newSpin, the newsletter
May 28, 2015
Bill Lewellis
• Indicates new item.
•• Indicates repeat.
• The May 30 Stewardship Conference … [Archdeacon Cluett] will take place as scheduled at St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral in Wilkes-Barre despite the water damage. On May 30 from 8:15 am until 3 pm, the Diocesan Stewardship and Evangelism Committee will host a day-long conference at St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral in Wilkes-Barre. The Rev. Dr. C.K. Robertson, canon to the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, will lead the day. His topic will be "The Barnabas Principle: A Practical Approach to Congregational Development." More info here.
• Look for a Diocese of Bethlehem newsletter every Thursday … [Bill] One or another newsletter is published every Thursday in the following order: (1) The Leadership News, (2) The newSpin newsletter, (3) The Diocesan e-Newsletter, (4) The newSpin newsletter.
The Leadership News and the Diocesan e-Newsletter are official publications of the Diocese of Bethlehem. They include news, info, features and events relating to our diocese and parishes. Find the most recent Diocesan e-Newsletter, May 21, here. Find the most recent Leadership News, May 7, here.
The newSpin newsletter is not an official publication – and will usually not duplicate news, info and features relating to our diocese and parishes found in the official newsletters. It is a relatively lengthy eclectic sampling of items related to religion – at times not, at times not so clearly – that the editor thinks readers might find to be of interest. It has been a kind of hobby of a onetime communication minister, the work of a volunteer who in retirement enjoys and dedicates time to do the research required. I always post the newSpin newsletter on the newSpin blog. If you wish to receive it by email, please send a note to Jo Trepagnier, jo@diobeth.org.
• Look online … for the Diocese of Bethlehem Facebook Page, Facebook Group (Bethlehem Episcopalians) and Twitter feed.
• Bethlehem Episcopalians … is a new Facebook group for conversations about mission, spirituality, Christian formation, and more. It was launched a few weeks ago and will replace the Bakery email list which has been taken down. "Bethlehem Episcopalians is an open group," wrote Archdeacon Rick Cluett, "which means that anyone can join and items that you post can be shared by group members on their own Facebook pages. This offers each of us the opportunity to reach a larger audience with news and conversations about what God is doing in our diocese." Join the Facebook group, which, as of Wednesday, May 27, includes more than 150 members.
• Bakery list will shut down … [Archdeacon Rick Cluett] Dear Friends, At 5 o’clock (EDT) this afternoon (May 28) the Bakery list will shut down. The Bakery list has had a long history of ministry to the members and friends of the Diocese of Bethlehem as a vehicle for information sharing, communication and conversation. Membership has crossed parish, diocesan, state, and national boundaries over the years and decades. Bill Lewellis has been the primary keeper and manager of the list since shortly after its beginning. He is also the unofficial list historian. I am very grateful for this ministry to the diocese and the larger church in which he has served so well. We know that “new occasions teach new duties” and the time has come to move to a new communication model. Please do make the switch to “Bethlehem Episcopalians" on Facebook. Sharing and conversing is already well underway there. You can find and join “Bethlehem Episcopalians” by clicking no this address or pasting it in your browser: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bethlehemepiscopalians/. I hope to “see,” read and converse with all of you over there as we go forward together with the companionship of the Holy Spirit.
• The early days … [Barbara Caum, Trinity Athens] Ah, yes, the days of waiting for the dial up to shake hands with the Ecunet server, the blue screen with plain white text, and the community that arose from those simple beginnings. Amusingly, I was cleaning out an old cupboard recently and found 3.5 inch disks for Ecunet software for Quest, the Episcopal arm of that interdenominational community, which I was the wrangler for back in the day. BethlehemofPA (early version of Bakery) was a wonderful thing. That was well over 20 years ago, when I was doing presentations around the national church about the wonders of the Internet, that amazing new thing. It's hard to believe. Onward and upward, but not without a bit of sadness.
