We were having Vacation Bible School and for crafts we were doing a manger scene with Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus. I started calling Mary’s husband Joe. I glimpsed a hint of a smile on Miss Parker’s face, just before Miss Napier let me know that I was not to be so flippant and … Continue reading Journeying on
Anglican
Catechism Classes
(It has been five years since I first posted this. I thought it would be good to post it again to give some background before telling more of my spiritual journey.) About the only thing my parents had in common was a feeling that the church in which they had been raised had let them … Continue reading Catechism Classes
Worship styles – what is essential?
I was reading articles about the history of church pews and it seems most writers feel that pews became important at the time of the Reformation. In Roman Catholic worship the focus was on the communion and provisions for congregational seating were not of major importance. With the Reformation, the focus switched to the sermon … Continue reading Worship styles – what is essential?
Sin
“Almighty and most merciful Father, We have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep, We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts, We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, And we have done those things which we ought not to have done; And … Continue reading Sin
Worship then and now
Then was sixty years ago when I was a teenager and member of the Anglican Church of Canada. Services would begin with this exhortation: Dearly beloved brethren, the Scripture moveth us in sundry places to acknowledge and confess our manifold sins and wickedness; and that we should not dissemble nor cloke them before the face … Continue reading Worship then and now
God Save the Queen
It was Wednesday morning, February 6, 1952. I was nine years old and in Grade Five. When I got up that morning, the radio was playing solemn, stately, orchestral music. That was all we could get on any radio station. The eight o'clock news told us why – King George VI had died and his … Continue reading God Save the Queen
Leadhead and the Golden Rule
I first took note of Norman when the camp leaders took us all on a hike to Lebret. He was a quiet boy, walking with us, yet alone. He seemed like the rest of us, except that he could not hold his head up straight. It tilted towards his right shoulder, almost resting on the … Continue reading Leadhead and the Golden Rule
Cultural amnesia
One hundred years ago, when the Social Gospel was well on the way to infiltrating and taking control of many of the major Christian denominations of North America, my father was already 24 years old. It has lately dawned on me that because I was born when he was 50 I have a window on … Continue reading Cultural amnesia
Sing Out!
Alf Soper was janitor of the school I attended as a boy. Once he had been a travelling repairman for a farm implement company, then the boss of some large construction projects. New he was old and content to tend the coal fired boiler that heated the two storey brick school, sweep the floors, carry … Continue reading Sing Out!
What is your duty towards your neighbour?
The title of this post is a question from the catechism in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. The answer given in the catechism is as follows: My duty towards my neighbour is to love him as myself, and to do to all as I would they would do unto me. To love, honour, and … Continue reading What is your duty towards your neighbour?
Flatlander Faith 