*****
GLOBAL AND ECUMENICAL IN SCOPE
CANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE
Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address:
waholst@telus.net
Colleagues List Web Site:
http://colleagueslist.blogspot.com
"Quicklinks" are included with many items
at the beginning of this issue. To get a more
complete picture, however, scroll down to
find your special selection in the body of
the blog.
Note that not all items here have links.
*****
Dear Friends:
Since I sent out the last issue of
Colleagues List, two weeks ago,
- featuring the Lois Wilson book
"Feisty and Fearless" - I have had an
unusually high number of summer hits
on my website - just under 2,000!
I am sure Lois and biography author/
colleague Janice L. Meighan are pleased.
http://tinyurl.com/nvofppr
We are approaching the 100th anniversary
of the world Pentecostalist movement. It is
historically traced to Azusa Street, Los Angeles.
More on this significant church phenomenon
will appear in future issues of Colleagues List.
http://tinyurl.com/yjfc4c4
--
My Special Item this week is a book notice
on the title:
"Proposals - Getting Started, Getting Better"
by colleague Isabel Gibson. I am pleased to
share this new title by a very faithful and
supportive member of our CL community
who makes her home in Ottawa.
http://tinyurl.com/ojbf6al
Please scroll down to read the book promo,
the author's, and my thoughts.
--
Colleague Contributions this week are from -
Jock McTavish - who shares material from the
the Palestinian doctor Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish -
"I Shall Not Hate" is the title of his book.
http://tinyurl.com/lj4cykt
https://twitter.com/DrAbuelaish
http://tinyurl.com/pekpcnj
Martin Marty - who writes on the project called
"Grace" - which stands against sexual abuse
http://tinyurl.com/pvz5boo
Jim Taylor - addresses the theme of "Followers"
and his personal views on alternative ways to truth
http://tinyurl.com/nvqrpcq
Ron Rolheiser - deals with the "Law of Karma"
http://tinyurl.com/kdg6rss
I appreciate all four of these contributions and
I believe you will too.
--
Net Notes this week are as follows -
"Strange Glory" - the review of a long-anticipated
biography on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer
appears (New York Times Review of Books)
http://tinyurl.com/ofmzwk7
"Growing in Prayer" - Rowan Williams, the
former Archbishop of Canterbury, writes on
Origen's influence (The Christian Century)
http://tinyurl.com/kqr5o22
"Francis Visits Pentecostal Church" - again, a
busy week for the pope who visited a Pentecostal
church in Italy, called his hosts brothers and
asked forgiveness (The Christian Post, Catholic
Culture.com and UCA News)
http://tinyurl.com/nobccss-
http://tinyurl.com/mam2xjv
http://tinyurl.com/p92ojah
http://tinyurl.com/kq7qjcs
"Francis Reinstates Revolutionary Priest" -
the pope is also shaking things up, internally
with some healing actions (Huffington Post)
http://tinyurl.com/kztd8e4
"Spain is not a 'Cemetery for Preachers'" -
an evangelical evangelist believes there is
hope for many in formally Catholic Spain
(The Christian Post)
http://tinyurl.com/on2nuhj
"Indigenous Anglicans Create Own Diocese" -
the native church in Canada's North keeps
showing signs of vitality (Christian Week)
http://tinyurl.com/m8h7eqc-
"Major Religious Displacement and Refugees" -
we are living in times of especially large numbers
of global Christian refugees (International)
http://tinyurl.com/lyzcp6n
"Stanley Hauerwas on Prayer and Jean Vanier" -
a heartening reflection on what L'Arche people
have taught this famous theologian (a video
presentation from Englewood Review of Books)
http://tinyurl.com/ol6bmou
"Canadian Evangelicals are a Convenient Target" -
the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada claims that
the abortion debate in Canada has shown some
strongly anti-evangelical sentiment (Activate)
http://tinyurl.com/q5e3pxy
"Deep Trends Affecting Religious Institutions Today"
- a penetrating article on how secularized society
is influencing contemporary religious organizations
(Faith and Leadership/Alban Journal)
http://tinyurl.com/k9hsdg3
"How LGBT Students are Changing Christian Colleges"
- another valuable article on how gay communities
are influencing Christian colleges in America today
(The Atlantic Online)
http://tinyurl.com/mnm4dac
"Canada Can Do More to Help Iraqi Religious Refugees"
- the RC Archbishop of Toronto, Thomas Collins, is
attempting to call Canadians to an awareness of
what we can all do to help Iraq's Christian refugees
(Globe and Mail, The Guardian UK, Al Jazeera)
http://tinyurl.com/lwbxwjn
http://tinyurl.com/nvlqrxa
http://tinyurl.com/o77lwd2
--
Wisdom of the Week is provided by Sojourners
and the Bruderhof online, and include the following -
Leymah Gbowee, Oscar Romero, Philip Yancey,
Kahlil Gibran, Aung San Suu Kyi, Wangari Maathai,
Jean Vanier, Madeleine L’Engle and Keshavan Nair
Please scroll down to read these insights.
--
On This Day:
July 27th-August 9th
"Charles and Diana Wed at St. Paul's"
http://tinyurl.com/lkgqa3a
"UK Declares War on Germany in WWI"
http://tinyurl.com/m6o3yuk
"US Drops First Atomic Bomb on Japan"
http://tinyurl.com/dhzpn9
"Second Atomic Bomb Dropped on Japan"
http://tinyurl.com/nbxyvr
--
Closing Thought - this week is from
longstanding contributor Henri Nouwen.
August blessings to all of you my readers!
Wayne
(end)
**********
SPECIAL ITEM
Book Notice -
PROPOSALS
Getting Started, Getting Better
by colleague Isabel Gibson
General Store Publishing House
Renfrew, ON. 2014. 302 pages. Paper.
$25.00 CAD. ISBN #978-1-77123-070-4
Publisher's Promo:
Every year, contracts totaling more
than $30 billion are awarded in Canada
through Request for Proposals and
tenders: community and research
projects, and products and services
required by the private sector and all
levels of governments. At any given
time, MERX, the major Canadian bidding
agency for government opportunities,
has between 1,700 and 2,500 listings,
so it pays to get it right.
But getting it right isn't easy.
Proposals present a perfect storm of a
work environment: The stakes are high,
the teams are unprepared, the time is short.
This book helps newbies get started, teaching
them how to survive. It helps old hands get
better, showing them how to thrive. And it
shows companies and organizations how to
produce superior proposals while looking
after their people. Proposals: Getting Started,
Getting Better - applies proven principles in
marketing, marketing communication, project
management, and team management to the
challenge of preparing effective and on-time
responses to Request for Proposals.
Its unique contribution is its focus on the
success of every member of the proposal
team, from executives to formatters.
Author's Words:
Proposals are simple. Using the various sections
of the Request for Proposals (REP), clients tell
us what product of service they want, what the
contractual relationship will be, how we can
present our proposal, and how they will evaluate
it. Using that information, we make a plan to give
them what thy want, write a fully costed proposal
that describes this plan, and submit our proposal to
meet the hard deadline. It sounds simple enough.
At the thirty-thousand-foot-level, it is simple:
it just isn't easy or simple on the ground.
Why not? Would that it were just one or two things:
that we could handle. Unfortunately there are many
reasons why it gets ugly on the ground.
Some drive uncertainty and risk, some just drive
work. (There are input and output factors.)
If you've been tapped on the shoulder to work
on a proposal, you might be thinking, "Now what?"
or even "Please, not me!" Proposals are notorious
for burning people out, and at a minimum can
certainly be miserable: a mad scramble to meet
the deadline, amid conflict within the team.
But proposals can also be satisfying: the knowledge
of a job well done, with a team that clicks.
Is there a way to transform potential misery into
actual satisfaction, not just for yourself but for
the entire team?
Yes!
Distilling my twenty-five plus years in Proposal
Land this book orients newbies to the basics and
alerts adepts to things I learned the hard way.
Drawing on my specialty it has a particular
emphasis on proposal writing and editing, but
includes tips on a range of proposal management
topics:
*Managing proposal teams
*Scheduling
*Understanding the requirement
*Developing and effectively presenting solutions
*Handling reviews
*Producing a great document on time
And all without having - or causing -
any heart attacks!
- from the Introduction
--
My Thoughts:
About a year ago, our adult ministry committee
at my church entertained a proposal from a member
of our congregation to consider a new dimension of
our spiritual development program. It had to do with
a venture into the area of congregational retreats.
We had not "done" retreats for some time in the
life of our community. The idea was a good one, but
how to get a better handle on it?
Fortunately, the member had considerable experience
in proposal writing as a result of her extensive
background in international development with a
local NGO as well as the University of Calgary.
What a joy to consider her idea, as it was presented
and developed in a formal proposal. She obviously
had to translate some of her program ideas from
her vocational world to our congregational one.
