Caledonia Times
Happy Easter, Caledonia! March 2013 The Diocesan Section of the Anglican Journal
A Reflection on the Camino de Santiago
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By The Rev. Daphne Moser
t has been said of the Camino trail that, “We walked 800km (500miles) to go to church.” The pilgrim mass at the Cathedral in Santiago with the huge incense burner, was indeed one of the highlights of my pilgrimage. But the walk was not just about the destination but the journey. Five weeks of walking from St. Jean Pied-de-Port, France to Santiago, Spain was indeed a journey for me, both physically and spiritually. The Camino has a long history of pilgrims walking from any point in Europe to the place in Santiago, where myth tells us the bones of James the Greater, disciple of Jesus are buried. As we walked the trail I was cognizant of the thousands of footsteps that had gone before me – and the thousands that continue to walk this path or one of the other paths that all converge on Santiago. I carried a relatively light pack with quick dry clothing. Imagine those ancient pilgrims with their heavy wool cloaks and a staff, entirely dependent on the hospitality of the local people. There was evidence of tiny refuges along the trail where they might have slept. Not everyone made the destination. Along the route were many memorials to those who had undertaken this pilgrimage as their last earthly journey and had died on the trail. Day 2 of this epic journey was a turning point for me. We had walked over 30km over hilly terrain on the first day. Day 2 was supposed to be shorter, only 23km. However when we reached the small community of Zubiri we discovered there was no accommodation left. No room at the inn! Our only option was to walk another 5 km. It was late in the day and once again, no room
Cross of the Camino de Santiago. Photo: Adrian Nunez
Ready for the trail. Photo: The Rev. Daphne Moser
The scallop shell, a symbol of the Camino de Santiago. Photo: Roberaten
Evidence of tiny refuges along the trail. Photo: Marlio Bertomeu
at the inn! Not any inn. No stables, or mangers, no place to lay our weary bodies. As I sat on the edge of the sidewalk – totally exhausted I heard someone say “Be by that house in 10 minutes. A taxi took take us into Pamplona where there was a pension with five beds.” In my mind I was going to walk every step of this pilgrimage, but here on Day 2 this intention was challenged. As
I reflected on this incident, I was intimately aware of how our Lord was working. I was not getting what I thought I wanted or expected but what I needed. This happened over and over again in our five-week journey. The residents of Northern Spain who we encountered along the way certainly reflected Jesus working in their lives. Every day was a gift in the way that Jesus appeared
to us through the lives of others. When we were tired and hungry, tables of food appeared at the edge of the trail. Sometimes it was free and others were asking for a donation. I was reminded of Jesus’ words, “when I was hungry and you gave me food, when I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” (Matthew 25:35) Jesus appeared to us in the workers at coffee bars, in the people on the street who directed us back to the trail when we were off course. On many evenings there was a pilgrim mass held in the local church. Priests welcomed the pilgrims and blessed us on our journey. Everyone served us humbly and with such grace. We chose to stay mostly in albergues, which were hostel type accommodations. I was reminded to thank God that our needs were being met and to appreciate the places that were shared with us. An occasional night in a pension or small hotel was a luxury. We had our own bathroom and shower and slept soundly without the nightly cacophony of snoring pilgrims. The same applied to food. Every evening we had access to a pilgrim menu: a three-course meal including water and vino tinto for a very reasonable 8-10 Euros. I wouldn’t class it as haute cuisine but it was good standard fare that met
our physical needs at a very reasonable price. Our fellow travellers of every creed and nationality also blessed us: young and old, fit and less fit. Those who struggled in the early stages came rushing past us as our journey came to an end. One 65-year-old man had walked all the way from Belgium, a mere 2,021 km. It is near impossible to walk the Camino and not be changed in some way. There were many lessons of the Camino but ultimately the biggest was to trust in the Lord and be grateful for all that we received. I was blessed by the gifts received, the companions along the way and also happy feet! We traveled as a group of six but each one had experienced their own Camino. Initially it was a challenge to reintegrate into home life. It took time to make that transition. The journey continues for each one of us – not as we expect but as we need. Now I look at each stage of my life as another Camino with the challenges set before me. The experience on the trail has reminded me once again that, by the grace of God, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is behind me, before me, beside me and within me. He will carry me through. If you are interested in more details I kept a blog of the journey at daphnescamino.blogspot.ca
Episcopal Sabbath Rest The Bishop will be taking a Sabbatical starting the first Monday of March through the end of May. He will do his sabbatical in two parts, from March 4 to Maundy Thursday when he will join the Cathedral Congregation for Holy Week, including Easter Day, March 30th. He will then resume his sabbatical and return to the Synod Office in Late May or early June. In his absence the Dean and the Archdeacon will share the duties of the Commissary. to reach the Commissary on duty, please call the Synod Office or the respective cell phone numbers for the Dean and the Archdeacon.
Bishop’s Notes
The Easter Faith For centuries Judaism was centered in the Temple at Jerusalem. Everyone knew and understood that here lay the heart of the Covenant between God and His chosen people. The Temple was more than simply what we might think of as a church. It was the beating heart of Judaism. It was the center of worship, music, politics and society for the nation. It was, above all else, the place where Israel’s God had promised to live in the midst of His chosen people. So how did things change so drastically at that first Easter? Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, an Italian biblical scholar, suggests that we might begin to appreciate how Easter changed everything—and gave the birth of Jesus at Christmas its significance—by reflecting on the story of Jesus purifying the Jerusalem Temple, at the beginning of John’s Gospel. Ravasi points out that when Jesus comes in and turns everything upside down, disrupting patterns that have been in place for generations, He draws a sharp contrast between a religion of superficiality and self-absorption, and a pure faith that is centered on His person. God can no longer be present in a Temple that has ceased to be a place of encounter between His people and Himself - the “meeting tent” of the ancient Hebrews; the Temple, however magnificently constructed, had become a place of superstition and selfinterest where going through the motions had replaced entering into relationship. In cleansing the Temple, Jesus is declaring that God is now present to his people in a new and perfect way and in a new “meeting tent”: the incarnate Son, “the Word … made flesh” who dwells among us, “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). He, Jesus, is the new Temple, and to recognize that
and live in this new mode of the divine Presence one must “remember,” as St. John writes at the end of the Temple-cleansing story (2:22). Remember what? Remember the Paschal Mystery – “that Christ died for our sins… that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Cor. 15: 3-4) Through the lens of this one extraordinary event that changed both history and nature, everything comes into clearer focus. Only a mature, paschal faith—an Easter faith—can perceive who Jesus is, understand what Jesus taught, and grasp what Jesus has accomplished by his obedience to the Father. Only in the power of this paschal “memory,” Cardinal Ravasi concludes, can we recognize that Jesus is the Christ, the Holy One of God. Easter faith—the faith which proclaims that “he … rose again on the third day”—is not simply one article of Christian conviction among others. However fashionable it may be in some theological quarters (and amongst some clergy) to dismiss the resurrection and even the historical reality of Jesus Christ, the reality is that it is either real, or the whole of our Christian faith is a fraud, a nonsensical waste of time and effort. As St. Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 15, the death and resurrection of Christ is THE conviction on which the entire edifice of Christianity is built. Without it, nothing makes sense; without it Jesus is a false prophet, and our preaching and our faith are pointless and devoid of meaning. With Easter, all that has been obscure about His life, His teaching, His works and His fate becomes radiantly clear: this Risen One is the “first-born among many brethren” (Rom 8:29); He is the new Temple (Rev 21:22); and by embracing Him we enter the
dwelling place of God among us (Rev 21:3). And because the new Temple is embodied in the Risen Lord rather than a building of stone and wood, superficiality and self-absorption are no longer possible. The meeting place of the Temple has been replaced by the meeting place of Jesus heart. One only gets there by opening their own heart: to quote St Francis de Sales, “Cor ad cor loquitur” – “Heart speaks to heart.” The Gospels describe how completely unprecedented the nature of the Easter event was, and how it completely overturned expectations of what God’s decisive action in history would be. Notwithstanding the three years they had spent with Him, Jesus’ companions do not get it at first – it is completely outside of everyone’s experience. The women at the empty tomb don’t understand, and neither do Peter and John. The disciples on the road to Emmaus do not understand. At one encounter with the Risen Lord, the Eleven think they’re seeing a ghost; later, up along the Sea of Galilee, it takes a while for Peter and John to recognize that “It is the Lord!” (John 21:7). As George Weigel points out, “These episodes of incomprehension, carefully recorded by the early Church, testify to the shattering character of Easter, which changed everything: the first disciples’ understanding of history, of life-beyond-death, of worship and its relationship to time (thus Sunday, the day of Easter, becomes the Sabbath of the New Covenant).” Easter also changed the first disciples’ understanding of themselves and their responsibilities. They were the privileged ones who must keep alive the memory of Easter: in their preaching, in their baptizing and breaking of bread, and ultimately in the new Scriptures they wrote. They were the ones who must take the Gospel of the Risen One to “all nations,” in the sure knowledge that he would be with them always (Matt 28:19-20). That challenge has been passed down to us, and it is this memory that we must protect from corruption lest the message be lost to future generations. +William: Caledonia
Bishop Mark MacDonald receives the Jubilee Medal On Feb. 2, the Anglican Church of Canada’s National Indigenous Bishop, Mark MacDonald, received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal at Queen’s Park, Toronto. The medal honours Canadians who have made significant contributions and achievements to the country. MacDonald is being recognized for his “spiritual leadership while serving Aboriginal communities and his contributions to environmental awareness of Canadians,” said NDP MP Craig Scott (TorontoDanforth), who nominated MacDonald. MacDonald will join 29 other community leaders who will be awarded the medal by Scott. Each Member of Parliament was given 30 medals to present to outstanding constituents in their communities. “I am very blessed and surprised to receive this honour and very grateful to Craig Scott for his nomination,” said MacDonald in an interview. “It means a lot at a number of levels to me, some very personal, but, most importantly, recognizes and honours the vision of the elders for the future of the People of the Land.” MacDonald was nominated “for his unique role of leadership on behalf of First Nations and Inuit communities in their work towards reconciliation with, and self-governance within the Anglican Church and Canada itself,” added an announcement from the national church’s indigenous ministries department. He has also been “reminding all Canadians of the unique historical relationship colonizers and First Nations forged and must again work together to find the path to a promising future for generations of Canadians to come,” the announcement stated.
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MacDonald was appointed the Anglican Church of Canada’s first national indigenous bishop in 2007, described by then primate, Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, as a “historic moment” in The Rt. Rev. Mark the life of the church MacDonald and the country. His position was also described as “a rarity in Anglican tradition”— a bishop who is pastor to a group of people irrespective of where they live, rather than to residents of a geographic diocese. In Canada, only the Bishop Ordinary to the Armed Forces is in a parallel position. Prior to his appointment, MacDonald served as bishop of the American diocese of Alaska, and assisting bishop of Navajo Area Mission with the U.S. Episcopal Church. Born in 1954 to Blake and Sue Nell MacDonald, he has a bachelor of arts in religious studies and psychology from the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn., a master’s in divinity from Wycliffe College in Toronto and has completed post-graduate work at Luther-Northwestern Theological Seminary in Minneapolis. He and his wife, Virginia Sha Lynn, have three children: Rose May Li, Brenna Li and Adrian Blake.
Caledonia Times
Publication of the Diocese of Caledonia Publisher: The Bishop of Caledonia Editor: The Dean of Caledonia Published monthly, except July and August by: Diocese of Caledonia, 200 – 4th Avenue West Prince Rupert, BC V8J 1P3 (250) 627-1143 or (250) 600-7143 Address correspondence and copy to the address above. Or to caledoniatimes@gmail.com Submissions must be received by the 10th month for the following month’s issue. Send subscription orders, address changes Diocese of Caledonia c/o Anglican Journal 80 Hayden St. Toronto, Ontario M4Y 3G2 Printed and mailed by: Webnews Inc., North York
—story and photo by Marites N. Sison, Anglican Journal
Caledonia Times — March 2013
A Skypilot Moment - An Editorial
What things? “What things?” I am certain that the question hit like a ton of bricks. Not just because the person asking seemed to be so unaware of his surroundings and had managed to miss everything that had happened to Jesus. It is deeper than that. Cleopas and his traveling companion had to stop right there in the middle of the road and once again face everything they had seen and been through in order to re tell the events that had just happened. They were leaving the city now. They had waited the three days. And in the soft evening, has the pair trudged along the Emmaus Road (Lk. 24:13-35), they had been consoling each other, wondering what was next. Time had passed. There were still no trumpets, no resurrection, no earthquake and no Jesus. Certainly the dreams of a renewed Israel were fading fast with the sinking sun. All of a sudden there was with them another traveler. They did not know him or recognized him. After all who looks for the dead among the living? We should note that has the trio now walk in step together which quickened the pace. The steps are easier and the hearts of the sorrowful are becoming lighter. The traveler spoke with confidence about the Scriptures and how God had acted to bring about the work of the Messiah and how the Messiah would bring about the start of the new creation. Cleopas and his companion had waited and wondered what would happen next. They were still waiting and hoping for
everything to make sense; “We had hoped… we had waited…” and as they continued to walk and talk the duo found courage in the travelers’ words. When it came time for the trio to part and become a duo again, Cleopas and his companion would not take “no” for answer to their offer of hospitality when the time to part ways came. They would twist the arm of this traveler and force him to turn in for the night if they had to. They thought that the least they could do for this traveler was offer a simple meal and a warm bed for the night. They compelled the traveler to come with them. At the table, with the breaking of the bread, they finally knew him: fully and suddenly. They knew that they knew. Their faith and their unbounded joy returned to them, like a warm, refreshing summertime rain. They found that the embers of their hearts were once again fanned into full flame. Just as important, they wasted no time. They left and returned to the city as fast as their legs would carry them – running and sprinting as fast as they could go, to share the good news that they had seen and known the risen Jesus in the walking and in the breaking of the bread. We as a Church need to renew ourselves in the word. We need to deepen our knowledge of the Scriptures not just that we can have better debates but so that we can begin to hope and to see on the way, at the table and in our everyday moments all day long! We need to see ourselves as being in this part of the
resurrection story. We care a lot and we know a lot. As Church we think about and talk about the things we face and the things that sadden us, make us fearful and that disappoint us. We worry about our hope being diminished and our dreams being dashed. We (the Church) need to walk, talk and we need to have our hearts opened again by the presence of God and we need to have our eyes opened that we would see Jesus so our hearts might be on fire and we would be fearless to tell others where we see and know Jesus in the here and now. And we need to be patient to the end of the Day when God will have made all things new again. We can and do know him on the side of the road. We do know him in the breaking of the bread and the prayers. We too shall know that we know his presence and thanks be to God for that. Happy Easter Jason+ Editor, Caledonia Times
Books on the Go ~ Ruby McBeth This past Christmas I bought a book for a neighbour who had been a public health nurse. I started to read it, and when my daughter Barb expressed an interest I bought a second copy for us - from Santa. It turns out that the book Call the Midwife has been made into a popular TV series. Call the Midwife is a collection of stories from the life of Jennifer Worth who trained as a midwife in the London dock area in the 1950’s. Her tutors were nuns from the Anglican Community of St. John the Divine. The stories introduce the midwife in a way similar to James Harriot’s country vet stories called “All Creatures Great and Small.” While in Canada midwifery is only now gaining some acceptance, in England in the 1950’s it was well established. She wrote the book to let people know the value of this profession. Call the Midwife is subtitled “A memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times.” It begins with a story of a normal delivery. As the author goes on she tells about the darker side: breech births, venereal disease, and premature births. Worth adds stories about quirky characters from both inside and outside the convent which lightens the tone. But it is the graphic portrayal of poverty which makes this book more than a pleasant read. It is in fact quite disturbing. The author lets us see, hear, smell, and even taste and feel the poverty. One story tells about a young woman being lured into prostitution. While the story is horrible one gets the feeling that it is not only real for 1950 but probably also real for today. The author’s respect for the people she meets increases as she gets to know them better.
One extra treat in this book is the language: Worth’s patients were cockneys and she does a good job of showing their language. Jennifer Worth explains that when she first went to the convent for midwifery training she had no idea about nuns and had no interest in religion. Over the course of her time with these women she came to respect them and began to seek for spiritual enlightenment herself. The reviewer looks forward to reading Worth’s other two books: Shadows of the Workhouse and Farewell to the Eastend to learn more about her life. A glossary at the back explains medical terms and an appendix goes into detail on the cockney dialect. Recommended for adult women. Details of pregnancy and birth, poverty and mistreatment of women make it unsuitable for children. Worth, Jennifer. Call the Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times. New York: Penguin, 2002.
Surfin’ for the Lord The nuns in Call the Midwife were real people. To read about their order as it exists today go to <http://communities.anglicancommunion.org>. Follow the Communities link at the top of the homepage to the Community of St. John the Divine. The Anglican Religious Communities website provides info on over 100 Anglican communities around the world. As you might expect this is a no frills website - basic information on a little known spiritual resource for Anglicans. Check it out. Happy surfing, Ruby
Caledonia Times — March 2013 Page 3
Canada Briefs - across the nation Royal visit to Iqaluit In September, Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex visited Iqaluit, in Nunavut. Andrew Atagotaaluk, bishop of the Arctic diocese, and the Rev. Canon Jonas Allooloo, the new rector of St. Jude’s Cathedral, gave them a tour of the cathedral. The prince presented a gift of a Bible stand to the cathedral from Queen Elizabeth. (The Queen turned the sod back in 1970 to mark the place where the old cathedral was to be built and later she donated the silver lining for the baptismal font.) The vestry and people of St. Jude’s presented Prince Edward with a painting of the old cathedral and a copy of the newly completed Inuktitut Bible. —The Arctic News
Video recruits future priests The diocese of Toronto has created a video to recruit people for the priesthood, and it’s proving to be popular. Is God calling you to be an Anglican priest?, posted on YouTube, has been viewed more than 1,600 times. The video is aimed primarily at a young and ethnically diverse audience, and those interested in re-imagining church. It includes interviews with young priests, postulants and youth workers talking about their spiritual journeys. Viewers who want to learn more about becoming a priest are encouraged to talk to their parish priest or to email recruitment@toronto.anglican.ca. —The Anglican
Churches reach out to hungry students Twenty-two Anglican, Presbyterian and United Churches partnered with the Carleton University Ecumenical Chaplaincy to provide free food to hungry, stressed-out students during the December 2012 exam period. Volunteers also offered the students support and encouragement at the “Pause Table.” The project began in 1987 when it was recognized that many students run out of student loan money and try to write exams while undernourished. At that time, coffee, muffins and cookies were offered to about 80 students per day. Now, the Pause Table provides sandwiches, bagels, baked goods, fresh fruit, vegetables, juice, tea and coffee to an average of 1,200 students per day over the 10-day exam period. —Crosstalk
Holy Trinity, Sooke celebrates 100 years Holy Trinity in Sooke, B.C. , will be celebrating its centenary throughout 2013. The Ven. Nancy Nagy is working on a history that focuses on the last 50
years and will be available on the parish website. There will be a picnic birthday party on Aug. 11. The official centennial celebration is planned for Sunday, Sept. 29, in the afternoon with Bishop James Cowan. Active and former members of the parish are invited to all the events. —The Diocesan Post
Edmonton area parish introduces Grandparents’ Sunday When interim priest-in-charge Sheila HaganBloxham noticed that few children were attending Sunday services at St. Augustine of Canterbury in Edmonton, she knew the busy schedules of working parents and children were obstacles to church attendance. She suggested a special intergenerational service for a Sunday in August. Parishioners brought their grandchildren; a few parishioners, whose grandkids live away, brought their neighbours and their kids. About 15 children attended. The parish held two more Grandparents’ Sundays close to Halloween and Christmas, and Hagan-Bloxham hopes to make it a monthly event in 2013. —The Messenger