• On a Saturday morning in 1994 … [Bill] I posted a story on Ecunet in response to a request from a writer in NH, prompted by a quote posted a few days earlier by a writer from NM. Later that Saturday, a writer from NY thanked me for posting the story. He said a friend from Bellingham WA sent it to him. "It's exactly what I needed to wrap up my sermon tomorrow," he wrote. Isn't it a wonder that something may happen for someone in a church in Aurora NY because someone in Bellingham WA felt that a story someone in Bethlehem PA told in response to a request from someone in Keene NH prompted by a quote posted by someone in Albuquerque NM was worth copying for a wider cyberspace public? That's the way it was. It hooked me into spending time online.
• Pope's focus on poor revives scorned theology … [NYTimes] Six months after becoming the first Latin American pontiff, Pope Francis invited an octogenarian priest from Peru for a private chat at his Vatican residence. Not listed on the pope’s schedule, the September 2013 meeting with the priest, Gustavo Gutiérrez, soon became public — and was just as quickly interpreted as a defining shift in the Roman Catholic Church. Father Gutiérrez is a founder of liberation theology, the Latin American movement embracing the poor and calling for social change, which conservatives once scorned as overtly Marxist and the Vatican treated with hostility. Now, Father Gutiérrez is a respected Vatican visitor, and his writings have been praised in the official Vatican newspaper. Francis has brought other Latin American priests back into favor and often uses language about the poor that has echoes of liberation theology. Read on.
• Liberation Theology on the NYTimes front page … [Episcopal Café] A little late to the party, the New York Times has written a lengthy article about the resurgence of liberation theology, a movement within the Roman Catholic Church that fell out of favor during the Cold War because of theoretical links to Soviet Russia. It was a movement embraced by many Catholics, including the famous writer, Graham Greene. Read on.
• Irish Catholicism supports same-sex marriage … [RNS] The stunning vote of the Irish to legalize same-sex marriage will be taken as one more indication (along with the legalization of divorce and homosexual behavior and abortion if the mother’s life is at risk, plus the decline in Mass attendance and priestly vocations) of the collapse of the Catholic Church in a country where it once bestrode the sod like a colossus. Such would appear to be the wages of a rolling sexual abuse scandal, particularly acute because of the church’s control of public education, and the ugly history of its abusive homes for wayward boys and girls. But for all that, Ireland remains a country where over 70 percent of the population identifies as Catholic, where a higher proportion of Catholics go to Mass than in the U.S., where the divorce rate is low. And yet, every Irish political party supported the referendum and the citizenry voted in favor by a 62-38 margin. What gives? Read on. Also, Irish voters were not swayed by their church. Read it at Crux. And, Irish vote reflects diminished moral authority of Catholic Church. Read it at Religion Dispatches.
The stunning vote of the Irish to legalize same-sex marriage will be taken as one more indication (along with the legalization of divorce and homosexual behavior and abortion if the mother’s life is at risk, plus the decline in Mass attendance and priestly vocations) of the collapse of the Catholic Church in a country where it once bestrode the sod like a colossus. Such would appear to be the wages of a rolling sexual abuse scandal, particularly acute because of the church’s control of public education, and the ugly history of its abusive homes for wayward boys and girls.
But for all that, Ireland remains a country where over 70 percent of the population identifies as Catholic, where a higher proportion of Catholics go to Mass than in the U.S., where the divorce rate is low. And yet, every Irish political party supported the referendum and the citizenry voted in favor by a 62-38 margin. What gives?
- See more at: http://marksilk.religionnews.com/2015/05/23/irish-catholicism-supports-same-sex-marriage/#sthash.c6vMYDqD.dpufEpiscopal/Anglican
• Saying the unsayable: The New Statesman's new issue on blasphemy … [The New Statesman] "If you are forbidden to voice the hard questions, this might suggest that faith survives only by never being challenged," the former archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, writes in an essay defending blasphemy. "Job and some of the Psalms remind us that sometimes the seriousness of faith is most effectively explored precisely in the risky business of testing the limits. And without such testing, such forcefully expressed doubt, you may never know the real strength or weakness of what you claim to believe. The secularist needs to understand some of the internal critique that faith is always struggling with; and the believer needs to recognise that blasphemy isn’t necessarily a matter for panic, let alone violence. It may even be a gateway into a larger and more durable commitment." Read on.
