newSpin 110908

The newSpin newsletter, September 8, 2011
By Bill Lewellis
Published Monday, occasionally also on Thursday

Once the realization is accepted that even between the closest human beings infinite distances continue to exist, a wonderful living side by side can grow up, if they succeed in loving the distance between them which makes it possible for each to see the other whole against the sky. ––Rainer Maria Rilke

You are reading the newSpin newsletter. Additionally, the newSpin blog, which includes the newsletter and other items, is available here. When the newsletter is completed on Mondays and occasionaly, more often than not, on Thursdays as well, it is published immediately to the blog and on Bakery and on a ChurchPost list of some 1,000 addresses. Bakery and the blog are interactive. The ChurchPost list is not. If you're wondering why you haven't seen something related to your parish or agency here, it's probably because no one has sent relevant info. Regarding items about your parish or agency as well as feedback on any other items ... send email to Bill.

TopSpin
• Northern parishes ... [Bishop Paul, Bakery] Please keep our northern parishes in your prayers. Water is already extremely high in many places and Rte 11 is closed. [Mark Laubach, Bakery] I've just moved all my organ music & shoes upstairs. Not sure what, if anything, can be done with the piano and organ console. Saw river from Pierce St. - very distressing. Godspeed to all who are in danger of flooding or already dealing with same! [Joe Jackloski, Bakery] Not looking good in Edwardsville. [jlumley, Bakery] Sayre and Athens under boil water emergency - Please...take water to your shut-ins. [Daily Review] In Bradford and Sullivan counties, flooding on Wednesday closed down major travel routes, forced many people to evacuate their homes and resulted in people becoming stranded in their vehicles on flooded roadways. Due to the flooding and severe weather, states of emergency were in effect Wednesday evening in Bradford and Sullivan counties. The following municipalities in Bradford County also declared states of emergency due to the flooding: Albany, Windham, Litchfield, Standing Stone and Sheshequin townships, and New Albany, Canton, Troy and Rome boroughs. More here.
• Crane topples at National Cathedral ... A 500-foot crane erected at Washington National Cathedral to repair damage caused by a recent earthquake collapsed at 10:55 a.m. on Sept. 7 and fell into an outbuilding in the cathedral grounds. A note on the cathedral website said that emergency services, engineers and contractors had arrived on the scene to make initial assessments and that further information would be posted following a complete analysis. National Cathedral 9/11 events moved to Kennedy Center. More at Episcopal News Service and Washington Post.
• 9/11 Services and Resources ... See below, under DioBethSpin
• Bach Choir at St. Paul's and Trinity NYC on Friday ... The Bach Choir of Bethlehem will represent the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in a series of concerts presented by Trinity Wall Street and featuring celebrated choirs from New York City, Boston, Washington DC and Pennsylvania, forever strongly linked by 9/11. More here and here. Noon at St. Paul's, 5:00 and 8:30 p.m. at Trinity. WWFM, The Classical Network, will carry live broadcasts of the choir's noon and 5 p.m. concerts (92.7 Allentown and 89.5 Easton). National NPR will record (for rebroadcast) the 8:30 p.m. concert at Trinity with the massed choirs of Trinity, NYC Master Chorale, Young Peope's Chorus of NYC, Washington Chorus, the Bach Choir and Copley Singers of Boston.
• Trinity Easton will webcast Sunday's Service of Hope and Remembrance ... See below, at DioBethSpin.

