosses stand mute in the sand,
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
To a whole generation that were butchered and damned.
Chorus

Now young Willie McBride I can't help but wonder why
Do all those who lie here know why they died.
And did they believe when they answered the cause
Did they really believe that this war would end wars.
Well the sorrows, the suffering, the glory, the pain
The killing and dying was all done in vain.
For young Willie McBride it all happened again,
And again, and again, and again, and again.
Chorus

My grandfather and his two brothers fought in WWII. I have been to the Memorial. They carried the scars the remainder of their lives. I think they would have done it all again, too. It is so far from how I think. But that doesn't really matter, I guess.

Here is a quote from St John of the Cross that the Monk in Training posted.

"Have a special love for those who do not love you, for that is how God loves us and gives us his Spirit so that we may love that way, too."

Both influences run through my little brain. I have held my grandfather's M-1. I have prayed with the words of St. John of the Cross.

Maybe for me it is better to recall this conflict within myself than much else.

What are you building?
A sermon for the second Sunday after Pentecost
May 29, 2005
North Shore Baptist Church, Chicago, IL

I have three stories I wan to share with you thins morning. I come from a story-telling family, and the rule is you don’t tell just one. So, I wan to talk about Noah, Pope John Paul II and the story of a man who built his house on sand.

First, I want to talk about Noah. This is perhaps the first Bible story I ever learned. I grew up with one of those brown illustrated children’s Bibles in the house. Do some of you know the kind? It’s a heavy book, and right on the cover are all the animals, this scene from Genesis. I loved to look at the animals. The giraffe especially enthralled me. I was six, and the giraffe seemed impossible to me.

The story about Noah was my favorite. I used to read and reread that story. I loved it. I loved it not because of some morbid fascination with floods (That was later, when I was 13…I was weird at 13.), but because God saved Noah and the giraffe…that beautiful giraffe. As a child, I simply thought that there were a bunch of bad people that were trying to hurt Noah and all the animals. God wanted to save them, so God did. God was good to do so. God was good. My theology was not all that nuanced, but at least I was hopeful as a child.

As I grew older, however, I developed several different opinions about this story. I learned several different ways of engaging it. I found myself wondering why God would destroy so much. I wondered why God would have gotten so angry. There have been moments when I have been overcome by frustrations and questions about the hatred and violence of God.

It seems so cruel and unnecessary. Why would God do such a thing? I have read commentary after commentary over the years trying to find some reason for God’s hatred and cruelty. It is overwhelming. To be honest, I get angry just thinking about it.

As usual, I find I miss the point of the story in the first place.

As I prepared for this sermon, I listened to Bill Cosby’s version. His telling of the story of Noah is creative and fun. His humor is all over it. He marvels at Noah’s age. This is a 600-year-old man. You know he’s not in the prime of his life, folks. He’s in his workshop minding his own business, going about his life as any 600 year old guy does and then…

*ding* “NOAH!”

The conversation is hilarious.

Noah is in disbelief. “Am I on Candid Camera?”
Noah doesn’t know what a cubit is…for that matter, neither does God.
Heck, he doesn’t even know what an ark is!
Noah suggests that maybe he’s a little old for this kind of thing and God should get someone else. He’s particularly worried about who will clean up after all those animals. Noah even suggests an alternative plan, that God simply let it rain long enough to let the sewers back up.

The story is playful, silly and perfect, and we are encouraged to use our imaginations in the hearing of it.

Maybe this is a story designed to tell children. Now, I have not built some systematic interpretation around this idea, but I find it worth imagining what it would be like sharing this story with a child the first time. Trish and I don’t have kids, so those of you who know better need to bear with me here…

I am there beside my child as I’m tucking her into bed. She demands a story. So, I start telling the story of Noah and the ark from memory. And because I am telling it from memory, things are a little out of order. And I say, “So God asked Noah to build a big boat. He gave him the measurements and everything. You see God, was going to flood the world and wanted to save Noah.”

Knowing me, because I am so hung up on the greater moral issues at stake, I would forget to mention the animals soon enough and my child would ask “But what about the animals?! You can’t forget the animals!”

“Right, right God asked Noah to collect the animals two by two, one male and one female”

“Daddy?”
“Yes, honey.”
“Why does God need one male and one female?”

“Well, you see…”

Things quickly go far a field. Sometimes, the concerns of a child are different.

This is why I am reminding myself of how I used to hear this story…how the six year old me, that great interpreter of scripture, thought about this story.

Evil is so powerful and frightening. Can these stories be good for children to hear? I find if I fixate on the horrifying evil, the nightmare images, then it is difficult to imagine that they are. But the stories are not asking that I fixate on the evil.

Yet there is always hope . Everything had gone horribly, horribly wrong…and yet God remembered Noah. God remembered not just Noah. He remembered all of creation. That is how I thought of the story when I was a child.

This story is a story of salvation. God saves humanity and all of creation. In response, Noah builds an altar to God. Noah’s response is worship. Noah’s response is to honor God for what God has done to save him, his family and all creation from itself.

Now, let me tell you about Pope John Paul II.
A couple of months ago, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Father Mike Flager from St Sabina’s Catholic Church. We were at a conference at the University of Chicago. Father Flager had been asked to address the conference about issues of social brokenness and how we might be agents of healing. The conference was the same week that the Pope’s funeral mass was being televised…and the Father was not particularly thrilled about how everything was going. He had met the Pope on many occasions. He imagined the Pope would be disappointed
- too much fanfare
- it pointed to the Pope
- it needed to point to Christ
- In Flager’s opinion, the Pope spent his life pointing beyond himself to Christ.
- The world is in need of salvation and only Christ can bring that salvation. The Pope cannot and Flager suggested very strongly that the Pope understood this clearly.
- Flager was frustrated.
- The remainder of his talk to us was about salvation and how all we are to do needs to point to God’s salvation and our need of it.
- Flager would make a good Baptist.

Now, let’s look at the story in Matthew.
- Tell the story. Scripture.
- the end of the Sermon on the Mount – the button “and they were asounded at his teaching” is the button for the whole sermon…not just this one parable.
- the sermon begin with the beatitudes and ends with this story about how one is to build…
- What is the foundation and what are we building?
The story of the children of North Shore Baptist Church is rich and wonderful and worthy of being told. What we have built is worth telling people about. It is worth telling people about not because of what stands, but because of what this place stands upon.

The foundation of this congregation is salvation in Christ. That salvation is the salvation of each individual in this congregation, this neighborhood, this city, this country…the salvation we can proclaim is offered by God through his son Jesus. It is not enough that we cry “Lord! Lord!” or that we prophesy or teach or do good things. All of that is meaningless unless it stands upon the promise of salvation in Christ Jesus.

The story that North Shore shares is a story for God’s children.
- imagination
- creativity
- expresses hope and redemption
- it is future-oriented
- it points to Jesus in praise of the God that saved Noah, in praise of the God that redeems the world through the work of God’s people, that stands on the promises of Christ who is the salvation of creation itself.

These stories are the same story, brothers and sisters. They are our story. They are the story of a loving God. They are the foundation of who we are. What are we building as we look to the future?

I don’t know. I cannot foretell the future. I do believe, however, that if we build it upon the promises of these stories, that it will weather the storms of life and bring God’s children to salvation and hope.

Amen.

hmmm...interesting

You can read the whole article here. But this section grabbed my attention.

For the new pope, sacred music does not merely put the communicant in the right mood. Music, he believes, in a sense, becomes the communion, as he told Church musicians 20 years ago:

Faith becoming music is part of the process of the word becoming flesh …When the word becomes music, there is involved on the one hand perceptible illustration, incarnation or taking on flesh, attraction of pre-rational powers, a drawing upon the hidden resonance of creation, a discovery of the song which lies at the basis of all things. And so this becoming music is itself the very turning point in the movement: it involves not only the word becoming flesh, but simultaneously the flesh becoming spirit.

These are the words of a mystic, of a fisher of souls. His predecessor was that too, but more inclined to catch-and-release. John Paul II bestrode the stage like a rock star, chanting to youthful crowds, "Woo-hoo-woo! John Paul II, he loves you!" He shared a stage with Bob Dylan as well as "walk on the wild side" rocker Lou Reed. Benedict XVI has radically different views. Citing the same speech:

... Rock music seeks release through liberation from the personality and its responsibility ... [it is] among the anarchic ideas of freedom which today [1985] predominate more openly in the West than in the East. But that is precisely why rock music is so completely antithetical to the Christian concept of redemption and freedom, indeed its exact opposite. Hence music of this type must be excluded from the Church on principle, and not merely for aesthetic reasons, or because of restorative crankiness or historical inflexibility.

Classical music, he conceded, has "been forced back on all fronts into the position of a mere subculture". But even in the Western world we should not be frightened by the term "subculture". In the cultural crisis we are currently experiencing, new cultural purification and unification can break forth only from islands of spiritual composure.

It is a little late/early for me to have anything worthwhile to contribute, but it was a good read. I had not thought of the ideology of rock music being the trouble. So, what we have is a cultural war. Okay. Now, someone needs to tell the Christian Rock people. I wonder now if Christian Rock is really rock music after all.

Perhaps it ain't.

