HAVE A GREAT DAY!

 

Collect of Thanksgiving Day

Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

For Peace Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

PRAY THAT THE GAZA-ISRAELI CEASE-FIRE HOLDS

Hours after a cease-fire was declared Wednesday in Israel's conflict with Gaza, it appeared to be holding, an Israeli official said.

"We assumed it would take a while for the cease-fire to take hold," Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, told CNN. "I understand now that it has taken hold. There hasn't been fire for a while and, of course, we are not firing, so there is a cease-fire."

O God, you made us in your own image: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne. Amen.

MESSAGE TO MY ENGLISH FRIENDS

 

My sympathy to all my friends in the Church of England, especially to women friends and women priest friends. Whenever the next opportunity to vote on women bishops comes around, the measure must be a single clause - the Church of England will ordain women as bishops. Take it or leave it - no ifs, ands, or buts.

My dear English friends, perhaps now you can put behind you feelings of sympathy for those with  tender consciences that can be appeased only by assigning others to a lower place. You may not wish to put so crass a name on such a practice, but I call it what it is - misogyny.

Blessings and peace.

UPDATE: The Second Church Estates Commissioner Sir Tony Baldry:

There have been some suggestions in the press that it is impossible for the Church of England or General Synod to return to this issue until after a new General Synod has been elected in 2015. That is not correct: the rules prevent the same Measure from being reconsidered by the General Synod without a special procedure. It is perfectly possible for a different and amended Measure to consecrate women bishops to be considered by the General Synod. Although this is for the Church of England to resolve, as the Prime Minister made clear yesterday, I suspect that there will also be those in the Church of England who will wish to consider whether the election process to the General Synod is sufficiently representative, particularly of the laity of the Church of England, as Tuesday’s vote clearly did not reflect the overall and clear consensus of dioceses across England in support of women bishops.

It is my earnest hope that during the time I serve the Queen—whose appointment I am—this House and the Church of England as Second Church Estates Commissioner it will prove possible for me to bring before this House a Measure that will enable women to be consecrated bishops in the Church of England.

Thanks to Erp for the link.  I've heard various opinions about when a measure may be brought up again at General Synod, but Baldry's words seem to settle the matter.

THOU SHALT NOT DISOBEY THE VATICAN

Roy Bourgeois, a longtime peace activist and priest who had come under scrutiny for his support of women's ordination, has been dismissed from the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, which he served for 45 years, according to the congregation.

The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made the dismissal in October, according to a news release issued Monday afternoon by the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers.

Fr Roy is a homeboy, originally from nearby Lutcher, Louisiana.  Although we've never met, I've long admired him.  His words on my sidebar inspired me to speak out for justice and equality over the years.

                  "Silence is the voice of complicity."

He had no previous notice that the dismissal was coming, according to canon lawyer, Fr Tom Doyle.

"The idea then was that things would continue and they would not dismiss Roy and they would continue to dialogue," Doyle said. "And then this just happened, unilaterally. [Bourgeois] had no idea."

Fr Roy was given the opportunity to recant, but he refused.

"In essence, you are telling me to lie and I say I do not believe God calls both men and women to the priesthood," Bourgeois wrote in a formal reply to Maryknoll's request. "This I cannot do, therefore I will not recant."

Further biographical information on Fr Roy may be found at SOA Watch.

ABOUT THANKSGIVING

 

Alas... 

CHURCH OF ENGLAND VOTES NO TO WOMEN BISHOPS

Paul Owen at the Guardian live-blogging the debate at General Synod of the Church of England on a measure to allow women bishops:

That’s it. The Church of England has voted not to introduce female bishops – its biggest decision for 20 years.

It was a long day of debate, with over 100 speeches made and some points of view repeated a number of times. Broadly, speakers for the motion wanted women to be treated equally in the church and wanted Anglicans to set an example to the secular world in overcoming their differences. Those against felt the concept of female bishops could not be reconciled with scripture, and felt that compromise, for that reason, was not a Christian value.

Some on both sides felt the compromise measure before the General Synod – under which women would become bishops but could delegate authority to a male bishop if their parish requested it – meant the motion was fatally flawed. Others, such as Justin Welby, who will take over from Rowan Williams as Arch[b]ishop of Canterbury in the new year, said the compromise was “as good as we can get”. He urged the synod to vote for the motion. Earlier, Williams, also in favour, had said he wanted the world to look at the Church today and say: “That looks like Jesus Christ."

That’s it from me. Thanks for your comments.

How sad.

UPDATE: Thanks to Bishop Alan for the picture.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - BOBBY JINDAL

"If we want people to like us, we have to like them first."

There's truth in what you say, Governor.  My question for you is do you like us, us being the citizens of the state in which you serve as governor?  Louisiana is the name of the state way down in the South, remember?  Yes, I knew you would.  My next question is, if you like us, why are you so seldom here in Louisiana with the people of the state of which you are governor?

