conjectural navel gazing; jesus in lint form

I am outta here!

Thanks to Jane for the illustration!
link

where's the anglobaptist?

Well, this is the last time I will be able to log on at the hospital. I am going to be completely dependant upon the local internet cafe. So, posting, emailing and the like will be infrequent by comparison to my usual OCD-level internet activity.

If you need me and I know you well enough, then you already have my phone number.

Otherwise, poke in every so often to see what is going on. It is my desire that internet will be available at our home soon...in a week or two?...but much depends upon my employment situation.

Tomorrow at 8:30am the hospital chaplains' staff will hold a service for we residents who are leaving. Y'all come!

a couple of brother roger links

Here is the link of the message that Brother Alois shared at Brother Roger's funeral.

Often Brother Roger repeated these words: “God is united to every human being without exception.” This confidence carried and will carry the ecumenical vocation of our little community. With the whole Church we want to believe this reality and to do everything to express it with our life. Brother Roger had all human beings in his heart, from every nation, in particular young people and children. We want to continue in his steps.

He lifted up this prayer as well. It seems that the woman who murdered Brother Roger has a name.

God of goodness, we entrust to your forgiveness Luminiţa Solcan who, in an act of sickness, put an end to the life of Brother Roger. With Christ on the cross we say to you: Father, forgive her, she does not know what she did.

After Brother Alois gave his address, Cardinal Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for the Unity of Christians, spoke and celebrated the Eucharist, together with the priest brothers of Taizé. This is what gives me such hope that the ecumenical effort is far from dead, but is actually gaining steam. Reconciliation is not a dream or vain hope, but a reality. Brother Roger never relinquished his Reformed roots.

a portrait

His long hair fell in front of his face as he read Steinbeck on the bus to work. He was dressed in bluejeans, oxford shirt and a blazer. A mandolin rested on his feet. How long has it been since he became such a cliche?

ecumenical officer

The pastoral team from Reconciler met with the ecumenical officer from the Episcopal diocese this morning.

Very cool.

Much hope felt in this here Baptist.

In other news, I have been saying my good-byes at the hospital. This will be a slow week of farewells. The wondrous affirmation is that people want to know why the hospital does not have enough money to hire me full time. Such flattery! Such trust.

Thanks be to God.

satreday bloggishness

Today is Saturday. This is my very last on-call shift at the hospital. It has already been a busy day in the ER. My favorite Trauma attending is on today, so it was actually a good time. Who knew that the ER could be fun? Well, I did. I learned that several months ago.

Wow. Let the grieving begin. It is going to be an interesting day.

In other news, Trish and I finally got around to getting some film developed. As you can see from the stunning "Portrait of the Pastor" to your right, some of them are from Christmas. There are also pictures from Justin and Mae's wedding. The photo has a link embedded. Give it a click. It will take you to the appropriate album.

I have added several new links to the faculty listing. Here they are, in no particular order.

michael spencer - james anderson burns chair for calvinism and internet communication
timothy youmans - the bela fleck chair for banjo pickin' and front porch theologizin'
mike clawson - j. r. r. tolkien chair for emergent thinking and church planting
megan monaghan - george bernard shaw chair in dramaturgical vegetarianism and heretical inquiry
the parrishoner - senior director, office of interdepartmental bickering
ariel parrish - frances willard chair of oenological studies
one of the girls - musicians in residence

There has been some good news at Reconciler this week. If things go as we hope, Reconciler will no longer be meeting at the hospitable confines of The Community of the Holy Trinity, but at Immanuel Lutheran Church in the Edgewater/Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. Our hope is that being in a more public venue will help us a little. Right now, at least as we understand it, worshiping in an apartment is intimidating to some new visitors. This makes sense to me. So, keep us in your prayers that this transition may go smoothly.

Also, we will be meeting on Monday with the Ecumenical Officer from the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago to discuss our congregation and the possible relationship(s) available to us with the diocese.

Again, keep us in your prayers.

holy frijoles!

Today, the leader of the Republican revolution — Newt Gingrich — has publicly aligned himself with Hillary Clinton to call for a larger government role in health care. That’s about as apt a metaphor for what’s happened to the “Republican Revolution” as any.

link

a friday romp in the digiworld and sundry thoughts: nevermind the heretical stuff

Yesterday Trish and I went to John's funeral. It was a lovely service. Trish noted the striking number of hymns that the congregation sang...five? Six? She had never been to a funeral so "upbeat." Fr. Rhodenheiser is a good man. It is good sometimes to preach the promises of God at such moments. And ending the service with Ode to Joy was perfect. It was "loudest praise" for the life of Susie's brother and the grace of a God who calls his children home with welcoming arms.

For some reason I have been thinking of a statement AKMA made at a party last week...that the Emergent movement is indigenous to the internet.

Hmm...maybe. What do you think?

Forbes has this wee article on Flickr that is worth a gander. So too is this profile on Jimmy D. Wales, the innovator behind Wikipedia. Yes, I read Forbes. What can I say? I have no excuse. There is also this editorial about the rate of oil consumption in the world...the issue of supply is not our problem...demand is what will bring down this house of cards. Boy howdy does this preach! Wheehoo!

Today is my last Friday in the hospital. Wow. There is much to do, however, to wrap things up. There are many people to thank. There are many people to praise. All in all, I would say it was a great year. I might even do it again if asked.

The next week will be a series of three half days in the hospital. And when I am here, I will be up to my eyeballs in all of the services, exit interviews and final presentations that come with this program. Wednesday is my last day here. I will need to celebrate. So, keep your eyes peeled. I am wondering what would be the right way to celebrate. Trish suggested a Pity Party. There is a local pub that has $1.50 (That's right, 150 pennies.) burger nights on Wednesdays. Perhaps I can coax One of the Girls to come out and we will just take over the place...play until midnight...rock the house and eat what will most likely be my last meal in a restaurant for several weeks while Trish and I live on her salary plus what I am able to bring in catering, temping, recording voice overs for an internet think tank, and being an itinerant musician. $1.50 for a burger might end up feeling a bit expensive before all is said and done!

On a totally unrelated...well, maybe not entirely unrelated...front, Sarah has been blogging about Monaghans. One has started a blog. Be ye warned! I'll post the link once she gives me her "okay."

Justin has been blogging about the lectionary. Maybe he can preach at Reconciler sometime soon! He also had some nice links about Brother Roger of Taize. You should take a look.

Okay, that was random enough. More later if all goes well.

bono speaks

Thanks to Cliff for this link.

Bono: Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: "I'm the Messiah." I'm saying: "I am God incarnate." And people say: No, no, please, just be a prophet. A prophet, we can take. You're a bit eccentric. We've had John the Baptist eating locusts and wild honey, we can handle that. But don't mention the "M" word! Because, you know, we're gonna have to crucify you. And he goes: No, no. I know you're expecting me to come back with an army, and set you free from these creeps, but actually I am the Messiah. At this point, everyone starts staring at their shoes, and says: Oh, my God, he's gonna keep saying this. So what you're left with is: either Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. I mean, we're talking nutcase on the level of Charles Manson. This man was like some of the people we've been talking about earlier. This man was strapping himself to a bomb, and had "King of the Jews" on his head, and, as they were putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on the pain! I can take it. I'm not joking here. The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched …

anticipated grief?

Tomorrow I will be at John's funeral. Trish and I will leave early from Chicago. If anyone wants to come with, shoot me an email.

In much lighter news, this is the last full week of internet access. We still do not have internet access at home. And, as I will be unemployed come Thursday of next week, I am getting a little anxious. Whatever will I do without email?! Whatever will I do without my blog to keep me warm in the wee hours of the morning?

Sigh.

Keep John's family in your prayers.

a day off

So, yesterday I walked into the chaplains office to say hey and to check on my PTO hurs. I thought I might have one or two left...and since Trish and I may be going to Ann Arbor this Thursday (still working that out), it seemed prudent to know.

I have 20 hours of PTO!!!

Yahoo!

So, my boss, Carol, gave me today off. That means I have 16 PTO hours left.

*dance of joy*

I am blogging from Pause, a cool coffee shop with internet access. This will be my final moment online today. I have some Kavanagh to finish and some Louis L'Amour to begin! Yeehaw!

pope's address to muslim representatives

"Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue … a Vital Necessity"

COLOGNE, Germany, AUG. 20, 2005 (ZENIT.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave today during his meeting at World Youth day with representatives of some Muslim communities.

[All italics are mine. - The AngloBaptist]

* * *

Dear Muslim Friends!

It gives me great joy to be able to be with you and to offer you my heartfelt greetings. I have come here to meet young people from every part of Europe and the world. Young people are the future of humanity and the hope of the nations. My beloved predecessor, Pope John Paul II, once said to the young Muslims assembled in the stadium at Casablanca (Morocco): "The young can build a better future if they first put their faith in God and if they pledge themselves to build this new world in accordance with God's plan, with wisdom and trust" ("Insegnamenti," VIII/2, 1985, p. 500). It is in this spirit that I turn to you, dear Muslim friends, to share my hopes with you and to let you know of my concerns at these particularly difficult times in our history.

