BLESSINGS, IT AND BP!

Today our friends IT and her wife BP will celebrate their blessing ceremony in church. BP and IT were married in the window of opportunity when California law allowed for same-sex marriages. The law was later reversed in the infamous Proposition 8, but the marriages of the couples during the time when the law was in force are still valid.

I pray for IT and BP a lovely and joyous day.

Most gracious God, we give you thanks for your tender love in sending Jesus Christ to come among us, to be born of a human mother, and to make the way of the cross to be the way of life. By the power of the Holy Spirit, pour out the abundance of your blessing upon IT and BP. Defend them from every enemy. Lead them into peace. Let their love for each other be a seal upon their hearts, a mantle about their shoulders, and a crown upon their foreheads.

Bless them in their work and in their companionship; in their sleeping and in their waking; in their joys and in their sorrows; in their life and in their death. Finally, in your mercy, bring them to that table where your saints feast forever in your heavenly home; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever.

The prayer is taken from the blessing ceremony of Susan Russell and Louise Brooks on February 18, 2006. I hope Louise and Susan don't mind my borrowing.

The banner at the head of the post is the work of my good friend Paul the BB, who blogs at Byzigenous Buddhapalian.

WHY I RARELY VISIT FACEBOOK

Lately, I've thought quite a bit about why I don't visit Facebook often. Many folks with whom I'd like to be in closer touch are there, so why not me? The plain answer is that I don't like the site. When I remember, I visit from time to time to see if major happenings are going on in the lives of people with whom I'd like to keep in touch. More often than not, I expect that I miss major events, because I venture to Facebook all too seldom. I'd actually be off the site were it not the easiest way to keep in touch with certain members of my family.

The reasons that people like Facebook are rather easy to understand. It's a one-stop online location to see what's going on the the lives of Facebook friends. I've thought about why I don't like Facebook, and my best explanation is a metaphor. Visiting Facebook gives me similar feelings to a suggestion for a meet-up in the food court of a shopping mall. I don't like shopping malls, and I like eating in the food court in a shopping mall even less. The place is too busy. There are too many choices, too much noise. The whole atmosphere is just too much. It's the same with Facebook, without the audible noise.

Now the food court in a shopping mall is my metaphor, and I expect that few, if any, will take hold of my metaphor and make it their own. When I walk into a shopping mall, my first impulse is to turn around and walk out. When I click over to Facebook, my first impulse is to click away.

ROUND-UP OF RESPONSES TO THE DEMONSTRATIONS IN WISCONSIN

From Scout at First Draft, who is in the capitol in Madison, WI:

Life here

I'd like to give you some idea of what it is like here in the Capitol. It really is an incredible thing going on here. I remember last Thursday, when we thought there would be a Senate vote, people were packed in the Rotunda and in the Gallery outside the Senate. I was tweeting when someone tweeted it is so hot and water would be nice. Well it didn't take long and the water did appear.

That seemed to be the beginning of how this thing has been happening. When there is a need, it is met. Just a few days ago when pizza came in from Ian's it was put on a bench on the first floor of the rotunda. Now just a few days later a whole area has developed on the second floor to take care of people's needs. It is a no photo area so sorry I have no pics.

At one end of the hall begins the food. Before you do anything though you are told to use hand sanitizer provided in big bottles. There is bread and bagels and candy to name few items. There is water and coffee and soda. You move further down and there will be pizza or pasta or whatever has come in from one of Madison's fine and supportive establishments, paid for by you great people of the country and world. At the end of the hall is a First Aid/Nurses Station. In the middle of the hall is another hall running perpendicular which is a closed off hallway called the Family Space where parents and children can go.

Read the rest of Scout's post and see her pictures, one of which is posted above.

From the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee, Bishop Steven Miller's commentary on the demonstrations in Madison:

This past week we have also seen democracy at work in Wisconsin as thousands gathered in Madison in response to the Governor’s Budget Bill. Regardless of our individual positions on the bill before the Legislature and what steps are necessary to build a stronger and better Wisconsin, I believe we can all agree that our baptismal vow to “respect the dignity of every human being” is not served by a majority simply pushing through legislation because they have the votes necessary to do so. As Christians, it is our duty and call to make sure that everyone has a place at the table and every voice has the opportunity to be heard. Respecting the dignity of every human being requires taking the time to have honest and faithful conversation that respects the rights and freedoms of all.

