GLOBAL AND ECUMENICAL IN SCOPE
CANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE
EASTER EDITION
Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address: waholst@telus.net
This email is sent only to a voluntary subscriber list.
*****
SPECIAL ITEM
RESURRECTION AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Making Easter Renewal Your Own
Spirituality and Practice
April 21st, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y445fnyt
EVERY time you forgive someone, another resurrection
CANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE
EASTER EDITION
Wayne A. Holst, Editor
My E-Mail Address: waholst@telus.net
This email is sent only to a voluntary subscriber list.
If you no longer wish to receive these weekly columns,
The theme of this issue of Colleagues List is "Easter"
and my Special Item this week is "resurrection as
a spiritual practice." This letter to you is a bit different
and I hope it proves to be helpful.
and my Special Item this week is "resurrection as
a spiritual practice." This letter to you is a bit different
and I hope it proves to be helpful.
Thanks for reading this issue. I hope you like it.
Wayne
*****
SPECIAL ITEM
RESURRECTION AS A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
Making Easter Renewal Your Own
Spirituality and Practice
April 21st, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y445fnyt
After reading this article from Spirituality and Practice
this week, I decided to turn this personal reflection at
Easter into verbs. I selected seven of the points offered
by Meghan McKenna and pass on to you a bit of where
I am coming from.
--
by Meghan McKenna and pass on to you a bit of where
I am coming from.
--
GIVE your full attention to whatever you are doing and
you'll realize the constant renewal of life all around you.
Wayne - I now know that for much of my life I busied
myself with so many activities that I failed to see a lot
of what was really going on. Now, I am slowing down
naturally, but that is not a bad thing in many ways. I
tend to focus and notice a great deal more.
--
WHEN you cultivate the art of making connections, the
walls of separation come crashing down and new life
can spring up out of the rubble.
Wayne - I now know that for much of my life I busied
myself with so many activities that I failed to see a lot
of what was really going on. Now, I am slowing down
naturally, but that is not a bad thing in many ways. I
tend to focus and notice a great deal more.
--
WHEN you cultivate the art of making connections, the
walls of separation come crashing down and new life
can spring up out of the rubble.
Wayne - I am more aware of broken relationships and
other break-ups within and around me. One of the
benefits of this stage of my life is that I can use my
experience to try to do some real healing ministry inside
and beyond myself. I don't expect great things to happen,
but then again, who knows? I really am making more
connections.
connections.
--
EVERY time you forgive someone, another resurrection
is in the making.
Wayne - There are some people I am not yet ready to
forgive, but the prospect of a true resurrection where
one does not currently exist certainly nudges me. I
need to let forgiveness be more part of my life as I
know was part of earlier times in my life.
need to let forgiveness be more part of my life as I
know was part of earlier times in my life.
--
YOUR little acts of kindness tenderize the world, add to
the fund of good will, and set the table for resurrection.
Wayne - it always surprizes me when, out of the blue,
people call me aside and tell me about how I may have
been of some help to them. This gives me encouragement
to "continue doing what I'm doing" and then some.
--
NURTURE yourself — eat right, exercise, get plenty of rest -
NURTURE yourself — eat right, exercise, get plenty of rest -
and you are helping God resurrect your body.
Wayne - I have been more focused on what I eat, when
I exercise, and how much sleep I get each day. I am
learning that these activities can enhance and prolong
my life, and for that reason alone, I practice them faithfully.
my life, and for that reason alone, I practice them faithfully.
--
PRACTICING resurrection also means having confidence
that God can make something out of your selfishness,
anger, greed, hatred, and any of your other shadow
qualities.
Wayne - It was an important learning for me, at mid-
life, to discover that, by nature I am not bad, but both
good and bad together. It was an additional learning
for me that my failings be even more helpful to others
observing me than were my successes.
BY respecting the mystery of God, human nature, and
the natural world, you bear witness to the ineffable
nature of renewal and rebirth.
Wayne - when I looked over this list of seven, and of
my comments, most of them still focused on "doing".