I am certain that I echo your own thoughts when I bring up as one of our concerns the spread of terrorism. Terrorist activity is continually recurring in various parts of the world, sowing death and destruction, and plunging many of our brothers and sisters into grief and despair. Those who instigate and plan these attacks evidently wish to poison our relations, making use of all means, including religion, to oppose every attempt to build a peaceful, fair and serene life together.

Terrorism of any kind is a perverse and cruel decision which shows contempt for the sacred right to life and undermines the very foundations of all civil society. If together we can succeed in eliminating from hearts any trace of rancor, in resisting every form of intolerance and in opposing every manifestation of violence, we will turn back the wave of cruel fanaticism that endangers the lives of so many people and hinders progress towards world peace. The task is difficult but not impossible. The believer knows that, despite his weakness, he can count on the spiritual power of prayer.

Dear friends, I am profoundly convinced that we must not yield to the negative pressures in our midst, but must affirm the values of mutual respect, solidarity and peace. The life of every human being is sacred, both for Christians and for Muslims. There is plenty of scope for us to act together in the service of fundamental moral values. The dignity of the person and the defense of the rights which that dignity confers must represent the goal of every social endeavor and of every effort to bring it to fruition. This message is conveyed to us unmistakably by the quiet but clear voice of conscience. It is a message which must be heeded and communicated to others: Should it ever cease to find an echo in peoples' hearts, the world would be exposed to the darkness of a new barbarism. Only through recognition of the centrality of the person can a common basis for understanding be found, one which enables us to move beyond cultural conflicts and which neutralizes the disruptive power of ideologies.

During my meeting last April with the delegates of Churches and Christian communities and with representatives of the various religious traditions, I affirmed that "the Church wants to continue building bridges of friendship with the followers of all religions, in order to seek the true good of every person and of society as a whole" (L'Osservatore Romano, 25 April 2005, p. 4). Past experience teaches us that relations between Christians and Muslims have not always been marked by mutual respect and understanding. How many pages of history record battles and even wars that have been waged, with both sides invoking the name of God, as if fighting and killing the enemy could be pleasing to him. The recollection of these sad events should fill us with shame, for we know only too well what atrocities have been committed in the name of religion. The lessons of the past must help us to avoid repeating the same mistakes. We must seek paths of reconciliation and learn to live with respect for each other's identity. The defense of religious freedom, in this sense, is a permanent imperative and respect for minorities is a clear sign of true civilization.

In this regard, it is always right to recall what the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council said about relations with Muslims. "The Church looks upon Muslims with respect. They worship the one God living and subsistent, merciful and almighty, creator of heaven and earth, who has spoken to humanity and to whose decrees, even the hidden ones, they seek to submit themselves wholeheartedly, just as Abraham, to whom the Islamic faith readily relates itself, submitted to God. ... Although considerable dissensions and enmities between Christians and Muslims may have arisen in the course of the centuries, the Council urges all parties that, forgetting past things, they train themselves towards sincere mutual understanding and together maintain and promote social justice and moral values as well as peace and freedom for all people" (declaration "Nostra Aetate," No. 3).

You, my esteemed friends, represent some Muslim communities from this country where I was born, where I studied and where I lived for a good part of my life. That is why I wanted to meet you. You guide Muslim believers and train them in the Islamic faith. Teaching is the vehicle through which ideas and convictions are transmitted. Words are highly influential in the education of the mind. You, therefore, have a great responsibility for the formation of the younger generation. As Christians and Muslims, we must face together the many challenges of our time. There is no room for apathy and disengagement, and even less for partiality and sectarianism. We must not yield to fear or pessimism. Rather, we must cultivate optimism and hope.

Interreligious and intercultural dialogue between Christians and Muslims cannot be reduced to an optional extra. It is in fact a vital necessity, on which in large measure our future depends. Young people from many parts of the world are here in Cologne as living witnesses of solidarity, brotherhood and love. They are the first fruits of a new dawn for humanity. I pray with all my heart, dear Muslim friends, that the merciful and compassionate God may protect you, bless you and enlighten you always. May the God of peace lift up our hearts, nourish our hope and guide our steps on the paths of the world.

[Translation distributed by Vatican press office]

mass for brother roger?

God of ages, we praise you for all your servants who, having witnessed to you on earth, now live with you in heaven, remembering especially before you Brother Roger of Taize. Keep us in fellowship with them until we meet with all the faithful in the joy of your kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

This was said during our evening eucharist last night. I assume that Larry improvised a little. Larry is a Covenant minister, and when he serves at the altar, he uses the covenant book of worship. The footnote from this prayer states that the prayer is from the Book of Common Wroship:Provisional Services, 1966. Very cool. The Covenant uses a great many worship resourses to formulate its own.

An ecumenical mass said for an ecumenical monk.

the words of brother roger

Every human being yearns to be loved as well as to love. It is not for nothing that the Gospel alerts us about not becoming locked up in isolation.

When we are listened to, obstacles created by frustrations of the heart and wounds from a recent or distant past fall away. Being listened to is the begining of a healing of the soul.

And the breath of a trust arises...and a gateway to freedom begins to open up.

I will be posting these brief quotations from Brother Roger on the Reconciler blog this week. You can also find my sermon there. As of 09:30, I am still writing it up for the blog. Give it a minute or two...and then check it out. I preached about Brother Roger...and, honestly, Irish music. It makes sense. Really.

fad-driven am I

Harry Potter Personality Quiz by Pirate Monkeys Inc.

This is the result of another test. Shocking.

***
Idealists, as a temperament, are passionately concerned with personal growth and development. Idealists strive to discover who they are and how they can become their best possible self -- always this quest for self-knowledge and self-improvement drives their imagination. And they want to help others make the journey. Idealists are naturally drawn to working with people, and whether in education or counseling, in social services or personnel work, in journalism or the ministry, they are gifted at helping others find their way in life, often inspiring them to grow as individuals and to fulfill their potentials.

Idealists are sure that friendly cooperation is the best way for people to achieve their goals. Conflict and confrontation upset them because they seem to put up angry barriers between people. Idealists dream of creating harmonious, even caring personal relations, and they have a unique talent for helping people get along with each other and work together for the good of all. Such interpersonal harmony might be a romantic ideal, but then Idealists are incurable romantics who prefer to focus on what might be, rather than what is. The real, practical world is only a starting place for Idealists; they believe that life is filled with possibilities waiting to be realized, rich with meanings calling out to be understood. This idea of a mystical or spiritual dimension to life, the "not visible" or the "not yet" that can only be known through intuition or by a leap of faith, is far more important to Idealists than the world of material things.

Highly ethical in their actions, Idealists hold themselves to a strict standard of personal integrity. They must be true to themselves and to others, and they can be quite hard on themselves when they are dishonest, or when they are false or insincere. More often, however, Idealists are the very soul of kindness. Particularly in their personal relationships, Idealists are without question filled with love and good will. They believe in giving of themselves to help others; they cherish a few warm, sensitive friendships; they strive for a special rapport with their children; and in marriage they wish to find a "soulmate," someone with whom they can bond emotionally and spiritually, sharing their deepest feelings and their complex inner worlds.

Idealists are rare, making up between 20 and 25 percent of the population. But their ability to inspire people with their enthusiasm and their idealism has given them influence far beyond their numbers.

harmony

Sometimes people wonder if I've been smoking something. It happens. I understand. I typically do not smoke...I have a pipe and light that up only every blue moon or two. Occasionally I will bum a cigarette. But have I been smoking? No. Not at all. It's just me.

So, the sad reality is that I have no excuse for how I spend my time other than I have openly chosen to spend my time that way. I am not ashamed. I will stand proud in my kilt and do the same again and again. Huzzah!

But, in spite of what some deem as the public nature of Blogaria, I really try not to make a show of it too often. This weekend seems to be an exception. One of the Girls has two gigs lined up. The first is this Friday. We are playing an after party for Actors Revolution's new show. The second is Saturday. Theater Entropy is hosting a silent auction and fundraiser. It should be a good time. Everyone should come and hear One of the Girls and give large sums to Theater Entropy. And it was in the spirit of Saturday that I sent out an email to invite some people to the gig. I'm on the board of directors. I am trying to raise money for Chicago artists. One of the people on my list works for the ABC Metro offices ("diocese" for you high church types). They did the unexpected. They posted information for the fundraiser with other regional church business on this weeks e-mail. Now everyone knows.

One of the Girls THIS SATURDAY!

The Reverend George "Tripp" Hudgins will perform Saturday, August 20, with
his band, "One of the Girls." The performance will be at 7 p.m. The band's
repertoire includes Irish folk music, bluegrass, etc. The upcoming event
will be a benefit concert for Theatre Entropy, a small Chicago-based drama
company. Theatre Entropy is known for its talent and creativity, and received
the "Best Ensemble Show" award at a 2004 theater festival in Columbus, Ohio.

Theatre Entropy Benefit
High Risk Gallery
1113 W. Belmont
Chicago, IL
Tickets are $30.00,
or $20.00 with H/R
RSVP by calling ******* or
theatre entropy ate hotmail.com

For more information about Tripp's band visit http://www.oneofthegirls.net

So, now we all know. It is not shame I feel. No. Nor is it embarassment. No. I feel excitement...encouragement and a little pain in my ribs from all the laughing. All I can imagine is this statement in a search/pulpit committee meeting.