We also are called to speak on behalf of the sick, the poor, the elderly, orphans, widows, and all those who live in the margins of our society. Matthew in his Gospel reminds us that in serving these we are serving the Lord Jesus himself. It would be a sin to balance our state budget on the backs of those who have the least.

From The Huffington Post:

The U.S. Catholic bishops on Thursday (Feb. 24) threw their moral weight behind the pro-union protesters in Wisconsin, saying the rights of workers do not abate in difficult economic times.

"The debates over worker representation and collective bargaining are not simply matters of ideology or power," said Bishop Stephen Blaire of Stockton, Calif., chairman of the U.S. bishops' committee on domestic justice, "but involve principles of justice, participation and how workers can have a voice in the workplace and economy."

Thanks to Lapin for the link to the HP article.

ABOUT RIGHT

OBAMA SPELLS IT OUT

Click on the image for the larger view.

OMG! I can't believe that I'm linking to MadPriest two days in a row. He's already so full of himself and puffed up with pride as to be nearly insufferable, and this sort of encouragement will only egg him on. But what can I do? He put my thoughts into the balloons.

PRAY FOR THE PEOPLE IN CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND (2)

From 3News NZ:

Before any bodies can be brought out, the cathedral must first be stabilised.

Sight-seers were known to have been in the steeple when it collapsed, crashing into an area where there were more tourists.

The victims remain trapped under piles of rubble right up to the windows.
“It's a very delicate task, because the building is quite unsafe, and we can't put these guys into a dangerous situation. I think they are going to be removing another part of the tower and they may have to take down part of the west wall if not altogether,” says Dean Peter Beck.

Bricks and mortar were still falling when 3 News arrived minutes after the quake, while dazed survivors comforted each other, Beck realised his cathedral had become a tomb.

He believes all the victims were tourists. Staff and volunteers have all been accounted for.

“I haven't cried yet but I think I'm on the verge of it it's just the enormity of the whole thing mate,” says Dean Beck.

From Christ Church Cathedral website:

A PRAYER IN TIME OF NEED

Lord, at times such as this,
when we realize that the ground beneath our feet
is not as solid as we had imagined,
we plead for your mercy.

As the things we have built crumble about us,
we know too well how small we truly are
on this ever-changing, ever-moving,
fragile planet we call home.
Yet you have promised never to forget us.
Do not forget us now.

Today, so many people are afraid.
They still wait in fear of the next tremor.
They remember the cries of the injured amid the rubble.
They roam the streets in shock at what they see.
And they fill the dusty air with cries of grief
and the names of missing dead.

Comfort them, Lord, in this disaster.
Be their rock when the earth refuses to stand still,
and shelter them under your wings
when homes no longer exist.

Embrace in your arms those who died so suddenly this week.
Console the hearts of those who mourn,
and ease the pain of bodies on the brink of death.

Pierce, too, our hearts with compassion,
we who watch from afar,
find only misery upon misery.

Move us to act swiftly this day,
to give generously every day,
to work for justice always,
To pray unceasingly for those without hope.

And once the shaking has ceased,
the images of destruction have stopped filling the news,
and our thoughts return to life’s daily rumblings,
let us not forget that we are all your children
and they, our brothers and sisters.
We are all the work of your hands.

For though the mountains leave their place
and the hills be tossed to the ground,
your love shall never leave us,
and your promise of peace will never be shaken.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Blessed be the name of the Lord,
now and forever. Amen.

H/T to Brian R at Noble Wolf and Nicholas Knisely at The Lead.

JESUS AND MO - SPECK

Click on the cartoon for the larger view.

From Jesus and Mo.

ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT HOUSEHOLD TIP

Always keep several
'Get well' cards on the mantel...
So if unexpected guests arrive,
They will think you've been sick and unable to clean.

PLEASE PRAY FOR ALISON

Alison is my daughter. Here is her message on Facebook:

Stepped on a bra in laundry room. Slipped and did a full on split. Hear pop and lay on floor for 20 minutes till I can get up. I'm in bed with ice and elevating it. Think it is bad hamstring pull. Way too old to do a split!!!! And worst of all I was suppose to be a vagrant again today.:(

Don't laugh. She's in a lot of pain. I'm afraid I did smile a little at her slipping on a bra. She promised me she would see a doctor tomorrow if she wasn't a lot better.

