A SECTION OF THE ANGLICAN JOURNAL

w w w . k o o t e n a y . a n g l i c a n . c a

OCTOBER 2011 SERVING THE DIOCESE OF KOOTENAY

any plans weremade to celebrate100 years of wit-ness and ministry

in the community of Sorrento. The main event of the year

was our “Homecoming Weekend”when we invited as many formerclergy and parishioners as possibleto join us for a weekend of cele-bration. The event was held theweekend of June 10, 11 and 12,2011.

The weekend began on Fridayevening June 10 with a Wine andCheese gathering held at theSorrento Memorial Hall. The hostmembers of St. Mary’s were identi-fied by their blue 100thAnniversary T-shirts embroideredwith our anniversary logo!Colourful historical displays creat-ed by Mike Johnstone covered thewalls of the hall. Many folks spenttime enjoying the old photos andarticles about St. Mary’s. Theevening was a wonderful time of

greeting old friends and tellingstories.

On Saturday morning, June11, the Lions Club of Sorrentoput on a pancake breakfast for St.Mary’s Parish and the local com-munity. As with all Lions’ pancakebreakfasts we were presented withenough food to keep us going allday!

The big event of theHomecoming Weekend was theAnniversary Banquet held at theSorrento Memorial Hall onSaturday evening. All 150 ticketswere sold for this gala evening!The hall and tables were beautiful-ly decorated. The dinner wascatered and included a lovely glassof wine for all present. Followingthe dinner, letters of congratula-tion were read from former clergyand parishioners; from IvyThomas, Conference Minister ofthe United Church; from localand regional community officials;from The River of Life Church inSorrento; and from Our Lady of

St. Mary’s Parish, Sorrento, began its centennial year in January 2011

BY BARBARA STEWART

the Lake Roman Catholic Parishwhose congregation shared St.Mary’s church building for 30years.

After the letters were readeveryone settled back to enjoy aplay about the history of St.Mary’s Parish. The play was writ-ten by James Bowlby fromarchival information searched outby Mike Johnstone, Deacon andMarsha Miller, People’s Warden.The cast consisted of 17 membersof St. Mary’s parish all of whomwere over the age of 65 years! Theplay was directed by Bill Pobudaof Sorrento who amazed us withhis patience and humour. Werehearsed for five months and hadgreat fun in the process. We dis-covered that a play is a hugeundertaking, but we actually didstage a two hour production thatwas informative, funny and enter-taining!

Sunday, June 12 was the Dayof Pentecost. St. Mary’s Church

was overflowing with peopledressed in red! One visiting for-mer parishioner had nothing redto wear so he made a necktie ofred crepe paper! The service was awonderful celebration of the HolySpirit and of the story of St.Mary’s. Following our worshipservice refreshments were enjoyedon our new Centennial Patio inlovely sunshine. As we enjoyedour social time on the patio, wetook turns sitting on the beautifulsolid cedar bench made and givento us by Our Lady of the LakeRoman Catholic Parish in honourof our 100th Anniversary.

The members of St. Mary’sparish thank God for all thosefaithful parishioners over the pastone hundred years. We are readyto move into a second century ofwitness and ministry as the Bodyof Christ in St. Mary’s Parish. Sowe say “Thanks be to God!Alleluia!”

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P 4. Retreat in Deep Creek

P 5. Heritage servicereturns to the Book ofCommon Prayer

P 8. Wrestling with God sermon by Bill Harrison

photo ina branson

Homecoming

COME BACK TO SORRENTO — The choir of St. Mary’s Anglican/United Church, Sorrento, B.C. sing a song written by HeatherClarke to the tune of Ellacombe commemorating their 100th anniversary.

MPainting by Rembrant

P 7. Thanksgiving — RecipeDiem

spiritual lives. To regularly givethanks to God from whom allthings come will open our heartsand minds in gratitude to theworld beyond ourselves.

The third movement is fromacknowledgement to gratefulresponse. It presents us with thequestion, “What will I do with allthat I have received?” It is theChristian tradition to give a por-tion of what we have received forthe work of the Church and theneeds of others. This stewardshipof our abundance will make ourthanksgiving concrete. Regularand generous giving will reshapeour attitude toward our own pos-sessions and turn our attention toGod and the world around us. Imust admit that I get weary ofhearing financial “experts” say,“Put away the first 10% of yourearnings into your savings.” TheChristian faith has always taught“Give away your first fruits; give

OCTOBER 2011PAGE 2 THE HIGHWAY

The HighWay is published under the authority of the Bishop of Kootenay and the Synod of theDiocese of Kootenay. Opinions expressed in The HighWay are not necessarily those of the Editor orthe Publisher.

THE

HIGHWAY

EDITOR

Jonn LavinnderSt. Saviour’s Pro-Cathedral723 Ward Street,Nelson, B.C.V1L 1T3Phone: (250) 352-5711thehighway@shaw.ca

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Editorial AssistantMicahel Lavinnder

ctober is the tradi-tional time forthanksgiving. Theearth has once again

given forth her abundant gifts.The harvest is in and we can mar-vel at the cycle of the seasons andthe produce of the land. It is alsoa time to pause and give thanksfor all the blessings of our livesthat we continue to experienceday by day. As people of faith welift our hearts to the Source of alllife and give thanks for the myriadgifts that surround us. Thesupreme gift that has been given isthe gift of love made known inJesus Christ that has brought usinto a restored life in God. It is no

O

his gratitude made him very richindeed.