Let me get this straight, Reverend Hudgins. The reason you are a little tired for today's interview is because you were out last night playing mandolin at a pub wearing a kilt. (Lovely tartan by the way.) You came home at 2:00am. I am not entirely certain that you are right for Closer I am to Fine Baptist Church."

But then again, perhaps it is just what they need!

So, as my life begins to integrate, and the harmonies reveal themselves...play on, I say. Play on! The Kingston Trio has nothin' on this blend.

So, I better see all y'all at a gig this weekend. I'm preaching Sunday evening, too. Come to church. We'll talk about what it means to name and be named. Maybe we'll make some good music.

comments

For those of you who have emailed me about the commentnig system here, know that I am still working on it. I am trying to set up comment registration, but am having no success. It cuts way down on the spam that appears to breed like so many guppies. So, I will keep plugging away. I beg your kindess and patience as I do so.

Peace.

more from brother roger

I don't mean to post so much about the death of brother Roger. But I cannot overstress the tremendous influence he has had on me and my understanding of this pastoral vocation. This came via Bruderhof today.

Brother Roger of Taizé

One of the first things Christ says in the Gospel is this: "Happy the simple-hearted!" Yes, happy those who head towards simplicity, simplicity of heart and simplicity of life.

A simple heart attempts to live in the present moment, to welcome each day as God’s today… Simplifying our life enables us to share with the least fortunate, in order to alleviate suffering where there is disease, poverty, famine…

Where can we find the simplicity indispensable for living out the Gospel? Some words of Christ enlighten us. One day he said to his disciples, "Let the little children come to me; the realities of God are for those who are like them."

And so we would like to say to God: "God, you love us: turn us into people who are humble; give us great simplicity in our prayer, in human relationships, in welcoming others." link

You can follow the extended link to read what the American Baptist Press published recently about the ecumenical monk.

Taizé founder Brother Roger

stabbed to death during worship

By Robert Marus

TAIZE, France (ABP) -- The legendary founder of a monastic community
that united Christians from Anglican, Lutheran, Catholic and evangelical
traditions was stabbed to death during a prayer service Aug. 16.

Brother Roger, leader of the Taizé Community in the French region of
Burgundy, was 90. According to a statement on the group's website, he
was attacked by a woman who was "probably mentally disturbed." She was
in a crowd of about 2,500 attending evening prayers in the monastery's
Church of Reconciliation.

The monks, including Brother Roger, regularly worship in a central
rectangular area of the sanctuary separated from other worshipers only
by a low hedge, which the knife-wielding woman reportedly crossed before
she slit Brother Roger's throat.

News reports said he died a few moments later, and that the suspect was
identified as a 36-year-old Romanian woman who had been trying to get in
contact with the monk. She is in custody, and French officials have
charged her and ordered that she receive a psychiatric evaluation.

Brother Roger was born Roger Schutz in 1915, in the small town of
Provence, Switzerland. His father was a Swiss Reformed pastor and his
mother was a French Protestant.

His father encouraged the mystical side of his son's faith. As World War
II was getting underway in 1940, the younger Schutz rode across the
French border on a bicycle and chose the town of Taizé to establish a
community designed to foster peace and reconciliation.

Brother Roger said he chose the location of the monastery to express
solidarity with the French, who at the time were subject to Nazi rule.
Due to his activities during that time -- which included sheltering Jews
in Taizé -- German officials expelled him from France for a time. He
sought refuge in his home country.

After the war, he returned to Taizé, and the monastic community gained
in notoriety. Its message of peace and reconciliation especially became
popular with young people beginning in the 1960s. While it only has
about 100 monks from 25 different nations, the community regularly
attracts 100,000 pilgrims a year who come to Taizé to meditate, pray and
learn. During the summer, the weekly retreat crowds can number 6,000,
mostly young adults who camp out in the tiny French town.

The Taizé monks' distinctive worship style -- mostly original,
meditative songs sung in repetitive fashion in many languages and
reflecting many Christian traditions -- has spread around the world. An
open-air service in Paris in 2003 drew 80,000 people. Many American
churches, including some Baptists, use Taizé style for contemplative
worship services.

Shortly after Brother Roger's death, the monastery announced that his
hand-picked successor, 51-year-old Brother Alois, had assumed duties as
the leader of the community.

Worldwide, a variety of Christian leaders expressed shock and sympathy
for the Taizé monks.

Pope Benedict XVI, during his weekly address at his summer villa south
of Rome Aug. 17, noted that he had only the day before received a "very
moving and very friendly" letter from Brother Roger about the Catholic
Church's World Youth Day. The event was being held Aug. 18 in Cologne,
Germany. Brother Roger, who had been a longtime supporter of the event,
had written the pontiff to say he regretted that his health would not
allow him to attend, according to Catholic News Service.

Benedict told his audience, "Brother Roger is in the hands of eternal
goodness and eternal love, and has arrived at eternal joy."

Bishop William Skylstad of the Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Wash., head
of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, wrote to Brother
Alois to express the American Catholic Church's sympathy.

"We assure you and the community of our profoundest sentiments as we
share in your suffering and loss," he wrote. "One with Brother Roger and
the community in a firm faith in the Resurrection, we recommit ourselves
to the communion to which he bore witness in life and death."

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, head of the Church of England,
said that Brother Roger's death was an "indescribable shock." He added,
"the shock and trauma for the community at Taizé will be heavy -- and it
will be for all the young people who witnessed this event. All of them
are in our prayers."

thirdsdey postalization and linkageness

So, I arrived at home last night to find my wife sitting in the livingroom with Susie. This is a very good thing. Susie has recently moved to some other country. Technically, it is another state, but I have always found it possible and enjoyable to be a regionalist (I am from Virginia.) even though I no longer live in that region. Thus, Michigan is another country. It is very, very far away. Georgia, on the other hand, would be much closer. It's a strange way to experience geography, but I enjoy myself nonetheless.

So, Susie is here. Trish and I are happy. We've missed her.

In other, unrelated news, my integrative presentation went very well. I received several comments about it afterward. What I did was fairly simple. I shared with coworkers how I found liturgy in the hospital and, in effect, turned the hospital into a cathedral. This was, at first, a way to be comfortable in new surroundings. Eventually it became the tool for how I assessed pastoral needs of patients and staff, how I claimed any authority the system might give, me and how I recognized the roles that patients and others would ask me to fill. The presentation lasted about ninety minutes. There was good discussion and thoughtfulness by others. Much thanks to all.

links of note

Justin wants you to know about the other war. It is something worth reading. So please take the time.

Dr. Mike has a very compelling and challenging post about divided families. "A wise, mature person is known for his understanding. The more pleasant his words, the more persuasive he is." (Proverbs 16:21 GNB).

end: links

Today is the last day that Spud will be in the hospital with me. The CPE summer interns are done. Congratulations, all! I really enjoyed this group. Spud and I spent a lot of quality time together in the Jesus Pod. I also got to know Jimmy and Jeff as well. The other members of the group are fine people, a brave lot that I wish I had been able to get to know better. But maybe there will be another chance. I certainly hope so.

Well, the coffee is ready and I need it to function. Later, gators!

Oh! Can anyone explain to me how to get the registered comments working on this site. I set it up, typekey code and all, but the registration option does not appear. I disabled it in frustration and in the hopes that someone wiser and more familiar with how it works could help me. I hate spam.

from taize

News from Taizé by email Taizé, 17 August 2005

Frère Roger has entered the life of eternity
--------------------------------------------

During the evening prayer on Tuesday 16 August, in the midst of the
crowd surrounding the Community in the Church of Reconciliation, a
woman - probably mentally disturbed - struck Brother Roger violently
with knife blows. He died a few moments later.

In its sorrow, the Taizé Community thanks all those who are
supporting it by their affection and their prayer. On the morning of
17 August, after Brother Roger's death, the following prayer was read
in the church:

"Christ of compassion, you enable us to be in communion with those
who have gone before us, and who can remain so close to us. We
confide into your hands our Brother Roger. He already contemplates
the invisible. In his footsteps, you are preparing us to welcome a
radiance of your brightness."

The funeral of Brother Roger will take place on Tuesday 23 August at
14.00.
Each afternoon, from 15.00 to 19.00, his body is placed in the church
of Taizé, so that all who wish may go and meditate close by him.

Eight years ago, Brother Roger designated Brother Alois to succeed
him, as the person in charge of the community. Brother Alois has
entered straight away into his ministry as servant of communion at
the heart of the community.

AKMA and Justin have also posted on this. Thanks to my friend Greg for the original news.

Taizé Founder, Brother Roger, Slain

DIJON, France, AUG. 16, 2005 (_Zenit.org_ (http://www.zenit.org/) ).- The founder of the French religious Taizé Community, Brother Roger, was attacked and killed by a mentally disturbed man during vespers, his community said.