•• Bishops United Against Gun Violence plans prayerful procession at General Convention … 61 bishops are planning an outdoor procession on Sunday morning, June 28, during General Convention. News release here. Member of the group here.
•• Four chosen as nominees for presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church … [ENS] The Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop May 1 announced the names of the bishops it will nominate this summer to succeed Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori. The four names will be formally submitted to the General Convention during a joint session on June 26, the day prior to the day set for the election by the House of Bishops of the 27th presiding bishop. The nominees are: The Rt. Rev. Thomas Breidenthal, 64, Diocese of Southern Ohio; The Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, 62, Diocese of North Carolina; The Rt. Rev. Ian Douglas, 56, Diocese of Connecticut; The Rt. Rev. Dabney Smith, 61, Diocese of Southwest Florida. Read on. The JNCPB will shortly release additional information from each of the nominees. Each nominee has responded to questions about his vision for the church, which will be posted to the General Convention website soon. Additionally, each nominee made himself available for a video interview. These will also be made available soon.
•• Learn about General Convention … [ECF Vital Practices] Resources that may help. Here.
• Resources … way below.
SpiritSpin
•• Jubilate – Pentecost 2015 (B) … Jubilate is a gift of the Diocese of Bethlehem to the Episcopal and Anglican world through the kindness and talent of Canon Cliff Carr who has been doing this for more than 30 years. Thank you, Cliff. Download Jubilate Pentecost B 2015
• 'Dying is my next career' … [RNS] Author Phyllis Tickle faces death just as she enjoyed life. “Am I grateful for this?” says renowned spirituality author, facing Stage IV lung cancer. “Not exactly. But I’m not unhappy about it. And that’s very difficult for people to understand.” Read on.
• The Friend … [Esquire, Michael Teague] "No one ever told me the truth about dying," says Teague. "Not once. When it happened to my beloved, I lost my footing in more than one way." His wife was just thirty-four. They had two little girls. The cancer was everywhere, and the parts of dying that nobody talks about were about to start. His best friend came to help out for a couple weeks. And he never left. Read on.
• The Last Day of her Life … [NYTimes Magazine, Robin Marantz Henig] When Sandy Bem, a Cornell psychology professor, found out she had Alzheimer's at the age of 65, she knew immediately that before the disease claimed her mind, she would take her own life. "I want to live only for as long as I continue to be myself," she told her doctor. But how would she know when the right moment arrived to make her final exit? This is the agonizing question Bem wrestled with over the next five years, a period chronicled intimately in Robin Marantz Henig's cover story. "She wanted to squeeze in as much intellectual and emotional joy as she could before she died, but she wanted to make sure she didn't wait too long," Henig writes. "She needed to be engaged enough in her life to be able to end it." Read on.
• 'The Road to Character' and a path to grace … [WaPo, Michael Gerson] With his new book, “The Road to Character,” David Brooks — New York Times columnist, PBS “NewsHour” commentator and serial mensch — emerges as a countercultural leader. His goal is the recovery of “a vast moral vocabulary and set of moral tools, developed over centuries and handed down from generation to generation.” His method is to profile “heroes of renunciation” — a diverse group consisting of men and women, minorities and whites, gay people and straight, aristocratic and blue-collar, generally shaped by tragedy and driven to make unsparing demands on themselves. Read on.
• Tongues of fire and sacred mysteries … [The Economist] The word Pentecost is from the Greek for the “50th [day]” since Easter. There is more to Pentecost than just its etymology, though. The holiday highlights the very different attitudes of the major world religions towards language. Read on.
• Spirit Resources ... way below.
• At the Burial Office for Dolores Caskey … [Scott Allen] Below, under Rest in Peace.
Where Religion, Culture and Politics Might Intersect
• No politics in church? Not so fast … [Religion & Politics] What does it mean for the church to be political? How should the church make decisions about when to engage or avoid politics? And what visions of politics are communicated by the actual practices of congregations? Read on.
Evangelism/Stewardship/Worship/Church Growth
•• Stewardship Reflections … [Diocesan Stewardship Commission] Current through mid-summer. Here.
