Gene Hackman & Creativity

 

Did I figure I would ever write a blog mentioning Gene Hackman? Nope. I always thought that Hackman was a fine actor and his Oscar-winning role in Unforgiven was one of his best. A months ago I heard that he'd celebrated his 95th birthday and that he was living a creative and gentle life in New Mexico. It was a shock to see on Wednesday that the bodies of Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa, and one of their dogs were discovered in their Santa Fe home and that the circumstances were puzzling investigators.

I hadn't realized that Hackman was a writer and a painter with some of his works in a local cafe. He had also served on the trustees of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. After I was on retreat at Ghost Ranch, north of Santa Fe, years ago I got "stuck" in the city for an extra day because my flight out was cancelled due to severe thunderstorms in Dallas -- planes, trains, and automobiles. Having an extra day in Santa Fe is no punishment, especially since I'd scheduled a cushion day before going to work. Over the course of 24 hours I visited four museums, including the O'Keeffe. The city has art galleries on every corner and I rambled around back streets just to gawk at the unique architecture of southwest homes. 

I've written about the isolated retreat house called Casa del Sol at Ghost Ranch and how I would walk past Georgia O'Keefe's almost identical house on my way to the meal hall on the main campus. It really is mystical landscape attracting artists of various talents, including actors. 

We watched The French Connection last night in Gene Hackman's honour and the car chase scene is as thrilling as ever. I hope they can figure out what happened in these deaths and that he can be remembered fondly and with admiration. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE–February 27, 2025–(Santa Fe, NM)–The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is deeply saddened by the passing of Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa.

From 1997 to 2004, Gene served on the Museum’s Board of Trustees, playing a vital role in shaping the Museum’s early years. Beyond his role as a Trustee, Gene contributed to the Museum in meaningful ways, notably as the narrator of the Perry Miller Adato film, Georgia O’Keeffe: A Life in Art. The Museum is grateful for his commitment to sharing Georgia O’Keeffe’s legacy and their deep support of the arts and cultural initiatives.

We extend our deepest condolences.

Black History in the United Church

 

As we come to the conclusion of Black History Month in North America I have this gnawing feeling that I could have given more attention in my personal life and in this blog to the importance of Black History and issues that are still prevalent today. Of course, Black History Month is meant to be a celebration of accomplishments in many spheres but it also recognized the obstacles and racism Black persons have endured. 

Our United Church of Canada has made specific efforts to counteract discrimination on the basis of colour for decades yet we have remained a predominantly white denomination through our nearly 100 years of history. The UCC traditionally had hundreds -- thousands?-- of rural congregations and unlike some urban congregations the surrounding communities were largely white. I attended a mandatory anti-racism seminar for clergy perhaps 15 years ago. At one point we were divided into small groups and one minister conceded that while this was an important issue the small town in which he lived and served had virtually no persons of colour, let alone in his congregation. He wasn't sure what to do with what he was learning. 

                                                                           Wilbur Howard

Yes, the United Church had a Black moderator in the 1970s, the Very Reverend Dr. Wilbur Howard, although his road was not an easy one because of the colour of his skin. Yes, the Union United is Canada's oldest Black congregation. Jazz musicians Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones were members and got their musical start there. Sidney Poitier, Desmond Tutu, and Nelson Mandela are among the prominent guests through the years. There are Black pastors in our denomination, but they are few and far between. 

This hardly seems enough in terms of diversity and inclusion.  There were times during my ministry when persons of colour attended and a few stayed. Others were there for a Sunday and didn't return. What was it like to show up for worship and not see another Black person? 

We can continue our efforts to respond to systemic racism, prayerfully and practically. Here are links to to a couple of worthwhile pieces you might read. 

https://united-church.ca/blogs/round-table/unity-and-legacy-celebrating-black-history-canada-and-united-church#:~:text=As%20a%20Black%20man%20sitting,bring%20to%20our%20faith%20community.

https://broadview.org/the-first-black-moderator-of-the-united-church-faced-racism-that-still-resonates-today/

                                                   Choir Members, Union United Church, Montreal

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Dare to be a Danielle

 

Dare to be a Danielle

Dare to stand alone
Dare to have a purpose firm
Dare to make it known

In the chaos that is the United States of America we've been hearing about the firings and forced retirements of thousands of government workers on the orders of an un-elected billionaire on behalf of another supposed billionaire and convicted felon who should never have been able to run for any office, let alone the presidency.

We are also hearing about a growing number of officials and attorneys who are resigning rather than compromise their own integrity or break the law in what has become an autocracy over a matter of weeks. 

