To Remember and Persevere

 

God of hope and love,
Today we stand somewhere between peace and joy,
unsure where to find them
in a world where women continue to be subject to violence
because they are women, because they are Indigenous.
Today it is hard for us to imagine the lamb and the lion together,
to know that our hearts will rejoice at the arrival of justice.
And yet we persevere.
We remember, and we persevere.

—an Advent prayer by Sara Stratton, written for the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women and in honour of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls

A couple of weeks ago we chanced upon these two lovely women as we entered the Belleville Library. As you can see they were raising awareness about all forms of misogyny including intimate partner violence. We let them know that our sign was already on the lawn and we let them know our connection with one of their group who is a key person in the Trenton United Church congregation. One of them mentioned that this cause is personal because a beloved member of her family had not survived partner violence. 

For many years, 14 lights have shone skyward during a vigil honouring the victims of the Polytechnique attack. Last year, a 15th beam was added in memory of all murdered women. (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press - image credit)

Today is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women and there will be vigils held in communities across the country, including Montreal where a total of 14 women were murdered in the anti-feminist attack in the Ecole Polytechnique on Dec. 6, 1989. I took part in my first such vigil a couple of days after this terrible event. This was half a lifetime ago for me and at the time we had two young daughters. 

The massacre led to tighter gun laws in Canada and greater awareness of violence against women yet In 2024 187 women and girls were violently killed in Canada. Since 1989 the term "femicide" has become more widely used and many communities have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic. As well, different levels of government have dedicated more resources to this scourge. And yet...

For a decade Ruth worked in a shelter for vulnerable women and children and one of her projects was visiting schools to talk to teen boys about what it means to be male and the importance of respect for women. Since those days the level of misogyny online has grown exponentially, included the INCEL movment that led to a mass killing of women in Toronto. 

We need to be vigilant not just today but all through the year. Ruth found that while some Christian congregations, including the one I was serving at the time, were open to hearing about the work of the shelter some clergy were not interested, some even claiming that this wasn't an issue in their churches.  

We can't forget about what happened in 1989 and what continues to unfold every day in this country. We too can remember and persevere. 

Advent Turtles...Really!

 On Giving Tuesday we were awash with requests for donations from really worthy causes and organizations, some of them three or four times in the day. By nightfall it felt like "enough already!" 

I suppose the strategy does work because we did make a contribution to the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre because, well, we love turtles and the health of turtle populations is a strong indicator of ecological health in an area. When we paddle from Spring to Fall we see painted, blandings, and snapping turtles and it always makes me happy. 

It turns out that the first page of the new children's edition of the All Creation Waits Advent resource features a painted turtle with a thoughtful reflection on hibernation, a state some of us may feel like entering during these gloomier days. I realized that the first iteration of this book also contained a turtle image. 

I do wish that there were references to turtles and tortoises in the bible, although the Hebrew scriptures takes a dim view of reptiles, so perhaps it's just as well. Dissing them as "unclean" might break my heart. I would much rather give them an exalted place in Creation. I do like the notion of the blessed Advent Turtle, although it may be little confusing. 

                                   Turtle image from All Creation Waits, illustrated by David G. Klein

The Statistics on MAID in Canada

The annual federal report on Medical Assistance in Dying has been released and the findings are worth considering. 

It will soon be a decade since Canada passed legislation permitting MAID. Not long before this historic decision in 2016 the congregation I served hosted one of the co-chairs of the joint committee of Parliament and the Senate which brought recommendations before the House. Rob Oliphant is a Member of Parliament and a United Church minister and we've known one another for nearly half a century. The event was open to the public and about 100 people showed up on a hot Friday evening on the long weekend in May. 

This group of mostly senior citizens was suprisingly receptive to what was shared with them, as were participants in a study group on Palliative Care and MAID, again mostly seniors, which we offered at Trenton UC a few years ago. Most of us oldsters get it that we're going to die and we've seen enough lingering and suffering along the way that we at least want to have the conversation about how the end comes. 

There are Christians who feel that any form of "euthanasia" as some choose to call it, is wrong in all circumstances, even though that term means, ironically, "good death." You may recall the Western Canada Roman Catholic bishop who instructed priests in his diocese to withhold the rite of burial from the families of those whose loved ones chose MAID. I still seethe about that monstrous directive and hope the priests ignored it. 

The United Church has been criticized for partially supporting Medical Assistance in Dying with provisos that this shouldn't include those with mental illness and that we provide societal  safeguards for the vulnerable along every support possible for those who are poor and desparate. The UCC has also been criticized for offering prayers of discernment and support for those making decisions about MAID that don't fit the "never, ever" narrative. 

