COMMENT: I'm bumping this post up again and shortening it a bit. The Tulane medical students who are helping the family report that bloggers and blog readers are contributing to help rebuild the Joseph's family home.
I hardly ever post appeals for help on my blog, but this story from Scout at Frist Draft touched my heart. It's the story of one New Orleans family who has lost their home twice - once to Katrina and another time to fire.
From Scout's email:
Kellie Joseph and her 6 children lost their home to Katrina. They had nearly completed rebuilding when someone abandoned a stolen car in their backyard and lit it aflame to destroy evidence. The flames engulfed the home.
A group of Tulane University medical students who heard of this devastating news decided to help the family rebuild again and started a website named Hope in Grace for what is called "Project: Bring Miracle".
Recently the students contacted me. The online donation effort has reached a standstill after some initial local media attention. It is their hope to reach a wider audience through the Internet. They are asking for online donations to a rebuilding fund specifically restricted for use only in reconstruction.
This is where we as bloggers can help. We can't rebuild New Orleans but perhaps we can help one family that has now fallen through the cracks. We have the ability to reach a wide audience and even small donations could help bring this family home if enough people donate. They used their Road Home grant for the first rebuild so that is now lost. Unfortunately they can only receive $12,000 from insurance and so $132,000 is needed to rebuild. [A request has been made for inclusion with the Brad Pitt group however I believe there is slim hope of that panning out as their home is in a different section of the Lower 9th. Even if this would work out they would need $52,000]
....
Thanks for reading
Scout Prime at First-Draft.
It's hard for me to refuse anything to Scout, who has kept the story of the neglect and abandonment of my beloved and ruined New Orleans front and center on her blog. We've met several times when she visited NOLA. Scout and I and other bloggers worked together on gutting a house in the Gentilly area of New Orleans.
From the website Hope in Grace:
Miracle, her mother Kellie, and six brothers and sisters have all called the historic Holy Cross neighborhood in New Orleans home for nearly ten years. Her mother had worked their way out of the St. Bernard Housing Project that the family had moved into following the loss of her husband in a motor cycle accident, to become a homeowner in this neighborhood. Determined to give her children the best possible options, she kept them out of trouble, in school and church-related activities, and close to home. After the storm, her children were having a hard time integrating into their new schools, and Kellie quickly realized the need to return her family to the place that defined their being, to New Orleans. This unsettling tragedy severely jeopardized this noble hope.
A rebuilding fund has been established by State Representative Charmaine Marchand at Capital One that is specifically restricted for use only in reconstruction.
Donations can be made HERE.
Also there is a page where you can leave a much needed message of hope for the family--
I know not everyone can help, but those of you who are prayer warriors, you can help with your prayers for Miracle and her family and those who are helping them.
UPDATE: From Scout:
An update here. The Tulane medical students at Hope in Grace website inform me that $3,070 in donations have been raised since yesterday. It is wonderful and the Joseph family is extremely grateful for the donations.
I want to thank you for posting and helping to spread the word. I thought you might want to update your readers as well. As you can see we are under way but more is needed to reach the goal of rebuilding the Joseph's home. If we reach enough people we may just be able to help Bring Miracle and her family home to their beloved New Orleans lower 9th Ward. 10-12-07
Saturday, October 13, 2007
It Was All Wrong
From the New York Times:
Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who took command of the coalition forces in Iraq in June 2003, now says it was all wrong from the day he took charge. The prosecution of the war was "incompetent" and is now "a nightmare with no end in sight." Now he tells us.
But his own role as commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib scandal leaves him vulnerable to criticism that he is shifting the blame from himself to the administration that ultimately replaced him and declined to nominate him for a fourth star, forcing his retirement.
I'd say he is vulnerable to the charge of shifting blame. Now he says he might write a book. The books from the late-to-the-party critics of the war are coming thick and fast. Will he exonerate himself in his book?
General Sanchez has been criticized by some current and retired officers for failing to recognize the growing insurgency in Iraq during his year in command and for failing to put together a plan to unify the disparate military effort, a task that was finally carried out when his successor, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., took over in mid-2004.
That could well be a legitimate criticism. What was your plan, Gen. Sanchez?
"The administration, Congress and the entire inter-agency, especially the State Department, must shoulder responsibility for the catastrophic failure, and the American people must hold them accountable," he said.
And you, Gen. Sanchez. Who will hold you accountable? You could have spoken up in 2003, and you didn't. You said you knew then of the "incompetence" which led us to where we are now, "the nightmare with no end in sight", yet you kept silent.