You may be aware that a decision was made to drop serious criminal charges against the mayor of New York City for purely political reasons and that the prosecutor quit rather than follow this directive. It was a principled decision by an attorney, Danielle Sassoon,  who refused to be untrue to the law, her values, and her faith, although she never cited her religion.

                                                    Daniel's Answer to the King -- Briton Riviere (1892)

 I admired her from the moment I read about this stand and I'm now intrigued by the faith aspect.  When I was a child we sang a little chorus that began "dare to be a Daniel", referring to the Jewish leader who refused to bow down before King Nebuchadnezzar. He was thrown into a den of lions but was miraculously delivered. I've altered that first phrase in recognition of Danielle. Thank God for people with  moral fortitude in the midst of the lions of corruption. 

 Here is a portion of an opinion piece from the New York Times written by retired rabbi Jeffrey Salkin:

In late January, Danielle R. Sassoon, who was serving as the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, had a meeting with Adams’ lawyers and Emil Bove, the Justice Department official who ordered her to drop the case. 

She refused and wrote a remarkable letter, in which she explained why the prosecution of Adams was justified. The order to dismiss the case was “inconsistent with my ability and duty to prosecute federal crimes without fear or favor and to advance good-faith arguments before the courts,” she said.

Instead of complying with the order, she resigned her position, as did the officials who oversaw the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section, Kevin O. Driscoll and John Keller. Now, it is up to a Manhattan federal judge whether to drop the corruption case against Adams. 

Sassoon is not only a moral hero for America. She is a modern Jewish heroine as well.

She grew up Orthodox and is a product of the Ramaz School in New York City, where she excelled in Talmud. Studying at Harvard University, she held a leadership position with Harvard Students for Israel, according to a profile in The New York TiAs a conservative, and as a Trump appointee, Sassoon might have been expected to remain mute and simply follow orders. She did not. 

In her decision, she relied on American legal precedent. But she did so, consciously or not, by drawing on her Jewish background. “I have always considered it my obligation to pursue justice impartially, without favor to the wealthy or those who occupy important public office, or harsher treatment for the less powerful,” she said.

In her heroism, she channeled the words of this week’s Torah portion: “Do not take bribes, for bribes blind the clear-sighted and upset the pleas of those are in the right” (Exodus 23:8). Liberal Jews love the phrase from Deuteronomy 16:11, “Justice, justice you shall pursue.” But we rarely have seen justice pursued as effectively as we did this past week. 

Still Winter, or Spring Deferred?

 

2 Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,

sun, moon, and stars in their courses above

join with all nature in manifold witness

to thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.  R

From the hymn Great is Thy Faithfulness 

There are people I follow on social media in Great Britain whom I appreciate for a variety of reasons. I do get tetchy at times when they wax on about the change of seasons with crocuses and blue bells in profusion while we are still in the heart of Winter here in Canada. Even when Spring officially rolls around in March it is usually a matter of wishful thinking rather than observable fact in many places in this country. I got an email from British illustrator/artist Angela Harding yesterday about her new book in a series on the seasons called Spring Unfurled and I wondered if someone should create a Spring Deferred version for Canada. 

I'm almost reluctant to admit that we have been thrilled by the sustained Winter since the beginning of the New Year. There has been a lot of grumbling about the snowy, cold February but we've been happy.  Ruth has achieved the trifecta of skating, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing and I've participated in the latter two. We've gone on walks in the woods following snowfalls that were enchanting in sight and sound. It is a different auditory experience to walk in a forest in Winter. While we are weeks (let's hope not months) away from those crocuses or woodland trilliums it was thrilling to see a pair of bald eagles back at their nest adjacent to the frozen Moira River earlier this month.

                                                                         Japanese Micro-Seasons

I do like that while Japan has four distinct seasons corresponding with ours, according to traditional Japanese calendars, the year is actually divided into 72 "micro-seasons" which offer a much more nuanced view of seasonal changes throughout the year. 

It is readily observable around us that seasons are becoming more unpredictable in Canada. One of our micro-seasons could be Maple Syrup but producers are well aware that climate change has turned the once regular rhythms of the late Winter, early Spring, into a crapshoot for the flow of sugary sap. Scientists still don't know how the ascent of sap in trees works and for me it is one of the quiet miracles of the natural world. That it can be harvested without harming the trees and become the perfect companion of pancakes is almost beyond comprehension. 

I will continue to mutter and roll my eyes about the Brits singing the praises of Spring but the seasons are a wonder of Creation and paying attention to the changes is an act of prayer. 