• 5 ways churches inflicted pain on themselves … [RNS, Tom Ehrich] Christianity isn't in trouble at all. Churches are in trouble. Denominations are in trouble. Religious institutions like seminaries are in trouble. Professional church leaders are in trouble. But whether or not our churches stay open for business, God will keep on loving all that God has made, writes Tom Ehrich. Read on.
• Resources for church communications in the digital age … [Faith and Leaderahp] Christian leaders today have to grapple with one of the most profoundly disruptive trends in the world: the digital revolution. Faith & Leadership offers resources to help with communications -- online, in traditional media, in marketing, and within organizations. Read on.
• Lilly Family School of Philanthropy … Dedicated to improving philanthropy by training and empowering students and practitioners to create positive and lasting change in the world. Here.
• Resources ... way below
In the Media
• Grace Kingston vandalized … [Episcopal Café] Graffiti on the church walls, the Gospel Book destroyed, statues and pew candles smashed and the tabernacle and the reserve sacraments desecrated. Grace Episcopal in Kingston, Pennsylvania, built in 1930, was vandalized on May 18. Read on.
• New Maryland bishop interviewed on NPR … [Episcopal Café] The appointment of the Rt Rev Chilton Knudsen as Assistant Bishop in the Diocese of Maryland, following the deposition of Heather Cook, has drawn widespread attention and affirmation.Knudsen, a recovering alcoholic who has made recovery support and education part of her own ministry, spoke to NPR’s Renee Montagne from an addiction education day for clergy in Pennsylvania. Read on.
• Telling the good news, in the media ... [Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson] If the media isn’t telling the stories you want told it is possible (we say very gently) that those stories aren’t interesting or significant enough to warrant coverage. Or, it is possible that you are not presenting them to the media in a way that catches their attention. Or perhaps you have not presented stories to the media at all. It isn’t easy to get your congregation, diocese, conference, or other sort of Christian organization into the newspaper or in online media outlets unless something has gone significantly wrong. It is even harder to get it on television or the radio. But it is possible if you absorb these 10 simple tips. Read on.
Rest in Peace
• Sermon at Burial Office, Dolores Caskey … [Scott Allen] No matter where you knew Dolores I can say that all that she did emanated from a deep faith in a God who is manifested in self-giving love. This faith did not express itself in saccharine piety, but in incarnational acts of justice, truth, mercy and love. Her faith had a very real social expression for the poor, the marginalized, the unfairly treated and the helpless. She took everything in stride and even in defeat did not back down from her principles. She was a non-anxious presence when emotions were high and more smoke than light was being generated in any debate or discussion---she was part of our Church’s controversies. For her, everything did have its time and season, but truth, justice and mercy did not. Articulate, she didn’t shy away from eating your lunch when an important principle was at stake. Read on.
• Brother Andrew Colquhoun, 77 … A funeral service for Brother Andrew will be held at Holy Cross Monastery, West Park NY on Sunday, May 31st, at 3 PM. All are invited. If you are able to attend, please let our Guesthouse Office know at 845-384-6660 or guesthouse@hcmnet.org. Read on here and here and here.
• Anne Meara, 85 … [Forward] Born into a Roman Catholic family, she converted to Reform Judaism in 1961, as she told People Magazine in 1977, because she “wanted my children to know who they were.” Read on. Obituary here.
• John F. Nash Jr, 86 … [WaPo, Emily Langer, and Reuters] Nobel laureate's life story inspired the Oscar-winning 2001 film A Beautiful Mind. He and his wife Alicia, 82, died Saturday (May 23) in a taxi crash on the New Jersey Turnpike. The West Virginia-born mathematician's breakthrough work on game theory came before he was 30, when debilitating schizophrenia began taking hold. His wife helped him through the "lost" decdes until he began to "intellectually reject" his delusions, ultimately solving the most vexing puzzle of all. Read on here and here. AP obituary here.
• John M. Templeton Jr., 75 … [RNA, Cathy Lynn Grossman] philanthropist devoted to science and religion, a pediatric surgeon who left medicine behind to carry on his fathers passion for pursuing “new spiritual information” through the sciences as president and chairman of the Templeton Foundation. Read on. Obituary here.
