More from the Anglicans...
A growing movement across North America is all for making more environmentally friendly churches
THE ANGLICAN PLANET
By KAREN STILLER
Christians should be “greener” than everyone. As stewards of God’s earth and advocates for the poor in the developing world who pay a disproportionately high price for our environmental excess, we should be leaders in greening our spaces. Enough “shoulding” on ourselves! Here are some easy and positive steps to transform your church.
Read more... http://anglicanplanet.net/TAPFront0806.html
Monday, June 30, 2008
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Quote
"We grieve for the spiritual decline in the most economically developed nations, where the forces of militant secularism and pluralism are eating away the fabric of society and churches are compromised and enfeebled in their witness," - GAFCON
Conservative Anglicans vow to fight 'false gospel' in liberal churches
Members set themselves apart, but reject formal split
Last Updated: Sunday, June 29, 2008 12:54 PM ET
CBC News
Conservative Anglican leaders pledged Sunday to stay in the worldwide Anglican Communion, but they also announced plans to form a separate council of bishops to counter a movement within mainstream Anglicanism that they say promotes immoral behaviour.
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/06/29/anglicans.html
Anglican Planet: http://anglicanplanet.net/index.html
Anglican Journal: http://www.anglicanjournal.com/
read the whole official statement: Global Anglican Future Statement [380KB]
Last Updated: Sunday, June 29, 2008 12:54 PM ET
CBC News
Conservative Anglican leaders pledged Sunday to stay in the worldwide Anglican Communion, but they also announced plans to form a separate council of bishops to counter a movement within mainstream Anglicanism that they say promotes immoral behaviour.
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/06/29/anglicans.html
Anglican Planet: http://anglicanplanet.net/index.html
Anglican Journal: http://www.anglicanjournal.com/
read the whole official statement: Global Anglican Future Statement [380KB]
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Canada Day (Psalm 72)
Psalm 72: the Credit Card of Justice and Righteousness
Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps 01 July 2007
by Captain Michael Ramsay
I love Canada Day – (or Dominion Day as we used to call it) – I always have. I love the picnics and all the fun things to do. Every year we used to have a big picnic and fireworks in Beacon Hill Park in Victoria where I grew up. It is a perfect chance to see everyone – so I’m really looking forward to our picnic today in the park – this should be great. But you know what else I love, I also love the quizzes that come out around this time – I know, who loves quizzes but, hey, I used to be a teacher– lets see how you do…
Questions:
Who is our head of State?
What is our national animal?
What are our two national sports?
Who was the first PM of Canada?
When did Saskatchewan join confederation?
Upon what passage of scripture was Canada founded?
Answers:
Queen Elizabeth II,
the beaver,
hockey and lacrosse,
1905,
Psalm 72
And that is another reason that I love it is that Canada Day it is a great chance to reflect upon the theological roots on which Canada was founded. Canada Day provides an opportunity to look at how the Lord formed and intended our nation.
Canada, unlike many countries who came into their own around the same time as us, was not born out of the atheist revolutions of the 1700s. If anything our forefathers went exactly the other way and decided to take a stand in FOR God, FOR King, and FOR country. So, instead of focusing on individualistic liberty and the selfish pursuits of personal happiness at the expense of others, the Canadian fathers of confederation focused on peace (Jesus is the Prince of Peace), order (God is a God of order not disorder), and good government (cf. Isa. 9:5-7, Ps. 72).
Canada’s motto, “A Mari usque ad Mare” is Latin for “from sea to sea.” It comes from Psalm 72. Where, in verse 8, it declares, “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea.” That is a key underpinning of our society and of our founding identity, the idea that God himself, through the Canadian government, shall have dominion from sea to sea.
This is neat. It is not some accident or coincident. It is intentional. Our country is intentionally founded on the Word of God. And another interesting thing - Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, the father of Confederation that proposed the name for our country and its name, as the Dominion of Canada, be based on this Scripture would have made a great Salvationist.
He wasn’t one but he would have made a good one. Tilley was a Sunday School teacher and lifelong temperance advocate; he was one of the so-called "Smashers", who tried to introduce prohibition to New Brunswick in the 1850s.
Now, a reason that I mention this and one key reason that all this is important for us today is that Psalm 72 is part of our foundation and one’s foundation is very important (Matthew 7:24-27; Luke 6:46-49). This is true both individually and as a country. Being that it is Canada Day today, I thought that it would be a great time to look at the foundation that this country was built upon.
Let’s take a look at part of our foundation. Let’s take a look at Psalm 72.
Psalm 72 is an old Psalm. It was written somewhere around 3000 years ago probably by or for King Solomon near the beginning of his reign. In it, there are a lot of blessings that Solomon has to look forward to and a lot that we as inheritors of this foundation have to look forward to as well.
It is notable that right away in verses 1 and 2 where the psalmist asks God to “Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king's son. May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.”
Now about Wisdom and Justice…Do you remember the famous story at the beginning of Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 3) where he prays for God’s wisdom? God tells him he can ask for whatever he wants. He could of asked for all the money and power in the world but he prays for God’s wisdom to discern between good and evil.
This pleases God so much that he also offers him riches and honour and, if he continues to be righteous, a long life. Now this is important because the wisdom is God’s, not man’s. And this story is very likely in the mind of the psalmist as the stage is nicely set for the rest of the Psalm. The King must rely on God’s justice and enact God’s righteousness (NIB McCann Jr. 963).
read more: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2007/08/psalm-72-credit-card-of-justice-and.html
Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps 01 July 2007
by Captain Michael Ramsay
I love Canada Day – (or Dominion Day as we used to call it) – I always have. I love the picnics and all the fun things to do. Every year we used to have a big picnic and fireworks in Beacon Hill Park in Victoria where I grew up. It is a perfect chance to see everyone – so I’m really looking forward to our picnic today in the park – this should be great. But you know what else I love, I also love the quizzes that come out around this time – I know, who loves quizzes but, hey, I used to be a teacher– lets see how you do…
Questions:
Who is our head of State?
What is our national animal?
What are our two national sports?
Who was the first PM of Canada?
When did Saskatchewan join confederation?
Upon what passage of scripture was Canada founded?
Answers:
Queen Elizabeth II,
the beaver,
hockey and lacrosse,
1905,
Psalm 72
And that is another reason that I love it is that Canada Day it is a great chance to reflect upon the theological roots on which Canada was founded. Canada Day provides an opportunity to look at how the Lord formed and intended our nation.
Canada, unlike many countries who came into their own around the same time as us, was not born out of the atheist revolutions of the 1700s. If anything our forefathers went exactly the other way and decided to take a stand in FOR God, FOR King, and FOR country. So, instead of focusing on individualistic liberty and the selfish pursuits of personal happiness at the expense of others, the Canadian fathers of confederation focused on peace (Jesus is the Prince of Peace), order (God is a God of order not disorder), and good government (cf. Isa. 9:5-7, Ps. 72).
Canada’s motto, “A Mari usque ad Mare” is Latin for “from sea to sea.” It comes from Psalm 72. Where, in verse 8, it declares, “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea.” That is a key underpinning of our society and of our founding identity, the idea that God himself, through the Canadian government, shall have dominion from sea to sea.
This is neat. It is not some accident or coincident. It is intentional. Our country is intentionally founded on the Word of God. And another interesting thing - Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, the father of Confederation that proposed the name for our country and its name, as the Dominion of Canada, be based on this Scripture would have made a great Salvationist.
He wasn’t one but he would have made a good one. Tilley was a Sunday School teacher and lifelong temperance advocate; he was one of the so-called "Smashers", who tried to introduce prohibition to New Brunswick in the 1850s.
