Attacks in Turkey

There was an attack on the American Consulate in Istanbul today. No Americans were hurt, but at least six people (including the attackers) were killed in the firefight.

A group of unidentified gunmen opened fire on Turkish security guards outside the United States Consulate in Istanbul on Wednesday, the Turkish authorities said, and at least three police officers and three assailants were killed in a brief gun battle. Officials said that a fourth assailant escaped.

The late-morning attack was the first on a diplomatic mission in the city since 2003 when 62 people were killed in assaults on the British consulate, a bank and two synagogues. While the motives behind this attack were not immediately clear, Turkish officials described the gunmen as terrorists. (source)

We've been advised to wear Canadian flag bins while we're in the country. I suppose bad things happen everywhere. Life is risk.

-t

Life Without the Wife

We had a long but great staff meeting today. I'm really happy having Kerrie on board--she fits the team perfectly. We spent about three hours hashing through all kinds of projects. One of the things that made me really happy was the large amount of time spent on strategic initiatives--for instance, we are already talking about a meeting we will have in September to plan the year's calendar. The result of a more strategic view is much more room for creativity and exploration. I'm loving it. Things are flowing nicely! I would be interested to read a study about how time is spent in staff meetings. Intuitively, I would think about third of the time should be spent talking about the past, a third on the future, and a third on the present.

Betsy is getting along fine in Belfast. We have been talking on Skype and it works well for us. I even get to see a video feed from the camera on her laptop. She is still getting used to the time difference.

I've logged about 20 hours on Grand Theft Auto--which has gotten me about 25% through the game. I have to say that it gets more entertaining as it goes along and one learns the fundamental skills of the game (driving and shooting, mostly). The missions become more challenging and more interesting.

I'm also still mind-boggled at the amount of detail in the game. For instance, I took a character to a comedy club to earn their friendship, and Ricky Gervais did a stand up routine. Yes, the real voice and routine of Ricky Gervais. How's that for random?

Otherwise, I'm surviving Betsy's absence okay. I do miss her, though. I keep thinking I'm going to see her at the end of the day...

-t

Bede and Benny Hinn

Bede's blog last week in which he talked about the dead with honesty sparked some predictable controversy about what is appropriate to talk about and what isn't. This is particularly relevant for us bloggers, as the competing goods of privacy and openness contend in the fields of inquiry. Bede's take on this is that in our culture we tend to suppress the "negative" rather than engage it fruitfully:

"I haven't got time for the pain" says the familiar commercial. But what happens when I do the unthinkable and take time for the pain? Well, just to give one man's testimony, when I learned to take time for the pain of a headache a whole area of my life opened up. I saw directly the ways in which I create tension for myself and how my body responds by trying to get me to stop doing this destructive thing to myself. My headaches, particularly the ones that start at the crown of my head and radiate through my neck and down into my back, have become friends instead of enemies, because they warn me that I am harming myself. And this happened just because I took some time and some openness with something that isn't positive. The same is true with death. Those kids need to know about death, and so do we all. We need to know that we aren't going to live for ever in this particular life, and that our time is limited and we don't have any of it to squander. This sense of limitation can push us to open ourselves to each moment and to be alive to what can be accomplished now. It can expand our lives in countless ways. (source)

I agree. A lot of what passes for "being polite" is actually an effort to avoid unpleasantness. But unpleasantness is part of life (and, for that matter, ministry). Overcoming this takes patience and training. Prayer is one way. But I know so many people that pray thinking that they know what the answer to their prayer ought to be and thus they are disappointed. Maybe God has something better in store for your headache than it's remission!

I'm troubled when I see this resistance to God-given-reality manifest in religion. Take Benny Hinn, for example. Got diabetes? If you believe in Benny Hinn and send him money, God might cure you. If not, then you didn't believe enough. This guy feasts on people's inability to let God be God. I'm all for healing prayer--but this guy isn't interested in real healing. (BTW, it's amusing to read the TON of websites that document his various frauds, unfulfilled prophesies, investigations, and heretical theology.) But I digress. The point is, pay attention!

-t

Pray for Lambeth

Lambeth is fast approaching. Here's a prayer written by Province I (New England)--just replace the italic section with your favorite judicatory, rinse and repeat:

Gracious and loving God, whom we know as the God of justice, peace and reconciliation and who alone can order the affections of your people, be present with those assembled in prayer, study, worship and converse at this fourteenth decennial Lambeth Conference.

Watch with them in their daily round. Lend your Holy Spirit to the diverse minds, tongues and interpretations of Scripture gathered there that they might seek to strengthen the bonds which unite us and seek to dispel those things that divide and separate us. Let flow the balm of mutual respect which brings a realization that unity does not require uniformity, nor that such unity is achieved at the cost and sacrifice of your great gift of diversity.