Music, like science, offers mere potential for good; the good is sui generis. For art to serve the good, the artist must first be good. Benedict XVI, as noted, stated that "reverence, receptivity and humility" characterize the musician whose art exalts rather than confuses the listener. Religion can engage art as its servant only after it has converted the artist.

on call

I am on this morning...from 00:30 to 08:30. I think it is going to be a busy night. Ah well. I managed to get a couple of hours of sleep before I had to come back to the hospital. Susie came over. She sat with Trish and watched some Depp movie that frightened them. Depp often frightens me, but that has little to do with much of anything.

My, I am tired.

Pray that I am wrong and this will not be as busy a night as I think it will be. I have so few of these shifts left. The summer interns will be taking the majority of the on call shifts this summer, so I will get to be the lazy resident. It is a great thing.

But for tonight, I am the chaplain in the hospital.

baptist stuff #2

Glenn Hinson was a professor of mine when I attended Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. He is brilliant. He is passionate. And, it would seem, is still just a little angry. I wish I could find the text to teh entire address. The pieces, I am sure, are accurate. His vehemence, however, when I knew him was always qualified. I remember he said "We are all going to be very sruprised to find out who is in heaven waiting for us with open arms." This address is a little more flagrant.

Connected with the militant crusader model "is a vision for America," Hinson noted. He suggested that Mohler, Moral Majority founder Jerry Falwell "and their cohorts in the Religious Right would like to return America to its Puritan days, establishing their values as the values of the entire country."

Emphasizing that "you have numerous choices," Hinson asked, "Will it be CEO, authoritarian church grower or crusader for a fundamentalist Christian America? Or will it be the model set for us by Jesus Christ?"

Yeah. *sigh*

Hang in there, brothers and sisters. We Baptists are slow to get over much of anything. We are still mad at the anglicans of the sixteenth century. I am not entirely certain as to why, but it seems to be true.

Oh, here is one of Hinson's sermons.

Baptist Seminary of Kentucky holds inaugural commencement

By Trennis Henderson

Lexington, Ky. (ABP) - Baptist Seminary of Kentucky held its inaugural
commencement May 14, awarding master of divinity degrees to three
graduates.

Urging the graduates to be "humble servants of God who follow in the
footsteps of Jesus Christ," Glenn Hinson, BSK's senior professor of
church history and spirituality, expressed hope "that you will be lovers of God, of yourselves and of humankind."

The fledgling moderate seminary was incorporated in 1996 in response to the conservative shift at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and
other denominational entities.

An independent board of Kentucky Baptist ministers and laypeople elected Greg Earwood seminary president in 2001 and classes began in the fall of 2002. Enrollment has grown from 15 students in 2002 to 51 students this year, including about one-third of that total who are full-time students.

The first three years of classes and the inaugural commencement were
held at Calvary Baptist Church in Lexington. The school will move to
Lexington Theological Seminary in August to begin fall classes.

Noting that the two schools will experience "shared space and shared
grace," Earwood said BSK is not merging with the Disciples of Christ
seminary. "Both seminaries believe this sharing of space is good
Christian stewardship and a positive expression of community among
scholars and students," he added.

Earwood said the seminary, which is not yet accredited, plans to pursue accreditation through the Association of Theological Schools as BSK's enrollment and financial resources increase.

The seminary's first three graduates are: Danny Adams, a member of First Christian Church in Paris; Lynn Bradley, an associate minister at St. John's Missionary Baptist Church in Lexington; and Tony Shouse, pastor of Dry Run Baptist Church in Georgetown.

During the May 14 commencement, Earwood described the event as "a highly significant 'first' in a series of 'firsts' for our new venture in theological education."

Hinson, who taught more than 30 years at Southern Seminary before moving to Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, Va., in 1992, has served as a senior professor at Baptist Seminary of Kentucky since classes begin there.

Contrasting BSK and Southern in repeated references during his
commencement address, Hinson declared, "In recent months, Southern
Seminary has taken two steps to throw down a gauntlet in the face of
modern science.

"In an obvious repudiation of evolutionary theory which is at the heart of modern scientific research, it employed someone to create a center for intelligent design, a euphemism for creationism," Hinson said, alluding to William Dembski's appointment to head Southern's Center for Science and Theology.

In announcing Dembski's appointment last fall, Southern Seminary
President Al Mohler described intelligent design as "a useful and
important intellectual tool." Mohler added that "the real significance
of intelligent design theory and its related movement is the success
with which it undermines the materialistic and naturalistic worldview
central to the theory of evolution."

Hinson said a second concern was Southern's recent decision to drop "the psychological component from counseling to prepare ministers for 'biblical counseling,' thus scuttling the life work of Wayne Oates at Southern Seminary."

By contrast, he added, "You and I can recognize that there is a need for vigilance regarding developments in today's science and technology
without going to the extreme of setting ourselves up as the supreme
court for all of its conclusions based on increasingly sophisticated
research and experimentation."

Warning graduates about such contemporary ministry models as the
corporate executive model, the authoritarian church grower model and the militant crusader model, Hinson said, "We dare not enter into Christian ministry today without consciousness that models other than the servant model Jesus set for us will try to seduce us."

Connected with the militant crusader model "is a vision for America,"
Hinson noted. He suggested that Mohler, Moral Majority founder Jerry
Falwell "and their cohorts in the Religious Right would like to return
America to its Puritan days, establishing their values as the values of the entire country."

Emphasizing that "you have numerous choices," Hinson asked, "Will it be CEO, authoritarian church grower or crusader for a fundamentalist
Christian America? Or will it be the model set for us by Jesus Christ?"

Hinson also urged the graduates to be individuals "who love the Bible
and who spend hours listening to God through it, ... but who do not
substitute it for the Living God."

The Bible "directs us to the one Holy and Living God whom we have come
to know in and through Jesus Christ and who is present with us in the
Holy Spirit."

baptist stuff #1

Molly Marshall is someone I met twelver years ago. I have always enjoyed my interaction with her. I hope and pray that Central gets their act together. I poked aroudn down there for a brief moment before deciding upon SWTS for my seminary education. Seminaries in general are struggling financially. Central is one of many. The other post, baptist stuff #2, is about another seminary. Wonder why they are not aligned? Well, welcome to the Baptist churches' way of education. It is denominational and regional. The SBC seminary will be built next to the CBF school which will be next to the ANC school...and the students who attend will represent any number of traditions. Someone needs to explain to me how this happens. Cornfuzzled am I.

Central Seminary cuts staff, establishes satellite centers

By Robert Marus

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (ABP) -- A cash-strapped Central Baptist Theological
Seminary is significantly reducing its main-campus staff and faculty
while establishing a network of satellite campuses in a bid to make its educational offerings more accessible.

Acting on a plan proposed by new seminary President Molly Marshall, the seminary's board of trustees voted in mid-May to approve the staff
reductions at the Kansas City, Kan., school, and to establish satellite centers in four Midwestern and Southern states.

"It's really just having to re-align things, given our financial
situation," said Lisa Wimberly Allen, who along with her husband was
recently elected the school's co-dean and vice president for
administration. Like many other non-profit organizations in recent
years, Central has struggled to maintain its income stream from donors.

Eight staff positions have already been eliminated, Allen said, with
those employees' final day scheduled to be May 31. According to Dean
Allen, the reduction leaves the seminary with a full-time non-academic
staff of 10.

In addition, out of a current faculty of 12, as many as four positions
will be eliminated. Allen said which faculty leave will be jointly
determined by administrators and the faculty itself. "This is not at all punitive," she said. "We value these people very deeply; it's been hard on us to do this."

Allen said the cuts were also done in the interest of making the
school's new satellite-campus project possible. Under the plan, Central will partner with local congregations and denominational organizations to offer master's-level courses at centers in Wisconsin, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Tennessee.

According to Allen, the classes at those locations and their form of
delivery will vary, depending "on the type of course and the pedagogical needs for the course." For example, classes may be taught by faculty on the Kansas City campus via the Internet or video broadcasts sent to the centers, or by local contract faculty.

The partnering organizations are the American Baptist Churches of
Wisconsin in Milwaukee; Benson Baptist Church in Omaha, Neb.; First
Baptist Church in Oklahoma City; and First Baptist Church in
Murfreesboro, Tenn.

Central Seminary, established in 1901, was historically associated with the American Baptist Churches. But, in the 1990s, many students and faculty from Southern Baptist backgrounds came to the seminary after fundamentalists solidified control over Southern Baptist Convention schools, including nearby Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Since then, Central has become one of the Cooperative Baptist
Fellowship's partner schools for theological education.

Jeff Langford, the CBF of Missouri's associate coordinator, said the
reductions were regrettable, but necessary. "From my perspective, I
think Central is moving in the right direction," he said. "This is
probably not something that needed to happen in this way, but in other
ways prior to this. I think they were probably overstaffed in some ways for the number of students they had."

But one local seminary supporter wondered if it was a sign of the
school's demise. "When you cut out your whole development department,
that sends a signal in and of itself for long-term prospects," said Bill Hill, pastor of Wornall Road Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo., and a former administrator at Central. "It really gives you pause to wonder what in the heck is going to happen to them."

the angel gabriel from heaven came

Holy cow. This falls into the “truth is stranger than fiction” category.

