AND THEY MADE A CALF IN THOSE DAYS

From "Our devotion to idols is killing the planet," posted
on the website of THE ANGLICAN DIOCESE OF MELBOURNE:

At its heart, the ecological crisis is fundamentally a moral and spiritual one, (Prof. Michael) Northcott believes, with the marketing of consumption and the power of advertising a significant factor. “In 1970, Britain’s emissions were at a sustainable level. We made most of what we consumed in the country and we didn’t consume nearly so many products. And what we did consume, we tended to keep much longer. So people in 1970 might have had a washing machine in their home which was 30 years old and was endlessly repairable by a local mechanic. They might have had a car, which my father did, that they could actually tinker with themselves and fix and keep on the road. They typically commuted to work on trains or buses. There was less than one car per household. “Now, what’s changed over the last 40 years isn’t that people have got happier as a result of having more stuff, it’s that they’ve been persuaded through advertising and the media that having lots more stuff will somehow increase human flourishing, but that hasn’t happened.”

In theological terms, western societies are in the grip of idolatry. “In the Old Testament, an idol was something made by human hands that people worshipped and bowed down to, and gave their soul force in the service of. In his book City of God, which is an answer to the charge that Christians caused the fall of Rome because they had Christianised the Empire, St Augustine said, ‘No, what has caused the fall of Rome is Rome’s devotion to idols, to luxury wealth and sexual immorality. And further more, a people are made a people by the things that they love in common, the common objects of love. It’s their devotion to these objects which identifies them, which marks them out as a people who belong together.’”

COMMENT: One huge problem Australia faces as it tries to persuade its own people and the people of the world that human greed and complacency is causing great harm to their country and its inhabitants, is the Roman Catholic Church. Cardinal Pell, one of the most bigoted, right wing spokesmen for that denomination, often loudly reputes the existence of global warming as a danger. People will naturally grasp at any straw, especially those handed out by people of so-called authority, rather than give up the things they believe they need and love. As professor Northcott's words demonstrate, not only are the false teachings of people like Pell downright wrong, they are, along with so many of the cardinal's pronouncements, an attack on God's creation and a boon for the Tempter.

THE OUTRUNNERS' HALL OF FAME

From OREGON LIVE:

Clark County police dog, Kane, was killed in a chase Saturday. He was stabbed during a search for two people who fled from a stolen police car. He was taken to an animal hospital and later pronounced dead.

The department is planning a memorial service for Kane.

“It's like an officer being killed,” Department spokesman Sgt. Scott Schanaker said. “There's such a tremendous turnout. They have to do a lot of planning.”

Two people were arrested in connection with the incident.

People have been peppering the county sheriff's office with inquiries about making a donation towards the cost of training police dogs in memory of Kane. Details of how to do this can be found on the Oregon Live page.

Thanks to Ann Fontaine for sending in this story.

FROM THE LEAST TO THE LEASTTHE TRUE HEART OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

The link to the article from which the following has been extracted was sent in by Wade who is "proud to have been on the discernment group for this young man."

Posted at WALKING WITH INTEGRITY:

By Ben Garren (Integrity Intern)

My uncle wanted to make chicken and dumplings. A simple enough task. As I watched him slowly write out the grocery list in his precise architect’s script, however, I knew completing that task would take much of the day’s energy. Recovering from spinal meningitis decades into his fight with HIV/Aids simple tasks were no longer easy. I sadly mulled this over as I drove to the store with his list. At which point, as always, my uncle made me smile. His meticulous list was arranged to the specific floor plan of the store. Pity ain’t gonna stick to that.

A few years ago my uncle became a confirmed Episcopalian. My memory is of him explaining that it was not a sudden decision, but one he had known for a long time. He talked about Integrity, not in any great way but by the simple fact that Integrity existed. That it had actual purchase in our church’s polity and this meant that the Episcopal Church was a place where he could worship God with his full self. Decades of the Episcopal Church being in the background had made it the place he knew he would go when he was ready once again to enter into a churched relationship with God.

His parish, though, is amazing. There (are) two Episcopal parishes in town. One is actually a continuing Anglican parish that split off when the new prayer book was made. My uncle was at the other Episcopal Church, the hidden Episcopal Church, the Episcopal Church built by Episcopal slaves so they could worship out of sight and mind of their Episcopal owners. It was there that my uncle found welcome, affirmation, and a space where he could worship God in Truth. The first white individual known to be a lay member of that parish.

Our church, our church has its problems, but if the results of one of our most darkest deeds, our party to the enslavement of our brothers and sisters in Christ, is that a former slave parish in the deep south is now a place a gay white man can finally worship God in truth, then there is overwhelming hope amidst our current problems.

COMMENT: Normally such Christ-inspired words would automatically merit the author being given the accolade of "Brick Of The Day." However, OCICBW... is regularly visited by many gay men and style gurus such as KJ, and that tie and the way Ben is wearing it, just do not pass muster. But, apart from this one, albeit unforgivable sin, this young man is a shining example of the gospel infused mission of his church and gives us all hope that, as it has been promised, one day we will overcome. Wade is thoroughly justified in being proud of being part of the process that has given Ben the opportunity to minster to the people of God.

