Month: October 2012

Wind Chimes: 5 Oct 2012

Composting at Camp Stevens
Learning about composting. An extensive recycling program saves precious resources while composting food waste provides soil enrichment for the Camp’s 2-acre organic garden. Photo: Camp Stevens

Here is today’s sampling of the music made by the Spirit in the Wind Chimes.
What do you hear?

Camp Stevens: Living in the spirit of St. Francis

Camp Stevens is our Episcopal Camp and Conference Center in Julian, CA. This is their Environmental Mission Statement:

As a peaceful place apart in a beautiful natural setting, Camp Stevens serves as a point of contact between human beings and the natural world. Today we are faced with enormous environmental challenges, having failed in many respects to appreciate and protect the earth. We invite you to join us in reclaiming an active stewardship of God’s Creation.

Not so ecumenical in San Francisco

The Religion News Service headline reads Episcopal bishop says he was denied entrance to Catholic archbishop’s installation Mass. The Episcopal bishop of California (San Francisco), Marc Andrus, was invited to witness the installation Mass of the Roman Catholic Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone. Bishop Andrus says he arrived 30 minutes early. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese claims he arrived late and they were attempting to seat him without disrupting the service. Read the article on the RNS website to discover other dimensions to this ecumenical moment.

A ‘prayer for mission’

A morning “prayer for mission” from the Daily Office. On Friday I often am put in mind of ‘Good Friday.’ I remind myself to stretch out my arms in love and reach forth my hands in love. ~dan

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.
BCP 101 (Morning Prayer II)

Wind Chimes: 4 Oct 2012

October 4th is the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi in both the Roman Catholic and Episcopal Liturgical Calendars. Here are three different Spirit-breaths through the Wind Chimes.
What do you hear?

St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi by Nancy Earle, SMIC via Daily Meditation from the Center for Action and Contemplation

Collect for commemorating St. Francis

Most high, omnipotent, good Lord, grant your people grace to renounce gladly the vanities of this world; that, following the way of blessed Francis, we may for love of you delight in your whole creation with perfectness of joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

From Francis of Assisi, Friar, 1226 on Holy Women, Holy Men

Franciscan Mysticism

On September 30th Richard Rohr began a series of daily meditations on Franciscan Mysticism. Here are links to his daily meditations so far. I encourage you to subscribe to his Daily Meditation (the music in those Wind Chimes is one of my delights).

A Franciscan Blessing

I do not know the original source of the “Franciscan Blessing.” I have seen this blessing in several different (almost-the-same) forms. Most recently I saw that Brian McLaren has been using it in his Everything Must Change gatherings (go to the post). Here is the form he uses:

May God bless us with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that we may live from deep within our hearts.

May God bless us with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of God’s creations
So that we may work for justice, freedom, and peace.

May God bless us with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war,
So that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless us with just enough foolishness
To believe that we can make a difference in the world,
So that we can do what others claim cannot be done:
To bring justice and kindness to all our children
and all our neighbors who are poor. Amen.

B Proper 22 Art for October 7, 2012

DÜRER, Albrecht
(b. 1471, Nürnberg, d. 1528, Nürnberg)
Click to open Web Gallery of Art Artist Biography and to explore other works by this artist.

Job and His Wife
c. 1504
Oil on panel, 94 x 51 cm
Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt
Click to open Web Gallery of Art commentary page. Click image for large view.

Related art commentary by Hovak Najarian.

Job and His Wife, c. 1504, Oil on Panel, Albrecht Durer, (1471-1528)

Commentary by Hovak Najarian

Related post B Proper 22 Art for October 7, 2012

Job was a very righteous man with great herds of livestock and incalculable wealth. Satan suggested, however, that Job’s piety may not be as strong as it seemed if all his worldly possessions were destroyed. Would he not curse God if he were to lose everything? Job was put to the test. His oxen, donkeys, and camels numbering in the thousands were stolen and fire destroyed his 7,000 sheep. A mighty wind from the desert caused his house to collapse and his ten children were killed, but Job remained steadfast. He did not curse God. He shaved his head, tore off his clothes and said “Naked I came out of my mother’s womb and naked shall I return; Lord has given, and Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Next came physical suffering and ridicule from his wife. Friends came to console him but they thought the terrible occurrences were the result of sin. They urged him to confess. God intervened finally and returned Job to good health; his livestock was restored to even greater numbers and he had a new family.

