From the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana:
Action Alert: Demolition of Public Housing
Bishop Jenkins invites all concerned lay and clergy to New Orleans City Hall at 9 a.m. Thursday, December 20th to attend a meeting on the public housing crisis.
On Friday, December 14, the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana issued a special E-DoLA covering the public housing crisis in New Orleans.
Since the release of that information, a judge has ordered a stop to all demolition until the city council holds a hearing on Thursday. In addition, the Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader of the Senate [call] for a 60-day moratorium on demolition, to enable our lawmakers to be fully satisfied regarding a number of disputed facts, and to address the fact that lawmakers have yet to be shown a "full and viable" plan that addresses immediate need for units by Katrina survivors, one-for-one replacement, and the long-term goal of new mixed income developments.
The debate and vote on Thursday represents a moral crossroads for our community. The lives and well-being of tens of thousands of people are at stake, and the weight of this decision and its implications for those in tenuous housing situations or homeless looms large. This is why we urge all residents with post-Katrina humanitarian and spiritual concerns to register their request of our elected officials to be thorough and not hasty, and to approve the request by our two most powerful Congressional leaders for the 60-day moratorium.
Click Here to read the New York Times Article "High Noon in New Orleans: The Bulldozers Are Ready."
To send a message to the New Orleans City Council, click here.
In the planning stage is a letter to President Bush asking his intervention to prevent demolition of the public housing. The diocese will ask people from all over the country to send the message to the president. When a link is available, I will post it.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
O Clavis David
December 19
O Key of David, and Sceptre of the house of Israel,
that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth,
come to liberate the prisoner from the prison, and them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.
Latin
O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel;
qui aperis, et nemo claudit; claudis, et nemo aperit:
veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.
Isaiah 22:22
I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David;
he shall open, and no one shall shut;
he shall shut, and no one shall open.
Antiphon sung by the Dominican student brothers at Oxford.
Text from Fish Eaters.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Soon And Very Soon
Soon and Very Soon
(text and music by Andrae Crouch, adapted by Wm. F. Smith)
Since I've now learned to upload videos, I had to do this one again, because soon and very soon, we are going to see the king.
Advent is my favorite season of the church year. I love the daily readings which call us to account for falling short in doing justice and loving kindness, and walking humbly before our God, but at the same, the readings give us hope in the great love and mercy of God.
This year, especially, I have experienced a true sense of expectancy, a sense of waiting. I put up my decorations, which are fewer than in years past, including my Charlie Brown type Christmas tree, which has so many ornaments on it that it doesn't look at all pitiful. I do this mainly for my grandchildren.
Our church has no decorations at all, except for the large Advent wreath, which hangs down from a ceiling medallion on a chain which can be raised and lowered. We have flowers on the altar, but not Christmas flowers.
Last Sunday we sang one verse of several Christmas carols during the children's Christmas pageant, but other than that, we have sung no Christmas carols.
Other churches choose to decorate earlier and to sing carols earlier, and I don't mean to disparage the practice, but I do like that we wait until Christmas Eve. On that holy night, upon entering the church, we're greeted with a burst of color, red and green from poinsettias, holly, and other greenery against the soft cream of the walls, and red candles in brass candle holders with glass chimneys in the tall windows. It's a lovely, exciting, and sudden transformation of our church on the eve of the celebration of the birth of Our Lord.
I'm waiting.
I'm expectant.
Come, Lord Jesus.
Video from YouTube.
Your President On The Mortgage Crisis
Here's my attitude on housing: one, the government should never bail out lenders; two, some people bought a house that they shouldn't have been in the market; three, there are speculators who thought they could get -- buy nice, one of these reset mortgages and flip it, make some money -- I'm sure none of them are in the chamber, but nevertheless -- that's what happened.
....
I remember going down to the savings and loan and sitting down with the savings and loan officer and negotiating with the savings and loan officer. Well, this day and age you're going to use -- mortgages have been bundled, so the savings and loan doesn't own the mortgage anymore, or the bank doesn't loan [sic] the mortgage anymore, the local lending institute doesn't loan [sic] the mortgage anymore: it's owned by some international group, perhaps, or it's been bundled into an asset. And so there's hardly anybody to negotiate with. And so some lenders [sic] aren't sure where to turn
We're not bailing people out -- we're helping them refinance their money, we're helping them, you know -- we're helping them stay in a part of the American Dream is what we're doing, and it's worthwhile to do that.
That clears things up considerably, although to me the American dream has turned into the American nightmare. OCICBW.
Thanks to Holden at First Draft for doing the hard work.
....