PURRING FOR ENGLAND

From CBS12 NEWS:

A gray-and-white tabby by the name of Smokey has cat-apulted to fame with purring so loud it has been recorded at a potentially record-setting 73 decibels. The British community college that measured the sound said it peaked at 16 times louder than that of the average cat. By some estimates, that is about as noisy as busy traffic, a hair dryer or a vacuum cleaner.

Recordings of Smokey have been submitted
to the Guinness World Records.



Thanks to Paul(A) for sending in this story.

THE PRAYER LIST - 7TH. APRIL 2011

Posted at DIOBETH NEWSPIN:

Pray for our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for their families:

Scott H. Burgess, 32
Jeremy P. Faulkner, 23
Christian A. S. Garcia, 30
Wesley J. Hinkley, 36
Quadi S. Hudgins, 26
Michael S. Lammerts, 26
Harry Lew, 21
Gary L. Nelson III, 20
Dennis C. Poulin, 26
Jorge A. Scatliffe, 32
Robert F. Welch III, 26

Pray also for the fallen heroes also of our coalition partners, and for the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan who have died, unnamed and unknown to us, and for those who mourn ... and for an end to this endless war.

***

THANKSGIVING

From VOICE OF AMERICA:

Japanese officials say efforts to pump nitrogen into the containment vessel of a damaged nuclear reactor appear to be succeeding, easing fears that a hydrogen build-up in the vessel could cause a dangerous explosion.

***

If you would like to light
a candle as part of your
prayer, please click HERE,
then click on BEGIN and
follow the instructions.

Our group name is
Laika (case sensitive);
please type this into
the appropriate box
when requested.

HOW TO STOP A CONVERSATION DEAD (NO. 1)

"That's your view."

RELIGIOUSLY SCIENTIFIC

THE GUARDIAN has posted an interview with Martin Rees, a scientist who has just been awarded the £1 million Templeton Prize.

From the outset, Rees is very stroppy, even by top scientist standards.

Mind you, Ian Sample seems intent on upsetting him from the outset as well.



Ian Sample: Congratulations on the award.

Martin Rees: Thank you.

IS: Were you already a millionaire?

MR: Sorry?

IS: Were you already a millionaire?

MR: No comment.

Then, after Rees has explained very clearly that he is a scientist and not a philosopher, Sample insists on asking him lots of philosophical questions. This forces the reluctant Rees into making clichéd responses that The Guardian then posts, no doubt to be lapped up by philosophically challenged antitheists.

Firstly, Rees insists on repeating the hoary old chestnut that science and religion are two completely different things, in the same way, he suggests, that science and aesthetics are two different things. But, of course, they are not. All "orthodox" religion makes claims about reality and non-reality. If science is the study of that which exists and religion is different to science in the way Rees suggests, then god(s) is/are not a reality. A religious apologist who uses this "two different things" gambit in order to snuggle up to atheistic scientists is basically denying the existence of god(s).

The second un-thought through comment Rees makes is this:

IS: Why don't you believe in God?

MR: Um. Which God?

IS: A God.

MR: I don't think I can answer that.

IS: Really?

MR: Mm.

IS: You must have thought about it.

MR: Yes. But there's nothing very much I want to say about that. I suppose one thing I would say, from my BBC lectures, I think doing science makes me realise that even the simplest things are pretty hard to understand and that makes me suspicious of people who believe they've got anything more than an incomplete and metaphorical understanding of any deep aspect of reality. And also I see human beings as not the culmination, but only a stage in the marvellous unfolding of evolution, because the timeline ahead is as long as the time that has lapsed up to now. Those are respects in which my professional interests affect my response to dogmatic religion.

This is an example of how to destroy your own argument in the very making of your argument. What Rees has learnt through doing science should make him almost as sceptical about science as religion (allowing him a bias towards science as he is a scientist and we all champion our own causes). It is my study of science that has led me to the belief that God is, not only a possibility, but a probability. I've explained my reasoning for this conclusion of mine before (many times), so I won't bother you with it again.

You know. I think my continued determination on this blog not to divorce religion and science is worthy of a Templeton Prize. I could do with a million pounds right now. If you lot would like to launch a campaign to get me it the next time it is handed out I promise that I will buy each of you a pint of beer should your lobbying be successful.

A C GRAYLING DIES AND GOES TO HEAVEN

DON'T BLAME MADPRIEST, BLAME MAD DAD

George and Harriet decided to celebrate their 55th Wedding Anniversary with a trip to Las Vegas. When they entered the MGM Hotel/Casino and registered, a sweet young woman dressed in a very short skirt became very friendly. George brushed her off.

Harriet objected, "George, that young woman was nice, and you were so rude."

"Harriet, she's a prostitute."

"I don't believe you. That sweet young thing?"

"Let's go up to our room and I'll prove it."

In their room, George called down to the desk and asked for 'Bambi' to come to Room 217. "Now," he said, "you hide in the bathroom with the door open just enough to hear us, OK?"