Now, a reason that I mention this and one key reason that all this is important for us today is that Psalm 72 is part of our foundation and one’s foundation is very important (Matthew 7:24-27; Luke 6:46-49). This is true both individually and as a country. Being that it is Canada Day today, I thought that it would be a great time to look at the foundation that this country was built upon.
Let’s take a look at part of our foundation. Let’s take a look at Psalm 72.
Psalm 72 is an old Psalm. It was written somewhere around 3000 years ago probably by or for King Solomon near the beginning of his reign. In it, there are a lot of blessings that Solomon has to look forward to and a lot that we as inheritors of this foundation have to look forward to as well.
It is notable that right away in verses 1 and 2 where the psalmist asks God to “Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king's son. May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.”
Now about Wisdom and Justice…Do you remember the famous story at the beginning of Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 3) where he prays for God’s wisdom? God tells him he can ask for whatever he wants. He could of asked for all the money and power in the world but he prays for God’s wisdom to discern between good and evil.
This pleases God so much that he also offers him riches and honour and, if he continues to be righteous, a long life. Now this is important because the wisdom is God’s, not man’s. And this story is very likely in the mind of the psalmist as the stage is nicely set for the rest of the Psalm. The King must rely on God’s justice and enact God’s righteousness (NIB McCann Jr. 963).
read more: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2007/08/psalm-72-credit-card-of-justice-and.html
In the News...
Free Speech victory: victory for truth deniers and for hate peddlers?
The country's top court has absolved former Vancouver radio personality Rafe Mair of defamation for a commentary in which he made reference to the Ku Klux Klan and Adolf Hitler [and Christians].
related, from the Star: http://www.thestar.com/article/450456
from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/27/bc-rafe-mair-wins-libal-lawsuit.html
Total Polar Meltdown says Scientist!
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/06/27/iceless-arctic.html
read more from the Globe and Mail: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080627.wnorthpole0627/BNStory/International/home
Hungry for Answers.
Jun 28, 2008 04:30 AM
Lynda Hurst Feature Writer
The Toronto Star
It seemed to happen overnight.
One minute you were tucking into a T-bone and, if you thought about it at all, you probably figured there was food enough for everyone these days – a glut for the West, enough for the rest.
The next minute, angry food riots were breaking out in dozens of countries around the world, the scenes barely credible in the 21st century.
Hungry people desperate for bread or corn or rice, the staples of simple diets. But a shortfall in supplies has doubled and tripled the prices of these basics, shoving them far out of reach of the poorest people on Earth, the one billion who live on less than $1 a day.
read more: http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/451023
Read the Toronto Star's Poverty Page:
There are some very useful links from www.thestart.com/poverty
The country's top court has absolved former Vancouver radio personality Rafe Mair of defamation for a commentary in which he made reference to the Ku Klux Klan and Adolf Hitler [and Christians].
related, from the Star: http://www.thestar.com/article/450456
from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/27/bc-rafe-mair-wins-libal-lawsuit.html
Total Polar Meltdown says Scientist!
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/06/27/iceless-arctic.html
read more from the Globe and Mail: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080627.wnorthpole0627/BNStory/International/home
Hungry for Answers.
Jun 28, 2008 04:30 AM
Lynda Hurst Feature Writer
The Toronto Star
It seemed to happen overnight.
One minute you were tucking into a T-bone and, if you thought about it at all, you probably figured there was food enough for everyone these days – a glut for the West, enough for the rest.
The next minute, angry food riots were breaking out in dozens of countries around the world, the scenes barely credible in the 21st century.
Hungry people desperate for bread or corn or rice, the staples of simple diets. But a shortfall in supplies has doubled and tripled the prices of these basics, shoving them far out of reach of the poorest people on Earth, the one billion who live on less than $1 a day.
read more: http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/451023
Read the Toronto Star's Poverty Page:
There are some very useful links from www.thestart.com/poverty
Friday, June 27, 2008
Preparing for Peace
The Salvation Army recognises the International Day of Peace - September 21As last year, The Salvation Army around the world is called upon to mark the above date by praying for peace. Not only is there conflict between nations, but many countries have suffered internal tension and political unrest. Inevitably, the innocent suffer, and there is tragic loss of life and displacement of people. Our intercession is for the leaders of the nations, striving for peace and justice, and for the victims of war, suffering pain and bereavement. Our heartfelt plea to the Lord is: 'Guide our feet into the path of peace' (Luke 1:79, Today's New International Version).
http://www.salvationarmy.org/ihq/www_sa.nsf/vw-search/0909D05D6DEAA14D8025745D005D87E9?opendocument
From Ploughshares.ca:
As a launch to the 2008 International Day of Peace preparations, the UN Sectretary General's "100 Days in Advance of the International Day of Peace" message was posted on June 13th on the UN's International Day of Peace site. (There is also a video message available.) Most organizations have yet to post information for this year's event — watch this page for new information which will be posted as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, for some early ideas regarding event planning, the websites noted below provide information on the 2007 International Day of Peace.
(read more from ploughshares: http://www.ploughshares.ca/what/IntPeaceDay.htm)
1) The UN International Day of Peace site: http://www.un.org/events/peaceday/2007/
2) The Global International Day of Peace site: http://www.internationaldayofpeace.org/.This site has many suggestions for activities that groups can undertake. It also has links to other useful sites and an invitation to list activities with them.
3) People Building Peace: http://www.peoplebuildingpeace.org/.A project of the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (also known as GPPAC or the Global Partnership), and whose secretariat is the European Centre for Conflict Prevention, People Building Peace produces publications documenting and analysing the role of civil society in conflict prevention. It also lists International Day of Peace activities worldwide.
4) World Council of Churches: http://overcomingviolence.org/en/about-dov/international-day-of-prayer-for-peace.html.In 2004 the idea for an International Day of Prayer for Peace that coincides with the UN International Day of Peace was proposed at a meeting between WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (press release). The Day of Prayer became one of the initiatives of the WCC's Decade to Overcome Violence and congregations worldwide are now invited to pray for peace - possibly using the same prayers - in all participating churches on September 21 or the Sunday preceding it. The resources section of this WCC webpage contains the prayers that have been collected annually since 2004 – this year from Europe.
5) International Day of Peace Vigil: http://www.idpvigil.com/. The objective of the International Day of Peace Vigil is "To encourage worldwide, 24-hour spiritual observations for peace and nonviolence on the International Day of Peace, 21 September 2007 in every house of worship and place of spiritual practice, by all religious and spiritually based groups and individuals, and by all men, women and children who seek peace in the world." The Vigil website has further information on this initiative including a listing of those committing to events this year.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The Ark and the Mercy Seat - From Last Sunday's Sermon
Now this ark for the record isn’t that big boat of Genesis 6 that God used to deliver the builder, Noah, and his family from the flood. Though interestingly enough it may be made out of the same material (acacia wood or gopher bark; cf. Exod. 25:10, Gen 6:14). But this particular ark though it is a wooden container it is not a boat. It is a lot smaller and it is all covered in gold. It is commissioned by God – just like Noah’s ark – but it is contracted out by Moses to the partners Oholiab and Bezalel to build it and Bezalel does (Exod 36:1,2; 37:1-3). This ark is a container whose purpose is to hold the Ten Commandments (cf. Exod 25:21, 22; Deut 10:3; Josh 3:6; 2 Sam 15:14) among other things and it is carried on polls by at least four Levites (Exod 25:15). It is an important symbol of the presence and power of God.