The annual report was helpful in providing statistics about trends and realities. By far the majority were in their late 70s or older and with illnesses that were terminal. The percentage of Canadians dying by MAID appears to be plateauing. 

Why do some people feel that it is compassionate or the "will of God" that society insists these people prolong their lives? While I still have considerable concerns about MAID I sat at the bedsides of many individuals who longed for the end. At times it seemed unnatural and even cruel that they were being kept alive by extraordinary measures. 

As Christians we can continue to prayerfully consider the moral and ethical implications of choosing death and figure out how we can be a part of that conversation in meaningful ways. 

I have looked at the report itself and I'll share an excerpt from a CTV article with key information:

In 2024, 16,499 people received MAID — a figure that represents about five per cent of all deaths in Canada.

That figure was up 6.9 per cent over 2023, when 15,343 people received assisted death. The number of MAID cases grew by 15.8 per cent between 2022 to 2023.

Another 4,017 people who requested an assisted death in 2024 died before they received MAID, and 1,327 requests were deemed ineligible.

In order to be considered eligible, a person must have a “grievous and irremediable medical condition.”

The report identifies some trends in who is choosing assisted dying, and why.

The median age of those who chose MAID last year was 77.9 years. Cancer was the most frequently cited medical condition, affecting more than 63 per cent of MAID recipients. The most common types of cancer cited were lung, colorectal, pancreatic and hematologic.

About 450 people who received assisted death were diagnosed with the neurodegenerative condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

Around 74 per cent of people who received MAID accessed palliative care first.

Health Canada also analyzed the socio-economic status of people who received assisted death, and found that “people who receive MAID do not disproportionately come from lower-income or disadvantaged communities.”

It did find that MAID recipients were less likely to live in remote locations and the report noted that may reflect challenges in accessing health services in remote parts of the country.

“Overall, the report suggests that eligible people across Canada are accessing this end-of-life option appropriately and that reports of disproportionate access by those who are disadvantaged are not supported by the data,” said Helen Long, the CEO of advocacy group Dying with Dignity.

More than 95 per cent of those who had an assisted death last year had a condition that made their deaths “reasonably foreseeable,” the report said.

Just 4.4 per cent were “track 2” MAID patients — people whose deaths were not deemed to be foreseeable but who said they were suffering intolerably.

Our Technology & Seeking Silence

 

 In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.  And Simon and his companions hunted for him.  When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.”  He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also, for that is what I came out to do.”  And he went throughout all Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Mark 1:35-39 NRSVue

 But when the one who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the gentiles, I did not confer with any human,  nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were already apostles before me, but I went away at once into Arabia, and afterward I returned to Damascus.

Galatians 1: 15-17 NRSVue The Apostle Paul

Back in July I wrote about a CBC Radio segment from tech reporter Manjula Salvarajah on Appstinance, the encouragement to reduce or eliminate online life. This might be for a few hours, a day a week, during a focussed retreat, or by getting a "dumb phone" to replace the supposedly smart one. It is essentially a form of fasting and the piece was well presented.

A few days ago Manjulah returned with a related theme, this time seeking out silence in a world where every moment can be filled with noise and sound. While noise-cancelling technology has become very advanced we often choose to tune out extraneous noise while filling the void with podcasts and music. We can stave off boredom and be entertained, but we're never alone with our own thoughts. 

There wasn't anything overtly spiritual about either of these segments but they speak to a hunger in a society where social media have an almost god-like power over our lives. I heard portions of this silence piece three times thanks to Metro Morning, Ontario Morning, and Fresh Air on the weekend and chose to keep listening to the latter two. After the Ontario Morning broadcast the host of the program and the news readers chatted about their own choices for silence, important for two of them. 

I've been on a number of silent retreats through the years in monasteries, convents, and in the Silence House at Taize. Not in recent years, although I still crave the disconnection and the gift of silence. While I travelled thousands of kilometres for these experiences in many beautiful settings, just disconnecting at home or on a walk or paddle can be so beneficial. 

In most major religions there are invitations to "retreat", to fast, and to seek out silence for the good of the soul. In those experiences we may be better attuned to the presence of God the Creator, the Redeemer, and Sustainer. The gospels tell us that Jesus and the apostle Paul spent preparatory time apart before their ministries and Jesus cultivated silence amidst the press of need in each day.  

Way back in 2010 the term "Tech Shabbat" was coined by Tiffany Shlain and Ken Goldberg as a day of rest from the use of all technology, including television. It was based on the traditional Jewish Shabbat or sabbath. 

