sing a newer song
It’s hard to sing the old hymns anymore. The words and language are just too archaic or the doctrinal aspects of them are overwhelmingly inappropriate in a post-theistic community. As a result, from time to time, Scott or I tweak songs that are in the public domain or rewrite them altogether. We have published and […]
canada day letter to john baird
After reading a pair of articles sent to me by a West Hill member living in Taiwan, one on LGBTQ rights and the infiltration of Christian fundamentalist hysteria into that otherwise tolerant nation and the other on the inclusion of Taiwan on a list of countries deemed “unwelcome” at Canada Day festivities, I decided Canada Day was a […]
halo of loveliness
Heading into week two of discussions on our VisionWorks document. This section deals with our intereconnectedness with all life so my focused moment turned toward visualizing what that might look like. < p style=”text-align: center;”>Into and through, over and about, within and beyond, above and below – we live and move and have our being […]
Fair Elections Act – A Letter to Canadian Senators
Based on a letter offered by the Council of Canadians, I chose to go personal and tell Canadian Senators that my son deserves to vote. Here’s my letter. You can send one, too. by visiting the Council of Canadian’s Fair Elections Act webpage. Dear Senator, I am so proud of my son. He is graduating […]
change room etiquette and board room equity
The Culture Clash on the John Oakley Show this week raised the spectre Charles McVety has long been warning of: a sexual predator identifying as a trans woman using protocols in place to support trans people to access the women’s change room of a public swimming pool and make inappropriate advances on a woman undressing […]
the grammys and all that
Faith Goldy and I seared the line between us on today’s Culture Clash as we looked at the weddings performed by Queen Latifa at the Grammy’s earlier this week. Tell me, do you think Satan was conjured by Katy Perry’s antics? Or do you think Satan is a figment of an overly dramatic imagination? Or […]
getting angry yet? religious rights, a philandering french president, and allergies
This morning I learned that Culture Wars is now known as The Culture Clash and clash it was, this time with Faith Goldy on the other side of the desk. Faith works for Sun TV which claims it has changed the face of Canadian media. I think they think that’s a good thing. Our conversation […]
culture war: economic disparity
I am not qualified to speak on economics with anything that could even be suggested to be an authoritative voice but hearing Tory Cabinet Minister James Moore claim it’s not his job to feed his neighbour’s child stunned me. (Why oh why am I still surprised when I hear stuff like that?) And it was […]
beyond belief – the united church observer conversation
It was an interesting call. David Wilson, Editor of The United Church Observer, calling to invite me to sit down with Connie denBok and have a recorded conversation. Connie is also a United Church minister but, unlike me, she doesn’t believe the word god should be left out of church. She hasn’t had a lot […]
site-seeing
Here are a few of the sites that I enjoy visiting on the web and some of the alternative press that I read regularly and try to support the best I’m able. The list is only as long as my attention span is from one day to the next but I do hope to keep […]
the perfect storm
At the CCPC conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia a few weeks ago, I spoke about the perfect storm into which I believe we are heading. It’s concocted, actually, by three other storms already raging: one brought about by environmental realities; one by social changes and challenges; and one by the lost of mainline religious institutions. […]
indifference in the stars but noble truths here on earth
The Orion Nebula Tolstoy was right. There is only indifference in the stars. As they burst us into firestorm, there was no knowledge of doing so. The universe cares not what becomes of us as it carves its reality out in realms we will never touch or know. But we don’t […]
On Becoming a Spiritually Non-Exclusive Congregation
Light in the Night Sky The community I serve, West Hill United Church in the east end of Toronto, is always evolving. The most recent physical change entailed reclaiming the space previously dedicated to my office to turn it into a multipurpose meeting room. I work mostly from home, and the office had become a […]
The Problem with TAWOGFAT
One of the problems with the Biblical narrative is that we have no control over how it is used. Often, passages are taken out of context and examined for their “Meaning”. Although we might read any part of it arguing that it be assessed through a call to radically inclusive love, we could just as […]
Twelve Steps – for the rest of our lives
Most of us are familiar with the idea of the Twelve Steps, a group and peer-based support process that provides a backbone for change in the lives of many who struggle with addictions. On the outside of West Hill’s basement door, we have a list of a variety of Twelve Step programs for individuals dealing […]
What Is Your Favorite Holiday Memory?
I used this photo to send out the invitation to our fantastic Singing the Season evening at West Hill but it had already been scooped by Rebecca Roe of Mlive.com for a holiday feature, What Is Your Favorite Holiday Memory? This is a collection of trees that has grown over the years. I was grateful for them this […]