                                      Old Man Navigating Deep Snow N of Sharbot Lake on Weekend

                          Plucky Snowshoeing Wife of Old Man Beside Canada's Mississippi River

A Grim Anniversary in Ukraine

 

Loving God,

We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.

We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.

We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.

May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.

Amen.   (Catholic Agency for Overseas Development) 

The Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, was in Ukraine today for the grim anniversary of Russia's unwarranted and unlawful invasion of its neighbour three years ago. He was there to renew support and pledge more pracitcal help for beleaguered Ukraine. Somehow this much smaller country (pop. 38 million) has repelled the forces of Russia (144 million) when many of us figured the conquest would take a matter of days. We got an idea of Ukrainian resolve almost immediately with images of farmers towing Russian tanks that had been abandoned. 

I grieve for the people of Ukraine, for lost lives and disruption of everyday life, for those who are living in exile and wonder if they will ever go home. I pray for the soldiers on both sides who live in a constant state of anxiety and fear. 

While we know that this is a war of aggression by Russia we can mourn the deaths of roughly 100,000 Russian soldiers, many of whom were sent into the fray without adequate training or even knowing what they were fighting for. We've learned over time that daily life in Russia has remained unchanged in large portions of the country and in cities. Recruits have been drawn from rural and impoverished areas. The senselessness of it all, the vanity of the dictator Putin, is staggering. 

Now another dictator-in-waiting is withdrawing support from Ukraine and attempting to orchestrate a cessation in fighting that is not peace in any real way. The Emperor Trump has declared Ukraine's President Zelensky a dictator and insists that Ukraine started the war. I'm glad to see that the United Nations has rejected a US resolution to end the conflict without noting Russian aggression. 

We can pray that there will not be a fourth anniversary of the commencement of the war because honset and lasting peace has finally been achieved.  

We can also pray for faith leaders in Ukraine who are presiding at the funerals of the innocent and warriors and are attempting to be Christ's presence in the midst of hell on Earth. 

Praying for Pope Francis

 

                                                                          

                                                                             Pope Francis

Since we saw the film Conclave in the theatre we've talked about watching it again. On one level it is a story of unholy intrigue after the death of a pope. Who was the actor who played a pontifical corpse for a matter of seconds in the film? (answer: Bruno Novelli). The conclave of the title is the gathering of cardinals from around the world at the Vatican to elect a new pope. There is plenty of jostling, along with genuine and false modesty about even being considered a candidate. 

As I wrote a while ago, Ralph Fiennes is perfect as the dean who is struggling with his own faith, the efficacy of prayer and the reality of doubt. Stanley Tucci is great as well, the liberal candidate who upholds the deceased left-leaning popes values regarding women in leadership, LGBTQ2S persons, interfaith dialogue...the list goes on. There is a glowering conservative candidate who wants to go to figurative war with Muslims and another who is sure gay persons are going to hell.

Conclave has already won a Bafta Award for Best Picture and is on the list for the Academy Awards. Perhaps they should create a new category for Best Picture Reflecting Current Events? Conclave would be there given that Pope Francis, the current left-leaning pontiff who is despised by conservatives is very ill with pneumonia. Francis is 88 years old and has a history of respiratory illnesses. He has recovered a number of times during his 12-year pontificate but this could be his final chapter. 

Recently Pope Francis added his forceful voice in support of American bishops who are resisting the cruel deportation of migrants under the Trump administration. I admire them greatly, and God bless Francis for being outspoken. If this is his last official statement it would be a fitting coda for his papacy. 

This year, 2025, also marks the 10th anniversary for Laudato Si: On Care for our Common. T Home. This was Francis' environmental encyclical which is still the most thoughtful Christian statement from a denomination on the subject that I've read. It will be celebrated through this year and it deserves our consideration. During Lent I'll be leading a three-part study on Laudato Si a decade after I did during Creation Time of 2015. 

We all die, and Pope Francis has led a remarkable life. I would prefer that it would be later rather than sooner but none of us knows the hour or the day. We can pray that he experiences peace, an absence of pain, and the fortitude he has exhibited along the way. 