The second movement isfrom recognition to acknowledge-ment. All that comes to us comesfrom beyond ourselves. The per-son to whom I just referred, wasmade even richer because he alsounderstood that all that he hasreceived is gift of God. Toacknowledge the giver, to see inthe gift the presence of God, is todeepen and enrich our thanksgiv-ing. As we acknowledge the giver,we also experience an inner shift,for we no longer see ourselves asthe source of what we have, butto recognize that it comes frombeyond us — from God, throughthe wondrous diversity of cre-ation, and through the extraordi-nary co-operation of the humancommunity. John Donne famous-ly wrote, “No man is an island”and that is as profoundly true ofour economic lives as it is of our

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accident that our primary act ofworship week by week is called theEucharist — a Greek word whichmeans thanksgiving. To givethanks is a spiritual practise inwhich there are three spiritualmovements.

The first is to recognize thatwe have received much. In ourworld it is very easy to compareourselves to our neighbours andfind people who “have more” thanwe do. We can become acquisitive,competitive and miserly in ourdesire to keep up with others.The extremely high debt load ofthe average Canadian is a symp-tom of our need to have more.But the truth is, we live in themidst of abundance. I spoke witha young person recently who saidto me, “I don’t need a lot. I havemore than enough food and I amwell.” In comparison to many oth-ers this person would not be con-sidered the least bit wealthy, but

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away your first 10%” and you willdevelop a healthy relationship toyour possessions. Instead of yourthings possessing you; you willbecome faithful stewards of allyou have received.

Finally, this month of thanks-giving is a good time to consideryour legacy. What will you investyour lives in? What will you offeryour gifts for? What will be thelegacy you leave behind? I knowof a congregation in this diocesewhere a long time parishioner lefta generous gift in her will to herparish. That gift has made it pos-sible for that congregation to lookforward to many more years offruitful ministry in the communi-ty. What a concrete act of thanks-giving for the blessings of faithand community!

Happy Thanksgiving — anda joyful giving of thanks!

+John ❑

ome weeks ago, mySunday duty ended,and I was resting in avacant or pensive

mood. The telephone rang andon the other end of the linewere two of the grandchildrenof the Reverend Francis PeytonHughes, who was a vicar ofKokanee a century ago. Theyhad arrived in Nelson to catchup on some local history thatmay have involved their grand-father.

The Reverend Hughes’ministry on Kootenay Lakebegan in 1913 and was sixyears in duration. Shortly afterhe arrived, he conducted thefirst service in Riondel onMarch 30, 1914. It was notuntil 45 years later that thecommunity built a church

where Anglican services wereheld. At one time Riondel wasa part of the old Parish ofKokanee, but in 1970 itbecame aligned with Crestonand the rest of the east shore ofKootenay Lake.

While he was in theparish, he supervised the build-ing of both the Queen’s Bayand the Procter churches.

Before there were roadsaround the lake the mode oftransport was by water. One ofthe early vicars, J.S. Mahood,would have himself rowedacross the lake while he playedhis trumpet.

Through the kindness andgenerosity of Eton College, theRev. Hughes was given alaunch to ply the waters ofKootenay Lake. He must have

been a graduate of that institu-tion. It was christened FLO-REAT ETONA — translation:LONG MAY ETONFLOURISH! “She” was a 24-foot craft with a five footbeam, and it was made ofcypress blanking with oak ribs.It was powered by a fourhorse, two cycle engine, andwould run 50 miles on fourimperial gallons of gasoline.This conveyance served theparish and the vicar for elevenyears as he made his roundson the lake. From the pages ofFrances’ journal one gets theimpression that his ministryon Kootenay Lake was that ofbeing at an “outpost of theempire.”

S

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ARCHBISHOP’S PAGE

A Thanksgiving legacy

BY ARCHBISHOP JOHN E. PRIVETT

In My View

Dear friends,

BY JIM HEARNE

“I knew we wereorganized, but Ididn’t know wehad a navy”

The Vicar of Kokanee remembers

OCTOBER 2011 THE HIGHWAY PAGE 3COLUMNS

BY NISSA BASBAUM

ast month my columnminimally touched onthe implications ofthe blessing of same-

gender civil unions on conven-tional (opposite-gender) mar-riages. General Synod 2010passed a broad resolution(A142-R1) that directed theFaith, Worship and Ministry(FWM) committee to “under-take a study examining thecanonical, theological andliturgical implications, as wellas the potential effects on themission and witness of theAnglican Church of Canada, ofthe cessation of the solemniza-tion of marriage by the clergyof the ACC.” It further askedthe FWM to look at the adop-tion of the “European model”of blessing those civil marriages

that conform to a canonicaldefinition of marriage as thenormative practice of theChurch.

Put in colloquial terms,should the Church get out ofthe marriage business altogeth-er? Should our Church onlyoffer a pastoral response tothose couples, same or oppo-site-gender, who express adesire for the enrichment oftheir civil unions in a mysticaland spiritual covenant involv-ing themselves and God?

When couples “sign theregister” during a conventionalwedding, it is usually a timewhen the newly wedded coupleretire with the priest to signlegal documents in the pres-ence of witnesses, and for anopportunity for pictures and abrief respite in the liturgybefore exiting the church towedding marches, and friendlysmiles. In those moments theChurch acts as an agent for theState to ensure legally mandat-ed vital statistics documents are

completed properly, in addi-tion to ecclesiastical records.And should the Church end itsrole as an agent for the State,at what point does a civilunion or “marriage” become acanonically acceptable mar-riage, deserving of being recog-nized as a sacrament and wor-thy of the invocation of a holyblessing.

Canon XXI of GeneralSynod is a long and detailedCanon on Marriage includingseven regulatory sections andfive schedules on marriagerelated matters. It is clearlywritten anticipating opposite-gender marriages. ResolutionA142-R1 presents a problemfor FWM because it invitesmajor conflicts with the cur-rent Marriage Canon and addsto confusion since there is noone “European model.” TheEthics & Public Life WorkingGroup under the direction ofthe Rev. Canon Doctor IsaacKawuki Mukasa has polledmembers of CoGS as where

and to what extent to go next,and a report is forthcomingthis Fall.