DioBethSpin 
• The Office Book ... [Archdeacon Stringfellow, Sept. 6] It’s more valuable than my cell phone (contacts, calendar, and communication).  Its information is more reliable than that on my computer.  I would be lost without it.  I have given it away and take it with me wherever I go.  I have used it on an airplane in the middle of the night, in my car before a meeting, in great cathedrals, and in my favorite chair. More here.
• LPM Cancellation ... [Rev. Hillary Raining, Bakery] I am sorry to say that the Leadership Program for Musicians is canceled due to lack of participation. Thank you to those who expressed interest.
• In-Formation in Bethlehem ... Canon Kitch's newsletter on Lifelong Christian formation resources. Here.
• Hear how EfM is changing lives ... Add Life to your Faith and Faith to your Life. Join us for lunch and hear how Education for Ministry (EfM) is changing lives. September 18 at 12:30 p.m., Cathedral Church of the Nativity Dining Room. All EfM graduates, EfM students, and inquiring minds are welcome. Information: Beth Vorosmarti [email protected], Cathy Bailey [email protected], Jeff Bernadino [email protected]
• 9/11 Services and Resources ...
(1) Cathedral will host Interfaith Service. Bishop Paul will preach. ... [Dean Anthony Pompa] The Cathedral will host an Interfaith Service of Remembrance and Reconciliation on Sunday September 11 at 5:00 p.m.  Bishop Paul will preach. Participant Leaders include Rabbi Allen Juda, Congregation Brith Shalom, Bethlehem, The Very Rev. Anthony R. Pompa, Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Mohomad Rahmohamed, Cedar Crest College and the Muslim Association of the Lehigh Valley.  The service of remembrance will include the symbolic lighting of candles in honor of those who lost their lives  on 9/11/01, and a Litany of Prayers reflective of the Abrahamaic faith traditions. Special music will be offered by the Cathedral choir with selections of Faure Requiem, Naoko Cauller soloist. Sung prayers and music offered by Cantor Ellen Sussman, Temple Shalot Shalom, Allentown.
(2) Trinity Easton will host Interfaith Service of Remembrance and Hope ... [Canon Andrew Gerns] Sunday, September 11, 2011 at 2 p.m. Prayers, hymns, reflections and litanies will led by religious leaders from the Easton area representing Christian, Jewish and Muslim traditions. Music will be provided by a Double Quartet of members of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus of New York City, a local chamber orchestra and members of the Easton Area High School Choir. Scheduled selections will include: Faure's "Requiem in d minor, Op 48" (Intoit and Kyrie; Sanctus; Pie Iesu; Agnus Dei and Lux Aeterna; In Paradisum.), Bach's "Cantata 106: Gottes Zeit ist dis Allerbeste Zeit" movement III a & b. The Service is open to the public and is being hosted and coordinated by the Music and Arts Ministry of Trinity Church, Easton. The service will also be streamed live at live.trinityeaston.org. Go to www.trinityeaston.org and click on the link to the webcast.. Read more about it, including compatibilities with your computer, smartphone or tablet here. You may also go to Trinity's UShare page, live.trinityeaston.org. A free will offering will be taken. At 4 p.m., the City of Easton will hold a Tribute for Emergency Services Workers at Scott Park on Larry Holmes Drive, Easton. Fr. Gerns will give the invocation, and choristers from the Metropolitan Opera will also perform at that event.  Trinity has taken the lead in bringing the community together with representatives of all the major religious traditions in the area--several flavors of Christian, both Synagogues and the Muslim Community of Easton. In addition to all that, we will have a first rate musical program bringing together Easton Area High School students, members of various faith communities as an orchestra, anchored by a double-quartet from New York's Metropolitan Opera.
(3) President Obama will speak at National Cathedral Moved to Kenney Center ... [WaPo] President Obama will end the Sept. 11 anniversary weekend by speaking that Sunday evening at the National Cathedral, often a place of symbolically important interfaith events. The White House announced the speech on Tuesday. Obama will speak during the “Concert for Hope," which also features opera singer Denyce Graves, country singer Alan Jackson and R&B’s Patti LaBelle. The concert follows a day of spiritual and contemplative events at the Cathedral, including a morning interfaith service and a forum discussion about compassion with writer Karen Armstrong. Update: Because of crane collapse (see above, under TopSpin, these events will take place at the Kennedy Center. More here.
(4) Resources for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 ... [Compiled by the staff of the Diocese of Bethlehem] Here.
(5) St. Paul's Chapel, NYC, offers hope healing at Ground Zero ... [American Profile] Historic church became refuge for 9/11 workers. Here. [h/t Deacon Larry Holman]
(6) Observing 9/11, a Trinity WallStreet blog ... Here.