Roger, 90, was attacked, probably with a knife, during evening prayer today at Taizé, near Cluny, in the eastern Burgundy region, a member of the community told Agence France-Presse.

The Taizé movement started during World War II, when Swiss-born monk Roger Schutz, living in Taizé, provided a refuge for those fleeing the conflict, irrespective of their religion.

Roger, a Protestant with a degree in theology, devoted his life to the reconciliation between Christian denominations.

Come and fill our hearts with your peace. You alone, O Lord, are Holy. Come and fill our hearts with your peace. Alleliua!

vigil for cindy sheehan

I don't usually publish these things on my blog. But since some of us have been talking about Sheehan, I thought it timely. There will be several vigils around the country Wednesday evening at 7:30pm to support Sheehan's efforts. If you are interested in finding one near you, go here. Follow the extended link to a few near Andersonville.

Vigil - Avers between Foster and Lawrence
8 registered participant(s) (20 maximum)
Chicago IL 60625
Description: a time to stand with Cindy and others Please note: I have a cat. Not handicapped accessible.

Candlelight Vigil - St. Gertrude's Church
6 registered participant(s) (1000 maximum)
Chicago, IL 60660
Description Handicap accessible. A Candlelight Vigil to show support for Cindy Sheehan and "Support the Troops/Bring Them Home Now" (including my son , currently serving in Iraq)

Vigil for Cindy Sheehan - Senn High School
Glenwood and Thorndale
0 registered participant(s) (50 maximum)
Chicago IL 60660
Description We will hold the vigil for Cindy Sheehan in front of Senn High School, holding candles and signs. Please bring neighbors and friends. If anyone can contact the media that would be great.

Cindy Sheehan Vigil at the Heartland
Heartland Cafe at Lunt & Glenwood
7 registered participant(s) (1000 maximum)
Chicago IL 60626
Description Gather at the Heartland Cafe for a simple and dignified candlelight vigil to recognize the sacrifices of military families like Cindy Sheehan, and the other families camped outside President Bush's ranch in Texas.

Top of Cricket Hill near Chicago Lakefront -
Cricket Hill is between Montrose and Wilson Ave, just east of Lake Shore Drive 121 registered participant(s) (5000 maximum)
Chicago IL 60657
Description Cricket Hill is between Montrose and Wilson Ave, just east of Lake Shore Drive. It is the top of a large hill in an enormous park. It's also a beautiful setting. Bring some candles. Here is a map to the location: http://www.chicagotriclub.com/info/directions/speed.asp

well, this is a good google game

Here are the rules...search on google for your name. But like this: "Tripp is"

Use quotes.
Include the verb.

Cut and paste the first ten entries.

My results, edited so that they resemble english, thus shaving off the stuff before my name appears...

Tripp is in the news again. Her recent interview by Larry King resurrected a lot of memories about a sordid affair that most of us would rather ...

Tripp: Is There a Eurologist in the House?America's Best Political Newsletter. ... The Dollar Has Had Its Day. Is There a Eurologist in the House? By BEN TRIPP. If a guy in the iceberg business with ...

Tripp is the chief faculty advisor and assistant to the dean of ... Professor Tripp is also director of the Women's Studies Research Center. ...

Tripp's Payoff - She screwed the president and got a cushy ...Linda Tripp is one of them, holding the position of public affairs ... Officially, Tripp is the public affairs specialist for a program called the Joint ...

Tripp is to throw parties ... Though he loves Sara, Tripp is overwhelmed by the news and doesn't know what ...

Tripp is a city in Hutchinson County. The community is in the Central Standard time zone. The latitude of Tripp is 43.225N. The longitude is -97.965W. ...

Tripp is damned. That much is clear. But where and how ? ... Tripp is the anti-Hillary, stalking the White House as its ghoulish bad conscience. ...

Tripp hearing could end in dismissalTripp is being prosecuted under Maryland's wiretapping law for unlawfully taping a ... Evidence of political retribution against Tripp is not new. On Sept. ...

Tripp is the captain of the Chapin swim team and helped the Eagles claim a pair of ... The vice president of FCA, Tripp is a Resident Speaker and Worship ...

Tripp is in dire need of credibility and Hard Copy has none to spare. ... It seems Tripp is unconcerned with Goldberg's advice.

I wanna know why I am sleeping around and who the heck Goldberg is!!! And is all this why I am damned? Harsh!

Thanks to Spud for this.

sheehan

Here are some links about her protest...some pro, some con.

Slate

Cafepress

A blog...

CBS news

Radio Left

back to our regular programming

O, it is early. You know, I slept until 8:30 yesterday? My back was screaming at me by the time I got up, but that ten hours of sleep was unreal. Today, that ends. I arose at five. The coffee is ready. I have its love to keep me warm. I like getting up at five. It just means that I am sleepy by nine. So, going to bed at eleven becomes diffficult...though I still seem to do it. What is that about?

Yesterday was quiet. Trish woke up with a nasty migrane-like thing that kept us inside until two. Thus, I blogged. Then it was time to eat something and drive around if for no other reason than to get out of the apartment. I ventured out to get a look at That Church. They are looking for someone to fill their pulpit. It would be an interesting place to serve as a pastor. If nothing else the cultural shift would be surreal!

Today two of the jobs that I have been made aware of are finally being listed formally. So, maybe in a couple of weeks...when my time at the hospital ends...I will have an interview or two scheduled. I must confess that was my very first thought when I got up this morning. I hope that does not signify some obsession on my part. There is far too much else to do. There is much CPE to be had in these final two weeks.

links of note

Sullivan is hopeful about Britain's future. I wonder if he should be as optimistic as all that.

Reason.com has a new book they want us to read. Tempting! "The Competitive Enterprise Institute's Clyde Wayne Crews, Jr.: 'Most people assumed that Republican politicians replacing Democrats on Capitol Hill in 1995 would lead to small-government, anti-regulation policies. That assumption turned out to be wrong.'"

The Christian Century is thinking about Tarik Ramadan.

The Disseminary is uploading a classic. It is now in blog form! You can comment if you like!

Bob Herbert thinks that we aren't sacrificing much...and in the face of a sixty year anniversary, we are not. I think he needs to opine on how differently America fights its wars now. The community at large will never sacrifice as much. We do not ration gasoline. In WWII, 400,000 American soldiers were killed. We are not quite at 1% of that.

Noz is a little frustrated about the present rearranging of expectations around our "involvement" in Iraq's politics. He and the Liberal Avenger are having an interesting conversation.

an aside/rant of sorts

I watched Face the Nation yesterday. Howard Dean was on. I think we should have had a more serious debate between he and W. Why? Only to show the American people that there is no one, I mean no one, worth having in office actually running for office. He presented us with one more inarticulate gaff after another. He's as bad as W. (Sorry, JT, Luke.) These guys are supposed to be intelligent. I assume that they are. Perhaps I need to assume something else? I struggle to give them the benefit of the doubt. I need to. Then I see how they are before a camera with pointed questions being asked of them. You know those questions like "Governor, you say that the Republicans have no plan for an exit strategy to end the war. What is the Democrats' plan?" The answer was more rhetoric. "If Kerry had been elected blah blah blah." I understand the power of rhetoric. I do. But W and Dean are the sounding gongs of their parties. Either their intelligence only shines in the back rooms of some political hoodah, or our country really is up the creek without a paddle. And it would seem that we prefer sounding gongs in this country. My hope is that the public face of politics has been dumbed down and not the back-room gymnastics. I hope that Dean and W are puppets. I honestly do.

sixty years

Huw has reminded me of something...and given some context to what has been on the History chanel of late. I just watched Patton. I have to say that I love that movie. Anyway...it is sixty years since the end of WWII.

Patton is a great movie...and the character (not a pacifist) has something to say about "wonder weapons" toward the end of the film. Maybe that quote (If I could find it...paraphrased...he hopes he never lives to see the day because the dying that is in war would be reduced to those living and those dead. There would be no meaning to it. There would be no honor, glory or "heroic.") would give some context to his anti-pacifist preaching stance. Heck, it may actually allow Patton to stand along side the previous Pope. But that might be a stretch.

bush answers to the whole american people?

I received an editorial in the email from a friend of mine. It's a progressive rant of sorts, but I thought it powerful enough to share. Our country is divided about this war. That is not news.

I like the missive and yet...can you not see how she breeds her own variety of hatred? Bush feeds us lies and misdirection and we progressives are fueling the opposition with false righteousness. Demonizing is false. No matter whom it is...whomever is demonizing, whomever is demonic...if all are worthy of Love and fairness, is not Bush so worthy? Perhaps Cindy does not think that all are worthy...so much more the pity.

It's a challenging letter, butI am cautious to ally myself with her. I think Cindy may be doing much to undermine the parents of soldiers who are fighing against the war. She would disagree with me. Heck, even the parents might.

