dual personalities

Tag: Episcopal Church

July 7, 2015

Note to self

by chuckofish

Today we are reminded again how tempus, indeed, fugits! TCM is celebrating the 100th anniversary of a company whose technology defined the look of movie color for decades. Technicolor™ was incorporated in 1915 by Herbert T. Kalmus, Daniel F. Comstock and W. Burton Wescott and offered the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952.

The 48-hour salute includes the greatest of all technicolor films, The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), which will be shown today at 4:30 p.m. and again on August 2 at 8 p.m. so set your DVR.

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She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)–which I watched this past weekend–is on tomorrow night at 8 p.m.–don’t miss it! The color cinematography in this movie is fantastic. Luchino Visconti’s The Leopard (1963), a landmark of Italian cinema, is also on tomorrow at 3:30 a.m. Any movie with Claudia Cardinale is worth watching if you ask me.

We must also note that 600 years ago yesterday (July 6, 1415) Jan Hus was burned at the stake for heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. Hus was a Czech priest, philosopher, early Christian reformer and Master at Charles University in Prague. He dared to preach in Czech and tried to reform the Church by calling out the moral failings of clergy, bishops, and even the papacy from his pulpit. In 1999 Pope John Paul II expressed regret for his death. Well.

The monument in Konstanz, where reformer Jan Hus was executed (1862)

The monument in Konstanz, where reformer Jan Hus was executed (1862)

Hus is honored with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church.

Faithful God, who didst give Jan Hus the courage to confess thy truth and recall thy Church to the image of Christ: Enable us, inspired by his example, to bear witness against corruption and never cease to pray for our enemies, that we may prove faithful followers of our Savior Jesus Christ; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

On Sunday the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, conducted the baptism of Princess Charlotte at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham.

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Pretty darn cute.

And FYI: the Archbishop of Canterbury has a blog. You go, Glenn Coco.

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July 6, 2015

Our father’s God to thee, author of liberty, to thee we sing

by chuckofish

Did you have a pleasant 4th of July? The boy and daughter #3 came over for dinner for All-American burgers and hot dogs. I did not attempt anything too advanced in the culinary category–unlike daughter #2 who did just that back in Maryland…

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Ahem. After dinner we headed over to the high school to watch the local fireworks show held in the park.

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It was clearly the place to be.

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Note that the boy is wearing a patriotic red, white and blue ensemble, which has always been the way we roll on the 4th. After the fireworks display we headed home and the OM unearthed his personal fireworks cache in the basement and we indulged in some sparkler fun.

IMG_1260Good times.

On Sunday I fulfilled my lay reading duties–2 Corinthians 12:2-10. It was a great passage, where Paul talks about Satan tormenting him with a thorn in his flesh, and how he appealed to the Lord three times, that it would leave him, but “he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.'”

Good to remember. I wish I had the kind of memory that could pull out appropriate quotes when needed and on the spur of the moment, not an hour later when I am thinking about it.

Meanwhile the constant rain of last week dissipated and the weather for the three-day weekend was pretty darn glorious. I worked in the yard some, but the mosquitoes were also out in full force, so I spent quite a bit of quality time in the Florida room instead. I am re-reading Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and enjoying it immensely.

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I always say–a book worth reading is a book worth re-reading and this is a perfect example. When I first read this book back in 1985 or ’86, I raced through it, because I wanted to know what would happen next. Now I am enjoying the writing and savoring the characters. It is a wise book full of truth. (I may have read it another time  during the past 30 years as well, but who’s counting?) I heartily recommend you read or re-read this book. It certainly deserved the Pulitzer Prize it won.

So onward and upward–have a good week!

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June 15, 2015

“I bring low the high tree, I make high the low tree; I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish.”*

by chuckofish

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It’s tiger lily time in flyover country again. How I do love these hardy and sun-loving plants!

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Everyone, especially Till Eulenspiegel, is happy to see them. Also newly arrived is the Photuris lucicrescens (or firefly) in the foreground of this photo. We call them lightning bugs in this neck of the woods.

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All of these things trumpet the arrival of full-fledged summer here. The temperatures have soared and the humidity has climbed. C’est la vie.

In church on Sunday there were many allusions to gardening in the scripture readings–from Ezekiel where the LORD talks about planting cedars on the mountain top of Israel, to Paul writing the Corinthians that “everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” In the Gospel lesson (Mark 4:26-34) Jesus says,

“The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.”

I usually let my garden go when it gets too hot (as it does here)–thank goodness for English ivy and potted geraniums!–but this year I am going to try to keep my interest from flagging. We’ll see.

Anyway, here’s a thought for Monday:

“All those who love Nature she loves in return, and will richly reward, not perhaps with the good things, as they are commonly called, but with the best things of this world-not with money and titles, horses and carriages, but with bright and happy thoughts, contentment and peace of mind.”

― John Lubbock

*Ezekiel 17:23

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June 11, 2015

“A good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith.” *

by chuckofish

paul-barnabas

Today the Episcopal Church observes the feast day of St. Barnabas, the early Christian fondly nicknamed Son of Encouragement (Acts 4:37). He befriended Saul of Tarsus after his conversion and introduced him to the skeptical leaders back in Jerusalem: “But Barnabas took him, brought him to the apostles, and described for them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus.” (Acts 9:27)

After that he and Paul (formerly Saul) undertook several missionary journeys together.

Willem de Poorter's "St. Paul and Barnabas in Lystra"

Willem de Poorter’s “St. Paul and Barnabas in Lystra”

Eventually the two disagreed about whether to take Barnabas’ cousin/nephew John Mark, whom Paul thought was a quitter, on another trip. The dispute ended with Paul taking Silas as his companion and journeying through Syria and Cilicia, while Barnabas took John Mark to visit Cyprus.

You see, even back then, church people were arguing and separating and going off in a huff. Why should we be surprised when this happens today?

Acts 15:38

Acts 15:38

I always liked old Barnabas. I’m sure he had to put up with a lot from Paul, who wasn’t always the easiest person/apostle to get along with. I always thought it was sad that their friendship ended the way it did. I’m sure we can all take a lesson from it.

St. Barnabas, with John his sister’s son,
Set sail for Cyprus; leaving in their wake
That chosen Vessel, who for Jesus’ sake
Proclaimed the Gentiles and the Jews at one.
Divided while united, each must run
His mighty course not hell should overtake;
And pressing toward the mark must own the ache
Of love, and sigh for heaven not yet begun.
For saints in life-long exile yearn to touch
Warm human hands, and commune face to face;
But these we know not ever met again:
Yet once St. Paul at distance overmuch
Just sighted Cyprus; and once more in vain
Neared it and passed;–not there his landing-place.

–Christina Rossetti

*Acts 11:24

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May 26, 2015

Long weekend: and then we were all in one place*

by chuckofish

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Long weekends are the best, right? Especially if you have out-of-town guests.

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My nephew Chris and his friend Nicole stopped overnight on their cross-country trip from upstate New York to the Ghost Ranch in New Mexico.

The boy and daughter #3 came over for dinner and a movie,

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but I forgot to take a picture. It was fun, as you can imagine.

The weather, despite dire predictions to the contrary, was lovely and I spent a lot of time puttering around the yard and lounging in the Florida room with a good book.

In other news, let’s not forget that today is John Wayne’s birthday–so “slap some bacon on a biscuit and let’s go! We’re burning daylight!”

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Happy Tuesday and a 4-day week!

*”And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” (Acts 2:1 KJV)

4 Comments
May 25, 2015

Stand ye steady

by chuckofish

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ANC III who served in WWII and Korea and lived to not talk about it.

ALMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, in whose hands are the living and the dead; We give thee thanks for all those thy servants who have laid down their lives in the service of our country. Grant to them thy mercy and the light of thy presence, that the good work which thou hast begun in them may be perfected; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. Amen

–the BCP, 1928

“It don’t matter where a man dies, as long as he dies for freedom.” –Sgt. Dane in Bataan (1943)

5 Comments
May 22, 2015

“Saddle Up”*

by chuckofish

Well it’s almost Memorial Day! Can you believe it? As you know, this is a day for remembering the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. armed forces. Many people visit cemeteries and memorials. We like to watch war movies.

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I grew up watching war movies. I like them. My dual personality suggested I watch the HBO series The Pacific (2010), which is a companion piece to their Band of Brothers series.

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I always take her advice, so the OM and I watched the first two episodes and it was, indeed, impressive–the whizzing, zinging bullets flying by and all. I felt like I had actually been at Guadalcanal for several hours. And, thank you, that was enough for me. I was not really engaged with the characters–the traditional wop, spic, wasp, mic, and jew of all WWII movies. I mean I get it. War is hell. But it is too traumatic watching this series. I know my limits. Don’t judge me for having limits.

