Waiting for Shardlake

 I am looking forward to the release of a new series on Disney+ called Shardlake, a period mystery story based on a novel by C.J. Sansom. There are actually seven novels featuring a solicitor named Matthew Shardlake during the turbulent days of the reign of Henry VIII. They are acclaimed for their plots but also the meticulous research of the era by Sansom, who began his working life as a solicitor. The novels have been popular with 3 million copies sold. 

The first of the novels from 2003 is Dissolution and the title refers to the dismantling of monasteries and convents in Britain after Henry broke with the Roman Catholic Church. The television series takes us to a monastery where a murder has taken place and Shardlake has been sent to discover what has happened.

This series of novels is well-written and suspenseful at times. They also explore the often arcane and violent realities of religion in 16th century England. Loyalty to one's particular expression of Christianity could result in expulsion from society, exile, even death. I've written about William Tyndale, the Oxford scholar whose translation of the bible into English makes up more than 75% of the King James Bible. Yet Tyndale was forced to flee for his life to Europe because of his efforts and was eventually found by Henry's henchman, strangled to death and his body burned. We think Christianity has been politicized and weaponized today! Shardlake navigates his sleuthing in the midst of these troubling currents. 

I was saddened to read that C.J. Sansom died a few days ago at the age of 71. The debilitation from his cancer made for slow-going in writing his eighth, ultimately unfinished novel. He had plans for subsequent stories set during the reign of Elizabeth I. 

I hope he got to see the series before his death. Bring on Shardlake tomorrow!

Good News about Haida Sovereignty

 

According to my Air Canada app we will be leaving in 50 days for Haida Gwaii, the archipelago of islands about 100 kilometres off the coast of British Columbia. We are both excited and a bit apprehensive about our trip given that we had booked to go in 2020, then again in 2021, both trips kiboshed by COVID. We actually thought this trip wouldn't happen either because of a lack of rental vehicles (a reality on many islands) but we will be there for the Summer Solstice and we do have a junket booked to Hai Gwanaas, the national park only acessible by water or air.

We are very interested in the culture of the Haida Indigenous people whose numbers were greatly reduced by diseases brought by settlers and whose language dwindled dangerously. We have seen and heard of how Haida culture and spirituality have been revived from the embers to illuminate the Nation once again. 

As a retired minister in a denomination that was part of the colonial assault on Indigenous spiritual identity and connection to the land and sea across the country I want to find my way humbly into a greater understanding and respect for this proud culture. I'm not sure if there is a United Church presence on Haida Gwaii and honestly it isn't of particular interest to me. 

You may be aware that the Haida Nation has been involved in a decades-long fight to stop the plundering of the rich forest resources of the islands by companies given cutting rights by the government of British Columbia. This led to confrontations involving police and activists but in the end the Haida prevailed, to a degree, in ways that are now serving as models for Indigenous groups around the world. 

Recently the government of British Columbia entered into an agreement with the Haida Nation regarding sovereignty. This agreement builds on those already formulated and enacted during the past 50 years. Here are excerpts from the release issued by the BC government: 

The Province of B.C. and the Council of the Haida Nation (CHN) stood in HlGaagilda and signed the historic Gaayhllxid • Gíhlagalgang “Rising Tide” Haida Title Lands Agreement, a first-of-its-kind negotiated agreement recognizing Haida Aboriginal title in Haida Gwaii.

Title recognition shifts the ownership and jurisdiction of land from the Crown to the Haida Nation in Crown law. The agreement provides for a staged implementation of the title, creating stability and certainty for all residents of Haida Gwaii, now and for generations to come.

CHN and the Government of B.C. have been working actively since 2021 to formally recognize Haida Aboriginal title in Haida Gwaii. The staged approach reflected in this agreement means that CHN and B.C. can determine in a planned and orderly way how the title will be implemented.

The agreement explicitly protects and maintains private property rights and existing government services and infrastructure in Haida Gwaii, including:

• Private property interests are confirmed and are not affected by this agreement.
• Local governments, public infrastructure, programs and services will continue under current B.C. laws.
• Highways, airports, ferry terminals, health care and schools are not affected.
• Haida Gwaii residents will continue to receive municipal services and pay property taxes in the same way they do today.
• Provincially issued leases, permits and other approvals to use Crown lands and recreational access remain in effect over a several-year transition period, with future management to be negotiated with input from communities, businesses and residents.