The top of the ark has two cherubim, which are like four-headed sphinxes[2] and is called the atonement cover – or the mercy seat – which is where we get our idea in our services of coming forward to meet God at the mercy seat (cf. Exod 25:17-22; Lev 16:2, 13; Num 7:89). This bench up here at the front of the sanctuary is symbolic of this same seat of God on the Ark of the Covenant and that is an important symbol for us now and a very powerful symbol of the presence of God for them then. It signifies the real presence and the power of YHWH. It is a holy place and now it is captured by the enemy.
read more: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/
Army Barmy Hat Tip
‘The War Cry’ Editor Major Nigel Bovey looks at the mercy seat
Marriage made in Heaven
WILLIAM BOOTH knew exactly where he stood. On the eve of his visit to the USA in 1898, he stood on the Royal Albert Hall platform and told an expectant congregation: ‘I am married to the penitent form.’ More than 100 years on, the question is: How will history record our personal and corporate relationship with the mercy seat? Staying with the marriage metaphor, let’s look at four relationships. We start with divorce – the complete break-off of relationship.
read more: http://www1.salvationarmy.org.uk/uki/www_uki.nsf/vwissue/23A334EB3B2798748025746E00488F73?opendocument&id=1590A95CD9F7ED378025746E00477633
N.T. Wright Responds to Richard John NeuhausJune/July 2008 -->
Copyright (c) 2008 First Things (June/July 2008).
I know the comments in the April 2008 issue weren’t a review of my recent book Surprised by Hope, but if the more freewheeling nature of Father Richard John Neuhaus’ column in First Things is used as an excuse for serious misrepresentation, then it is time to protest.
read more: http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=6253
NT Wright Page: http://www.ntwrightpage.com/ NT Wright has lots of good stuff, read away!
Marriage made in Heaven
WILLIAM BOOTH knew exactly where he stood. On the eve of his visit to the USA in 1898, he stood on the Royal Albert Hall platform and told an expectant congregation: ‘I am married to the penitent form.’ More than 100 years on, the question is: How will history record our personal and corporate relationship with the mercy seat? Staying with the marriage metaphor, let’s look at four relationships. We start with divorce – the complete break-off of relationship.
read more: http://www1.salvationarmy.org.uk/uki/www_uki.nsf/vwissue/23A334EB3B2798748025746E00488F73?opendocument&id=1590A95CD9F7ED378025746E00477633
N.T. Wright Responds to Richard John NeuhausJune/July 2008 -->
Copyright (c) 2008 First Things (June/July 2008).
I know the comments in the April 2008 issue weren’t a review of my recent book Surprised by Hope, but if the more freewheeling nature of Father Richard John Neuhaus’ column in First Things is used as an excuse for serious misrepresentation, then it is time to protest.
read more: http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=6253
NT Wright Page: http://www.ntwrightpage.com/ NT Wright has lots of good stuff, read away!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Rights vs. Responsibiliteis
I think the whole language of 'rights' is wrong from a Christian perspective.
I believe that the Biblical recod teaches that we should rather be dealing in terms of responsibilties.
For an example of my point, I offer up the great social justice parable of the sheep and the goats. You will notice in that parable (as in other relevant texts like Amos 3 for another example), that the author is concerned about how we carry out our responsibilities to God through those in need, rather than merely worrying about the perceived rights of ourselves and others.
Can one who is focussing on God, also be focussing on what they 'deserve'?
let me know what you think?
blog@sheepspeak.com
Have Patience
Makrothymia is commonly translated as ‘patience’ or ‘forbearing’ in the New Testament. Some of the places that makrothymia is found in the New Testament include Col. 1:11, Heb. 6:12, Eph 3:1, Jas. 5:10, 2 Ti. 3:10.In the NT forbearance is a characteristic of both God and of the man who is united with Jesus Christ. In its noun form it appears only in the epistles and it does not appear in the writing of John.
As far as the full sentiment of makrothymia, the parable of Matthew 18:21-25 could almost be said to sum up the whole NT teaching on the matter. It is used to show God’s longsuffering, God is patient with man beyond what he can repay and God goes even beyond that forgiving even his debts. “This transcends Jewish casuistry and the ‘Pharisaic theory of composition’, which always deal in measurable and comparable amounts.” In this parable it also refers to human patience related to divine patience.
makrothymia is incorporated in the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22), and in Eph 4:2 and Col. 3:12, it is referred to as part of our walk in the Spirit. It is required of believes as we are waiting for Jesus’ return (Jas 5:7). It is an aspect of hope and faith as displayed by Abraham (Heb 6:11, 6:15). 2 Peter 3 talks about God’s patience in giving people the full opportunity to repent in the apparent delay in the parousia.
So then - have patience, don't be in such a hurry. Remember that God is patient too and think of all the times that others have had to wait for you.
Full credits and footnotes are included on that page.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Obama Distorts the Bible: Dobson
From msn.com
"I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own worldview, his own confused theology," Dobson said.
"... He is dragging biblical understanding through the gutter."
... Dobson reserved some of his harshest criticism for Obama's argument that the religiously motivated must frame debates over issues like abortion not just in their own religion's terms but in arguments accessible to all people.
He said Obama, who supports abortion rights, is trying to govern by the "lowest common denominator of morality," labeling it "a fruitcake interpretation of the Constitution."
"Am I required in a democracy to conform my efforts in the political arena to his bloody notion of what is right with regard to the lives of tiny babies?" Dobson said. "What he's trying to say here is unless everybody agrees, we have no right to fight for what we believe."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25343812/
"I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own worldview, his own confused theology," Dobson said.
"... He is dragging biblical understanding through the gutter."
... Dobson reserved some of his harshest criticism for Obama's argument that the religiously motivated must frame debates over issues like abortion not just in their own religion's terms but in arguments accessible to all people.
He said Obama, who supports abortion rights, is trying to govern by the "lowest common denominator of morality," labeling it "a fruitcake interpretation of the Constitution."
"Am I required in a democracy to conform my efforts in the political arena to his bloody notion of what is right with regard to the lives of tiny babies?" Dobson said. "What he's trying to say here is unless everybody agrees, we have no right to fight for what we believe."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25343812/
Monday, June 23, 2008
DR Was
June 27
2 Kings 13-14 and 2 Chronicles 25 and 2 Timothy 3
Labels: June 16-30
2 Kings 13-14 and 2 Chronicles 25 and 2 Timothy 3
Labels: June 16-30
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
The New Atheism and Morality
by J.M. Njoroge
http://www.rzim.org/
Though the chorus of voices decrying belief in God has been humming in the ideological background for centuries, it seems to have reached a crescendo with the emergence of a movement that has been dubbed the new atheism. The trademark of this new brand of atheism is its vitriolic attack on religion. To its advocates, religious beliefs are not only false; they are also dangerous and must be expunged from all corners of society. The pundits of the new atheism are not content to nail discussion theses on the door of religion; they are also busy delivering eviction notices to the allegedly atavistic elements of an otherwise seamlessly progressive atheistic evolution of Homo sapiens.Given the rhetoric, one might be forgiven for thinking that some new discoveries have rendered belief in God untenable.
Curiously, this drama is unfolding in the same era in which perhaps the world’s leading defender of atheism, Antony Flew, has declared that recent scientific discoveries point to the fact that this world cannot be understood apart from the work of God as its Creator. This is no small matter, for Flew has been preaching atheism for as long as Billy Graham has been preaching the Gospel. Unlike Flew and others, the new atheists seem to forget that the success of their mission hinges solely on the strength and veracity of the reasons they give for repudiating religion. Venom and ridicule may carry the day in an age of sensationalistic sound bites, but false beliefs will eventually bounce off the hard, cold, unyielding wall of reality.
read more: http://www.rzim.org/GlobalElements/GFV/tabid/449/ArticleID/10020/CBModuleId/881/Default.aspx
http://www.rzim.org/
Though the chorus of voices decrying belief in God has been humming in the ideological background for centuries, it seems to have reached a crescendo with the emergence of a movement that has been dubbed the new atheism. The trademark of this new brand of atheism is its vitriolic attack on religion. To its advocates, religious beliefs are not only false; they are also dangerous and must be expunged from all corners of society. The pundits of the new atheism are not content to nail discussion theses on the door of religion; they are also busy delivering eviction notices to the allegedly atavistic elements of an otherwise seamlessly progressive atheistic evolution of Homo sapiens.Given the rhetoric, one might be forgiven for thinking that some new discoveries have rendered belief in God untenable.