So, yesterday I needed to be at work early. Trish had an audition and needed the car, so I took the train. Some days I wear a collar to work…the availability of clean laundry and my mood both dictate this choice…and yesterday was one of those days. So, I got dressed for work, kissed my wife goodbye and left the apartment.

I did not wait long for the train. It was 5:45 in the morning. No one seemed to notice my collar. In fact, I quickly forgot I was even wearing the thing. That didn’t last long. When I got on the train, I was greeted with “Hey! Are you a priest?” The voice was angry. “Yes, of a sort. What do you need?” I was trying to be pastoral, you know. It is so important to be pastoral when riding the red line in Chicago.

Then the yelling started. “You’re a priest? No. You’re an idiot! Do you know that I’m smarter than you are? I am. I am smarter than you will ever be.” He had all kinds of theological questions for me. He asked me if I knew where God was at the beginning of time. He asked me if I knew where Jesus was when that happened. How does one explain “co-eternal” to a wild man? Well, that would prove an unnecessary concern.

“Do you know who I am? Do you know me?”
“No.” I replied.
“I am Gabriel. Do you know how I can prove it?”
“No.”
“You are going to Hell! I know these things. You are. So when you get there, you will know that I am the angel Gabriel. I am the angel Gabriel. I am not some little pansy angel. I have a sword and I kill people.”

With this, he stood above me in his seat. In my fear, all I could think was “Gabe, it’s six o’clock in the morning. Can we talk about this at another time?” It seemed unwise to me however, to address an archangel in such a cavalier manner, so I kept my mouth shut.

All of you need to know that the LORD is pissed at all of us “little monkeys.” He has sent Gabriel to take care of things, but Gabe got a little lost on the way and is generally pissed off as well. Oh, right, and when the world was being formed, Gabriel and Michael used to take Jesus out back of God’s house and beat him up. This probably explains much about the way that Jesus ministered to people. Jesus was a coward. He never fought Lucifer. He never watched his friends being killed. Angels die, you see. And they don’t come back.

That last piece of cosmic information broke my heart. Still, I sat there, gave my one-word answers, and wondered if this crazy man would relax enough to let me read in peace. Perhaps I should have been more concerned, but I gave up my savior complex on my second on-call at the hospital. Now, I just try not to get in the way when the Spirit moves. That seemed to work well in this situation as well.

You see, across from the aisle was an older Mexican man who did not like to see “The Reverend” get his theological arse handed to him on a platter. So, he came to my rescue. He engaged in the theological debate, diving in the co-eternal thing with all of his sleepy might. And when Gabriel spoke of how he and Michael took Jesus out back and kicked his celestial arse, my Mexican hero popped off. “Who are you? You are an angel? Well, Jesus made you. You are not greater than Jesus!” The tone was a little like “Oh yeah? Well King Kong can beat up Samson any day of the week, you dweeb!” But the response caught Gabe off guard. He then shouted at the man. “Well, you are going to Hell, too!” And this is where it got good.

“No I am not!” exclaimed my hero. And with this, he pulled a scapular from under his shirt. “Do you know who this is? Do you?” He pointed at an image on the scapular.
“No.” said the angel.
“This is the Virgin Mary. She protects me. So you need to sit down, shut up and leave the Reverend alone. He is doing God’s work.”

And the angel did. He walked up the car and sat down mumbling to himself. I, like any good minister of God, got out of there as fast as I could. I got off at the next stop and waited for another train. As I left, I thanked my Mexican savior and prayed to the Virgin in gratitude.

The rest of the trip was much less dramatic. I got on the train and was greeted by a homeless man who had been sleeping. "Oh good. A pastor.” He smiled. It seemed sincere. I hope it was. “Now I know it will be a good day. Peace to you pastor.”

“And to you.”

So, pray for the angels today. Pray especially for Gabriel. He is broken and lost. His rage overcomes him and he has lost his love for humanity. Give thanks to the Virgin who protects us all. Be good to the Mexicans you meet. I know I will be forever grateful.

For my part, I will try not to wear my collar on the train again…maybe.

This hymn has been running through my head every since my encounter.

The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
his wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame;
"All hail," said he, "thou lowly maiden Mary,
most highly favored lady," Gloria!

"For know a blessed Mother thou shalt be,
all generations laud and honor thee,
thy Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
most highly favored lady," Gloria!

Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head,
"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said,
"my soul shall laud and magnify his holy Name."
Most highly favored lady, Gloria!

Of her, Emmanuel, the Christ, was born
in Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn,
and Christian folk throughout the world will ever say--
"Most highly favored lady," Gloria!

university update

It has been another wonderful week here at the U of B-SC. Go Puffins!

AKMA has been at it again with all the thinking. I wonder how he does it. This time he is looking at a variety of ways to dissent. He appears to be wondering which, if any, are actually helpful and facilitate dialogue. It is an interesting thread.

Dylan has yet to post her reflections about the approaching Sunday lectionary. I was kind of hoping she would have by now. I am preaching at North Shore this Sunday and could use the help. My how preaching on Memorial Day is difficult. My how I wish that the pastors would stay in town. My. There are only so many times I can wear a pith helmet in the pulpit. [Dylan has posted her reflections! Huzzah! Now, someone find her a job, okay?]

Cliff has posted these words from Metropolitan PHILIP.

After thirty-nine years in the Episcopacy, I have become convinced that Orthodox unity in America must begin on the grass roots level. You, the laity, and in particular the young adult laity, are the conscience of the Church and the defenders of the faith. Consequently, I would like to see a strong Pan-Orthodox lay movement, totally dedicated to the cause of Orthodox unity. Insist that the unity of our Faith must transcend all other interests. Insist that we silence those forces that would divide us. Insist that we witness our Faith to North America without boundaries. Without the laity, our churches would be empty and our liturgical and sacramental services would be in vain. The clergy and laity, working together, are the “LAOS TOU THEOU,” the “People of God” and together we constitute the Holy Orthodox Church.

A Pan Orthodox lay movement is just the ticket. The same can be said for any ecumenical effort. To some degree those of us in leadership at the so-called top of ecclesial structures often lose sight of the actual landscape. Unity, ecumenism, reconciliation is the work of the hands and hearts of the laity. If it is left up to us clerical types, it will drown in committee. Preach, PHILIP! Preach!

Jane has learned a thing or two about medicine lately. Larry is working on a movie. Susie saw a bird...an omen, I believe. Rosy-fingered dawn had he hand in it. Sunni has been meditating on American Idol. Carrie clinched it last night...but Bo has been sure and steady. I tell ya, I am hooked. Riiight.

Micah has reviewed a couple of books. The Chief Blogging Officer has been thinking too much again. Someone has criticized the reading of Wikipedia or something like that. The Queen of All Evil wants to know how we all define patriotism. It is an interesting question. How do you?

And, finally, blogging is posing workplace issues. Who knew? Well, I have to go to a meeting now. Work calls. I will see you all later. Go Puffins!!

last post for the day?

Yeah. This has to be the last one. Thanks Cliff!

Your Dominant Thinking Style:

Exploring You thrive on the unknown and unpredictable. Novelty is your middle name. You are a challenger. You tend to challenge common assumptions and beliefs. An expert inventor and problem solver, you approach everything from new angles. You show people how to question their models of the world.

Your Secondary Thinking Style:

Visioning You are very insightful and tend to make decisions based on your insights. You focus on how things should be - even if you haven't worked out the details. An idealist, thinking of the future helps you guide your path. You tend to give others long-term direction and momentum.

So, do you think this is accurate?

an interview with bono

Have you ever found yourself relating to someone who has seemingly perfected the art form you practice? I mean, this is several orders of magnitude beyond my experience, but the words ring true. Incredible. So, as this is a blog, I figured I would enter the conversation as I was able.

This morning I was listening to XRT. I tend to steer clear of Morning Edition on NPR lately because I find plenty of stress at the office. I don't need to hear how the world is falling apart. I see plenty. I miss it sometimes, but XRT has hit the spot. Today there was an interview with Greg Kot from the Tribune about his interview with Bono. You can find the full transcript here.I have to admit that I was floored. It was a great conversation about a conversation. Kot raises many good points about the very coporate (read: sell out?) profile of U2. I think it is worth some exploration in general. As many know, I love U2 and Bono is quite cool in my estimation. What he says in the interview is interesting though. When has a band (an artist) sold out? Do artists sell out when they only meet the needs of the niche that spawned them? Do they sell out when they have a larger sense of whom they can reach? I thought it was interesting.

Bono:We looked at the iPod commercial as a rock video. We chose the director. We thought how are we going to get our single off in the days when rock music is niche? When it's unlikely to get a three-minute punk-rock song on top of the radio? So we piggy-backed this phenomenon to get ourselves to a new younger audience, and we succeeded. And it's exciting. I'm proud of the commercial, I'm proud of the association. We have turned down enormous sums of money to put our songs in a commercial, where we felt, to your point, where it might change the way people appreciated the song. We were offered $23 million for just the music to "Where the Streets Have No Name."

