felix hominum

"Cold beer=global warming", University of Alberta

A University of Alberta researcher is calling on Canadian beer drinkers to go green and toss their energy-guzzling beer fridges, found in one of three households across the country.

"A reduction in the use of 'beer fridges' or a movement towards the use of
newer and smaller energy-efficient models in Canada would lead to lower levels of energy use in the residential sector and, in some regions, lower emissions of greenhouse gases," says researcher Denise Young in the November issue of the journal Energy Policy. The study was commissioned by Natural Resources Canada.

read the rest

I'll leave the commentary for others.  It's Friday.

 

 

A Preliminary Response to the Draft Covenant by the Anglican Church of Canada

The Covenant process could provide a place where the evolving structures of the Communion can be discussed and agreed upon. The current practice seems to be the development of ad hoc agreements or actions based on reports which have not yet been received by the whole Communion. We affirm that "we do not favour the accumulation of formal power by the Instruments of Unity, or the establishment of any kind of central 'curia' for the Communion." (¶105) In responding to the Virginia Report in 2001, many Canadians felt that the present structures serve well when used fully and creatively. "The personal and relational life of the Church is always prior to the structural. … Right structuring and right ordering provide channels by which, through the power of the Holy Spirit, the mind of Christ is discerned, the right conduct of the Church encouraged and the gifts of the many are drawn upon in the service and mission of the Church." (Virginia Report, 5.4) We would be wary of the over-development of structures which would make it difficult for the Church to respond quickly and easily to fulfill its mission in its local context. We are distrustful of the development of structural changes driven primarily by issues and in the midst of acute crisis.

Read the whole document here.

The last sentence is precisely the rationale for refusing the recommendations of the "Governance" working group from the last General Synod.

sermon notes for Advent 1

Well, having completed a fair bit of preparation for a sermon based on the Gospel reading and the usual Advent themes, I decided to scrap that in favour of Psalm 122:  "I was glad when they said to me, Let us go to the house of the Lord." So the usual Thursday sermon notes won't be up for a while.  In these days of turmoil for the Anglican Church, I felt a nudge to turn the sermon in a different direction.  I'll let you know...

"For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good."
Ps 122: v 9

Pastoral Statement from Primate Hiltz

From the national Anglican Church of Canada site:   There is also "A Preliminary Response to the Draft Covenant by the Anglican Church of Canada", which is well worth reading for those who are so called.  Related post here.

A Pastoral Statement from the Primate and Metropolitans of the Anglican Church of Canada

Greetings in the name of the One who was, who is, and who is to come -- our Lord Jesus Christ

The Mission Statement of the Anglican Church of Canada opens with these statements: “As a partner in the worldwide Anglican Communion and in the universal Church, we proclaim and celebrate the gospel of Jesus Christ in worship and in action. We value our heritage of Biblical faith, reason, liturgy, tradition, bishops and synods and the rich variety of our life in community.”

It is fundamental to the values and mission of our Church that we welcome and respect freedom of individual conscience and the theological convictions of a diverse membership. Our General Synods have consistently strived to honour every voice as the Church works through contentious and difficult issues before it. This is particularly true in the way the Church has endeavoured to address matters of human sexuality including the blessing of same-sex unions.

The report of the Primate's Theological Commission commonly known as the St. Michael Report has described this issue as matter of doctrine but not core doctrine. General Synod concurred with this opinion last June. The St. Michael Report also declared that the matter need not be a Communion-breaking issue.

It is in this context that we deplore recent actions on the part of the Primate and General Synod of the Province of the Southern Cone to extend its jurisdiction into Canada through the Essentials Network Conference. This action breaks fellowship within the Anglican Church of Canada and the Anglican Communion.

We affirm the statement unanimously agreed to by the Council of General Synod which appeals to the Archbishop of Canterbury “to make clear that such actions are not a valid expression of Anglicanism.” We too appeal to him in his capacity as one of the instruments of communion and as chair of the Primates' Meeting to address the very serious issues raised by this intervention.

