ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY JUSTIN WELBY IN GUATEMALA

Archbishop Justin Welby

Our friend Leonardo Ricardo was present when Archbishop Welby presided at the celebration of the Eucharist in Santiago Cathedral in Guatemala City on August 11, 2013.  Len posted a report on the event with pictures and his notes on the archbishop's sermon at his blog, "Eruptions at the Foot of the Volcano," here and here.

Archbishop Welby and Archbishop Armando Guerra Soria of Guatemala are seated in chairs by Leonardo from his series of furniture art creations.  In the picture on the left only a small part of one of the chairs can be seen.

The text of Justin's sermon, Reconciliation is our 'Gift to the World', is posted at the archbishop's website.  The words of the sermon give me hope.  As they say in Guatemala, "Vamos a ver."

Photo by Elizabeth Bell.

UPDATE: Below is a photo, also by Elizabeth Bell, of Leonardo's splendid chairs.  The chairs, with their gorgeous colors, are beautiful - true works of art.

Archbishop Armando Guerra Soria

Archbishop Armando Guerra Soria

Archbishop Armando Guerra Soria

GORGEOUS 0PEN-AIR CATHEDRAL

Aspen Alley Wyoming?

“Standing on the bare ground,--my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space,--all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or parcel of God.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nature and Selected Essays

From Love and Social Justice.

PSYCHIATRIST VS BARTENDER

Ever since I was a child, I've always had a fear of someone under my bed at night. So I went to a shrink and told him:

'I've got problems. Every time I go to bed I think there's somebody under it. I'm scared. I think I'm going crazy.'

'Just put yourself in my hands for one year,' said the shrink. 'Come talk to me three times a week and we should be able to get rid of those fears.'

'How much do you charge?'

'Eighty dollars per visit,' replied the doctor.

'I'll sleep on it,' I said.

Six months later the doctor met me on the street. 'Why didn't you come to see me about those fears you were having?' he asked.

'Well, Eighty bucks a visit three times a week for a year is an awful lot of money! A bartender cured me for $10. I was so happy to have saved all that money that I went and bought me a new pickup!'

'Is that so!' With a bit of an attitude he said, 'and how, may I ask, did a bartender cure you?'

'He told me to cut the legs off the bed! Ain't nobody under there now!'

(Thanks to Doug.)

ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY VISITS GUATEMALA - WILL SIT IN LEONARDO'S CHAIR

Anglican-Episcopalians in Central America are preparing to receive one of the references of unity of the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who will be in Guatemala City from August 10-12.

From a news story by Susana Barrera for ALC.

The visit was announced by Bishop Martín Barahona of the Anglican Episcopal Church of El Salvador, who expressed his great satisfaction with the archbishop’s pilgrimage and his decision to travel around the world to get to know the life of other missions.

The stunning bar, lamp and tables are the work of my good friend and artist Leonardo Ricardo.  You may wonder why I picture Leonardo's furniture art on a post announcing a visit to Guatemala by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.  Here's why:

The Archbishop of Canterbury is arriving in Guatemala this weekend.  He will officiate along with Presiding Bishop Armando at Santiago Cathedral on Sunday morning.  They will be sitting on two original Leonardo Ricardo thrones (don´t you love it?). The Cathedral has borrowed two of my elaborately painted oversized arm chairs for the occassion.  Hopefully there will be photos.  I will be attending the ABC´s special visit/mass with Elizabeth Bell....

There you have it.  The two archbishops will be seated in over-sized armchairs created by Leonardo.  The armchairs will be thrones for a day.  Leonardo, I love it!  I don't have a picture of the chairs, but I'm quite certain there will be photos after the service.

"CLOUD OF WITNESSES" - UPSTAIRS LOUNGE FIRE

Fr Bill Richardson

From Walking With Integrity:

On June 22nd, Integrity New Orleans held a memorial service at St. George's Episcopal Church in that city, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of a fire at the UpStairs Lounge, a gay bar in the French Quarter which also served as the home of the local Metropolitan Community Church, a protestant denomination founded specifically to minister to the LGBT community.

Thirty-two people were killed in the fire, three of whom were never identified. The bar was located on the second floor.  
....

Especially remembered at the service, celebrated by the Rev. Richard Easterling, was the Rev. William P. "Bill" Richardson.  Richardson, who was rector of St. George's from 1953-1976, held a similar service the in the days after the fire, in defiance of his own bishop (the Right Rev. Iveson Noland) and other clergy who refused to permit their churches to be used or provide any other pastoral response.

Another fine article in remembrance of the UpStairs Lounge Fire. 

THE HEAD AND THE HEART - "RIVERS AND ROADS"

Thanks to my favorite economist.

"FISCALLY CONSERVATIVE"

IT'S NOT THE GUNS - PART 8

Authorities in Louisiana don’t know how a 5-year-old boy managed to shoot a 3-year-old boy, but they are pretty sure that people taking care of the children are lying about the incident.

According to The News Star, Monroe Police Sgt. Mark Johnson said officers responded to reports that a 3-year-old had been shot by a 5-year-old playing with a gun after 1 p.m. on Thursday [Aug. 1].

“We think there may be more going on than we’ve been told,” Johnson explained. “This is a serious situation. Some people may have given us untruthful statements.”

One day later:

 A child shot at a Dixie Avenue residence in Monroe died Friday after being taken off life support.

According to Sgt. Mark Johnson, the child, whose name was not released, was declared dead around 1:30 p.m. Friday [Aug. 2] at St. Francis Medical Center.

Around 1 p.m. Thursday, police responded to 201 Dixie Avenue in relation to the shooting of a 3-year-old child.