Haida citizens voted 95% in favour of the agreement at a special assembly on April 6, 2024. Later this month, B.C. will introduce supporting legislation to formally recognize Haida Aboriginal title in provincial law.

Quick Facts:

• The Council of the Haida Nation has been the governing body for the Haida Nation for 50 years.
• Haida Gwaii is located approximately 100 kilometres west of the northern coast of British Columbia and is a group of more than 200 islands totalling approximately one million hectares (3,750 square miles).
• The Haida have been on Haida Gwaii for millenia.
• The Council of the Haida Nation was formed in 1974 and the Constitution of the Haida Nation was formally adopted in 2003.
• The constitution mandates the CHN to conduct the external affairs of the Haida Nation and to steward the lands and waters of Haida Gwaii on behalf of the Haida Nation, ensuring that the Haida relationship with Haida Gwaii continues in perpetuity.
• The CHN has negotiated and signed agreements with other coastal First Nations, non-governmental organizations and local communities, and continues to work on agreements with both the federal and provincial governments.

Freedom Seders in 2024

 

More than 30 years ago I was in Israel with a group and I had lots of interesting chats with our guide, a woman my age. At one point we discussed the diversity of outlooks on a range of subjects within Israel and in the Jewish diaspora. She shrugged and with a chuckle offered "there is a saying, ten Jews, twelve opinions." 

This has certainly come to the fore since the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel and the subsequent military response by the IDF in Gaza. There are Israeli citizens and lots of Jews who feel that the devastating retribution is justified and some within the radical right would accept the obliteration of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. 

As I noted at the beginning of Passover 2024 a week ago, Jews are gathering around the Seder table and in public places with a variety of outlooks. There are events involving Jews and others for what are being called a Freedom Seders, harking back to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s in the United States. There were Jews, including the great  rabbi and thinker, Abraham Joshua Heschel, who not only supported civil rights but marched in solidarity with Dr. King. In April 1969, on the first anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Jewish and African-American activists came together in Washington, D.C. to share a meal that came to be known as the Freedom Seder.

The Freedom Seders of this past week included a public one that took place in the past 24 hours in Berlin,  Germany. These Jewish protestors reject what they are convinced is the oppression of the Palestinian people who must be liberated, not subjugated. They call on the German government to cease supplying arms to Israel, also a the focus of another such seder in Brooklyn, New York. 

I saw a news clip from London in which an elderly Jewish Holocaust survivor took part in a pro-Palestinian rally and made the connection between persecution of Jews and what is happening in Gaza today. 

We have to realize the complexity of this situation which doesn't lend itself to simplistic "us and them" statements. We can appreciate the willingness of Jews to ask the hard questions about what is unfolding in a deeply troubled part of the world. 

Trouble-makers or Prophets & Visionaries?

‘In the last days it will be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
    and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
    and your old men shall dream dreams.

                    Acts 2: 17 NRSVue

“Speak up, speak out, get in the way. Get in good trouble, necessary trouble...

John Lewis, civil rights leader 

During the past two weeks we;ve been watching the spread and growth of protests on college and university campuses in the United States. They are responses to the war in Gaza which began after the Hamas terrorist launched brutal attacks on Israili citizens killing 1200 and taking hundreds prisoner. The response by Israel during the past seven months has reduced Gaza to rubble, resulted in 34,000 deaths and bringing hundreds of thousands to the edge of starvation. The protests are about this retributive war and the provision of billions of dollars in aid to the Israeli military by the United States government. While the Biden administration has cautioned the Netanyahu government of Israel about its aggression it has not stopped the misery and death.. 

What has unfolded is fascinating because efforts to end or suppress the protests have only served to deepen the resolve of ther students who are participating. If I read correctly, the first was at the venerable Columbia University but they have spread across the country. In some circumstances police, including riot squads, have been instructed to break up encampments and arrest the young people involved. This hasn't worked, as it rarely does. 