Soon, there was a knock on the door. George opened it and Bambi walked in, swinging her hips provocatively.

George asked, "How much do you charge?"

"$125 basic rate, $100 tips for special services."

"$125? I was thinking more in the range of $25."

Bambi laughed derisively. "You must really be a hick if you think you can buy sex for that price."

"Well," said George, "I guess we can't do business. Goodbye."

After she left, Harriet came out of the bathroom. She said, "I just can't believe it!"

George said, "Let's forget it. We'll go have a drink, then eat dinner."

At the bar, as they sipped their cocktails, Bambi came up behind George, pointed slyly at Harriet, and said, "See what you get for $25 bucks?"

RIDE 'EM COWGIRL!

From ASSOCIATED PRESS:

When Regina Mayer's parents dashed her hopes of getting a horse, the resourceful 15-year-old didn't sit in her room and sulk. Instead, she turned to a cow called Luna to make her riding dreams come true. Hours of training, and tons of treats, cajoling and caresses later, the results are impressive: not only do the two regularly go on long rides through the southern German countryside, they do jumps over a makeshift hurdle of beer crates and painted logs.

It all started about two years ago, shortly after Luna was born on the Mayers' sprawling farm in the hamlet of Laufen, just minutes from the Austrian border. They started off with walks in the woods during which Luna wore a halter. Then Mayer slowly got her cow more accustomed to human contact and riding equipment.

It's a lot of work "but I enjoy it," Mayer said.

Her efforts have paid off. Now, Luna understands commands such as "go," "stand" and "gallop." If she feels like it, that is.

"When she wants to do something she does it, when she doesn't, she doesn't," said Mayer.

Mayer hasn't given up her hopes of having a horse and may soon get one. But she says Luna will always have a special place in her heart.

"She'll stay my darling," she said.

COMMENT: Cows are lovely and loving creatures who only ever get bad tempered if you show signs of wanting to do some serious harm to one of their calves. Horses, on the other hand, are the spawn of Satan and every single one of them is a homicidal maniac with one desire in life - to taste human blood.

Thanks to IT for sending this story in.

IT believes that this story should "allow some good German jokes." Please do not disappoint her.

IN WHICH THE SON OF GOD ZAPS A POLAR BEAR

Please put down (away from your computer) any cups of hot liquid before viewing. I also suggest that if you need to urinate you do so beforehand in order to avoid later embarrassment.



Thanks to Claire for sending this in.

THE ENGLISH: A NATION OF CHAV LOVERS

From THE MAIL:

A couple who abandoned their lame dog at the side of a road have been told they can still keep pets. Despite potentially facing jail sentences after being filmed leaving their pet, Ginger, the couple were handed just a conditional discharge.

The dog, a Shetland terrier cross, was abandoned on a patch of grass by Michael Hartley, 54, who pretended to take the dog for a walk before running to his car and driving off. The bewildered dog was seen on CCTV limping pitifully after the vehicle in Weymouth, Dorset.

Four months after the incident, Ginger was taken in by retired postman, John Steele, after he was judged to be the most suitable owner.

"What they did was callous," he told the Daily Express. "Anything could have happened to the dog after they left her. She could have been run over."

Ginger is now recovering well and enjoys going to the park every morning. Hartley and Hadfield faced a maximum six-month prison sentence or a fine of up to £20,000. Instead they were told to pay just £100 each along with the conditional discharge.

MADPRIEST DIGS . . .

Mark Brunson's new avatar.

Mark blogs at ENOUGH ABOUT ME:  AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

MADPRIEST'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

I am not a cynic.

The tendency of cynics is not to believe in anything.

My tendency is towards believing in everything.

THE PRAYER LIST - 6TH. APRIL 2011

From THE GUARDIAN:

Police have returned to an overgrown stretch of land off Long Island a day after three more bodies were found, taking the number of victims of a suspected serial killer in the New York city area to eight. It is a huge crime scene – several square miles of windswept sand dunes and thick undergrowth – that has been scoured several times by police searchers, but more bodies keep turning up. All of the corpses identified so far are young, white women who worked as prostitutes, and police believe they are dealing with a serial killer, or killers.

***

THANKSGIVING

Posted by Jay Simser
at BAILEY'S BUDDY:

My cousins had their baby.
She is a beautiful girl.

***

If you would like to light
a candle as part of your
prayer, please click HERE,
then click on BEGIN and
follow the instructions.

Our group name is
Laika (case sensitive);
please type this into
the appropriate box
when requested.

(GOD'S) PENIS ENVY

The antitheists don't want to kill God.

They want to be God.

And like God their great work is
to create man in their own image.

A STAR IS BORN

I expect he will be too modest to own up to it but I'm pretty certain this is our KJ. Give it a listen and I'm sure you will agree with me.

It's definitely his colour.



Oh, I just love that big, Seattle sound.

And I can see the video in my mind's eye already. KJ as Fred Astaire, Grandmère Mimi as Ginger with all the Busby Berkeley trimmings. Darlings, it will be wonderful!