Curiously, this drama is unfolding in the same era in which perhaps the world’s leading defender of atheism, Antony Flew, has declared that recent scientific discoveries point to the fact that this world cannot be understood apart from the work of God as its Creator. This is no small matter, for Flew has been preaching atheism for as long as Billy Graham has been preaching the Gospel. Unlike Flew and others, the new atheists seem to forget that the success of their mission hinges solely on the strength and veracity of the reasons they give for repudiating religion. Venom and ridicule may carry the day in an age of sensationalistic sound bites, but false beliefs will eventually bounce off the hard, cold, unyielding wall of reality.
read more: http://www.rzim.org/GlobalElements/GFV/tabid/449/ArticleID/10020/CBModuleId/881/Default.aspx
From salvationarmy.ca
Faces of Homeless Getting Younger
May 27, 2008 at 10:44 pm
It’s one thing to see an adult male living on the street. Major David Carey says seeing a preschool child come in to The Salvation Army in need of a home hits him on an entirely “different emotional level.”
It is, however, a sight Carey has had to learn to deal with.
“The face of homelessness is changing. We used to be a gender-specific service. We used to serve men only.
read more: http://www.salvationarmy.ca/2008/05/27/faces-of-homeless-getting-younger/
Taking Action For Our Environment
June 2, 2008 at 8:00 am
Recycling is an essential part of The Salvation Army thrift store identity. The stores not only raise money for Salvation Army social services, but they play a big part in diverting goods from landfills. “Revenue is important, absolutely essential,” says Diane Van der Horden, director for public relations in the Maritimes, “but the leadership role The Salvation Army plays in diverting things from landfills is also essential.”
“It’s not unreasonable to state that across Canada Salvation Army thrift stores rescue more than 100 million lbs of merchandise from disposal each year,” says John Kershaw, managing director of National Recycling Operations. Stores have saved vases, bicycles, instruments, clothes-you name it, from landfill sites.
read more: http://www.salvationarmy.ca/2008/06/02/taking-action-for-our-environment/
May 27, 2008 at 10:44 pm
It’s one thing to see an adult male living on the street. Major David Carey says seeing a preschool child come in to The Salvation Army in need of a home hits him on an entirely “different emotional level.”
It is, however, a sight Carey has had to learn to deal with.
“The face of homelessness is changing. We used to be a gender-specific service. We used to serve men only.
read more: http://www.salvationarmy.ca/2008/05/27/faces-of-homeless-getting-younger/
Taking Action For Our Environment
June 2, 2008 at 8:00 am
Recycling is an essential part of The Salvation Army thrift store identity. The stores not only raise money for Salvation Army social services, but they play a big part in diverting goods from landfills. “Revenue is important, absolutely essential,” says Diane Van der Horden, director for public relations in the Maritimes, “but the leadership role The Salvation Army plays in diverting things from landfills is also essential.”
“It’s not unreasonable to state that across Canada Salvation Army thrift stores rescue more than 100 million lbs of merchandise from disposal each year,” says John Kershaw, managing director of National Recycling Operations. Stores have saved vases, bicycles, instruments, clothes-you name it, from landfill sites.
read more: http://www.salvationarmy.ca/2008/06/02/taking-action-for-our-environment/
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Read this one! Whoa...
How far is too far?
Court quashes dad's grounding of 12-year-old daughter
Last Updated: Thursday, June 19, 2008 9:59 AM ET Comments425Recommend357
CBC News
A father plans to appeal after a Quebec court ruled that he didn't have the right to punish his 12-year-old daughter by banning her from a school trip.
Quebec Superior Court Madam Justice Suzanne Tessier ruled Friday that the girl should be allowed to attend the three-day trip within Quebec this week.
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/06/19/father-court.html
Court quashes dad's grounding of 12-year-old daughter
Last Updated: Thursday, June 19, 2008 9:59 AM ET Comments425Recommend357
CBC News
A father plans to appeal after a Quebec court ruled that he didn't have the right to punish his 12-year-old daughter by banning her from a school trip.
Quebec Superior Court Madam Justice Suzanne Tessier ruled Friday that the girl should be allowed to attend the three-day trip within Quebec this week.
read more from CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/06/19/father-court.html
Sunday's Sermon
Moms and Tots camp is cancelled so Susan still may decide to preach this Sunday.
When I preach next, we will look 1 Samuel 4-7:1.
Remember for Bible study (Megan and Jessica are leading) that we are finishing Judges and then startng to look at 1 Samuel 1-5.
read ahead... www.biblegateway.com
When I preach next, we will look 1 Samuel 4-7:1.
Remember for Bible study (Megan and Jessica are leading) that we are finishing Judges and then startng to look at 1 Samuel 1-5.
read ahead... www.biblegateway.com
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Food for thought from Army Barmy
There are two schools of thought in The Salvation Army's regarding giving. One suggests that we are to be good stewards of God's gifts, saving up so that we don't become a burden to others. The other suggests that we are to be god stewards of God's gifts, pouring them out to others as quickly as we receive them. The former school invests in savings plans; the latter invests in winning plans. The former protects; the latter attacks. The former might be thought to be investing in the mission of Coca Cola (as representative of stock market companies that receive these saving plan funds). The latter is investing in the mission of The Salvation Army to win the world for Jesus (since the money is being poured into its war chest). It might be good enroll in the latter school.
food for thought and prayerful consideration from www.armybarmy.com
food for thought and prayerful consideration from www.armybarmy.com
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
War
We were privileged to hear the Commissioner address the cadets and all of us who were in Winnipeg this past weekend for the commissioning of 'God's Fellow Workers'
At one point in his address he told us a story from a man he greatly respected in his corps while he was growing up about his experiences in WWI.
The man went over with the USA in the later days of the war. The Germans were on the run. The war was almost over. As he or his comrades would run across a fallen soldier - be it friend or foe - the young Salvationist would stop what he was doing and pray with that man. (His commander would get quite upset with him for this.)
At one point this young Salvationist soldier is standing beside his comrade as his comrade bayonets a German soldier. The Salvationist puts his weapon down, holds the dying man, prays with him, and loosens his shirt so that he can die in comfort.
As he does this - underneath the dying German's national uniform - the young Salvationist sees the German's bloodied Salvation Army Guernsey.
A man of God had just been removed from the fight for souls by someone who was fighting a war on behalf of man.
Every time you kill a non-believer in battle you are robbing them of a lifetime of opportunities for salvation.
Every time you kill a believer in battle, you help the enemy by removing one of the Lord's soldiers from the fight.
At one point in his address he told us a story from a man he greatly respected in his corps while he was growing up about his experiences in WWI.
The man went over with the USA in the later days of the war. The Germans were on the run. The war was almost over. As he or his comrades would run across a fallen soldier - be it friend or foe - the young Salvationist would stop what he was doing and pray with that man. (His commander would get quite upset with him for this.)
At one point this young Salvationist soldier is standing beside his comrade as his comrade bayonets a German soldier. The Salvationist puts his weapon down, holds the dying man, prays with him, and loosens his shirt so that he can die in comfort.