The actions by the Primate of the Southern Cone are not necessary. Our bishops have made adequate and appropriate provision for the pastoral care and episcopal support of all members of the Anglican Church of Canada, including those who find themselves in conscientious disagreement with the view of their bishop and synod over the blessing of same-sex unions. These provisions, contained in the document known as Shared Episcopal Ministry, were adopted by the House of Bishops and commended by the panel of reference appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The actions by the Primate of the Southern Cone are also inappropriate. They contravene ancient canons of the Church going as far back as the 4th century, as well as statements of the Lambeth Conference, the Windsor report and the Communiqué from the Primates' Meeting earlier this year. Furthermore these actions violate Canon XVII of the Anglican Church of Canada which states that “No Bishop priest or deacon shall exercise ordained ministry in a diocese without the license or temporary permission of the Diocesan Bishop.”

Any ministry exercised in Canada by those received into the Province of the Southern Cone after voluntarily relinquishing the exercise of their ministry in the Anglican Church of Canada is inappropriate, unwelcome and invalid. We are aware that some bishops have, or will be making statements to that effect in their own dioceses.

In the meantime we rejoice in this season of Advent in which we once again begin that great journey of tracing the steps of our Lord's most holy life through the liturgy of a new year.

We rejoice in the gift of word and sacrament. We rejoice in the gift of our baptism and in the great gift of the Eucharist. We rejoice in the gift of the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth and empowers us to proclaim the gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ in word and action.

We respect the diversity of opinion in our Church over many issues. We respect the manner in which we take counsel together and honour the intention of all those who even in the midst of struggle desire to remain within the fellowship of the Anglican Church of Canada.

Let us renew our trust in the One who holds us together in the embrace of His love and peace.

We call all Anglicans to a renewed emphasis on mission and prayer for faithful witness in the service of the gospel within our parishes and across the world.

In him whose Advent sets us free.

The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz, Archbishop and Primate
The Most Rev. Terry Buckle, Archbishop and Metropolitan of British Columbia and Yukon
The Most Rev. John Clarke, Archbishop and Metropolitan of Rupert's Land
The Most Rev. Caleb Lawrence, Archbishop and Metropolitan of Ontario
The Most Rev. Bruce Stavert, Archbishop and Metropolitan of Canada

And on another note:

Bishop Harvey declared the revolution in his Pastoral Charge to the newly launched Church: “There is no reference in the Bible to a diocese, border, or boundary. I have heard ‘Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel’. We have lawyers and doctors and engineers without borders. We are launching bishops without borders.

from Church of England Newspaper, November 30, 2007, on page 12,
article posted here

quote: John Howard Yoder & post-critical reading

I have been called both "fundamentalist" and "pietist" by unsympathetic readers, since they put me in an already-closed slot in their minds, to which they had relegated the use of the Bible.  They did not read me carefully enough to be aware that my reading of the scriptural texts was post- and not pre- critical.

John Howard Yoder
"The Politics of Jesus Revisited"
unpublished lecture delivered in 1997, Can Mennonite Center, full text here (pdf) from Notre Dame archive

Well, that's just it, isn't it?

The Real Da Vinci Code

A computer technician has claimed to have cracked a real Da Vinci code, by finding musical notes encoded in the masterpiece The Last Supper.
Leonardo Da Vinci left clues to a 40-second musical composition in his painting, Giovanni Maria Pala said.

Each loaf of bread in the picture represents a note, he said, which combine to sound "like a requiem".  Alessandro Vezzosi, director of Tuscany's Da Vinci museum, said the theory was "plausible".  The 15th century painting depicts Jesus' last meal with the 12 Apostles before his arrest and crucifixion.

Mr Pala found that by drawing the five lines of a musical staff across the painting, the loaves of bread on the table and the hands of Jesus and the Apostles could each represent a musical note.

Mr Vezzosi, director of the Museo Ideale in the painter's home town Vinci, said that while Da Vinci was noted for his paintings, sculptures and inventions, he was also a musician.