(7) Remembering 9/11 Together ... [Congregational Resource Guide] Focus on ways our congregations can foster mutual understanding and peace. In this special CRG in-depth resourcing article, learn how to forge interfaith relationships, educate your congregation about Islam, and encourage your children to befriend those who are different from them. Here.
(8) Resources from CRG ... Religion at Ground Zero: Theological Responses to Times of Crisis- Not focusing exclusively on 9/11, Christopher Craig Brittain, professor of practical theology at the University of Aberdeen, explores gritty and painful questions about God in the midst of human suffering.  Trauma and Transformation at Ground Zero: A Pastoral Theology- Episcopal priest, psychotherapist, and chaplain Storm Swain reflects on 9/11 and offering pastoral care to those who have faced suffering and trauma.  A Decade of Hope: Stories of Grief and Endurance from 9/11 Families and Friends- Former figherfighter Dennis Smith interviews first responders and victims' families, allowing their stories to be told in their own words.  After the Fall: New Yorkers Remember 2001 and the Years that Followed- An oral history of 9/11 and its subsequent decade from a series of interviews conducted by Columbia University.  Between Heaven and Ground Zero: One Woman's Struggle for Survival and Faith in the Ashes of 9/11- A memoir from a WTC survivor who found herself on the 36th floor of the North Tower on that Tuesday morning ten years ago.  Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel- This best-seller by Jonathan Safran Foer tells the story of 9/11 through the imaginative eyes and mind of Oskar Schell, a nine-year-old who lost his father to the attacks.  7 Days in September: A Powerful Story About 9/11- A documentary film that captures the immediate aftermath of 9/11 in New York City and allows those who were not there to witness the anger, courage, and unprecedented kindness that gripped the city following the attacks.
• St. Peter's Tunkhannock to host benefit concert for H.A.N.D.S. of Wyoming County, Sep. 18 ... Here.
• Diocesan Convention: Resolutions and Pre-Convention Meeting ... Here.
• Diocesan Life, September, a 12-page edition, is available here.
• Alternate Prayers of the People ... [Kat Lehman, Bakery] I want to publicly thank Canon Cliff Carr for his alternate Prayers of the People that he sends to me weekly to share with many of you (if you don't get it, and would like to, go on our web site: http://www.diobeth.org and fill out the information under the "Get Connected" box on the right side). This is an amazing success story for our diocese. About a year ago, Canon Carr had a problem with his computer which necessitated him purchasing a new one. As things happen, the new computer didn't have a floppy drive for 3.5" disks (remember those?). Since he has been, for years, putting the alternative Prayers of the People together and saving them on floppies, he had a problem that needed solving. He called me, and I converted them to a thumb drive for him and along the way discovered these alternative prayers and that he was sending them to about twelve people. "Cliff," I said, "these are great! We should really make them available on ChurchPost so someone can sign up for them if they want and use them in their parish as well." He said, "Do you really think people would want to use them? If you think so, then sure!" So, I made a deal with him that he could send them to me and I'd make them into a nice eNewsletter email and forward them to his twelve people but also make them available for subscription on the web. We didn't do very much advertising; it's mostly been word of mouth and an occasional message here and there. Now, as of today, those twelve people have grown to 98 and I hear from people all over the country who are using them. There are rectors from Washington State, to Florida, to Maine who use Canon Carr's prayers and I just received a note from the Director of Communications in the Diocese of Ft. Worth about how much she appreciates this and our Renewal Reflections that Canon Day writes. When you see Canon Cliff Carr next, thank him for all his work and the impact it is making in the larger Episcopal Church. Great job and many, many thanks.
• Join the Episcopal Churches of Luzerne County at the fair ... September 7-11. Here.
• Renewal III Assembly ... Renewal Assembly III, Finding Your Voice, will take place in eight locations Nov. 12. See Renewal Assembly II video, Connecting the Dots, here.
• Register for Diocesan Convention ... Here.
• Episcopal News Weekly bulletin inserts ... Download inserts here. September 4/Pent 12: "Episcopal Generations" Project from Formation and Vocation Ministries Team. September 11/Pent 13: Presiding Bishop Calls for Commitment to Peace on 10th Anniversary of 9/11
• DioBeth Website and newSpin Blog
• Public news and info lists ... At the Diobeth website , enter your name and email in the "Get Connected" box on the right hand side. You are welcome to subscribe to any or all of these. "Bakery" is our diocesan interactive list.