As he does this - underneath the dying German's national uniform - the young Salvationist sees the German's bloodied Salvation Army Guernsey.
A man of God had just been removed from the fight for souls by someone who was fighting a war on behalf of man.
Every time you kill a non-believer in battle you are robbing them of a lifetime of opportunities for salvation.
Every time you kill a believer in battle, you help the enemy by removing one of the Lord's soldiers from the fight.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Cadets
PASTORAL LETTER EIGHT
from the General.
Read it and other letters from his website: http://www.salvationarmy.org/thegeneral
Dear Fellow Salvationists,
I offer warmest Christian greetings to you all from London.
In this eighth Pastoral Letter it has been laid upon my heart to speak to you about cadets.
There are about 1,130 Salvation Army cadets today across the world undergoing training to become officers of the Army. Their ages range from 19 up to the mid-50s. Their backgrounds are as varied as you can imagine. Some become cadets with a modest educational experience, while others have university degrees including post-graduate degrees. Most of the cadets are in residence in a training college, with others being trained in off-campus settings. However, the one thing all cadets have in common is that all have been called by God to leave their secular walk in life to devote themselves full time to the ministry of an officer of The Salvation Army. It is a privileged calling.
Unless that divine calling has been experienced no person should offer to be trained as an officer. The life of an officer, whilst immensely rewarding, is also demanding and often stressful. At certain times of challenge and difficulty your abiding, settled sense of a sacred calling is all that will hold you secure and keep you pressing forward in your officer service.
That is why much emphasis is placed upon the testing of callings. Each candidate applying to become a cadet in training is invited to submit, in appropriate humility, to the process of having his or her claim to a divine calling gently but clearly tested through the screening process for candidates. It is a wonderful privilege to encounter candidates in this way and to learn from their accounts of God whispering into their hearts and minds. He speaks so graciously, so gently, but also so clearly until that first fleeting thought of officership grows and grows to become an abiding, settled conviction that you simply must obey if you are to have peace of spirit deep within.
I want to share with you lots of good news from around the Army world about candidates and cadets. In July 2007 we were in Hershey in the USA Eastern Territory and when we called for those offering for future service as officers to come to the platform 140 people came forward. It was breathtaking. The THQ is now processing 95 formal application cases. Praise God! In Sri Lanka, where the Army is far from great in number, 33 came forward in a similar manner. It was thrilling. In the USA Central Territory recently 40 stepped forward for officership. Wonderful! In the Australia Southern Territory it began to seem as though the next intake of cadets would be numerically tiny, but suddenly there were 20 to make up the next training session. God still calls, still speaks into the lives of those he has chosen in this way.
In the India Northern Territory there are 40 ready to enter training, but the capacity of the college cannot hold them all. In the USA Western Territory the territorial commander tells me that there are 300 candidates ready for application and possible acceptance in the next few years. The United Kingdom Territory has received 44 cadets into the latest session, a huge rise on recent years. The USA Southern Territory has received no fewer than 59 cadets in late 2007. Spain has five cadets, the first for some years. Marvellous! Japan anticipated having no first-year cadets at all this year, but suddenly three fine young people have stepped forward for acceptance. God is good!
I have a dream that the total number of cadets in the world will increase from 1,130 to 1,500 in the next few years. Leaders are needed. Is God calling you?
Please make time to offer up a sincere prayer for the cadets of future training college sessions, whose members are as yet unknown except to God. In 2008 the sessional name is ‘Prayer Warriors’; in 2009 it will be ‘Ambassadors of Holiness’; in 2010 ‘Friends of Christ’; in 2011 ‘Proclaimers of the Resurrection’; and in 2012 ‘Disciples of the Cross’. I have faith to believe some reading this Pastoral Letter will be part of these sessions in obedience to Christ’s call.
God bless the cadets! God bless the candidates! God bless those involved in screening and training them!
God bless you all!
I commend you once again to the perfect love of Christ.
Shaw Clifton
General
from the General.
Read it and other letters from his website: http://www.salvationarmy.org/thegeneral
Dear Fellow Salvationists,
I offer warmest Christian greetings to you all from London.
In this eighth Pastoral Letter it has been laid upon my heart to speak to you about cadets.
There are about 1,130 Salvation Army cadets today across the world undergoing training to become officers of the Army. Their ages range from 19 up to the mid-50s. Their backgrounds are as varied as you can imagine. Some become cadets with a modest educational experience, while others have university degrees including post-graduate degrees. Most of the cadets are in residence in a training college, with others being trained in off-campus settings. However, the one thing all cadets have in common is that all have been called by God to leave their secular walk in life to devote themselves full time to the ministry of an officer of The Salvation Army. It is a privileged calling.
Unless that divine calling has been experienced no person should offer to be trained as an officer. The life of an officer, whilst immensely rewarding, is also demanding and often stressful. At certain times of challenge and difficulty your abiding, settled sense of a sacred calling is all that will hold you secure and keep you pressing forward in your officer service.
That is why much emphasis is placed upon the testing of callings. Each candidate applying to become a cadet in training is invited to submit, in appropriate humility, to the process of having his or her claim to a divine calling gently but clearly tested through the screening process for candidates. It is a wonderful privilege to encounter candidates in this way and to learn from their accounts of God whispering into their hearts and minds. He speaks so graciously, so gently, but also so clearly until that first fleeting thought of officership grows and grows to become an abiding, settled conviction that you simply must obey if you are to have peace of spirit deep within.
I want to share with you lots of good news from around the Army world about candidates and cadets. In July 2007 we were in Hershey in the USA Eastern Territory and when we called for those offering for future service as officers to come to the platform 140 people came forward. It was breathtaking. The THQ is now processing 95 formal application cases. Praise God! In Sri Lanka, where the Army is far from great in number, 33 came forward in a similar manner. It was thrilling. In the USA Central Territory recently 40 stepped forward for officership. Wonderful! In the Australia Southern Territory it began to seem as though the next intake of cadets would be numerically tiny, but suddenly there were 20 to make up the next training session. God still calls, still speaks into the lives of those he has chosen in this way.
In the India Northern Territory there are 40 ready to enter training, but the capacity of the college cannot hold them all. In the USA Western Territory the territorial commander tells me that there are 300 candidates ready for application and possible acceptance in the next few years. The United Kingdom Territory has received 44 cadets into the latest session, a huge rise on recent years. The USA Southern Territory has received no fewer than 59 cadets in late 2007. Spain has five cadets, the first for some years. Marvellous! Japan anticipated having no first-year cadets at all this year, but suddenly three fine young people have stepped forward for acceptance. God is good!
I have a dream that the total number of cadets in the world will increase from 1,130 to 1,500 in the next few years. Leaders are needed. Is God calling you?
Please make time to offer up a sincere prayer for the cadets of future training college sessions, whose members are as yet unknown except to God. In 2008 the sessional name is ‘Prayer Warriors’; in 2009 it will be ‘Ambassadors of Holiness’; in 2010 ‘Friends of Christ’; in 2011 ‘Proclaimers of the Resurrection’; and in 2012 ‘Disciples of the Cross’. I have faith to believe some reading this Pastoral Letter will be part of these sessions in obedience to Christ’s call.
God bless the cadets! God bless the candidates! God bless those involved in screening and training them!
God bless you all!
I commend you once again to the perfect love of Christ.
Shaw Clifton
General
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Poverty, War, Water, Environment and Delusions
At the start of the 21st century 1.2 billion people live in abject poverty, most of them women. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry and 50,000 people die every day from poverty-related causes. It doesn't have to be this way. If we choose - if we have the will to act - we can make poverty history.