So many thoughts arise as I hear about what is happening. I'm old enough to remember the anti-Vietnam War campus protests in the US. I was a teen and I had cousins old enough for the draft. I saw the news footage of the National Guard shooting and killing protestors at Kent State University. 

I was too young to be aware of the courageous young people who were Freedom Riders in the American South during the Civil Rights Movement, some of whom were murdered. 

Protesting the conventions and the status quo of the establishment is often risky business. Think of Arab Spring and the more recent Iranian protests.  Even when there isn't the threat of violence there can be censure and the possiblity of humiliation. The MeToo movement and Black Lives Matters and even Fridays for Future come to mind. In most instances young people are at the forefront in movements for meaningful societal change. 

I'm also thinking about those who gathered around Jesus, who was no spring chicken when he began his ministry at thirty, but attracted disciples who were likely in their twenties. The energy and passion of youth is key to overcoming to challenging the entropy of the established order, including in religion. 

Will the current protests make a difference? Perhaps not, although these students have decided to stand up and be counted. Are they prophetic or misguided? God only knows. 

Thank God for prophets and visionaries in every age.

Time for a Canadian Arbo(u)r Day?

 

It's not often that I envy the United States of America, especially in the current chaotic climate, although the Grand Canyon is very cool, not to mention the sequoias. And I'm sure that I've never said a positive word about the late, not-so-great President Richard Nixon. Yet today I wish Canada had an Arbor Day, a day to be mindful of trees and to plant them. It was proposed  by a journalist in Nebraska in 1872 as a project to plant trees in that state. Fast forward nearly a century to 1970, the first year of Earth Day, when Nixon established the last Friday of April as Arbor Day. Well done Tricky Dick. 

You'll know by now that I have something of a trees, trees, trees outlook. We have planted ten or so on our suburban lot where there were already a fair number and we don't really have room for more. Watching them grow during the past eleven years in this spot has been satisfying.

At the beginning of this April Earth Month I led worship at Trenton United and during the tree-themed service I noted the hundreds of references to trees in the bible. Something of my enthusiasm must have rubbed off because there are now plans afoot to plant shrubs and trees around the church, including a burning bush (how  biblical!) and a lilac.  TUC folk are doers, God/Creator bless them. 

Here's the question: would we need to add the "u" and  call it Arbour Day if we established one in Canada? It would be a worthwhile way to conclude Earth Month each year. 

Finding our Way in Grief

 

From “Empty and Me: A Tale of Friendship and Loss,” by Azam Mahdavi. 

Illustrated by Maryam Tahmasebi. Translated by Parisa Saranj.

A couple of months ago our son, Isaac, pastor of Trenton United Church, asked if I would lead a session or sessions on grief. I wasn't sure if I was the right person to ask. Yes, I have experienced loss and sorrow on a personal level. And in my role as a UCC minister for nearly four decades I presided at somewhere between 450 funerals and memorial services, everyone from preemie babies to centenarians. Many of those occasions  were for people I knew well, along with members of their families. I have certainly seen grief in many manfestations, everything from stoicism to emotional expression of biblical proportions.

 While I did lots of "celebrations of life" I was always mindful that grief is real and must be acknowledged and that the service is just one aspect of the process of mourning and grieving. I always wanted to uphold our resurrection hope in Christ but not at the expense of denying the profound sense of loss.

Preparing has taken me on an interesting path and the resources that have come my way have been downright providential. 

We begin three sessions this evening and here is the outline we've shared, for what it's worth. I'll see who shows up!

Finding Our Way in Grief – Study and Discussion Group

Is it okay for Christians to grieve, given our Easter hope? Of course it is!

We all feel loss, regardless of our age, our circumstances, and our religious convictions.

Join us for three Thursday evening sessions (6:30 - 8:00) to explore and discuss together how we grapple with grief.

Week 1 – April 25 – You Are Not Alone – grief is unique for each person, there are no universal expectations nor clearly defined stages. Our grief often comes back to visit, unbidden.