Birthday party feeds families On her fifth birthday Bryar White, a parishioner at St. Christopher’s in Burlington, Ont., gave a special gift to 50 families she will probably never meet. Her mother Courtney explained that her family asks birthday party guests to donate to a charity that relates to the child’s interests, rather than giving gifts. Bryar’s party had a rainbow theme, so guests were asked to buy a box of “rainbow produce” for distribution through the Halton Fresh Food Box program. Their donations purchased about 23 large, 16 medium and 11 small boxes for families in the region. —Niagara Anglican
Fredericton youth bring gift to Ho In March, six young men and four young women from the diocese of Fredericton will travel to their companion diocese of Ho, Ghana. They will help celebrate Ho’s 10th anniversary with the gift of an office space for Bishop Matthias’ Kwabal MedaduesBadohu. Though it will not be grand, it will be a space, which he has lacked, to work and store files. The youth mission will work with local volunteers from March 1 to 11 to begin constructing the office space. They also have taken the lead on fundraising for the project in a diocesan-wide appeal. —The New Brunswick Anglican
Comedy Corner
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The Most Rev. Justin Welby, the new Archbishop of Canterbury; Photo: archbishopofcanterbury.org
Welby comes to Canterbury The Rt Rev. Justin Welby, officially became the Archbishop of Canterbury at a ceremony, known as the Confirmation of Election, which took place in the context of an act of worship in St Paul's Cathedral, London recently. The ceremony is part of the legal process by which the appointment of the new Archbishop of Canterbury is put into effect. It was presided over by the Archbishop of York with the assistance of several other senior bishops. All were commissioned for this purpose by the Queen – who is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Bishop Justin’s name was put forward to The Queen some months ago by the ‘Crown Nominations Commission’. The appointment is formalized by legal steps taken in accordance with the Appointment of Bishops Act 1533. First, his election was undertaken in January by the Chapter of Canterbury Cathedral. Next, their election of him has to be confirmed by the wider Church, which is what happened in this ceremony. Since the earliest days of the Church a fundamental principle in the election of a new bishop, is that must the election must be confirmed by the wider Church, especially by the bishops of the region. The legal significance of the act of confirmation cannot be overstated: it confers upon the new Archbishop ‘the care, government and administration of the spirituals’ of the archbishopric. It is the confirmation of his election which makes the Archbishop-elect into the Bishop of the diocese of Canterbury and Archbishop of the Province. A modernised version was used for the formal parts. It involved recital of the Mandate from the Queen, authorizing the appointment; introduction and certification of the new Archbishop and his election by the dean and canons of Canterbury; his Declaration of Assent to the historic doctrines and worship of the Church of England; a ‘Charge’ by the Archbishop of York, based on the needs of the diocese and province perceived by those involved in his appointment; and finally a ‘Sentence’ conferring on him spiritual jurisdiction over the diocese and province. After this step has been taken, there remain other formal stages before he begins his public ministry in Church and State, in particular his act of ‘Homage’ to The Queen. The public inauguration of his ministry will take place at Canterbury Cathedral on 21 March, and will be broadcast live on the BBC. Meanwhile, the new Archbishop will be familiarizing himself with the tasks he will be called upon to perform over the coming years, meeting those he will be working with most closely, and preparing himself generally for all that lies ahead. He invites your prayers, for himself, his family, the Church and the nation, during this period of preparation – and beyond. —Article from ANCS Caledonia Times — March 2013