Poverty is a violation of human rights on a massive scale. In 2000 all members of the United Nations committed to "spare no effort" in tackling poverty by adopting the Millennium Declaration. Governments also launched the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to meet minimum targets to reduce poverty, hunger, illiteracy, discrimination against women, and environmental degradation by 2015
read more: http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca/en/the-issues
Income Inequality from StatsCan
Inequality in after-tax family income has increased during the past 15 years, driven by widening differences in family market income, according to a new study.
The study documented trends in inequality using data from the Survey of Consumer Finances and the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics.
It found that inequality in after-tax family income increased throughout the 1990s...
read more: http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/070511/d070511b.htm
Global Water Crisis
The management and distribution of water resources has been said to be one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. There is a widespread conception in the media and popular culture that fresh water supplies will be the source of fundamental conflicts between and increased crisis within states as they become scarcer.
Like many other countries, Canada is concerned by the increasing scarcity and diminishing quality of freshwater in many parts of the world. More than 1.1 billion people lack access to clean drinking water and more than 2.4 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation. Water borne diseases cause 3-5 million deaths a year and many more illnesses. The urgency of these issues has catalysed the international community to not only recognize this growing problem, but to commit to tackling these challenges.
read more from the Cdn Dept of Foreign Affairs: http://geo.international.gc.ca/cip-pic/water-eau/water-eau-en.aspx
The Burden of Violence
Siebert and Muggah.
Ottawa Citizen / Canada.com
Poor countries are less safe than rich ones. Most of the world's 30-odd armed conflicts are raging in the global South. As a country's human development ranking declines, its risk of succumbing to violent conflict grows. More than one-third of all countries mired in poverty experienced war since the late 1990s. Fewer than two per cent of rich countries experienced conflict over the same period.
read more from project Ploughshares: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Articles/JohnOpEdCitizenApr08.pdf
Canada subsidizes fossil fuels at expense of environment: Kairos
The Anglican Journal
Marites N. Sison
Jun 1, 2008
Alberta’s tar sands production has raised ecological concerns.The federal government will spend $1.5 billion in additional subsidies to tar sands companies that emit greenhouse gases harmful to the environment, far more than it will spend on initiatives to promote energy efficiency, conservation and renewable alternatives, said Kairos, a Canadian ecumenical justice organization.
Read more from the Anglican Journal: http://www.anglicanjournal.com/issues/2008/134/jun/06/article/canada-subsidizes-fossil-fuels-at-expense-of-environment-kairos/
Dawkins, Delusion....
by Margaret Somerville
http://www.geezmagazine.org/
... Dawkins, whom I consider a fundamentalist atheist... They all take an either/or approach to everything. Dawkins casts the current societal-ethical values debate as consisting of a series of choices: either them or us, atheism or religion, science or faith, reason or emotion and mysticism. I believe we must accommodate all of these realities and, to help us do that, I propose we need to search for a shared ethics. . . .
Human ways of knowing
Richard Dawkins and I part company most dramatically when it comes to what I call “human ways of knowing.” An overwhelming focus on reason is at the heart of Dawkins’ views, but I believe our valid and necessary ways of knowing are multiple and diverse, encompassing the mind, body, heart and spirit. John Ralston Saul, in his book The Unconscious Civilization, includes among our ways of knowing: common sense, human memory (history), imagination, creativity, intuition (I’d emphasize moral intuition), ethics and reason.
I would expressly add experiential knowledge and underline its importance to ethics, because experiential knowledge cuts across all of the other ways of knowing used in “doing ethics.” . . .
read more: http://www.geezmagazine.org/issue10/dawkins-delusion-and-the-search-for-a-shared-ethics
Jesus is the amswer - of course - to all this and more!
And He's coming back ... soon!
thoughts and/or comments: blog@sheepspeak.com
Poverty is a violation of human rights on a massive scale. In 2000 all members of the United Nations committed to "spare no effort" in tackling poverty by adopting the Millennium Declaration. Governments also launched the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to meet minimum targets to reduce poverty, hunger, illiteracy, discrimination against women, and environmental degradation by 2015
read more: http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca/en/the-issues
Income Inequality from StatsCan
Inequality in after-tax family income has increased during the past 15 years, driven by widening differences in family market income, according to a new study.
The study documented trends in inequality using data from the Survey of Consumer Finances and the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics.
It found that inequality in after-tax family income increased throughout the 1990s...
read more: http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/070511/d070511b.htm
Global Water Crisis
The management and distribution of water resources has been said to be one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. There is a widespread conception in the media and popular culture that fresh water supplies will be the source of fundamental conflicts between and increased crisis within states as they become scarcer.
Like many other countries, Canada is concerned by the increasing scarcity and diminishing quality of freshwater in many parts of the world. More than 1.1 billion people lack access to clean drinking water and more than 2.4 billion people lack access to adequate sanitation. Water borne diseases cause 3-5 million deaths a year and many more illnesses. The urgency of these issues has catalysed the international community to not only recognize this growing problem, but to commit to tackling these challenges.
read more from the Cdn Dept of Foreign Affairs: http://geo.international.gc.ca/cip-pic/water-eau/water-eau-en.aspx
The Burden of Violence
Siebert and Muggah.
Ottawa Citizen / Canada.com
Poor countries are less safe than rich ones. Most of the world's 30-odd armed conflicts are raging in the global South. As a country's human development ranking declines, its risk of succumbing to violent conflict grows. More than one-third of all countries mired in poverty experienced war since the late 1990s. Fewer than two per cent of rich countries experienced conflict over the same period.
read more from project Ploughshares: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Articles/JohnOpEdCitizenApr08.pdf
Canada subsidizes fossil fuels at expense of environment: Kairos
The Anglican Journal
Marites N. Sison
Jun 1, 2008
Alberta’s tar sands production has raised ecological concerns.The federal government will spend $1.5 billion in additional subsidies to tar sands companies that emit greenhouse gases harmful to the environment, far more than it will spend on initiatives to promote energy efficiency, conservation and renewable alternatives, said Kairos, a Canadian ecumenical justice organization.
Read more from the Anglican Journal: http://www.anglicanjournal.com/issues/2008/134/jun/06/article/canada-subsidizes-fossil-fuels-at-expense-of-environment-kairos/
Dawkins, Delusion....
by Margaret Somerville
http://www.geezmagazine.org/
... Dawkins, whom I consider a fundamentalist atheist... They all take an either/or approach to everything. Dawkins casts the current societal-ethical values debate as consisting of a series of choices: either them or us, atheism or religion, science or faith, reason or emotion and mysticism. I believe we must accommodate all of these realities and, to help us do that, I propose we need to search for a shared ethics. . . .
Human ways of knowing
Richard Dawkins and I part company most dramatically when it comes to what I call “human ways of knowing.” An overwhelming focus on reason is at the heart of Dawkins’ views, but I believe our valid and necessary ways of knowing are multiple and diverse, encompassing the mind, body, heart and spirit. John Ralston Saul, in his book The Unconscious Civilization, includes among our ways of knowing: common sense, human memory (history), imagination, creativity, intuition (I’d emphasize moral intuition), ethics and reason.
I would expressly add experiential knowledge and underline its importance to ethics, because experiential knowledge cuts across all of the other ways of knowing used in “doing ethics.” . . .
read more: http://www.geezmagazine.org/issue10/dawkins-delusion-and-the-search-for-a-shared-ethics
Jesus is the amswer - of course - to all this and more!