Published on Saturday, August 13,2005 by HuffingtonPost.com

We Have the Power
By Cindy Sheehan

My day started way too early today. After 3 hours of sleep, I was being
> shaken awake by someone at 6:30 a.m. telling me that the Today show wanted
> me to be on. I had come into town to sleep in a trailer because my tent had
> been infested with fire ants.
>
> We had a very interesting day. We had Bush drive by really, really fast
> twice. I caught a glimpse of Laura. I was hoping after she saw me that she
> would come down to Camp Casey with some brownies and lemonade. I waited for
> her, but she never came.
>
> The Bushes were going to a barbeque/fundraiser down the road from us. I was
> very surprised that they let us stay so close to Bush. The families of the
> fallen loved ones held their son's crosses from Arlington West while Bush
> drove by. I bet it didn't even give him indigestion to see so many people
> protesting his murderous policies.
>
> I am a continued thorn in the side of right-wing bloggers and right wing-nut
> "journalists." One man, Phil Hendry, called me an "ignorant cow." But you
> know what, the people who have come out from all over the country to give me
> a hug and support the cause of peace, overwhelms me so much, I don't have
> time to worry about the negativity and the hatred. The people who are
> slamming me have no idea about what it feels like to unjustly have a child
> killed in an insane war. Plus, they have no truth to fight truth with, so
> they fight truth with more lies and hate.
>
> Three active duty soldiers from Ft. Hood came to visit me and tell me that
> they really appreciated what I was doing and that if they were killed in the
> war, their moms would be doing the same thing. That made me feel so good
> after all of the negativity I had been hearing from the righties. I also got
> to hold a couple of toddlers on my lap while their mom or dad took pictures
> of us. I am honored that people have resonated with the action that I took
> to make our mission of ending the war a reality.
>
> We are here at the Crawford Peace House now. I came here so angry and I have
> been so encouraged and overwhelmed by the support from all over. I was
> thinking that there is no reason for us progressive liberals to be angry
> anymore. We have the power. One mom has shown that ordinary citizens can
> make a difference. We the people have to hold George Bush accountable. We
> have to make sure he answers to us. If he doesn't have to answer to
> Congress, or the media, we will force him to answer to us.
>
> © 2005 Huffington Post

islam's soul

Follow this link to a very interesting article from the Toronto Star.

157. That they said (in boast), "We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah.;- but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed him not:-

158. Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise;-

159. And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Judgment he will be a witness against them..

Somehow this verse from the Quran intrigued me enough to post it. Rich is reaidng through the Quran. I have been paging through it myself...looking for what it says or does not say about Jesus. The Quran is more of a rulebook than it is a narrative or an epistleary like the New Testament. But these little narratives come to the fore from time to time. Go here and poke around. It is facinating.

satredey blogging

Some day I will figure out how to podcast...someday very, very soon. What I would do then is post an image here and then have the image serve as the hyperlink to the mp3 of a One of the Girls tune. Until that day you simply have to use your imagination.

My love said to me
My mother won't mind
And me Father won't slight you
For your lack of kind
Then she stepped away from me
And this she did say
It will not be long, love
Till our wedding day.

She stepped away from me
And she moved through the Fair
And fondly I watched her
Move here and move there
She went her way homeward
With one star awake
As the swans in the evening
Move over the lake.

The people were saying
No two e'er were wed
But one has a sorrow
That never was said
And she smiled as she passed me
With her goods and her gear
And that was the last
That I saw of my dear.

I dreamed it last night
That my true love came in
So softly she entered
Her feet made no din
She came close beside me
And this she did say
It will not be long, love
Till our wedding day.

Posted by tripp at 08:50 AM |

blood of christ, cup of salvation

I seem to finally be getting the sleep I need. I have been sleeping in every morning this vacation...until eight once or twice. This morning I arose at 5:45. It felt good.

Trish and I have been spending time this vacation sorting through some wedding photos. We have so many good ones. I posted a few on Flickr. Check 'em out if you have the time. Our goal today is to have picked twenty to go in the album that comes with the "package" we purchased from the photographer.

The vacation has been good. The rain is a bit of a bummer, but Chicago has been without any real rainfall for months. Something had to give sometime. So, we will spend the day sitting inside. I will get a bit of a haircut, nothing too dramatic, I hope. I did shave my beard. I had forgotten what I looked like without one. It is a good reminder. The beard will come back soon enough.

See y'all around!

vacationing in chicago

Oooo...you need to go.

vacation

So, I will be away...out of the hospital...for an entire week! Huzzah! This is great news. I have not taken time away for any lengthy period since Trish and I were married last September. I am looking forward to the break.

So, even though we will not be away per se, I will try to stay away from the blog. We will spend part of our time where there is an internet connection. There I will clean out my e-mail but will probably not blog.

In light of my leave-taking, I wanted to share a little reflection on an early calvinist liturgy. Enjoy!

Here is a 1545 account of a Calvinist liturgy in Strasbourg by a Roman Catholic student.

There is a French Church here which is attended…by many fine people who speak that language both from France and from Italy. On Sundays (no festivals are celebrated here except Christmas) in the morning there are so-called general prayers…They sing a Psalm of David of some prayer taken from the New Testament. This is sung by everyone, men and women together in fine harmony, a wonderful thing to see. You must understand that everyone has a music book in hand. This is how they can keep together. I never imagined that it could be as pleasant and delightful as it is. Instead of the mass on Sundays they sing two psalms or prayers. After that a sermon and the other after. The first is the Ten Commandments, very well translated. If I had time, I would send you a copy. When this has been finished, the minister kneels before a wooden table, made like an altar, but not vested except when they celebrate the Holy Supper of our Lord Jesus Christ….Then this altar has only a pure white cloth, without any other adornment such as candles or other decorations. This altar is placed in the midst of the church where the minister is, as I have told you, facing the people, praying for them in their own language in a loud and clear voice which everyone understands. When he is finished praying, he goes to the pulpit and preaches a sermon which lasts from half past seven to nine o’clock. These sermons are wonderfully fine to hear. As I have said before, they sing after the sermon.

hometown news

Richmond church not afraid to give itself away

I wonder if this will prompt similar responses in other struggling urban congregations.

By Jim White

RICHMOND, Va. (ABP) -- Weatherford Memorial Baptist Church's facilities
sit on a prominent corner on the south side of Richmond, Va. Patterned
after Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, the main sanctuary has a circular
vestibule with white columns, a marble floor and a brass chandelier. On
either side, white-columned porticoes lead to gracefully proportioned
educational and gymnasium wings.

All of which is remarkable to behold, considering that the congregation
that meets inside is giving it all away.

Weatherford Memorial, whose membership has declined steeply in recent
decades, has voted to disband and donate its property to a sister church
in the Richmond Baptist Association. St. Paul's Baptist Church, a large
and fast-growing African-American congregation in Richmond's suburbs,
will turn Weatherford Memorial into a satellite church campus and
ministry center in a transitional part of town.

Like so many churches in changing circumstances, Weatherford Memorial
Baptist remembers the glory days. Founded in 1907, the congregation
moved to its present location in 1950, led by their pastor, J. Levering
Evans. Evans had grown up in China in a missionary family and had earned
a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University. Evans predicted that the
church would be a lighthouse to the southern part of Richmond, and soon
750 worshippers crowded a building that doubled as a gym and worship
center -- an innovative concept at the time.

The 1960s brought a decline in attendance, but the congregation believed
that constructing a permanent sanctuary would cause increased
attendance. Construction began in 1971. That same year, the courts
ordered busing to integrate Richmond's public schools. As a consequence,
many of the white families that had made up Weatherford's congregation
began relocating to suburban Chesterfield County.

During the '80s and '90s, attendance continued to dwindle. Even though
successive pastors raised an alarm and called for radical changes, the
congregation resisted. Like the proverbial frog in the kettle, the
changes around and within the church occurred so slowly that they hardly
noticed.

By 2001, the church could no longer deny what was happening. Average
Sunday school attendance had dropped to 90. At pastor Rick Hurst's
initiative, the church began a "Rekindle Strategy" aimed at assessing
church and community needs and proposing ministry options. In 2004, the
finance committee reported that without a dramatic turnaround, the
church would run out of money within a year.

It isn't as though the congregation never attempted to turn things
around. They instituted community ministries that include a food pantry
and clothes closet. Weatherford welcomes anyone who will come to a
weekday worship service designed to meet the needs of the hungry. The
Richmond Baptist Association runs a South Richmond ministry center out
of Weatherford's facilities.

The church even began a contemporary worship service, although some
admit their hearts were not in it. Youngsters play Upward Bound
basketball games in the gym, and a small African-American church meets
in their building.

"It's not that we haven't tried," comments life-long attendee and church
secretary Gayle Bradley, "but we don't know how to reach the people who
live around us."

In December of 2004, recognizing their position, the congregation
considered a proposal to sell their buildings. That same month, the
congregation asked Glenn Akins of the Virginia Baptist Mission Board to
meet with them. Simultaneously, the pastor led the church to study
several books, including George Barna's Turn-Around Churches. The book
studies and Akins' counsel led church members to conclude that they did
not have a strong enough core group to revitalize or to start over.

After listening to church members describe their condition and studying
their circumstances carefully, Akins proposed options to them last
march. "The philosophy that I go by is that I have the same moral
obligation that a physician might in dealing with a patient," he said.
"I don't feel that I have the right to offer false hope. I could not
give them a solution that I believe would not work."

