Reporting back on the day at Our Saviour, ABQ

The full report is on the church blog. Then, as I came home and began to rest my weary body (though I was not doing the heavy lifting, all those other folks were), I got an e-mail that Integrity of the Four Corners offered Evening Prayer today and took up a collection and are sharing part of that with Our Saviour, Albuquerque. Remember how, in the early church, offerings were shared about the Eastern Mediterranean by personal messenger? Well, this gift will be brought in person to Our Saviour a week from tomorrow.

I don't know about y'all but it makes me very aware, and humbled, to feel in continuity with the early church.

Comforting and disturbing thoughts flit through my head. Today I was carrying a hammer from my car back to the church. My new hammer is at home but this is an old one. It was one of my father's hammers. He was a builder and his father was a builder. They helped build schools, churches, houses, and mountain cabins. I felt a link with them for a few moments, though I am anything but "handy." A few moments ago, following on this memory, I thought of Jesus' words to Francis: "rebuild my church." It was not, of course, a physical building that Francis helped rebuild but the larger church. Feeling linked to something that awesome is, well, kind of terrifying. Of course, we are talking about the Episcopal Church in the South Valley, not the church universal. But every part of Christ's Body is equal to every other part and affects the whole.

Feeling kind of small tonight. But hopeful.

Peace be with you all this night.

--the BB

Drought, unemployment, hunger....

I just noticed this post at Daily Kos. I am a child of the San Joaquin Valley. I ask your prayers.

We all know the State of California is in a bad situation. Among the wildfires, and budget crisis there is more trouble brewing in the Central Valley. The state has declared all of the San Joaquin Valley a disaster area due to drought. The valley is the agriculture capital of California, and with the drought at a crisis point thousands of farmers, and farm workers are finding themselves out of work. Recently, Fresno County asked our Community Food Bank to provide emergency food relief to families in 5 rural communities that were hit the hardest: Mendota, San Joaquin, Firebaugh, Selma, and Huron. $4 million worth of food was donated to help with this relief.

With all of that food, there is no reason to be turning away hungry families, but THEY ARE. Not from a lack of food, but from a lack of volunteers. If you or your friends live in or near the California Central Valley we desperately need your help.

...

If you can help volunteer, know someone who can volunteer, or can help recruit volunteers please contact HandsOn Central California immediately!

To Volunteer Call: (559) 237-3101 or email vols4disaster@handsoncentralcal.org

For more information visit: www.handsoncentralcal.org

--ace7521

[Emphasis mine]

We're all overdue for a happy story

I know that I have had a sense that I am posting nothing but horrible news here, with all the atrocities (literally and figuratively) that need to be noted. It gets to be too much. So, when my friend Kathy sent this to me in e-mail, I asked if I could share it and she said, Yes.

I noticed a lady in her shiny new pickup truck had rolled to a stop just a few feet away from our parking lot; she was still on Louisiana and blocking traffic. Some guy stopped and talked to her, then moved on. I rounded up one of guys at my office, called somebody else to take care of the phones and he and I went out and started pushing the lady's truck. Our efforts were hampered by the fact that she understood very little English and neither of us spoke Spanish. She couldn't grasp the fact that it had to be in neutral for us to push it.

A guy on the street stopped and jumped out to help. Some other guy, coming into our building ran across the parking lot to help. And finally, my boss, arriving back from an appointment, got on the deal. We pushed her up into the parking lot; she told me she needed water, she thought. I fetched water and an employee arrived to pick up his check who spoke Spanish; he went out with her, got water into the pickup and she drove away.

Now THAT is community in action!

Let's all remember that people usually want to be helpful and that we have opportunities to build a web of compassion and kindness every day.
--the BB

Stand by your blog vicar!-Updated

UPDATE:

As FranIAm put it, "He lives! Praise God. The flap is over and MP will continue to enlighten, enliven and occasionally annoy from OCICBW."

Mad Priest began today with this, much to our relief:
DIARY ENTRY: 24TH. JANUARY 2008
Okay, my friends. Panic over.

In fact, I feel a little disappointed. My ego has been dented. They had received only three ANONYMOUS complaints (I would have thought I was worth more than that). One about me putting swear words into Benny's mouth, one about the unnamed Bishop of Horsham and one about me saying that Muhammad had committed genocide and enslaved Jewish women and children and taken one Jewish teenager as his own concubine (which is out of the Islamic history books). To be honest they were more worried about me being blown up than they were about anything else. No conditions were placed on the continuation of the blog. I was given the facts and, obviously, I have to decide for myself how to proceed. That is a very adult and civilised way of doing things. I am fine with it.

On a personal note, the only thing I'm disappointed with is that they don't seem to be able to discern how a priest who is able to put together a blog like this could be used in the diocese - possibly in respect of some sort of emerging church project. It still looks like I'll be packed off to the middle of nowhere, to a church with a regular congregation of about 20 and no toilet (let alone a hall). To even get to the first stages of mission in such a place will take years of paperwork and money raising and I'm an ideas person not an accountant (not even an accountant who has ideas).

Anyway, enough about me - let the game continue.

POSTED BY MADPRIEST AT 9:59 AM

Our friend and online vicar, Jonathan (aka Mad Priest, as it flatters his ego), has put up a cryptic post. It seems related to church politics on his local level. Major prayer vigils going on. Hold him with love before God, my friends. He has gathered a global community of God's odd children, introduced us to each other, entertained us, provoked us, informed us, challenged us, driven us more than half crazy with terrible "Christmas" "music," and generally done a lot of Holy Ghost work on the internet. He has created a safe place to be lovingly, creatively, and passionately outrageous... and in the process to grow in grace.

THE LAST POST?
The agenda from my part is first and foremost just to keep in touch though I would like to talk about your internet work too.

Thursday 9.00 a.m.

Pray for the future of OCICBW...

POSTED BY MADPRIEST AT 11:57 PM

For those who Influence Public Opinion

Almighty God, you proclaim your truth in every age by many voices: Direct, in our time, we pray, those who speak where many listen and write what many read; that they may do their part in making the heart of this people wise, its mind sound, and its will righteous; to the honor of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience
O God our Father, whose Son forgave his enemies while he was suffering shame and death: Strengthen those who suffer for the sake of conscience; when they are accused, save them from speaking in hate; when they are rejected, save them from bitterness; when they are imprisoned, save them from despair; and to us your servants, give grace to respect their witness and to discern the truth, that our society may be cleansed and strengthened. This we ask for the sake of Jesus Christ, our merciful and righteous Judge. Amen.

[Not that I wish to invoke images of prison but I do think the collect remains apt. OCICBW]
--the BB