I just received a bulletin in the mail for Holy Moly and St Nicholas – it’s the Advent newsletter, which is traditionally mailed out just before the beginning of the season by someone at St Nick’s. Something caught my eye, and I went looking for a definition. At the outset, we are going to seek to develop two strong liturgies — a more mainstream one i n the tradition of Holy Innocents and a more inculturated one using the platform of the current St Nicholas liturgy. Which of course, confuses me – there is no such word. Yet, the word…
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My great-niece Paige working on a batch of donuts to celebrate the first big snow. Ranny sent me a picture via cameraphone to let me know that it was Donut Day in their area – meaning that the first big snow of the season was falling, and that they were making donuts to celebrate. They got a foot, in fact, which definitely makes it The Official First Snow of the Season. This was a tradition that Mom started some time in the misty (or snowy) past; every year she’d try to make them better than ever. I never got the…
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Popping Off: Its up to us to put an end to the O.J. frenzy “If I Did It.” That’s a heck of a title for a ghostwritten book about how O.J. Simpson would have killed two people who many believe he did kill in 1994. One was his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, with whom he had two children, Sydney and Justin. The other was her friend, Ron Goldman. Both were found in a bloody heap in the courtyard of the condo complex where she lived. I’m having a flashback to a year that was a big turning point for me,…
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Posted by a commenter at Father Jake Stops the World I've lost track over the years of the citation, but there was a book published in the last generation that reviewed growing congregations across denominational lines (including Episcopal churches). That study found five factors as important: 1) good preaching; 2) good music; 3) good adult Christian education; 4) opportunities for hands-on service ministries; and 5) small group interactions. (Interesting, considering the attention it has always gotten, that Christian education of children wasn't afactor.) As a frequent supply priest over the years, I've been really surprised and saddened at the…
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Father Jake Stops the World NYT: How many members of the Episcopal Church are there in this country? KJS: About 2.2 million. It used to be larger percentagewise, but Episcopalians tend to be better-educated and tend to reproduce at lower rates than some other denominations. Roman Catholics and Mormons both have theological reasons for producing lots of children. NYT: Episcopalians aren’t interested in replenishing their ranks by having children? KJS: No. It’s probably the opposite. We encourage people to pay attention to the stewardship of the earth and not use more than their portion. I'm a childfree, environmentally aware Episcopalian,…
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One Utah » Blog Archive » Crumbs of Compassion So, how is the country doing after a six-year diet of crumbs? Well, the good news is that, just in time for Thanksgiving, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has found a way to eliminate hunger in America. The USDA will now use the term “very low food security” to describe people who used to be considered “food insecure with hunger.” Statistically speaking, hunger will no longer exist for the 3.9 percent of U.S. households in the “very low” category this represents about 11 million people, using 2000 Census figures. The bad…
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Mom's little book of days for yesterday had some cryptic notes: Property tax due Frank 60 NOVEMBER 21 We have two ends with a common linkWith one we sit, with one we think.Success depends on what we use – Heads we win…Tails we loose. It's a cute sentiment, but it contains one of my all-time pet peeves in English usage: the substitution of "loose" for "lose." Yesterday was a very good day. I can't explain why; night before last was a rough one where I got up at about 3 or 4 to read for awhile. Sleep doesn't come very…
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From WBEZ in Chicago | This American Life Heretics The story of Reverend Carlton Pearson (pictured), an evangelical pastor in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His church, Higher Dimensions, was once one of the biggest in the city, drawing crowds of 5,000 people every Sunday. But several years ago, scandal engulfed the Reverend, he was denounced by almost all his former supporters, and today his congregation is just a few hundred people. He didn't have an affair. He didn't embezzle lots of money. His sin was something that to a lot of people is far worse … he stopped believing in hell. …
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Bush Choice for Family-Planning Post Criticized – washingtonpost.com No, I'm not happy about this choice – I don't think someone whose stance appears to be not just anti-choice, but anti-contraception, for everyone, and repeats the canard that since condoms can't protect against all STD's ("the infected area is often not covered by a condom"), sex should be avoided entirely unless with one, faithful, uninfected partner. Gosh, how stunningly clear, everyone will easily be able to adapt to this standard. It's very real-world, don't you think? It appears that some other of my childfree sistren and brethren are a little more…