In my personal response toCanon Dr. Mukasa I offeredthat amending the currentMarriage Canon in any sim-plistic way was not going towork. The present Canon iswell-crafted, with many excel-lent points. But like manyCanons it is aging and datedand no more so than while thedefinition of marriage itself hasbeen so unsettled over the yearsof the same-gender blessingsquestions. There is an expecta-tion that the same-genderquestion should be settled atGeneral Synod 2013 and grow-ing urgings for providing a“local option” (flexibility inwhether or not any one parishmay voluntarily conduct bless-ings) and a relentless moveacross the Anglican Church ofCanada towards permittingsame-gender blessings by syn-odical resolutions or Episcopalpastoral directives.

In my opinion a move toamend the Marriage Canon toaccommodate the language andintent of same-gender blessingsshould not be done hurriedly

hen I was 12years old, I didsomething that inthe late 60s not

many people were doing. I com-mitted to walking 28 miles aroundMontreal to raise money forOxfam. At that time, it was sounusual to seek pledges for thiskind of thing that there weremany people offering tons morecontributions than I expectedbecause they were quite sure Iwouldn’t complete the journey.There were no sign-ups on-lineand no computers to keep track ofthe commitments. I collected thenames with paper and pencil andonce the walk was over, I then col-lected the individual donationsone by one.

I don’t remember a lot aboutthat experience. In fact, what moststicks in my mind was howincredibly sore my legs were at theend of the day, having traveled uphill and down dale with only min-imal pauses at each check-pointfor bathroom breaks, and bever-

Wages and food. I can’t even recallwhat kept me going — doggeddetermination or sheer bloody-mindedness — both probablyrelated to how little faith peoplehad that I would complete thetask at hand. Yet complete it I did,and my 10 cent a mile pledges (ohmy, I am old!) started rolling in.

Nowadays, there is an endlessarray of walks, runs, hikes andfamines, each one geared towardraising money for one organiza-tion or another; one cure oranother. All of us are familiar withmost of them and I would ventureto say that all of us have given andcontinue to give money to manyof them. Since my 28 miles forOxfam, I have mostly been on thegiving side of these adventuresrather than on the exertion side;perhaps I still have nightmaresabout the aches and pains I suf-fered from that first venturethrough the streets of Montreal.That, however, is about to change.

In a few weeks, I will be tak-ing up the cause for Inn FromThe Cold in Kelowna (IFTC)and, while I doubt there will be

much muscle pain as a result ofthis endeavour, I am quite surethere won’t be much creaturecomfort (although I do confess Iam blessed with a bit of narcolep-sy when it comes to being able tofall asleep even in the mostadverse conditions). The deal isthat the Inn is looking for 20 peo-ple to sleep at the facility for oneovernight in October. The hope isthat each person will raiseupwards of $1,000. The incentiveis a one-night stay at SparklingHill Resort in the Okanagan.

I am somewhat of an intro-vert and my sleep-time is extreme-ly important to me, so I can’t helpbut wonder what might have pos-sessed me to say yes to thisendeavour. Even though it is onlyone night, that one night is aSaturday; it’s not like I can takeoff the next day to recover fromthe ordeal! Is the prospect of a stayat a spa egging me on? Not likely,since the one time I had a mas-sage, I couldn’t wait to get off thetable. Perhaps I am secretly afraidof the Cathedral’s deacon, HeatherKarabelas, who as a member of

the board for IFTC, is a majorplayer in this project. Again, Idoubt it; she’s not that scary. Isthere some guilt attached to thisdecision, perhaps because I feelthat in general I don’t commitenough time to the kind of min-istry IFTC supports and upholds?Indeed, there might be some sub-liminal guilt because this emotionis often a motivating factor in mylife. Yet, I don't even think this isthe real reason for my decision toparticipate in this outreachendeavour.

As I have mulled over all ofthe possible reasons for which Inow find myself anticipating thisovernight event, I have come tothe conclusion that there are twounderlying factors, and these fac-tors are probably not much differ-ent than the ones which found mewalking for Oxfam a little morethan 40 years ago. Not surprising-ly, only one of these is altruistic.

I believe strongly in the workand mission of IFTC, just as Ibelieved strongly in the work andmission of Oxfam. Raising moneyby “not sleeping for Jesus” is cer-

tainly one way that I hope tomake this obvious. Yet, a secondand perhaps even more powerfulmotivating factor is that I knowthat if I take this risk, I will feelbetter about myself as an individ-ual. I will have accomplishedsomething that I have never beforeaccomplished and in the process ofdoing this, I might be able to pro-duce something good.

Thank God that in thechurch, in other faith organiza-tions and in non-profit agencies,there are so many people who rec-ognize the huge need in our socie-ty for us to look beyond ourselvesin order to service the hurt andpain in the world. Thank God,too, that as we do this, we are ableto recognize how much this serv-ing of the world is of benefit to us,too.

If you would like to make apledge for this Night at the Inn,please contact Nissa at theCathedral at 250-762-3321.Thanks.

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Not sleeping for Jesus

BY RANDALL FAIREY

L

or superficially. As I havestressed, the current MarriageCanon has some very impor-tant language and enduringprinciples, but it is a Canon forthe 20th century, and not forthe 21st. In my view while thesame-gender story movesahead, a major effort to reviseor replace Canon XXI shouldbegin, and take as long as nec-essary to get it right. AnyCanon involving doctrine,which this clearly does, requiresat least two General Synodsand the concurrence of allEcclesiastical Provinces to beadopted. That high bar shouldnot prevent the Church, how-ever, from seriously trying topresent a new, rather thanrevised, Marriage Canon by2016.

I pray that my colleagueson CoGS will feel similarly andI await eagerly the Report fromthe Ethics and Public LifeWorking Group about the con-sensus of what to do with A142-R1 and the future of mar-riage of all couples in theAnglican Church of Canada.