MADPRIEST'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

If you buy a single nowadays, especially if it is a dance track, the chances are that it will have on it not only the original recording but also various remixes. I expect for the record companies and the artists this makes good commercial sense because, as different people like different styles, it increases the number of copies of the record that they will sell.

Perhaps in our postmodern world the emergent, Christian church could use this music industry phenomenon to understand and relate to the other religions of the world. In stead of viewing other faiths as completely different products maybe we should accept them, and ourselves even, as remixed versions of the original track. A mashed up God for a smashed up world. If we only understood that we are all dancing to the same tune, albeit different versions of the same tune, perhaps our race would be in a better position to repair the damage we have caused.

Boogie on down, as they say!

TYPO OF THE DAY

From TOPIX:

Personally, I think the Church would be a lot more vibrant and successful if they were all updated - and not just the Roman catholic ones.

However, I expect this is just a typo and that he is still the same old Cardinal Wuerl without the latest Microsoft updates to his system or interesting surgical implants.

THE SOPPY LKT SELECTION

This is Jed.

Read all about him
at THE INFUSION.

THE PRAYER LIST - 5TH. APRIL 2011

From a longstanding member of our neighbourhood:

As for my dad... well. Things there are pretty awful. He thinks I am trying to put him in a nursing home. This because I have been talking to him about making himself safer in the house, saying the house is no longer safe for him. He called my brother and told him he is going to get a lawyer to fight me. He asked my brother to save him from me. And he thinks I stole money from him. This because I put his AARP Medicare supplement on my credit card, and then wrote a check (in his presence, with his permission, which he signed) to reimburse myself. He didn't remember the next day.

I have had major anxiety about this, sleepless nights. Praying, praying, praying. Going down again a week from today.

I covet your prayers about all of this.

***

Posted by Mibi52 at REV MIBI:

My dear parishioner died on Sunday evening. Bless him, he was ready to be done with the unbearable pain of metastatic cancer. His wife is dealing with metastatic lung cancer. Heaven help her....and the good parishioners of the parish will help her, too, doing as much as she will let them.

***

From THE GUARDIAN:

Only one person among 33 passengers and crew survived after a UN plane crashed while landing in poor weather in Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday. The accident, in Kinshasa, is one of the worst to involve a UN aircraft. Most of the passengers were UN staff and peacekeepers, though five NGO workers were also on board.

***

THANKSGIVING

Posted by D Gregory Smith at FROM ETERNITY TO HERE:

Insurance. Check.
New doctor. Check.
Medications. Check.
Happy. Double check.

It’s all going great, and it looks like things will be done well and (almost) as easily as of old. ADAP came through, and EIP came through which give me insurance and covers my doctor and meds.

And I’m healthy- all things considered. Thanks for the thoughts, prayers, energy, love, whatever you want to call it. I’m deeply appreciative.

***

Posted by Mibi52 at REV MIBI:

Finally (FINALLY! after four months) got the meds that the insurance company was fighting me on. Here's the difference: on Saturday, in between trips to the hospital, I could do nothing but take a nap. Today, having had the meds, I've been rocking and rolling and getting things done. Take that, MS fatigue!

***

From Alison:

I am busy getting ready to move to California. After we were married I came back to Wisconsin to complete some work commitments, but in nine days I will be joining Alan to live happily after ever, or pretty close to it.

***

From TOWLEROAD:

Ban, a dog which was rescued last week atop debris in the Pacific Ocean three weeks after the tsunami hit northern Japan, has been reunited with its owner. After watching a TV news report on the rescue, the owner of the female dog visited the animal care center where she was being looked after, to take her back.

'We'll never let go of her,' the owner was quoted as saying by a center official, while the dog happily wagged her tail when the owner appeared."

If you would like to light
a candle as part of your
prayer, please click HERE,
then click on BEGIN and
follow the instructions.

Our group name is
Laika (case sensitive);
please type this into
the appropriate box
when requested.

MADPRIEST'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY (2)

Of course Jesus came to England.
It says so in The Apostles' Creed.
Between his death and resurrection he visited Birmingham.

MADPRIEST'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The definition of "Anglicanism" as proposed by The Grand Tufti, most C. of E. bishops and anyone called Giles etc.:

The faith once handed down to the English (through the Oxford University Department of Theology, of course).

MADPRIEST DIGS . . .

The new album from June Tabor is, consistently throughout, one of the most beautiful records I have ever bought. In my opinion she has finally managed to merge her love for folk and her love for jazz together into something seamless and unique. Simply gorgeous it is.



JUNE'S WEBSITE

PURCHASE VIA MADPRIEST'S AMAZON STORE

ADOLF HITLER AND THE DOOMSDAY HOTDOG

From THE MAIL:

Nazi plans for resistance if they lost the Second World War included a plot to poison sausages, chocolate and Nescafé coffee, secret files reveal. The Werewolf organisation, a network of Nazi saboteurs who would fight to create a Fourth Reich in the event Hitler’s empire crumbled, were to leave tins of instant coffee powder and other foods laced with toxins where they could be found by British and American soldiers. The revelations were made in a formerly top-secret MI5 dossier on the potential use of poisons by Nazi guerrillas after the war that is declassified today.

