*****
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 Colleagues:
As we move through the weeks of the
Advent preparation, I hope you are
finding good ways to anticipate Christmas.
Last Sunday, Marlene and I attended the
annual Festival of Advent Lessons and Carols
at Christ Church (Anglican) here in Calgary.
For me, this is the way to begin the Season!
Thanks to the people of Christ Church for
offering this splendid event!
http://christchurchcalgary.org/
--
My Special Item this week is a book notice for -
"Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments
of Grace" by author Anne Lamott, a popular
favourite.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Lamott
http://tinyurl.com/kn3lsat
To read about Anne Lamott, her new book
and to see my notice, please scroll down.
--
Colleague Contributions this week are from
Martin Marty (Chicago, IL) -
who reflects on - "Malaise in Europe"
http://tinyurl.com/ldcb427
Jim Taylor (Okanagan, BC) -
who questions - "Who Owns the Stars?"
http://tinyurl.com/m4ofhz2 (and)
Ron Rolheiser (San Antonio, TX) -
who writes about -
"Self-Sacrifice and the Eurcharist"
http://tinyurl.com/lr7e38m
--
Net Notes:
"The 'O' Antiphons" - enjoy a meditation
preparation for the mystery of Incarnation by
Thomas Turner (Englewood Review of Books)
http://tinyurl.com/no722hr
"Gandhi Before India" - a Top 100 Best Books
Selection 2014 - tells of the Mahatma's early
development while in South Africa
(New York Times Review of Books)
http://tinyurl.com/m6jl28o
"Turkey Plays a Key Role" - the pope
concluded his visit to Turkey this past week
and here are some related articles
(The Tablet, UK, Catholic News Service,
National Catholic Reporter)
http://tinyurl.com/k7rgvxy
http://tinyurl.com/pkl24ty
http://tinyurl.com/l9hppcp
"Why Everyone Loves Francis" - this article
is of special significance because of its
source (Christianity Today)
http://tinyurl.com/py6jclz
"Wheat People Vs. Rice People" - an
intriguing parable on two different
ways humans eat their meals together
(New York Times Opinion)
http://tinyurl.com/pkrjcwv
"Is Rob Bell Still an Evangelical?" - after his
book "Love Wins" appeared several years ago,
a reflection on his thought and how it has
been evolving (The Christian Post)
http://tinyurl.com/layw6p7
"Christ Cathedral Gets Anonymous $20M" -
we have continued our report on the transition
of the Crystal to Christ Cathedral in S. California
and here is an update on developments there
(The Christian Post) http://tinyurl.com/lodu3et
"Muhammad - Top Name for English Babies" -
a report on social and cultural change in
England with this article on boys' names there
(The Guardian, UK) http://tinyurl.com/mj4abzz
"Huge Sum Found on Vatican Balance Sheet" -
as the Vatican's books are under growing
scrutiny and transparency, an interesting
discovery (UCA News)
http://tinyurl.com/neb2zjf
"Religious Leaders Aim to Eradicate Slavery" -
an important announcement this week on
global inter-faith justice developments
(America Magazine)
http://tinyurl.com/pdw42z8
--
Wisdom of the Week:
Provided by Sojourners and the Bruderhof online -
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Black Elk,
Martin Luther King Jr. and Madeleine L'Engle
- offer their wisdom for our benefit.
Please scroll down to read them.
--
On This Day:
Is provided from the archives
of the New York Times -
"Clinton First US President to Visit Ulster"
http://tinyurl.com/kkco3up
"Antarctica Made a Science Preserve"
http://tinyurl.com/qj3dbl9
--
My Closing Thought this week is by Ken Walsh
To read it, scroll down to the end of the blog.
(end)
If you are interested in our new year programs,
of the ACTS Ministry at St. David's United Calgary,
please view this below, after the Closing Thought.
Winter 2015 Adult Spiritual Development
ACTS Ministry Programs at St. David's
and at the University of Calgary
**********
SPECIAL ITEM
Book Notice -
SMALL VICTORIES
Spotting Improbable
Moments of Grace,
by Ann Lamott
Riverhead Books, 2014
286 pages. $16.50 CAD
ISBN #10: 1594486296
--
Publisher's Promo:
From the bestselling author of "Stitches" and
"Help Thanks, Wow" comes her long-awaited
collection of new and selected essays on hope,
joy, and grace.
Anne Lamott writes about faith, family, and
community in essays that are both wise and
irreverent. It’s an approach that has become
her trademark. Now in Small Victories, Lamott
offers a new message of hope that celebrates
the triumph of light over the darkness in our
lives. Our victories over hardship and pain may
seem small, she writes, but they change our
perceptions, our perspectives, and our lives.
Lamott writes of forgiveness, restoration, and
transformation, how we can turn toward love
even in the most hopeless situations, how we
find the joy in getting lost and our amazement
in finally being found.
Profound and hilarious, honest and unexpected,
the stories in Small Victories are proof that the
human spirit is irrepressible.