Commentary

COGS wheels

RANDALL FAIREY IS A DELEGATE

TO THE COUNCIL OF GENERAL

SYNOD AND EXECUTIVE OFFICER

OF THE DIOCESE OF KOOTENAY

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OCTOBER 2011PAGE 4 THE HIGHWAY

AROUND THE DIOCESE

t’s one thing to grow innumbers, or to grow inthe amount the churchgives to outreach — but

that is not enough. At St.David’s by the Lake in Celista,B.C., we are grateful that bothour congregation and outreachdollars have increased signifi-cantly, but we realize theimportance of growth in otherways as well.

A yearning to go deeperinto our spiritual life has ledmany of us to ongoing experi-ences at Deep Creek RetreatHouse with our priest, Rev.Brian Smith. The beauty andserenity of this place in itselfbrings us closer to God. This,combined with opening talksand music, and the stillness ofreflection and prayer, is helpingus to find the deeper current oflife that the Spirit of God canreveal to us. And yes, thesetimes of inspiration, hope, andhealing can be for all ages-inour case, from an enthusiastic10 year old, up to a special per-son in her eighties.

IBY LYNN BRYAN

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Retreat in Deep Creek

IN THE SPIRIT — Members of St. David’s by the Lake, Celista, B.C.—an Anglican/United Church Shared Ministry

photo eva smith

ou may have read inprevious reports inThe HighWay thatwe at St. Jude’s have

been very busy gathering andpreparing of food for seniorsespecially and anyone else whois hungry.

Through the doors of ourbasement thrift store we haveformed connections with oth-ers in our parish that share thesame concerns and are workinghard to prepare for the comingyear. For the first time officialsfrom Public Health and HomeSupport have noticed thatsome of their clients have beenreceiving aid in the way of foodand have come to find outwhat we are up to. We havebeen invited to City Councilmeetings and our Food sharinggroup has become a manyfaceted thing. Grants havecome in to help with variousaspects of need. We are realiz-ing the prayer we pray every

Sunday that God can do infi-nitely more than we can ask orimagine.

Many people have grownextra rows in their gardens andare sharing the produce. Wehave four gardens going thatare a half acre to three acreslarge containing carrots, pota-toes and squash mostly alongwith beans, peas, cauliflower,and broccoli. It is a sight to

behold. Seeds were donatedand the quality is excellent. Ihave never seen broccoli solarge!

Our food is being distrib-uted all the way to Beaverdellwhere there is a family thatprovides soup and sandwichesfor up to 30 young people in aday! We have placed donatedfood dehydrators to peoplewho create fruit leather todried tomatoes. Grain is grownto mill; and, along with somelocal Seventh Day Adventistswho share our heart, a mill hasbeen set up. And we can! Andwe can, or should I say preserveall we get our hands on.

Bread machines are bakingalong with ingredients providedwith the requirement thatloaves be shared with neigh-bours. Umpteen jars and can-ning supplies donated throughthe thrift store in our churchand I have been going to peo-ples homes and giving “work-shops” on how to can. I haveall the tickets required thank-

fully. When I leave they havein their possession everythingthey need along with freshlypreserved food and the skillsuited to their own home tocontinue on and the fellowshipthat comes with love shownfrom so many people giving soit is all possible.

The freezers are coming inthat are so needed, as well asthe regular monthly gift ofmonies to run them. Onebenefactor lives as far away asMississauga who writes in hernote along with her checks thatit is such a privilege to servethe Lord in this way of minis-tering to the needy. Sherequests to be a long distantmember. Last week someone inour progress meeting said theyneeded another freezer out atSt. Mary’s area and by Sundaya Parishioner from HolyTrinity filled the need.

The other amazing thingwe are doing is drying carrottops and any other suitablegreens and this all is being

mixed with spice and madeinto a protein powder. This isadded to soups and cookies andso on. Sneaky eh! If all we haveis this and some rice to give itwill suffice.

We hold up our foodstained hands in thanksgivingas we gather in for the upcom-ing winter. If you have Pectinor lids of any size kickingaround your cupboard youknow where to send them. Andif you want to get involvedplease let us know.

Your ever amazed fellowservant in Christ, Cathy Straume

P.S. I want to say that com-munion around our tablebegins in the garden. Sharingand praying as we touch eachothers lives. This for us is ourmodern day loaves and fishesmiracle. Who ever thought itwould be asked of us to shuckso many beans!

Letter from St. Jude's, GreenwoodBY CATHY STRAUME

“Yes we can!” Barak Obama

Y

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OCTOBER 2011 PAGE 5 THE HIGHWAYAROUND THE DIOCESE

Heritage service returns to theBook of Common Prayer

t. Saviour’s, Nelson,invited the local com-munity to a special her-itage service on Sunday,

August 28 as a celebration oftheir summer heritage tours.The church committee askedthe Rev. Marcella Mugford ifshe would officiate at an “oldtime” service using the Book ofCommon Prayer. There hadnot been a BCP service at thechurch since 2005. It was alsoconsidered to be a good oppor-tunity to celebrate the 400thanniversary of the King JamesBible and be in the spirit ofbecoming a more invitingchurch.

The music director, TobiasJenny, and the choir arrangedspecial music singing many tra-ditional hymns and oldfavorites, as well as leading thesung Eucharist of Marbecke. The service was well advertised.A press release was sent out tothe local newspapers — printand online — and the idea wasvery well received by the com-munity, especially history buffs.The result was an almost 100percent increase in peopleattending than usual. There

BY JONN LAVINNDER

OLD TIME RELIGION — Bishop F. Patrick Clark consecrated the Third Bishop of Kootenay on St. George's Day 1948.

were at least 18 people, whousually do not go to church,who came out of curiosity.There were also former parish-ioners who had stopped com-

ing for one reason or another.Participation in the choir alsoincreased the numbers.