COMMENT: As they would have been used to eating from 1940's American hot dog stands I don't think a bit of poison in their sausages would have done the American soldiers any harm whatsoever. As for the English soldiers they would have rather starved than eat one of those phoney german sausages - it would still be the same today.

AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US

From THE NEW HAVEN REGISTER:

The vandals who stole a cross, tore a Bible and shattered the stained glass at the Episcopal Church of St. Paul and St. James challenged the parish to respond with mercy or justice, the Rev. Alex Dyer said in his Sunday sermon.

Dyer said he chooses to respond in mercy, as Jesus did.

“That’s who I choose to follow, is this Jesus, the Son of Man, who was much more about forgiveness than justice,” Dyer preached a day after the break-in in the historic Wooster Square church.

“Unfortunately there are millions and millions of people … who call themselves Christians, disciples, who worship a God that is out for vengeance. … But that’s not the God that I worship. That’s not what God is about.”

Many see Christians as relying on vengeance, rules and regulations, and stained by hypocrisy, he said, but “We have a choice today, not to live into the way people think we’re going to act, not to live into the hypocrisies, not to live into the inconsistencies, the way people want us to act. A lot of people think we would be justified in acting that way.

From the WEBSITE of St. Paul and St. James:

At St. Paul & St. James we include people of diverse races, social classes, incomes, ages, and sexual orientation. We are seekers, skeptics, and the spiritually hungry of all kinds. We are all drawn together in the love of Christ. No matter where you are on your faith journey, you are welcome here. Our worship services speak a language of prayer that represents the diversity and complexity of our congregation, while remaining rooted in the Episcopal tradition of Common Prayer.

For getting it and then living it,
The Reverend Alex Dyer is our

BRICK OF THE DAY

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Check out
"The seven deadly LOLcats,"
posted by Scott Gunn at
SEVEN WHOLE DAYS.

MADPRIEST SUPPORTS HIS FRIEND KIRSTIN(PERPETUAL OCICBW... BRICK OF THE DAY)

Kirstin has made regular appearances on The Prayer List over the years. On Saturday she posted the following on her blog, BAREFOOT AND DANCING:

I'm doing the American Cancer Society Relay for Life in Sacramento on April 16. I signed up two weeks ago, and finally tonight got it together and finished my fundraising page. (I'm still feeling the sleeplessness from a four-week course of steroids that went with radiation.) I'd been thinking about it since I was first in treatment, while I was still in seminary. I went to their website more recently, clicked the "Survivors" tab, and started crying. I also know that if I'm going to do this sort of thing, it needs to be now. I'm capable, mentally and physically competent, and in the lightest course of treatment (oral chemo only) that I've ever had.

Please don't feel pressured to contribute. Your love is enough. But please do feel welcome to. Money raised doesn't go to me; it goes to the American Cancer Society. You're helping to fund research, and support patients in any number of ways.

You are also welcome (very welcome) to walk the survivors' lap with me. The event begins at 10am at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center, 6151 H Street, Sacramento.

OCICBW... gives its full and unreserved endorsement to Kirstin's charity appeal and her taking part in this relay for life. If you can afford to make a donation please do so. If you cannot then keep Kirstin in your prayers and, most especially, on 16th. April. Both courses of action will do Kirstin the power of good.

And OCICBW... is not alone in its endorsement of Kirstin's efforts. The omnipresent IT (she who must be obeyed) left this comment on Kirstin's blog yesterday:

As one who was funded by ACS early in her career, and who now reviews for them and speaks at ACS events, I want to thank you for your courage and activism. Relay always makes me more inspired when I get back to the lab. You are all so brave. I salute you!

We all salute you, Kirstin and we salute those who support you in your continued resolve to show us all how to live life with the commitment and enthusiasm it deserves.

THE PRAYER LIST - 4TH. APRIL 2011

From susankay:

I ask prayers for Molly the WonderDog as she seems to be failing - but who knows. Her guardians would also appreciate prayers as we may face a period of mourning.

***

From JCF:

I have felt, for the better part of a month, like (in the clinical term) "crap". I saw the doctor yesterday (stated only as a check-up) and got some (needed!) meds. However, both are the sorts that need days to weeks to kick-in. And yes, I'm feeling that infamous head-med thing of "things look even bleaker" now that I've just started them.

It just may be my head, that tells me that there are "other things wrong w/ me." I'm HOPING in a few days, I'll be able to say "Head-Meds beat-down my hypochondria again!"

...but I'm also getting an ultrasound in a few days, in case there should be something internal amiss (I emphasize that there is NOT thought to be any sort of malignancy).

Oh, and my lower back hurts like hell, and I think (bothersome symptoms of) The Change may be starting to hit.

Anyway, sum it all up, and you get the clinical "cr@p".

I'd really love some prayers. Thanks!