Still, we were impressed with the clarity and practical
possibilities she presented in her three-page document
It was well-written, and anticipated many of the
challenges and opportunities we would encounter
if we undertook this new venture (for us.)
She even went to the trouble of approaching three
area retreat centres to compare and contrast their
respective abilities to handle our needs.
The result was a Lenten retreat at Mt. St. Francis
Centre, west of Calgary. 25 people participated,
and evaluated the event by asking for more!
Many factors played into our 'new' retreat
venture, but a big contributor was the clarity of
purpose and program entailed in the original
proposal.
--
I don't need to be convinced by author Isabel
Gibson about the value of good, customised
proposal-writing for our life in adult ministry
in a church setting. The person that "knew
the ropes" from her field of international
development could help us make good decisions
for spiritual programing in our local congregation.
--
I am pleased to recommend Isabel Gibson's
new book on proposal-writing - not only because
she is a friend, but also because of things I read
in her book that can help me in my ministry.
At the same time, I can imagine many other
organizations and persons involved, benefitting
from the author's extensive experience.
Proposal writing has never been a great thrill
for me during my career. Still, it is so necessary,
and I am glad that Isabel Gibson has put a lot
of her experience into such readable and even
enjoyable language for many people.
--
Buy the book from Amazon.ca:
http://tinyurl.com/ojbf6al
*****
COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS
JOCK McTAVISH
Calgary, AB.
Here's an update on Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish,
the author of "I Shall Not Hate - a Gaza Doctor's
Journey" and recent winner of the U of C Peace
Prize, and his twitter page.
Globe and Mail, July 18th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/lj4cykt
https://twitter.com/DrAbuelaish
- and for those who have not read his book,
here is a TED talk from U of Waterloo where he
speaks of his tragedy and why he will not hate.
http://tinyurl.com/pekpcnj
--
MARTIN MARTY
Chicago, Il.
Sightings
July 28th, 2014
"GRACE - Against Sex Abuse"
http://tinyurl.com/pvz5boo
--
JIM TAYLOR
Okanagan, BC
Personal Web Log
August 6th, 2014
"Followers -
Seeking Alternative Routes to Truth"
http://tinyurl.com/nvqrpcq
--
RON ROLHEISER
San Antonio, TX
Personal Website
August 3rd, 2014
"The Law of Karma"
http://tinyurl.com/kdg6rss
*****
NET NOTES
STRANGE GLORY
A Life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer
by Charles Marsh
New York Times Review of Books
August 10th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/ofmzwk7
--
GROWING IN PRAYER
Learning from Origen
Rowan Williams
Former Archbishop of Canterbury
The Christian Century
July 23rd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/kqr5o22
--
FRANCIS VISITS PENTECOSTAL CHURCH
Calls Hosts His Brothers
The Christian Post
July 29th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/nobccss
"Pope Apologizes to
Pentecostals, Evangelicals"
Catholic Culture.org
July 28th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/mam2xjv
"Evangelicals Praise the Pope"
The Christian Post
July 31st, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/p92ojah
"What's Behind Francis' Friendship
With Evangelicals?"
UCA News/Aletela International
July 31st, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/kq7qjcs
--
FRANCIS REINSTATES
REVOLUTIONARY PRIEST
He was previously removed
for his 'unacceptable' activity
Huffington Post Religion
August 5th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/kztd8e4
--
SPAIN IS NOT A
'CEMETERY FOR PREACHERS'
Pentecostalist Positive About
Evangelical Witness There
The Christian Post
August 9th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/on2nuhj
--
INDIGENOUS ANGLICANS
CREATE OWN DIOCESE
Taking Self-Responsibility
Christian Week
July 31st, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/m8h7eqc
--
ALL TIME HIGH FOR
RELIGIOUS DISPLACEMENT
Grim Reading from the
U.S. State Department
on Religious Refugees
International
July 29th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/lyzcp6n
--
STANEY HAUWERWAS
ON PRAYER AND JEAN VANIER
Youtube Talk on His L'Arche
Core Member Experience
July, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/ol6bmou
--
CANADIAN EVANGELICALS ARE
A CONVENIENT TARGET
Public Reaction to Prostitution Debate
Activate, Evangelical Fellowship of Canada
July, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/q5e3pxy
--
DEEP TRENDS AFFECTING
CHRISTIAN INSTITUTIONS
Five Key Factors Shaping
Our Churches Today
Faith and Leadership/Alban Journal
October, 2012/July, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/k9hsdg3
--
HOW LGBT STUDENTS ARE
CHANGING CHRISTIAN COLLEGES
Growing Visibility is Having
a Marked Campus Affect
The Atlantic Online
July 23rd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/mnm4dac
--
CANADIAN EVANGELICALS ARE
A CONVENIENT TARGET
Public Reaction to Prostitution Debate
Activate, Evangelical Fellowship of Canada
July, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/q5e3pxy
--
CANADA CAN DO MORE TO HELP
IRAQI RELIGIOUS REFUGEES
Toronto Archbishop Collins Writes
Globe and Mail
August 8th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/lwbxwjn
"Who are the Yazidis and
Why is Isis Hunting Them?"
