"CHARTRES" BY GLENN SHEA

The Belle Verrière (c.1180 and 1225)

The Writer's Almanac, with Garrison Keiller, posted a lovely poem titled "Chartres" by Glenn Shea. You may want to have a look. I think you won't be sorry.

Image from Wikipedia.

UPDATE ON AILEEN

December 7, 2010: Big meeting with the neurologist team today at 9. Get her MRI results back and am so nervous about it, my stomach is in knots. Keep wondering why they would call a meeting to go over it. They've never done that before. Does it mean bad news, good news or what??---Mike

December 8, 2010: Okay, there has been some speculation as to what's up with the second opinions and so forth and what's going on. Aileen's MRI results came back yesterday and no, the results were not good. The stroke areas are slightly more profuse and the hemorrhage in the back of her brain is still bleeding. RCRH doctors feel that she is right now as good as she will ever get with little or no hope for future gains in her abilities. She is able to communicate through hand squeezing. So we are looking for a second and perhaps a third opinion and will continue to pursue other avenues of treatment for her, including perhaps taking her to Denver to a specialized stroke and brain injury center. A recommendation of this nature has severely shaken my confidence in her doctors and will look at all other options.---Mike
....

Continued prayers requested for this wonderful young woman, mother, wife.---Sally Boyd

Sally Boyd is the priest who is ministering to Aileen and Mike.

May God the Father bless you, God the Son heal you, God the Holy Spirit give you strength. May God the holy and undivided Trinity guard your body, save your soul, and bring you safely to his heavenly country; where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

Sanctify, O Lord, those whom you have called to the study and practice of the arts of healing, and to the prevention of disease and pain. Strengthen them by your life-giving Spirit, that by their ministries the health of Aileen may be promoted and your creation glorified; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(Book of Common Prayer)

O God, give to Mike and all who watch and wait with Aileen strength and courage during this difficult time. Surround them with your presence in the power of your Holy Spirit that they may trust in your everlasting love.

We pray for Sally as she stands with Aileen and Mike. Give her gifts of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding as she ministers to Mike and Aileen. Fill her with strength in the power of your Spirit. We pray in the name of your son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

CALL YOUR SENATOR!

The US Senate is scheduled to vote on ending "Don't ask, don't tell" tonight. Please call your senators and ask them to vote to end DADT. Call even if you think you know they will not vote to end the ridiculous, discriminatory policy, which harms rather than helps the performance of our military.

UPDATE: TPM says no vote tonight. Call your senators anyway. I suppose it's best to wait until their offices open tomorrow.

GARBAGE CRISIS IN NAPLES

This year, the southern city's garbage crisis has become a recurring theme among the artists and craftsmen along the street, which is barely three meters wide.

And so it came to pass that the Madonna, St. Joseph and even the baby Jesus wear face masks to protect themselves from the stench of the uncollected garbage in Naples.
....

"I meant this to be a provocation to those who govern us. I don't think it's nice to put sacks of garbage in the manger near the baby Jesus but it was necessary," said Di Virgilio.

"We needed to get this message across," he said.

Gets your attention, all right. It seems the stench and sight of the garbage was not enough to get the mess cleaned up, although, according to the article, the historic city center is now clean. But surrounding neighborhoods are still piled with garbage.

From Reuters, which has as the main part of its story:

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange may be alone in jail in London, but in the traditional Neapolitan Christmas creches he is in good company -- with Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Assange, who is depicted holding his trusty lap top, was created by Gennaro Di Virgilio, who each year chooses at least one contemporary character to sculpt and place near the scenes of the traditional story of Jesus' birth in a manger.

"I included him to poke a little fun at the world and have a good time," said Di Virgilio, 29, whose family has been making nativity statuettes and ornate creches since 1830.

To me, the story of the Holy Family wearing face masks is far more fascinating.

"FINALLY, SOME GOOD NEWS FOR OBAMA"

Healine in the email from the Borowitz Report:

Wealthiest .0000001% Hail Tax Deal

Billionaires Praise Obama Move

Of course, they do! And in a trickle down sort of way, we will all be the better for the passage of the bill.

Read the rest over there. You won't be sorry.

THREE WISE MEN FROM CHINA?