So how do we navigate our personal losses in ways which allow us to move forward, realizing that "one size does not fit all?"

Week 2 May 2 – We Are Not Alone – the ways in which our society grieves collectively are changing, rapidly.

What does that mean for our communities of faith, once the focal point for grieving together? How do we mourn the loss of our congregational friends?

Week 3 May 9 – The End Comes For Everyone – we will engage in dialogue with local funeral directors about the practicalities of funerals, memorials services, and the growing number of alternatives for farewell and burial.

Join us for these sessions and maybe bring along someone who is finding his or her way in grief.

World Good Book Day?

 

Yesterday was World Book Day, an opportunity for bibliophiles everywhere to celebrate the everyday miracle of the printed and now spoken word. Books come in so many forms, including audio and Braille for those who are vision-impaired. I'll admit to having a large print edition show up as a library request and enjoying the format in my dotage. I am still an avid reader despite of actual books despite my screen addled brain. I enjoy fiction and non-fiction from different cultures. We're happy that our four grandchildren get lost in books with pages that turn. 

That term "bibliophile" to describe book lovers sounds a lot like "bible" and the root for both is the Greek "biblio." The Christian bible is actually 66 books in the two testaments and the apocrypha adds some more. Often described as the Good Book the bible is a magnificent jumble of myth, history, prophecy, liturgical resources, poetry, historical accounts, letters, apocalyptic writings, and what we call gospels. 

There are plenty of critics who would take away the term "magnificent" and condemn it as a big mess during more harm than good, and we can understand why. Some Christian communities claim they take a literal approach to the bible which usually means that they figure everybody should adhere to their interpretation. Too often scripture is used as a weapon rather than an invitation to the wild and wonderful world of God's steadfast love through time. 

Not long ago a family member attempted to use the genocidal final scene from the book of Esther as a justification for Israel's aggression in Gaza and we were aghast. Esther is a small book in the Hebrew scriptures that doesn't mention God once, nor the covenant, nor does the story take place in Israel. This sort of proof-texting dishonours God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Using the bible or any religious text to justify violence or marginalize others is sinful and shameful.  

Just the same, the bible is the Good Book for me, and I continue to learn and grow as I explore this sweeping collection. Is it inspired by God? I would say an emphatic "yes" and I want to continue to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to my heart and mind as I humbly open the Word on my own and with others. 

The Uncertainty of Passover 2024

This is the first day of the Jewish Pesach or Passover for 2024. Because Passover, like Easter, is tied to the full moon the dates vary from year to year and many years this Jewish festival coincides with Holy Week in the Christian calendar. Last year we were in Israel when Passover, Holy Week and Ramadan overlapped. Tonight is the full moon for Passover so the observance begins a month after Holy Week this year.

A lot has been written about how fraught and uncertain this Passover is compared to others in recent memory. The Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel in October of last year resulted in 1200 deaths and the taking of prisoners. More than 100 are still held hostage and Jews around the world are asking how they can celebrate the historic freedom from bondage when these people are still captive. Some Jewish groups are urging families to set a place at the table to honour those who are still in bondage. 

Other Jews have expressed their ambivalence because of the war in Gaza during which tens of thousands of Palestinians have died. What about their lives and liberation? 

Many Jews are anxious and fearful because of the rise of anti-Semitism in places far from Israel/Gaza, including here in Canada. Are they at risk as they gather to celebrate Passover, in their homes and synagogues and schools? This resonates with persecution of Jews through the centuries, often around Holy Week and Passover. 

I'm grateful that the United Church of Canada has expressed good wishes to the Jewish community as Passover commences. Christian communities everywhere need to decry anti-Jewish sentiment and hate speech. Jesus was a Jew who celebrated Passover as his last meal with his disciples.

This is not at odds with the UCC calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and the end of violence in the West Bank. Our commitment is to peace everywhere in the world as followers of Jesus, the Risen Christ. 

I do wish Chag Pesach Sameach to Jewish friends and the world-wide Jewish community.

Earth Day for the Love of Creation

 

 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look[a] into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet.  They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”  When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.  Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”  Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew,“Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 

                      John 20:11-16 NRSVue

As comes the breath of spring with light and mirth and song,

so does your Spirit bring new days brave, free, and strong.

