Archive - Dec 2009 - Oct 2019 http://colleagueslist.blogspot.ca/ http://colleagueslistii.blogspot.com/
EASTER EDITION
Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address: waholst@telus.net
This email is sent only to a voluntary subscriber list.
If you no longer wish to receive these weekly columns,
write to me personally - waholst@telus.net
*****
Dear Friends:
Here is my Easter edition of Colleagues List!
I include two Special Item selections. The first
is my Anglican Journal column for Easter, which
was posted today.
The second is a personal exercise for the season -
provided thru me by Spirituality and Practice.
All the other selections this time relate to Holy Week
and Easter commemorations, including current issues
from the world of religion and culture.
May you have a blessed season of meaning and growth,
perhaps because our times are strange and unprecedented.
Wayne
PS A REMINDER - If a link, below seems to be dead, cut and
paste it into the address bar at the top of your web page
and it should work.
*****
MY SPECIAL ITEMS FOR EASTER
Click the link to my current Anglican Journal Easter column:
"Easter was unexpected in the beginning, and it still is"
https://tinyurl.com/yx2tm9zd
--
Repeated reflection from last year:
RESURRECTION AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Making Easter Renewal Your Own
Spirituality and Practice
April 21st, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y445fnyt
--
BY respecting the mystery of God, human nature, and
*****
COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS
Mark Whittall,
Ottawa, ON.
Sermons and Blog
April 10th, 2020
"Atonement (Good Friday)"
https://tinyurl.com/s3ex2ye
--
Elfrieda Schroeder,
Winnipeg, MB.
In Transit - Blog
April 7th, 2020
"Be Not Afraid"
https://tinyurl.com/r5d86y2
Jim Taylor,
Okanagan, BC
Personal Web Log
April 9th, 2020
"Hand-washing for Beginners"
https://tinyurl.com/wpogzya
--
John Stackhouse Jr.
Moncton, NB
Context
April 6th, 2020
A Canadian Evangelical Perspective:
"Why are They Still Going to Church?"
https://tinyurl.com/va3uf32
--
Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX
Personal WebSite,
April 6th, 2020
"The Meaning of Jesus' Death"
https://tinyurl.com/wramd7f
*****
NET NOTES - April 12th, 2020
EASTER
by Frederick Buechner
MyBuechner Blog
https://tinyurl.com/quatgwf
-
I MISS SINGING AT CHURCH
Something I have Discovered
The New York Times,
April 5th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/uz5eaf2
--
LAMENTATION AS A GIFT
ACC Primate Linda Nicholls
Anglican Journal,
March 30th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/trjjhlq
--
MARY MAGDALENE - EASTER STORY
Unraveling the Myth of an Early Church Leader
Broadview,
March 16th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/w7tnctq
--
IN OHIO, THE AMISH
TAKE ON CORONAVIRUS
Balancing Community and Outreach
New York Times,
April 9th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/soklozn
--
EPIDEMIC A PRIME TIME
FOR CONVERSION SAYS POPE
Catholic Register, Toronto
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/uy2l59q
--
FEELING ANTSY, MOROSE?
ADVICE FROM KATHLEEN NORRIS
What She Learned from the Monks
National Catholic Reporter,
April 7th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/umr7hda
--
THE PANDEMIC IS EXPOSING
THE MYTH OF SELF-RELIANCE
We Much Need Our Unsung Heroes
The Christian Century,
April 6th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/svxpzxo
--
JEWS AROUND THE WORLD
TO CELEBRATE PASSOVER
Different from Any Other
Religion News Service,
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/v4ovseq
--
THIS YEAR, EASTER MAY
FEEL MORE LIKE PASSOVER
Reading Exodus 20 Could Help
Religion News Service
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/v8dzy5z
*****
WISDOM OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners and the Bruderhof online:
This Holy Week, like Mary, let us bring our tears
and grief to the garden, pouring out our hearts,
explaining all the ways it shouldn’t have to be like
this. And like Mary, in the intimacy of our
disappointment, may we hear Jesus call our name.
- Rebekah Bled
-
And if the message of Easter is about [new life],
then for us to fast from gathering for worship is our
following the path of new life, new life for those who
we might be hurt by gathering together and new life
for us by learning to live — not for self alone, but
for others and for God – that's resurrection.
- Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
--
Oscar Romero -
To be a Christian now means
to have the courage
to preach the true teaching of Christ
and not be afraid of it, not be silent out of fear
and preach something easy
that won’t cause problems.
To be a Christian in this hour means
to have the courage that the Holy Spirit gives...
to be valiant soldiers of Christ the King,
to make his teaching prevail,
to reach hearts and proclaim to them
the courage
that one must have to defend God’s law.
--
Being patient is difficult. It is not just waiting until
something happens over which we have no control:
the arrival of the bus, the end of the rain, the return
of a friend, the resolution of a conflict. Patience is not
waiting passively until someone else does something.
Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest,
to be completely present to the moment, to taste
the here and now, to be where we are. When we
are impatient, we try to get away from where we
are. We behave as if the real thing will happen
tomorrow, later, and somewhere else. Be patient
and trust that the treasure you are looking for is
hidden in the ground on which you stand.
- Henri J.M. Nouwen
--
The tongue is our most powerful weapon of manipulation.
A frantic stream of words flows from us because we are
in a constant process of adjusting our public image. We
fear so deeply what we think other people see in us that
we talk in order to straighten out their understanding. If I
have done some wrong thing (or even some right thing
that I think you may misunderstand) and discover that
you know about it, I will be very tempted to help you
understand my action.
Silence is one of the deepest disciplines of the spirit
simply because it puts the stopper on all self-justification.
One of the fruits of silence is the freedom to let God be
our justifier. We don’t need to straighten others out.
- Richard J. Foster
*****
MOMENT IN TIME
Globe and Mail,
April 7th, 2020
April 7th, 1970
The turn of the sixties into the seventies was a
time of thoughtfulness and patchouli-scented
spirituality, reflected by charting hits that included,
in the spring of 1970, Simon & Garfunkel’s
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" and the Beatles’
"Let it Be - Speaking words of wisdom,” then; it
was something of a genre unto itself.
It was in this era that on April 7, 1970, the young
Ottawan Bruce Cockburn released a spare,
acoustic, introspective self-titled debut album
that was at turns gentle and jaunty, marked by
flowery lyricism and the lucid, seeking outlook
of a self-aware artist on the cusp of something
yet unclear.
“It’s my turn, but where’s the guide?” the nascent
troubadour wondered on Man of a Thousand Faces.
The political activism of 1984′s If I Had a Rocket
Launcher would come later, as would 13 Juno
Awards. In 1970, though, with songs such as
"Thoughts on a Rainy Afternoon" the gifted
musician sought connections behind the things
he observed. As for what lay ahead, he was
characteristically clear-eyed, singing “Jesus,
don’t let tomorrow take my love away.”
Cockburn would win that fight.
– Brad Wheeler
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT - Stephanie Lobdell
When COVID-19 is but a strange, traumatic memory
to pass on to our grandchildren, will we be able to say
with humility and honesty that we learned to love as
Jesus loved us?
(end)
*****
For those interested:
Registration/Hospitality and Book: $60.00.
Book only: $25.00
https://tinyurl.com/qpx7l8n
ST. DAVID'S ACTS THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY
Repeated reflection from last year:
RESURRECTION AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Making Easter Renewal Your Own
Spirituality and Practice
April 21st, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y445fnyt
After reading this article from Spirituality and Practice
this week, I decided to turn this personal reflection at
Easter into verbs. I selected seven of the points offered
by Meghan McKenna and pass on to you a bit of where
I am coming from.
--
by Meghan McKenna and pass on to you a bit of where
I am coming from.
--
GIVE your full attention to whatever you are doing and
you'll realize the constant renewal of life all around you.
Wayne - I now know that for much of my life I busied
myself with so many activities that I failed to see a lot
of what was really going on. Now, I am slowing down
naturally, but that is not a bad thing in many ways. I
tend to focus and notice a great deal more.
--
WHEN you cultivate the art of making connections, the
walls of separation come crashing down and new life
can spring up out of the rubble.
Wayne - I am more aware of broken relationships and
Wayne - I now know that for much of my life I busied
myself with so many activities that I failed to see a lot
of what was really going on. Now, I am slowing down
naturally, but that is not a bad thing in many ways. I
tend to focus and notice a great deal more.
--
WHEN you cultivate the art of making connections, the
walls of separation come crashing down and new life
can spring up out of the rubble.
Wayne - I am more aware of broken relationships and
other break-ups within and around me. One of the
benefits of this stage of my life is that I can use my
experience to try to do some real healing ministry inside
and beyond myself. I don't expect great things to happen,
but then again, who knows? I really am making more
connections.
connections.
--
EVERY time you forgive someone, another resurrection
EVERY time you forgive someone, another resurrection
is in the making.
Wayne - There are some people I am not yet ready to
Wayne - There are some people I am not yet ready to
forgive, but the prospect of a true resurrection where
one does not currently exist certainly nudges me. I
need to let forgiveness be more part of my life as I
know was part of earlier times in my life.
need to let forgiveness be more part of my life as I
know was part of earlier times in my life.
--
YOUR little acts of kindness tenderize the world, add to
YOUR little acts of kindness tenderize the world, add to
the fund of good will, and set the table for resurrection.
Wayne - it always surprises me when, out of the blue,
Wayne - it always surprises me when, out of the blue,
people call me aside and tell me about how I may have
been of some help to them. This gives me encouragement
to "continue doing what I'm doing" and then some.