I remember going down to the savings and loan and sitting down with the savings and loan officer and negotiating with the savings and loan officer. Well, this day and age you're going to use -- mortgages have been bundled, so the savings and loan doesn't own the mortgage anymore, or the bank doesn't loan [sic] the mortgage anymore, the local lending institute doesn't loan [sic] the mortgage anymore: it's owned by some international group, perhaps, or it's been bundled into an asset. And so there's hardly anybody to negotiate with. And so some lenders [sic] aren't sure where to turn
We're not bailing people out -- we're helping them refinance their money, we're helping them, you know -- we're helping them stay in a part of the American Dream is what we're doing, and it's worthwhile to do that.
That clears things up considerably, although to me the American dream has turned into the American nightmare. OCICBW.
Thanks to Holden at First Draft for doing the hard work.
AMDG
The letters above are an acronym. What do they stand for? I know that all of my readers are honest folks, and I'm putting you on your honor not to use Google. I'll give you one hint. The acronym is from the pre-computer age.
A Profile In Courage - Chris Dodd
I want this man for my president. Chris Dodd's threat of a filibuster caused weenie Harry Reid - who was supposed to be the Democrats "Give 'em hell, Harry", (but, alas! is not) - to back down from pushing through a new eavesdropping bill that would give the Telecom industry immunity for helping the powers to spy on you and me. You and I can't get retroactive immunity if we break the law, so why should the Telecoms? Quest refused to go along with the request to spy on its customers in 2001. The other Telecoms could have, too.
From the New York Times:
WASHINGTON — In a setback for the White House, Senate Democrats on Monday put off until at least next month any decision on whether to give legal protection to the phone carriers that helped with the National Security Agency’s eavesdropping program.
The Bush administration had pushed for immediate passage of legislation to grant immunity to the phone companies as part of a broader expansion of the N.S.A.’s wiretapping authorities. But that will not happen now.
We cannot relax. This is only a reprieve until January. Harry Reid looked shell-shocked in the video of the announcement of the postponement. Good. Maybe hearing from the people of the country will help him grow a backbone. The citizens are so far ahead of some of the Democrats in the Senate that it's pathetic.
From the New York Times:
WASHINGTON — In a setback for the White House, Senate Democrats on Monday put off until at least next month any decision on whether to give legal protection to the phone carriers that helped with the National Security Agency’s eavesdropping program.
The Bush administration had pushed for immediate passage of legislation to grant immunity to the phone companies as part of a broader expansion of the N.S.A.’s wiretapping authorities. But that will not happen now.
We cannot relax. This is only a reprieve until January. Harry Reid looked shell-shocked in the video of the announcement of the postponement. Good. Maybe hearing from the people of the country will help him grow a backbone. The citizens are so far ahead of some of the Democrats in the Senate that it's pathetic.
Unlikely Pick?
From the Associated Press via the Kentucky Herald-Leader:
PIKEVILLE --President Bush's pick for a top Department of Energy post is a former executive from Massey Energy, a company with a lengthy history of mine safety and environmental violations.
Bush last week nominated Stanley C. Suboleski to be the point person in developing policies related to coal and other fossil fuels.
My local paper ran this story with the headline that Suboleski was an "unlikely...pick". Where has this headline writer been for the last seven years?
PIKEVILLE --President Bush's pick for a top Department of Energy post is a former executive from Massey Energy, a company with a lengthy history of mine safety and environmental violations.
Bush last week nominated Stanley C. Suboleski to be the point person in developing policies related to coal and other fossil fuels.
My local paper ran this story with the headline that Suboleski was an "unlikely...pick". Where has this headline writer been for the last seven years?
Magnificat
"Annunciation" by Donatello - c. 1435 - Gilded pietra serena, Santa Croce, Florence
Mary’s Song of Praise
And Mary* said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
The rector used the quote below in his Sunday sermon, and that put me in mind of the magnificent Magnificat.
"Here we have a passage which has become one of the great hymns of the Church - the Magnificat. It is steeped in the Old Testament and is closely related to Hannah's song of praise in 1Samuel 2:1-10. It has been said that religion is the opiate of the people; but it has also been said that the Magnificat is the most revolutionary document in the world.
....
He scatters the proud in the plans of their hearts. That is a moral revolution. Christianity is the death of pride. Why? Because if people set their lives beside that of Christ, it tears away the last vestiges of their pride."
The Gospel of Luke by William Barclay
And a modest offering from me - an O Antiphon of sorts.
O Blessed One
Mother of God, O holy one,
Inside your body, the Word made flesh,
As an infant, suckled at your breast.
The God-child, cared for gently, lovingly,
Grew in wisdom and in grace.
Mother of God, what did you know?
Were you sad? Were you fearful?
Midst the joy of family life,
Did you feel a piercing in your heart?
O blessed Mary, pray for us, sinners all.
Grandmère Mimi - 7/17/07
Image from the Web Gallery of art.
Monday, December 17, 2007
O Adonai
December 17
O Adonai, and Ruler of the house of Israel,
Who didst appear unto Moses in the burning bush,
and gavest him the law in Sinai,
come to redeem us with an outstretched arm!