Give to the bishops, spouses and other attendees, especially those from Province One of the Episcopal Church, strength to witness to the wholeness of all your creation and people, including our brother Gene who has been excluded and relegated to the margins of this gathering. Help them to raise clear voices as they seek to engage others in dialogue. Also give them open hearts as they listen to other nderstandings of your purpose and will for your people.

As we keep vigil here at home, strengthen us in that deep sense of solidarity which upholds us in the fellowship of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord and Savior in whose Holy name we pray. Amen. (source)

-t

Birthday Aftermath

The birthday dinner was great. The lobster, which I got from that fish place in Scrivener Square, was unusually tender and succulent for an inland find. But I suspect this store turns them over frequently enough. I went to the LCBO next door with a gift card someone gave me that was quickly converted into bubbly. Champagne, I find, is great with nearly anything, but especially with lobster or pizza. Our neighbors brought over some dessert, not even knowing it was my birthday, so that was perfect.

The next day I worked some and then took Betsy to the airport to go to Belfast. I have word that she arrived safe and sound. We plan to talk with Skype while she's away.

I pooled together some of the gift money given me for my birthday to buy a Playstation 3. Needless to say, since Betsy's been gone I've been spending many hours driving around the streets of Liberty City. The world of Grand Theft Auto IV is incredibly elaborate--besides being able to drive around, of course, you can also take a Taxi or even use the city subway! Although I've playing for hours, I've barely explored beyond the game's version of Brooklyn. The storyline is interesting and the character well-written--no wonder this game has gotten record-breaking reviews.

No wonder that my sermon for today was about the importance of play in the spiritual life. I think most North American adults probably play too little.

-t

Birthday

What am I doing for my birthday this year? Honestly, not much. Since Betsy is leaving for Belfast tomorrow we thought we'd spend tonight together. (There will be time for parties after she's gone--just kidding.) So I think I'll pick up some lobster on the way home. Lobster on your birthday is a Moss family tradition that betrays our New England roots.

The congregation gave me a very nice card signed by everyone. I especially appreciated the short notes of encouragement written by people whom I serve. Also, today I received a touchingly personal gift from someone I admire. It actually made me cry because I knew that it was a gift coming from a very deep place in this person's heart.

But although I didn't do much to celebrate today, I did get to go sailing yesterday, which was a big treat. I went with a friend after work on his Nonsuch (a type of Catboat) around the Toronto Islands. I'm more familiar with sloops like the one my grandparents owned (the Aka Maka--a clipper-rigged wood-hulled boat) or the one my father had a time share on in Seattle (a 40-something foot Catalina). Because the Nonsuch doesn't have a jib (the sail in the front of the mast), it's much simpler to sail than the multi-sail sloops (or or even the small but crazy-busy cockpit of an Albicore). In fact, the original concept of the Nonsuch was that they be easy to manage single-handed yet have a descent cabin size. Although I'm a novice sailor, I noticed right away that this boat was lighter in weight and much faster to come about than the slightly longer, heavier boats I've sailed in the past.

This was something of a shakedown cruise, so we did encounter a few small technical challenges, but nothing we couldn't overcome. As luck would have it, we had an excellent wind for most of the trip. I had the con for various periods, including bringing her back through the Island channels to her slip under power. I must say, despite my lack of experience I feel completely at home behind the wheel. Perhaps it's inherited memory? I felt incredible peace charging through Ontario swells in a 13 knot wind. Happiness is a well-trimmed boat.

-t

Prayer of the Week - Pentecost 8

Beloved Parishioners,

As the summer shines many of us are getting the chance to have some much overdue playtime. For kids that means camps and sleep-overs and the chance to travel with their parents to see relatives and new places. For grownups the chance to play is a welcome relief: trips to exotic places or to enjoy friendships formed over many years. Some will escape the pressure of work to see nature and live simply. Others will see the best Toronto has to offer down at the waterfront or the city islands or Nathan Phillips Square or by catching a summer concert. Whatever form your play takes this summer, know that the Lord plays with you!

In the Gospel lesson appointed for this Sunday (Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30), Jesus seems frustrated that the people he encountered would not accept with child-like simplicity the truth of the kingdom: "But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon'; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds" (Matt. 11:16-19) Whether God's Word came in the form of flute (Jesus's message of liberation and hope) or wailing (John the Baptist's call to repentance and reconciliation) the people would not listen. Apparently it was the will of God that these things should be hidden from the "wise" and revealed to "infants" (vv. 25-26).
Nor is this the only time our Lord spoke of the need to be child-like in our approach to His Word. In Matthew's eighth chapter he places a child among them and says plainly, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me" (vv. 3-5). Clearly, we can learn a lot from our children.

Perhaps the most important thing children can teach us is how to play. For kids play is absolutely essential to development. With play they rehearse roles and learn about the world through experimentation and fantasy. Adults can do the same. When abandon ourselves to joy and imagination we open ourselves to every possibility the universe has to offer, including the ultimate potential of experiencing closeness with God.

So be playful this summer as though your salvation depended on having a little fun!