--
NURTURE yourself — eat right, exercise, get plenty of rest
- and you are helping God resurrect your body.
Wayne - I have been more focused on what I eat, when
--
NURTURE yourself — eat right, exercise, get plenty of rest
- and you are helping God resurrect your body.
Wayne - I have been more focused on what I eat, when
I exercise, and how much sleep I get each day. I am
learning that these activities can enhance and prolong
my life, and for that reason alone, I tend to them faithfully.
my life, and for that reason alone, I tend to them faithfully.
--
PRACTICING resurrection also means having confidence
PRACTICING resurrection also means having confidence
that God can make something out of your selfishness,
anger, greed, hatred, and any of your other shadow
qualities.
Wayne - It was an important learning for me, at mid-
Wayne - It was an important learning for me, at mid-
life, to discover that, by nature I am not bad, but both
good and bad together. It was an additional learning
for me that my failings were even more helpful to others
observing me than were my successes.
BY respecting the mystery of God, human nature, and
the natural world, you bear witness to the ineffable
nature of renewal and rebirth.
Wayne - when I looked over this list of seven, and of
Wayne - when I looked over this list of seven, and of
my comments, most of them still focused on "doing".
That, I think is true to my nature. Contemplation is
still very hard for me, but I am getting better at it.
When I encounter mystery at this stage of my life -
and I do so often - I am much more inclined to stop
and reflect, rather than to immediately shift into action.
Often in the past, activity was a defense-mechanism
that did not help me or others very much.
--
I hope I am learning that joining with Christ in his
resurrection is the way to live and to be resurrection
for others also. St. Paul writes frequently about this -
(see Romans 6:4, for example).
COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS
Mark Whittall,
Ottawa, ON.
Sermons and Blog
April 10th, 2020
"Atonement (Good Friday)"
https://tinyurl.com/s3ex2ye
--
Elfrieda Schroeder,
Winnipeg, MB.
In Transit - Blog
April 7th, 2020
"Be Not Afraid"
https://tinyurl.com/r5d86y2
--
Jim Taylor,
Okanagan, BC
Personal Web Log
April 9th, 2020
"Hand-washing for Beginners"
https://tinyurl.com/wpogzya
--
John Stackhouse Jr.
Moncton, NB
Context
April 6th, 2020
A Canadian Evangelical Perspective:
"Why are They Still Going to Church?"
https://tinyurl.com/va3uf32
--
Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX
Personal WebSite,
April 6th, 2020
"The Meaning of Jesus' Death"
https://tinyurl.com/wramd7f
*****
NET NOTES - April 12th, 2020
EASTER
by Frederick Buechner
MyBuechner Blog
https://tinyurl.com/quatgwf
-
I MISS SINGING AT CHURCH
Something I have Discovered
The New York Times,
April 5th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/uz5eaf2
--
LAMENTATION AS A GIFT
ACC Primate Linda Nicholls
Anglican Journal,
March 30th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/trjjhlq
--
MARY MAGDALENE - EASTER STORY
Unraveling the Myth of an Early Church Leader
Broadview,
March 16th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/w7tnctq
--
IN OHIO, THE AMISH
TAKE ON CORONAVIRUS
Balancing Community and Outreach
New York Times,
April 9th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/soklozn
--
EPIDEMIC A PRIME TIME
FOR CONVERSION SAYS POPE
Catholic Register, Toronto
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/uy2l59q
--
FEELING ANTSY, MOROSE?
ADVICE FROM KATHLEEN NORRIS
What She Learned from the Monks
National Catholic Reporter,
April 7th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/umr7hda
--
THE PANDEMIC IS EXPOSING
THE MYTH OF SELF-RELIANCE
We Much Need Our Unsung Heroes
The Christian Century,
April 6th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/svxpzxo
--
JEWS AROUND THE WORLD
TO CELEBRATE PASSOVER
Different from Any Other
Religion News Service,
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/v4ovseq
--
THIS YEAR, EASTER MAY
FEEL MORE LIKE PASSOVER
Reading Exodus 20 Could Help
Religion News Service
April 8th, 2020
https://tinyurl.com/v8dzy5z
*****
WISDOM OF THE WEEK
Provided by Sojourners and the Bruderhof online:
This Holy Week, like Mary, let us bring our tears
and grief to the garden, pouring out our hearts,
explaining all the ways it shouldn’t have to be like
this. And like Mary, in the intimacy of our
disappointment, may we hear Jesus call our name.
- Rebekah Bled
-
And if the message of Easter is about [new life],
then for us to fast from gathering for worship is our
following the path of new life, new life for those who
we might be hurt by gathering together and new life
for us by learning to live — not for self alone, but
for others and for God – that's resurrection.
- Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
--
Oscar Romero -
To be a Christian now means
to have the courage
to preach the true teaching of Christ
and not be afraid of it, not be silent out of fear
and preach something easy
that won’t cause problems.
To be a Christian in this hour means
to have the courage that the Holy Spirit gives...
to be valiant soldiers of Christ the King,
to make his teaching prevail,
to reach hearts and proclaim to them
the courage
that one must have to defend God’s law.
--
Being patient is difficult. It is not just waiting until
something happens over which we have no control:
the arrival of the bus, the end of the rain, the return
of a friend, the resolution of a conflict. Patience is not
waiting passively until someone else does something.
Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest,
to be completely present to the moment, to taste
the here and now, to be where we are. When we
are impatient, we try to get away from where we
are. We behave as if the real thing will happen
tomorrow, later, and somewhere else. Be patient
and trust that the treasure you are looking for is
hidden in the ground on which you stand.
- Henri J.M. Nouwen
--
The tongue is our most powerful weapon of manipulation.
A frantic stream of words flows from us because we are
in a constant process of adjusting our public image. We
fear so deeply what we think other people see in us that
we talk in order to straighten out their understanding. If I
have done some wrong thing (or even some right thing
that I think you may misunderstand) and discover that
you know about it, I will be very tempted to help you
understand my action.
Silence is one of the deepest disciplines of the spirit
simply because it puts the stopper on all self-justification.
One of the fruits of silence is the freedom to let God be
our justifier. We don’t need to straighten others out.
- Richard J. Foster
*****
MOMENT IN TIME
Globe and Mail,
April 7th, 2020
April 7th, 1970
The turn of the sixties into the seventies was a
time of thoughtfulness and patchouli-scented
spirituality, reflected by charting hits that included,
in the spring of 1970, Simon & Garfunkel’s
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" and the Beatles’
"Let it Be - Speaking words of wisdom,” then; it
was something of a genre unto itself.
It was in this era that on April 7, 1970, the young
Ottawan Bruce Cockburn released a spare,
acoustic, introspective self-titled debut album
that was at turns gentle and jaunty, marked by
flowery lyricism and the lucid, seeking outlook
of a self-aware artist on the cusp of something
yet unclear.
“It’s my turn, but where’s the guide?” the nascent
troubadour wondered on Man of a Thousand Faces.
The political activism of 1984′s If I Had a Rocket
Launcher would come later, as would 13 Juno
Awards. In 1970, though, with songs such as
"Thoughts on a Rainy Afternoon" the gifted
musician sought connections behind the things
he observed. As for what lay ahead, he was
characteristically clear-eyed, singing “Jesus,
don’t let tomorrow take my love away.”
Cockburn would win that fight.
– Brad Wheeler
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT - Stephanie Lobdell
When COVID-19 is but a strange, traumatic memory
to pass on to our grandchildren, will we be able to say
with humility and honesty that we learned to love as
Jesus loved us?
(end)
*****
For those interested:
ST. DAVID'S ACTS WINTER MONDAY NIGHT BOOK STUDY
A Ten Week Series January 13th - March 23rd, 2020
(Family Weekend Session, February 17th, exempted)
Monday Evenings, TM Room 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
"FUTURE FAITH - Ten Challenges Reshaping
Monday Evenings, TM Room 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
"FUTURE FAITH - Ten Challenges Reshaping
Christianity in the 21st Century"
Author: Wesley Granberg-Michaelson
Registration/Hospitality and Book: $60.00.
Book only: $25.00
37 copies of the book were made available for sale.
All are now sold.
Total on-site registrations: 32
Total on-site registrations: 32
(plus 3 on-line participants). Grand Total: 35 to date.
A SUMMARY OF OUR STUDY SESSIONS WILL BE HELD
ONLINE AS ZOOM FORMAT CHALLENGES AWAIT
A SUMMARY OF OUR STUDY SESSIONS WILL BE HELD
ONLINE AS ZOOM FORMAT CHALLENGES AWAIT
*****
ST. DAVID'S ACTS THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDY
Our theme this winter:
"Jesus' Parables and Miracles"
(a total of 10 examples)
As recorded in the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark
and Luke and the Gospel of John
Ten Sessions - January 23rd-April 2nd, 2020
Gathering at 9:30 AM in the St. David's TM Room
and Luke and the Gospel of John
Ten Sessions - January 23rd-April 2nd, 2020
Gathering at 9:30 AM in the St. David's TM Room
and meeting 10:00 - 11:00 AM.
THE FINAL STUDY SESSIONS WILL BE HELD ONLINE
THE FINAL STUDY SESSIONS WILL BE HELD ONLINE
Study resource -
"The DK Complete Bible Handbook"
Edited by John Bowker
http://tinyurl.com/odxlv7q
"The DK Complete Bible Handbook"
Edited by John Bowker
http://tinyurl.com/odxlv7q
*****
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