Latin
O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel,
qui Moysi in igne flammæ rubi apparuisti,
et ei in Sina legem dedisti:
veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.
Isaiah 11:4-5
But with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
Once again, one day off from the Roman Catholic Church with the medieval Anglican Sarum Use dating.
Video from YouTube. Antiphon sung by the Dominican student brothers at Oxford.
Text from Fish Eaters.
UPDATE: Once again, check out Vicki Black's post on Speaking to the Soul at the Episcopal Café. I now know to link each day before I post on the antiphon.
Letter From Jesus About Christmas
Ann at What the Tide Brings In received the following in an email. She made it part of her sermon yesterday, which I think was a lovely idea. We should all be prepared with printed copies to hand out to folks who complain about the war on Christmas. We can have the letter saved on our computers to copy and send to those who email us about the war on Christmas.
Letter from Jesus about Christmas (slightly edited for Episcopalians)
Dear Children,
It has come to my attention that many you are upset that folks are removing My name from the season. Maybe you've forgotten that I wasn't actually born during this time of the year -- it was some of your predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually the time of pagan festival. Of course, I do appreciate being remembered at any time.
How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My birth, here's how: GET ALONG WITH EACH AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
Now, having said that let Me go on... If it bothers you that the town where you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then get rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen in your own front yard and put out your own Nativity scene. If all of My followers did that, there wouldn't be any need for a display in the town square because there would already be so many all around your community.
Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made ALL trees. You can remember Me any time you see ANY tree. Decorate a grapevine if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching, explaining who I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks were. If you have forgotten what I said, look up John 15: 1- 8.
If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wishlist.
1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.
2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.
3. Instead of writing the President to complain about the wording on the White House cards this year, why don't you write and tell him that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then do it! It will be nice hearing from you again.
4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.
5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.
6. People in your town will attempt to take their own lives this season because they feel so alone and hopeless. Since you don't know who they are, give everyone you meet a warm smile -- it could make the difference.
7. Instead of nit-picking about what retailers call this holiday, be patient with the people who work for them. Give each a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry Christmas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one.
8. If you really want to make a difference, support organizations like Episcopal Relief and Development, who are working for better lives for refugees, prisoners, people suffering from diseases that are easily curable with a small amount of money, giving tools and resources so people can support their families.
9. There are individuals and families in your town who will not only have no "Christmas" tree, but also no presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, take some food and gifts to a charity who will make the delivery for you.
10. Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do or say things that you wouldn't do or say in My presence. Remember -- When you speak badly of my children, you are speaking badly of Me; when you treat each other badly, you do the same to Me. Let people know by your words and actions that you are one of Mine.
Don't get so worked up about what you think are slights about me that occur in the material world. I am God and I can take care of Myself. I am not diminished by those things.
Instead, simply love Me and do what I have asked you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out the list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the ball is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love.
AMEN.
What would I do without help from my friends?
Letter from Jesus about Christmas (slightly edited for Episcopalians)
Dear Children,
It has come to my attention that many you are upset that folks are removing My name from the season. Maybe you've forgotten that I wasn't actually born during this time of the year -- it was some of your predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually the time of pagan festival. Of course, I do appreciate being remembered at any time.
How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My birth, here's how: GET ALONG WITH EACH AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
Now, having said that let Me go on... If it bothers you that the town where you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then get rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen in your own front yard and put out your own Nativity scene. If all of My followers did that, there wouldn't be any need for a display in the town square because there would already be so many all around your community.
Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made ALL trees. You can remember Me any time you see ANY tree. Decorate a grapevine if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching, explaining who I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks were. If you have forgotten what I said, look up John 15: 1- 8.
If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wishlist.
1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.
2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.
3. Instead of writing the President to complain about the wording on the White House cards this year, why don't you write and tell him that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then do it! It will be nice hearing from you again.
4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.
5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.
6. People in your town will attempt to take their own lives this season because they feel so alone and hopeless. Since you don't know who they are, give everyone you meet a warm smile -- it could make the difference.
7. Instead of nit-picking about what retailers call this holiday, be patient with the people who work for them. Give each a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry Christmas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one.
8. If you really want to make a difference, support organizations like Episcopal Relief and Development, who are working for better lives for refugees, prisoners, people suffering from diseases that are easily curable with a small amount of money, giving tools and resources so people can support their families.
9. There are individuals and families in your town who will not only have no "Christmas" tree, but also no presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, take some food and gifts to a charity who will make the delivery for you.
10. Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do or say things that you wouldn't do or say in My presence. Remember -- When you speak badly of my children, you are speaking badly of Me; when you treat each other badly, you do the same to Me. Let people know by your words and actions that you are one of Mine.
Don't get so worked up about what you think are slights about me that occur in the material world. I am God and I can take care of Myself. I am not diminished by those things.
Instead, simply love Me and do what I have asked you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out the list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the ball is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love.
AMEN.
What would I do without help from my friends?
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