***

Posted by LKT at THE INFUSION:

A spokesman for the UN mission in Ivory Coast, Guillaume N'Gefa, told AFP that 330 people had been killed in Duekoue as Mr Ouattara's forces took over the town, most of them at the hands of the rebels. More than 100 more people were killed by Mr Gbagbo's troops before they left, he added. Mr N'Gefa said a UN team was still investigating and those figures were likely to rise.

***

Posted by Gurdur at THE HEATHEN HUB:

The Fukushima Da-ichi reactor is still very much a major problem, and now there is significant leakage of water bearing radioactive iodine. From the New York Times:

"Experts estimate that about 7 tons an hour of radioactive water is escaping the pit. Safety officials have said that the water, which appears to be coming from the damaged No. 2 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi, contains one million Becquerels per liter of iodine 131, or about 10,000 times levels normally found in water at a nuclear facility."

From THE NEW YORK TIMES:

Tokyo Electric Power Company will release almost 11,500 tons of water contaminated with low levels of radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean, as workers struggle to contain the increasing amounts of dangerous runoff resulting from efforts to cool the plant’s damaged reactors. The runoff is now threatening to swamp the generators powering the cooling systems at two of the six reactors just recently brought under control, threatening to reverse what little progress the company has made in resolving the world’s worst nuclear crisis in decades.

***

From REUTERS:

Police using live rounds and tear gas wounded hundreds of protesters marching on a presidential palace in Yemen's Red Sea city of Hudaida on Monday in a sign of fraying nerves as the weeks-old political crisis deepens.

From REUTERS:

Hundreds of Syrians chanted "freedom" as they gathered late Saturday in the Damascus suburb of Douma to receive protesters wounded when they confronted security forces the day before, a witness said.

***

From BBC NEWS (South Asia):

Two Nato soldiers have been shot dead by a man wearing an Afghan border police uniform in Afghanistan's Faryab province.

***

From BBC NEWS (South Asia):

Suicide attackers have killed at least 41 people and wounded many more at a shrine in Pakistan.

The explosions struck near the Sakhi Sarwar shrine in Punjab, as Sufi Muslim devotees gathered for an annual three-day festival. Sufis, a minority Muslim group who follow mystical beliefs, are regarded as heretical by hardliners.

A Taliban fighter told reporters his group carried out the attack, the third on Sufi shrines in a year.

***

From THE MAIL:

Ai Weiwei, one of China's most celebrated and internationally recognised artists, who designed the impressive Bird's Nest stadium for the Chinese capital's 2008 Olympic Games, has been detained in Beijing by police and has now been missing for 24 hours. His studio has been searched, computers have been confiscated and his assistants quizzed. He has long been an outspoken critic of the ruling Communist Party.

***

From BBC NEWS (Northern Ireland):

Catholic and Church of Ireland bishops in the north west have condemned the murder of police officer Ronan Kerr. The 25-year-old constable, who was Catholic, was killed when a booby-trapped bomb exploded beneath his car on Saturday morning. No group has admitted carrying out the attack but police believe dissident republicans are to blame.

***

From THE MAIL:

Thusha Kamaleswaran has been in a coma for five days since being hit in the chest by a stray bullet. Thusha was with her mother, three-year-old sister and brother, 12, in the shop which is owned by her uncle, Vicknes Mahadevan, when two black teenagers ran in, apparently being chased by three youths on bicycles. Suddenly, a gunman outside began firing. Thusha was hit in the chest and shop assistant Mr Selvakumar was hit in the head. Mr Selvakumar is in a serious but stable condition.

***

Posted by TRUE BLUE TEXAN:

Yesterday (Friday), Fort Bend ISD, near Houston, announced it was laying off 470 employees. 195 of those were certified teaching positions. March 25, Round Rock ISD, my home district, announced 280 employee layoffs, 234 of them probationary teachers. Those are generally new teachers in their first two years of employment. The district warned that the next round of layoffs will come from contracted employees. Austin ISD voted March 28 to eliminate 490 positions. Some are administration but most are teaching and support staff. Dallas ISD is looking at eliminating almost 3,000 positions, of which 1,300 will be teaching positions. This is a nightmare. And not one we as a state will soon wake from.

***

THANKSGIVING

Posted by Sam at ELIZAPHANIAN (Saturday):

Joy of joys, my daughter is being baptised tomorrow morning, and I am just going to be playing the part of Dad.

***

Posted by IT at THE FRIENDS OF JAKE:

At Sunday Evensong, BP had her first real thurifer solo. Evensong is shorter than Sunday Eucharist and is where the thurifers do their final polishing. She's on the list to do the procession at Palm Sunday. I think it is marvelous that her first full service is likely to be Easter.

***

From EURASIA REVIEW:

UNITED KINGDOM: Multi-millionaire, Jonathan Ruffer, has bought a series of 17th century religious paintings from the Anglican church for 15 million pounds and has given them back so they can remain on public display and potentially boost art tourism in parts of the rundown northeast of England. Painted by Francisco de Zurbaran, a contemporary of Velazquez and El Greco, the representations of the Biblical patriarch Jacob and his sons have been kept at Auckland Castle at Durham since 1756.

