Frank McCourt - R. I. P.

From the Washington Post:

Frank McCourt, who melted the hearts of millions of readers with "Angela's Ashes," a lyrically poignant memoir of his poverty-stricken Irish childhood, died of melanoma July 19 in New York. He was 78.

Mr. McCourt was a retired teacher in his mid-60s when he wrote "Angela's Ashes," an unflinching and unforgettable account of his family's misery in Limerick, Ireland, in the 1930s and 1940s. It was his first book, published in 1996, and immediately won critical acclaim and a vast readership.

The memoir received the Pulitzer Prize and stayed on the New York Times bestseller list for 117 weeks, including 23 at No. 1. In a review, Washington Post book editor Nina King wrote, "This memoir is an instant classic of the genre."

I'm ashamed to confess that I have not read Angela's Ashes, but I intend to remedy that as soon as possible. The reason that I didn't read the book is that I thought I couldn't bear it. Reading about suffering children takes a heavy toll on me. The images of pictures and verbal descriptions stay with me long after I read the stories.

May Frank rest in peace and rise in glory.

Image from Wiki. H/T to The Lead for the link to the story.

Your Gasoline Purchases At Work

 

AN ENGINEERING MASTER PIECE

During the construction phase…Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

 

All finished. Notice the palm trees outside.

 

The INSIDE view:

Remember, this is in the middle of the desert. The very HOT desert where temperatures get up to 120 degrees...

Unbelievable! But true.

 

But, but, but...where's Santa and his sleigh and reindeer in this Winter Wonderland?

I confess to doubting that this was a real vacation spot, but I owe Doug an apology.

Thought For The Day - Richard Rohr

Let’s state it clearly: One great idea of the biblical revelation is that God is manifest in the ordinary, in the actual, in the daily, in the now, in the concrete incarnations of life. That’s opposed to God holding out for the pure, the spiritual, the right idea or the ideal anything. This is why Jesus stands religion on its head!

From Things Hidden by Richard Rohr.

Happy Birthday To TheMe!

From themethatisme:

hang on a moment..

...and now I'm 43!!!

Gosh, he's getting old. The last time I saw him, he was 42.

"Broken Heart" - From Roseann

From Roseann:

My arms are swelling again. I had a good day yesterday and today I am in a lot of pain. Mostly my heart is breaking for Gary. When will this suffering end?

Dear, dear Roseann, I don't know when the suffering will end. Much love and many prayers for you and Gary.

Big People Words

A group of kids were trying very hard to become accustomed to the first grade. The biggest hurdle they faced was that the teacher insisted on NO baby talk!

"You need to use Big People words," she was always reminding them.

She asked Alex what he had done over the weekend.

"I went to visit my Nana."

She replied, "No, you went to visit your GRANDMOTHER. Use Big People words!"

She then asked Mitchell what he had done.

"I took a ride on a choo-choo."

She said. "No, you took a ride on a TRAIN. You must remember to use Big People words."

She then asked little Johnny what he had done.

"I read a book," he replied.

"That's WONDERFUL!" the teacher said. "What book did you read?"

Johnny thought real hard about it, then puffed out his chest with great
pride, and said, "Winnie the Shit."

Don't blame me. Blame Paul (A.).

Update From JimB On Sue-z

Jim said...

Update:

She is still and and not doing well.

::sigh::

She seems to be in partial renal failure and she is going to see a kidney specialist.

thanks for the prayers!

FWIW
jimB

"Not Angels, But Anglicans"

From Diana Butler Bass at Beliefnet:

By a 2-1 margin, Episcopalians agreed "that through our own listening the General Convention has come to recognize that the baptized membership of The Episcopal Church includes same-sex couples living in lifelong committed relationships characterized by fidelity, monogamy, mutual affection and respect, careful, honest communication, and the holy love which enables those in such relationships to see in each other the image of God." And the Episcopal General Convention equally has come to understand "that God has called and may call such individuals, to any ordained ministry in The Episcopal Church." In plain English, the Episcopal Church has now formally recognized the lived reality of faithful same-sex Christian couples in our community and that the Holy Spirit may call persons in such relationships to Christian ministry--even the ministry of bishop.