TaleSpin
• A hot issue on the campaign trail: theology ... [AP, Rachel Zoll] Here.
• Is the NYTimes biased against religion? ... [NYTimes, The 6th Floor] Executive editor Bill Keller and a conservative reader. Here.

TailSpin
• God for president ... Here.
• Christian crusaders cash in ... [The Tennessean] Here.

Pray  
• The Daily Office ... with the Mission St. Clare. Now available for iPhone and iPad.
• With The Book of Common Prayer ... Here.
• For our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for their families ... Check the newSpin blog for an update. Better still, at the "Get Connected" box on the right side of our diocesan website, fill in your name and email address, and click on "My Groups." In the next window, check "Pray for." Then, you will receive the weekly update by email.

Opinion/Reflection
• A great week for truth-telling ... [NYTimes Op-Ed, Thomas Friedman] Kishore Mahbubani, a retired Singaporean diplomat, published an essay Monday which argued that both dictatorships and democracies are failing because their leaders "tell lies." There are, of course, major differences between how citizens in Libya and America deal with leaders who lie. "Still, Mahbubani's comparison warrants some reflection this week, which coincides with the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and the president’s jobs speech," writes Thomas Friedman in The New York Times. "It is a great week for truth-telling." Friedman asks us to recall the last time our leader truthfully said there were no easy solutions to our problems, that we must "spend the next five years rolling up our sleeves, possibly accepting a lower living standard and making up for our excesses?" Friedman sees the jobs crisis and 9/11 as "intertwined," the signs of a "lost decade." He compares "how Dwight Eisenhower and his successors used the cold war and how George W. Bush used 9/11." Eisenhower and his successors used competition with Russia to undertake home improvements, constructing highways, developing our science and research programs, and sending a man to the moon. "George W. Bush did the opposite. He used 9/11 as an excuse to lower taxes, to start two wars that--for the first time in our history--were not paid for by tax increases, and to create a costly new entitlement in Medicare prescription drugs." Friedman wishes Bush had proposed a patriotic gas tax on Sept. 12, but instead he continued to cut taxes, asking most Americans to contribute nothing to the wars. "It will be remembered as one of the greatest lost opportunities of any presidency--ever." Friedman hopes Obama takes the poltiically risky step to tell us the truth about what is required of us to "restore American greatness" and stop American decline. [h/t Deacon Larry Holman and The Atlantic Wire]
• The Office Book ... [Archdeacon Howard Stringfellow] See above, under DioBethSpin.
• It's the stories that matter ... [Episcopal Café] Here.

Resources
• For the 10th anniversary of 9/11 ... See above, under DioBethSpin.

Episcopal/Anglican
• Episcopal News Service on Twitter.
• Anglican Communion News Service ... on Facebook.

Moravian
• Moravian Church in North America website.  Moravian Church Northern Province website.  Moravian Theological Seminary website.

Evangelical Lutheran
• NEPA Synod E-News ... Sept. 2. Here.  NEPA Synod website ... Here.  ELCA website ... Here.  ELCA News Service ... Here.  ELCA's blogs may be found here. See especially "Web and Multimedia Development."

United Methodist  
• UMC website Here. News Service Here. Communication Resources Start here. Communication newsletter (tips and tools) Here. Eastern PA Conference website  Here. Facebook Here. Bishop Peggy Johnson's blog Here.