That, I think is true to my nature. Contemplation is
still very hard for me, but I am getting better at it.
When I encounter mystery at this stage of my life -
and I do so often - I am much more inclined to stop
and reflect, rather than to immediately shift into action.
Often in the past, activity was a defence-mechanism
that did not help me or others very much.
--
I hope I am learning that joining with Christ in his
resurrection is the way to live and to be resurrection
for others also. St. Paul writes frequently about this -
(see Romans 6:4, for example).
(see Romans 6:4, for example).
*****
COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONS
Mark Whittall,
Ottawa, ON
Sermons and Blog
April 19th, 2019
"As I Have Loved You"
https://tinyurl.com/yyqpo9l7wa
--
Jim Taylor,
Okanagan,, BC
Personal Web Log
April 17th, 2019
"Choose Sides for the Future"
https://tinyurl.com/y5hzh8tjwa
--
Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX
Personal Web Site
April 15th, 2019
"And All Manner of Being Shall Be Well"
https://tinyurl.com/y6ahvqg7
*****
Mark Whittall,
Ottawa, ON
Sermons and Blog
April 19th, 2019
"As I Have Loved You"
https://tinyurl.com/yyqpo9l7wa
--
Jim Taylor,
Okanagan,, BC
Personal Web Log
April 17th, 2019
"Choose Sides for the Future"
https://tinyurl.com/y5hzh8tjwa
--
Ron Rolheiser,
San Antonio, TX
Personal Web Site
April 15th, 2019
"And All Manner of Being Shall Be Well"
https://tinyurl.com/y6ahvqg7
*****
NET NOTES - April 21st, 2019
MOVING FROM PAIN TO HOPE
Holy Week Message by Jim Wallis
Sojourners Online,
April 18th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/yxkuc2c5
--
EACH OF US HAS A GETHSEMANE MOMENT
Sooner or Later, it Comes to All of Us
America Magazine,
April 17th, 2019
--
ONLY HALF OF AMERICANS
BELONG TO PLACE OF WORSHIP
Total Percentage Has Plummeted
Religion News Service,
April 18th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y4w9mcp9
--
CARTER SAYS U.S. MOST
WARLIKE NATION IN HISTORY
Former President Lectures Trump
on American Foreign Policy
Telesur HD
April 18th, 2019
--
CARTER SAYS U.S. MOST
WARLIKE NATION IN HISTORY
Former President Lectures Trump
on American Foreign Policy
Telesur HD
April 18th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y5tgtqkk
--
PUBLIC HOLIDAY FOR GOOD FRIDAY
ABOLISHED IN AUSTRIA
Secular Values Dominate, says Pastor
Lutheran World Federation News
April 15th, 2019
--
PUBLIC HOLIDAY FOR GOOD FRIDAY
ABOLISHED IN AUSTRIA
Secular Values Dominate, says Pastor
Lutheran World Federation News
April 15th, 2019
--
FOURTEEN OBSERVATIONS ON
THE STATE OF DENOMINATIONS TODAY
An American Evangelical Perspective
Christianity Today,
April 14th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/yxor37wk
--
FOR MILLENNIALS, MYSTICISM
CAN SHOW PATH TO HOME FAITH
Richard Rohr Suggests a Spiritual Space
Religion News Service,
March 16th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/yy5ssve6
--
RESURRECTING NOTRE DAME -
THE STRUGGLE FOR MEANING
What Will Fail, What Will Not
The Guardian,
April 16th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/yyyftq9w
--
NOTRE DAME DESERVES BETTER
THAN A RECREATION OF THE PAST
Move Beyond Grandeur, Creativity,
Writes a French Priest
La Croix International
April 17th, 2019
https://tinyurl.com/y4bzwcy3
Globe and Mail,
April 18th, 2019
“No matter that barely 5 per cent of French Catholics
regularly attend Sunday mass, or that the church itself is
held in low regard by most, the entire country has united
around a monument to its enduringly Catholic identity.”