You come with thrill of life to chase hence winter's breath,

to hush to peace the strife of sin that ends in death.

                       Voices United 373 vs 1

Happy Earth Day! Happy? Really? In the midst of the gloomy news? 

 It is so tempting to downplay the celebratory aspect of this annual recognition of our planetary home, often termed Turtle Island by Indigenous peoples. Humans have made a mess of Earth in many ways and recent reports tell us of the decline in bird species, the bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef, and the omnipresence of plastics. The first scientific reports of greenhouse gases and global heating were published in the mid-19th century yet nearly 200 years later we are still in willful denial, with our Canadian government actually subsidizing  fossil fuel corporations and building pipelines with taxpayer money. 

And yet... there are many voices shouting in the wilderness, inviting us to change our destructive ways. And as Christians we can connect the Risen Christ, mistaken by Mary as a gardener with the still abundant diversity of Creation if we're willing to look and listen. 

We are not hope-less and it is important that we spend time in Creation, as created beings to truly appreciate being Groundlings. formed of the earth. 

Somehow Ruth has agreed to bundle up and go for a paddle on what is literally a frosty morning in our part of Ontario. She indulges my insanity with grace and is the best possible companion for outdoor forays. Even on suspect days our spirits are lifted by venturing outside and each season offers its gifts. I do love the promise of Spring and the miraculous emergence of creatures that tucked themselves away against the cold or made their way to warmer climes for a few months. 

As I have mentioned, regularly, we almost always pause for a few moments to give thanks for Creator and Creation, an act of humility and praise. I intend to be happy on this Earth Day, although you might say a prayer for our extremities as we paddle this morning!

Our United Church Moderator, Carmen Landsdowne, has asked congregations from sea to sea to sea to recognize this as Earth Week and acknowledge the love of Creation. Here is her invitation and a link to UCC resources. 

Walking in Creation, I am filled with a love for all that surrounds me.... This abundant life is hurt and threatened by our greenhouse gas emissions and consequent warming of the planet. Livelihoods around the world are being disrupted. We need to summon a fierce love and act together. During Earth Week, April 21‒28, let’s show up For the Love of Creation. 

Moderator the Right Rev. Dr. Carmen Lansdowne

https://united-church.ca/news/together-love-creation-earth-week-2024#:~:text=We%20need%20to%20summon%20a,For%20the%20Love%20of%20Creation.&text=During%20Earth%20Week%202024%2C%20The,opens%20in%20a%20new%20tab)%20.

Sea Spray, Winds of God, &...Plastics?

I feel the winds of God today; today my sail I lift,

though heavy oft with drenching spray  and torn with many a rift;

if hope but light the water's crest, and Christ my bark will use,

I'll seek the seas at his behest, and brave another cruise.

Voices United 625 vs 1

The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
    the floods have lifted up their voice;
    the floods lift up their roaring.
4 More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,
    more majestic than the waves of the sea,
    majestic on high is the Lord!

Psalm 93: 4-5 NRSVue

This will be an unusual year for us as we embark on two trips within Canada, one to the west and the other to the east. We will be visiting Haida Gwaii the archipelago off the coast of British Columbia and then later in the summer, Change Islands, adjacent to Fogo Island in Newfoundland. We've been to Change Islands often and our elderly neighbour is bemused by our predeliction for heading out on windy and stormy days for the thrill of big waves and salt spray. 

It was a jolt to read this week that the aerosol "forever chemicals" from plastics in sea spray could be as toxic as industrial air pollution. While we would like to believe that these remote locations wouldn't be affected in the same way as other parts of the world this might be a delusion.

                                                                             Ruth in Iceland 

Plastics are now everywhere, including our arteries and it shouldn't be a shock or surprise. Half of all the plastic ever produced have been created in the last fifteen years. This addiction to plastics in every aspect of our lives threatens to overwhelm us. 

This year the Earth Day (tomorrow) theme is Planet vs Plastics with a call to reduce the production of plastics by 60 % and by 2040. This seems hugely ambitious yet vital for the wellbeing of all living creatures. 