This affirmation doesn't demand that anyone do anything or anyone be forced to believe something they find offensive. Indeed, in the resolution, the church stated that Christians are not of a unified mind and that Christians "of good conscience" may disagree in regards to these concerns. But the resolution also does two important things: 1) it recognizes that many, many Episcopalians are perfectly comfortable and open to being part of a diverse spiritual community that includes gay and lesbian brothers and sisters; and 2) that local dioceses may chose their bishops by discerning the best candidate for ministry without restriction placed on sexual identity.

Some may argue that the Episcopal Church has broken faith. No, Episcopalians are struggling to be faithful and to live justly as our society widens its understanding of human relationships and marriage. The attempt to do so is not somehow "secular" or untraditional. Rather, adapting to local cultures is an important part of being Anglican.

Please read the entire essay. To me, it explains in a way that is simple and easy to understand what happened in Anaheim at GC2009 and how Resolutions D025 and C056 may affect the daily lives of Episcopalians.

In my diocese, the Diocese of Louisiana, we are now in the process of choosing a new bishop, because Bishop Charles Jenkins will retire at the end of 2009. I can safely state we will not elect a partnered gay bishop. My prayer and my hope is that we do not elect a bishop who will attempt to take the diocese out of the Episcopal Church into one of the splinter groups. I don't believe that is likely to happen, either.

As to the blessing of gay and lesbian unions and the ordination of partnered gay and lesbian priests and deacons, I can't speak for the next bishop, but I don't foresee that happening soon in my diocese. In the near future, nothing is likely to change here.

Thanks to KJ in the comments for the link to the excellent essay.

Shall We Even Things Out?

Daniel Gilgoff blogs at US News. He sent me a link to his post on the two resolutions on full inclusion of gays which were passed at GC2009 in Anaheim. Have a look at the comments to his post. If you'd like, you can add a little zest to the neighborhood, because right now, it's owned by the Bible thumpers.

From Daniel Gilgoff,

Wounded Bird crew,

Thought you'd be interested in my blog post on whether the Episcopal Church's moves to embrace gays more fully will ease or exacerbate its membership woes.

God & Country

Best,
Dan

Our Own Jim Has His Say In The UK

From Jim Naughton in the Guardian:

The general convention of the Episcopal Church concluded its triennial meeting in Anaheim yesterday, and apparently succeeded in annoying Tom Wright, the bishop of Durham. In some circles this accomplishment in itself justifies the expense of lodging some 880 deputies, 150 bishops and thousands of visitors in hotels near Disneyland for 10 days.

Writing in the Times, Wright asserted that the Episcopal Church is seeking to perpetuate the schism it began six years ago in consecrating Gene Robinson, who lives in a civil union with his partner, Mark Andrew, as bishop of New Hampshire. This is not the case, but I am always grateful when Wright comments on my church. Those of us who argue in favour of the full inclusion of gay and lesbian Christians in the Anglican communion and against the centralising agenda of Rowan Williams are in need of foils, and Wright, who seems to believe condescension is a charism, fits the bill perfectly.
....

In short, we did not resolve the tensions either in our church or in the communion, but we learned better how to bear with one another as we attempt to discern the will of God. I'd like to think that is a contribution to the larger church

Bravo! That's how to do it, Jim.

Talk about hyperventilating! Slow down, Bishop Right Wright. Breathe in a paper bag if you must.

Please read the rest of Jim's article at the Guardian. It's quite good. I hope that his piece sheds a little light on the happenings at the convention for the readers in the UK. Some folks "over there" don't seem to "get" the Episcopal Church and how it functions.

Jim hangs out at the Episcopal Café. I've even heard that he runs the place. To my regret, I did not get to meet him at the convention. I had a couple of misses of VIPs whom I wanted to meet, but not many.

I once did an assignment for Jim, probably by default, because no one else was going to be present and available. I was a wreck. I am not a reporter, nor am I a detail person, but I suppose I came up with something half-way presentable, because Jim published it, after a bit of expert editorial polishing.

H/T to Counterlight's Peculiers for the link to Jim's article.