- Konrad Yakabuski:
New York Times,
April 18th, 2019
Donations from wealthy French families and companies
to rebuild the fire-ravaged cathedral in Paris are nearing
$1 billion, intensifying the resentment that has been on
display during the Yellow Vest protests about economic
inequality.
“If they’re able to give dozens of millions to rebuild Notre
Dame, they should stop telling us that there is no money
to pay for social inequalities,” one labor union leader said.
*****
WISDOM OF THE WEEK - April 21st, 2019
Provided by Sojourners and the Bruderhof online.
Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host.
But anger is like fire. It burns it all clean.
- Maya Angelou
--
Love is everything it’s cracked up to be. That’s
why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth
fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for.
And the trouble is, if you don’t risk everything, you
risk even more.
- Erica Jong
--
Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host.
But anger is like fire. It burns it all clean.
- Maya Angelou
--
Love is everything it’s cracked up to be. That’s
why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth
fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for.
And the trouble is, if you don’t risk everything, you
risk even more.
- Erica Jong
--
In a civilization that glorifies success and happiness
and is blind to the sufferings of others, people’s eyes
can be opened to the truth if they remember that at
the centre of the Christian faith stands an unsuccessful,
tormented Christ, dying in forsakenness.
and is blind to the sufferings of others, people’s eyes
can be opened to the truth if they remember that at
the centre of the Christian faith stands an unsuccessful,
tormented Christ, dying in forsakenness.
- Jürgen Moltmann
--
This year I desperately needed Lent, a season to sit
with the ideas of wilderness and longing. And I will
need Holy Week, to remember Jesus as a man who
walked to his death because he knew that empire
and toxic institutions that oppressed people would
not have the last word.
- Kaitlin Curtice
--
All that the friends of Christ did for him in his lifetime,
we can do. Peter’s mother-in-law hastened to cook a
meal for him, and if anything in the Gospels can be
inferred, it surely is that she gave the very best she
had, with no thought of extravagance. Matthew made
a feast for him, inviting the whole town, so that the
house was in an uproar of enjoyment, and the
straitlaced Pharisees – the good people –
were scandalized
- Dorothy Day
--
Return to your heart, O you transgressors, and hold
fast to him who made you. Stand with him and you
shall stand fast. Rest in him and you shall be at rest.
Where do you go along these rugged paths?
Where are you going?… Why then will you wander
farther and farther in these difficult and toilsome ways?
There is no rest where you seek it. Seek what you seek
but remember that it is not where you seek it. You seek
for a blessed life in the land of death. It is not there.
For how can there be a blessed life where life itself is not?
- St. Augustine
*****
CLOSING THOUGHT - Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Whoever enters discipleship enters Jesus’ death,
and puts his or her own life into death; this has
been so from the beginning. The cross is not the
horrible end of a pious, happy life, but stands rather
at the beginning of community with Jesus Christ.
Whoever enters discipleship enters Jesus’ death,
and puts his or her own life into death; this has
been so from the beginning. The cross is not the
horrible end of a pious, happy life, but stands rather
at the beginning of community with Jesus Christ.
(end)
*****
For those interested:
End of Our Program Year
ANNUAL ST. DAVID'S LENTEN RETREAT
Mount St. Francis Retreat Centre
Cochrane, AB
Registration/Hospitality and Book: $60.00.
Book only: $20.00
Total class registrations: 42
***
ST. DAVID'S SPIRITUAL TRAVELERS TOUR, 2019
East Europe and Russia were chosen as our destinations!
We plan a twenty-day tour that combines a focus
on spirituality, culture and the relationship between
For those interested:
End of Our Program Year
ACTS Ministry Activities at
St. David's United Church, Calgary
CANADIAN AUTHOR MARY JO LEDDY
Launches her new book in Calgary -
"WHY ARE WE HERE? - A Meditation on Canada"
Book Sale and Signing, Q&A, Hospitality
St. David's United Church
3303 Capitol Hill Crescent, NW
3303 Capitol Hill Crescent, NW
Monday, April 1st, 2019
7:00PM - 9:00 PM
This event has been promoted
on the university campus.