"There's always a risk of seeing something that is not there, but it's certain that the spaces (in the painting) are divided harmonically," he said.

"Where you have harmonic proportions, you can find music."

from the BBC

sermon notes: Reign of Christ - November 25

We will be looking at Colossians 1:11-20, and Luke 23:33-43 this Sunday.  These two readings show us what seem to be contradictory notions of what it means to "reign".  The Colossians reading gives a rather glorious picture of Christ  - "his glorious power", "the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation", "in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell".  The reading ends by pointing us to the cross:  "making peace through the blood of his cross".  So to the cross we go.  Here are some preliminary thoughts.

Luke 23:33-43

33 When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.

Well, I suppose this is as unlikely a throne room as one can imagine.  And as for court attendants, I couldn’t think of more unlikely candidates.  So this Sunday we celebrate the Reign of Christ. On the feast of the Reign of Christ we can start with ourselves –(after all, where else do we usually start?) we can start with our own ideas of what it mean to “reign”; or what it means to be a “King”, or what we think a Kingdom is supposed to look like.  Or we can look to Christ, and see what kind of reign, what kind of kingship, and what kind of Kingdom he brings.

34 Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." And they cast lots to divide his clothing.

Here we see the foundational charter of the kingdom:  Jesus pleads with the Father to grant forgiveness for those who sin. 

35 And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!"  36 The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine,
37 and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!"  38 There was also an inscription over him, "This is the King of the Jews."  39 One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, "Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!"

Twice Jesus is (mockingly) called “Messiah”.  Twice he is (mockingly) referred to as “King”.  Each time there is a challenge.  It is reminiscent of the temptations in the wilderness.  IF you are the Son of God, turn stones into bread, throw yourself down, worship me…  Here we have the same pattern – the Tempter has shown up again, in different form:  Let him save himself, IF he is the Messiah.  Even the criminal next to him tempts him to save himself first, and then while you’re at, it throw me in as well. (Save yourself and us!)  The old temptations return in different form.

40 But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  41 And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong." 42 Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."  43 He replied, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

It is interesting that this is the only “positive” reference to Jesus and the idea of a “king”.  This criminal believes, even in these circumstances, that Jesus has a “kingdom”.  His cry  strikes me as a cry for pity.  And without further ado, forgiveness is offered and received, and there is reconciliation between a man and God, even on the cross.

This reign of Jesus, this kingship of Christ, is far different from models of kingship, governance and reign which the world offers.  The king does not keep himself safe from harm.  He does not order his followers to go anywhere he himself has not gone.  There is the question posed in the Gospel:  do you acknowledge Jesus as the "King", the "Messiah".  Contrary to their expectations, this King's business is not to "save himself" - it is to save us.

Lots to think about here:  the picture of the King on the cross, and then the description of Christ from Colossians - sort of the old "meekness and majesty" side by side.  It would be a mistake not to take the two together.  And it would be a mistake to forget that the cross is not the "final" picture we have of the reign of Christ, although it is the central picture.

I'll add or amend as Sunday draws closer (or as wisdom comes in the comment section), and in the meantime, pray that He might reign in us.

Bishop Malcolm Harding joins Southern Cone

Bishop Malcolm Harding, retired Bishop of Brandon, has announced that he will minister under Archbishop Gregory Venables and the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone of the Americas, effective immediately.

Bishop Harding is the second Canadian bishop to make this announcement in the past week. It was announced on Friday that the Right Reverend Donald Harvey had been received under the Primatial authority of Archbishop Venables and would be free to offer episcopal oversight to biblically faithful Canadian Anglicans distressed by the seismic shift in the theology and practice of the Anglican Church of Canada.

Bishop Harding will assist Bishop Harvey in performing episcopal ministry in Western Canada.

from here


Draw your church together, O Lord,
into one great company of disciples
together following our Lord Jesus Christ into every walk of life
together serving him in his mission to the world, and
together witnessing to his love on every continent and island.
We ask this in his name and for his sake. Amen.

from here (scroll down)

The Anglican Journal has a story here.