If you would like to light
a candle as part of your
prayer, please click HERE,
then click on BEGIN and
follow the instructions.

Our group name is
Laika (case sensitive);
please type this into
the appropriate box
when requested.

MADDAD AND MADMUM MEET PADRE PIO

. . . today, in the gardens of a hotel in 
Sharnbrook, England, of all places.

THE BEST MOTHERING SUNDAY SERVICE EVER (POSSIBLY)

I've posted the podcast for a service of Holy Communion on Mothering Sunday at ST. LAIKA'S. The sermon is basically a story aimed at children and the childlike. If anybody wants to use it at anytime, just do so. You don't need to ask my permission first.

MadPriest loves being mothered by absolutely anyone. Here's the usual blurb as it's the beginning of the month and the bills need paying.

The administrator of this site is the Reverend Jonathan Hagger (a.k.a. MadPriest). He is a Church of England priest but he receives no salary from any church or any other employer.
At present his ministry consists entirely of his work at St. Laika's and OCICBW...

However, he likes to eat occasionally and his blogs cost quite a bit of money to run. So, in true Anglican style a collection plate is being made available for your donations (via PayPal).

Full accounts will be posted here each year. You will never be asked to pledge or tithe but a regular monthly contribution from you would give him security and peace of mind.

You do not need to have a PayPal account to subscribe or donate via the buttons below.

Option 1 : £5.00GBP - monthly Option 2 : £10.00GBP - monthly Option 3 : £15.00GBP - monthly Option 4 : £20.00GBP - monthly Option 5 : £25.00GBP - monthly Option 6 : £50.00GBP - monthly Option 7 : £75.00GBP - monthly Option 8 : £100.00GBP - monthly Option 9 : £30.00GBP - monthly

Another way to help Jonathan is to buy Amazon products via his Amazon shop. Details of how to do this can be found in the right hand sidebar.

A GUIDE TO WHAT THE LAITY OF OTHER PROVINCESTHINK THEIR CLERGY ARE WORTH -FOR CHURCH OF ENGLAND VICARS

This is what a parish priest in The Church of Ireland gets paid:

Plus, you get to keep your fees for occasional services involving people not connected to the congregation. For example 250 euros for a wedding. Plus, they pay for your lawn to be cut and lots of other stuff.

And all this is made possible by the generosity and commitment of the laity even though their congregations are usually small in number.

APRIL FOOLS ALL OVER THE WORLD

Violence broke out on the streets of Lambeth today following the public burning of a copy of the Anglican Covenant by militant, liberal blogger, Leslie Chaps. Following morning prayers the Grand Tufti was witnessed running out of his palace shouting that hundreds of copies of the sacred text had been burnt by revisionist, Satan worshipping oiks, many of whom had not gone to either Oxford or Cambridge University and who were obviously the wrong sort of people. This resulted in clergy loyal to the Tufti walking casually towards Vauxhall Bridge shouting "Bad show!" and chanting "The Tufti is a real nice man and we don't want to upset him!"

In the ensuing carnage, three London pigeons were frightened off their perch on the Lambeth Palace walls and a little old lady was trampled to death as over 500 "middle of the road" Church of England vicars attempted to help her across the road.

THE PRAYER LIST - 2ND. APRIL 2011

Posted by Brian R at NOBLE WOLF:

Way back in 1966, at the end of my first year of teaching, I made my first visit to New Zealand. Although 23 years old I was very naive. However on this trip, due to my age and status, I found myself mixing with the type of male who I had rarely associated with as a student myself. I was closer in age to the students than I was to most of the other teachers. I found Garry very attractive, he was stunning with a wonderful smile. We became good friends. I do not know why he reciprocated the friendship. Let's just say he was very heterosexual and his world was completely new to me. I was older and had a car so could provide the wheels for many surfing trips.

He went to university and eventually married. He became a high powered executive and spent time living in Europe and the USA. We only had occasional contact and hardly any in recent years. When I was in Australia before Christmas, another classmate of his, who became a Geography teacher and kept regular contact with me over the 45 years, informed me that Garry had cancer and was paralysed. We visited him and he seemed pleased to see me. A few weeks ago I was informed that Garry was in hospital with breathing difficulties. I sent him a message and his wife told me he read it with a big smile. This morning she emailed me that Garry passed away overnight.

***

Posted by Jay Simser at BAILEY'S BUDDY:

I have been staying home because of the red splotches on my face (caused by the ointment I am putting on it to treat the condition). I don't really want to be around people with this because it looks like something we used to call the Creeping Crud. So with all the car problems and everything else I am scarce. I am fasting tonight because i have to go in for Labs tomorrow. I will be glad when it is healed and I feel like being around people again. I have to go to a couple of meetings this next week but perhaps people will be kind and not look at me like I was contagious.

***

Posted by Paul at BYZIGENOUS BUDDHAPALIAN:

From Lois Phillips at Facebook:

A prayer request from a friend: KAYLA SCOTT'S 22 MONTH OLD SON SHOT HIMSELF IN THE CHEST WITH A BRAD NAILER. IT WENT IN HIS HEART. HE IS NOW IN CRITICAL CONDITION AND NOT DOING WELL. NEITHER IS HIS MOM.