As I read the article, I found myself growing angrier and angrier. Years after it was plain to him that the whole operation was a terrible mistake and a terrible failure, he lays blame everywhere but on himself. It's true that there's blame enough to go around, but, Gen. Sanchez, you had your chance to speak up, but you didn't. And now it's late - too late for those who were tortured, too late for the dead and wounded - American, coalition, and Iraqi. It's too late for the families and friends of the dead and wounded and tortured, too late for those who have been driven from their homes in Iraq, with more dead and wounded and displaced to come. Shame on you, Gen. Sanchez.
Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who took command of the coalition forces in Iraq in June 2003, now says it was all wrong from the day he took charge. The prosecution of the war was "incompetent" and is now "a nightmare with no end in sight." Now he tells us.
But his own role as commander in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib scandal leaves him vulnerable to criticism that he is shifting the blame from himself to the administration that ultimately replaced him and declined to nominate him for a fourth star, forcing his retirement.
I'd say he is vulnerable to the charge of shifting blame. Now he says he might write a book. The books from the late-to-the-party critics of the war are coming thick and fast. Will he exonerate himself in his book?
General Sanchez has been criticized by some current and retired officers for failing to recognize the growing insurgency in Iraq during his year in command and for failing to put together a plan to unify the disparate military effort, a task that was finally carried out when his successor, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., took over in mid-2004.
That could well be a legitimate criticism. What was your plan, Gen. Sanchez?
"The administration, Congress and the entire inter-agency, especially the State Department, must shoulder responsibility for the catastrophic failure, and the American people must hold them accountable," he said.
And you, Gen. Sanchez. Who will hold you accountable? You could have spoken up in 2003, and you didn't. You said you knew then of the "incompetence" which led us to where we are now, "the nightmare with no end in sight", yet you kept silent.
As I read the article, I found myself growing angrier and angrier. Years after it was plain to him that the whole operation was a terrible mistake and a terrible failure, he lays blame everywhere but on himself. It's true that there's blame enough to go around, but, Gen. Sanchez, you had your chance to speak up, but you didn't. And now it's late - too late for those who were tortured, too late for the dead and wounded - American, coalition, and Iraqi. It's too late for the families and friends of the dead and wounded and tortured, too late for those who have been driven from their homes in Iraq, with more dead and wounded and displaced to come. Shame on you, Gen. Sanchez.
Friday, October 12, 2007
"Hymn Without End"
From Derek Olsen at the Episcopal Café:
One of the great liturgical truths is that when we pray, we never pray alone. Even when we are physically alone, our prayer is never solitary but is woven into the greater garland of unceasing prayer that surrounds the throne of God and of the Lamb, the chorus of—as the Book of Revelation shows us—the four living creatures, the twenty-four elders, the choirs of angels, the great throng that none could number band, ultimately, every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and in the seas.
Speaking truthfully, our prayer, our praise, our worship, doesn’t truly begin or end; rather we simply rejoin ourselves to the hymn without end.
I've often thought of the "cloud of witnesses" who join with us when we pray, but mostly with regard to public worship, rather than private prayer. But Derek puts it so beautifully when he speaks of the never-ending cycle of prayer in which we may join at will, even when we pray privately. The saints in heaven and the faithful on earth pray with us, whether we are physically alone or with others.
That imagery from Revelation resonates powerfully, because, to me, it is a metaphor for true worship, the attitude of heart with which we approach the throne of grace.
Often when I take my walk in the evening, I pray this daily devotion:
At the Close of Day
Psalm 134
"Behold now, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, you that stand by night in the house of the LORD.
Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the LORD; the LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion."
A Reading
"Lord, you are in the midst of us and we are called by your Name: Do not forsake us, O Lord our God."
Jeremiah 14: 9, 22
"Lord, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see;
A Light to enlighten the nations, and the glory of your people Israel."
Prayers for ourselves and others may follow. It is appropriate that prayers of thanksgiving for the blessings of the day, and penitence for our sins, be included.
The Lord’s Prayer
The Collect
"Visit this place, O Lord, and drive far from it all snares of the enemy; let your holy angels dwell with us to preserve us in peace; and let your blessing be upon us always; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The almighty and merciful Lord, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless us and keep us. Amen."
Book of Common Prayer, p.140
Tonight, as I prayed, I was mindful of of the many saints on earth and in heaven who prayed with me, some perhaps saying the very same prayers. Surely someone, somewhere said "The Lord's Prayer" with me.