That made me pause in my reading of the interview. When does an artist sell their work? Sometimes I think we always are. Those of us who have ever made money, even $25.00 for a church gig, have sold something of ourselves. It is unavoidable. But as Bono suggests, the associations matter.

...We almost did. We sat down. I know from my work in Africa what $23 million could buy. It was very hard to walk away from $23 million. So we thought, "We'll give the money away." But if we tell people we're giving the money away, it sounds pompous. So we'll just give it away, and take the hit. That's what we agreed. But if a show is a little off, and there's a hole, that's the one song we can guarantee that God will walk through the room as soon as we play it. So the idea that when we played it, people would go, "That's the 'such-and-such' commercial," we couldn't live with it.

I remember a conversation I had many years ago with Sarah about how I felt about making any money at all when I sang in a church service. It is a hard thing to balance. For a while I refused to take money. At times I still do. Then there are those days that I have to feed myself and I humble myself to the generosity of a parish. My reason for this is the senseo fo servanthood I feel. I serve the Spirit in worship as revealed in song. So, by extrapolation, I serve the song. Bono says it this way:

I hear so many songwriters describe their songs as their children, that they have to look after them. [Nonsense!] They're your parents, they tell you what to do. They tell you how to dress, how to behave when you're playing them. They tell you what the video looks like. If you listen to them, they manage you. And if you get it right, they pay for your retirement [laughs]. Because songs demand to be heard.

Sometimes I feel this way. Sometimes the music demands a hearing. Perhaps especially music...I have written tunes, some I would call "good." And they sit in my little books unheard. I am afraid to air them in public. To follow the metaphor, I am like some petulant teen who is embarassed to be seen with his parents. I am embarassed by what these songs show of me, the serene and the brutish, the talent and the inability...that vulnerability is too challenging at times.

And then there is the whole issue of colaberation. I had not heard about the dynamic within U2 before. This quote cracked me up:

I'm only one member of this band, and Edge is three. And if he thinks an arrangement is perfect, why mess with it? He says, "I'm not jamming here. That's a guitar melody. I've written it. I can't improve on it." Adam and I are the jazz men in the band. But the Teutonic Larry Mullen and the Presbyterian Edge always demand, "No fat. Back to the original arrangement. We're not going to change the bass line just because we feel like it."

Too funny. There are many ways of measuring success in an artform like music. How one relates within the band matters. But it also matters how one relates to those who hear the music, even to the industry itself. Kot said, "There's no shame in not selling" about the album Pop. Now, "not selling" for U2 is a little different than "not selling" for One of the Girls. Heck, we really don't sell! It is to laugh. But I wonder about the dynamic of self-expression, obedience to an artform and simple history of profound success. Pop can then be perceived on several levels as a failure. If OotG plays "Wild Rover" and people love us even if we get lost somewhere between verses or I blow the mandolin solo it is a success. If I lay my soul out there and Sean and Tom sing the hell out of it and Roger has one of his inspired moments and people still sip away at their beer, it is failure. The song was never heard for what the song is. The dynamic between artist and audience is a wilderness with no map to navigats. No compass can help.

I dunno, guys. Read the whole interview. Tell me what you think. Where are you in relation to your art form? How do you experience/appreciate/encounter art? In what ways do you make a comodity of it?

vandals

So, one of the cool things about this big old hospital is that the on-call sleep room for chaplains is with all of the physician on-call rooms. So, when things are a little slow, I can hobnob with the med students and residents. I enjoy the banter. They are fun people.

This also means that I have access to the showers. This is helpful when I am pulling a double or some such foolishness. One evening I was on call and was in the locker room "freshing up" and saw some graffiti. My first response was disappiontment. How could these people who are being trained to save lives stoop so low as to compose fiction (?) about their sexual exploits on the walls? Some of teh vandalism is that. Some of it is more medical in nature. People write about gladular disorders. They tease about how one student has trouble with drawing blood. It is all pretty silly when you get down to it. And doctors are just as likely as the cromagnon to want to write on the walls of caves.

So, I started to wonder what it would look like if the chaplains participated in this.

ALEX OVERSHARES!

or

CLIFF IS A MONTANIST!

Even better?

STAN LAYS ON HANDS!

What do you think?

something light

If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their famous sketch, "Who's on first?" might have turned out something like this:

COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den and I'm thinking about buying a computer.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: No, the name's Lou.

ABBOTT: Your computer?

COSTELLO: I don't own a computer. I want to buy one.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: I told you, my name's Lou.

ABBOTT: What about Windows?

COSTELLO: Why? Will it get stuffy in here?

ABBOTT: Do you want a computer with Windows?

COSTELLO: I don't know. What will I see when I look at the windows?

ABBOTT: Wallpaper.

COSTELLO: Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.

ABBOTT: Software for Windows?

COSTELLO: No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write
proposals, track expenses and run my business. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?

ABBOTT: I just did.

COSTELLO: You just did what?

ABBOTT: Recommend something.

COSTELLO: You recommended something?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: For my office?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: OK, what did you recommend for my office?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yes, for my office!

ABBOTT: I recommend Office with Windows.

COSTELLO: I already have an office with windows! OK, let's just say I'm sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal. What do I need?

ABBOTT: Word.

COSTELLO: What word?

ABBOTT: Word in Office.

COSTELLO: The only word in office is office.

ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO: Which word in office for windows?

ABBOTT: The Word you get when you click the blue "W".

COSTELLO: I'm going to click your blue "w" if you don't start with some straight answers. OK, forget that. Can I watch movies on the Internet?

ABBOTT: Yes, you want Real One.

COSTELLO: Maybe a real one, maybe a cartoon. What I watch is none of your business. Just tell me what I need!

ABBOTT: Real One.

COSTELLO: If it's a long movie, I also want to watch reels 2, 3 and 4. Can I watch them?

ABBOTT: Of course.

COSTELLO: Great! With what?

ABBOTT: Real One.

COSTELLO: OK, I'm at my computer and I want to watch a movie. What do I do?

ABBOTT: You click the blue "1".

COSTELLO: I click the blue one what?

ABBOTT: The blue "1".

COSTELLO: Is that different from the blue w?

ABBOTT: The blue "1" is Real One and the blue "W" is Word.

COSTELLO: What word?

ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO: But there are three words in "office for windows"!

ABBOTT: No, just one. But it's the most popular Word in the world.

COSTELLO: It is?

ABBOTT: Yes, but to be fair, there aren't many other Words left. It pretty much wiped out all the other Words out there.

COSTELLO: And that word is real one?

ABBOTT: Real One has nothing to do with Word. Real One isn't even part of Office.

COSTELLO: STOP! Don't start that again. What about financial bookkeeping? You have anything I can track my money with?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: That's right. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: I need money to track my money?

ABBOTT: It comes bundled with your computer.

COSTELLO: What's bundled with my computer?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: Money comes with my computer?

ABBOTT: Yes. No extra charge.

COSTELLO: I get a bundle of money with my computer? How much?

ABBOTT: One copy.

COSTELLO: Isn't it illegal to copy money?

ABBOTT: Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money.

COSTELLO: They can give you a license to copy money?

ABBOTT: Why not? THEY OWN IT!

(A few days later)

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: How do I turn my computer off?

ABBOTT: Click on "START" ......

this is fun

Here is something worthwhile. It ia Political Compass. I ended up on the Libertarian left with Ghandi and the Dali Lama. Cool.

another cpt update

Multiple car bombs killed seventy-one people throughout Iraq.

Wednesday 11 May

Joe Carr and Sheila Provencher visited Women's Will, an Iraqi Women's
organization that advocates for women's issues in Iraq. The founder stated her passion to unite Iraqi and American mothers in a common nonviolent struggle against the occupation and war. "It will be better for Iraqis and better for the American soldiers if [the soldiers] go home," she said.

Thursday 12 May

Provencher went to a wedding. She noted that the Baghdad neighborhood she was in during the wedding was filled with the noise of helicopters, tanks and gunfire. Her hosts told her that "the Americans" had target practice at a nearby military base. The family, who used to support the presence of American troops, no longer wanted them to be in Iraq and complained about the increase in violence.

While grocery shopping, Tom Fox came upon four Multinational Forces (MNF) Hummers and around eight foot soldiers (two squads.) The soldiers told Fox that they were doing house-to-house checks. When Fox asked why the soldiers were checking houses, the soldiers told him they received a list of streets to check, and they check houses on those streets. Some of the soldiers entered a nearby orphanage, which entertained the children.

Friday 13 May

Provencher visited a 27-year-old Iraqi friend who runs her own business. One of the employees at the shop said a rocket-propelled grenade seriously injured his father the previous day. His father's home is next to a police station. When the resistance targeted the police station, the grenade missed, flew into the home and took off the father's right leg. The employee broke down, saying, "As an Iraqi citizen I can no longer bear this situation. I have so many plans for my life . . . I want to go to graduate school, for instance. But I am afraid to even travel across the city because I might lose my hand, my leg, or my life. I cannot bear this anymore."

Sunday 15 May

En route to the U.S.A., Provencher left Iraq and arrived safely in Amman, Jordan. She told the team that the ten mile trip to the Baghdad airport took two hours because of all the U.S.-manned check points on the road.

16 May 2005

Rollins and Carr went to the office of an Iraqi nongovernmental organization (NGO) that has offered CPT meeting space and other assistance. They interviewed the brother of a man detained at Abu Ghraib by U.S. forces since November 2004. The detainee was working at a restaurant late one night when a car bomb exploded across the street. U.S. forces entered the restaurant and detained all five of the men working there. Since his incarceration in Abu Ghraib, the Iraqi man has come before a judge twice but both times the U.S. forces that detained him did not appear to testify against him.

Carr and one of the team's translators went to the residency office to fill out the necessary forms for his one-month stay in Iraq. Carr had to fulfill a completely different set of requirements than CPTer Kathleen O'Malley had to one month earlier.

When they returned from the residency office, the translator stayed to visit with the team. He mentioned that one of his relatives is a member of the Provisional Iraqi Assembly. The relative is so concerned for his own safety that he sleeps in a different relative's house each night and never sleeps in his own.

musing on the pediatric floor

Dietrich Bonhoeffer:

Humanly speaking, it is possible to understand the Sermon on the Mount in a thousand different ways. But Jesus knows only one possibility: simple surrender and obedience - not intrepreting or applying it, but doing and obeying it. That is the only way to hear his words. He does not mean for us to discuss it as an ideal. He really means for us to get on with it.

Brother Dietrich appears every so often in my email in-box. I have no idea what the context is for this quote. Most likely it is from Cost of Discipleship, his treatise on Matthew and community life, but it could come from any number of places in his letters and other writings. Today I am not so interested in figuring out where the quote comes from as I am letting it echo in my mind as a young cancer patient wanders the halls with his i.v. in hand. He is teaching his body how to walk again. Obedience has many different forms in a place like a hospital.

Patients must obey the needs of their bodies. Limitations demand respect. And limitations must be pushed less they become permanent disabilities. Part of obedience is finding out which limit is movable and which is not...which limit is voluntary and which is dictated by injury and insult.

There is a little boy with no hair walking the halls. He is concentrating on his feet as he walks. Another patient has been injured in an accident. He is being encouraged to look ahead as he walks. He is one step ahead of the little boy in more ways than one. Our young cancer patient is limited to the present. Though his actions move him further, he must concentrate on where his feet land lest he stumble and fall. A nurse walks with him to guide and protect him, but he is utterly consumed with the here and now.

The other is being encouraged to look forward. He needs to let his body remeber where his feet go. Looking down will actually slow his progress. He needs to look ahead. "Do you thing you can go to the end of the hall and turn around?" He nods. "I think so too." The therapist is gentle and encouraging. She speaks with me afterward and expresses her concern for him. "I think his parents can only come at night. It must be so hard.

Don't lose any opportunity, however small, of being gentle toward everyone. Don't rely on your own efforts to succeed in your various undertakings, but only on God's help. Then rest in his care of you, confident that he will do what is best for you, provided that you will, for your part, work diligently but gently. I say "gently" because a tense diligence is harmful both to our heart and to our task and is not really diligence, but rather over eagerness and anxiety...I recommend you to God's mercy. I beg him, through that same mercy, to fill you with his love. - Francis de Sales

I will visit these patients today. First, the Pediatric ICU calls me. There is a little boy who might not wake up. John Paul The Great watches over him in the form of a friend's gift. The Pontif is pensive and serious, deep in prayer and posessing hope for the future.

There is another young man with icons scattered about his room. His parents hope for a miracle. We pray. I anoint with water (another way to be Baptist, I believe) and pray for grace from God to enter the room. We obey hope. We seek simplicity and trust. We are meek in the face of such an illness. We must obey it...even as we pray for a miracle. Both are acts of obedience. Both are acts of trust.

This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Look ahead. Take that one step. Pray. Hope. Be.

dinner at the skywalker's

Props to Bob for the image. I lauged out loud in spite of myself. Between this and the Canticle for Gnosticism my day is almost perfect.

I must have lied.

So, in the last post I said that I was done beating the Baptist horse, but it appears that I am not. This post is not so much on the goings on in North Carolina, but about the goings on in the ABC in general.

Bryan has posted a couple (1, 2) of updates about what is going on in the ABC right now. He says something amazing about what it means to be an evangelical. "Evangelical Christians should be individuals who care about themselves last. People who care about truth so much that they're willing to make the investment necessary to really see that truth break in on lives, more than a slogan ever can."

I much confess some level of cynicism mixed with apathy about it all. I am old enough to recall the mess that the SBC went through and continues to go through. I remember when my Baptist minister grandfather would bemoan the politics of the day.

I was at Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond the second year it was in existance ('92-'93). I left before the end of my first year of the MDiv program. I was tired walking in. The fighting and wrangling in the "liberal haven" was more than I could handle. How people managed the politics/programs at Southern and other institutions, I really cannot say. I think of myself as pretty thick-skinned. Those places would have driven me nuts. BTSR is a good school. It was then as well. I just did not have the stomach for it.

So here we are at the advent of another change in Baptist institutional life. My Baptist kin are struggling with the issues at hand. I am struggling. Pray for us.

wednesday u of b-sc update and linkage frivolity

There is much afoot on campus this week. Take a gander at these links!

Larry is blogging about art and faith and how faith may actually dictate form to art. It is an interesting post and well worth your time. I understand that it is the first of a multiple-part entry. Be ye warned therefore. The waters be deep.

Jennifer has been keeping up with Revelations. Why that is I still do not understand. Nevertheless, she is and you would benefit from reading her blog.

AKMA is stretching minds again. Doesn't this guy ever stop? He is posting on "Narrative Ethics." He also has a post about the Baptist Pastor Excitement in North Carolina. I don't care to beat that horse, but there is a good comment in the comment section to that post that bears attention.

You are right on target, AKMA. Freedom of the individual conscience before God is precisely the point here. And if I remember my Baptist history correctly, Thomas Helwys died in the Tower of London for publishing the tract you cited. Baptist congregations do excercise "gate-keeping" with a profession of faith, baptism and affirmation of a covenant defining norms of the community's life together (participation, acting in love, giving of time and money, etc.) at the entrance. In my experience we are loath to kick anybody out except for non-participation. This particular incident at the East Waynesborough Baptist Church is an unfortunate example of how a large segment of Baptists have forgotten our core value of freedom of conscience. As Walter Shurden defines it "Soul freedom is the historic Baptist affirmation of the inalienable right and responsibility of every person to deal with God without the imposition of creed, the interference of clergy or the intervention of civil government." (The Baptist Identity:Four Fragile Freedoms, Smyth and Helwys Publishing, 1993) This is the foundation of our identity. All the other Baptist distinctives (priesthood of all believers, autonomy of the local congregation, separation of church and state,etc.) flow from the bedrock principle of conscience.

I am glad other Baptists are bearing that distinctive so clearly. Huzzah!

Hugo posted on men and numbness...I am not sure I agree with him, but it has sparked a good conversation. If you get the chance read Iron John. It is not a book I enjoyed, but it is important. Many men gained a lot of self-understanding from it. My wife's current director is in that camp as well. It is actually one reason why there are drums in their production of Macbeth. Honest.

Dylan always has something worth reading for those who preach from a lectionary. Take a moment this week to read what she is thinking.

Here is the Sacristan's sermon for Pentecost.

Rev Ref also posted his sermon. Scroll down for it.

There you have it...all the news that I say is the news. Go Puffins!

meetings and expectations and assorted mess

I have a meeting with the Executive Minister (akin to a bishop but without the big hat) this afternoon. We are to talk about all sorts of things, Reconciler, other ministry opportunities here in the metro region...it should be interesting. I hope we can get the ball rolling with Reconciler's affiliation. We need those formal connections.

One of the Girls has a gig this Thursday. Huzzah! I think it should be a good time. Y'all come! See the extended link for the set list.

And, finally, I received the Barna Update today. It is about what drives Americans...you know, "what purpose drives us." The purpose-driven stuff is contagious. Here is the link to the complete article. This is something I found interesting, however, and I want to share.

More than four out of every ten adults – 44% – said their top priority in life is having a satisfying family life. This was nearly three times as popular as the second-most common response and more than four times as prolific as the third-most popular reply.

Women were much more likely than men to list family as their top priority (48% versus 39%, respectively) even though family was the top ranked priority among men by a three-to-one margin. The presence of children in the home was also a big differentiator: 58% of the adults with a child under 18 in the home listed family, compared to only 35% of those without children in their household. There was also a regional distinction, as a majority of adults in the Midwest listed family (52%), while about four out of ten adults elsewhere did so. Economics were related to people’s views, too: 55% of adults with a college degree and annual earnings exceeding $60,000 put family in first place, compared to 44% of those in the middle socioeconomic ranges and only 36% of those in the downscale bracket (i.e., no college degree and a household income below $20,000).

Religious leanings were a factor in people’s choice. While a majority of Catholics (58%) and mainline Protestants (51%) placed family at the top of their list, only 19% of evangelicals did so.

Yes, a huge percentage placed this as first. It is still less than half of those surveyed. This does not mean it was not a priority for others, but it is curious that it was not the majority given some of the current political happenings. And that economics plays a part is also very significant. Maybe we could help the poor out a little bit more? It would be a way to help families. Who knew? (end polemic)

It is an interesting report and worth a read. Take a gander and let me know what you think. I had fun with it.