An investigation revealed the child was shot by a 5-year-old and the 3-year-old’s mother rushed him to the hospital.

Part of the what the NRA says is true.  It is the guns, but it's also ignorant, reckless, irresponsible  people who own guns.

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

How does a well regulated militia come to include people who leave loaded guns around accessible to toddlers and children?  Where is the regulation?  Who is responsible for the killings?  How long will we allow such senseless deaths to continue?

"SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK"

"Silver Linings Playbook" is one of the craziest, funniest, and, at the same time, one of the most intelligent and touching movies I've seen in a long time. All the way through the film, I rooted for the characters, as one or more of them skirt the edge in imminent danger of going over and having to go to prison or into a mental health facility. Although I wanted them to succeed in spite of the odds against them, in their out-of-control moments, I wondered if a couple of them truly were too dangerous to be loose on the streets.  The mental health challenges included bipolar disorder, sex addiction, and OCD. 

The suspense as to whether the characters in the film would continue to roam free kept me on the edge of my seat till the very end. The poignant thread which weaves through the story, of the wounded helping the wounded to heal, moved me greatly.

The movie was nominated for and won many awards, including  the Academy Award for Best Actress to Jennifer Lawrence for her excellent performance as Tiffany.  Bradley Cooper, as Pat, skillfully navigates his way through the bipolar character's rapid personality changes, and Robert De Niro shines in his portrayal of Pat's obsessive-compulsive disordered father.   Pat's mother Dolores (Jacki Weaver), the loving and compassionate enabler to the eccentric family members, plays her role often wide-eyed, shocked, and stricken by the mayhem around her.  All the characters endeared themselves to me in their own wonderful ways.  I applaud all involved in making the marvelous film.

HOW TO DESTROY A COMMUNITY - ALGIERS POINT

 

As you see on the map, Algiers Point is the pink area, a charming, historic community on the West Bank of the Mississippi River.  The Central Business District is labeled, but the French Quarter is not.  The small green square directly across from Algiers Point is Jackson Square, the heart of the Quarter.  You see how convenient the Canal Street ferry is for pedestrians who live or stay in Algiers Point to reach the Quarter and the CBD, where there are also a good many popular restaurants.  The famous St Charles streetcar, which transports riders to the Garden District or for a lovely ride on oak-lined St Charles Avenue is easily reached on foot from the ferry landing.

But no.  Plan a ferry schedule that stops running at 7:00 on weekdays and 8:15 on weekends, the very time when people are having dinner, followed by a drink or a visit to one of the many small clubs in or near the Quarter to listen to music.  If tourists don't follow weekends and want to enjoy themselves every day and evening, well just stay elsewhere.

This is New Orleans!  The reduced hours of ferry operation are idiotic to the point that I want to scream, cry, or bang my head, or all three.  What are you thinking, leaders and planners?  Are you thinking?  

Algiers Point business owners, dependent on visitors keen to get out of downtown New Orleans tourist spots and explore the unique neighborhood across the Mississippi River, say reduced Canal Street ferry hours are proving disastrous for their bottom lines.

“It’s been terrible for business,” said Linda Bullard, manager of the Dry Dock Café, a popular watering hole just steps from the ferry station.

Bullard said the bar-restaurant has seen a reduction in business of between 30 and 40 percent since the Louisiana Department of Transportation clipped the late-night schedule a month ago.
....

The Algiers Point ferry service, which used to run until midnight, now ends at 8:15 p.m. on the weekends and before 7 p.m. the rest of the week.
....

The small Algiers Point bed-and-breakfast industry also has taken a hit in the aftermath of the schedule slash.

“There’s been an absolute turndown in business,” said Kevin Herridge, owner of the House of the Rising Sun Bed and Breakfast on Pelican Avenue.
....

The ripple effect has extended to local artisans who rely on the Algiers Point bed-and-breakfast industry.

What have we here?  A good many businesses on Algiers point, small businesses, which all politicians tout as great job creators, will quite likely be destroyed.

Bars

Cafés

Bed and Breakfast establishments

Artisan shops

Moving picture theater

Landlords

Who cares, but the business owners and their patrons, who will now be former patrons?

A good many hospitality workers with jobs in the French Quarter or the Central Business District will likely have to move, because they will have difficulty getting home after work, thus renters will lose their tenants.

Algiers residents spoke Monday night about their frustrations with the Canal Street ferry’s reduced hours and concerns about what they described as the high cost of commuting across the river under a takeover plan proposed by the Regional Transit System.
....

Under RTA’s plan pedestrians who now ride the ferries for free would pay a base fare of $2 each way or $75 for a monthly pass. That’s a significant cost for many who use the boats daily, residents said.
....

Throughout the discussion, residents called for a cheaper option for those who regularly use the ferry, possibly funded by increasing the cost for tourists and other infrequent riders. A number of other suggestions, including selling advertising and naming rights on the boats, also cropped up during the discussion.

Even as prohibitive fares may be levied on pedestrians who use the ferry, gas-guzzling vehicles spewing carbon monoxide into our already polluted air will ride free of tolls over the Crescent City Connection bridges.  People who don't own cars and workers in the French Quarter and CBD, who may own cars, but who would have difficulty finding free parking places, will have to pay for parking or ride the bus.

“I find it more than a little ironic that those who can afford a car can now cross the river for free, but those who can’t are now going to pay $4 a day,” Michelle Moltz said.  

Indeed.

NOTE: Because of the curves in the Mississippi River, the West Bank is sometimes to the east and south of New Orleans, so it is then the West Bank in name only.