One of my favourite hymns, I Feel the Winds of God Today, invokes the exhilaration of the voyage of faith in Christ. On this Earth Sunday the journey to eliminate plastics doesn't have quite the same cachet yet it can be the Creator's call for this moment. 

MLK, Going Deeper

 

Some of you may recall a blog from at least a year ago about the acclaimed biography of Martin Luther King Jr., King: A Life  written by Jonathan Eig. There have been many but Eig's is the first after FBI suveillance documents were released. MLK was hated by FBI director J. Edgar Hoover who didn't everything possible to discredit King, including fabricating "evidence" of his associations with communists.

It has taken me all this time to finish the book, all 550 pages of it. I am not a slow reader and the writing is superb and insightful but the next library book I put on reserve would come available and Eig's volume would gather dust for a while.

I came to the end with a profound sadness about King, not just because he was killed at the age of 39 leaving behind a wife and four children. Despite plenty of resistance and constant death threats MLK was an admired man around the time of the March on Washington and his Nobel Peace Prize. Civil Rights and Voters Rights became accepted and supported national causes by the majority of Americans. 

Martin came to realize that The Viet Nam War was killing a disproportionate number of Black men and diverting billions from addressing poverty. When he began speaking out against the war even those closest to him advised against it and his patriotism was questioned in media that had once supported him. He went from being near the top of lists of admired American leaders to 40% popularity in polls. There was a growing tide of rejection amongst Blacks as well as many grew weary of the notion of non-violent change through the Civil Rights movement.  

As the years went by Martin was hospitalized a number of times for exhaustion and depression, although efforts were made to hide this. President Lyndon Johnson had been a somewhat reluctant ally but turned against MLK when be became vocal about the war. 

Near the end of his short life he longed to return to the pulpit even though he had plenty of opportunities to speak, often several times a day at rallies. He needed to cease from being an icon and return to being a pastor and person. 

I would highly recommend this biography for lots of reasons but it is a cautionary tale about our heroes and martyrs. In a time when King is often mined for soundbite phrases, even by those on the political right, understanding him for his courage and vision is important. 

Considering the Birds on Earth Sunday

 

 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 

                                    Matthew 6:25-26 NRSVue

On Sunday morning Trenton United Church will acknowledge Earth Sunday, the Sunday closest to Earth Day on April 22nd. I spoke about trees on the first Sunday of this Earth Month and now we will participate in an intergenerational morning of worship and exploration of Creation related themes. Ruth and I have been asked to decorate our worship space with flowers and foliage while congregation members have been invited to bring in a favourite plant to contribute to the visual display. 

We have also been asked to do a brief information session on birds following the service while our young people are involved in theme-related crafts. We'll keep it low-key, in part because we wouldn't call ourselves "birders", those who are dedicated to bird identification and have an impressive base of knowledge. 

We do have multiple feeders outside our windows that are a constant source of pleasure for us and visitors. We figure we've seen about twenty species of birds in our backyard, maybe more. Now that we have the wonderful, free Merlin birdsong identification app we realize that there are species around us that are heard even when they're not seen. Both the Sibley Birds and Audubon apps are excellent and we still have our "old school" bird guides. 

On Sunday we'll make sure to point out that birds are everywhere in the bible, including as a symbol of the Holy Spirit. Jesus makes reference to birds as well, which makes sense given that he spent a lot of time rambling around outside. I've mentioned that the Rift Valley from Africa to Europe is a migratory route for half a billion birds and Israel is along that path. 

Our rambling is what got us going in our bird interest. We'd be paddling and hiking and grew  curious about what we were seeing and hearing. While we've never joined a group of birders on a junket (or is that junco?) we are aware of the birds around us and have experienced some delightful moments. The bald eagle that flew out of a tree beside us as we paddled last week is an example of an avian thrill, but the flocks of goldfinches at our feeders these days are enchanting as well. 

There has never been a better time for birding resources than today. That said, the decline of bird species and numbers is deeply disturbing. It's estimated that in North America there are  nearly 3 billion fewer birds today than in 1970. Paying attention and giving thanks to the Creator for birds is an important aspect of our Christian discipleship. I have to wonder if Jesus were speaking today he would give birds more of a shout-out.

