Psalm 23, for chemotherapy
Loving God, ultimate protector,
Magazine
We are all Virginians
ENI — “The escalation of gun violence compels us to call for an end to the manufacture and easy distribution of instruments of destruction,” said Rev. Robert Edgar, the general secretary of the US National Council of Churches after the killings at Virginia Tech University. “A faith that expresses compassion for all God's children is opposed to violence in all forms.”
A Tasty Morsel
Go ahead! Eat each and every page from Introduction to the last little morsel.
Yodeler's Patience
I could sense his presence long before I could see him. The spring sunshine had a cast to it that seemed to make my binoculars crystal clear. Feeling his presence, I slowly glassed the meadow all around me, then the forested edge and finally the steep hill behind the small marsh to the east. There were birds everywhere, but I sensed something more than birds. Letting the field glasses dangle around my neck, I sat back on my heels in the cover of some willow scrub at the meadow's edge.
Canadian Presbyterian at International Reformed Meeting
A gathering of 30 pastors from 16 countries met in Geneva in April to forge connections, reignite relationships and discuss the role of large, influential congregations in today's Reformed churches. Rev. Dr. Richard Topping, minister at St. Andrew and St. Paul, Montreal, lecturer at The Presbyterian College, and co-author of Together in Ministry: The Theology and Practice of Ministry, attended the meetings on behalf of The Presbyterian Church in Canada.
Nova Scotia Gets Canada's First Fair Trade Town
Canada's first Fair Trade Town is Wolfville, N.S., as designated by TransFair Canada, an organization that certifies fair trade products. The idea was adapted from an initiative in England started in 1999. It didn't take long for the idea to spread, and the UK now has more than 200 of these towns, with more sprinkled throughout Europe and the United States. Fair trade ensures farmers (often living in developing countries) are paid a fair price for their product.
Seek and Ye Shall Find
The Holographic Reading Club meets every Tuesday, and one evening the subject turned to Christian Fiction.
It takes personality
I recently took a personality indicator test widely used to help people understand themselves and others a bit better. It's the fourth time I've taken one of these, of which there are several different types, in the past 20 or so years. The test is a non-judgemental exercise that places each individual on a grid relative to others giving an indication of preferences for things like, say, whether you get energized from being with others or by yourself or whether you prefer a more orderly life to spontaneity.
Baptisms for everyone
ENI — Eleven German denominations, including Protestant, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Anglican churches, have formally recognized each other's baptism, in German.
They Cause Us to Despair
“In centuries past, influential Christian thinkers … have penned literature that continues to influence Christians today. The Foundations of Faith series unearths these works for a new audience of twentysomethings hungry for revolutionary material that speaks to their lives…” So reads the back cover of each book in this new series. The goal, clearly, is to get theological/spiritual classics read by a younger generation.
Becoming Heroes
When my sons were little
Mission Takes Centre Stage at Toronto Event
Bridlewood Presbyterian, Toronto, has been involved with MissionFest Toronto, in one way or another, since its inception in 1995. The latest event, held in March, was the biggest yet, attracting 22,000 participants and relying on 230 volunteers. MFT has grown to over 200 exhibitors, 40 seminars, concerts and special programs. As a former director of MFT, I have attended each year and am encouraged by the increasing number of missions (like Yonge Street Mission and The Scott Mission, two inner-city ministries supported by various Presbyterian congregations), which present their ministries in varied formats. Other Presbyterian churches that supported the event include Smyrna Korean, Etobicoke, St. Andrew's Islington, Toronto, Toronto Korean Yum Kwang, Markham, Young Nak Korean, North York, and Light Korean, Toronto.
Rev. Dr. T. Melville Bailey
Rev. Dr. John Johnston, January Will and Rev. Stephen Kendall unveil a portrait of Will's father, Rev. Dr. T. Melville Bailey during the dedication of the church's national archive's reading room in Bailey's name in late April. Bailey was the irrepressible force behind the creation of the archives (and the museum, which Johnston oversees). Bailey's historical interests included his church and his beloved hometown of Hamilton, Ont. A park there will be named after him on June 23.
Warmly Welcomed, Truly Blessed
This will be the last time you will hear from me under the heading of Message From The Moderator. The year has gone quickly and I want to take this opportunity to thank congregations, presbyteries, presbyterials, synods and synodicals, as well as individuals for the kindness they have shown me. I have such wonderful memories of my time visiting across the Church. I have been warmly welcomed. I have been truly blessed.
God of Calvary's Grief and Glory
God of Calvary's grief and glory,
Masterton joins Justice Ministries
Katharine Masterton has been named the new program coordinator for Justice Ministries, after serving in the position on a contract basis since last August. She had been filling in for Gail Turner, who was recovering from surgery after an extensive illness. Turner decided to retire as of April 30, turning Masterton's position into a permanent one. She brings a keen interest in public justice issues to this post, is a graduate of Carleton University with a Bachelor of Humanities degree, and is a member of Unionville Presbyterian Church.
Seven Juicy Subjects
That Phyllis Tickle is absolutely smart; and a fun writer to read. Her introduction to her slim volume, Greed, is worth the price for the whole package. (That could be said for any one of these books.) She runs through a history of Christianity, bringing it to our world today: “This culture [is] faced with issues of human responsibility and training and social management, even of human manipulation, for which no prior intellectual guidelines exist and for where there is not yet a fully realized shared imagination.” Yup, that pretty much sums it up — the Reformation is done, Christendom is gone, the landscape has shifted. Infused with knowledge from science, psychology, medicine, from other social and political sciences our understanding of religion is brought into sharper focus. (See the Letters to the Editor in this magazine the last few months as readers discuss the Virgin Birth as metaphor.)
Opt-Out is Underway
A national advertising campaign kicked off in April to provide notice and inform former students of Indian residential schools of their right to decline the overall settlement agreement between government, churches and Aboriginal Peoples. The optout period for potential claimants will end on Aug. 20. The revised agreement will see lump sum payments distributed to all former students, with extra compensation for cases of serious abuse. The agreement also includes funds for national commemoration events, and a truth and reconciliation commission. If 5000 opt out the agreement will not proceed.
Record takes firsts at CCP
The Record received four first place citations at the Canadian Church Press 50th anniversary awards, in May.
Learning to Walk
My angel daughter grabs my omelet with both fists and hangs it from her little brother. Within seconds, milk is everywhere. Plates crash to the floor. Hollering ensues: the kind that peels paint from walls. I stand quickly to resolve the situation, banging my left knee hard on the underside of the table. Clutching at the wound, I accidentally smack my knuckles on the sharp table edge