• Americans continue to shift left on key moral issues … [Gallup] Moral Majority, redefined. Americans are more likely now than in the early 2000s to find a variety of behaviors morally acceptable, including gay and lesbian relations, having a baby outside of marriage and sex between an unmarried man and woman. Read on.
Employment Opportunities
• Episcopal Positions (NYC/DC) ... Here.
Ecumenism, Interfaith, Pluralism – or Not
• Resources … way below.
Evangelical Lutheran Church
NEPA Synod website ... Here.
ELCA website ... Here.
ELCA News Service ... Here.
ELCA's blogs may be found here. See especially "Web and Multimedia Development."
Spirit Spinning ... for those who hunger and thirst for a deeper connection with God ... Here.
Moravian Church
Moravian Church in North America website.
Moravian Church Northern Province website.
Moravian Theological Seminary website.
United Methodist Church
•• Church can happen anywhere … [United Methodist Communications] On May 11, Rethink Church will launch a new campaign called “Church Can Happen Anywhere.” We will run :30 and :15 advertising spots, so look for this message about church happening anywhere; it starts May 11 in select television areas and nationally in digital spaces. Read on.
News Service Here.
Communication Resources ... Start here.
Eastern PA Conference website Here.
Facebook Here.
Bishop Peggy Johnson's blog Here.
Presbyterian Church USA
Website ... Here.
News & Announcements ... Here.
Roman Catholic
• New Jersey RC priest fired as Seton Hall chaplain comes out as gay … [RNS] A Roman Catholic priest in New Jersey who says he was dismissed from his campus ministry job over a Facebook post against anti-gay bullying and racism has come out as gay.The Rev. Warren Hall told Outsports, a magazine for gay athletes, that while he remained committed to his vocation as a priest and to his vow of celibacy, he was not going to hide his sexual orientation. Read on.
Diocese of Allentown ... Here.
Diocese of Scranton ... Here.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops ... Here.
Catholic News Service ... Here.
The Vatican
Vatican website ... Here.
Vatican Information Service blog ... Here.
Vatican News/Info Portal ... Here.
The Joy of the Gospel [Evangelii Gaudium] ... Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, with detailed table of contents. Here.
Health and Wellness
• Resources … below
BookSpin
• Resources … below.
Podcasts
•• If you are interested in listening to podcasts … [Bill] The following podcasts may be found with the Stitcher app. I enjoy all of them. Not in any particular order. 1. TED Radio Hour; 2. Slate's Political Gabfest; 3. The Moth Podcast; 4.This American Life; 5. Radiolab from WNYC; 6. Hourly News Summary from NPR; 7. APM: A Prairie Home Companion; 8. Fresh Air; 9. Science Friday; 10. PBS News Hour; 11. The Pulse, WHYY; 12. OnBeing with Krista Tippett; 13. 60 Minutes, CBS; 14. The Ethicists; 15. Popping Collars. More to come. If you have a favorite podcast, please tell Bill, who will tell the world.
Media/Films/TV/Music/Tech
• Resources … below.
DioBeth
• Look for a Diocese of Bethlehem newsletter every Thursday … One or another newsletter is published every Thursday in the following order: (1) The Leadership News, (2) The newSpin newsletter, (3) The Diocesan e-Newsletter, (4) The newSpin newsletter.
The Leadership News and the Diocesan e-Newsletter are official publications of the Diocese of Bethlehem. They include news, info, features and events relating to our diocese and parishes. Find the most recent Diocesan e-Newsletter, May 21, here. Find the most recent Leadership News, May 7, here.
The newSpin newsletter is not an official publication – and will usually not duplicate news, info and features relating to our diocese and parishes found in the official newsletters. It is a relatively lengthy eclectic sampling of items related to religion – at times not, at times not so clearly – that the editor thinks readers might find to be of interest. It has been a kind of hobby of a onetime communication minister, the work of a volunteer who in retirement enjoys and dedicates time to do the research required. I always post the newSpin newsletter on the newSpin blog. If you wish to receive it by email, please send a note to Jo Trepagnier, jo@diobeth.org.
• Look online … for the Diocese of Bethlehem Facebook Page, Facebook Group (Bethlehem Episcopalians) and Twitter feed.
