O GRACIOUS LIGHT

The moon in daylight

Hymn: O Gracious Light
Phos hilaron

O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light, we sing your praises,
O God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
 and to be glorified through all the worlds.

I DID THIS

If you try to find out, on the internet, how many steps the Duomo of Florence has, you will see numbers that vary from 414 to 463. So, it’s up to you to find out the real answer! In this video, this guy climbs (and counts) the stairs, recounts a good history of the Duomo (with only one little error – can you spot it?), and shows us the view from above!

I climbed the steps when I was in my 60s.  Yes, I did.  As the teenagers were running up the steps, I ascended slowly, with an occasional stop to rest, the rest stops coming closer together the higher I climbed.  It was hard, but I persevered, and the view from the top was magnificent and very much worth the difficult climb.

From Tuscany Arts. 

UPDATE: My one disappointment was at the half-way point entry into the cathedral.  Due to restoration work, I was not able to see the closer view of the beautiful "Last Judgment" fresco in the dome by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari, because the paintings were covered by drapery. 

BATHING BEAUTIES IN THE 1920s

THE CLIMATE NAME CHANGE

This Is Probably The Funniest, Most Effective Way To Deal With People Who Ignore Science Facts Ever

There are members of Congress [and governors] who don't understand or accept basic science concepts. This hilarious video is dedicated to them.

Where's our boy Bobby Jindal?  Surely his name is next on the list.

From Upworthy.

TELL PRESIDENT OBAMA: DON'T BOMB SYRIA

The petition reads:

"President Obama:  With civilians being butchered and refugees suffering immensely, it is horrifying to watch the brutal civil war in Syria unfold. But U.S. military intervention is far more likely to make matters worse, not better. The U.S. should not bomb Syria. The best thing we can do is commit to holding war criminals accountable, expand humanitarian aid for refugees, and maintain constant diplomatic pressure for a negotiated end to the conflict."

Sign the petition here.

The administration sees the use of chemical weapons in Syria as a threat to our national security. Certainly, the Syrian people suffer, but I don't understand the threat to the United States. What good purpose would be served by sending missiles that inflict more suffering and death on people who are already suffering and dying?

Instead of sending in missiles that kill and cause more misery, why not spend the money to help refugees, over 1 million of whom are children, many alone without their parents? Help the Syrians who fled to Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt who are in desperate need. The last thing Syria needs is more violence.

Donate to UNICEF here. 

50th ANNIVERSARY OF THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON FOR JOBS AND FREEDOM

From Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech:

"But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone."

 A movement for justice grounded in intentional non-violence, the determination to meet physical force with soul force, creates a moral authority of great power that can never be equaled by violence or threats of violence.

 Almighty God, by the hand of Moses your servant you led your people out of slavery, and made them free at last: Grant that your Church, following the example of your prophet Martin Luther King, may resist oppression in the name of your love, and may secure for all your children the blessed liberty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Atlanta, GA (July 16, 2013). The King Center and the 50th Anniversary Coalition are calling on people and organizations across America to help culminate the 50th anniversary of The March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech with “Let Freedom Ring” bell-ringing events at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on August 28th, a half-century to the minute after Dr. King delivered his historic address. In other nations, there will be bell-ringing ceremonies at 3:00 p.m. in their respective time zones.

Collect from Holy Women, Holy Men.

YES, I DO

 

Don't blame me. Blame Doug.

A GOOD DAY IN CHURCH

Stained glass at St John's Episcopal Church, Thibodaux LA

Today was a good worship day for me at St John's.  For a change I was early, and I had the opportunity to sit quietly for a spell before listening to the Prelude, Beethoven's "Sonatina in G Major", performed beautifully by our music director on the piano.  Therein lies a lesson that rushing in at the last minute, or worse, following the procession down the aisle, is not the best way to arrive for a service.  The liturgy was done well and properly; the sermon was interesting and enlightening; and the musical choices were very much to my taste.

Still, good days for me have less to do with the service itself - the preacher, the music, who is present, than with an attitude of heart open to praising and thanking God.  Some mornings, my attention to prayer is limited, for distractions abound, and my mind wanders everywhere but to the meaning of the words in the prayers and hymns.  This morning, I slipped easily into prayer and remained attentive longer.  Grace, all is grace, but I expect not rushing into the service at the last minute plays a part.  As I've already said, there's a lesson here.  Still, what is also true:

The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

After the service, our visiting priest did a show and tell about our fly spoon and said how rare it is to find such a spoon among the altar vessels.  He explained that in the olden days before air-conditioning, when windows in the church were open, insects flew in, and flies were attracted to the wine.  If a fly or other insect flew into the chalice and couldn't make its way out, the fly spoon was used for removal.  Below is a picture of St John's fly spoon.

Fly spoon

The spoon is silver, not gold, and is not tarnished as it appears in the photo.  The refection in the bowl of the spoon is of the stained glass window above the altar depicting St John the Evangelist, our patron saint.  The reflection on the cross may be the same.

I knew the purpose of the spoon, because I served eight years with the wonderful women in the Altar Guild.  Though I tried my best, I was not well-suited to preparing the altar, for I am not a detail person.  The priests I served under were understanding, and my fellow members were kind, but I suspect they sometimes despaired of me ever getting it right.  In truth, I never did. 

NOTE TO SELF

 

Before buying clothing you think you will need for an upcoming trip, first look in your closet.

SOCIAL ATTITUDE TEST

My results on the Social Attitude Test:

Political Values

Radicalism    94
Socialism    87.5
Tenderness    56.25

These scores indicate that you are a progressive; this is the political profile one might associate with a university professor. It appears that you are skeptical towards religion, and have a pragmatic attitude towards humanity in general.

Your attitudes towards economics appear communist, and combined with your social attitudes this creates the picture of someone who would generally be described as left-wing.

To round out the picture you appear to be, political preference aside, an egalitarian with many strong opinions.

This concludes our analysis; we hope you found your results accurate, useful, and interesting.

I am a communist and skeptical about religion. Who knew? My thought is if you consider yourself a person of faith, which I do, you'd damn well better be skeptical about religion. I confess I thought I would score higher in tenderness.  Nearly everyone I know who took the test has the characteristics of a university professor.

Some questions were difficult to answer or not what I thought good questions, so I hit the middle button on those, which may have skewed my score.  The choices number five, from strongly disagree to strongly agree.

There you have it.