It was agreed that this wasa successful event and should

be repeated. The next fewweeks have a number of oppor-tunities, such as an ecumenicalservice with the Lutherans andUnited churches at Lakeside

park in Nelson. The focus ofthis service is to pray for peace;recalling 9/11 and how thatevent has changed our world.

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MEMORIAL GARDEN — St. Michael & All Angels, Balfour, memorial garden was completed thissummer.

photo marven pedersen

hanks for the articleshonouring bothGarwood Russell andRay Bray regarding sig-

nificant ordination anniversarys.May I urge you to be more carefulabout using the word “ministry.”Ordained ministry is one impor-tant expression of ministry, butmost ministry in the church andworld is not offered by ordainedindividuals but rather by verylarge numbers of the laity whotake seriously their baptismal

vows. Before being ordained, Isuspect both Garwood and Rayexcercised many years of “min-istry” ...that is service in the nameof Christ. Keep up the good work!

Faithfully yours, Dirk Pidcock

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COLUMNS OCTOBER 2011PAGE 6 THE HIGHWAY

BY DOUG HODGKINSON

Movie review

Omaghty and that it was the police whoscrewed up. It is a damning indict-ment but to date no arrests havebeen made despite their knowingthe names of some of the perpetra-tors.

Still, it is helpful for the fami-lies to know that their suspicionswere true and confirmed by theombudsperson. Reconciliation isnot about good feelings but aboutspeaking and hearing truth.Throughout the tragedy there isgreat psychological pressure on thefamilies to “put this behind them,”“to get on with life,” “to get clo-sure,” “to move on.” It is a familiarrefrain in our society. The evidenceis otherwise but we have Freud tothank for the notion that grievingpeople need to break free from thedeceased, let go of the past andreassert their individualism bycharting a new course for life.Abundant research has consistentlyshown that lifelong grief is normalin the loss of close family mem-bers, especially children. Such agrief brings a crisis of meaningbecause it challenges one’s view of

his is a perfectly dread-ful story. Unfortunatelyit’s true.

In August 1998,The Real IRA, a splinter groupthat broke away from The IRAbecause it disapproved of thepeace process, filled a little red carwith explosives and blew it up inthe market of Omagh, the seat ofCounty Tyrone in Ulster. 29adults and children were killedoutright and many suffered griev-ous wounds. The death toll wascompounded by the fact that avaguely worded tip off by the ter-rorists caused the police casuallyto rope off the street and herdpeople in the very direction of theexplosion rather than away fromit. Even when you know it iscoming, it is a surprise.

Michael and Patsy Gallagherhave three children: Sharon,Cathy and Aidan. Michael has anauto repair shop and his sonAidan is mad for cars and theywork together in the shop. Onthis day, Aidan and a friend headto a store to purchase some jeans.Following the explosion Michael

Within the larger story arepersonal struggles of those whoselives have been shattered. Michaelleads the group seeking answersfrom government but he is soconsumed with the task that hecannot attend to the grief of hiswife and daughters. In a painfulscene he recounts that in theirgrief the women in the familycarry on talking with each otherbut he has lost not only a son buthis work mate. Eventually he dis-mantles his shop because goingthere is too painful.

Eventually, the policeombudsperson confirms in herreport that the suspicions of theadvocacy group were true; depart-ments did not co-operate witheach other, evidence was withheld,investigation was shoddy andpolice were not forthcoming.Suspicions abound that policeknew of the bombing but didnothing in order to discredit thedissident Real IRA. The bombersreply that they gave lots of warn-ing, never intended to kill peopleonly terrorize and destroy proper-

desperately searches for news of hisson, chasing back and forth fromthe bomb site to the hospital tohome, eventually to find in thewee hours of the morning thattheir worst fears were confirmed.Aidan had been killed.

In the months following thetragedy very little information isavailable to the families of victimsand so an advocacy group isformed and the group puts pres-sure on the police and governmentto get answers as to who wasresponsible, a task made the moredifficult by the bewildering levelsof local, state and British Armyauthority. Everyone is sympatheticand reassures that the authoritiesare working hard but “the situa-tion is very difficult.” They evenappeal to Gerry Adams, leader ofSinn Fein, to give them names ofpeople from The Real IRA. Heextends sympathy but stonewallsbecause of pressure “not to jeop-ardize the peace process.” There isan air that these things are sad butit’s just another bombing in thepatriotic march to the settling ofthe troubles.

the world (loss of Basic Trust inErik Erikson’s theory). Childrenevoke awareness of the past, aninvestment in the future and asense of the self. Loss of theseimportant qualities requires some-thing more than a facile encour-agement to “get on with things.”Other studies show that in the lossof a child, things don’t get betterwith time, they get worse!

The Freudian obsession withcutting ties with the dead is rootedin atheism; a rejection of the pos-sibility of reunion with the lovedone. Such religious sentiments arenot voiced in the film but the hardstruggle on the part of victims’families to seek truth and to main-tain connection with their lostloved ones intuitively grasped thedeeper meaning of patriotism andhope for the future.

Despite its horrible beginningthis is truly a touching story welltold. Omagh can be googled formore detail about the peopleincluding Aidan Gallagher and thestate of the investigation.

Directed by Pete Travis and starring: Gerard McSorley(Michael Gallagher), Michele Forbes (Patsy Gallagher),Brenda Fricker (Nuala O'Loan: ombudsperson); 106 min-utes; made for British/Irish television, 2004

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You wanted to know

BY PETER DAVISON

How can I bethankful insuch a depress-ing world

Without know-ing your per-sonal circum-stances, I will

respond in a general way, andtry to cover a number of possi-bilities. The first is for peoplewho may be suffering fromacute or chronic depression.Unless we have experienced itourselves, and even if we have,it is hard for us to know howanother person is feeling. Whatwe do know from all the evi-dence is that depression is akind of “black hole” fromwhich it is hard to see any lightat all. It is not helpful to betold, “Pick up your socks andget on with your life: you’ll feelbetter.” Depression may be

Q:A:

with what we have. Recentlythe news carried the story of aNova Scotia couple who wonthe lottery and gave nearly allof it away. Always content witha modest lifestyle, they foundjoy in helping others in need.They were naturally hospitableand generous.