***

Posted by Ruth at REVRUTH'S RANTINGS (2nd. April):

In a few moments I shall leave to take the funeral of Willie Jamieson. I have been friends with Willie’s son and family for years and he was a kenspeckle character.

("Kenspeckle": Easily recognized, distinctive, conspicuous.)

***

Posted by Ha'ger Avram at THE JOURNEY OF A CONVERT:

I have a lump. I discovered it a few weeks back, and full of fear went to the Doc. After a rummage around my nether regions he informed me that as the lump is not attached to my balls, but is free moving its unlikely to be cancer. I do however need to return to the Doctor in two weeks time, and get it checked again to see if its shrunk or grown prior to going for a scan on it. My days seem to be rather obsessed with concern about it at present. In theory its all fine - but i am not a great fan of having a lump somewhere it shouldn't be.

Ha'ger is in the process of converting to Judaism. So, please, prayers to the top man only on this one.

***

From AFP:

Nine people died Saturday in new protests against a Koran burning in the US, a day after seven UN staff were killed by a mob in the worst attack on the world body in Afghanistan since the 2001 invasion.

From THE GUARDIAN:

Rival forces in Ivory Coast are continuing their battle for power as it emerged that more than 800 people were killed this week in inter-ethnic violence in the town of Duekoue.

***

From CNN:

Forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi showed no signs of backing down Saturday after officials spurned an opposition cease-fire proposal.

***

From REUTERS (Africa):

Thousands of supporters of embattled Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh were gathering in the capital, Sanaa, for a rally on Saturday following a huge loyalist show of support the previous day. On Friday, tens of thousands, both for and against Saleh, took to the streets in Sanaa as negotiators struggled to revive talks to decide his fate.

Weeks of protests across Yemen have brought Saleh's 32-year rule to the verge of collapse but the United States and neighbouring oil giant Saudi Arabia, an important financial backer, are worried about who might succeed him in a country where al Qaeda militants flourish.

***

From THE NEW YORK TIMES:

Thousands of demonstrators filled Tahrir Square on Friday for the largest protest in weeks, demanding that the ruling military council move faster to dismantle lingering aspects of the old regime.

***

From BBC NEWS (Africa):

Seven civilians died and 25 were hurt in a coalition air strike on a pro-Gaddafi convoy in eastern Libya, a doctor there has told the BBC. Wednesday's raid happened in the village of Zawia el Argobe, 15km (9 miles) from Brega. The strike hit a truck carrying ammunition, and the resulting explosion destroyed two nearby homes. All the dead were between the ages of 12 and 20.

***

THANKSGIVING

Posted by ANTHONY VENN-BROWN:

An American ex-gay preacher, invited to speak in some Australian churches (Miracle Christian Center’s), is learning his message, that God ‘cures’ people of homosexuality, is not welcome in this country. One of the venues booked for his talk has withdrawn permission to use their premises. The venue originally booked was St Columbian’s Catholic College in Caboolture Queensland.

Possibly things have changed more in Australia then we realise with the principal of the school stating on their site that “St Columbian’s College is a caring, inclusive community, and we will not allow our facilities to be used by those seeking to promote views which are not in line with the Catholic Christian ethos of our community”.

***

From THE TELEGRAPH:

A dog believed to have survived the tsunami and then three weeks at sea has been rescued Coastguards headed towards the dog after spotting it on the floating roof of a house that had been washed out to sea, about 1.1 miles from the coast of Kesennuma in the north-east. A rescue team scrambled on to the roof and attempted to capture the canine. But the brown dog thwarted their efforts by running away over the large roof and surrounding rubble. The chase lasted for several hours before the elusive animal was finally caught, wrapped in a blanket and carried on a stretcher aboard the rescue boat. Initially, the dog seemed nervous and wary of the coastguards but once it was comfortably ensconced on the boat it quickly warmed to its captors and was soon licking their hands.

If you would like to light
a candle as part of your
prayer, please click HERE,
then click on BEGIN and
follow the instructions.

Our group name is
Laika (case sensitive);
please type this into
the appropriate box
when requested.

HEADLINE OF THE DAY

Well, that's made my mind up for me. I'm going to be very,
very well-behaved from now on. There's no way I'm going
to risk ending up in that particular eternity.

THE END

Application: Number 75

800 miles

3 nights away

18 hours on a ferry

Hundreds of pounds / euros getting there and back.

Brilliant job.

Lovely churches.

The most fantastic rectory in the world.

A really lovely bunch of clergy and a genuinely nice bishop.

The person on the interview panel that had read my blog thought is was excellent!

I did the best interview I have ever managed.

I thought I had got it.

I rang up Mrs MP and told her to start packing.


They gave the job to somebody else with more experience.


I had promised Mrs MP before I went that it would be the last interview. I can't put her through any more of this even if the church is happy to.

MadPriestX


I am uncertain about the future of the blog at the moment. It may be less painful to just turn my back on the Church and try my hardest to pretend the last twenty years of my life never happened.