Here are four of the points Francis included in his letter to the bishops:

2. These words with which I begin are not an artificial construct. Even a cursory examination of the Church’s social doctrine emphatically shows that Jesus Christ is the true Emmanuel (cf. Mt 1:23); he did not live apart from the difficult experience of being expelled from his own land because of an imminent risk to his life, and from the experience of having to take refuge in a society and a culture foreign to his own. The Son of God, in becoming man, also chose to live the drama of immigration. I like to recall, among other things, the words with which Pope Pius XII began his Apostolic Constitution on the Care of Migrants, which is considered the “Magna Carta” of the Church’s thinking on migration:

“The family of Nazareth in exile, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, emigrants in Egypt and refugees there to escape the wrath of an ungodly king, are the model, the example and the consolation of emigrants and pilgrims of every age and country, of all refugees of every condition who, beset by persecution or necessity, are forced to leave their homeland, beloved family and dear friends for foreign lands.” [2]

3. Likewise, Jesus Christ, loving everyone with a universal love, educates us in the permanent recognition of the dignity of every human being, without exception. In fact, when we speak of “infinite and transcendent dignity,” we wish to emphasize that the most decisive value possessed by the human person surpasses and sustains every other juridical consideration that can be made to regulate life in society. Thus, all the Christian faithful and people of good will are called upon to consider the legitimacy of norms and public policies in the light of the dignity of the person and his or her fundamental rights, not vice versa.

4. I have followed closely the major crisis that is taking place in the United States with the initiation of a program of mass deportations. The rightly formed conscience cannot fail to make a critical judgment and express its disagreement with any measure that tacitly or explicitly identifies the illegal status of some migrants with criminality. At the same time, one must recognize the right of a nation to defend itself and keep communities safe from those who have committed violent or serious crimes while in the country or prior to arrival. That said, the act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families, and places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defenselessness.

An Icon of Hope in Turbulent Times

 

[Jesus] put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field;  it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” Matthew 13: 31-32 NRSVue 

Over time I have shared thought-provoking icons created by Kelly Latimore, images that can be purchased through his website: 

https://kellylatimoreicons.com/ 

The one above reflects a parable of Jesus found in three of the gospels and while Latimore 

has chosen Luke as his inspiration I've included the passage from Matthew. His accompanying 

reflection on X -- yes, the X owned by Emperor Mump -- is hopeful and uplifting in turbulent times. 

Kelly Latimore Icons

@KLICONS

It has been a long month. Thinking on everything, I keep coming back to this passage. How do we respond in this time of unrest, fear, and feelings of hopelessness? Jesus’ vision of a new community…. “Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches.” Luke 13:18-19 Jesus’ parables are one of the ways Jesus trains his disciples. The parables, like the sermon on the mount, have always been crucial for the church to imagine the kind of community it is called to be. We discover again and again that Jesus’ parables significance points to everyday life. The parables are meant to be lived. The original audience may have been perplexed by this story. They would have known that no-one would intentionally plant a mustard shrub. In fact, the Jewish Mishnah forbade the growing of mustard seeds in the garden because they were ‘useless annoying weeds’. In the Hebrew Scriptures the “birds of the air” can be a reference to Gentiles/Non-Jews, the foreigner. This parable suggests that the kingdom of heaven is available to everyone. Even those who may be considered outsiders or not “Worthy”. Jesus is calling us to see the significance in the insignificant. The parables of the kingdom of heaven make clear that the kingdom of heaven is not “up there”. Through the parables Jesus is teaching us to “be for the world the material reality of the kingdom of heaven brought down to earth.” As Jesus is himself the parable of the father so the church is meant to be the parable of Christ. A people in space and time welcoming the outcast, the foreigner, and the stranger. These kind of communities will look like unwanted weeds to the world, or even to other christians. However, this may be exactly the church Jesus is asking us to embody. Keep going. Keep showing up to the places where you feel loved. All of the birds in this icon are native to the Holy Land Prints, Digital Downloads, And limited edition wood prints! http://kellylatimoreicons.com

The Pitt, Love & Forgiveness

"I love you, thank you, I'm sorry, please forgive me." 

 Have any of you been watching the medical drama series called The Pitt? It stars Noah Wyle who you might remember from the ER series that began 30 years ago. Back then he was the wide-eyed student doctor while in The Pitt he is the grizzled veteran, although they are different characters. Thes two series are set in hospital emergency rooms but the premise is different, with each episode of The Pitt representing an hour in the hectic day, and a number of the cases overlapping. The estate of ER creator Michael Crichton figures that there isn't enough of a difference and is suing. 

While we immediately noticed the similarities (we were big fans back in the day) we were also aware of what seemed to be much greater detail to the actual medical procedures. It turns out that doctors would agree. Physicians who roll their eyes at other medical dramas are struck by the accuracy of The Pitt, to the degree that some can't watch because it's too close to home. There is a large team of medical experts making sure they get every scene right. 

While this is impressive, so is the human aspect of the stories that unfold, and some of them are moving. Two middle-aged siblings, brother and sister, wrestle with what to do when their elderly father is brought to the ER in medical distress due to health issues related to his advanced age. Despite his "do not resuscitate" directive one of them doesn't want to let go. 