Heavenly Father, your Son showed us that the path to you is the way of simplicity and innocence. Help us to play with a child-like spirit in your creation that we may know the joy you intend for us through our adoption as your children. Help us to find the rest that comes from accepting your Son's yoke--for his yoke is easy and burden light. We ask this in His Name, Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

In Christ,
Tay Moss

Yokes--Easy or Otherwise

I'm doing my usual Thursday Sermon Prep Time--that means, among other things, reading the lections for Sunday and then following various threads of inquiry that arise from them. I also read some of my favorite church blogs to see what others have caught hold of in the upcoming lessons. This gem stands out from Jan Richardson's blog, The Painted Prayerbook:

I have to say, too, that I’ve struggled with Jesus’ use of the image of a yoke. On the surface, a yoke connotes bondage, servitude, and the diminishing of freedom and choice. In scanning the Web for images of yokes, however, I realized that I was imagining a single-user yoke, one that someone who has power over us places upon us, something that we have to pull alone. What I found more often on the Web were images of double yokes, designed for working animals to pull in tandem. How might it be to imagine this as the kind of yoke that Jesus was talking about, a yoke that we don’t have to pull alone, a yoke that he wears with us? A yoke not for servitude, not for bondage, but a tool of connection, a way of being in relationship with Christ that makes our work easier, not more difficult. (source)

I never really thought about what Jesus meant by asking us to take on his yoke except as a poetic way of saying burden. But yoking does, indeed, imply sharing the burden. We are yoked to Christ in fruitful, kingdom-building work...

-t

Lambeth's Cartoonist-in-Residence

Regular readers of this blog know Dave Walker as the amusing cartoonist whose work I sometimes post here. He also has a blog that discusses church stuff of interest to him. He is going to be at the Lambeth Conference this year as a kind of Cartoonist-in-Residence.

Check out Dave's famous take on the Windsor Report to get a sense of his style.

BTW, Dave did the illustrations for a new book, What am I Doing Here? A beginner's guide to church.

Nice to know that some people still have a sense of humor.

-t

Wish List...

Today is my birthday. Someone asked me for my current wish list. It is...

1. A PS3
2. An iPod (either the Nano or the Classic) or, dare I ask, an iPhone? (available in Canada starting July 11)
3. A small, CD-playing stereo for my office (with at least one stereo input or an iPod dock) Perhaps something like this. (or even a gift certificate for Bay Bloor Radio)
4. Icons (particularly of Benedict, Mary Magdalene, and St. John the Baptist
5. A nice kitchen timer
6. An LCD Picture Frame

Yes, I know, this is a tech-heavy list. But the fact is that I have plenty of books on my "must-read" shelf and have pretty much everything I "need"--so the only thing left to wish for is stuff that really is just about fun. Nothing wrong with that, right?

-t

Monastic Honesty

In Bede's blog for this week he talks about two Brothers of the Order who died within a week of each other (during the Order's Annual Chapter Meeting, no less): Br Michael Stonebraker and Br Bernard van Waes. Br. Stonebraker, incidentally, spent some time at the Cathedral here in Toronto and is therefore known to many in these parts. But what's striking about Bede's obituary is that it is plainly honest in the scandalous ways that monastics can be:

Contrary to the projections often sent in our direction, the monastic life is no ideal state, freed from the conflicts that everyone else in life faces, and I do my best not to hide either the joys or the trials of our life in this column. These two brothers were greatly talented and marvelously accomplished human beings and many people were genuinely transformed by their ministries. They also had lives that were deeply marked with hostility, anger and chaos, and both they and the community bore those marks as well. All of this we carried through the days of their dying and as we sang the Office of the Dead for each of them, and we carried their lives, and ours, to the altar at the Requiem Eucharists for them. Michael's funeral was done here at West Park in the presence of his community. Bernard's funeral will be July 14 in Santa Barbara. The ashes of both of these brothers will be laid to rest in the columbarium here at West Park where most of the departed members of our community rest. And of course stories will be told about them for many, many years.

May they rest in peace, and rise in glory. (source)

Every day (except on the community's sabbath day--Monday) the community at Holy Cross gathers for a "Chapter" Meeting to discuss house business and various other things that concern the community. One of the traditions at Holy Cross is to remember departed Brothers by reading his obituary at Chapter on the anniversaries of his death. These obituaries are honest and graceful in the same spirit as Bede's writing about Michael and Bernard. Originally the idea, I'm told, was to help newer members of the Order learn about the personalities of the men who went before them. But the tradition is really much powerful than that, I think, because it models a kind of honesty and charity towards people. We remember them as they were, not as we wished them to be.

This can be disturbing. Some might call it baring the dirty laundry, but I think that this is short sighted. The best way to honor the dead is to remember them accurately. Otherwise we are just spinning myths to suit our needs.

-t

Parade Pictures

As promised, here are a few choice shots from the Pride Parade...





BTW, if you didn't know, that's Toronto Mayor David Miller in the middle photograph.

-t