Roman Catholic
• The Pope John Paul II Cultural Center ... [NCR, Richard McBrien] Adam Maida retired as archbishop of Detroit in 2009. During the late 80s, when he was still bishop of Green Bay, Wis. (1984-90), he proposed to John Paul II his idea for The Pope John Paul II Cultural Center. Some four years later, he was named a cardinal. The center was subsequently erected in Washington, D.C., at a cost of $75 million. It was expected to more than pay for itself as a tourist attraction and a think tank. That never happened, as some predicted at the time. The center opened in March 2001 and has just been sold to the Knights of Columbus for $22.7 million, representing a $34 million loss for the Detroit archdiocese. The archdiocese bore most of the original cost but also loaned the center more than $54 million under an arrangement worked out by Maida. Within five years of its opening, it was $36 million in debt to the Detroit archdiocese because of the loans. The amount rose to more than $54 million, a portion of which included an average of $65,000 per month for upkeep, which the archdiocese continued to pay even while it marketed the center for sale during the past 18 months. Maida made the loans without consultation with the priests or laity of the archdiocese. More here.
• Blogger Rocco Palmo uncovers Vatican secrets –– all from his home in Philly ... [Baltimore Sun] A 28-year-old guy living in his parents' basement in South Philadelphia just might be one of the foremost experts on the Archdiocese of Baltimore, if not the whole American Catholic Church. Rocco Palmo facetiously calls himself "The Church Whisperer," and over the past six years, his blog has become a must-read for ecclesiastical insiders. After starting with just three readers a few days before Christmas in 2004, Palmo has built up a audience of roughly 500,000 unique visitors each month. When he attends church conferences, he's treated like a rock star. Archbishops line up to shake his hand. More here.
• Incoming Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput says the cafeteria is closed ... Here.
• Diocese of Allentown ... Here.  Diocese of Scranton ... Here.  United States Conference of Catholic Bishops ... Here.  Catholic News Service ... Here.  Vatican website ... Here.  Vatican Information Service blog ... Here.  Vatican News/Info Portal ... Here.

WordSpin
• The Daily Office from MissionStClare. Now available for iPhone and iPad.
• The Lectionary Page ...  Here. This is a new URL. Update your bookmarks or favorites.
• The Lectionary ... Here.
• Oremus Bible Browser ... Here.
• Revised Common Lectionary ... Vanderbilt.

DaySpin     
• Diocese of Bethlehem Events Calendar ... Updated monthly, September 7. Here. Find weekly updates on the DioBeth Facebook page. Also here.
• Episcopal Church Calendar ... Here.

Be there
• Sept. 11 ... 9/11 Service of Remembrance and Reconciliation , 5pm, Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem. Bishop Paul will preach. See above, under TopSpin.
• Sept. 11 ... Trinity Easton will host a 9/11 interfaith community Service of Remembrance and Hope. See above, under DioBethSpin.
• Sept. 11 ... Benefit Concert for Trinity Bethlehem Soup Kitchen.
• Oct. 7-8 ... Diocesan Convention , Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem.
• Oct. 22 ... J2A Training , 8:30 - 3:00, Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem.
• Nov. 11-13 ... Happening Retreat by Youth for Youth, grades 9-12, at Kirby House.
• Nov. 12 ... Renewal Assembly III.
• Jan. 21 ... Bishop's Day with Youth, grades 6-12.
• April 20-22 ... Christophany Retreat, grades 6-12.
• June ?? ... Vocare Retreat for Young Adults.
• Summer ... Senior High Mission Trip.

Follow
• The Diocese of Bethlehem on Twitter and Facebook ... http://twitter.com/#!/Diobeth ... https://www.facebook.com/DioceseOfBethlehem
• Kat Lehman on Twitter ... http://twitter.com/#!/KatLehman
• Episcopal News Service on Twitter ...  http://twitter.com/#!/episcopal_news

Additional sources of news/info/commentary
• Religion News Service Daily Roundup ... here.
• Faith in Public Life ... here.
• Diocese of Bethlehem
(1) The DioBeth newSpin blog
(2) The Re:Create blog – for youth and young adults
(3) The DioBeth website
(4) Twitter.DioBeth
(5) Twitter.Kat Lehman
(6) Facebook.DioBeth
(7) Public news and info lists: At the Diobeth website, enter your name and email in the "Get Connected" box on the right hand side. You are welcome to subscribe to any or all of these. "Bakery" is our diocesan interactive list.
• Episcopal/Anglican
(1) NewsLine
(2) News & Notices
(3) Infoline
(4) Episcopal News Service
(5) Episcopal Church website
(6) Twitter
(7) Facebook
(8) YouTube
(9) The Lead, Episcopal Cafe
(10) Daily Episcopalian, Episcopal Cafe
(11) AngicansOnline.
(12) AnglicansOnline News Centre.
(13) Anglican Communion website.
(14) Anglican Communion News Service.

*************

Composed at least weekly (usually on Monday and occasionally on Thursday) by Bill Lewellis, the newSpin newsletter appears as a post within the newSpin blog. Newsletter and blog are not identical. This notice that a new newsletter has been published currently goes to some 1,200 email addresses on a separate list. Many recipients forward it to many more. 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.

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]