--
Author's bio:
Anne Lamott is an American novelist and non-
fiction writer. She is also a progressive political
activist, public speaker, and writing teacher.
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, her
nonfiction works are largely autobiographical.
Marked by their self-deprecating humor and
openness, Lamott's writings cover such subjects
as alcoholism, single-motherhood, depression,
and Christianity.
Wikipedia bio:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Lamott
--
Author's Words:
The worst thing you can do when you're down in
the dumps... is to take a walk with dying friends.
... They bust you by being grateful for the day
while you are obsessed with how thin your lashes
have become and how wide your bottom...
I've gotten lost all of my life, maybe more than
most, and been found every time. Even though I
believe that the soul is immortal and grace bats
last, I'm afraid (as my friends Suzie and Barbara
are on a walk with me in the forest) that Barbara
is going to die and Suzie will be all alone...
I have a lot of faith and a lot of fear a lot of the time.
Barbara pointed to her ear, and we stopped to listen,
to the tinkle of the creek, and all the voices of the
water... Every sound is by definition a stop, which
is how we can hear it...
We were walking in step with Barbara. as she held
on to her conveyance, and I felt myself take on all
the qualities that Barbara brought to the day,
a fraught joy and awareness...
When my son was six or seven, and realized that
he and I were not going to die at the exact same
moment, he cried for a while and then said that if
he had known this, he wouldn't have agreed to be
born.
... into every life crap will fall. Most of us do
as well as possible, and some of it works okay and
we try to release that which doesn't and which is
never going to... Making so much of it work is the
grace of it; and not being able to make it work
is double grace. Grace squared.
Redefinition (of our lives) is a nightmare. We
think we've arrived... then something happens
that totally sucks, and we are in a new box, and
it is like changing into clothes that don't fit,
that we hate... (Life) however, is malleable... but
then it's gone. We can mourn it, but we don't
have to get down in the grave with it...
(My friend Barbara helped me understand this
today, even though she didn't say a word.)
- from Prelude: Victory Lap (book intro)
--
My Thoughts:
Anne Lamott writes great theology and spirituality
even though she would never claim she does. The
truth is, many appreciate that, and await each new
title she publishes, because she makes theology
and spirituality meaningful.
Her published writings during 35 years come in
in both fiction and non-fiction form and they reveal
a maturation and growth resulting from her varied
experiences (which she amply documents).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Lamott
The sub-title of this book says it all. "Spotting
Improbable Moments of Grace." Great spiritual
writers have often picked up on that theme so
the genre is not new. Only the particulars of
this author are splendidly unique.
My comments on Lamott's writing are a poor
substitute to actually securing a book like this
and reading it for yourself. Time and again she
connects with her readers, even if their personal
experiences may differ.
As with many of the others she's written, I
can only say - borrow or buy this book. It will
most likely enhance meaning in your life - and
that includes both the good and the bad parts.
--
Buy the book from Amazon.ca:
http://tinyurl.com/kn3lsat
*****
COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS
MARTIN MARTY
Chicago IL
Sightings
December 1st, 2014
"Malaise in Europe"
http://tinyurl.com/ldcb427
--
JIM TAYLOR
Okanagan, BC
Personal Weblog
December 1st, 2014
"Who Owns the Stars?"
http://tinyurl.com/m4ofhz2
--
RON ROLHEISER
San Antonio, TX
Personal Web Log
December 1st, 2014
"Self-Sacrifice and the Eurcharist"
http://tinyurl.com/lr7e38m
*****
NET NOTES
THE 'O' ANTIPHONS
The Mystery of Incarnation
Essay by Thomas Turner
Englewood Review of Books
December 5th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/no722hr
--
GANDHI BEFORE INDIA
The Making of a Leader
New York Times Review of Books
May 8th, 2014/December 7th, 2014
Rated One of This Year's "100 Best Books"
http://tinyurl.com/m6jl28o
--
TURKEY PLAYS A KEY ROLE
Pope Challenges "Regional Peacemaker"
The Tablet, UK
November 28th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/k7rgvxy
"Pope and Patriarch Pray for Unity"
Catholic News Service Video
December 2nd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/pkl24ty
--
"Pope Visits Unseen Christian Community"
National Catholic Reporter
November 27th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/l9hppcp
--
WHY EVERYONE LOVES FRANCIS
His Appeal is Broad and Inclusive
Christianity Today
December 2nd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/py6jclz
--
WHEAT PEOPLE VS. RICE PEOPLE
Some More Individualistic than Others
New York Times Opinion
December 3rd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/pkrjcwv
--
IS ROB BELL STILL AN EVANGELICAL?