• Bethlehem Episcopalians … is a new Facebook group for conversations about mission, spirituality, Christian formation, and more. It was launched a few weeks ago and will replace the Bakery email list which has been taken down. "Bethlehem Episcopalians is an open group," wrote Archdeacon Rick Cluett, "which means that anyone can join and items that you post can be shared by group members on their own Facebook pages. This offers each of us the opportunity to reach a larger audience with news and conversations about what God is doing in our diocese." Join the Facebook group, which, as of Wednesday, May 27, includes more than 150 members.
• DioBeth website
• Stumbling into the Sacred ... [Reflections on seeing God in the everyday by Canon Anne E. Kitch]
• newSpin blog ... including the newSpin weekly by Bill Lewellis.
• Facebook Page …
• Facebook Group … Bethlehem Episcopalians
• Twitter …
• Flickr
• YouTube
• Vimeo
• LinkedIn
Center for Congregations ... The "Using Resources" series of publications by the Center for Congregations is designed to help congregations make the most effective use of capital funds, consultants, architects, contractors, books, congregation management software, and more.
• Congregational Consulting ... More information on how to contact the consultants can be found here and at http://www.congregationalconsulting.org/ .
• Church locators ... Here.
• ECF Vital Practices ... Here.
• The Chalice, a publication created by Joan DeAcetis for older adults and caretakers. Download issues here.
• Weekly Bulletin Inserts from the Episcopal Church ... Here.
• Calendar of events in our parishes ... Here.
Episcopal/Anglican
• TREC [TaskForce for Reimagining the Episcopal Church] … website.
• TREC … Video Q&A with TREC panel at Oct. 2, 2014 TREC Churchwide Meeting at the Washington National Cathedral
• The Episcopal Church website, news service, news service blog,
• Episcopal Café
• AngicansOnline website and news centre.
• The Living Church
• The Anglican Communion website and news service.
• The Daily Scan: Contact publicaffairs@episcopalchurch.org to add subscribers for news releases, notices, statements, or Daily Scan.
• Free weekly bulletin inserts provide information about the history, music, liturgy, mission and ministry of the Episcopal Church. Find the inserts here.
• Updated Episcopal Church canons and constitution ... Here.
• Forward Movement ... Here.
• Episcopal Web Radio ... Here.
• Episcopal Church Event Calendar ... Here
Ecumenical/Interfaith Relations
• Ecumenical Relations … Diobeth.org
• DioBeth Resources … Ecumenism/Interfaith
SpiritSpin
• The Book of Common Prayer ... every edition from 1549 to 1979. Here.
• Prayers and Thanksgivings from the BCP ... Here.
• The (Online) Book of Common Prayer ... Here.
• The Daily Office ... can be read online in Rite I, Rite II or the New Zealand Prayer Book versions. At Mission St. Clare.
• The Daily Office ... from the Diocese of Indianapolis. Here.
• Daily Prayer ... a resource of Forward Movement. Here.
• Holy Women, Holy Men ... Download Holy Women, Holy Men as a .pdf file.
• Speaking to the Soul ... An Episcopal Café blog. Sermons, reflections, multimedia meditations and excerpts from books on spirituality. Here.
• The Imitation of Christ ... Available free online.
Evangelism/Stewardship/Church Growth
• Telling the good news, in the media ... [Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson] If the media isn’t telling the stories you want told it is possible (we say very gently) that those stories aren’t interesting or significant enough to warrant coverage. Or, it is possible that you are not presenting them to the media in a way that catches their attention. Or perhaps you have not presented stories to the media at all. It isn’t easy to get your congregation, diocese, conference, or other sort of Christian organization into the newspaper or in online media outlets unless something has gone significantly wrong. It is even harder to get it on television or the radio. But it is possible if you absorb these 10 simple tips. Read on.
• Evangelism ... at Diobeth.org, Projects and Activities, Resources.
• Stewardship ... at Diobeth.org, Reflections, Financial Campaigns, Small group studies, Stewardship education, Resources.
• EpiscopalShare ... Here.
Bible&Worship
• The Lectionary ... A collection of Lectionary resources for the Episcopal Church, updated Sunday night. Here.