And He's coming back ... soon!
thoughts and/or comments: blog@sheepspeak.com
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
A Theft from Those Who Hunger
Rampant military spending is making us less secure.
by Frida Berrigan
As people of faith, we are called to alleviate suffering and end injustice. That work must include addressing a militarism that robs the poor of one country to bomb the poor of another.
We need steps that will lead to a durable, affordable peace and stability. We need to more broadly define security beyond borders, militaries, and hardware; to use all the tools in our toolbox; to dismantle the enduring influence of the military-industrial complex; to commit to use force only as a last resort; and to recalibrate our priorities so that health care, infrastructure, and education are allocated adequate resources. This is the kind of economic stimulus package that America really needs.
read the article from Sojouners magazine: http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0806&article=080641a
The Bread You Possess Belongs to the Hungry
by St. Basil
They say: Whom do I wrong by keeping my property? What, tell me, is your property? Where did you find it and brought it to your life? Just like someone in the theatre, who had a seat and then stopped those who entered, judging that what lies common in front of everyone to use, was his own: rich men are of the same kind. They first took possession of the common property, and then they keep it as their own because they were the first to take it. If one had taken what is necessary to cover one’s needs and had left the rest to those who are in need, no one would be rich, no one would be poor, no one would be in need.
Isn’t it true, that you fell off the womb naked? Isn’t it true, that naked you shall return to the earth? Where is your present property from? If you think that it came to you by itself, you don’t believe in God, you don’t acknowledge the creator and you are not thankful to him who gave it to you. But if you agree and confess that you have it from God, tell us the reason why he gave it to you. ...
read the article from Sojouners magazine: http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0805&article=080511
Feed My Sheep. Greed-driven global food crisis demands immediate church attention
With an estimated 850 million people suffering from hunger worldwide, nine out of ten of which live in developing countries, "the scandal of hunger demands the immediate attention of the churches", affirmed today in a statement the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia.
read more from the World Council of Churches: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/news/news-management/eng/a/article/1722/greed-driven-global-food.html
A Quarter Century of Economic Inequality in Canada: 1981-2006
Wealth, income inequality rising: Study
TORONTO – Canada’s inequality in wealth and income is growing, and at a more rapid pace than before, says a new study released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
The study, by economist Lars Osberg, looks at 25 years of income and wealth inequality in Canada and finds disturbing new trends.
“Between the Second World War and 1980, the economic pie was growing at all points in the distribution, even if income shares in Canada didn’t change much” says Osberg. “But today, there are very different trends for the top, the bottom and the middle 90% of the income distribution.
Growth in Canadians’ average real wages has been stalled since 1979 which, Osberg points out, is “a dramatic change from Canada’s historical experience”.
“A quarter of a century ago, circa 1980, someone who wrote about economic inequality in Canada was writing about a country in which real wages had been rising strongly,” Osberg says. “- but the ‘new normal’ for Canada’s middle 90% is for stagnant or declining real wages, despite unprecedented improvements in education and skills.”
read the report from the Cdn Ctre for Policy Alternatives: http://www.policyalternatives.ca/documents/National_Office_Pubs/2008/Quarter_Century_of_Inequality.pdf
Better Late than Never
France block access to Child Porn
“We can no longer tolerate the sexual exploitation of children in the form of child pornography,” Alliot-Marie said. “We have come to an agreement: access to child pornography sites will be blocked in France. Other democracies have done it. France could wait no longer.”
read more and related material from the Toronto Star: http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/440423
New Report Finds US Treatment of Detainees Unnecessarily Harsh
-->
More than two-thirds of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, including many cleared for release or transfer, are being housed in inhumane conditions that are reportedly having a damaging effect on their mental health, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.The 54-page report, “Locked Up Alone: Detention Conditions and Mental Health at Guantanamo,” documents the conditions in the various “camps” at the detention center.
Read the report from Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/reports/2008/us0608/
by Frida Berrigan
As people of faith, we are called to alleviate suffering and end injustice. That work must include addressing a militarism that robs the poor of one country to bomb the poor of another.
We need steps that will lead to a durable, affordable peace and stability. We need to more broadly define security beyond borders, militaries, and hardware; to use all the tools in our toolbox; to dismantle the enduring influence of the military-industrial complex; to commit to use force only as a last resort; and to recalibrate our priorities so that health care, infrastructure, and education are allocated adequate resources. This is the kind of economic stimulus package that America really needs.
read the article from Sojouners magazine: http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0806&article=080641a
The Bread You Possess Belongs to the Hungry
by St. Basil
They say: Whom do I wrong by keeping my property? What, tell me, is your property? Where did you find it and brought it to your life? Just like someone in the theatre, who had a seat and then stopped those who entered, judging that what lies common in front of everyone to use, was his own: rich men are of the same kind. They first took possession of the common property, and then they keep it as their own because they were the first to take it. If one had taken what is necessary to cover one’s needs and had left the rest to those who are in need, no one would be rich, no one would be poor, no one would be in need.
Isn’t it true, that you fell off the womb naked? Isn’t it true, that naked you shall return to the earth? Where is your present property from? If you think that it came to you by itself, you don’t believe in God, you don’t acknowledge the creator and you are not thankful to him who gave it to you. But if you agree and confess that you have it from God, tell us the reason why he gave it to you. ...
read the article from Sojouners magazine: http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0805&article=080511
Feed My Sheep. Greed-driven global food crisis demands immediate church attention
With an estimated 850 million people suffering from hunger worldwide, nine out of ten of which live in developing countries, "the scandal of hunger demands the immediate attention of the churches", affirmed today in a statement the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia.
read more from the World Council of Churches: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/news/news-management/eng/a/article/1722/greed-driven-global-food.html
A Quarter Century of Economic Inequality in Canada: 1981-2006
Wealth, income inequality rising: Study
TORONTO – Canada’s inequality in wealth and income is growing, and at a more rapid pace than before, says a new study released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
The study, by economist Lars Osberg, looks at 25 years of income and wealth inequality in Canada and finds disturbing new trends.
“Between the Second World War and 1980, the economic pie was growing at all points in the distribution, even if income shares in Canada didn’t change much” says Osberg. “But today, there are very different trends for the top, the bottom and the middle 90% of the income distribution.
Growth in Canadians’ average real wages has been stalled since 1979 which, Osberg points out, is “a dramatic change from Canada’s historical experience”.
“A quarter of a century ago, circa 1980, someone who wrote about economic inequality in Canada was writing about a country in which real wages had been rising strongly,” Osberg says. “- but the ‘new normal’ for Canada’s middle 90% is for stagnant or declining real wages, despite unprecedented improvements in education and skills.”
read the report from the Cdn Ctre for Policy Alternatives: http://www.policyalternatives.ca/documents/National_Office_Pubs/2008/Quarter_Century_of_Inequality.pdf
Better Late than Never
France block access to Child Porn
“We can no longer tolerate the sexual exploitation of children in the form of child pornography,” Alliot-Marie said. “We have come to an agreement: access to child pornography sites will be blocked in France. Other democracies have done it. France could wait no longer.”
read more and related material from the Toronto Star: http://www.thestar.com/News/World/article/440423
New Report Finds US Treatment of Detainees Unnecessarily Harsh
-->
More than two-thirds of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, including many cleared for release or transfer, are being housed in inhumane conditions that are reportedly having a damaging effect on their mental health, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today.The 54-page report, “Locked Up Alone: Detention Conditions and Mental Health at Guantanamo,” documents the conditions in the various “camps” at the detention center.
Read the report from Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/reports/2008/us0608/
Monday, June 09, 2008
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Good-bye Helene, God bless.
