newSpin 100401
April 01, 2010
Maundy Thursday ... from the Latin
mandatum, as in Mandatum novum do vobis
ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos ("A new commandment I give you, that you love one another as I have loved you" John 13:34), by which Jesus
explained to the Apostles the significance of his action of washing
their feet.
The Maundy Thursday liturgy is the first of three segments of one continuous liturgy, the Paschal Triduum ... Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and the Great Easter Vigil. "Neither the Maundy Thursday liturgy nor the Good Friday liturgy has a dismissal. That is, neither one actually ends. Rather each one is like a movement in a symphony, and feeds into the next." [Celebrating the Eucharist, Patrick Malloy]
Sermons That Work ... From the Episcopal Church's Sermons That Work site, read sermons for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday.
Susquehanna County families in need get Easter Food ... Hundreds of less-fortunate families in Susquehanna County will have an Easter dinner this weekend thanks to the Bountiful Blessings Program and the community support that made it all possible. Bags filled with the makings of an Easter dinner were handed out Wednesday at Saint Paul's Episcopal church in Montrose, one of three churches in Susquehanna County distributing food as part of the Bountiful Blessings Program. More at WNEP-TV.
Entering into
the reality of Easter ... "In a few days it will
be Easter. As
we get ready for the feast, it is always worth asking how we enter into
its
reality. This is not just a contemporary question, but also one that
faced the
very first believers ... Mary’s grief and wrong assumptions
were not answered by an argument, but by a relationship, by that voice
that
knew her. You can't argue about whether or not Easter is true any more
than you
can argue about whether or not you can swim – you have to get into the
water. Except for the extraordinarily
small number of people who have overwhelming mystical experiences, the
only way
most of us find out if the risen Christ is not only alive but present
and
available is to try to live with him every day for fifty days, to
participate
in his life through prayer, acts of love, and participation in the life
of his
body the Church. Watch and listen for signs of a new reality; practice
assuming
that death does not rule. And listen for Jesus’ voice. At the Easter
celebration we debate nothing – we do invite people into community as we
go to
meet him." [Bishop Paul's column from the
April issue of Diocesan Life. Read
more here.
The Paschal Mystery –– In the dying is the rising ... "The Triduum celebrates a dynamic that God revealed in Jesus. It is, at once, the dynamic of divine life and the dynamic of human life. Jesus, in his divinity, reveals that God forsakes everything for us mortals; and, when all is finished, God remains glorious. The human Jesus reveals that when mortals like us forsake everything for the sake of God, we share in God’s glory. The mystery is the same, whether we consider Jesus as the divine mortal or as the human God. All of this goes entirely against the grain and defies logic. Death and life are opposites; they cannot be intertwined. Yet, the story of Jesus is that they are. Anyone who would be Jesus’ disciple must claim it as true, even if it seems impossible. [A reflection by Patrick Malloy, professor of liturgics at General Seminary and rector of Grace Allentown. More here.]
Four online Stations of the Cross ... a unique set from Orange, California tempered by fire, wind and rain; the stations from Lodwar Cathedral in Kenya; and the haunting, graphic stations from chapel of the University of Central America in San Salvador. [H/T to the Diocese of Washington and Jim Naughton] And one that features original artwork and meditations by young adults from around the church. [H/T to Torey Lightcap, reporting at Episcopal Cafe]
Spiritual but not religious, Part 5,637 ... Bruce G. Epperly and Katherine Gould Epperly writing for the Alban Institute] It has become common for religious seekers of all ages to make the following statement: "I'm spiritual, but not religious." Often this claim is given as explanation for leaving a particular church or choosing not to attend church at all. Sadly, contemporary Christianity has often failed to address the spiritual hungers of church members and seekers exploring the spiritual resources available beyond the doors of the church. This neglect has spawned a generation of what Kent Ira Groff calls "spiritual orphans," people who have little or no knowledge or attachment to traditional religious institutions. More here.
Presiding Bishop's Easter Message ... Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori calls on Episcopalians to stretch their spiritual muscles in order to 'insist on resurrection everywhere we turn' in her 2010 Easter message, published in ENS Weekly bulletin inserts for Easter Sunday. Find Easter message here and Weekly Bulletin Inserts here.ABC's Easter Letter urges prayer for world's suffering Christians. More here.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams will offer reflections during Holy Week. The first one is setting the stage into which the Gospel of Mark enters, how a person of that day would have encountered it and heard it, and how it tells that God in Christ is changing everything. A podcast will be available following each lecture. More here.
Jesus' Resurrection and Christian Origins ... a lecture by N.T. Wright. [H/T to Bishop Paul]
Father Patrick Malloy was interviewed recently by Carole Hallunbaek’s on her radio program Godspeed. Over some 50 minutes, they discussed the history of
the Episcopal Church in America, its Anglican roots and continuing
connection, its structure, core beliefs and celebrations, the ordination of
women, social justice, Grace Allentown, General Seminary, and the
role of the church as an agent of change in today's society. The interview can be heard here, or follow the link at www.graceallen
Diocesan
Training for Ministry ... Saturday, April 24, Wilkes-Barre.
Find schecule,
workshop descriptions and online registration here.