• Lectionary Page ... A liturgical calendar for upcoming weeks, with links to readings from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL), as adapted for use in Episcopal worship. Here.
• Revised Common Lectionary ... Here.
• The Liturgical Calendar ... BCP, Lesser Feasts and Fasts, HWHM ... Here.
• Oremus Bible Browser ... Here.
• Celebrating the Eucharist, by Patrick Malloy. Google Book
• Enriching our Worship, 1 to 5 ... Free download here.
• The Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant: Liturgical Resources for Blessing Same-Sex Relationships [Extracted from Liturgical Resources 1: I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing] Here.
• Collection of worship resources at Diobeth.org ... Including Diocesan Cycles of Prayer for weekly worship, Holy Women Holy Men, and The Text This Week. Here.
Health and Wellness
• Resources for caregivers ... Here.
• Medline Plus ... Here.
• WebMD ... Here.
• Alzheimers.gov ... For people helping people with Alzheimers. Here.
• Three Free Apps for getting qualified medical advice... [Techlicious] Urgent Care, HealthTap and First Aid. Info and links.
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• Center for Disease Control - Healthy Living
•Church Health Reader
• Eastern Pennsylvania Faith Community Nurses
• Episcopal Mental Illness Network
• Go4Life from the National Institute on Aging at NIH
• National Episcopal Health Ministries
• NEHM Wellness Resource Page
•Let's Move
News/info/commentary
• Religion News Service Daily Roundup ... here.
• Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project: Daily Religion Headlines ... here.
• Religious Freedom Blog ... a weekly look back at the top stories and developments on religious liberty around the world. Here.
• National Catholic Reporter ... here.
• BBC News Online ... here.
• BBC Religion & Ethics ... here.
• Faith in Public Life ... Here.
• Religion&Ethics News Weekly (PBS) ... Here.
• Religion Research Hub ... ARDA, Association of Religion Data Archives, an especially useful site.
• Back issues of the newSpin newsletter ... here.
Media/Film/TV/Books/Podcasts/Music/Tech
• Spirituality & Film ... Here.
• Spirituality on DVD ... Here.
• Books for Spiritual Journeys ... Here.
• Audios for Spiritual Journeys ... Here.
• Free eBooks by Project Gutenberg ... Here.
• Free Audiobooks from LibriVox ... Here.
• Free Audiobooks and eBooks ... Here and Here.
• Google Books ... Millions of books you can preview or read free. Here.
• The Online Books Page ... from UPenn. Here.
• More free eBooks and Audiobooks ... [Techlicious] Here.
• Telling the good news, in the media ... [Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson] If the media isn’t telling the stories you want told about your congregation, it is possible (we say very gently) that those stories aren’t interesting or significant enough to warrant coverage. Or, it is possible that you are not presenting them to the media in a way that catches their attention. Or perhaps you have not presented stories to the media at all. It isn’t easy to get your congregation, diocese, conference, or other sort of Christian organization into the newspaper or in online media outlets unless something has gone significantly wrong. It is even harder to get it on television or the radio. But it is possible if you absorb these 10 simple tips. Read on.
• Communicate … Your Ministry, including Bill's Communication Biases and Communication-Evangelism. Here.
Varia
• Insights into Religion ... Here.
• The Alban Institute ... Here.
******************
The newSpin newsletter is uploaded to the newSpin blog and posted on Bakery and on other diocesan lists of some 2,000 addresses. Many recipients forward it to others. It comes, of course, with some spin from the editor. The views expressed, implied or inferred in items or links contained in the newsletter or the blog do not represent the official view of the Diocese of Bethlehem unless expressed by or forwarded from the Bishop, the Standing Committee or the Archdeacon as an official communication. Comments are welcome on Bakery (if you are subscribed to that interactive list) and at the newSpin blog. At the newSpin blog, click in the right hand column on the title of the current newsletter. Then, make your comment below.
Bill Lewellis, Diocese of Bethlehem, retired
Communication Minister/Editor (1986-2010), Canon Theologian (1998-)
Blog , Email (c)610-393-1833
Be attentive. Be intelligent. Be reasonable. Be responsible.
Be in Love. And, if necessary, change. [Bernard Lonergan]