We need these reminders along the way silence is golden, and good for the body, mind and soul. And maybe we'll cast out some demons in a world that often seems possessed by them these days!

The Mona Lisa of Illustrated Bibles?

 Dan Brown managed to fanagle the world into being obsessed with the painting known as La Gioconda or the Mona Lisa through his thriller novel The Da Vinci Code. I first perused this early 16th century portrait as a 19-year-old, more than half a century ago, when it was a painting on the wall in the Louvre along with a number of others. No protective glass, security guards, line-ups, or selfies. 

The Mona Lisa was considered a masterpiece then, as now so maybe it's not surprising that an illustrated bible from roughly the same era has been described as the "Mona Lisa of illuminated manuscripts." It is a catchy way of emphasizing the beauty of this work, although to my mind it is comparing apples and oranges. 

The "illuminations" are the exquisitely painted illustrations in bibles and breviaries and books of hours that were often created to demonstrate the wealth of the donor or owner with a little piety thrown in. In many cases they were created in monasteries and convents by nuns and monks who were skilled scribes and artisans. Their work was an act of devotion and a source of income for communities of faith. 

.Here is a description of a display of the Borso D"Este Bible during this Vatican Jubilee Year in Italy and the Vatican:  

 A 15th-century Bible which is considered one of the most spectacular examples of Renaissance illuminated manuscripts went on display in Rome on Thursday as part of the Vatican's Holy Year celebrations.

The two-volume Borso D'Este Bible, which is known for its opulent miniature paintings in gold and Afghan lapis lazuli, was unveiled in the Italian Senate, where it will remain on display until Jan. 16.

The Bible is usually kept in a safe at a library in Modena and is rarely seen in public. It was transported to Rome under heavy security and its arrival in the Senate was televised, as workers hauled two big red crates from an unmarked van and then extracted the volumes, which were covered in bubble wrap.

The Bible, commissioned by Duke Borso D'Este, was created between 1455 and 1461 by calligrapher Pietro Paolo Marone and illustrators Taddeo Crivelli and Franco dei Russi. The Italian Culture Ministry considers it one of the highest expressions of miniature art "that unites sacred value, historic relevance, precious materials and refined aesthetics."

It will remain behind humidity-controlled plate glass during its Roman sojourn, but visitors can "read" it digitally via touch screen displays featuring ultra-high-resolution images.

Alessandra Necci, director of Gallerie Estense in Modena, where the Bible is usually kept, describes it as the "Mona Lisa of illuminated manuscripts" because of its exquisite artistry and religious inspiration.

I am fascinated by illustrated bibles whether ancient (Book of Kells) or modern (St. John's Bible.) It's wonderful that the Borso D'Este Bible will be shared with the world, at least for a time. Perhaps the Mona Lisa is the Borso D'Este of portraiture. 

World AIDS Day 2025

This is World Aids Day, worthy of acknowledgment, but I figured that I've blogged about this annual recognition enough in the past that I'd give it a miss this year. This morning I was reminded that while effective drugs have been developed to reduce the effects of HIV/AIDS there is no cure. And here in Canada the number of AIDS diagnoses is on the rise again. Even so, the AIDS Committee of Toronto will be closing its centre in 2026 after 43 years for a number of reasons, including reduced demand for services but also because of funding challenges. 

We should be aware as well that the financial support for HIV/AIDS programs in poorer countries, including a number in Africa, has been dramatically reduced, in part because of decisions by the Trump administration to defund global health initiatives. There is concern that Canada will follow suit. 

The Keiskamma Altarpiece pictured above was created in South Africa nearly 20 years ago in a community hit hard by HIV/AIDS. Dr. Carol Hofmeyr gave needles and thread to local women, many of them grandmothers raising orphaned grandchildren, who created this magnificent depiction of their reality, including crucifixion and resurrection scenes.  It is 13 feet tall and 22 feet wide. When we went to see it in Toronto while it was on tour in 2007 a group of those grandmothers came into the sanctuary of St. James Cathedral and began to mourn when they saw the altarpiece. It was a powerful moment. 

We can continue to mourn for the lost and pray that the scourge of this pandemic will be overcome. 

Today I'm also thinking of Tom Reid, a parishioner in Sudbury, Ontario, who invited me onto the inaugural board of the AIDs Committee of Sudbury in 1988, shortly after I became the minister of St. Andrew's United Church. I'm grateful that he did so and I see that the Reseau Access Network offices are now in St. Andrew's Place,

Here is a video link about the altarpiece:

https://fowler.ucla.edu/exhibitions/the-keiskamma-altarpiece-transcending-aids-in-south-africa/