No Name Poem
I feel the hand of evil clutch
AuthorJohn Joseph Jack James
WCC discusses aspects of globalization
"What I would expect as we go about our work on mission and evangelization in the 21st century is that we recognize the diversity of the multi-faith reality of the world today," said Rev. Samuel Kobia, general secretary of World Council of Churches which met in Athens in May. Warning against "religiously-fuelled racism, culture wars and the clash of civilizations," Kobia said many exponents of particular religions intentionally discounted people of different beliefs and encouraged aggressive behaviour towards them. He noted that interfaith dialogue would be a priority for the WCC.
Charting the changes
When I graduated from Knox College in 1967 there was no dean, no female professors and almost no female students. Now at Vancouver School of Theology the academic dean/vice principal is a woman, an Anglican priest, a first-rate academic and administrator; about half the faculty are women and half the student body is female. That's just the beginning of the changes.
Portrait of a rumbustious contrarian
My memories of Stanford Reid are not happy ones. As a young teenager at St. Paul's, Ottawa, I remember dismissing the anniversary speaker as tiresome and old. Ten years later, that impression was not remedied when I heard him holding forth at Knox College on the ordination of women, the WCC program to combat racism and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It is with some surprise, therefore, that I found Donald MacLeod's biography of the man to be a very good read (sic).
Taking back the story of Christ
The Pagan Christ – Recovering the Lost Light Tom Harpur Thomas Allen Publishers There is, it seems, in popular culture a sense that when it […]
The Presbytery Meeting
The mood at the Presbytery meeting is a mixture of anxiety, confusion, and suspicion. Attempts at jocularity have little effect on the proceedings. One or […]
A cheerful heart doeth good like a medicine
Is Wittiness UnChristian?
The other Presbyterian record
Maclean's magazine will be 100 years old in October, and it has a Presbyterian to thank for its name. Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean was the son of a Presbyterian minister who emigrated from Scotland and settled in Crieff, Ont. Born in 1862, Maclean launched his first publication, Canadian Grocer, 25 years later. Other titles under his belt included the Financial Post and Chatelaine. It was the creation of Maclean's magazine — originally titled the Busy Man's Magazine — in 1905 that launched the media empire Maclean-Hunter Ltd. The company, now owned by Rogers Media, includes 120 Canadian periodicals and has expanded into radio, television and book publishing.
Wartime memorial brings atrocities to light
The site of a 68-year-old massacre made Ronald Wallace stop and think. During his visit to China, accompanied by a Canadian ecumenical delegation, Wallace walked on the ground where more than 350,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers were murdered, and 80,000 women and girls were raped by Japanese forces. "The atrocity of war really hits you," he said. "It was quite moving."
Ministry in the name of Jesus
Recently I reconnected with a friend with whom I had lost contact. His family had gone through an emotional and traumatic loss. While he was raised Presbyterian, he explained that he has had little contact with the church outside of occasionally joining his parents when they attended special church services. As we spoke, he told me of the events surrounding his family's bereavement. Paramount in his narrative was the role that his parents' minister had played. He spoke with great appreciation and deep respect for this minister. He mentioned the words that were chosen, the time that was spent, and the dignity that was extended in the hospital, in the home and at the funeral services. It was obvious to me that he had received great strength from a Christian minister during a really tough time.
European Christian leaders applaud anti-euthanasia vote
Church leaders in Europe have welcomed a vote by the Council of Europe parliamentarians not to approve euthanasia, saying they believe instead in good care being provided for terminally-ill patients.
Building the Core
I believe help my unbelief through change hardship hope and grief
Anglicans continue study of same-sex blessings
A special commission studying same-sex blessings has recommended that the issue is a matter of doctrine. The commission was set up in the wake of the 2004 debate on the issue at General Synod.
The Face of Aids
Faces, smiling faces
Working through emotional pain
The unhealthiest individuals are those who think there is no sin in them. Coming a close second are those who fear or know something is terribly wrong and can't or won't deal with it. Pity both, and pity those around them. The garbage becomes more deeply entrenched, seeping out to poison all systems: the person's own body and spirit, marriage, family, congregation, church, from generation to generation.
Ministering to new ministers
I have an idea. Let's prepare ministers of Word and Sacraments for pastoral ministry in this way: Three or four years of theological education, a few hours a week of placement in a congregation under the direction of the minister, and if they are motivated (or financially strapped) perhaps several opportunities for pulpit supply. Then let's release them to the church. Oh, wait a minute. That's what we do right now. And it seems to be working out alright. Or is it? Well, how would we really know? We've heard the statistics before: Ministry burnout is on the rise, especially in the first five years following ordination, turnover in ministry staff is high, and church conflict is rampant. Why? It must be the people in churches. It must be the colleges' fault. It must be the individuals we're calling into the ministry. Certainly, each of them have a role to play in the situation we find ourselves.
Graduates 2005
Knox College, The Presbyterian College, Vancouver School of Theology
A love letter to his son
Dear Son,
It seems like last Wednesday that you graduated from kindergarten with a Life Saver dangling from your cardboard hat. I congratulate you on waiting until the final prayer to crunch that candy. And I congratulate you today on an even greater achievement: graduation from high school.
From heights of love to depths of misery
I have recently read two great books: Nikos Kazantsakis' St. Francis, which offers us the heights of love with its costly demands upon life, and Peter Balakian's best selling, The Burning Tigris, which in focussing on the Armenian genocide at the beginning of the 20th century offers disturbing testimony of the intensity of human evil and affliction. Based on my experience of these books, I have derived four criteria for measuring the substance and authenticity of spiritual guidance:
A rainbow of faith traditions support same-sex marriage
A multi-faith coalition held a news conference in April to voice its support of same-sex civil marriage. "It is essential that politicians recognize the diversity of views that exist within faith communities," said the Religious Coalition for Equal Marriage Rights, which includes Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Muslims, Quakers, Sikhs and Unitarians. Presbyterians are not part of this group.