Let us call the community into a time of prayer
G
od, we sometimes do things, say things, and think things that hurt us or others. Help us to know that our sins are reconciled through Christ, that with your help we can be healed and choose life giving actions. And with your help forgive ourselves by letting Christ do the forgiving. Lord in Your Mercy,
Hear our Prayer
T
his past summer, a Winnipeg Free Press column by John Longhurst generated a small flurry of letters from readers, debating the relative merits of the study of theology. Strangely, the original column that started it all – U of M helps keep religious studies students here – wasn’t even about theology; it was about how the University of Manitoba had made some policy changes that were advantageous to students from local Christian post-secondary schools looking to transfer credits. The original letters to the editor were all about how the phrase “religious studies” was used in the column’s title, and basically suggested that it was best to reserve that phrase for the academic study of religion as it is carried out in secular universities. Fine.
I
n peace let us pray to the Lord, saying, “Lord, have mercy.”
We give you thanks, gracious and almighty God, for this opportunity to gather together to hear your Word proclaimed and to celebrate the Holy Supper of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ. Help us this night and this week to be people who desire wisdom, your wisdom, wisdom from above. May we, as the ode to a capable wife in Proverbs 31 reminds us, be wise men and women, men and women who open our hands to the poor and reach out our hands to the needy. Moreover, may we learn the fear you, to reverence your holy name in all that we say and do. Indeed, it would be all to easy for us to not do that, and to quarrel like the disciples about who is the greatest. Temper, oh Lord, our desire to be first, to have more, to rule over others. May we rather learn holy innocence and believe that in welcoming children we welcome you and your beloved Son.
Lord, have mercy.
A note from Jamie Howison: As August was coming to a close, there was an increasing amount of conversation in the media around the potential of an H1N1 pandemic. Rather than simply reacting in an unreflected way, I thought it wise to sit down and have a conversation with someone who might actually have a handle on such things. What follows is the result of this conversation with Dr Pierre Plourde – who is both a medical doctor with a great deal of experience in the area of infectious diseases and a member of saint benedict’s table. **Please note that while some of these measures make sense to follow on an ongoing basis, much of what is contained here will only come fully into effect if and when the threat of a pandemic requires their implementation.
Recommendations for H1N1 Pandemic Influenza Public Health Measures
Prepared for the Anglican Diocese of Rupert’s Land
September 15, 2009
Pierre Plourde and Jamie Howison
The second in an occasional series by Nancy Constantine
I
am an outside runner – no gym, no treadmill. Part of the experience is the elemental challenges of the seasons. How odd that my spring training was plagued with wind chill, unpredictable cold snaps, snow and ice; and this fall, I am enjoying record-breaking heat and humidity. Being outside also allows me to be in touch with the universe, the vast expanse, the comings and goings of people and places along my routes of Henderson Highway, Kildonan Drive, Glenwood Crescent, Scotia Street and the playful atmosphere of Kildonan Park.
“L
et the godly sing with joy to the Lord, for it is right to praise him. Praise the Lord with melodies… make music for him on [instruments]. Sing new songs of praise to him, for the word of the Lord holds true and everything he does is worthy of our trust. God our Father, you love whatever is just and good, and your unfailing love fills the earth.”
“Oh what joy for those whose rebellion is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin, whose lives are lived in compete honesty.”
God our father, when we refuse to confess our sin we are weak and miserable. We, as David sang, “groan all day long Day and night your hand of discipline is heavy upon us. Our strength evaporates like water in the summer heat.”
A
few weeks back, on one of the rare hot days of this past summer, I sat down with singer/songwriter (and saint ben’s regular) Jaylene Johnson at The Toad Pub in the Osborne Village to enjoy a cold pint of cider and to chat with her about vocation as a musician and artist.
Jaylene is bright and insightful, and has this way of looking at things that is just enough off kilter to make a conversation with her really, really interesting. She also happens to be a very fine singer/songwriter, as is evidenced on her most recent disc Happiness, a 10 song album (with three bonus tracks embedded as MP3 files…) which is at once pure pop and substantial music.
While Jaylene admits that Happiness “came out more pop than I thought it would,” she readily confesses that she “loves this record.” And while the title – Happiness – is an apt descriptor of the tone of much of the recording, the project is not without weight. “It is a pop sounding record, fairly pretty and ‘hooky’”, she commented, “but that is set against some pretty heavy lyrics in some songs. I like that tension, because that is life.”
Nancy Constantine reflects on her life as a runner
I
returned from my annual March visit with my parents in Florida after soaking up lots of sun, enjoying the refreshing pure clear water in the pool, and reaching a personal milestone of turning ‘50’. Once back in Winnipeg to the harsh reality and bitter cold of still winter, I began my 16-week rigorous ‘Running Room’ training for the Manitoba Half Marathon of June 21st. This was going to be my outward statement; my response to being ‘50’ and to the potential stereotypes from younger counterparts; my continued effort to invite balance of body, mind and spirit to my life. What I did not know when I set out on that dark Thursday evening of March 12th to meet Jay, our trainer, was how profound the last part of the previous statement would end up being on this journey.
a sermon preached on Mark 7:24-30
W
hat in heaven’s name is going on in this section of the Gospel according to Mark? A woman with a deep and pressing need – her daughter is afflicted with a spiritual evil – comes to Jesus with that need and asks for help. Yet he appears to just blow her off.
She’s a gentile, a foreigner, and he says to her, “Let the children be fed first; it is not right to take the children’s food and feed it to the dogs.” I beg your pardon? Has Jesus just called this woman a dog, based entirely on her ethnic identity? He’s willing to take care of the needs of the people of Israel – figuratively “the children” – but rejects this gentile woman as a dog?
S
eptember is now upon us, and so it is a good time to take a look at the various ways in which you can get involved in the life of saint benedict’s table in the coming year. You can actually get more information on most of what is listed here by exploring this website, but here is the short version of things: