The Mission-Shaped Muffin Pan

My latest column in The Anglican newspaper is out....



There is one typo. Where it reads "St. Luke's" I meant "St. Paul's."

-t

Monday Betsy and I went to the Canadian National Exhibition. This is kind a big-city version of the county fairs I used to go to in Kansas, except here in Toronto at "The Ex," there are a lot fewer animals and 4-H competitions and that sort of thing. I mean, they still have a few cows and chickens and milking demonstrations, but it's much smaller scale than even the smallest county fair in the midwest! Replacing the critters are lots of kiosk versions of various chain restaurants. Lots of fast food. But the grace comes from some of the independent outfits. One such operation providing some very nice BBQ ribs for our lunch. Another provided us with funnel cake for dessert!

We caught a show--an Ice Capades-style extravaganza of singing, skating, and acrobatics that was loosely themed on popular movies like "Top Gun" and "The Godfather." Mostly it was for the kids, but I still enjoyed it!

We picked some cat toys from a very enthusiastic vendor/maker and called it a day. A very enjoyable day.

Heck of softball game in the evening. My team lost, but I played pretty well, including making two nice catches of fly balls. After the game another guy and I started sparring Karate-style for fun. I haven't done this in MANY years, but I held my own pretty well. I got in some nice shots and even threw my opponent (who studies Karate currently) off balance and onto the ground. He came back and pretty soon we were grappling like Judo wrestlers. At that point it took him two or three attempted throws to return the favour! We decided to call it a draw after that. Fun, but exhausting. I also managed to skin my knee pretty badly when I went down. Oh, and I jammed one of my fingers pretty good. There is something very satisfying about having your wife dress your sports wounds! I was quite proud.

All-in-all, a very satisfying day-off!

-t

A Great Sunday

A really good day at church. Lots of stuff going on. For starters, it was Matthew's last Sunday. He has made quite an impression in his two years as Music Director, and the congregation is certainly sad to see him go. He took the opportunity of his last Sunday to make hymn picks that were very indicative of his time with us. I was proud of him, and glad that he has been able to do so much to shape the musical tastes and vocabulary of the parish.

The kids prepared a little surprise for him--a hymn written to celebrate Matthew to the tune of "Lord of the Dance." Very cute. I presented him with a nice framed photograph of Matthew and some of the kids making music with signatures along the matte border. Matthew gave us a framed copy of two pieces of music. One is an anthem he wrote based on the church's history. Another is an Alleluia his mother wrote after being inspired by one of our parishioners. Very nice. I prayed for him using a collect for "Transitions in Ministry" in the Book of Occasional Services.

We also commissioned a new Warden, Caroline. I used a short ceremony that including handing her the keys to the church as a symbol of her ministry. I'm really glad to finally have a third warden, and pleased that my patience in this matter paid off. Sometimes you just have to give the Spirit time!

Preaching was interesting. I decided to go with the Song of Songs and preach about sex. It was a tight, crisp sermon that people seemed to really enjoy. It made me nervous to preach it, however, as I could easily imagine communities that would freak out if the pastor talked this way. I trusted my COTM crew to be cool with it. One of them told me afterwards about how one my predecessors preached about sex at least twice using some very personal anecdotes, so my sermon was entirely non-controversial!

We had a visitor who grew up Pentecostal who also enjoyed the sermon and told me that it was really refreshing to hear something preached that would be impossible to do in her previous community. Sweet. I love that kind of feedback. Anyway, I'm looking forward to posting that sermon soon.

We had cake (it was a "Polychronia Sunday") and coffee and much joy. Many of the kids were back from camps. Came home and fell asleep watching football.

-t

Strollers

Betsy and I are feeling overwhelmed by the possible options for transporting our future gene-bearer in safety and comfort. Options abound. Do we go for the "travel system" that combines stroller and infant car seat? Or do we get a separate stroller and car seat. The problem is quite complex when you start overlapping time lines like "this seat is good to 22-lbs and that stroller can be used starting at 6 months but must be replaced when the kid is 50-lbs. etc. etc." Jogging-style strollers are good in snow (and we'll be dealing with that after the kid is born in December), but they usually don't take infant car seats. Options and combinations proliferate. Making matters more confusing, many of the models are only slightly distinguishable from each other. Sigh!

On Friday we put up book shelves in the ARC and starting sorting through our resources. Lots of great stuff, but we need some money to develop the ARC. We need a computer to catalogue and some money to buy more books. Still no word from the Diocese about the innovative ministry grant we applied for, which means we probably didn't get it. It frustrates me a great deal that something that would so obviously help the Diocese move forward is getting such little support from a Diocesan level. They say they want us to develop parish-level stuff to take the place of services formerly provided by the diocese. Yet our little committee is getting basically no support or even encouragement from the powers-that-be. Cutting edge is figuring out how to work together to do grass-roots development of excellence in parish ministry. Sigh!

Still, it was encouraging to start filling up shelves with books! Yeah, us!

-t

Sermon - Pentecost 12 2009

For my first sermon back from vacation I discussed the "Bread of Life" passages in John's Gospel. I argued that we constantly make choices about whether we encounter God or not, and that the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist, is such a moment of choice.



Here's the audio...


Here's a direct link to the MP3 file...

-t

The Toronto Song

Sometimes Betsy and I have what we call "Canada Moments"--things that strike us a particularly Canadian to remind us that we do live, in fact, in a different country. I mean, so much of what we encounter is pretty much the same as what we would experience in an American city--until a "Canada Moment" comes along.

So here is the hilarious, but totally earnest, song that was selected to be the official song to celebrate Toronto:



Only in Toronto...

-t

Rhetoric...

One of the finest features of a Hampden-Sydney education is the "Rhetoric Requirement." Many Colleges and Universities require students to take composition courses, but rarely do they come anywhere near HSC's rigorous standard. Stanley Fish's latest blog article in the New York Times--What Should Colleges Teach?--gives a sense of state of things elsewhere. Several years ago Fish was disturbed to learn that most of the "composition" courses being taught by graduate students at his University actually taught very little about the craft of writing. The common pattern was for students to discuss something (like an essay, TV show, or controversial topic) and then write about it, however there was little or no instruction in basic grammar or the art of argument.

As I learned more about the world of composition studies I came to the conclusion that unless writing courses focus exclusively on writing they are a sham, and I advised administrators to insist that all courses listed as courses in composition teach grammar and rhetoric and nothing else. This advice was contemptuously dismissed by the composition establishment, and I was accused of being a reactionary who knew nothing about current trends in research. Now I have received (indirect) support from a source that makes me slightly uncomfortable... (source)

At Hampden-Syndney, on the other hand, everyone must prove proficiency in Rhetoric in order to graduate, irregardless of Major. "Proficiency" had two parts: passing a test of pure grammar knowledge and then passing a creative-writing essay test. In other words, you had to be able to prove that you know the rules of grammar and then creatively apply those rules in a cohesive essay. Neither of these tests are easy, the majority of students fail the first (Freshman-year) attempt. Luckily we all have four years to learn and try again. Students that struggle get extra help.

The result is that all Hampden-Sydney graduates (even those majoring in "hard" sciences) have excellent writing skills. At the very least they know what a comma splice looks like! This sensibility seems to pervade the academic culture across disciplines at Hampden-Syndney: you were expected to write well (and correctly) in all your course work.

When I was a Teaching Assistant at Yale for an undergraduate course I was shocked at how poor writing is tolerated. All kinds of mistakes would be passed back to the students without a jot of red ink. I made it a point of principle to take to time to at least note the mistakes. How else will they learn? Many of my colleagues at the graduate level discovered they had a lot to learn about how to write, as well.

So Stanley Fish's argument that basic composition courses should focus on basic composition rings true to my experience. I am thankful that my Liberal Arts education put so much emphasis on something as foundational as writing!

-t

First Sunday Back 2009

I was really glad to be back at the helm in church today. Even though I've been away for a month I snapped right back into familiar patterns. People were glad to see us, too. I'm really getting excited about this upcoming year at COTM!

I think I'll be even more excited once we've finished the selection process for the new Minister of Music. We have our first interview today!

-t

St. Peter's Lutheran, NYC

Take a look at this font:


It's in an architecturally interesting church--St. Peter's Lutheran (ELCA), Manhattan--that you may recognize from the TV series "Kings" on NBC. Alas, "Kings" was cancelled. Too bad, another example of why the traditional networks can't imitate the success of HBO's high quality productions. They just don't have the patience to develop a show like this. Anyway, they shot a bunch of scenes on location in this church, and I was pleased to be able to track it down.

One of the interesting features of this font/baptismal pool is that you can walk into from above easily with the steps that go right into the pool. Or, it's an a convenient height relative to the nave floor for doing baptism via sprinkling.

The set-dressers for the show "Kings" added some really cool tree-shaped free-standing candelabras. I hope the chancel guild of the church was paying attention!

Here are some more photos of St. Peter's Lutheran...





And, yes, that organ is a "Tracker."

-t

Betsy's Return

Yesterday Betsy's flight was delayed many times. She didn't finally step through the sliding glass doors of international arrivals at Toronto Pearson until about 12:10 A.M. last night! I greeted her there with a poster that said "Yeah Betsy!" and had various slogans on it like, "It's all Greek to her," and "The icon of loveliness," and so forth. We were both utterly exhausted when we got home, so both decided to take it easy today. I have a couple of things to do at work, but have basically decided that this morning belonged to me and the wife and I haven't seen in nearly two months!

Anyway, we are safe and sound and together again. When I left her Betsy was alternating between light housework and watching some talk show called "Motherhood."

Today I've got an ARC meeting. And have been fielding a few e-mails and phone calls.

-t

Home

It was a brief but nice stay in New Jersey. My mom had some of her friends over for a baby shower in our honour. My sister, brother-in-law, and their son were able to make it over from Manhattan. My other sister and her family, however, were unable to make it due to illness. Betsy and I received some nice gifts, including a "Moses Basket" that will go great in my office. There we some baby clothes, too, and a nice go-bag for daddy.

It was important to me to go to St. John's on Sunday. This is my "home" parish--the one that sponsored me for ordination some years ago. Right now they have a priest-in-charge while they figure out whether they can afford a full-time Rector. Like many parishes, they are dealing with the fact that the neighbourhood has changed dramatically since the parish was founded in the 1850's by British immigrants brought in to work the mines. These days Dover, the town, is largely spanish-speaking. The previous Rector, Maggie, established a spanish language service in the afternoon, but it is not yet self-sustaining financially.

My mom had told the priest-in-charge that I would be coming on Sunday morning, but I didn't plan or wearing a collar or participating in the service except as a parishioner. I wore my Utilikilt and a white oxford with the sleeves rolled up. Needless to say, I was the most comfortable person sitting in that unairconditioned old building! At the peace Fr. John asked whether I wanted to come to the chancel. I agreed and went up, assuming that I just be a communion minister distributing the sacraments. As we got to the altar he said, "you do the wine and I'll do the bread?"

"Sure," I said, still thinking about distributing them.

"Ok, in that case I'll say the prayers from the Sursum Corda through the words of institution for the bread, and then you can take it from there to the Lord's Prayer."

"Oh!" now it struck me that he wanted to me co-celebrate with him. I excused myself momentarily to go to the sacristy to get a stole. I'm sure I looked kind of odd in my white oxford, gray kilt, sandals, and green stole! Oh, well!

As it happened, Fr. John was using "Rite I Holy Eucharist"--which my Canadian parishioners would recognize as being similar, but not the same, as the 1929 Prayerbook. I haven't said this Rite in probably 6 years! Remarkably, however, it was still in my head. I was able to read through the difficult Elizabethan style language with hardly a trip. All the while I kept thinking about Rowan Greer in seminary and trying to remember the manual gestures he would do with this prayer.

