ENI – A proposal by Germany's family minister to triple the number of day care spots for young children by 2013 has led to disagreement between Protestant and Roman Catholic bishops. German day cares, known as crèches, are mostly run by churches or local authorities. There are few child-care facilities for children under three.
How can I help make a change for the better as an ordained minister of the church? How can my past experience help others find peace with God, with themselves and within their church family? How can I help others on their journey?
Golf is an irritating little sport that beckons us with promises of hope then dashes them in the sand or the creek. It's something my son and I have been thinking about the last few days and something we celebrate at Easter. Standing on the first hole with grand visions of the round ahead, Jeffrey pulled out his new driver, carefully placed a brand new ball on a brand new tee, took a few perfect practice swings, then smacked his first shot. Hard.
Presbyterian Record publisher David Harris reported an astonishing response to the 2006 fundraising effort, with an increase of 17 per cent over the 2005 effort. About 2,000 of the magazine's 37,000 subscribers contributed more than $103,000.
Presbyterian World Service and Development recently received an additional $200,000 from the Canadian International Development Agency for new projects. Along with more than $66,000 from PWS&D, the funds will help the church's overseas partners expand their current development work and have an even greater impact on vulnerable communities. The new money, secured in January, will augment the $458,000 PWS&D received from CIDA for 2006-2007 under a five-year agreement.
It is normally thought, certainly was by Mel Gibson, that Christ spoke Aramaic, the Semitic tongue believed to have displaced Hebrew as the Jewish vernacular. Latin is usually ruled out. It was used in the East mainly for administrative purposes; the Romans never forced it on their subjects — hence the bad grammar joke in Monty Python's Life of Brian.
Kumu Tapas is a Sediq woman, a third generation Christian. She is heir to the Christian tradition in the mountains of Taiwan. The situation of the mountain people is similar to that of the first nations of Canada.
The future is now — and St. Andrew's, Kitchener, Ont., is making the most of it. Rev. Mark Lewis' Sunday sermons are available for viewing on YouTube.com, a new video website that makes filmmakers and celebrities out of the boy- and girl-next-door. The site is so hot that Google snatched it up last October for a whopping $1.65-billion.
ENI – Former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton are backing a new grouping of Baptists in a centrist organization that will tackle broader social issues and counter a perceived image of the Southern Baptist Convention as an exclusionary church. At the same time the new grouping has invited the Southern Baptists to its foundation convention a year from now.
ENI – Zimbabwe police have been accused of abusing power after the arrest of eight church leaders, including a blind pastor, for holding a meeting without first seeking approval. “The use of armed police to disrupt a religious meeting is a clear abuse of power and authority by the police,” said the Christian Alliance, a grouping of churches, opposition political groups, human rights organizations and civil society in the southern African country.
“We often get the feeling that the presbytery is dysfunctional, until we talk with colleagues in other presbyteries,” admits Rev. Bob Geddes, minister at South Gate, Hamilton and member of the Presbytery of Hamilton, the largest presbytery in the country by number of charges with 32 (tied with Montreal and Barrie). “Within this era of change, with efforts to grow, and worship wars, we spend a lot of time in reaction mode, and this is very draining on members of presbytery, clergy and elders. In recent years there have been moments when we have more commissions going on than the General Assembly. However, presbytery meetings are quite collegial, and there are many positive things going on within the presbytery.”
Canada is said to be an urban country and the census data bear out that description. Three of every five Canadians live in cities with populations over 100,000. Not surprisingly, then, urban issues and urban values dominate Canadian public discourse.
ENI – The U.S. National Council of Churches, a long-standing critic of US military involvement in Iraq, has criticized President Bush's call for additional American troops to be sent to the region. “Sending more troops is not a change in policy, nor is it even a change in strategy; it is more of the same,” the NCC said in a statement about the president's declaration that he wants to increase the number of troops in Iraq by 21,500.
“They're here, and they sure are hungry!” Linda said, as I arrived home for supper.
ENI – “Ecumenism in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands is not dead, but it is seriously ill. It is so ill that, if I were to stay on, I too would get ill,” Rev. Wies Houweling said two days after announcing her resignation from the WCC central committee. She resigned from the main governing body of the World Council of Churches, saying the spirit of Christian unity in her own denomination is in crisis. Her decision followed the withdrawal of the denomination's development aid program, Kerkinactie, from United Civilians for Peace, a group working to promote an end to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Kerkinactie had gained a reputation of being “one-sidedly pro-Palestinian.”
The national office has seen several staff come and go in the last few months. Sandy Philpot, administrative assistant in the General Assembly office for 23 years, left her post in January to help out at her husband's burgeoning computer business. Elizabeth Bartlett, who worked as a program assistant with the office's deputy clerk Don Muir for six years, assumed the position. Taking Bartlett's position is Sheila Lang, who served half time with Ministry and Church Vocations since 2003. She will continue in this post in addition to her new responsibilities.
We are the prize churches and movements struggle to gain. The more of us — in the pews, in the pulpits — there are inside a particular building means that church, that denomination, that movement is active, alive. Our numbers are interpreted as vibrancy, as authenticity. And often that is true. Human beings seek the light, the fun, the energetic. Nobody wants to congregate in a mausoleum. Human beings also seek community; they want to be in the company of others who share their interests. But community can be a double-edged sword — all communities are gated in their own way. Several writers this month make that case.
I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive — but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don't wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.Revelation 3:1-3
The numbers are in and the news is good. Donations to Presbyterians Sharing in 2006 totaled $8,757,577 — an increase of almost $85,000 from the previous year. “Thanks to all the congregations across Canada,” said Annemarie Klassen, associate secretary for Stewardship and Education for Mission. Twenty-one per cent of the total amount came in during the first two weeks of January, which is consistent with previous patterns. “It is always amazing to see this support from congregations across the country — from congregations both small and large,” said Klassen. “God has blessed us richly in the abundance of these gifts, and in the ministry of the church. Let us not take this for granted.” – AM
The Government oF Manitoba is the first Canadian province to adopt the No Sweat purchasing policy for its apparel suppliers. The November decision means suppliers will have to meet minimum labour standards in the production of bulk purchased apparel products.