In addition to being Easterpeople, we are also eucharisticpeople — people who givethanks (or at least try to givethanks) to God in all things.Our ability to do this is basedon what Paul called the threegreat virtues — trust, hope andlove. Our trust is that, evenwhen our circumstances aredifficult, we shall find what weneed to overcome hardship.Our hope is that light willovercome our darkness, andlead us out of our bondage toalienation and despair into anew place of wholeness. Andour love is at least twofold:

if things will ever turn around.Life seems to be a matter ofmere survival. On the otherhand, we can become soimmersed in the present thatwe forget to learn the lessons ofhistory, including the wholebiblical narrative, whichremind us that life is a constantstory of triumph and tragedy,of agony and ecstasy, of despairgiving way to hope and newlife. It is often said that weChristians are “Easter people”;but Easter is preceded by GoodFriday. I have known a fewclergy who have been comfort-able preaching “Easter triumph,Easter joy,” but couldn’t tacklesuffering and death. They wereall subject to periodic depres-sion. We live, too, in a societywhich expects and demandsperfection, and constantlyreminds us we have to havemore. The advertising industryis built on making us unhappy

perfectly reasonable in the lightof bereavement or other loss. Itsometimes comes fromrepressed feelings of angerturned against oneself. But itmay have deep roots in our lifeexperience, or even in ourbrain chemistry. Clinicaldepression usually requiresexpert help, and we shouldn’tbe afraid or ashamed to seek it.Like all pain, it tends to makeus feel isolated and abandoned.Even Jesus is reported to havecried out from the cross thewords of Psalm 22, “My God,my God, why have you forsak-en me?” Like Jesus himself,people of great faith have suf-fered from depression.

We often feel discouragedand dispirited at times like thepresent, when the news is fullof violence, and the economicoutlook is uncertain. We mayfeel “the world is going to hellin a hand-basket,” and wonder

first, knowing that God lovesand accepts us for who we are,without condition, and wantsus to know this deeply; sec-ondly, God’s liberating loveencourages us to open our-selves, not only to give to oth-ers, but also to receive. We canneither give nor receive whenour hearts and minds areclosed.

As we celebrateThanksgiving this month, wegive thanks, not only for thefruits of the earth, but for allthe opportunities to grow ourfaith, experience the light ofhope, and share the fullness oflife which is God’s wish for allof us. May we all find thatsense of supportive communi-ty which enable us to celebrateand rejoice together.

How can I be thankful in such adepressing world?

❑

❑

OCTOBER 2011 THE HIGHWAY PAGE 7COLUMNS & CLASSIFIED

he BackroadsMapbooks. $25 fromyour local store —Huh? What kind of

a review is this. Well I have toconfess that I love looking atmaps. Maps can be the startpoint of an adventure, themost revealing things you willever find, they can literally saveyour life. Maps, these maps,open the countryside to theexplorer, and the armchairexplorer. Maps are like noother document or image, forthey allow you to create yourown story. I am always sur-prised how many people donot know what is in their ownbackyard.

This summer Lesley and Iheaded over to VancouverIsland for a tour, and our mostused resource was not the

BY NEIL ELLIOT

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MARYWOOD RETREAT CENTRE

821 Westwood DriveCranbrook, BC V1C 6V1

assorted guide books, but thebackroads map book of theIsland. With that book we wereable to plan routes, to findinteresting places to go, and toknow where not to go! As anofficial technophile, I do havea gps unit (2 actually), butnothing beats an actual mapfor planning or navigating. Which brings me to the back-roads mapbooks themselves. Icome from probably the bestmapped country in the world.In the UK we have the privi-lege of the “Ordinance Survey”series of maps, which are high-ly detailed and unfailinglyaccurate (and cheap). Thebackroads mapbook series arethe best we have in BC. (Thereis a series produced by the gov-ernment, but although thetopography is probably accu-

rate, other detail is missing.)The backroads mapbook seriesis intended, like the OS seriesin England, for recreationalusers. They highlight places tofish, paddle, hike and drive.They give topography throughshading and contour lines, andthey mark all kinds of bound-aries and trails. However, theylack accuracy. Roads are occa-sionally marked where they donot exist, and are not markedwhere they do exist. ButCanada is a big country, and itis evidently hard to keep upwith changes. I would stillrather have these than not havethem.

One thing I love doingwith these maps, and a uniquefeature of them, is referring tothe descriptions of the trailsand spots for various activities.

PERSONAL DIRECTED RETREAT:OCTOBER 20-27, 2011

OR OTHER DAYS BY ARRANGEMENT.Spiritual Direction in person or by phone

Contact Sister Nina Glinski

The Backroads Mapbooks$25 from your local store

In My Good Books

n the movie, “Dead PoetsSociety,” English professorJohn Keating seeks to inspirehis class, urging them to

“seize the day, boys; make yourlives extraordinary. Carpe diem!”

That exhortation is an impor-tant part of a balanced life. Thatwas certainly in the background ofJack Layton’s letter to Canadians,which ended with a wonderful callto action: “Love is better thananger. Hope is better than fear.Optimism is better than despair.So let us be loving, hopeful andoptimistic. And we’ll change theworld.”

To balance it, however, thefeast of Thanksgiving, reminds usthat there are also times when weare called, not so much to “carpediem,” but to “recipe diem” —“receive the day.”