7:00PM - 9:00 PM
This event has been promoted
on the university campus.
Welcome!
EVENT CANCELLED.
MARY JO HAD AN ACCIDENT, UNFORTUNATELY.
(She returned to Toronto, and is recovering).
EVENT CANCELLED.
MARY JO HAD AN ACCIDENT, UNFORTUNATELY.
(She returned to Toronto, and is recovering).
Amazon.ca notice - https://tinyurl.com/y3qdlzxx
*****
ANNUAL ST. DAVID'S LENTEN RETREAT
Mount St. Francis Retreat Centre
Cochrane, AB
http://www.mountstfrancis.ca/
Theme: "Who Do You Say That I Am?"
Led by Spiritual Director Susan Campbell
Completed on Sunday, March 10th, 2019
11:30 AM to 4:00 PM
Cost: $30.
(includes registration, lunch and refreshments)
Theme: "Who Do You Say That I Am?"
Led by Spiritual Director Susan Campbell
Completed on Sunday, March 10th, 2019
11:30 AM to 4:00 PM
Cost: $30.
(includes registration, lunch and refreshments)
25 persons registered for the event.
Restful reflections and nature walks, weather excellent...
THIS PROGRAM IS COMPLETED
***
Restful reflections and nature walks, weather excellent...
THIS PROGRAM IS COMPLETED
***
ST. DAVID'S ACTS WINTER MONDAY NIGHT BOOK STUDY
A Ten Week Series January 14th - March 18, 2019
Monday Evenings, TM Room 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
"THE GREAT SPIRITUAL MIGRATION"
A Ten Week Series January 14th - March 18, 2019
Monday Evenings, TM Room 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
"THE GREAT SPIRITUAL MIGRATION"
How the World's Largest Religion is
Seeking a Better Way to be Christian
Author: Brian D. McLaren
Seeking a Better Way to be Christian
Author: Brian D. McLaren
Final Session on "the common good"
Guest: Ryan Anderson, lead-organizer
Calgary Alliance for the Common Good
Registration/Hospitality and Book: $60.00.
Book only: $20.00
45 copies of the book were made available for sale.
All are now sold. Total on-site registrations: 42
(plus 3 on-line participants). Grand Total: 45
Here are power point notes from each session:
https://tinyurl.com/ycz5wf72
Book Description - https://tinyurl.com/ybeaaceq
THIS STUDY IS COMPLETED
(plus 3 on-line participants). Grand Total: 45
Here are power point notes from each session:
https://tinyurl.com/ycz5wf72
Book Description - https://tinyurl.com/ybeaaceq
THIS STUDY IS COMPLETED
--
Some stats:
Autumn, 2018 Program -
Some stats:
Autumn, 2018 Program -
Total books sold: 57
Autumn and Winter Series (2018-19) -
Total class registrations: 87
Total books sold: 102
Average weekly winter class attendance: 34
Average weekly winter class attendance: 34
***
ST. DAVID'S SPIRITUAL TRAVELERS TOUR, 2019
East Europe and Russia were chosen as our destinations!
This will be our fifth Spiritual Travelers Tour, with a
group emerging from St. David's but very open to others.
The Tour is entitled: "From Vienna to Moscow"
We plan a twenty-day tour that combines a focus
on spirituality, culture and the relationship between
religion and politics. The tour will run from April 26th
through May 16th, 2019.
https://tinyurl.com/y834742f
A beautiful brochure with trip cost, itinerary, and
many helpful travel hints has been published.
https://tinyurl.com/y7j55gym
Our trip sale reached an important milestone
as 38 persons registered, helping us to surpass
our
https://tinyurl.com/y834742f
A beautiful brochure with trip cost, itinerary, and
many helpful travel hints has been published.
https://tinyurl.com/y7j55gym
Our trip sale reached an important milestone
as 38 persons registered, helping us to surpass
our