(D)- THE Medley (Tell Me Mountain Durkin)
(G)- Spanish Lady
(Dm)- Maids in Waiting
(Dm)- As I Roved Out
(G)- Seven Drunken Nights
(C)- Finnegan's Wake
(D)- She Moved Through the Fair
(Am)- Foggy Dew
(A)- Britches Full of Stitches
(A)- Reilly's Daughter
(G)- Monto
(D)- Hills of Connemara
(D)- Whistling Gypsy Rover
(G)- Long Black Veil

--BREAK--

(C)- "Sea" Medley (Bound for Liverpool Home, Boys)
(G)- Molly Malone
(G-capo 3rd)- Big Strong Man
(A)- Irish Rover
acap.- Little Beggarman
(Dm)- Johnny Jump Up
(G)- John O'Dreams
(A)- The Cobbler
(E)- Jug of Punch
(Dm)- Armageddon
(E)- Man of Constant Sorrow
(G)- Blister in the Sun
(G)- You Shook Me All Night Long
(G)- You Are My Sunshine
(C)- The Gambler
(G)- Wild Rover
(E)- The Meddle "E" (Black Velvet Sam Is Dead)

pentecost sermon

The sermon I preached yesterday can be found here. Please feel free to comment. I thought it went well. We had five guesst last night. Let me tell ya, when you have a congregation of seven (including clergy), five guests is a huge thing!

grid blog :: pentecost 2005

a first for someone

One of the people who slides in on Reconciler servcies from time to time works with the Christian Peacemaker Teams. So, in a sense of loyalty, I subscribe to a variety of newsletters. Typically, I skim them and am not inspired to share them with my blog audience. This one is different. Read on.

My first car bomb

by Joe Carr

At about 9:45 a.m. on 10 May, we heard an explosion that shook our windows. We looked at the clock to see if it was on the hour, as that is when U.S. troops destroy unexploded ordinances. Since it wasn't, we knew the explosion must be a car bomb. Emergency vehicles rushed past our apartment as we headed to the roof to look for smoke.

Our landlord's wife told us that it looked like the smoke was coming from one of the major intersections at a bridge going across the Tigris into the Green Zone. We were planning to go through that intersection and over that bridge to the Green Zone to meet with a UN human rights worker, and we worried we wouldn't be able to.

We decided to try the visit anyway.

Turns out, the car bomb targeted a military convoy on Saddone Street. We heard that seven were confirmed dead (the number always rises with time), all civilian bystanders, no military personnel. More than forty were injured, and the bomb entirely missed the convoy. There are always more attacks when the Iraqi National Assembly is meeting.

Get this, every time the Iraqi National Assembly meets, the Iraqi National Guard shuts down the major bridge connecting north and south Baghdad. Can you imagine the U.S. military shutting down major highways every time Congress is in session? We began walking across the bridge as Iraqis are forced to, and quickly learned that it isn't closed to all traffic; military, contractors, and Iraqi National Guard (ING) vehicles whiz by--often at dangerously high speeds, considering all the pedestrians.

To get to the UN office, we had to go through six checkpoints and deal with five different security forces. We met with the one in charge of the entire UN human rights mission in Iraq. In fact, he's the ONLY representative from the UN Human Rights Commission, and one of only 100 UN workers in the country, which includes the Fijian security forces. These are all the workers the UN has to staff its projects for the entire country, including administration, construction, humanitarian aid, governance, constitution-writing, refugees, children, and lastly, human rights. None may leave the Green Zone.

The UN representative is frustrated that he's forbidden to leave, even with an armed convoy. He said he longed to live like us, or to go for a walk down Baghdad's streets. How is he supposed to monitor human rights in Iraq if he can't ever visit or interview Iraqis in their homes and workplaces?

We decided we might as well walk home from the Green Zone because it
wouldn't be too dangerous if we stayed along the riverside. However, we were delayed as we approached the Palestine Hotel compound. Private Iraqi security guards couldn't believe we were really internationals walking outside the Green Zone with no armor or guards.

Can you believe that CPT is the only international NGO working and living in Iraqi communities?

hmm...really?

You scored as Postmodernist. Postmodernism is the belief in complete open interpretation. You see the universe as a collection of information with varying ways of putting it together. There is no absolute truth for you; even the most hardened facts are open to interpretation. Meaning relies on context and even the language you use to describe things should be subject to analysis. Postmodernist 69% Idealist 69% Cultural Creative 63% Romanticist 38% Modernist 25% Existentialist 19% Materialist 13% Fundamentalist 13% What is Your World View? (corrected...hopefully) created with QuizFarm.com

a poem I wrote for pentecost: be ye warned therefore

I wrote this in one swail foop. Enjoy.

Memories of Eden
(It is worth making plans now.)

i

You see,
seasons ago, perhaps when
there was no moon, grace
fell freely. When there was
no sky, no rain, no sun,
and only you were here,
did we truly live. We held
residence in your footsteps.

ii

Then the sun came, and
the rains fell, the sky opening,
floods and blisters of land were
all we had to hold along side
memories of Eden.

iii

And someone said, “It’s all
our own fault.” Somehow
we mixed truth with lie. We
found ourselves misplaced.
And it was here you placed yourself
among us. You came and
walked with us. Again,
we held residence in your
footsteps. But this could not last.

iv

Then the sun came, and
the rains fell, the sky opening,
floods and blisters of land were
all we had to hold along side
memories of Eden.

v

But you promised, “Do
this. Remember. Bless.
Break. Give.” So, we did;
We gathered and we remembered.
And you promised a comforter
and a guide. Again as in the days
when there was no sky,
no rain, no sun, and only you
were here – we once again
found ourselves within your
footsteps.

It is worth making plans now.

grid blog :: pentecost 2005

more about politics and the pulpit: being baptist matters here

So, here is some more on liturgy.

AKMA has finally given his two cents (25 really) about the issue. He gives three general impressions. They are, in brief:

1. It could have been worse.
2. If they lose thie tax exempt status for proclaiming what they believe, then more power to 'em!
3. "[One] of the founding principles of the baptist movement involved the believer’s freedom on conscience (vividly expressed in Thomas Helwys’s A Short Declaration of the Mystery of Iniquity (8-meg downloadable PDF of scanned pages here; why hasn’t anyone transcribed and marked it up in HTML?)."

I want to focus on the third. As a Baptist, I have a particular understanding of the relationship of pastor and congregation that may seem unusual to some. As an American Baptist liberal type, that is nuanced even further. In spite of our post-moden grumblings about the preeminence of the individual, it is still the focus for many baptist communities. Yes, community focus is the individual. The church community exists to support and encourage an individual's relationship with God. This happens in relationship between believers, and between the believer and God. Interpretation exists within the community, but the final word is the individual's. Why? "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." The idea of soul competency matters not just a little here.

Also, the primacy of the individual is ideally to be based on the humility of all and the assumed generosity of God to do a special and specific thing in the life of the believer. Salvation belongs to God and is enjoyed by the individual. God's singular saving act is for the sake of all and is manifested in the life of the individual believer. Any breach of that is a reasertion of the oppression of which AKMA reminds us.

Where the preacher comes into this dynamic depends on the congregation. As congregations have autonomy, they also have distinct charisms: conservative, liberal, ecstatic, holy roller, pentecostal, intellectual, academic, primative, fundamentalist, high power difference, egalitarian...the list goes on and on. Typically, the preacher leads and models an existsing charism. This gets shady when a congregation's population and charism are in flux. I believe that the congregation in North Carolina was already in a state of flux and that the pastor pushed too hard in one direction. It really does not matter if he was pushing forward or backward. He was pushing. He pushed so hard that he ignored the spiritual lives of those he was called to serve. If one is to believe the news coverage, he decided to work out the salvation of his members for them.

A Baptist preacher is hired by the congregation. The congregation has the final say on whether or not the Holy Spirit has called a certain person to a pulpit. The congregation says whether or not the Spirit is being handed down from the pulpit as well. No other agency can make this claim for them. And this dynamic will play out on the individual level.

The SBC has been moving away from that. They have been growing more and more ecclesial in their understanding of the Church. Power is shifting from bottom to top. This is not news. The dynamic matters in the case of this congregation.

We in the ABC-USA struggle to maintain a low power structure. The pulpit is a heady place to be! It can be one of great esteem. As many have reminded me, when I preach the congregation is compelled to listen by the very structure of the service and the architecture of the church. Liturgy matters. The centrality of the sermon matters. That I preach it matters. But it also matters that the community calls a pastor and affirms that call by their regular attendance. They are compelled to listen, but, and this is important, they are never compelled to agree. This is where the pastor may have gone wrong.

Is it possible that Chandler breached a trust, a call? I really cannot say. The dynamics of the congregation are most definately more complicated than that. AKMA, however, said it well. "The controversy illustrates yet again that church leaders need the skill of careful and measured communication more perhaps than any other — and they run into all kinds of trouble when they say important things in careless ways." Perhaps Chandler was careless. It is not for me to judge. That is the place of the congregation and the individuals with in it...and most importantly, God.

pablo neruda and pentecost

This poem is from Cien sonetos de amor. I would encourage you all to read it. It is tremendous work. The intention of the poem is not overtly religious. It is a love poem. The chosen images, however, are so in keeping with my understanding of Pentecost that I had to share it.