 

AUDUBON PARK GOES GREEN

NEW ORLEANS — Golfers at Audubon Park Golf course will be the first in the state to zip around bird-filled lagoons and Spanish moss-swathed live oaks in a fleet of entirely solar-powered carts.

The thin, lightweight black panels attached to the roofs of the 75 new carts are removable, said Audubon golf pro Stan Stopa, so that in another four or five years, (typically the lifespan of the carts), the solar panels can be attached to the next generation of carts.

Ben Nelson, managing partner of the dealership that sells the carts, said Audubon is the first course in the state to convert all its carts, and one of only a handful nationwide.

Brilliant.  The solar panels will pay for themselves over time and can be used on the next generation of golf carts.

Audubon Park Zoo has its own large compost heap of composed of droppings from herbivores, trimmings from shrubs and trees, and discards from food services in the park.  Once the material in the heap is "cooked", some of the compost is used in landscaping projects in the park, some goes into 40-pound bags labeled "ZooDoo Gold” and sold for $13, and bags of compost are given to local schools.

Not all the news coming out of Louisiana is bad.  Believe it or not, enlightened people reside in the state.

SURPRISE - SEX ABUSE SCANDAL NOT OVER

Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux [Roman Catholic] officials have said they had not heard reports of any predatory behavior by a former priest before a man came forward, accusing the priest of molesting him as an altar boy.

However, people who claim to have had sexual relationships with the Rev. Etienne LeBlanc said they felt preyed on by an authority figure who took advantage of them, even if they were not victims in the eyes of criminal law.

A civil suit against LeBlanc and the diocese, filed by Morgan City native Jared Ribardi, was settled last month, and LeBlanc, who couldn’t be reached for comment, has never been arrested under any criminal charges.

The alleged encounters happened at Holy Cross Catholic Church in Morgan City, which is part of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. LeBlanc has also worked at Annunziata Catholic Church in Houma and is now retired.

Louis Aguirre, spokesman for the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux, wrote a letter to The Courier and Daily Comet after the settlement, which was not disclosed.

The diocese “has not ever known of any alleged ‘predatory behavior’ by Father LeBlanc,” Aguirre wrote, referring to Ribardi’s attorney’s allegations that the diocese knew about his predatory sexual behavior for 25 years.

I'd heard the priest's name bandied about for years, and I remember when LeBlanc went on sabbatical in the 1980s, but I don't recall the reason given for his absence at the time.

Natchitoches resident Clayton Delery, 55, said he disagreed with that statement when he read it.

Delery said when he was 17 he met LeBlanc at Teens Encounter Christ, a retreat for high school students in Reserve. They became friends, and Delery would sometimes visit LeBlanc at his rectory in Reserve, where they had sex, Delery said.

Since Delery was 17, the sexual encounters were not illegal, but LeBlanc surely abused his position of power by having sex with a 17 year old member of his parish.  The diocese said the priest received counseling during the year 1986-1987 and was deemed fit by doctors to return to parish work.

The alleged sexual encounters between LeBlanc and Ribardi, which include accusations that LeBlanc forced Ribardi to perform oral sex, happened in the early 1990s when Ribardi was as young as 9 and as old as 14, according to his civil petition.

Apparently, the counseling the doctors thought worked so wonderfully well did not, after all, "take".

Others have stepped forward with further information on two other instances of alleged abuse of  persons who were college students at the time, who have since died, one by suicide and the other from AIDS.  So far as is known, the diocesan authorities were not told.  The family of the man who died of AIDS asked that he not be identified.

His first cousin said she was going to testify at Ribardi’s trial. The woman, who asked to be unnamed because her identity would reveal her cousin’s, said he confessed on his deathbed to her that he had a sexual relationship with a priest while he was a college student.

“Later in life, it disturbed him greatly. ... As he was dying, he displayed anger toward the Catholic Church and would not accept the sacraments,” or Last Rites, she said.

I'm not sure why LeBlanc is referred to as an ex-priest in the article.  A retired priest is still a priest, not an ex-priest.  Was LeBlanc defrocked?  I doubt it.

UPDATE: I spoke to the reporter who wrote the story, and she clarified that she meant retired priest, rather than ex-priest.    

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY FROM TREMÉ

Davina Lambreaux (Edwina Findley), in the Tremé HBO series, asks her brother Delmond (Rob Brown) for help with their father, Albert (Clarke Peters), who wants to stay in his ruined neighborhood in New Orleans three months after Katrina and the federal flood. Delmond, a musician, says he can't help.

DELMOND: I’ve got gigs.

DAVINA: We all got gigs, Delmond. Life is a goddamn gig.

The series is marvelous.  We don't have HBO, so I'm only now watching the beginning episodes on DVD.  More about the series later.  Lots of quotable dialogue...some probably not suitable for my family friendly blog, but we'll see.