One of the great liturgical truths is that when we pray, we never pray alone. Even when we are physically alone, our prayer is never solitary but is woven into the greater garland of unceasing prayer that surrounds the throne of God and of the Lamb, the chorus of—as the Book of Revelation shows us—the four living creatures, the twenty-four elders, the choirs of angels, the great throng that none could number band, ultimately, every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and in the seas.
Speaking truthfully, our prayer, our praise, our worship, doesn’t truly begin or end; rather we simply rejoin ourselves to the hymn without end.
I've often thought of the "cloud of witnesses" who join with us when we pray, but mostly with regard to public worship, rather than private prayer. But Derek puts it so beautifully when he speaks of the never-ending cycle of prayer in which we may join at will, even when we pray privately. The saints in heaven and the faithful on earth pray with us, whether we are physically alone or with others.
That imagery from Revelation resonates powerfully, because, to me, it is a metaphor for true worship, the attitude of heart with which we approach the throne of grace.
Often when I take my walk in the evening, I pray this daily devotion:
At the Close of Day
Psalm 134
"Behold now, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, you that stand by night in the house of the LORD.
Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the LORD; the LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion."
A Reading
"Lord, you are in the midst of us and we are called by your Name: Do not forsake us, O Lord our God."
Jeremiah 14: 9, 22
"Lord, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, whom you have prepared for all the world to see;
A Light to enlighten the nations, and the glory of your people Israel."
Prayers for ourselves and others may follow. It is appropriate that prayers of thanksgiving for the blessings of the day, and penitence for our sins, be included.
The Lord’s Prayer
The Collect
"Visit this place, O Lord, and drive far from it all snares of the enemy; let your holy angels dwell with us to preserve us in peace; and let your blessing be upon us always; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The almighty and merciful Lord, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless us and keep us. Amen."
Book of Common Prayer, p.140
Tonight, as I prayed, I was mindful of of the many saints on earth and in heaven who prayed with me, some perhaps saying the very same prayers. Surely someone, somewhere said "The Lord's Prayer" with me.
From Our Friend Rowan, The Dog
Rowan at It's A Dog's Life has a story. It's a bit of a scary story about Rowan and his best friend, Lindy. But Rowan is a strong, brave dog, who helps Lindy to be brave, too.
Life won't be easy for either Rowan or Lindy for the next 45 days. I'm sure they wouldn't mind a virtual hug or two. No real hugs for Rowan from visitors for a while.
Life won't be easy for either Rowan or Lindy for the next 45 days. I'm sure they wouldn't mind a virtual hug or two. No real hugs for Rowan from visitors for a while.
Amazing Grace - Elysian Trumpet
In a previous post, I wrote about the fantastic sound of the Elysian Trumpet and the beautiful musicianship of Irvin Mayfield, Jr. when he played "Amazing Grace" at the Eucharistic service at Christ Church Cathedral in New Orleans, during the House of Bishops meeting. You can watch and hear his performance.
Scroll down to:
Irvin Mayfield plays Amazing Grace
(09/23/07) Jazz trumpeter Irvin Mayfield plays Amazing Grace during a September 23 at Christ Church Cathedral in New Orleans.
Click to watch and listen.
UPDATE: The link takes you to Bishop Katharine's video. You must scroll down to get to the Mayfield video.
Scroll down to:
Irvin Mayfield plays Amazing Grace
(09/23/07) Jazz trumpeter Irvin Mayfield plays Amazing Grace during a September 23 at Christ Church Cathedral in New Orleans.
Click to watch and listen.
UPDATE: The link takes you to Bishop Katharine's video. You must scroll down to get to the Mayfield video.
Congratulations, Al Gore!
As you probably know, Al Gore, the man who, had justice prevailed, would likely be president of the US today, has won the Nobel Peace Prize, together with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. But for the machinations of the Bush gang and the collusion of the US Supreme Court, he'd have been president in 2000 and likely reelected in 2004.
Congratulations! It's a well-deserved honor.
Congratulations! It's a well-deserved honor.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Feast Day Of Philip The Deacon
Ormonde Plater at Through the Dust has a post on Philip. Being a deacon himself - or, I should say, an archdeacon - he keeps us posted on the stories of the deacons - those neglected, but faithful, followers of Jesus, who, through the ages have done much of the hard work of the church.