You will find the translation in the extended link.

grid blog :: pentecost 2005

Aspero amor, violeta coronada de espinas,
matorral entre tantas pasiones erizado,
lanza de los dolores, corola de la cólera,
por qué caminos y cómo te dirigiste a mi alma?

Por qué precipitaste tu fuego doloroso,
de pronto, entre las hojas frías de mi camino?
Quién te enseñó los pasos que hasta mí te llevaron?
Qué flor, qué piedra, qué humo mostraron mi morada?

Lo cierto es que tembló la noche pavorosa,
el alba llenó todas las copas con su vino
y el sol estableció su presencia celeste,

mientras que el cruel amor me cercaba sin tregua
hasta que lacerándome con espadas y espinas
abrió en mi corazón un camino quemante.

- Pablo Neruda

Bitter love, a violet with its crown
of thorns in a thicket of spiky passions,
spear of sorrow, corrolla of rage: how did you come
to conquer my soul? What via dolorosa brought you?

Why did you pour your tender fire
so quickly, over my life's cool leaves?
Who pointed the way to you? What flower,
what rock, what smoke showed you where I live?

Because the earth shook - it did -, that awful night;
then dawn filled all the goblets with its wine;
the heavenly sun declared itself;

while inside, a ferocious love wound around
and around me - til it pierced me with its thorns, sword,
slashing a seared road through my heart.

- Pablo Neruda
- Stephen Tapscott, translator

pentecost forethought

Listen sweet Dove unto my song,
And spread thy golden wings in me;
Hatching thy tender heart so long,
Till it get wing, and fly away with thee.

Where is that fire which once descended
On thy Apostles? thou didst then
Keep open thy house, richly attended,
Feasting all comers by twelve chosen men.

Such glorious gifts thou didst bestow,
That th' earth did like heav'n appear;
The stars were coming down to know
If they might mend their wages, and serve here.

The sun which once did shine alone,
Hung down his head and wisht for night,
When he beheld twelve suns for one
Going about the world, and giving light.

But since those pipes of gold, which brought
That cordial water to our ground,
Were cut and martyr'd by the fault
Of those, who did themselevs through their side wound,

Thou shutt'st the door, and keep'st within;
Scarce a good joy creeps throug the chink:
And if the braves of conqu'ring sin
Did not excite thee, we should wholly sink.

Lord, though we change, thou art the same;
The same sweet God of love and light;
Restore this day, for thy great name,
Unto his ancient and miraculous right.

- George Herbert

I am preaching this Sunday. I'm excited about it. Who knew? Bob Carlton's project (It is not too late to join in.) came to mind, so I thought I would post something. Peace and all good things to you all. I am gone until tomorrow.

grid blog :: pentecost 2005

more about that political pulpit brewhaha

You know, just an aside here, I categorize my entries. Some day I will figure out how to archive them that way, but what has been fun is putting all of my rants about politics and the pulpit under the "liturgy" heading. This is the work of the people, no? Liturgy is by nature political, no? But the nature and content of the politics is what is at stake here.

Anyway, Dr. Bruce Prescott chimed in by commenting on my earlier post. He said "This is the most egregious violation of IRS tax law in regard to churches of which I've ever heard. The IRS needed to be called." And though I don't disagree, I am not convinced of the righteousness our response. This was my reply: "I simply do not understand how we congregationalists, we liberals, can play the same game that the high ecclesialists of the SBC are playing. By employing the IRS we are playing their game. It does not matter if the law is broken. It does not matter that Baptist tradition has been bucked...and it has. Our response must reflect the gospel we preach. In all things be gentle." There is more to all of this conversation in the comments section of that post. Give it a read.

Thanks to the folk at Movable Theobological for making a connection. I am grateful and flattered. He made a remark or two about the comments following my initial post about this story.

Dr. Prescott also pointed me to this link. I am not sure what to make of it yet. You tell me.

Finally, I joined in the ranting at Emmaus. Those boys are crazy. I think I like it. But I find myself standing in disagreement somehow. Boy, being baptist is a lot of work. This "tradition of dissent" takes effort! Whew!

That beintg said, I have to write down the goals I have for this final term of CPE. It should be an interesting term. I have fewer on-call shifts, but have tons of writing to do to prepare for certification.

generous

I received this comment on an old post today.

More nearly one hundred years ago than you would believe, I heard this song fairly often in our circle. But the time it really got to me was at the funeral of a family friend, a man who had died much too young. I can hear the male quartet singing it at this very moment. I'm going to guess; seventy five years ago. The melody is still very familiar and I will be singing it all the way to Eugene, Ore. tomorrow as I travel to my brother-in-law's funeral. 84 years old, he's died after a long siege with Lewy Body Dementia, and he, whether he knew this song or not, will be singing about change today. What a treat to find these words, which I'd forgotten except for the first verse and chorus, on your website today. The internet, and folk who maintain sites thereon, what gifts from our Father.

In His love,
Robert Pottinger

Mr. Pottinger, you and your family have my prayers today. My God grant you safe travel, courage and comfort at this time.

Peace to you.

northern

Well, yesterday's talk at the seminary went wonderfully. The students were challenging and bright. They were hospitable. They were generous. They were encouraging. Their excitement for what we are doing at Reconciler will hold me for a long time to come. There was even some conversation about having an intern come next fall to help out with this "postmodern church plant." Now, I know not all like postmodernism (Hi, Cliff! *waves*). But in ABC circles right now, that is one of the ways we are talking about faith and our current cultural context. Bob Webber even suggested that others may follow our lead.

That was heady. Wow.

What was perhaps most fun about the whole visit was the realization that we three have spent some serious time thinking through this, that ther are answers to many questions and that we are thinking about the other questions. We three, Larry, Jane and I got to be Those People. Do you know what I mean? Do you recall that day in school when the people who had graduated recently came to your class and presented their work? Do you recall thinking "Wow. I hope I get to do that one day. They really seem to have learned something"? I do. I simply thought it was so very cool and that I would never be one of Those People.

Well, I was wrong.

Thanks to all at Northern who made our visit so wonderful. Come to church with us. We can certainly use your help.

pulpit and politics again...a rant...be warned.

I have been reading the debates. Cliff has been a regular commentator. The Daily Bailout has been active. AKMA plans on chiming in. It is becoming more and more clear to me that we Baptists are on very dangerous ground.

Yes, absolutely, the separation of church and state and how Baptist churches live into that is at play. From some posts I have read, the pastor was pushing that boundary a great deal. Though I may disagree and believe that the pulpit is not the place for that kind of politicing, no one has a right or even a vague responsibility to dictate to a Baptist congregation (polity matters here) what should be done. It is absurd. The congregation is broken. The pastor has been forced to resign. They have most likely been divided for years over this and many other issues. The pastor did not cause this schism all on his own. He may have hurried it along, but he alone is not responsible. To claim so would be irresponsible and disrespectful and, possibly, more an expression of our own anger and ignorance than anything else. It is a sad shame.

And now, perhaps the worst sin of all, the IRS is being asked to investigate. Try to follow me here. Does this sound familiar? The religious authorities have no way to punish this congregation for the words of their leader, so they turn to the government...the state...to enforce a law and to exact punishment. We are breaching the separation. We have become the Sanhedrin. We are crucifying this congregation and its pastor.

Melodrama? Perhaps. But the realities of this case cannot be ignored. I am a left-wing wacko. I admit it. Frankly, I love it. But this type of retribution is insane. It is contrary to scripture, to the faith and to the words of Jesus.

If this pastor is my political enemy, that matters not at all in light of our shared faith in the One Lord. He is my brother. I am to love him. Even if he is my enemy, I am called to love him. To employ the government to enact revenge is horrific. It is absurd. This is not love. It is hatred and it is sin.

Politics in pulpit spark church feud, members' ouster in North Carolina

Editor's note: This story replaces one issued May 6.

By Steve DeVane and Greg Warner

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. (ABP) -- Nine members of a Baptist church in North
Carolina say they were removed from membership because they disagree
with the pastor's political views.

Frank Lowe, one of the nine, said he had been a member of the 400-member East Waynesville Baptist Church for 43 years before he and the others were voted out May 3 for not agreeing with the conservative political views of pastor Chan Chandler.

Chandler denied that any members had been ejected for political reasons and called for a church meeting May 10 to clear up the
"misunderstanding."

Meanwhile, religious-liberty experts -- both conservative and liberal -- denounced the church's action and warned the congregation could lose its tax-exemption because of the pastor's political statements.

In an audiotape of a sermon preached by Chandler in October, one month prior to the November 2004 presidential election, the pastor said: "If you vote for John Kerry this year, you need to repent or resign. You have been holding back God's church way too long. And I know I may get in trouble for saying that, but just pour it on."

The pastor's apparent endorsement of a candidate for president prior to an election could violate federal laws that prevent churches and other charities organized under Section 501(c)(3) of the tax code from officially endorsing political candidates or parties.