The major question I'm facing this week:

should we use incense on the feast of the Reign of Christ?

The Bishop was talking to the local Master of Hounds about the difficulty he had in keeping his vicars off the incense.
-P. G. Wodehouse

You might sooner get lightning out of incense smoke than true action or passion out of your modern English religion.
-John Ruskin

Video of the Anglican Church in Egypt

A fascinating look into some of the ministry of the Anglican Church in Egypt.

Anglican Church of Canada - prayer & news roundup

It's all in the way the resolution is worded:

The Anglican Province of the Southern Cone extends:

A] over a country, that is, Chile.
B] over a country that is chilly.

From the Anglican Journal: some stuff about Bishop Don Harvey coming under the authority of the Province of the Southern Cone.  And a message from the Council of General Synod.  Bishop Ralph Spence assents to SSB in Niagara.  Bishop Don Harvey will be at this conference towards the end of the week:  "Building on the Solid Rock”  Essentials Network national conference.  And the various national papers have started covering this as well.

Don't forget to celebrate the Reign of Christ the King this Sunday.

Update:  Bishop Michael Ingham "protests unauthorized ordinations" (Anglican Journal)

A "bishop in residence" for Wycliffe College

While perusing the site of my alma mater, I was pleased to note that Wycliffe College has announced that Bishop Victoria Matthews will become "Bishop in Residence" at the Toronto school for the winter term in 2008:

Wycliffe College is delighted to announce that Bishop Victoria Matthews will be the Bishop-in-Residence for the Winter Term 2008. Bishop Matthews will teach in the pastoral department, preach, and take part in the College discernment day.

from Wycliffe's news page here

I think this will add tremendously to the College, which has already added several new faculty in the past several months.  The College has traditionally been an "evangelical" presence in the Canadian church scene, and this appointment will be a wonderful addition to the life of the College.  Bishop Matthews will bring a certain number of complementary gifts and views to the place.

Wycliffe College - the new inclusive.

ps, not that I'm partial or anything, but info on giving to Wycliffe can be found here.  It is my hope that at some time in the future, the Principal will see the wisdom in hiring a new faculty position:  latte-drinker-in-residence. I have a candidate in mind when the search committee is struck...

 

"and there is no health in us"

Kids and MySpace.
Adults and Sin.

"They are posting bulletins about me." A bulletin is like a survey. "Megan Meier is a slut. Megan Meier is fat."

Megan was sobbing hysterically. Tina was furious that she had not signed off.

Once Tina returned home she rushed into the basement where the computer was. Tina was shocked at the vulgar language her daughter was firing back at people.

"I am so aggravated at you for doing this!" she told Megan.

Megan ran from the computer and left, but not without first telling Tina, "You're supposed to be my mom! You're supposed to be on my side!"

On the stairway leading to her second-story bedroom, Megan ran into her father, Ron.

"I grabbed her as she tried to go by," Ron says. "She told me that some kids were saying horrible stuff about her and she didn't understand why. I told her it's OK. I told her that they obviously don't know her. And that it would be fine."

Megan went to her room and Ron went downstairs to the kitchen, where he and Tina talked about what had happened, the MySpace account, and made dinner.

Twenty minutes later, Tina suddenly froze in mid-sentence.
"I had this God-awful feeling and I ran up into her room and she had hung herself in the closet."
Megan Taylor Meier died the next day, three weeks before her 14th birthday.

According to police reports and witness accounts, a fake MySpace account was set up, with the ultimate result of ridiculing an 8th grade student. She thought she was talking to to nice young boy who was interested in her.  According to police records quoted, it appears the fake account was set up and monitored by the mother of another junior high girl with whom Megan had a falling out. Read the story

h/t alice

Jim and Casper Go to Church - book review

An atheist and a Christian do a road trip around Evangelical Church-land in America.  They take along their laptops and decide to record the experience.  The result is "Jim and Casper Go to Church", a short and easy read which is a bit of a religious travelogue through a smattering of Christian churches.  Jim, of Off The Map, wants to know, really know, what an atheist thinks when he or she walks into a church service.