The Guardian, UK
August 8th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/nvlqrxa
"Obama Authorizes Military Intervention"
Al Jazeera
August 8th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/o77lwd2
*****
WISDOM OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners
and Bruderhof online:
"You can tell people of the need to struggle,
but when the powerless start to see that they
really can make a difference, nothing can
quench the fire."
- Leymah Gbowee
--
"How easy it is to denounce structural
injustice, institutionalized violence, social
sin! And it is true, this sin is everywhere,
but where are the roots of this social sin?
In the heart of every human being.
Present-day society is a sort of anonymous
world In which no one is willing to admit
guilt, and everyone is responsible. We are
all sinners, and we have all contributed to t
his massive crime and violence in our country.
Salvation begins with the human person, with
human dignity, with saving every person from
sin."
- Oscar Romero
--
"How easily we forget that the church was
founded by disciples who betrayed their
master. None was willing to stand by Jesus
as the religious and political authorities
condemned him to death. At his moment
of greatest need, the disciples fled in the
darkness. The boldest of the lot, Peter,
was the very one who cursed and denied
him three times before the cock crew.
It was for traitors that Jesus died.
- Philip Yancey
--
"Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the
selfsame well from which your laughter rises
was oftentimes filled with your tears. And how
else can it be? The deeper that sorrow carves
into your being, the more joy you can contain…
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart
and you shall find it is only that which has given
you sorrow that is giving you joy."
- Kahlil Gibran
--
"The true measure of the justice of a system
is the amount of protection it guarantees to
the weakest."
- Aung San Suu Kyi
--
"In a few decades, the relationship between
the environment, resources and conflict may
seem almost as obvious as the connection
we see today between human rights,
democracy and peace."
- Wangari Maathai
--
A community is only being created when its
members accept that they are not going to
achieve great things, that they are not going
to be heroes, but simply live each day with
new hope, like children, in wonderment as
the sun rises and in thanksgiving as it sets.
Community is only being created when they
have recognized that greatness is to accept
our insignificance, our human condition, and
our earth, and to thank God for having put in
a finite body the seeds of eternity which are
visible in small and daily gestures of love
and forgiveness.
- Jean Vanier
--
"God will help us, even if it’s in an unexpected
and shocking way, by swooping down on us to
wrestle with us. And in the midst of the wrestling
we, too, will be able to cry out, “Bless me!” I am
certain that God will bless me, but I don’t need
to know how. When we think we know exactly
how the one who made us is going to take care
of us, we’re apt to ignore the angel messengers
sent us along the way".
- Madeleine L’Engle
--
"With courage you will dare to take risks,
have the strength to be compassionate
and the wisdom to be humble."
"Courage is the foundation of integrity."
- Keshavan Nair
*****
ON THIS DAY
July 28th - August 9th
From the archives of July 28th - August 9th
the New York Times
"Charles and Diana Wed at St. Paul's"
http://tinyurl.com/lkgqa3a
"UK Declares War on Germany in WWI"
http://tinyurl.com/m6o3yuk
"US Drops First Atomic Bomb on Japan"
http://tinyurl.com/dhzpn9
"Second Atomic Bomb Dropped on Japan"
http://tinyurl.com/nbxyvr
CLOSING THOUGHT - Henri Nouwen
For a long time, I sought safety and security
among the wise and clever, hardly aware that
the things of the Kingdom were revealed to
“little children”; that God has chosen “those
who by human standards are fools to shame
the wise.” But when I experienced the warm,
unpretentious reception of those who have
nothing to boast about, and experienced a
loving embrace from people who didn’t ask
any questions, I began to discover that a
true spiritual homecoming means a return
to the poor in spirit to whom the Kingdom
of Heaven belongs.
(end)
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