I've never done co-celebration like this. The usual pattern is more like "concelebration" in which the Assisting priests join the Presider in saying the words of institution in unison. We used to do this at St. Mary Magdalene's, for example. I'd have to check with my liturgy wonk friends about the pros and cons of the two styles.

Interestingly, the choreography at the altar was very smooth. Fr. John pointed to the text so I wouldn't loose my place (a very nice courtesy for the Presider), and when we switched off being in front of the altar it was quick and smooth. And the more conservative liturgy minds out there will appreciate that St. John's uses an East-facing (priest's back to the people) altar. After the service people said they really appreciated seeing me celebrate. It was special for me, too.

Bede came down from the monastery. He has known my family for a long time, so he enjoyed catching up with my mom. He headed off to New York after visiting with us to see two of the brothers that live there.

On Tuesday I packed the car (fitting the shower gifts in meant unpacking everything and then repacking it). Eight hour drive from NJ to Toronto. I talked my way through the border without much fuss. The house was in good shape. Our housesitters did a good job of cleaning it in anticipation. The tomatoes on the back deck are almost ready for picking. My kitties we a little confused, but glad to see me.

Pizza for dinner. Fitful sleep (indigestion from eating beef jerky for lunch?). Got up early for the Contemplative Eucharist this morning.

Here is a wonder: my Contemplative Eucharist service has grown substantially in my absence! I had asked Anne Croswaith to do the service this last month and I'm really glad I did. Suddenly that service grew from three or four to seven or eight! Most of the new people are from a particular Centering Prayer group that has heard of what I'm doing. I'm very pleased to have them.

Today I've set up my computer again and am just settling in to answering e-mails and taking care of urgent projects. This PM I'll pick up Betsy from the airport.

Feels good to be back!

-t

Arrival in NJ

I managed to do a lot yesterday, but the amplifier is still not complete! Everything requiring a drill press on a table saw is done. Sawing 1/16 inch stainless steel sheet metal with a metal-cutting blade on a table saw is a pretty impressive sight. Lots of sparks! As far I can tell, the blade for this purpose is some kind of high-tech fiber with diamonds in it. Very cool. someday I would like to replace the stainless steel sheet with brass, but brass is a lot more expensive and difficult to find. I was frustrated that I didn't have enough time to finish the project, but I'll able to do that when I get home.

The final interview is done. I now have plenty of footage to put together some fantastic content. If I end up needing anything more, I can simply ask one of the monks to record it with their camera and send it to me. Several of the monks are interested in photography and I'm sure some stuff will come out of it.

Two of the monks and I met about the website I introduced them to the first, very basic iteration of the PHP-based content management tool I've been building. At this stage it's really just a web-based HTML editor. Not the most user-friendly thing on earth! I've been working on creating PHP functions that "read" (actually, "parse") the HTML content and present the data in a more friendly way, but it's pretty tedious work!

Still, at least the monks will be able to change the content without my help! I can refine the tools as we go along.

Packing up was a challenge. The monks gave me about six boxes of books for the ARC back in Toronto (the library I'm helping to found). These books were left over from Br. Michael Stonebreaker, a monk who passed away last year. Incidentally, someone else promised to give me a few boxes of books as well, at some point, so our library is already starting to grow! When I get back to Toronto I need to make an effort to get that project going again.

Between the boxes of books and all my stuff the car was nearly full and I was totally exhausted. I was a little worried about driving in such a tired condition--but three red-bulls and a CD with Mickey Avalon was enough to keep my awake! I arrived and had a pleasant supper with my sister's family and my mom. Sipping Grand Marnier in my grandpa's old chair by the hearthy, I started nodding off until my mom suggested I might just want to go to bed! Eleven hours of excellent sleep the same room I had in high school.

Today we are having a party. We all seem to be alternating between preparing for the party and playing with my nephew Charlie! He's such a wonderful, happy kid. It makes me hopeful that our child might turn out okay!

-t