This painting of Job’s suffering was commissioned by Frederick the Wise (Frederick III, Elector of Saxony); a Protestant and a strong supporter of Martin Luther. Memories of sweeping epidemics such as the Bubonic Plague were fearful to him as was a new threat, syphilis. He commissioned several artists to deal with the theme of suffering. Durer’s painting depicts the flames (upper left) that destroyed his servants and sheep, and in the foreground, Job is shown physically overcome and spiritually downcast. The weight of his head is being supported by his arm as he sits overwhelmed and without clothes. His wife (in a typical Nuremberg dress of the early sixteenth century) has no sympathy for him and pours a bucket of water on his neck. Her suggestion was that Job should curse God and die.

Scholars believe Albrecht Durer’s painting, Job and His Wife, was part of a larger panel; possibly a diptych or even a triptych. It also has been suggested this painting is the left side of a larger painting that was cut in half. It is agreed that another panel containing two musicians was part of the original. The fact that the background landscape of both paintings and a portion of Job’s wife’s dress line up with each other when placed side by side support the belief they were once together as one.

In the section that was separated from this scene, two musicians – a flute player and drummer – are standing nearby playing to Job. Music, it was believed, was soothing to sufferers of melancholia in particular and it was prescribed by healers. While studying in Venice, Durer was familiar with street minstrels in colorful clothes and he added them to this painting to provide comfort to Job.

Note

The Book of Job was selected by renowned authors to be listed among the world’s hundred greatest books.

Frederick the Wise was a collector of relics. In his castle church he had over 17,000 purported relics; included in his collection were five pieces of the true cross, parts of the holy cradle, swaddling clothes, a piece of Moses’ burning bush, and even milk from the Virgin Mary.

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© 2012 Hovak Najarian

Wind Chimes: 2 Oct 2012

An angel among the flowersHere is today’s sampling of the music made by the Spirit in the Wind Chimes.
What do you hear?

Verse & Voice is a favorite ‘go-to’ site of mine for words of inspiration (verse) and quotes to inspire action (voice) and, the daily post concludes with a prayer. Here is a sample, and I have added a blessing to finish today’s post. ~dan

A verse from Isaiah

The effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.
—Isaiah 32:17

The voice of C.S. Lewis and a prayer

The rule for us all is perfectly simple. Do not waste time bothering whether you ‘love’ your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this we find one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him [or her].” —C.S. Lewis

Lord, you have shown us what love looks like. Help us through acts of forgiveness and reconciliation to so love one another that our neighbors know we are your disciples and know that to be good news. Amen. —from Common Prayer

A blessing

May you find the practices
that offer you a doorway
into the heart of God.

Jan L. Richardson in her book In the Sanctuary of Women

Wind Chimes: 1 Oct 2012

Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury. Photo in the Sunday London Times. Gareth Fuller/PA

Here is today’s sampling of the music made by the Spirit in the Wind Chimes.
What do you hear?

Three more reports about nominating the man to become the next Archbishop of Canterbury

Here is the original post in this series

  1. Archbishop of Canterbury: Who makes the final selection? dated 9/28/12 by Jayne Lutwyche and José M Galván Déniz for Religion & Ethics on the BBC website.
  2. Church of England fails to agree successor for Archbishop of Canterbury. A partial transcript of an article by Ruth Gledhill in the Sunday London Times dated 9/30/2012.
  3. Critics attack ‘secrecy’ of Archbishop selection by Cole Moreton and Edward Malnick in The Telegraph dated 9/30/2012

“Official” Update on the Crown Nominations Committee of the Church of England

Here is a link to the latest “official” Update about the work of the Crown Nominations Committee via the Anglican Communion News Service (ACNS) posted Sep. 28, 2012.

What did you do this weekend?

Planet Money on NPR provides an answer about the “Average American” use of weekend time. Will it surprise you that on average we spend 37min and 12secs on Volunteering and Religious Activities? Be sure to read the caveats at the end of the article. Here is the post with 2 graphics.