 

Living Streams in an Ontario Spring

 

Marsh Marigolds beside a Belleville stream this morning 

When the poor and needy seek water,

    and there is none,
    and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them,
    I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
18 I will open rivers on the bare heights
    and fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water
    and the dry land springs of water.
19 

Isaiah 41: 17- 18 NRSVue 

There was considerable concern that the lack of snow this winter would mean limited Spring run-off. This affects river and lake levels and poses a problem for farmers. Thankfully, the last couple of weeks has brought a lot of rain in our part of Southern Ontario with a positive effect on waterways. There are creeks and other tributaries, marshes and swamps that are looking healthy in terms of water levels.

I've seen a few articles in the past couple of months about the buried urban streams of many towns and cities, part of the infrastructure ethos of another era to divert them through culverts and underground channels. The result has been issues of flooding as these conduits are unable to deal with the volume of water as we pave everything in sight and we dealing with more climate change super-charged storms. There was a media kerfuffle and right-wing wuffing about a "rain tax" in Toronto that was really a proposal to make property owners pay for practices contributing to run-off. Thanks to the outcry this has been scrapped.

                                                              Lost Rivers Map for Toronto  

Efforts are underway in many communities to free these waterways to reduce flooding risk and to create environments that support fish and trees, butterflies and birds. There are people who are doing the work of rediscovering these waterways, either as personal projects or part of municipal plans to restore them as buffer zones. Havergall College. a hoighty toighty girls school in Toronto, has embarked on an impressive project to restore a stream and the riparian landscape on its property. 

It got me thinking about the biblical praise for sources of water, so important in a land where there is no rain for months on end. When we were in Israel last year at this time the Spring rains had lingered and on hikes we were wading through raging streams that would dry up in Summer. Waterfalls along wadis were still in full force. Everything was green and in bloom but our family members assured us that this would change in a matter of weeks. 

A nearby evangelical church here in Belleville also came to mind, It is called Desert Stream, an active congregation with a huge parking lot. I wonder if they know that there is stream adjacent to their property running through a culvert to Lake Ontario, only a few hundreds metres away? And what runs off that parking area into the lake? 

This also got me pondering about what metaphorical "living waters' we need to bring to the surface in what often seem to be dried up mainline churches. How is Christ, Living Water, the source of abundance and refreshment -- dare I say revival?-- in such challenging times? 

                                             

                                                      Ruth at Ein Gedi is the Judean Wilderness, Israel 2023

 

Congratulations, Kai!

 

Mayor Neil Ellis (l) presents Kai Freeland with a certificate honouring his winning efforts at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary, April 15, 2024. (Photo: Quinte News/John Spitters)

One of the reasons I accepted a call to Bridge St. United Church in Belleville years ago was seeing how three siblings with Down Syndrome were a welcome part of the congregation when we attended worship during a scouting mission. I have been retired in the community for almost seven years now and I still see them around town. Kai (above) is well into his thirties  yet he almost always gives me a hug when we meet and I'm touched by his warmth.

Kai is an accomplished person in various endeavours, including athletics. Belleville Council recognized him this week for his impressive medal wins of a gold, two silvers and a bronze representing Ontario at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary. Next month he will  be competing in power lifting at the Special Olympics Spring Games in Waterloo.

Congratulations Kai for your prowess. You are an impressive human being, loved by God and your faith community. 

Ripley, Caravaggio, & World Art Day

Andrew Scott in Ripley (2024), viewing, from left, Caravaggio’s The Calling of St Matthew (1599–1600), The Inspiration of Saint Matthew (1602), and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew (1599–1600). Photo: Netflix © 2023.

 The latest screen version of Patricia Highsmith's 1955 thriller novel, The Talented Mr. Ripley. is the Netflix series, Ripley. In an early episode the devious con artist Tom Ripley learns about the troubled Renaissance painter, Caravaggio, and claims that he would like to see his various works throughout Italy. 