READINGS:
Psalm 67
Isaiah 53:7-11 or
Acts 8:26-40
Matthew 28:18-20
PRAYER
Holy God, no one is excluded from your love; and your truth transforms the minds of all who seek you: as your servant Philip was led to embrace the fullness of your salvation and to bring the stranger to Baptism, so give us all the grace to be heralds of the Gospel, proclaiming your love in Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
UPDATE: Padre Mickey has a lovely post on Philip the Deacon, too. I did not know that El Padre posted on deacon saints. Now I know, and I will check out his blog before I post next time. Perdóneme, Padre.
READINGS:
Psalm 67
Isaiah 53:7-11 or
Acts 8:26-40
Matthew 28:18-20
PRAYER
Holy God, no one is excluded from your love; and your truth transforms the minds of all who seek you: as your servant Philip was led to embrace the fullness of your salvation and to bring the stranger to Baptism, so give us all the grace to be heralds of the Gospel, proclaiming your love in Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
UPDATE: Padre Mickey has a lovely post on Philip the Deacon, too. I did not know that El Padre posted on deacon saints. Now I know, and I will check out his blog before I post next time. Perdóneme, Padre.
Nonviolence - The Way Of Francis Of Assisi
What follows is an excerpt from Fr. John Dear's new book, You Will Be My Witnesses, a reflection on the life of Francis of Assisi and nonviolence. Fr. John is a Roman Catholic Jesuit priest and peace activist.
The essay is titled, "St. Francis and the Way of Nonviolence". Fr. John tells of attending a conference of Catholic peace activists in Assisi, Italy. Although the talks at the conference were very good, he left the conference site and began to walk around the area of Assisi and the places frequented by St. Francis.
...I was so overwhelmed by the beauty and peace that radiated from Assisi, that I skipped the talks, wandered through the churches, strolled through the streets, and hiked the nearby fields and hills. I prayed at Francis' tomb, meditated in the little chapel of the Portiuncula, which he built by hand, and toured San Damiano. Two years later, after a second pilgrimage to Assisi, I took the long bus ride to La Verna, the mountaintop where he received the stigmata shortly before his death. During those holy days, I understood anew Francis' life of prayer, poverty, penance, preaching, and peace. His prayer became embedded in me: "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace."
....
"We have only just begun to practice the Gospel," Francis told his followers as he died. Today we hear Francis tell us to embrace simplicity and poverty, serve those who are poor and needy, live in peace and nonviolence, love one another including our enemies, spend our days in contemplative prayer, and be devoted servants of Jesus and his Gospel. "While you are proclaiming peace with your lips," he wrote, "be careful to have it even more fully in your heart." He once explained, "If you own possessions, you need weapons to protect them and so we do not own anything and we are at peace with everyone."
Francis' logic points the way toward personal, social, and global justice and peace If each one of us practiced Gospel simplicity, voluntary poverty, and downward mobility, like Francis, we would share the world's resources with one another, have nothing to fear from others, and live in peace with everyone. If the whole world, especially the First World nations, practiced the Franciscan ethic of social justice and nonviolence, hunger and warfare would end....
Francis is not just for the birds. His life example and witness hold the key to the solutions of all the world's problems. He may be the greatest of Jesus' witnesses.
"I have done my part," Francis said to the friars around him as he died. "May Christ teach you to do yours." May we all do our part, like Francis, and become instruments of Christ's peace.
Thanks to Jane at Acts of Hope for the link to the essay.
Here's the comment that I left at Jane's blog:
Jane, I just finished reading the meditation by Fr John Dear on St. Francis. How powerful! What a man! Both of them Francis and Fr John.
When Roman Catholics practice the radical call of the Gospels, they tend to get it very right.
That's the church that I abandoned, but I have great admiration for many saints operating within the church. They go about their business of following the Gospel of Jesus Christ within the institution, often despite the institution.
We could learn a lesson from them in the Episcopal Church. Every church is corrupt in it's own way, but it's possible for Christians within the church to continue to follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ, often despite the church.
October 6, 2007 7:09 PM
From his website:
Rev, John Dear S.J. is a Jesuit Priest, Peace Activist, Organizer, Lecturer, Retreat leader, and author/editor of 20 books on peace and nonviolence, including Living Peace, published by Doubleday.
At the site, you can purchase his book, Transfiguration, with a foreword by Desmond Tutu. Also available is a movie titled, The Narrow Path:
A New DVD film
“THE NARROW PATH: Walking Toward Peace and Nonviolence with John Dear, S.J.”
featuring music by Joan Baez and Jackson Browne, with cameos by Daniel Berrigan, Cindy Sheehan, Martin Sheen, Kathy Kelly and Ron Kovic.