They start out big, with a visit to Rick Warren's Saddleback, which is on the corner of Purpose Drive ("yes, those are the actual street names", p.1) and Saddleback Drive.  On the west coast they visit the Dream Center, and then the current incarnation of Mosaic, where they have a brief (and seemingly unproductive) chat with Erwin McManus.  In Chicago they go from classic Presbyterian to inner urban - from "King James" to "w'sup, Coach".

i didn't find that there were many surprises in this book.  On the one hand, a sophisticated and educated atheist goes to a variety of Christian expressions, and finds the various faults which they embody.  Fair enough.  There are enough specific "techniques" which the various branches of the vine use on a regular basis.  My favorite ritual is described like this:

...I waited for the moment we had come to expect at the close of every church .  We call it the "breaking-voice phenomenon."  For some reason, the pastor ends the service sounding as if he's about to cry.  Christians are largely inured to this.  It's so common that we either endure it or enjoy it because it's the tribal signal that services are almost done. (55)

So is it just a church-bashing exercise? As St Paul says, by no means!  What Jim Henderson wants to communicate is a two-fold proposal.  First, Christians are largely unaware of how their "services" look to the outsider who is unchurched.  It's the sort of principle that, I believe, you either get or don't get.  Second, Jim tries to reshape our vocabulary.  Rather than seeing Casper as "lost", the reader is encouraged to see him first as a person, not as a project.  Jim uses language like "a person whom God misses".  Rather like the Father "missing" the prodigal son, rather than focusing on the son as "lost".  What we need to do, says Jim, is to "defend the space" of friendship and discussion and listening to the unchurched, rather than focus on the "place" of worship.

The heart of the book is not the critique of various churches and worship styles, but rather the modeling of a conversation between a Christian and an atheist.  The book can raise a number of questions:

• do we think our "church services" are helpful to the unchurched?
• should they be?  or should evangelism take place primarily in another "space"?
• what is the experience of the outsider walking into our church?
• do we even connect at all, personally, with people outside a Christian circle?

Overall, I'd give it a 6-7 out of 10 simply as a book to read, but closer to an 8 as a tool for starting a conversation within my own church about "us and them".

Next up is a return to Budziszewski...

Musical event for the locals

Just a reminder that Alex Boudreau and the musically inclined Tim Chesterton are doing a gig on Thursday night (Nov. 15th) at Hulbert's (7601-115 St. Edmonton) from 8-10 p.m. Hulbert's is a really nice place to eat, too, so you might want to come down early and have a bite. There is no cover charge, but there will be a donation jar. Hope to see you there.

Ouch - on dealing with incompetence in the church

Ouch!

Not long ago we followed in a neighbouring parish a battle between the vicar and the organist / choirmaster. On paper the vicar was, of course, in charge of the parish, and had every right to sack the musician, but for complicated psychological reasons he felt compelled to minister to the man, to feed and clothe and shelter his incompetence, rather than to show him the door. We're told that it got to be so bad that there were loud arguments between the vicar and the musician during the worship service. After months of conflict, the vicar finally found it in himself to push the organist/choirmaster out the door.

It's fairly easy to tell when a musician is incompetent. People wince and cover their ears, and then they find a new church. Churches also employ clerks, administrators, and various specialty staff whose very job title is meaningless to the general public. We've been introduced to parish Lay Ministry Coordinators, Parish Missioners, Directors of Christian Formation, Liturgical Coordinators, Development Coordinators, and Webmasters. Beyond the parish level, there's a wealth of titles whose meaning sometimes eludes us. And if we can't tell what their job is supposed to be, then how ever can their job performance be evaluated effectively?

