newSpin 101011
October 11, 2010
The newSpin newsletter, Oct. 11, 2010
Spinning .. (1) From my perspective on Friday and Saturday and from what I heard in church from delegates on Sunday morning, this year's new format for Diocesan Convention, including 90-minute small-group sessions on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, was broadly received in an especially positive way. I heard "rookie" delegates say on Sunday morning that they discerned their participation – initially reluctant: one because of having to step out of her comfort zone, the other because of his full plate – to be an act of God in their lives. Elected to be General Convention Deputies were (Clergy) Anne Kitch, Scott Allen, Anthony Pompa and Jane Bender and (Lay) Cathy Bailey, Barbara Caum, Elizabeth House and Mark Laubach. More news and info related to resolutions approved, Bishop Paul's address and sermon to come. Stories about Diocesan Convention will appear in the November issue of Diocesan Life which will be available online, most likely by Friday or next Monday. (2) Do you remember? On October 11, 1968, Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, was launched with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn Fulton Eisele and R. Walter Cunningham aboard. More here. (3) "As a church in a rapidly evolving society, we have to be more nimble. . . . We benefit a great deal in the church from deadlines and benchmarks. When you think in an eternal time frame, the church is not good at doing that. . . . If we don't measure things or look at the calendar, we have a tendency to let things slide and say, 'Tomorrow is soon enough,' or, 'Eternity is soon enough.' It's not. It's not. We've got work to do in this life." ––Katharine Jefferts Schori
The PBS series God in America begins tonight, and Hank Steuver of The Washington Post says it is worth watching. More here.
Calendar of Events ... [Kat Lehman] Here is the latest calendar of events in and around the diocese. If you want your event posted, please email Kat Lehman who will gladly add your event to the list. This calendar is updated monthly. The format is in Word .doc if you want to cut and paste into your own calendars. Download 101001calendarofevents.doc
The Grace of Daily Obligation ... A sermon preached by the Rev. Raymond Harbort at the Eucharist at diocesan Clergy Retreat
on September 28, 2010. Read it here.
Test Your Savvy on Religion ... [Nicholas Kristof, NYTimes] Take this pop quiz on world religions. It shows why we should not rush to inflammatory conclusions about any faith. Read it here.
Archbishop of Sudan preaches at Trinity Wall Street ... Read the Episcopal News Service story and view the video of the sermon here.
God burrows into our lives to set us free ... [Godspace, the blog of Christine Sine] As I reflected on the long awaited breakthrough to the Chilean miners trapped since August, I could not help but be reminded of the effort that God has made to burrow into my life and set me free too. Nor could I help but think about a friend of mine who is currently struggling with deep depression. Most of us have not been physically trapped in the way these miners are, but we have all experienced emotional and spiritual entrapment which we are not sure we can survive. And the thought of this tunnel reaching into the prison these miners are in gave me hope. Read more. [H/T to John Leech]
St. Andrew's Allentown/Bethlehem will host a Fall Bazaar, Saturday Oct. 23, 9:00 to 2:00. There will be crafters, baked goods, a basket raffle and a cake walk. Addmission is free and open to the public. Space is still available for crafters. Tables are $20. Contact Thea Prostko at 610-837-2743 for more information.
15th Congressional District Independent candidate volunteers weekly at Trinity Bethlehem Soup Kitchen ... Find Morning Call photos here and a feature here of long-shot Independent congressional candidate Jake Towne who is running against Republican Charlie Dent and Democrat John Callahan in Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District. Two of the soup kitchen photos appeared in Monday's hard copy of the Morning Call.
Insights into Religion ... Through this gateway, religious leaders and the public can find congregational resources and insights into religious practices. The organizations and projects on this portal site are supported by Lilly Endowment’s Religion Divisions.
American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us ... [NYTimes Sunday Book Review, Review by Robert Wright] There was a time when many American Protestants viewed Roman Catholics no more charitably than a certain Pentecostal preacher in Florida views Muslims. In the 19th century, a Massachusetts convent was destroyed by anti-Catholic rioters, and civil unrest in Philadelphia — set off by rumors that Catholics wanted to rid the public schools of Bibles — led to some two dozen deaths and the destruction of two churches. The question of how this changed, how Protestants came to stress their commonality with Catholics, is, generically speaking, the question of the day: How do mutual fear, hostility and suspicion give way to amity, or at least tolerance? How do supposedly deep doctrinal chasms recede from view? The answers offered by Putnam and Campbell deserve the attention of everyone concerned about America’s future cohesion. Read more here.
Despite Army Efforts, Soldier Suicides Continue ... [NYTimes, Oct. 11] Nearly 20 months after the Army began strengthening its suicide prevention program, the suicide rate among active service members shows little sign of improvement. Read here.
Provocative Image of Christ Sets Off a Debate Punctuated With a Crowbar ... [NYTimes, Oct. 11] The image, which the artist says he intended as a commentary on corruption in the Roman Catholic Church, was destroyed by a woman truck driver who said she had driven to the Loveland CO museum from Montana for that purpose. More here.
The life cycle of a budget ... Think of the budget as the institution's ecclesiological self-portrait. Read here. [H/T to Leadership Education at Duke Divinity]
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News/Info/Commentary from other Episcopal sources ... •The Lead, Episcopal Cafe •Daily Episcopalian, Episcopal Cafe
ENS Weekly bulletin inserts ... For October 17: The House of Bishops wrote a pastoral letter on immigration issued at the end of its September meeting in Phoenix, Arizona. Full text in bulletin insert.Download inserts here.
HTML 5 ... [NYTimes, Oct. 11] In the next few years, a powerful new suite of capabilities will become available to Web developers that could give marketers and advertisers access to many more details about computer users’ online activities. Nearly everyone who uses the Internet will face the privacy risks that come with those capabilities, which are an integral part of the Web language that will soon power the Internet: HTML 5.
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Send this to friends you think may be interested ... newSpin is an electronic newsletter that includes news, information and commentary related to the Diocese of Bethlehem, the Episcopal Church, the Anglican Communion and the world of religion ... with some spin, of course, from the editor. It is edited by retired communication minister Bill Lewellis and ordinarily published twice weekly, on Monday and Thursday. To have it emailed to you, you may subscribe at the "Get Connected" box on the right column of www.diobeth.org. Select newSpin under the groups. You may find samples of the newSpin newsletter at the newSpin blog, www.diobeth.typepad.com.
About the newSpin newsletter ... Composed at least weekly (usually twice a week) by Bill Lewellis, the newSpin newsletter appears as a post within the newSpin blog, but newsletter and blog are not identical. The newsletter currently goes to some 1,000 email addresses on a separate list. The newsletter comes, of course, with some spin from the editor, but 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 or the Archdeacon as an official communication. Comments may be addressed to Bill.
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