I was very pleased to find this particular list of things to “give up” in Lent, and I think that they are as true for us today as they were when they were first published 65 years ago.

Many of the suggestions are about having a more positive attitude and a trust in God. That’s not an easy thing though. The news these days, whether from the Middle East, from Europe, or from America, is nothing short of horrifying. It makes the suggestion to “GIVE UP your worries—instead trust God with them,” a very difficult thing to ask. And while trust in God we must, we must also take action. Trusting does not mean a lack of action. We can give up looking at people’s worst points, speaking unkindly, our hatred and dislike of anyone, and the fear which prevents Christian witness. Pray for the world and for peace.

This Lent, take up your cross and follow Christ, for it is through him that we go forward to change the world with love, never with violence. Make your voice heard, and stand for the things that Jesus asks of us when he says, “Follow me.”

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As we continue our ongoing work of Truth and Reconciliation within our country and within our Anglican Church of Canada, I would suggest making plans to offer the Alongside Hope Mapping Exercise in your parish or region.

In the wake of the release of the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015, Alongside Hope’s former Executive Director, Adele Finney, spoke with public engagement staffer, Suzanne Rumsey, about how Alongside Hope might create an education piece in response. Adele and Suzanne, together with Esther Wesley, former Coordinator of the Anglican Fund for Healing and Reconciliation, developed a narrative and a process called “Mapping the Ground We Stand On.” The resulting workshop explored Indigenous presence and Settler arrival on the map of Turtle Island/Canada. Piloted at Alongside Hope’s National Gathering in the fall of 2015, this “education for reconciliation” resource was further developed and delivered in parishes and other venues. In 2019, Alongside Hope launched a new five-year strategic plan. The fifth goal is “Mutual Reconciliation: We will accompany and support First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples, guided by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the priorities of Indigenous communities and organizations in Canada.” In 2019, a decision was taken by Alongside Hope to train a national network of Mapping Exercise facilitators in Winnipeg. Filmmaker Tim Wilson joined the training to document that process and produced two videos, available on Alongside Hope’s YouTube channel.

It would be an excellent idea to show one or both videos to your vestry or perhaps at coffee hour after service some Sunday to generate interest. You might decide to host a special Alongside Hope Coffee Hour, including a small bake sale, pamphlets, special envelopes and displays—most of which are available from head office or your Diocesan Rep—and show the mapping video, too.

If your church, like mine, doesn’t have internet to watch YouTube, contact Janice Biehn at Alongside Hope to send you the videos to download onto a laptop. When you are ready, go to the Mapping Exercise page on our website, https://alongsidehope.org/mapping-exercise/, to request a booking. In Newfoundland and Labrador, we have our own mapping exercise facilitator, Canon Tom Mugford. It is strongly recommended that you ask at least one month before you hope to hold your event.

This is a powerful learning exercise and strongly recommended for all who take truth and reconciliation seriously, and perhaps especially for those of us who don’t yet!

In addition to the Mapping Exercise video, Alongside Hope has other short videos available on YouTube or otherwise to bring awareness to your Parish on such topics as “What Alongside Hope Means to Me” and Nurse Itelvina’s story about the huge difference having a solar suitcase means to a rural health clinic in Mozambique.

Since it is still just the first of March, it is not too late to register for the Alongside Hope Lenten Resource: Wild Paths of Peace, written by the Anglican Communion’s permanent representative at the United Nations, Martha Jarvis. In this season of global unrest and conflict, it will do well to consider paths of peace this Lent. Sign up via the Alongside Hope website:
https://alongsidehope.org

May your Lenten self-examination prepare you for a glorious Easter celebration!

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It was wonderful to hear the voices of children and adults singing along: what a joyful sound!

In mid-December, members of the Fellowship Group, and ladies from the community, went carolling in Rocky Harbour and Norris Point. It was amazing as the night sky glistened with stars, the light snow fell, we saw trees covered with blankets of snow, and heard voices ringing in the air. How joyful it was to knock on someone’s door, to let them know the carollers were there, and see how excited they were to come outside in the night air and listen to the singing. For many people it brought back many happy memories of Christmas, loved ones, and traditions.

This is Christmas; this is what it’s all about. The Fellowship Group will have memories for ever, and it was a blessing; we look forward to doing it again next year!

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I have seen, and worked alongside, and worshipped with many priests since my beginning here in 1957. Each one empowered their own special gifts that I’m sure enhanced and developed our church’s faith immensely. I have joyfully said many hellos, and reluctantly uttered as many goodbyes.

But today, I will concentrate on the present, with my thoughts and feelings confined to our current priest: Canon Jotie Noel. Canon Jotie will be retiring this year, not just from our parish but also from thirty-seven years of ordained ministry.

During a recent Sunday morning sermon, Canon Jotie addressed the congregation announcing his plans. His delivery was a recap or celebration of those years: not just his time with us, but also in recognition of the other parishes who were also blessed by the gift he had portrayed, beginning in Labrador. It was very emotional and difficult for those present to maintain composure while listening to the depth of Canon Jotie’s sincerity that he espoused.

Canon Jotie was and is special. No matter how serious the discourse, he always managed to inject some humour, which enhanced and made the delivery more interesting, often implying that God had a sense of humour. To quote from the wisdom of the late Canon George Earle: “For church life to be lived at its richest, humour must not be confined to the secular, but must permeate the Spiritual.”

Canon Jotie encouraged freedom of speech: to be a listener, not just a deliverer. This meant that any topic or problem could be discussed without prejudice. Canon Jotie will be deeply missed and leaves very big shoes to fill. As his departure marks the culmination of one journey, we wish him and his wife Pauline many happy retirement years on the trip they are now about to embark upon. When one door shuts, another opens.

He who heeds the word wisely will find good,
And whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he.
– Proverbs 16:20

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That’s the entire game. And it takes a full 8 hours for the bus to reach its destination and for you to receive one point. Then you do it again. It is considered to be one of the most pointless wastes of time ever produced in the video game industry. Eight hours of your life spent keeping a fake bus on a fake road with no real entertainment and no real reward.

And people have played it.

It really makes one wonder about how humanity chooses to spend its precious time. We seem to surround ourselves with activities that don’t really serve much point, and yet they can demand huge amounts of energy and devotion.

Sometimes that’s how I feel when I listen to modern Christian music. I can’t say that Christian music is meaningless. It certainly isn’t. But it is a genre which seems excessively overrun by songs which are best categorized as “worship.” I tune in to Christian radio, or listen to Christian music mixes on YouTube or Spotify, or attend church services, and all I seem to hear is some variation on “God/Jesus is great and wonderful, and I will worship and serve him” (often repeated ad nauseam).

Now, please don’t get me wrong: worship songs are often beautiful, heart-warming, and very much have an important place in our faith lives. It is good and proper to worship God and proclaim God’s greatness by making a joyful noise. Quite a few I consider to be among my favourite songs of all time, particularly among the old-fashioned, traditional songs I have heard for years and years. But when worship songs are all I hear I often find myself wondering: where is the call to justice, to mercy, to lead lives of compassion and care?

Jesus said for us to love God and to love our neighbour. But so much of the music we offer focuses on the first command, but not the second.

There are exceptions, and I treasure them deeply. “God of the Movement and Martyrs” by David LaMotte is profoundly inspiring. I am always searching for songs which not only give praise to God but also challenge the listeners to live lives of service and love for the people of our world. Our music should be willing to have teeth. It should make the rich, the proud, and the powerful uncomfortable. It should call each listener to have a heart which does more than just look up. It should draw us into meeting the needs of the outcast, the hungry, the lonely, and those in any kind of trial.

There should be worship: and there should be transformation.

That pointless, boring video game: a group of people called “Desert Bus for Hope” started using it as a fundraiser in support of sick children, and have raised more than 12 million dollars since 2007.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, giving praise and thanks, but then make another joyful noise as we answer the call to serve.

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But the truth is that the Church has never been able to handle strong women. Throughout the centuries, it has done what it can to deny them full participation in its life and ministry. At times, its response has been outright hostility, at times indifference, and at times subjugation. In some instances, the response has been more nuanced. In the case of Mary Magdalene, for example, she was discredited for centuries, in order to downplay her revolutionary role in the early Church. As for Mary the Virgin, she was domesticated in such a way as to hide the strong disciple that she was. The result is that, often, her prophetic message is lost to the eyes-downcast, submissive image we see in religious paintings, icons and stained glass windows.

Like Jesus, the meek and mild persona of Mary lives along with a passionate advocate for justice in a world where injustice is endemic in our systems and our mind set. They were both  gentle and loving with those who were vulnerable, but unflinching when it came to naming the places in our world where those with power and influence lord it over others.

March 25th on our Church calendar is “The Annunciation of the Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary.”  Whether it’s because I serve in a Church dedicated to Mary the Virgin or whether the subordination of her valiant nature goes against the grain, I find myself more and more drawn to her story and to rediscovering who she was. When Mary said to the angel, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word,” it was a courageous statement of faith and trust. This same Mary would articulate a profound vision for a just world in the Magnificat, the Song of Mary. Reminiscent of her ancestor, Hannah’s song, it is one of the most radical visions of a world turned upside down that we have in scripture, or anywhere for that matter. It’s no wonder that those in power would do what they could to tame her and her view of the world as God would have it.

Patriarchy still has a strong grip on the Church and society but maybe, that will be lessened ever so slightly in the ministry and witness of Sarah, Archbishop of Canterbury, and maybe instead, the Church can concentrate on living Mary’s vision.

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