Terrible things seem to happen when church leaders project onto their staff their pastoral urge to take care of the needy, the downtrodden, and the weak. Nowhere in the parable of the sheep and the goats does it say 'I was incompetent and you employed me' or 'I was abusive to everyone but you didn't sack me'. The notion of charity seems altogether too often to be applied in church administration to charity towards one's own staff. For better or for worse, church organizations have more in common than not with ordinary business and government organizations. The secular world has it easier, in a sense, because the need to make a profit provides a means of telling quickly whether or not it is succeeding or failing. Churches can survive for decades under the stewardship of people who are pious, faithful, and incompetent, and no one benefits from that survival.

Guess where this is from, or read it all.  The original article is now archived here.

Remembrance Day II - The Band Played Waltzing Matilda

And from Terry Kelly, a performer I first saw in Nova Scotia many years ago.:

Remembrance Day- last night at the Mess

The last time Trevor and I had a long evening together was just before he headed out. 

He would come up from Vancouver for training exercises.  When he had some free time, we would have him over to our place, have some food and wine and good conversation, and occasionally he would crash at our place for the night.  I would get invitations to an event or two.  My previous parish had a sizable representation from the Armed Forces.  Being the Padre had its privileges, and its burdens.

We had an evening at the Officers' Mess just before he left.  It was one of those conversations which only two guys who have known each other since college could have.  We laughed about where our various paths have led;  he joked that I had to become a priest because he would never allow anyone else to baptize his kids.  I told him I still wasn't sure I would trust him with a gun.  We spoke of why we believed we were each "called" to what we were doing.

"I was attending a shura, a council meeting of elders, outside of Kandahar city," Greene writes.

"I had taken my helmet off out of respect for the elders, a practice that we all followed at that time. Only the quick reaction and lightning reflexes of Capt. Kevin Schamuhn, Third Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, who shot him down, prevented him from taking a second bite and saved my life."

Now, 18 months later, Greene is recuperating from his injuries. He has endured 13 months in Vancouver General Hospital and is undergoing rehabilitation at Alberta's Centennial Centre with his fiancée Debbie Lepore and their young daughter Grace.

"I'm in a wheelchair now," writes Greene, now a Canadian army captain.
"My elbows and wrists ache from being clenched at night, my hands don't work.  As I dictate this, my voice is at the level of a whisper, much improved, I'm told, from earlier communication via eye blinks.  I'm on painkillers and sleeping pills. I have dents in my skull and double vision, but my eyes aren't crossed, my speech isn't slurred and I don't drool.

"I am one of the lucky ones, I came home to the love and support of a beautiful, incredible woman and a baby girl who I am looking forward to spending the rest of my days with, and a large group of friends who have been steadfastly supportive.

"I will eventually heal, however, and I dedicate this column to those who have fallen."

From Capt Trevor Greene, read the whole story at
The Toronto Star

Ian grows a Mo for Movember

Ian of Ian's Messy Desk is growing a Mo for Movember:

Taking a leaf from Darren’s book, during Movember (the month formerly known as November) I’ll be growing a Mo (slang for Moustache). That’s right I’m bringing the Mo back because I’m passionate about men’s health and the fight against prostate cancer. Why…

Every year, around 22,300 Canadian men are diagnosed with prostate cancer and about 4,300 die of the disease, making it the number one cancer threat to Canadian men.
Men are far less healthy than women. The average life expectancy of males is 5 years less than females.
To sponsor my Mo please go to http://www.movember.com/ca/donate (or click the graphic below), enter my registration number which is 126527 and your credit card details. Or you can sponsor me by cheque made payable to the “Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada” clearly marking the donation as being for my Registration Number: 126527. Please mail cheques to: Movember, 145 Front Street East, Suite 306, Toronto, ON M5A 1E3 Canada. All donations over $20 are automatically issued with a tax deductible receipt.

All donations are made directly to the Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada who will use the funds to create awareness and fund research for those men who suffer from prostate cancer.

A worthy cause. And the pic Ian has of his freshly seeded mo looks fab.