HAYEK, Helene (nee Garraway) April 19, 1965 June 6, 2008 Helene passed away peacefully with her family by her side after a courageous two month battle with cancer. She was predeceased by her mother Helen Garraway. She is survived by her loving husband George Hayek, daughters Abigail and Rebecca, father Lyle Garraway (Mary), twin sister Renee Kelly (Paul), and brothers Dale and Bernard Garraway and Neil Antolin (Karen). Helene was born and raised in Victoria....
read more:
Note: Helene loved God. She'll be okay. Please continue to pray for friends and family...
Friday, June 06, 2008
Samson: Just Dessert.
You may wish to read from Judges 13:1 - 16:31.
Sunday's message is on 16:23-31.
Sunday's Bible Study starts with Judges 1o:6 (Japhtheth)
From the DTES to NE SASK...week one
Week one is almost done for Meagan and Jessica.
It has been great having them here.
They have been involved in minstry/outreach in Tisdale and Nipawin:
praying with people
going to the courts
visiting at the trailer parksupervising visitations
AA/NA
Bible studies
Praying for events and people
Warriors' Song Cafe outreach
Updating prayer and visitation lists
Meeting the newpaper
Food bank and family services
Camp outreach
Kids Klub
Visitation
Soccer
etc...
The Lord uses His servants for His work...
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Peace and War Room
Hat Tip www.armybarmy.com
Friday, June 06, 2008From the War Room Blog...
Today our morning prayers were a little late, as there was a fight going on outside the garden. It was a matter of drug money not being paid off, and one man was set to beat up another man.
What do you do in that case? Do you ignore it, just keep on praying? Do you call the cops, or just assume it's someone else's problem?
We couldn't. We got involved. I don't know how much we helped, and we very nearly got beaten up. I'm also pretty sure we made an enemy of a local dealer who was very upset that we were interfering with his business.
But how can you pray to the God who hates violence while ignoring violence happening a few feet away from you?
One of our guys stood in the way of a rock being thrown at another man. To me, that is living out what we are praying.
So then we prayed: "O LORD, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?...But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the LORD because he is good to me." (parts of Psalm 13)
Hope and trust in the midst of violence and pain.
Grace,
Aaron (614 Vancouver)
Friday, June 06, 2008From the War Room Blog...
Today our morning prayers were a little late, as there was a fight going on outside the garden. It was a matter of drug money not being paid off, and one man was set to beat up another man.
What do you do in that case? Do you ignore it, just keep on praying? Do you call the cops, or just assume it's someone else's problem?
We couldn't. We got involved. I don't know how much we helped, and we very nearly got beaten up. I'm also pretty sure we made an enemy of a local dealer who was very upset that we were interfering with his business.
But how can you pray to the God who hates violence while ignoring violence happening a few feet away from you?
One of our guys stood in the way of a rock being thrown at another man. To me, that is living out what we are praying.
So then we prayed: "O LORD, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?...But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the LORD because he is good to me." (parts of Psalm 13)
Hope and trust in the midst of violence and pain.
Grace,
Aaron (614 Vancouver)
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Province takes over Catholic school board
From the TorStar.
Louise Brown EDUCATION REPORTERS
Is this okay?
Education Minister Kathleen Wynne has appointed veteran school finance expert Norbert Hartmann to seize the financial reins of the beleaguered Toronto Catholic District School Board, saying she has "no confidence in trustees’ ability to continue to manage their affairs."
The move comes on the advice of an investigator Wynne sent in last week to review the board’s books after ... a failure to balance their budget two weeks ago.
read more from TorStar: http://parentcentral.ca/parent/article/436840
Louise Brown EDUCATION REPORTERS
Is this okay?
Education Minister Kathleen Wynne has appointed veteran school finance expert Norbert Hartmann to seize the financial reins of the beleaguered Toronto Catholic District School Board, saying she has "no confidence in trustees’ ability to continue to manage their affairs."
The move comes on the advice of an investigator Wynne sent in last week to review the board’s books after ... a failure to balance their budget two weeks ago.
read more from TorStar: http://parentcentral.ca/parent/article/436840
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
We Believe God Desires Peace in their Land as in Ours
- World Council of Churches
...We believe that The Canadian Forces should focus on enhancing protection of vulnerable Afghans rather than on aggressive engagement with insurgents in areas where the local population is suspicious or alienated from the central government...
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley%20Report%20CCC%20ENG.pdf
Canadian peacebuilding organizations are calling on the Government of Canada to recognize that the insurgency in Afghanistan cannot be solved militarily. The Group of 78, WFM – Canada and CPCC suggest that Canada needs to shift the focus of its efforts to the facilitation of Afghan-led political negotiations and reconciliation.
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley78WFMCPCC.pdf
We must re-orient the focus of Canadian aid in Afghanistan. The humanitarian and development needs are extreme throughout the country, said Dave Toycen, President and CEO of World Vision Canada. The current uneven distribution of aid to the areas of insecurity in the south and east is creating grievances in other parts of Afghanistan.
read more (Care, Oxfam, World Vision): http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley%20CARE_Oxfam_WorldVision.pdf
Peace-building has to address these causes at the community and political level, and not by investing ever more in the combat mission, says Barr. A peace process aimed at reconciliation and creating and building trust in institutions of governance, justice and human rights is the key to security for Afghans, and for our troops.
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/ManleyCCIC.pdf
The people of Afghanistan want peace. We hope this conviction will be central to the deliberations by the Parliament of Canada. Political and electoral considerations must take second place when it is a question of human lives and a people's future. We would invite the members of Parliament to put aside any predetermined stances, recognizing that the truth will involve concerted efforts...It is hardly possible to imagine that in an atomic era, war could be used as an instrument of justice. - Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/ManleyCCCB.pdf
...We believe that The Canadian Forces should focus on enhancing protection of vulnerable Afghans rather than on aggressive engagement with insurgents in areas where the local population is suspicious or alienated from the central government...
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley%20Report%20CCC%20ENG.pdf
Canadian peacebuilding organizations are calling on the Government of Canada to recognize that the insurgency in Afghanistan cannot be solved militarily. The Group of 78, WFM – Canada and CPCC suggest that Canada needs to shift the focus of its efforts to the facilitation of Afghan-led political negotiations and reconciliation.
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley78WFMCPCC.pdf
We must re-orient the focus of Canadian aid in Afghanistan. The humanitarian and development needs are extreme throughout the country, said Dave Toycen, President and CEO of World Vision Canada. The current uneven distribution of aid to the areas of insecurity in the south and east is creating grievances in other parts of Afghanistan.
read more (Care, Oxfam, World Vision): http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/Manley%20CARE_Oxfam_WorldVision.pdf
Peace-building has to address these causes at the community and political level, and not by investing ever more in the combat mission, says Barr. A peace process aimed at reconciliation and creating and building trust in institutions of governance, justice and human rights is the key to security for Afghans, and for our troops.
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/ManleyCCIC.pdf
The people of Afghanistan want peace. We hope this conviction will be central to the deliberations by the Parliament of Canada. Political and electoral considerations must take second place when it is a question of human lives and a people's future. We would invite the members of Parliament to put aside any predetermined stances, recognizing that the truth will involve concerted efforts...It is hardly possible to imagine that in an atomic era, war could be used as an instrument of justice. - Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops
read more: http://www.ploughshares.ca/libraries/Statements/ManleyCCCB.pdf
Monday, June 02, 2008
DR Was goes to College?
The new repackaged blogger style format of DR WAS went up two years ago yesterday with this comic and daily readings:
Proverbs 19-21 and Romans 13
http://drwas.blogspot.com/search/label/JuneThe War College students have arrived!
Welcome Meagan and Jessica. You've trained in the DTES now are you ready for the streets of Nipawin ?! (Tisdale and Melfort too)
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