One of my favourite prayersin the Anglican tradition comesfrom the service of Compline: “OGod, your unfailing providencesustains the earth which nurturesus and the life we live: watch over

those, both night and day, whowork while others sleep, and grantthat we may never forget that ourcommon life depends upon eachother’s toil; through Jesus Christour Lord. Amen.”

Life — the world we inhabit,the lives we share, all that we areand all that we have, our energiesand our passions come to us as agift. Our lives are bounded bygrace and undeserved generosity.It is not something we can seize orhold. We can only receive andgive thanks.

“Recipe diem.” But don’ttreat that as a call to be passive. Toreceive is to be actively attentiveto each moment as an irreplace-able, intimate gift of God.Buddhism calls it the practice ofmindfulness. We are mindful ofeach joy in our life, each breath,each person, each event, eachmoment. We pay attention, anddelight in the sheer giftedness oflife.

The prayer also reminds usthat we are dependent on eachother’s toil. The notion of an

I

If you are a fisher, hiker or pad-dler, then there is a section foryou, which describes theopportunities for your activityand gives map references. I alsoenjoy simply looking at themaps, and trying to imaginewhat the area looks like fromthe detail given. Our part ofthe world is so dramatic andbeautiful, and these maps are asignificant symbolic way ofcapturing that beauty. Anotherbeauty of maps for me is theopportunity to record on themap where I have been, andwhere I am planning to go,particularly trips on my bike.

By recording and planningroutes on a map the story iscaptured. But a map promisesso much more. Every part of

the map has been captured.There is no “Terra incognita”— unknown land. This can bemisleading when you look at amap of our large wildernessareas and think — “well, Icould just...” I have beenknown to compare the Bible toa map, rather than cook bookor repair manual. The Bible isthere to show us where othershave been, the high and lowpoints of their spiritual journey,the places where the fishing orhiking was good, and the placesto avoid.

So I invite you get hold ofthe mapbook for your area, andtake some time to look aroundit. You will probably find outsomething about yourbackyard.

❑

BY YME WOENSDREGT

TThhiiss ccoolluummnn hhaass bbeeeenn wwrriitttteenn wwiitthh tthhee iinntteennttiioonn tthhaatt iitt mmaayy bbee rreepprriinntteeddiinn llooccaall nneewwssppaappeerrss.. ffoorr tthheeiirr rreelliiggiioonn ppaaggee.. YYmmee wwiillll bbee wwrriittiinngg aa sshhoorrttaarrttiiccllee eeaacchh mmoonntthh eexxpprreessssllyy wwiitthh tthhiiss ppuurrppoossee iinn mmiinndd.. YYoouu aarree ffrreeee ttoorreepprroodduuccee tthhee aarrttiiccllee wwiitthhoouutt pprriioorr aapppprroovvaall.. DDrroopp uuss aa lliinnee aannyywwaayy..

TThhee EEddiittoorr

Thanksgiving — Recipe Diem

autonomous individual is false. Itis fundamentally absurd. We areborn into, and dependent upon aweb of relationships from start tofinish. We live with others. Ourlives are deeply interconnectedwith other lives. Part of the disci-

pline of active, attentive grati-tude is giving thanks for every-one else.

Margaret Visser, in her book“The Gift of Thanks,” writes,“Gratitude is always a matter ofpaying attention, of deliberatelybeholding and appreciating theother.” The festival ofThanksgiving is a good reminderto pay attention and deliberatelybehold and appreciate others aswe acknowledge our dependenceon one another.

Recipe Diem. Deo gratias.Thanks be to God.

❑

OCTOBER 2011PAGE 8 THE HIGHWAY

EDUCATION

here’s a tradition thata new principalpreaches at the instal-lation. This is an

opportunity to make a publicstatement about the school andabout the new principal’s vision.Being the first principal of a newinstitution adds to the sense ofoccasion. Something tremendous-ly important is happening and it ismy job, as principal and priest, tobring this thing to light — for theschool community and the spon-soring diocesan community, bothof which are represented here,today.

Christians — and here Imean all Christians — are calledto embrace a task. We have onlyone task, though it takes manyforms in many lives. Our task is toparticipate in God’s creative workthroughout the cosmos. In bap-tism, we have committed to servethe Reign of God, wherever wemay find it. We have taken uponourselves the shared task of look-ing for those moments of God’stransformative love at work. Wehave taken upon ourselves theshared task of becoming thosemoments of God’s transformativelove at work. We have agreed,with God and one another, thattogether we will join with Godand rejoice with God as Godmakes us and the whole worldinto a true and suitable image andlikeness of God, members of theBody of Christ.

This is a beautiful andmighty vision and, I think, a trueone. Unfortunately, there is arather visible fly in the ointmentand the fly is carrying a sign. Thesign, in blinking neon lights, says,“It’s more complicated than that!”Actually, try to think of that fly aswearing glasses, a beard, and darkred academic robes, because I’vedecided that the theme of myteaching just might be: “It’s morecomplicated than that!” I notethat students, after they’ve heardthe line half a dozen times, appearto be seized by an unaccountabledesire to swat me — which mayexplain the usefulness of the flymetaphor.

As humans, we are alwaystempted to swat the complexityfly. We long for simple answers.When we can’t find them, weinvent them. And we live by

them, as much as we can. Themore that we doubt them, themore vigorously we proclaim ourbelief in them — sometimesyelling loudly to be heard abovethe rising hubbub of our ownuncertainties. That, however, doesnot really squelch the buzz of theirritating complexity fly. The com-plexity fly has its own ways of bit-ing us. As a remarkably currentexample: we may pretend, for awhile, that human behaviour doesnot affect the operation of theworld’s animal life or its climate— but eventually we will see someof the consequences of our actions.Of course, the complexity flybuzzes around making solutionsrather difficult: I’m still not surethat my new compact fluorescentlight bulbs, filled with mercuryvapour, are necessarily a betteranswer to the world’s needs thanthe old incandescent bulbs.