After presenting options and countering each with the reasons why he
thought it wasn't a viable alternative, he concluded by asking the
church to consider giving their buildings to St. Paul's.

"When Glenn said, 'Give it away,' it was like an electric shock went
through us," said Ruth Guill, a Weatherford strategy committee member.

Her husband, Maynard, who chairs the committee that manages
Weatherford's $580,000 endowment, continued, "I thought 'Humph, that
doesn't fit with what I've been thinking.' Six months ago if someone had
said we would be doing this, I would have said they were crazy."

Others agreed. Yet, as they thought about it and prayed, they began to
see potential.

What would cause an aging white congregation in South Richmond to give
buildings valued at more than $2 million to an exploding, predominantly
African-American congregation on the other side of town? The church has
had dozens of other potential buyers. But it wasn't about money. It was
about missions. Weatherford members said they believe St. Paul's will
continue and enhance the mission their church began in South Richmond 98
years ago.

Weatherford Memorial takes its name from a colonial Baptist preacher
whose voice would not be stilled -- even by imprisonment. The church
members, more than anything else, say they are unwilling that the
proclamation of the gospel on that prominent corner be stilled.

Gayle Bradley offered an interesting question: "Could it be that God led
our congregation to this place to minister for a time, but that his
greater vision was for St. Paul's to minister from this point to reach
those we could not?"

On June 12, Weatherford's congregation voted, 59-11, to authorize the
donation. The buildings, despite some peeling paint, have been well
maintained. One has a new roof. Mold problems that had plagued the
sanctuary have been corrected. The endowment fund will be trusted to the
care of the Virginia Baptist Foundation, and the interest will be
divided evenly between the Richmond Baptist Association and the Virginia
Baptist Mission Board. That way, the church may continue to give to
missions in perpetuity -- long after its members have disbanded.

As expected, members are feeling grief at the loss of the place and
people in which they have invested so much of their lives. After Sept.
25, which will be the congregation's last official Sunday, they don't
know where they will worship. But sorrow was not what they were feeling
most.

"I'm excited about where my wife and I will go and what we will do. I
don't have a clue where that will be," noted Jimmy Boggs, who says he
was baptized twice at Weatherford -- once six months before he was born
and again years later. He continued: "but I believe the Lord is in this
and I trust him. We might end up sitting right here and helping minister
through St. Paul's. I am proud to see the legacy of Weatherford live."

Asked what advice they might have for other churches, the strategy
committee responded, nearly in unison: "Change."

"We saw what was happening, but we didn't want to acknowledge it. We
were in denial," lamented Ruth Guill. "If we could say one thing to
other churches it would be, 'Churches have to change. Those that don't
change, don't survive.'"

Boggs added, "By the time we saw what we needed to do, we were just too
few, too old and too weary to make it happen."

But, even as one church dies, its ministry is being reborn in a
different form.

Although many potential buyers approached them with attractive offers,
Weatherford members said they believe St. Paul's possesses the right
vision, leadership and commitment to missions and ministry to do what
they could not. Under pastor Lance Watson's leadership, the historic
congregation outgrew its downtown Richmond facilities and moved into a
state-of-the-art campus northwest of the city 2 ½ years ago.

But ministry to South Richmond was on the congregation's mind. Just two
Sundays after moving to their new facility, Watson told his
parishioners, "I know we just got here, but I believe God wants us to do
something in South Richmond."

When he learned that Weatherford had actually given its facilities to
St. Paul's, Watson said, "I was overwhelmed and honored that they
trusted us with their buildings. We share a kind of history and vision."

Watson is sensitive to the Weatherford congregation's concerns and
anxieties. "I've heard
one of their concerns is that after we receive the property we will sell
it and apply the money to our Creighton Road campus [which will become
known as "St. Paul's North"]," he said. "I understand that. If I were
one of them, I would wonder that, too!"

To allay their fears, Watson has worked with Weatherford's pastor Hurst
to develop a covenant in which St. Paul's promises to give their best
effort to "St. Paul's South" (the Weatherford site) for at least six
years. If the ministry does not succeed in that length of time, Watson
reasons, St. Paul's will need to move on and try someplace else.

But the word "failure" is not in Watson's vocabulary. Already he is
envisioning ministry in the area,
whose population -- according to the latest estimates -- is 30 percent
Hispanic. Among other things, he has enlisted a Spanish teacher in the
St. Paul's congregation to tutor him and anyone else in the church who
is willing to learn the language.

The news of the donation has impacted the people of St. Paul's as much
as the pastor. Watson reported that one of his deacons, a lawyer, wept
when he heard the news, saying, "I feared when we moved into our new
facilities that we would become another disconnected suburban
congregation."

holy poverty and unjust poverty too easily conflated?

Concern for poor at heart of who God is, panel says

What an unfortunate title to this news article. All I can think to say in response is "Well, if a panel said it, it must be true!"

Oy.

By Robert O'Brien

BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) -- The poor will always be with us, Jesus
said. Does that mean we should ignore them?

"Certainly not," said Graham Sparkes of the Baptist Union of Great
Britain.

So what are Baptist Christians going to do about it?

"We as Baptists focus on what the Bible says as we respond to the needs
of the world," Sparkes told a focus group on the poor during the Baptist
Centenary World Congress in Birmingham, England.

"Poverty is the context in which the gospel must be proclaimed," he
said, citing many biblical passages. "A concern for the poor is at the
heart of who God is and what the Bible has to say. The Bible, as Jim
Wallis of Sojourners has said, ‘is biased for the poor and oppressed.'"

Ministering to the poor is an imperative for Christians, explained
Sparkes and four other focus group leaders -- Vivienne Lassetter of the
Baptist Union of Great Britain; Stan Rand of the Jubilee Debt Campaign;
Nigel Varndell of Christian Aid; and Michael Smitheran of the Micah
Challenge.

The gap between the rich and the poor grows ever wider, the panelists
explained, because of at least five complex factors that fuel each
other: disasters, economic injustice and trade and debt issues,
HIV/AIDS, conflicts and wars, and widespread corruption, speakers said.

Disasters hit the poor the hardest, taking their homes, livelihoods and
hope, the panel said.

Meanwhile, the world's poorest countries have debts totaling $523
billion and pay $100 million on debt service every day. Debt relief in
the past four years has allowed 10 African countries to increase
spending on education by over 40 percent and on health by over 70
percent.

"Free" trade, rather than "fair" trade, has cost sub-Saharan Africa $272
billion in the last 20 years, they said.

Each day HIV/AIDS kills 8,000 people and infects 13,500 others,
decimating people, household incomes, school enrollments, life
expectancies and national prosperity of many countries.

Poverty does not cause conflict but often fuels it. So does greed over
natural resources and selfish exploitation of poor nations by rich
nations. In conflicts, the poorest of the poor are the worst affected.

Corruption is not found only in developing countries, said Varndell.
Botswana has a better record against corruption than Italy, South Africa
than Greece, and Ghana than Poland. "Great Britain is listed as the
eighth biggest briber in world," he said.

What can we do about it?

"A key action must be to build international campaigning networks, such
as the Micah Challenge and Make Poverty History organizations, and join
in the effort to address these problems," Sparkes said.

On a personal level, Sparkes said, churches and community organizations
can work to create awareness, work for peace and reconciliation, and
reach out to the poor in their own areas.

friday op/ed

First Things, a RCC magazine, has an interesting editorial about Christianity and the death penalty.

Reason.com has something to say about Bob Novak: "Wuss!" (paraphrased, of course)

The NY Times has two interesting editorials today. One is about affordable housing and the related issues as being a sign of a realestate bubble about to burst. The other is about blogs.

The Christian Century has an interesting article about feminist theology. Take a gander here.

And here is a very interesting look at the "Fall of the House of Saud."

Five extended families in the Middle East own about 60 percent of the world's oil. The Saud family, which rules Saudi Arabia, controls more than a third of that amount. This is the fulcrum on which the global economy teeters, and the House of Saud knows what the West is only beginning to learn: that it presides over a kingdom dangerously at war with itself. In the air in Riyadh and Jidda is the conviction that oil money has corrupted the ruling family beyond redemption, even as the general population has grown and gotten poorer; that the country's leaders have failed to protect fellow Muslims in Palestine and elsewhere; and that the House of Saud has let Islam be humiliated—that, in short, the country needs a radical "purification."

I am sure I will be linking to more news as the day goes on.

liturgical rant by a benedictine

Aidan Kavanagh is new to me. I have one of his books, On Liturgical Theology, and I have found it intriguing. Actually, I like much of what he has to say. Though, at times, he waxes a bit utopian for my tastes. He's clearly frustrated with the state of theolological discourse (perhaps simply theology itself) and how it pertains to the liturgical life of believers. Here are a couple of quotations for you. I am 120 pages into it at this point, so please forgive me if the way he uses terms as "rite" seems muddled. It is the problem of my choice of quotation than it is his ability to articulate his thinking.

The first quotation I want to share is his understanding of the place of scripture in liturgical theology.