Budziszewski on Francis Schaeffer: A Christian Manifesto

I was in high school when Francis Schaeffer published A Christian Manifesto in 1981.  By the time I was an undergrad a few years later, I had been introduced to Schaeffer by association with IVCF.  Well, actually, it was by association with a particular student who was involved in IVCF.  I was rather partial at the time to a rather more liturgical form of Christian piety.  In those days they served sherry after High Mass on Thursdays.  But I digress.

In "Evangelicals in the Public Square", Budziszewski claims "it was Schaeffer who first made evangelicals aware of the culture war, an odd sort of war in which, he complained, so far only the other side had shown up to fight [73].  In response to what he saw as a growing systemic program of secular humanism, Schaeffer claimed that Christians have been negligent because they "have seen things in bits and pieces instead of totals". (Manifesto, rev. ed.; Wheaton: Crossway, 1982, p 17).

Budziszewski examines several of Schaeffer's points.  First is the gradual replacement of a "vaguely Christian" worldview (Manifesto, 17) with the worldview of secular humanism.  In great part Schaeffer blames lawyers and liberal theologians [Budziszewski, 74-75].  What has happened, Schaeffer argued, is that Christian pietism has allowed for a compartmentalization of faith - Christians "have acted as though nothing more were at stake than a few particular truths, like Christ's virgin birth..." [75]  Budziszewski see in this a bit of a swipe at the Fundamentalist movement.  While the "secularists" have seen things in terms of transforming a whole society, Christians have been involved in only "bits and pieces".

Authority and the State: aside

Schaeffer was concerned with the removal of moral absolutes.  The overall result of the secularizing tendency, particularly in the state, is to eliminate any basis for authority beyond the state.  The flip side of course is that there is then no limiting of the state:  it is the state which can grant rights, and therefore the state can remove them.  There is no grounding of authority in anything higher than the collective.

Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law:

It is interesting to stop at this point and consider the preamble to our own Charter of Rights and Freedoms.  Why does our Charter recognize "the supremacy of God" and the "rule of law" - in that order?  It is argued by some that such concepts and language have no place in the state.  But what are the implications of removing any notion of an authority higher than the state? And what are the implications for a state which recognizes no authority, no "supremacy", greater than its own collective?

To be continued:  laundry calls...

related posts:

• J. Budziszewski: Evangelicals in the Public Square 
• Budziszewski on Carl FH Henry, Evangelical Politics and The Uneasy Conscience
• Coffee and the Charter of Rights

"Buddy Walk" photos - Edm Down Syndrome Society

A few pics from the annual "Buddy Walk" in support of persons living with Down Syndrome are now up on the EDSS website.  Funds raised go to support the development of the new Edmonton dedicated health clinic for persons with Down Syndrome.

PIttsburgh Diocese votes to leave Episcopal Church

Brief news item from Anglicans Online.  I was looking around at the Anglican Church of Canada news site to see if they had anything about this, but nothing so far.  News article from Episcopal Life, with a variety of links highlighting the, errr, "dialogue".

Robert Crouse on Prayer

And so, as a pilgrim who travels along a road he has not been on before believes each building seen in the distance is the inn, and finding it not so directs his belief to the next, and so from house to house, until at last he finds the inn; just so our soul, as soon as it enters upon the new and unfamiliar road of this life, directs its eyes towards the end, the highest good, and each thing it sees which manifests some good, it takes to be that end.

And because its knowledge is at first imperfect, inexperienced and untaught, little goods seem great to it, and thus it begins its longing first with them. Thus, we see the infant intensely longing for an apple; and then, later on, for a little bird; and then, still further on, fine clothes; and then a horse; and then a mistress; then modest riches; then more; and then still more. And that is because in none of these things does it find that for which it ever seeks, and it believes to find it further on.

Prayer is the interpretation, the articulation of all this desire: the soul's ceaseless desire for God; and prayer is therefore, indeed, as George Herbert describes it, "soul in paraphrase, heart in pilgrimage." Indeed, the desire is itself the substance of the prayer, as St. Augustine remarks in one of his sermons: "Desire itself prays, even if the tongue be still. If you always desire, always you pray. When does prayer sleep? Only when desire grows cold."

full text here (MS Word doc):

Heavenly Avarice

via the best little anglican church website in canada

Monday morning commute...