Therefore, I will go back to a few of my old favorites this weekend. I am really in the mood for classic black-and-white British movies like The Dam Busters (1955)–The story of how the British attacked German dams in WWII by using an ingenious technique to drop bombs where they would be most effective–

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or The Desert Rats (1953) with Richard Burton in charge of a disparate band of ANZAC troops on the perimeter of Tobruk with the German Army doing their best to dislodge them.

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These movies are tense and realistic and very powerful in their own, non-CG way. How will you celebrate Memorial Day?

There are certainly plenty of good war movies to choose from, and, of course, there is a Memorial Day Marathon on TCM.

We give you thanks, O Lord, for all who have died that we may live, for all who endured pain that we might know joy, for all who made sacrifices that we might have plenty, for all who suffered imprisonment that we might know freedom. Turn our deep feeling now into determination, and our determination into deed, that as men and women died for peace, we may live for peace for the sake of the Prince of Peace, even Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.**

Have a good weekend.

*Sgt. Stryker in Sands of Iwo Jima (1949)

** Prayer found here.

4 Comments
May 20, 2015

“A man of God–such a shame”

by chuckofish

Are you watching Grantchester on PBS?

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Now that Wolf Hall is finished, I am watching Grantchester, a miniseries based on James Runcie’s novel Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death, about a young vicar and WWII veteran who teams up with a local detective to solve murders. The author based “Sidney after his late father, Lord Runcie, who was Archbishop of Canterbury in the 1980s. Like Sidney, the elder Runcie was a war hero before he entered the ministry, and he was a compassionate and amiable parish priest. Unfortunately, he never took up crime-solving. Grantchester corrects that oversight.” (PBS.com)

Sounds perfect to me.

Robson Green (Geordie Keating, the detective) and James Norton (Sidney Chambers, the vicar) are quite engaging and say things like:

“Do you think we have a problem with alcohol?”

“Absolutely. We don’t have any.”

I have set my DVR.

Side note: I met Lord Runcie when he was the Holy Week preacher at the Episcopal church I attended in the 1990s. He was a tank commander in WWII and, if I recall correctly, the only one to capture a submarine! It goes without saying (but I will) that they don’t make archbishops like him anymore.

5 Comments
May 12, 2015

“Are you implying that I am unhinged?”*

by chuckofish

buechnerquoteMy days do have a certain similarity to them. Anyone with a nine-to-five job knows what that is like.

But they are never exactly the same.

It is a good idea to embrace that thought and to make note of the differences. To notice.

For instance, I saw these beauties while going to a meeting on my flyover campus.

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And I watched Murder Ahoy (1964) starring the wonderful Dame Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple.

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She is just the best, isn’t she?

All this examining of my day got me thinking about the consciousness examen prayer “technique” which is a simple prayer that can “deepen our awareness of the presence of God and aid our spiritual growth as His disciples.”

1.  Feel the stillness in the darkness and try to find God’s presence in it.

2.  Gratefully review the events of the day–the good, the bad, and the ugly.

3.  What emotions bubble up as you do this?  Pay attention to them.

4.  Pick out one event from your day and pray from it.

5.  When you are finished praying, close silently with a few minute’s rest in God’s presence.

(Read more here.)

I would have to get a lot more disciplined to do this on a regular basis, but it’s not a bad idea. In the meantime, at least I’ll try to pay attention.

*Miss Marple–definitely not unhinged.

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May 11, 2015

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.”*

by chuckofish

On Mother’s Day I went to church by myself per usual. Afterwards I stopped by Dunkin’ Donuts for a Mother’s Day treat which I shared with the OM.

donutsI picked some peonies from the garden.

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I enjoyed opening the cards and treats which my daughters sent.

On Friday I had gone to the Art Museum and picked up some tickets for the Bingham show which closes next weekend, so I dragged the OM along on Sunday afternoon.

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George Caleb Bingham, American, 1811–1879 The Jolly Flatboatmen (1), 1846 oil on canvas Manoogian Collection, on loan to National Gallery of Art

Good times on the old Missouri River.

I had reminded the boy that Sunday was Mother’s Day and it might be nice if he had his mother over for dinner. So we went to his house for dinner with lovely daughter #3.

I was home in time for the finale of Wolf Hall.

The lesson of this tale is that sometimes you have to do things alone or for yourself. And sometimes you just have to get the ball rolling. The trick is not minding and being grateful that you can. I had a lovely day.

And I thought this Oscar compilation was great.

*John 15:9

4 Comments