Author of "Love Wins" Explains
The Christian Post
December 4th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/layw6p7
--
CATHEDRAL GETS ANONYMOUS $20M
Crystal Cathedral Now Catholic Cathedral
The Christian Post
December 5th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/lodu3et
--
MUHAMMAD TOP NAME FOR ENGLISH BABIES
Survey Discovers Popular Boy's Name
The Guardian, UK
November 30th, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/mj4abzz
--
HUGE SUM FOUND ON VATICAN BALANCE SHEET
Statement by Cardinal Doing Financial Cleanup
UCA News
December 5th, 20124
http://tinyurl.com/neb2zjf
--
RELIGIOUS LEADERS AIM TO ERADICATE SLAVERY
Set 2020 as Their Inter-Faith Justice Commitment
America Magazine
December 2nd, 2014
http://tinyurl.com/pdw42z8
*****
WISDOM OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners online:
Not everyone can wait: neither the sated nor
the satisfied nor those without respect can wait.
The only ones who can wait are people who
carry restlessness around with them.
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer
--
The Holy Land is everywhere.
- Black Elk
--
[The person] who accepts evil without
protesting against it is really cooperating
with it.
- Martin Luther King Jr.
--
| Often we stumble along, not knowing where we’re going, but understanding t hat the journey is worth it because Jesus took it for us, shared it with us. Because the immortal God became mortal, we all share in the immortality as well as the mortality.…To believe that the universe was created by a purposeful, benign Creator is one thing. To believe that this Creator took on human vesture, accepted death and mortality, was tempted, betrayed, broken, and all for love of us, defies reason. Madeleine L'Engle |
*****
ON THIS DAY
Provided from the archives
of the New York Times
"Clinton First US President to Visit Ulster"
http://tinyurl.com/kkco3up
"Antarctica Made a Science Preserve"
http://tinyurl.com/qj3dbl9
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT - Ken Walsh
No matter what field your work lies in
If you do something real
Something genuine in that field,
It will live on after you
And that part of you will be eternal.
(end)
*******
Winter 2015 Adult Spiritual Development
ACTS Ministry Programs at St. David's
and at the University of Calgary:
MONDAY NIGHT STUDY - WINTER SERIES
January 12nd – March 23rd, 2015
7-00-9:00PM TM Room. Ten Weeks.
(Family Day Monday exempted)
“Fields of Blood: Religion and
the History of Violence”
by Karen Armstrong
Led by Jock McTavish and Wayne Holst
Registration $60.00. Book only $25.00
---
THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDYJanuary 15th - April 2nd, 2015. Twelve Weeks.
10:00-11:00AM TM Room
(Biblical study theme selected at first session)
Led by Wayne Holst
No charge.
Study resource -
The DK Complete Bible Handbook
http://tinyurl.com/odxlv7q
---
ST. DAVID'S SPIRITUAL TRAVELERS'
SPECIAL 2015 SIXTEEN DAY TOUR
"Jerusalem and the Land of Three Great Faiths"
October 16th - 31st, 2015
Tour Company: Rostad Tours Calgary
Tour Hosts: Wayne and Marlene Holst
Sponsored by: St. David's ACTS Ministry
Endorsed by: St. David's Church Council
(Tour itinerary/costs brochure
available early in the new year)
---
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY
FAITH AND SPIRITUALITY CENTRE
Interfaith Chaplains' Book Studies
for faculty, students, staff, and
campus guests - Winter, 2015
A Book Study Co-Sponsored by:
The Faith and Spirituality Centre,
University of Calgary and
The ACTS Ministry,
St. David's United Church, Calgary
Native Centre Board Room
McEwan Student Centre
Fridays, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
Feb. 20th, 27th, March 6th, 13th, 20th
The study takes place during five Friday
sessions. Book to be selected by electronic
vote of those who are interested in joining
the study.
Participants are encouraged to attend
all five sessions. However, you may attend
one or more sessions on a drop-in basis.
Study Leader: Dr. Wayne A. Holst
Book cost $15.00
*****
SPECIAL 2015 SIXTEEN DAY TOUR
"Jerusalem and the Land of Three Great Faiths"
October 16th - 31st, 2015
Tour Company: Rostad Tours Calgary
Tour Hosts: Wayne and Marlene Holst
Sponsored by: St. David's ACTS Ministry
Endorsed by: St. David's Church Council
(Tour itinerary/costs brochure
available early in the new year)
---
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY
FAITH AND SPIRITUALITY CENTRE
Interfaith Chaplains' Book Studies
for faculty, students, staff, and
campus guests - Winter, 2015
A Book Study Co-Sponsored by:
The Faith and Spirituality Centre,
University of Calgary and
The ACTS Ministry,
St. David's United Church, Calgary
Native Centre Board Room
McEwan Student Centre
Fridays, 12:00 - 1:00 PM
Feb. 20th, 27th, March 6th, 13th, 20th
The study takes place during five Friday
sessions. Book to be selected by electronic
vote of those who are interested in joining
the study.
Participants are encouraged to attend
all five sessions. However, you may attend
one or more sessions on a drop-in basis.
Study Leader: Dr. Wayne A. Holst
Book cost $15.00
*****
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