Alison is looking for employment. She is a teacher, but there are no teaching jobs to be found within reasonable driving distance of where she lives in the 'burbs of New Orleans, so she is searching for other jobs, too. She's been working from time to time as a movie extra, and she had several days lined up to play a vagrant. The pay is not great, but a little money coming in is better than nothing. Of course, working as an extra is out of the picture (literally!) at the moment.

O God, the strength of the weak and the comfort of sufferers: Mercifully accept our prayers, and grant to your servant Alison the help of your power, that her injury may be healed and our sorrow turned into joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

UPDATE: From Alison:

Can walk a little with crutches. Everything very tight. All the other muscles I pulled hurt today so still pain.

UPDATE 2: Alison sent me pictures of her bruises. They are terrible. I'd show them, but they're on a part of her anatomy which she would not want shared on the intertubes.

STORY OF THE DAY

What are you scared of? she said & I
said, Nothing & then I said what are you
scared of? & she said, people like you &
it was such a relief to know I wouldn't
be able to fool her for long

From StoryPeople.

WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE [EPISCOPAL(?)] DIOCESE OF SOUTH CAROLINA?

"Episcopal" is no longer part of the name of the Diocese of South Carolina. Nothing new there. "Episcopal" was removed some time ago.

Two resolutions, both of which passed at the previous convention, passed again, by more than the required two-thirds margin in both the clergy and lay orders, amending the Diocesan Constitution. The first resolution removed the accession clause to the Canons of the Episcopal Church, and the second, enabled the Convention to meet more frequently than annually, if needed. These resolutions seek to protect the Diocese from any attempt at un-Constitutional intrusions in our corporate life in South Carolina and were in response to the revisions to the Title IV Canons of the Episcopal Church.

What's going on? Is the Diocese of South Carolina still part of the Episcopal Church?

In the comments to the post on the actions of the convention of the Diocese of South Carolina at The Lead, Tobias Haller says:

The accession required is in Constitution V.1. The question raised in SC is whether the accession to the law of the church required for the admission of a diocese into union with this Church must necessarily remain in place. Their view, in the retail world, is called "bait and switch."

What is cited above is the "Dennis Canon" -- which is also an area of concern, but isn't about accession to the C&C.

Well! Bait and switch is it? Who would ever have thought...?

Bishop Mark Lawrence's address to the convention is in his usual bombastic style and includes the usual disparaging commentary about the leadership of the "national" church, along with the usual "scare quotes".

As I have spoken in recent days to Diocesan Council, the deans, and the Standing Committee, it is my expressed hope that this year of 2011 will be free from constitutional and canonical challenges from the “national” leadership of the Episcopal Church, and that we in the Diocese of South Carolina can get on with the work of growing our parishes, strengthening the lives of our parishioners and churches, and planting new congregations.

Bishop Lawrence continues with a reference to Nehemiah, noting that he will not employ the martial metaphor from Ch. 4.

A Biblical metaphor I have employed from time to time is from Chapter 4 of the Book of Nehemiah where the workmen rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem labored with a tool in one hand and a weapon in the other. But as I have said, my hope is that this will be a season for the trowel not the sword. Time alone will tell if we will be permitted to do our work unencumbered by intrusions. I am eager to see this Diocese of South Carolina add daily to its number those who are being saved; and what better way to do this than by growing our existing congregations and planting new ones. This work, not the controversies of the day, will be the thrust of this address.

Rather, he will move forward with trowel in hand, yet ever on guard against "intrusions", presumably by the "national" leadership, when he may again require a "sword".

Bishop Lawrence's rhetoric is unlike any other Episcopal priest or bishop that I've read or heard. He sounds more like Billy Graham - not that there's anything wrong with that!

The weekend began Friday afternoon with a presentation by the Rt. Rev. Michael Nazir-Ali, former Bishop of Rochester, who now serves South Carolina as Visiting Bishop for Anglican Communion Relationships, on “Triple Jeopardy: The Challenge of Islam, Secularism and Multiculturalism.”

Bishop Nazir-Ali also preached a sermon. I searched for a link to the actual text of Bishop Nazir-Ali's sermon and presentation without success. The link to MP3 version of the sermon, to which I have not listened, is below:

Sermon by the Rt. Rev. Dr. Michael Nazir-Ali.

The link at the diocesan website to the Presentation, "Triple Jeopardy: The Challenge of Islam, Secularism and Multiculturalism," by the Rt. Rev. Dr. Michael Nazir-Ali is broken.