JESUS AND MO - FENCE

From Jesus and Mo.

Well, it made me smile.

OH DEAR!

From Reuters:

The Washington National Cathedral, the highest point in the capital, suffered damage in Tuesday's earthquake, with three spires in the central tower breaking off of the gothic-style building, a spokesman said.

Richard Weinberg, director of communications at the Episcopal cathedral, said the three pinnacles on the 30-story-high central tower had broken off and were lying in the grass.

"A fourth is leaning," said Weinberg. "There was other minor structural damage to buttresses and smaller pinnacles."

No one was injured from the damage, but the cathedral -- host to state funerals, and memorial services for many U.S. presidents and the site of several presidential inaugural prayer services -- was closed to the public so the building could be inspected.

Thanks be to God that no one was injured. Prayers for all who have been affected by the earthquake.

Picture from Wikipedia.

UPDATE: A picture of the damaged spires many be seen at Huffington Post.

UPDATE 2: From The Lead, by Nicholas Knisely, St Stephen's Episcopal Church in Culpepper, Virginia, was so badly damaged by the quake that the building is condemned.

STORY OF THE DAY - SIDE BY SIDE

We sat side by side in the morning light
& looked out at the future together.

The story reminds me of sitting with Grandpère 50 years ago next month. Knowing what I know today, the good times and the difficult times, I would do it all over again.

From StoryPeople.

FEDERAL DEBT BY PRESIDENTIAL TERM

From Wikipedia:

This table lists the gross U.S. federal debt as a percentage of GDP by Presidential term since World War II.

Click on the chart for the larger view.

(Source: CBO Historical Budget Page and Whitehouse FY 2012 Budget - Table 7.1 Federal Debt at the End of Year PDF, Excel, Senate.gov)

Thanks to Paul the BB for his post on Facebook which reminded me to have a look at the figures which show the percentages of federal debt accrued in each presidential term. Compare and contrast Democratic presidents with Republican presidents.

'THAT'S HOW THE LIGHT GETS IN' - FOR MOTHERAMELIA

With virtual hugs for our good friend motheramelia.

'WHAT A DOG DOES WHEN IT'S COLD'

Awww....

Thanks to Bruce.

GADDAFI HEADED TO VENEZUELA?

From the Telegraph:

Following an emergency EU meeting of foreign ministers on the situation in Libya, Mr Hague was asked if Britain, or other Western countries, knew if Col. Gaddafi had left Tripoli.

“About whether Col. Gaddafi, is in Venezuela, I have no information that says he is although I have seen some information that suggests he is on his way there,” he said.

British officials stressed that Mr Hague was referring “not to media reports but information from other channels”. “This is credible information,” said a diplomat.

Pray for the people of Libya.

O God, you have bound the people of Libya together in a common life. Help them, in the midst their struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect. Amen.

H/T to David at Facebook.

REMEMBER DUBYA?

A peeance freeance secure Iraq in the midst of the Middle East will have enormous historical impact.

Yeah!!!

But what does it MEAN?

Those were the days, my friends. We thought they'd never end.

AUCKLAND CASTLE AND THE ZURBARÁNS

From Wikipedia:

Auckland Castle (also known as Auckland Palace or locally as the Bishop's Castle or Bishop's Palace) is a castle in the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England.

The castle has been the official residence of the Bishop of Durham since 1832. However, it has been owned by the diocese for more than 800 years, being established as a hunting lodge for the Prince Bishops of Durham. It is more like a Gothic country house than a true castle with a military function.

Photos were permitted in the public rooms throughout the castle, with one exception. Below, in the center over the fireplace, is Michael Ramsey, who was Bishop of Durham before he was appointed Archbishop of York and then Archbishop of Canterbury. A larger view of the portrait is here.

The one exception to photos was the room I wanted to photograph most, the long dining room with Francisco de Zurbarán's paintings of Jacob and his sons. I was prepared to go from painting to painting and photograph them all, but it was not to be.

The castle's long dining room is home to 12 of the 13 17th century portraits of Jacob and his 12 sons painted by Francisco de Zurbarán. The room, in which they have hung for 250 years, was specifically designed and built for them. In 2001 the Church Commissioners voted to sell the paintings which have a £20m valuation, but relented until a review in 2010.

On 31 March 2011 Church Commissioners announced that plans to sell off the paintings were shelved following a donation of £15 million from investment manager Jonathan Ruffer.

Ever since I heard of their possible sale and removal from their home setting, I've wanted to see the paintings, and my wish was realized. I was able to view the paintings in their proper setting, which was a memorable experience. The paintings and the dining room are indeed impressive. I was thrilled when I heard the news that Ruffer had stepped forward to make it possible for the paintings to remain in place in the dining room at the castle, where they had been since 1756.

Exterior of the chapel at Auckland Castle from Wikipedia.

Interior of the chapel.

The castle is surrounded by 800 acres (3.2 km2) of parkland, which was originally used by the Bishops for hunting and is today open to the public.

Good-bye Auckland Castle, and good-bye to England. My visit to the castle was my final tourist activity before I left and a fitting end to my wonderful travels throughout the Green and Pleasant Land.

Of course, since I don't write of my travels in chronological order, but rather according to the whim of the moment, I have more stories and pictures to come.

A FEW WORDS FROM BROTHER LAWRENCE

From The Practice of the Presence of God:

That when an occasion of practising some virtue offered, he addressed himself to God, saying, 'Lord, I cannot do this unless Thou enablest me,' and then he received strength more than sufficient.

That when he had failed in his duty, he only confessed his fault, saying to God, 'I shall never do otherwise if you leave me to myself; it is You who must hinder my falling and mend what is amiss.' That after this he gave himself no uneasiness about it.

And I say, 'Amen!'

Thanks to Laura at Lay Anglicana for calling to mind the wonderful little book. I still have my yellowed paperback which I bought many years ago, which I've read a good many times, and which I will now read again, since Laura's mention in her latest post on a book on private devotion which changed her life.

Brother Lawrence's book changed my life. I learned from him to keep in mind that God is always present and available and to stop beating myself because I don’t have a regular quiet time set aside. Most days, I pray the short form of individual 'Morning Prayer' and 'Evening Prayer' from The Book of Common Prayer, read the Lectionary readings of the day, and offer prayers of petition and thanksgiving. Some days I forget even the Lectionary.

I turn to God fairly often during the day, most frequently to ask for help, but also to give thanks. And sometimes, I just delight in God's presence quietly for brief periods. Those are my non-scheduled quiet times. You see why Brother Lawrence's words give me such comfort, even though the good monk probably spent more scheduled quiet time with God than I do.

Another quote from the book:

That with him the set times of prayer were not different from other times, that he retired to pray, according to the directions of his superior, but that he did not want such retirement, nor ask for it, because his greatest business did not divert him from God.

I can't say an honest 'Amen' to those words, because I'm all too often diverted from God by busyness and other matters. As I said, I'm no Brother Lawrence, simply a grateful disciple.