Caravaggio was a boozer with a violent temper, a murderer who had to flee the authorities of his day. He has fascinated me since my art history undergrad days. as he does Ripley. Tom travels to various churches where his dramatic biblical paintings are displayed, a sort of foreshadowing of his own tangled web of deceit and violence. 

                                                              Supper at Emmaus -- Caravaggio 

Yesterday was  Unesco World Art Day, which has only been around for a decade or so. The April 15th date is supposedly the birthday of Leonardo da Vinci and the theme this years was "A GARDEN OF EXPRESSION: Cultivating Community Through Art." I like that there is a day to acknowledge art in its various facets including visual art, music, literature, and architecture. 

Art is often profoundly spiritual, even when it's secular, sacred although sometimes produced by those who are profane. What is sometimes labelled as Christian art can be maudlin propaganda of the worst kind and yet some of the greatest art has been commissioned for places of worship.

 I've written about my love for the relatively modern space of St. Andrew's UC in Sudbury, a congregation I served for eleven years. The sand-cast doors and art pieces, along with the design itself spoke to me every time I entered. I also served two congregations with large traditional sanctuaries I would describe as holy spaces. 

Of course, music can be sublime and worship is enhanced beyond measure by what occurs musically, including hymn singing.  I love the work of great writers such as Marilynne Robinson who create fine novels with powerful and subtle religious themes. 

Art gives intimations of the divine. Come, Holy Spirit, Come. 

                         St. Andrew's United Church Sudbury -- one of three Jordi Bonet doors 

                                                                Da Vinci designed staircase 

A Common Vision and Dream

 During worship yesterday we heard that United Church congregations across the country, including Trenton UC,  had voted in favour of supporting the development of an autonomous entity for Indigenous communities of faith with a historical connection with the UCC. This decision was reached through what we term a remit, a referendum of sorts that requires at least half of all UCC congregations (not just half of those that vote) to make a decision on substantial change for denominational policy. 

Our United Church history with Indigenous peoples is a long one, stretching back more than 200 years, before our denomination was formed by a union of the Presbyterians, Methodists, and Congregationalists. In a colonial worldview the goal was to "save the Indian heathens" without any respect for aboriginal spirituality or life on the land. The ghastly result was the United Church complicity in the Residential School system which took children from their families and were actually institutions of indoctrination and cultural genocide. Hundreds and perhaps thousands of Indigenous children died in these places and tens of thousands were scarred for life. 

Through the decades the United Church repented of these destructive, racist practices that were antithetical to the gospel of Jesus Christ through public apologies. Indigenous congregations were recognized as more than missions in a patriarchal system. Eventually the UCC changed its crest to reflect inclusion of and respect for Indigenous members. This included the "all my relations" phrase in Mohawk, and the colours of the four directions. 

 Then in 1988 the All Native Circle was formed with more than 30 congregations joining, including some from urban ministries. Some Indigenous congregations chose to remain as part of the Conferences they were part of for a variety of reasons. 

The remit is in an important progression in our UCC commitment to Truth and Reconciliation and I'm grateful that congregations across the country have chosen overwhelmingly to support it. Here is the United Church General Council news release and the response from the National Indigenous Council. 

Published On: April 9, 2024

Remit 1: Establishing an Autonomous National Indigenous Organization has passed. The National Indigenous Council, 16 regional councils, and 80% of pastoral charges in The United Church of Canada participated in the vote on Remit 1: Establishing an Autonomous National Indigenous Organization.  

In response, the National Indigenous Council shares their vision statement with the whole church. They offer words of thanks for all who have brought the church to this moment, and state their commitment to moving forward together on the path of Right Relations.

Statement from the National Indigenous Council on the Results of Remit 1: Establishing an Autonomous National Indigenous Organization

We, the National Indigenous Council, are a diverse group of Indigenous Peoples, rooted in distinct innate values and wisdom. We:

• carry a common vision and dream
• respect everyone’s story
• care for one another
• uphold community
• build positive relationships.

We thank our Ancestors and All Our Relations who have brought us to this moment. 

We are all spirit first. 

The work of Right Relations continues. 

We commit to moving forward together in a good way.