The political controversy at the Southern Baptist church reached a
climax during a meeting May 2. One person present asked if all church
members could come to the altar, pray together, forgive each other and get on with the Lord's business, according to Bill Rash, a church member for about 29 years. Chandler said if those who disagreed with him would repent, then they could get on with the Lord's work, and if they weren't going to repent they should leave, Rash said. Nine people reportedly left.

The pastor then called the church into a business session and the
congregation voted to terminate the memberships of those who left,
witnesses said. Rash said everyone voted for the measure except he and his wife, who didn't vote. The remaining members agreed that if another church asked to transfer the membership of any of those who left, the congregation would reply they left in bad standing, said Rash, who said he stayed through the meeting but has since decided to leave the church.

Janet Webb, a church member who also was at the meeting, declined to say what happened but said Chandler is "a man of God who only preaches against sin and to win people to Jesus Christ."

Chandler could not be reached for comment but told a TV reporter "the
actions were not politically motivated."

News of the church ouster was reported on CNN and other national and
local media.

The next Sunday, May 8, the four men and five women who were voted out went to East Waynesville Baptist to worship, accompanied by their
lawyer, dozens of supporters and media.

After the service, the pastor issued a prepared statement through his
attorney. "This church fellowships openly with all who embrace the
authority and application of the Bible regardless of political
affiliation, including current members who align themselves with both
major political parties, as well as those who affiliate with no
political party," the statement said in part. "No one has ever been
voted from the membership of this church due to an individual's support or lack of support for a political party or candidate. All matters of the church are internal in nature and are resolved accordingly."

Chandler, 33, announced another meeting of the church May 10, which he said would be open only to members but would include the nine reportedly dismissed.

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious
Liberty Commission, defended the church's right to determine its
membership, but added "it would never -- never -- be appropriate or
acceptable for a local Baptist church to decide membership based upon
how a person votes."

Brent Walker, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for
Religious Liberty, said if Chandler's pulpit statement about John Kerry was made before the November election and did not indicate he was speaking only for himself, it would be a "pretty clear" violation of Internal Revenue Service rules against political endorsements by
churches.

Barry Lynn, executive director for Americans United for Separation of
Church and State, called for the IRS to investigate the Waynesville
church.

Ralph Neas, president of the People for the American Way Foundation,
called the report about the church's actions "terribly sad." "What have we come to when the doors of a church are closed to longtime members because of their political beliefs, when a pastor equates political support for the 'wrong' candidate with a sin before God?" he asked in a statement.

"Men and women of faith have every right to advocate for their political beliefs," Neas continued. "While churches, of course, can set their own membership standards, no one should punish people of faith for their political beliefs."

Meanwhile, a North Carolina congressman has introduced legislation that would lift restrictions on political speech in churches. The Houses of Worship Free Speech Restoration Act, introduced by Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), is supported by many conservative Christian groups but opposed by supporters of church-state separation.

Walker of the Baptist Joint Committee said the Waynesville church
controversy "is why so many organizations are opposed to the Jones bill, because it would be so divisive -- our churches becoming 'red' churches and 'blue' churches and dividing along party lines," referring to the color designations used for political parties.

According to Lowe, one of three ousted deacons, he was voted out because Chandler "says my political views support abortion and homosexuality" "I am not -- positively not -- for either one," said Lowe, noting he usually votes Democratic while his wife votes
Republican.

Lowe said he and his wife have been invited to other churches since the May 2 meeting. He expects they'll start attending somewhere else but wouldn't rule out an effort to "retake" the church.

Chandler has been pastor of the church in western North Carolina for
about three years. The congregation is a member of the Southern Baptist Convention and Baptist State Convention of North Carolina.

Selma Morris, another church member, said she believes the vote to
remove the members isn't valid because the church bylaws weren't
followed. The bylaws say a called meeting should be announced on Sunday morning. The meeting Monday was announced at the Sunday evening service, she said.

The bylaws also say a called meeting should be held two weeks after the announcement, according to Morris. The meeting was held the next night.

pre-emptive?

Here is an exerpt from a Theilicke sermon I have been reading.

...For God's faithfulness already spans the world like a rainbow: [Jesus] does not need to build it; he needs only to walk beneath it...The propaganda of men, even when it masquerades as a kind of evangelism and becomes an enterprise of the church, is always based on the accursed notion that success and failure, fruit and harvest are dependent upon our human activity, upon our imagination, energy and intelligence. Therefore the church too must guard against becoming merely a busy enterprise and pastors must beware of becoming religious administrators devoid of power and dried up as far as spiritual substance is concerned. p. 89 The Waiting Father

He goes on. Jesus, when faced with the crowds who seem so ready to follow him will disappear to the hills to pray. He will tell the healed to tell no one.

It is so interesting to read these words after reading through Calvin's humanist doctrine. Calvin says, like Thielicke, that there is little work we can do to succede. Salvation is in God's will and not our own. The growth of the church, its success, is not in our hands but is already designed by God. It is intrinsic in the nature of the world. This is not predestination, but residing in the will of God the Creator of all things. Both men are on to the same idea...that there is a way to be Christian, a performative aspect that is to be valued and espoused, modeled and preached. One cannot be more humanist. One cannot be more in the will of God than to walk beneath the canopy of heaven, living into the Kingdom that already exists. Both men are reaching toward the idea that our work only brings us into union with what already is.

I am thinking about all this as I muse on our words before Webber's class. How do we speak of Reconciler and models of ministry and liturgy being an evangelical tool without falling prey to what Thielicke warns us against? I am uncertain. Certainly it is a trap...and we need to be cautious.

a fun quote

Here is something that says succinctly what I have said in 3000 words.

Calvin does not use the Fathers in the way a midieval commentator used his ancient authorities...Calvin treats the Fathers as partners in conversation rather than authorities in the midieval sense of the term.

Leave it to David Steinmetz to be smarter than I.

Last night I was watching West Wing. Susie loaned me the DVD's for the second season. In one episode, Charlie is asked if he is smart. He responds "I got some game." Grammar and slang aside, this is a great statement. Calvin got game. So too does Steinmetz. I read this book, ponder my incomplete thesis and think that perhaps I enjoy the game, but am only a season ticket holder. Ah well. It is also possible that I have been at the hospital for twelve hours and have four more to go. That could have something to do with it.

If you are interested in more of my Calvin musings for the evening, please read on.

The disagreement that Calvin expresses, though constant, is often in reference to small, almost inconsequential interpretive points. Often in Walchenbach's work, an exploration of Calvin's Pauline exegesis, grammatical articles are argued, not theological broadstrokes. Yes, Calvin disagrees with Chrysostom's understanding of freewill approving instead of Augustine's approach. This is true. Otherwise, the partnership is a strong one. Calvin, I believe, through his humanist interpretive lense finds compatriots in exegesis...especially with Chrysostom.

In much of Calvin's work, he relies upon memory when reflecting upon Chrysostom's work. This is both in the moments of agreement and disagreement. Calvin's humanism and personality (lawyer, lover of rhetoric, despiser of Papists) get in the way.

1536 - Calvin seemed not to utilize the early interpreters in his own work.

1539-46 - There is increasing use of the patristic interpreters. This is seen more in the exegetical works than in the Institutes. Reading the Institutes alone paints a very incomplete portrait of Calvin and his understanding of his peers and the Fathers.

1556 - Chrysostom is cited once in the Institutes...and mistakenly at that. Only three other Fathers are mentioned at all...including Augustine.

1559 - Calvin employs the Fathers a great deal in the institutes..again, often in disagreement over fine points. Calvin uses those disagreements to demonstrate and clarify his own position. Think of it this way: "You Papists all know that Chrysostom said X about free will. Okay. Let me tell you where he was wrong, how he misunderstands Paul, and thus express to you even more clearly where I stand and how that is different from your position." Calvin was seldom this polite, but I think it gets the idea across.

How Calvin uses the Pathers matters. How he stands in opposition to them matters...because it demonstrates where he is in clear agreement with them. It is a rhetorical tool. He was a humanist and bent on convincing people of his postion and in the process lead them to salvation and right faith. He was not concerned with agreeing with Chrysostom on all counts. He was interested in how he and Chrysostom were both interested in what Paul said and how that leads us all to salvation. To be in convertsation, even disagreement, strengthened Calvin's position. It actually demonstrates his Orthodoxy.

Welcome to paradox.

When I pour over the liturgy, you will get a better picture of what I mean. By 1564, Calvin is steeped in the Fathers. He spend more and more time in his commentaries quoting Chrysostom...though from memory again. By the time he gets to 1 Corinthians and the institution narrative, he speaks almost only of Chrysostom. So when he includes the narrative in the liturgy, he virtually repeats his understanding of Chrysostom's understanding ammending it further by his own. He stands upon Chrysostom.

northern

Tomorrow (Tuesday, that is), Jane and Larry and I will be meeting with Bob Webber's class at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has a class entitled "Church Practices: Worship and Spirituality." Somehow he thinks that we Reconciler folk will provide some good conversation fodder. I am looking forward to the opportunity to meet with him and the students. I will be picking up Larry in the morning. We will pack the icon in the car and head on out.

I took one class from Bob a year ago. H