Gathering by Candlelight
Author Archives: Gillian
Synod
The Anglican Diocese of British Columbia had its synod this past weekend. I was not a delegate so I didn’t sit in on the endless hours of debates, but several friends did. They were tweeting the proceedings so the rest of us could keep up. And then there were the post-synod meetings in the pub to debrief…
Another result of this is a lot of press across the country: everyone is looking at the Diocese of BC to see how we handle our report suggesting church closures. We are the first diocese to really tackle these changes head-on. Another friend has been involved in the process and was interviewed in the Globe and Mail today. He talks about himself and others tweeting synod. (As well as talking about more serious and important things!)
The Primate was in town for synod, as was Sr Elizabeth Ann of the Sisters of St John the Divine. Friend and priest of a church slated to close made a presentation at synod about a group I’ve been involved with getting established. Exciting times may be ahead.
He drew a circle that shut me out
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout
But love and I had the wit to win;
We drew a circle that took him in
Edwin Markham
Conference
Apparently when Brian McLaren does something like link to your website from his, your daily site views jump approximately 3200%. Hopefully some of those result in registrations!
PS – you want to be here, so register soon because we’re expecting it to fill up before the early-bird deadline!
More Talk, Less Action. Or…
If there is one thing I cannot stand, it is talk without action. If you say you are going to do something, kindly follow through. If you are involved in something with me, please do not back out and leave me to finish everything, because I will make sure it is done and done well. It would be much nicer (not to mention less stressful) to not have to do it all on my own.
Additionally, if we are contemplating social change, stop talking about the nebulous “we” or “they.” Who is that? What that does do is remove the responsibility from each individual person. Lets stop talking about all of the things that need to happen and all of the things that should be done. Instead, don’t wait for “we” or “they” to act and do something yourself. You. Just one person. You might not have an immediate impact on a global scale, but do you really need to? There is plenty to be done on a local scale. Who knows, you might even inspire people to join you and soon you’d have a movement.
Friday Photo
Vancouver Science World lit up with the inukshuk beach in the foreground. Next time, I’ll bring a tripod.
The Season of Lent: Add More Things
Why do we, in the church community, see the need to add more to our lives during special seasons? Each Advent and Lent, I get overwhelmed by the multitude of activities available to me to help my spiritual/personal growth. Yet at the same time, we are told that these seasons are supposed to be times of renewal and reflection. Maybe I am alone in this, but I find it hard to reflect and meditate when I am constantly “doing.” Adding more to my life will not give me the increased time I need to have a meaningful contemplative lifestyle. I think that these studies are wonderful, but my real spiritual growth comes out of reflection on God, not endless discussion of some theological truth.
At the same time, these interesting studies seem to only come around during seasons like Advent and Lent, when there are already extra services at church, so it would be a shame not to take advantage of them. (Though this year I am leading a Lenten study at the Cathedral, so I can’t really get around that one.) Wouldn’t it be nice if we had our studies during Ordinary Time so we would be free to reflect and restore ourselves during Lent? Or, wouldn’t it be nice if, instead of an intense study, we had meditation time set aside during Lent. Just a thought.
Hockey
From Flowing Data
Oh, Canada
I ended up going to Vancouver this weekend. It was grey and overcast, misting here and there, so the crowds weren’t as huge as they could have been.
I loved walking around downtown Vancouver and seeing clusters of people around televisions in storefronts. At one point, we passed the Bell Pavilion and there were about 25 people standing outside watching the Gold Medal game for Women’s Curling. Canada scored a point and the crowed erupted.
I was outside watching the big screen with many others as Canada’s men beat the Slovaks and advance with the gold medal game. The skytrain stations were nuts – all you needed to do was yell “Go Canada” and the place would erupt.
This afternoon, I had symphony tickets for a concert that began before the Gold Medal Men’s Hockey game was over. I was late – I watched until the end of regulation time and decided I couldn’t deal with overtime so I went to the concert. At the intermission, an usher whispered to one person that Canada had won and soon everyone was clapping. I checked my phone, and sure enough, a text message: “Crosby scored in OT. We won.”
After intermission, the conductor walked on stage and, before he had even reached his podium to introduce the next piece, the percussion began to play. Soon the entire 40-piece symphony was standing and playing O Canada. The audience stood and sang along. Leaving the theatre, suddenly there were people on streets that had previously been empty. Car horns were honking and people were waving flags and shouting.
Suddenly, a country that is proud, but reserved and quiet, is not ashamed to show their pride in a real, in-your-face sort of way. Any statistic that can be shown to promote Canada and exclaim our brilliance has been promoted by CTV and other news. Canadians have taken to the streets en masse proclaiming their pride in their athletes and their countries. Humble national pride? No, now we are a loud and proud country. And we rule the hockey rink.
Oh, Canada.
cool, dark, and damp air
sweet fragrances gently waft
pink cherry blossoms
gillian's island 