The very idea of downward mobility! Why it's positively un-American.
Let me emphasize that I make no pretense of following the way of St. Francis in embracing Lady Poverty. I think it's the right way to go, but I don't do it. That is sin. However, I persist in keeping the ideal in my sight, however unlikely it is that I will ever live up to it. Perhaps, one day, by the grace of God....
With respect to pacifism, I'm not there either. I believe violence should be the absolute last resort. We should try every other means before doing violence. I wonder if there is such a thing as a just war. Perhaps all wars are unjust. However, if I saw an adult doing grave harm to a child, and I had the means to stop the violence, I would do it, although it involved violence on my part.
Lord, make me a channel of your peace.
The essay is titled, "St. Francis and the Way of Nonviolence". Fr. John tells of attending a conference of Catholic peace activists in Assisi, Italy. Although the talks at the conference were very good, he left the conference site and began to walk around the area of Assisi and the places frequented by St. Francis.
...I was so overwhelmed by the beauty and peace that radiated from Assisi, that I skipped the talks, wandered through the churches, strolled through the streets, and hiked the nearby fields and hills. I prayed at Francis' tomb, meditated in the little chapel of the Portiuncula, which he built by hand, and toured San Damiano. Two years later, after a second pilgrimage to Assisi, I took the long bus ride to La Verna, the mountaintop where he received the stigmata shortly before his death. During those holy days, I understood anew Francis' life of prayer, poverty, penance, preaching, and peace. His prayer became embedded in me: "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace."
....
"We have only just begun to practice the Gospel," Francis told his followers as he died. Today we hear Francis tell us to embrace simplicity and poverty, serve those who are poor and needy, live in peace and nonviolence, love one another including our enemies, spend our days in contemplative prayer, and be devoted servants of Jesus and his Gospel. "While you are proclaiming peace with your lips," he wrote, "be careful to have it even more fully in your heart." He once explained, "If you own possessions, you need weapons to protect them and so we do not own anything and we are at peace with everyone."
Francis' logic points the way toward personal, social, and global justice and peace If each one of us practiced Gospel simplicity, voluntary poverty, and downward mobility, like Francis, we would share the world's resources with one another, have nothing to fear from others, and live in peace with everyone. If the whole world, especially the First World nations, practiced the Franciscan ethic of social justice and nonviolence, hunger and warfare would end....
Francis is not just for the birds. His life example and witness hold the key to the solutions of all the world's problems. He may be the greatest of Jesus' witnesses.
"I have done my part," Francis said to the friars around him as he died. "May Christ teach you to do yours." May we all do our part, like Francis, and become instruments of Christ's peace.
Thanks to Jane at Acts of Hope for the link to the essay.
Here's the comment that I left at Jane's blog:
Jane, I just finished reading the meditation by Fr John Dear on St. Francis. How powerful! What a man! Both of them Francis and Fr John.
When Roman Catholics practice the radical call of the Gospels, they tend to get it very right.
That's the church that I abandoned, but I have great admiration for many saints operating within the church. They go about their business of following the Gospel of Jesus Christ within the institution, often despite the institution.
We could learn a lesson from them in the Episcopal Church. Every church is corrupt in it's own way, but it's possible for Christians within the church to continue to follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ, often despite the church.
October 6, 2007 7:09 PM
From his website:
Rev, John Dear S.J. is a Jesuit Priest, Peace Activist, Organizer, Lecturer, Retreat leader, and author/editor of 20 books on peace and nonviolence, including Living Peace, published by Doubleday.
At the site, you can purchase his book, Transfiguration, with a foreword by Desmond Tutu. Also available is a movie titled, The Narrow Path:
A New DVD film
“THE NARROW PATH: Walking Toward Peace and Nonviolence with John Dear, S.J.”
featuring music by Joan Baez and Jackson Browne, with cameos by Daniel Berrigan, Cindy Sheehan, Martin Sheen, Kathy Kelly and Ron Kovic.
The very idea of downward mobility! Why it's positively un-American.
Let me emphasize that I make no pretense of following the way of St. Francis in embracing Lady Poverty. I think it's the right way to go, but I don't do it. That is sin. However, I persist in keeping the ideal in my sight, however unlikely it is that I will ever live up to it. Perhaps, one day, by the grace of God....
With respect to pacifism, I'm not there either. I believe violence should be the absolute last resort. We should try every other means before doing violence. I wonder if there is such a thing as a just war. Perhaps all wars are unjust. However, if I saw an adult doing grave harm to a child, and I had the means to stop the violence, I would do it, although it involved violence on my part.
Lord, make me a channel of your peace.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Bishops Wade In
From the Church Times:
THE BISHOP of Louisiana, the Rt Revd Charles Jenkins, was sitting in what look like the biggest trailer in the world. It’s parked on a car lot outside Walgreens, a former drugstore that is evolving into a church and community centre in the poverty-stricken, storm-wrecked Lower Ninth ward of New Orleans.
....
Away from the stunning architecture of the tourist areas and wealthy residential districts, this city shocks you to the core, which is why the larger-than-life Bishop Jenkins declared himself mighty glad that the House of Bishops chose to come here.
....
EIGHTY PER CENT of New Orleans was flooded when the levees broke during Katrina and released a 12-foot torrent of water through the city. Only the high ground of this crescent-shaped city on the Gulf of Mississippi was spared. Stinking water stood up to eight feet high for weeks in homes that had had to be abandoned instantly, and where bloated bodies remained until they could be retrieved. Scrawled marks remain on houses, indicating how many corpses and cats and dogs were taken out.
Flimsy trailers outside rotting homes house the optimists. They won’t abandon their houses, even though they will have to be gutted and rebuilt if they are ever to be fit to live in again.
I met Valerie, a feisty black woman whose house was almost entirely swept away, so that only two sets of stone steps were left. She has kept them as a monument outside the wire fence round her trailer. She has created a compound within which she fights on for the federal government to recognise the plight of the hundreds of thousands who want their homes back.
Remember that this city has been virtually abandoned by the federal government, the state government, and the city government. As of today, help still comes too little and too late. The great accomplishments in rebuilding and recovery come from the determination and labor of the people of the city and compassionate volunteers.
Whatever you think of the document that came out of the House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans, as a native of the city, I will ever be grateful that the bishops chose to meet there and see for themselves the scope of the disaster and the slow recovery, and I thank them for spending a day working in the recovery effort.
I thank Bishop Charles Jenkins for his efforts and powers of persuasion in bringing the bishops to New Orleans. He has been a force behind the work of recovery, and I thank him for that, too.
I thank the Church Times for a very nice job of reporting here.
...give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Link from The Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana.
THE BISHOP of Louisiana, the Rt Revd Charles Jenkins, was sitting in what look like the biggest trailer in the world. It’s parked on a car lot outside Walgreens, a former drugstore that is evolving into a church and community centre in the poverty-stricken, storm-wrecked Lower Ninth ward of New Orleans.
....
Away from the stunning architecture of the tourist areas and wealthy residential districts, this city shocks you to the core, which is why the larger-than-life Bishop Jenkins declared himself mighty glad that the House of Bishops chose to come here.
....
EIGHTY PER CENT of New Orleans was flooded when the levees broke during Katrina and released a 12-foot torrent of water through the city. Only the high ground of this crescent-shaped city on the Gulf of Mississippi was spared. Stinking water stood up to eight feet high for weeks in homes that had had to be abandoned instantly, and where bloated bodies remained until they could be retrieved. Scrawled marks remain on houses, indicating how many corpses and cats and dogs were taken out.
Flimsy trailers outside rotting homes house the optimists. They won’t abandon their houses, even though they will have to be gutted and rebuilt if they are ever to be fit to live in again.
I met Valerie, a feisty black woman whose house was almost entirely swept away, so that only two sets of stone steps were left. She has kept them as a monument outside the wire fence round her trailer. She has created a compound within which she fights on for the federal government to recognise the plight of the hundreds of thousands who want their homes back.
Remember that this city has been virtually abandoned by the federal government, the state government, and the city government. As of today, help still comes too little and too late. The great accomplishments in rebuilding and recovery come from the determination and labor of the people of the city and compassionate volunteers.
Whatever you think of the document that came out of the House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans, as a native of the city, I will ever be grateful that the bishops chose to meet there and see for themselves the scope of the disaster and the slow recovery, and I thank them for spending a day working in the recovery effort.
I thank Bishop Charles Jenkins for his efforts and powers of persuasion in bringing the bishops to New Orleans. He has been a force behind the work of recovery, and I thank him for that, too.
I thank the Church Times for a very nice job of reporting here.
...give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Link from The Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana.
Thought For The Day - If God Cries
If God cries, (we know that Jesus wept) I have the sense that the possible break-up of the Anglican Communion is not No. 1 on the list of what makes God cry.
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