Dr. Rabinovitch (Noah Wyle) does his best to provide solace and advice in the midst of the pressing needs around him. He asks if they would like a social worker or spiritual support and the sister/daughter offers an emphatic "no religion!" So he suggests a phrase from the Hawaiian spiritual practice of Ho'oponopono (new to me.) It is "I love you, thank you, I'm sorry, please forgive me." Of course, this resonates with Christian sensibilities and the gospel message of love and forgiveness. The way these siblings engage in speaking each of these with their personal reflections is powerful. 

Leave-taking at the end of life is important if we have the opportunity to do so. When I did a series on grief at Trenton United a few months ago it was well attended and in moments conversation was emotional and holy. Whether it is before the end or after we need to approach dying with honesty and reverence. 

The Pitt does so in another episode as well, this one with a young person, but I'll let you seek out the series rather than describe it!

Trump Faucets & the Holy Spigot

It has been cold and snowy in our part of the world and while this is Canada and winter we've been lulled into thinking that this sort of weather may be a memory rather than a present seasonal reality. Waterways are frozen and while we're warned that "no ice is safe ice" the ice huts abound and lakes have become roadways for snow machines. This is one aspect of the abundance of water in this country, While the notion of the Trinity as liquid, vapour, and ice hasn't caught on as a metaphor, it suits our climate.

We might do some fervent praying to God-in-Three-Persons given that President Trump is enamoured of the water resources in Canada, the sovereign country he has taken to describing as the 51st state. While it's heartening to see Canadians rallying together to resist his arrogant and insulting rhetoric it's not as though we didn't see the warning signs during his election campaign. In September 2024 he mused:

“You have millions of gallons of water pouring down from the north with the snow caps and Canada, and all pouring down and they have essentially a very large faucet,”...“You turn the faucet and it takes one day to turn it, and it’s massive, it’s as big as the wall of that building right there behind you. You turn that, and all of that water aimlessly goes into the Pacific (Ocean), and if they turned it back, all of that water would come right down here and right into Los Angeles...”

That supposedly aimless water is flowing along the Columbia River and Trump, expert hydrologist that he is, figures that sending it from snow-capped Canada to drought-stricken areas of the States makes sense. Sure, this sounds bizarre to us Canucks, but each cray-cray idea has to get in the queue with this self-proclaimed genius. At the time of the faucet comment I said to long-suffering Ruth that I wouldn't be surprised if Trump was serious. 

The CBC just shared a worthwhile article about the long history of water agreements between Canada and the US and how these pacts are more important than ever as the climate change Trump denies results in droughts and uncertainty. The piece begins: 

Water sharing between Canada and the United States has long been a contentious issue. In 2005, former Alberta premier Peter Lougheed warned against sharing Canada's water supply with the United States, suggesting Alberta's most important resource was water, not oil and gas. "We should communicate to the United States very quickly how firm we are about it," Lougheed said.

Well, Loughheed got that right. There have been proposals for continent wide water diversion since the 1950s and none of them came to fruition. 

I've mentioned attending a week-long residential seminar at Ghost Ranch Centre in the high desert of New Mexico back in 2015 called Water and the Baptismal Life. I was the only Canadian amidst 30 participants as we considered how water has been reduced to a resource and commodity, along with its symbolic and sacramental nature for Christians. These few days were stimulating and I appreciated the leaders and the other attendees. I was also keenly aware that the "big straw" extended northward from states suffering from water scarcity. 

I'm going to revisit my notes from that week and the document issued by a dozen Roman Catholic bishops in Canada and the US in 2001 called The Columbia River Watershed: Caring for Creation and the Common Good. The bishops offer these wise words in the introduction:

. . .because we have become concerned about regional economic and ecological conditions and the conflicts over them in the watershed...We address this letter to our Catholic community and to all people of good will. We hope that we might work together to develop and implement an integrated spiritual, social and ecological vision for our watershed home, a vision that promotes justice for people and stewardship of creation.

For all of Trump's wild claims about massive faucets, I'm with the wisdom of the bishops. Perhaps the president could haul in some icebergs from Greenland instead. 

As I write about faucets a hilarious scene from the film Four Weddings and a Funeral comes to mind. Rowan Atkinson plays a nervous, newby priest who makes endless mistakes through a marriage ceremony, including blessing the couple with "in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spigot." 

May the Holy Spigot shower us with blessings us and be our raincoat of protection from the Orange Menace, a false faucet if there ever was one.