From USA Today:

The story of the Three Wise Men is one of the most familiar and beloved parts of the Christmas story. But for all of their popularity, the mysterious travelers from the East — known as the Magi — appear in only one short passage in the New Testament, following a star to the site of Jesus' birth and bringing gifts of gold, francincense and myrrh. Many religious scholars aren't even sure they really existed.

From Matthew 2:1-12

The Visit of the Wise Men

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

“And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.” ’

Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Back to USA Today:

Now, a first-ever English translation and detailed analysis of a little-known eighth-century manuscript of a story probably written in the second or third century uncovers a far more substantial version of the wise men story.
....

[Brent] Landau's book, Revelation of the Magi: The Lost Tale of the Wise Men's Journey to Bethlehem (HarperOne) describes the Magi as an ancient mystical sect descended from Seth, the pious and virtuous third son of Adam and Eve. From Seth they inherited a prophecy of "a star of indescribable brightness" someday appearing and "heralding the birth of God in human form." This same star had initially hovered over the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden.

Among the book's other revelations:

The Magi are described as coming from a land called Shir, "located in the extreme east of the world, at the shore of the Great Ocean." In other ancient texts, Shir is referred to "as a place where silk comes from," says Landau, suggesting that the references were to China.

In Syriac, the word Magi means "to pray in silence." Landau says it has no relationship to magicians or astrologers, sometimes cited in stories today.

Landau translated the 8th century manuscript as part of his doctoral dissertation at Harvard Divinity School. Do read the entire article at USA Today. I found it fascinating to learn a bit about what 2nd or 3rd century Christians made of the story of the Magi. I'd like to read the book.

Thanks to Ann V. for the link.

GEAUX MARY!

From The Huffington Post:

Sen. Mary Landrieu, a conservative Democratic from Louisiana, lashed out Tuesday at President Obama's deal with congressional Republicans that allows tax cuts for the wealthy to be extended for two years.

Extending the tax cuts for those making more than a million dollars a year is borderline immoral, Landrieu charged. "I'm going to argue forcefully for the nonsensicalness and the almost, you know, moral corruptness of that particular policy," said Landrieu, walking into a meeting with Vice President Joe Biden and Senate Democrats. "This is beyond politics. This is about justice and doing what's right."
....

"It's what I'm calling the Obama-McConnell plan. We're going to borrow $46 billion from the poor, from the middle class, from businesses of all sizes basically to give a tax cut to families in America today, that despite the recession, are making over a million dollars. I mean, this is unprecedented. Unprecedented. I want to repeat that," she said. Landrieu added, however, that she had yet to make a decision on the final package and was speaking strictly about the extension of tax cuts for the wealthy.

Now this is a Blue Dog Democrat that I can love. Gosh! I wish we'd see this Mary Landrieu more often.

"This is beyond politics. This is about justice and doing what's right."

Amen! But shouldn't politics be about justice and doing what's right? Sometimes?

However you vote in the end, Mary, you've made me proud.

Thanks to Diane for the link.

COMPASS ROSE

Don't blame me. Blame Ann Larry Graham.

PRAY FOR ELIZABETH EDWARDS

Elizabeth is nearing the end of her battle against cancer. She's a lovely lady and set a fine example to us all of courage and grace under pressure.

"Elizabeth has been advised by her doctors that further treatment of her cancer would be unproductive. She is resting at home with family and friends," the Edwards family says in a statement to PEOPLE.

On Monday, Edwards, 61, posted a Facebook message to her friends.

"I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces - my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope," she writes. "These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined. The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that."

May God the Father bless you, God the Son heal you, God the Holy Spirit give you strength. May God the holy and undivided Trinity guard your body, save your soul, and bring you safely to his heavenly country; where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

(Book of Common Prayer)

From the comments:

Murdoch Matthew said...

Word came at eventide that Elizabeth Edwards has died.

May Elizabeth rest in peace in the loving arms of God and rise in glory.

May God give comfort, consolation, the peace that passes understanding to keep the minds and hearts of all those who love Elizabeth.

May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest, Elizabeth.

EASY OPTION

I'm not that good at live & let live, she
told me, when it's just as easy to avoid &
then I don't even have to think about it.

From StoryPeople.

PS: This one is mine.