[The] link between scripture and liturgy can never be recovered and sustained unless we shed our fixation on scripture as printed text. I do not mean something negative or anti-intellectual by this. Scripture-as-text has always had high importance for ascetics and scholars, and it always will. But the high-water mark of God's self-revelation nonetheless came not in the form of spoken or written or printed words. It came in the flesh of the one called the Word, who made of those believing in him his own body corporate, a People of the Word. Those who are baptized and anointed in him, who are constantly nourished at his table, are the corporate presense by faith and grace of God's Word incarnate still in the world. There will never be a greater self-disclosure on God's part than this. In the incarnation of his Son the living God has been pleased to weld us into himself and fill us with his Spirit, which is a consolation. But that in doing so he never becomes subordinate to us is fearsome.

I though that one was interesting. Do we Baptists value the scriptural narrative of Jesus's ministry over the ministry itself? That is an interesting question. And here is another quotation on scripture. Kavanaugh seems quite bent about everyone at this point in his book.

Where liturgy waned into a form of doxological education conducted by secondary theologians who posessed academic degrees rather than ritual-sacramental power, the written Word of God degenerated into a disputed text first among polemicists, then among exegetes, and more lately into a quasi-scientific tract by which Fundamentalists try to confound Darwin in order to protect themselves in a pluralistic society. Rite and its liturgical enactment ceased to be scripture's home and became its stepchild first, then its third cousin and finally an unrecognised stranger.

I would dare to guess that Aidan is not interested in prooftexting as a discipline. Oh, don't begin to think that liberals escape Kavanagh's ire. Kavanagh is no liberal.

The liturgical anchor of rite begins to drag and all those other facets of rite - law, ascetical and monastic structures, evangelical and catechetical endeavors - begin to collapse or disappear. Even particular ways or idioms of theoligical reflection desert the pulpit to become no longer a pastoral but an academic effort. Rite's surrogate becomes civil religion filtered somewhat, softened somewhat, by a generally benign middle-class liberalism in danger of becoming defensive, inbred, and infertile because it is no longer brought into vigorous confrontation with the Gospel but has become the only way in which the Gospel is to be understood. The Church becomes a clergy support group. The center no longer holds. Christianity becomes one telegram of consolation among others than a sustained experience of the presence of the living God, an experience which itself is itself the corporate message a liberated People proclaim in a world snared in thickets of its own making.

I have been prompted by an email conversation to post these thoughts. I am finishing my integrative project here at the hospital. I am reflecting (researching) on the place of liturgy here. I am attempting to layer Christian liturgical structures and actions (rites) upon what goes on here at the hospital. It is an inaccurate endeavor, but provides a great deal of personal insight and opportunity for reflection. I have become increasingly liturgical in how I theoligize and make meaning within this ministry context. It has helped me a great deal to provide helpful pastoral support to patients and staff alike. If its appropriate, I will share some of that work in a couple of weeks.

wednesday linkage - what makes an event current...or what makes an event

Hey, y'all. I am going to link you to places you should spend your time today. Nevermind that big deadline looming before you. Nevermind those so-called responsibilities. Spend more time online. It's spiritual medicine!

Seek First to Understand - Rich is going to read the Quran. Scroll down for the entry.

Atkins has gone belly up! - Sunni is glad.

Don't forget Poland - It would seem that Noz thinks that the current Administration may need to.

Gathered into one - the conversation on ecumenism at Camassia's blog has gotten good.

Part of the reason that folks from different denominations might feel they have more in common with each other than with their co-denominationalists is that there’s as much theological diversity within denominations as there is between them. Thus conservative Presbyterians or even Roman Catholics feel like they have more in common with conservative Methodists than with liberal members of their own churches. Tom Oden, I think, has referred to this as the “new ecumenism” where people committed to “historic orthodox Christianity” work together in a way that transcends denominational differences. I suppose something like the Ekklessia project is a similar sort of thing (though with a different theological paradigm).

Free Yektan Turkyilmaz! - Micah is drawing our attention to how one makes bombs from pulp paperbacks.

Touch - Trevor is thinking about touch and, I assume, performance.

Is There a Supreme Being on the Supreme Court? - Cathy Young from Reason.com thinks that a Supreme Court nominee's religion matters and should be a matter of public discussion. D. Pulliam at Get Religion is not so sure.

"The public's interest in factual accuracy is less an interest in truth than a delight in the unmasking of the opposition's errors." says Richard Posner.

AKMA has been working on his trading cards. Here is a good sample. Scroll around for his various posts. They are fun.

baptist world alliance in birmingham england

Baptists celebrate 100th anniversary of BWA with diversity, togetherness

It is a common mistake "either to liberalize and dilute the gospel so it
becomes meaningless" or to add to the gospel, constructing creeds, and
imposing them on others, he said. He warned of the "rigidity, domination
and exclusion" that typifies fundamentalist movements but which tempts
all Christians.

By Greg Warner

BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) -- About 13,000 Baptist Christians from around
the world celebrated a century of togetherness July 27-31 in Birmingham,
England.

With vibrant music, vivid pageantry and stirring stories of faith, the
Baptist World Centenary Congress Baptists gathered believers from
100-plus countries, posing a stark contrast to the terror alerts that
rattled the host country.

Returning to the land where it was formed in 1905, the BWA, now an
international fellowship of 32 million believers from 200-plus unions,
set about the hard work of building unity in a world where, leaders
admitted, religion often divides.

The BWA also clarified its theological identity, discussed ways to
combat global ills, and recognized a shift of Christianity's center of
gravity to Africa, Asia and South America.

A century ago when BWA first met in London, 85 percent of the world's
Baptists were in Europe and North America, said Denton Lotz, general
secretary of BWA. Now 65 percent of Baptists are in the Third World,
Lotz told the delegates.

"This is the new paradigm shift," Lotz said as he asked delegates from
Africa, Asia and South America to stand. The Southern Hemisphere may
lack money, political freedom or clout, he said, but "they are going to
re-evangelize the world."

The church in the Southern Hemisphere is "exploding with growth," said
California pastor Rick Warren, author of the international best-selling
book, "The Purpose Driven Life."

"Africa, Asia and Latin America will lead us in the 21st century," he
said. "That's what God is doing."

Warren called for "a new reformation" to adapt to the 21st-century
world. "The first Reformation was about belief; this one needs to be
about behavior," he said. "Most of the time we're just talk," he
lamented. Warren said the deeds of a new reformation will require
mobilizing Christians, multiplying churches, evangelizing the world and
eradicating global problems.

The Baptist World Centenary Congress, one of the largest Baptist
meetings ever, was played out against the backdrop of terrorism and
increased security in England. In the days leading up to the congress,
London was struck by four suicide bombers and four attempted bombings in
its transit system. Headlines about England's manhunt for the bombers
screamed across the region's daily newspapers during the meeting, and
law officers made arrests in Birmingham itself.

But delegates apparently swept aside any concern about terrorism. They
endured heightened security measures and several days of England's
famous rains to rejoice in their common bond in Jesus Christ.

"We prayed that you would come, despite the bombings and the terror
alerts," said David Coffey, general secretary of the Baptist Union of
Great Britain, the hosts for the meeting. The high attendance despite
the terror alerts was a sign of "visible solidarity" among Baptists,
said Coffey, who was elected BWA president during the congress.

The 13,000-plus delegates were aided by almost 1,000 volunteers from the
United Kingdom, making for the second largest BWA gathering ever. An
earlier congress in Toronto drew 15,000.

Robert Green, a Baptist deacon from Wales, said the high attendance also
sends a message to non-believers -- Christians do not waver when evil
events occur; they continue trying to follow God's calling in their
lives. "I think it shows the non-Christian world that we are willing to
stand up for Jesus Christ in the world," he said.

During the opening celebration July 27, a procession of banners from BWA
member nations, interspersed with colorful 20-foot streamers and
delegates in native dress, wove their way around the National Indoor
Arena as delegates sang. Participants experienced the traditional music
and dance from various countries. And they sang hymns, praise choruses,
and other musical styles representative of their diversity.

As a demonstration of their theological unity, the delegates were
invited to recite together the Apostle's Creed, a centuries-old
declaration of orthodox faith used in many historic Christian
traditions.

"Unity, unity, unity" was the recurrent theme of the five-day meeting,
said Denton Lotz, BWA general secretary.

Ben Chen, a native of Hong Kong now living in the United States, said
Baptist togetherness accepts differences. "I ... was impressed with the
way the Baptist World Alliance brings nations of the world together, to
listen to each other. We may not always understand how people arrive at
their positions, but we can share with each other and gain an
understanding of what God has for us as a family."

"Unity is a gospel imperative, and disunity is always a major hindrance
to evangelism," said Coffey after his election as president, succeeding
retired South Korean pastor Billy Kim.

"Too often, the world is more aware of what the church is against than
what it is for, and this is no strategy for winning lost people to Jesus
Christ," Coffey said. "We need to be more like Jesus, to earn the
reputation of being friends to sinners and to give ourselves in
sacrificial service for a broken world."

One of the world's most prominent Baptists, former U.S. President Jimmy
Carter, said the desire for oneness is a powerful force for global good
among all Christians. "There is an intense hunger among Christians
around the world for a healing of the differences that now separate us
from one another," Carter, one of the keynote speakers, told reporters.