Don't try this at home:  a bit of highway surfing in Saudi Arabia.

Egyptian blogger sentenced to 4 years

A court in the port city of Alexandria has sentenced a young Egyptian blogger to four years' jail for contempt of religion, insulting the president and spreading false information.
Abdel Kareem Nabil Soliman, 22, is the first Egyptian blogger to stand trial for views expressed on the internet.

The case against him was based on a complaint from al-Azhar University, where he studied law until he was expelled last year because of his critical writings about religion.

Mr Nabil had declared himself a secularist who does not fast during Ramadan and he criticised al-Azhar, the most prestigious institution of religious learning in the Sunni Muslim world.

He accused it of spreading radical ideas and suppressing freedom of thought.

from the BBC

meeting Sunday evening

Nov 4
7ish at 8420 - 145 Street

we haven't figured out what we are doing yet, but we will start there and probably take over the Second Cup on 149th.  anyone welcome...

National Down Syndrome Awareness Week - prenatal screening

November 1-7 is National Down Syndrome Awareness Week.  There are a number of resources on the Canadian Down Syndrome Society site.  Tonight the Felix clan and assorted friends will be celebrating with the Edmonton L'arche community.  Festive dinner, and an evening of fun and entertainment, and prayer for those among us who live with developmental disabilities. 

Over the past few years I've come to notice that the Canadian Down Syndrome Society has put out a few more resources dealing with a rather touchy contemporary issue - prenatal testing.  Representatives of the CDSS had a commentary published in the Canadian Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology [J. Obstet. Gynaecol Can2007;29(7):580–582], raising concerns related to the quality of information available to parents who undergo prenatal screening.  They also issued a press release, an excerpt of which is here:

Technological advances in fetal screening are presenting parents, and doctors, with enormous ethical, psychological and social dilemmas. Vulnerable, and with limited, biased, information, more than 90% of prospective parents in Canada choose termination if their fetus is determined in prenatal screening to have Down syndrome. They may never know there is a world of resources, possibilities and support out there. In spite of tireless efforts from support groups their information rarely reach prospective parents at the time they need it most.

In Canada the recent recommended expansion of screening protocols called for by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Canada has not been accompanied by a call for the expansion of the provision of non prejudicial information which outlines not just the potential medical conditions sometimes associated with Down syndrome but also about the richly rewarding lives possible for citizens with developmental disabilities in Canada. The United States recently called for the re-introduction a Prenatal Diagnosed Condition Awareness Act.

The CDSS acknowledges that in Canada women have the legal right to make decisions about the progression of their pregnancies; the CDSS insists that each individual family be given, without prejudice, information that accurately reflects the realities of a life with Down syndrome and other developmental disabilities.

The Canadian Down Syndrome Society is joining with regional parent support groups to ensure that the federal government enact a Canadian Pre diagnosed Conditions Awareness Act and that the provinces and territories participate or enact equivalent legislation within their jurisdictions. This Act, would ensure provinces and territories responsible for health care set aside reasonable resources, allowing organizations like the Canadian Down Syndrome Society to create and distribute informative, value neutral information to women and perspective families.

full text here

Asides which come to my mind:

Is this a matter of "inclusion"?  What does the "inclusive" church have to say on such issues?

How are to learn "radical" and "unconditional" love, unless we receive those who will require such love from us?

for all the saints...

Truly, matters in the world are in a bad state; but if you and I begin in earnest to reform ourselves, a
good beginning will have been made.
St. Peter of Alcantara

Avoid, like the plague, a clergyman who is also a businessman.
attr.  St Jerome

When we speak about wisdom, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about virtue, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about justice, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about peace, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about truth and life and redemption, we are speaking of Christ.
St. Ambrose of Milan

happy All Saints Day