Dive In: A Day Exploring Baptism ... Saturday, May 8. St. Luke's Scranton. What does it mean to be baptized and to live a baptized life? How can you nurture your life in Christ? How can your congregation live more deeply into baptismal ministry? This day of Christian Formation will offer resources for parents, Christian educators, clergy, and anyone seeking a deeper life in Christ. More info here.
What's Happening? ... Diocesan Events. Including, during April and May, Province III Youth Event, Christophany, Diocesan Training Day Creating a Culture of Peace, Dive-in A Day Exploring Baptism, Diocesan ECW Annual Meeting. (One correction: the June 29 Ordination will take place in Wilkes-Barre, at St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral.)
Haiti: Do relief organizations help or hurt long term? News stories of NGO and church groups in Haiti have focused lately on whether or not they are really helping Haiti and its economy for its future. "Parachuting" teams of doers of good deeds into the situation with little long term commitment or sending huge donations of food and goods without considering the impact on the local economy causes those who are working for relief and development to wonder. Are we helping or hurting? Gathering in New York this week major donors are looking at how best to provide for the long term well being of Haiti. More here. [H/T to Ann Fontaine, posting at Episcopal Cafe]
Facts about the Diocese of Haiti
and the aftermath of the earthquake. Read
here. Check the
Haiti page of The Episcopal Church
for news, updates, resources, videos and important information, as well as the Episcopal Relief and Development
website.
Diocesan Life, April ... Download it here.
AARP TaxAide ... [From Marty Cottrell] This free service is for taxpayers of all ages filing individual PA income, Federal income, local earned income taxes and PA Property Tax and Rent Rebate applications. While we can do self-employed taxpayers who only file a schedule C-EZ, we do not do business returns, taxpayers with rental properties and several other complex tax categories. Find an AARP TaxAide site near you by calling 1-888-AARPNOW (1-888-227-7669) or visiting the AARP web page.
Far From Heaven ... [Newsweek, Lisa Miller] Resurrection—the physical reality, not the metaphorical interpretation—puts everything we imagine about heaven to the test. My new book, Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination With the Afterlife, argues that while 80 percent of Americans say they believe in heaven, few of us have the slightest clue about what we mean. More here at Newsweek. Also, What (where or why) is heaven? Read it at the Washington Post's On Faith blog.As opening day approaches ... Via Bill Moyers, NYU president John Sexton's Baseball as a Road to God: A Reading List. This reading list serves as the syllabus for a seminar he leads by that name. [H/T to Helen Mosher reporting at Episcopal Cafe]
Applications for Gressle, Leonard Hall and Shannon Fund college scholarships are available for the 2010-2011 school year. The Leonard Hall Scholarship –– Download 10LeonardHall.pdf or Download 10LeonardHall.doc –– is designed for diocesan youth active in youth ministries. The Gressle Scholarship –– Download 10Gressle.pdf or Download 10Gressle.doc –– is for sons of clergy canonically resident in the diocese. The Shannon Fund Scholarship is for daughters of clergy resident in Pennsylvania. Priority is given to clergy families in the Diocese of Bethlehem. Shannon Fund applications may be obtained from Edna Rauco at Trinity Church, Pottsville (570-622-8720) or by email. Deadline for all Shannon Fund applications is April 30. Deadline for Leonard Hall and Gressle Scholarships, awarded in June, is May 15. Checks are mailed in August. If you cannot download the applications, please contact Archdeacon Howard Stringfellow or Ely Valentin for Leonard Hall and Gressle Scholarships at Diocesan House, 610-691-5655, ext. 222 or 1-800-358-5655.
At the Vatican, Up Against the World ... [Full story by Frank Bruni at the NYTimes] The church’s fundamental and deliberate separation from secular society —
in terms of how it sees its mission, protects itself and interprets
human misbehavior — explains much of its leaders’ response, or lack
thereof, to the child sexual abuse crisis. Time and again they have
sought to police their own ranks in their own ways, due largely to fears
of persecution that are embedded in the very genesis of the Church,
supported by much if its history and evoked by its signal symbol: the
crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
There are enemies of the faith, no question. And so there is a powerful
impulse to protect it that can override all else — that can lead to Pope Benedict XVI's edict in 2001, when he was still Cardinal Joseph
Ratzinger and leading the Vatican's
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, that exhorted bishops
worldwide to aggressively report abuse cases directly to the Vatican but
offered no comparable encouragement for them to report crimes to the
police.
There is also a decidedly nonsecular response to wrongdoing that paves the way for second and third chances — and serial abuse. In the secular world, the molestation of a child is labeled a crime, and a heartfelt apology for it doesn’t obviate jail time. In the Catholic Church, it is discussed as a sin, to be confessed and then, by the grace of God, forgiven. Penitence may well supplant punishment.
Papal Resources for Reporters ... Pope Benedict XVI is coming under increasing scrutiny and intense criticism as revelations of sexual abuse by clergy emerge across Europe. A few of the cases are connected to his own tenure as Archbishop of Munich (1977-1982) while others concern his long career as top doctrinal official at the Vatican. Where will this lead? More here.
General Theological Seminary suspends dean search, faces financial crunch, looks for ways to cover the expense of the 2010-2011 school year. Read here.
April Fool's Day to be observed May 2. Andrew Gerns creates the news on Episcopal Cafe.
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