Those Christians "are looking for a single voice, a common understanding
and friendship, and [want] to put aside the divisions that plague our
faith," said Carter, a keynote speaker for the congress.

Differences of belief -- even among Muslims, Jews and Christians -- are
outweighed by a common commitment "to truth, to justice, to benevolence,
to compassion, to generosity and to love," Carter said.

In a Bible study for all delegates July 31, Carter said division is like
a cancer that is metastasizing within the body of Christ, presenting a
negative image of Christians to the world that is "directly opposite the
gentle aspect of the one we have chosen to worship."

It is a common mistake "either to liberalize and dilute the gospel so it
becomes meaningless" or to add to the gospel, constructing creeds, and
imposing them on others, he said. He warned of the "rigidity, domination
and exclusion" that typifies fundamentalist movements but which tempts
all Christians.

Carter suggested that kind of spirit has infected the U.S.-based
Southern Baptist Convention, which last year withdrew from the Baptist
World Alliance, which it helped found, charging the group with
liberalism.

"I have been grieved in the last few years because some differences
which I don't totally comprehend have separated us from the Southern
Baptist Convention," Carter said. "None of these differences are enough
to prevent reconciliation," Carter said. "I hope and pray we will be
reunited with them and with other Baptists," he said, to applause.

The most important belief Christians share is "we are saved by the grace
of God through faith in Jesus Christ," Carter said. "This is adequate as
a foundation on which every Christian denomination on earth can
unite...."

Instead, he continued, "We start dividing ourselves over tiny
definitions." He cited as an example the "continued practice of
discriminating against women, depriving them of their ability to serve
God."

Carter cited Paul's statement in Galatians 3:28: "There is no longer Jew
or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and
female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus." If being Jew or Greek,
slave or free does not impact one's equal opportunity to serve Christ,
then being male or female shouldn't either, Carter said.

Later in a press conference, Coffey said Carter did not suggest BWA
should promote women's ordination. BWA grants all member unions the
"freedom of conscience" either to ordain women or not to, as Carter
"rightly did affirm," Coffey said. He added he did not know what
fraction of BWA unions permit women's ordination.

Rick Warren, the other keynote speaker, likewise affirmed that Baptists
from around the world can "have unity without uniformity." Warren,
pastor of Saddleback Community Church in Lake Forest, Calif., told
reporters the withdrawal of Southern Baptists from BWA was a "silly"
mistake. "I see absolutely zero reason in separating my fellowship from
anybody," he declared.

"God has called us to enjoy and fellowship with each other and work
together. We're all in this together," he said, adding Baptists can
"celebrate our diversity and celebrate our unity."

To mark their 100th anniversary, the Baptist World Alliance adopted a
new identity statement that embraces traditional orthodox beliefs, and
which BWA leaders hope will be used to clarify Baptist beliefs for other
Christians and non-believers.

Titled "Message from the Centenary Congress," it is the first statement
of faith created by world Baptist leaders since one adopted in
Stockholm, Sweden, in 1923, according to Keith Jones, who chaired a
committee of Baptist theologians and scholars which formulated the
statement.

"We, recognizing that this is a partial and incomplete confession of
faith, boldly declare that we believe the truth is found in Jesus Christ
as revealed in the Holy Scriptures," the statement says in part. The
Scriptures "have supreme authority as the written Word of God and are
fully trustworthy for faith and conduct."

The statement was adopted July 27 by the BWA's General Council, the
world fellowship's decision-making body. It was "received" by the BWA's
Congress on July 30, when a printed copy of the statement was
distributed to delegates without debate.

Although the statement comes not long after the withdrawal of the
Southern Baptist Convention, which charged the world organization with
liberal theology, BWA leaders said it should not be regarded as a
response to allegations. "This was on the stocks long before those
recent events," said Coffey.

But Lotz, in an indirect allusion to SBC's departure, stressed BWA must
not allow others to define it. "We believe in Jesus Christ, the sole
Savior sufficient for salvation," he said. "To accuse the BWA of not
believing the Bible is comparable to accusing a mother of not loving her
child."

Also during the General Council meeting, representatives approved BWA
membership for three new unions -- one from Africa and two state
conventions from the United States.

The Baptist General Convention of Texas and Baptist General Association
of Virginia have worked to achieve BWA membership since the Southern
Baptist Convention started distancing itself from the organization.
Because most churches in the Texas and Virginia conventions also
affiliate with the SBC, its withdrawal left those congregations without
a "channel of fellowship with Baptists around the world," said Alistair
Brown, who chairs the BWA's membership committee.

In withdrawing, the SBC also ended its $425,000 annual contribution to
the BWA -- overwhelmingly the largest contribution of any member union.
But BWA executive Lotz said North American churches -- most of them SBC
affiliates -- had given $500,000 this year, more than enough to replace
the loss.

Virginia's annual contribution of about $150,000 now makes it the
largest member giver to the BWA worldwide. Texas is a close second with
about a $129,000 annual contribution.

Emboldened by the positive financial report, the General Council
approved a 2006 budget of $2,345,275, an increase over 2005's $1,974,773
budget.

BWA also introduced a five-year emphasis on evangelism, under the theme,
"Jesus Christ, Living Water," which also served as the theme for the
Birmingham congress. With drama, video and preaching, the delegates
considered the centrality and life-giving nature of Jesus. "As water is
essential to life, so is salvation," said outgoing president Billy Kim
in a sermon July 27.

The 13,000 delegates did more than celebrate their togetherness. They
met daily for Bible study and attended daily workshops, which focused on
church-based needs like evangelism and church growth, as well as some of
the most pressing global problems -- health care, poverty, AIDS, human
trafficking and religious persecution. Baptists seeking solutions to
those problems offered advice and instruction.

For example, in Calcutta, India, approximately 6,000 women work in
prostitution, often sold into slavery by a family member, one workshop
leader explained. A Baptist ministry called Freeset helps prostitutes
find work by offering them another business -- making straw bags. "If
you were to hang out with Jesus, you would have to spend time with the
poor," said New Zealand Baptist Kerry Hilton, who moved to Calcutta to
help the women trapped in the "human misery trade."

-30-

-- Marv Knox, John Hall, Tony Cartledge, Trennis Henderson, Ken Camp and
Robert Dilday contributed to this article.

intelligent design

Bush endorses 'intelligent design'being taught in public schools

By Robert Marus

WASHINGTON (ABP) -- President Bush endorsed the teaching of "intelligent
design" on an equal level with natural selection in a roundtable
interview with reporters from Texas newspapers Aug. 1.

Bush said students should be exposed to the theory, which posits that
biological evidence suggests life is too complex to have evolved without
an intelligent designer, presumably a divine creator.

"I think that part of education is to expose people to different schools
of thought," Bush said, according to the Knight-Ridder news service.
"[If] you're asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to
different ideas, the answer is yes," he continued.

Intelligent design is different from creationism, which seeks to
disprove the entire theory of evolution in favor of a religious account
of the origins of life. The theory has gained prominence in recent
years, as many conservative Christians have encouraged its teaching in
public schools.

According to Knight-Ridder, Bush declined to offer his personal views on
creationism versus evolution. When he was governor of Texas, he endorsed
teaching creationism alongside evolution. But the courts have ruled such
teaching an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.

Biologists, anthropologists and other scientists have attacked
intelligent design as gussied-up creationism and an attempt to inject
faith-based theories into a science curriculum. However, the philosophy
enjoys the support of many more mainstream scientists than does
creationism.

"President Bush is to be commended for defending free speech on
evolution, and supporting the right of students to hear about different
scientific views about evolution," said John West of the Seattle-based
Discovery Institute, in a statement on Bush's comments. West's
organization describes itself as "the nation's leading think tank
supporting research on the theory of intelligent design."

But a 1999 assessment by the National Academy of Sciences said the
theory of intelligent design is not germane to a science class setting.
"The claim that equity demands balanced treatment of evolutionary theory
and special creation in science classrooms reflects a misunderstanding
of what science is and how it is conducted," the study said.
"Creationism, intelligent design, and other claims of supernatural
intervention in the origin of life or of species are not science because
they are not testable by the methods of science."

The head of a group that opposes government incursion into religious
affairs condemned Bush's remarks Aug. 2. "Bush has used his presidential
pulpit to advance the ludicrous notion that evolution is in controversy
and that 'intelligent design' is legitimate science," read a statement
from Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
"Surely, he knows that most religious people see no conflict between
Bible teachings and the evidence of science."

thinking about that day...

You know, Trish and I will be celebrating our first wedding anniversary in a couple of months. I have been thinking about it more and more lately. I hope we get to do something special.

I was showing someone a few of the wedding photos this morning...mostly to demonstrate that I did actually have short hair in the autumn. This picture is one of my favorites. Trish grabbed my butt at the kiss. It was an impromptu expression of our shared insanity. What can I say? We had a good time. My brother, the one with his head bowed, tried not to be embarassed for the whole family. No such luck.

a new blog

Well, this is cool. Put it on your blogroll and jack up the traffic!