I was raised in a part ofChristianity that is commonlyknown as “fundamentalist,” bywhich is meant that the peoplewho surrounded me had managedto tune out the buzzing of thecomplexity fly almost entirely.When I was twelve, I knew all theanswers — the vast majority ofwhich were entirely, profoundly,and dangerously, wrong. Shortlyafter that, I became involved inpolitical life, and embarked on oneof the standard responses to thecomplexity fly: the double life. Istayed a member of a Christiandenomination which firmly, evenharshly, rejected any involvementin the public world, while beingan actively partisan political hackwho ended up studying politicalscience while working for a cabi-net minister on Parliament Hilland lending my skills to everycampaign going. My journey as atheology student began when thecomplexity fly took a serious biteout of me — making me awarethat my Christianity had nothingto say to the rest of my life. Somuch for heading to law schooland following the obvious careerpath. I need to find out whetherChristianity had more to offer.After all, the religion had beengoing for 2 millennia and hadcounted among its number someof the greatest thinkers in theworld. Christianity must havemore to say than was known bythe uneducated elders in mychurch. It must be more compli-cated than that!

At this great turning point inmy life, I did something momen-tous, something truly decisive: Iswitched metaphors. I did. Really!I ceased to be the guy ignoring thefly. I became Jacob the wrestler.And here we see the first of twomajor purposes of a theologicalschool: the theology student wres-tles with God.

We bump up against impor-tant religious issues everyday. We

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make decisions about where ourworld is going, where our lives aregoing. We make decisions abouthow to spend our money, what towear, and whether or what todrive. We make decisions abouthow to treat the people we lovedearly, and those we love — well,not so much.

These are religious issues; theyreflect our lived theologies. Theyalso form our lived theologies —which may not, I hasten to add,look a lot like what we claim tobelieve. So, we spend much of ourtime ignoring the larger implica-tions of our decisions. We don’treally want to know what theymean, lest our lives be made morecomplicated, less comfortable.

The challenge of theologicaleducation, whether it’s undertakenthrough Kootenay School ofMinistry or its companion pro-gramme, Education for Ministry,or through some other means, is towrestle with life and its meanings.But, this is not just any kind ofwrestling. Theological education isabout wrestling with God, askingwhat God means and intends.Our common project — and hereI want to remind of the title of abook by an Anglican theologian,“We are all theologians” — isn’tjust to do the right thing, it is alsoto know what the right thing is.We are called to stare firmly andsquarely at the object of ourdoubts and questions, and engageit until daylight comes.

And, it’s precisely at thatmoment, when we come to gripswith the object of our inquiry, thatthe complication begins to emerge.The most ambiguous and confus-ing aspect of Jacob’s story has todo with the identity of the onewith whom he is wrestling. Jacobwrestles with a man — apparentlyan ordinary creature of time andspace. And, indeed, this is wherewe must start any theological jour-ney. Our questions begin with theordinary, day-to-day facts of life.Our questions start with ourselvesand the people around us. Ourquestions start with the world thatGod has made.

However, Jacob knows thatthere is something more to thisman than meets the eye. And,indeed, we know that there issomething more to this world thanmeets our eyes and ears. Jacobdemands of this man a blessing.He receives a new name, a newidentity — the gift of God. Thatis the object of our enterprise: thenewness that comes with God’stransformative work in our lives. Icall to your attention that this isprecisely where I started: thevision of God’s transformativework in our lives, making us overinto the divine image.

Jacob wants something more.He’s a real wrestler. Jacob wantsthe name of the one with whomhe is engaged, the object of his

fight. Jacob wants to understandthe full nature and extent ofGod’s work in Jacob’s life. This iswhere he bumps up against thelimits. There is only so much thathe can know or understand; theinvestigation doesn’t lead to allanswers. This, my fellow theolo-gians, is the reality of our lives.Always, some aspect of God’snature and God’s work in theworld remains beyond us. Even aswe receive and know God’s bless-ing, even as the sun breaks in,always, some part of the greatGod eludes us.

Some, of course, will takethis as an excuse not to wrestle.If I can’t have all of the full, com-plete, and final answers, then Iwill simply not waste my time!My answer is that in this enter-prise, as in every other field ofinvestigation, some small accom-plishment is much better thannone at all. Simply to ignore thequestions because we cannotanswer all of them fully is todoom ourselves to lives adrift, ina world adrift. In that world,those who are sure of themselvesand their wrong answers willdominate. The sermon of hatredand discussion will always find anaudience.

Theology is always a matterof public significance. The secondmajor purpose of theological edu-cation takes us beyond thewrestling: we are called to feedthe people. The blessing that weseek, those of us who ask ques-tions about God and the world, isnot for ourselves alone. Whenpeople are hungry for answers,our task is not to send them outto the villages looking for food.Instead, Jesus’ command ringsloud in our ears: “They need notgo away. You give them some-thing to eat.”

Some of those whom wetrain will be priests, some deaconsor lay leaders. Many will not seekany of these offices, but will becalled to speak the good news ofGod’s love in the offices, hospi-tals, stores, and coffee shops ofour world. All of us are called tobake the loaves that we can bakeand prepare the fish that we canprepare. We cannot send the peo-ple away, when they are in need.

The ministry of understand-ing and sharing the good news ofGod’s Kingdom belongs to all the

BY BILL HARRISON

baptized. Our common missionof feeding the world is not only atask of providing bread and waterto the physically hungry andthirsty. Many who hunger havemore physical food than theyknow what to do with. Their sal-vation does not lie in eating moremeat; the lust for stuff does notsave. Their salvation can onlycome in meeting the God who isTruth, the God who isTransforming Love. We must beprepared to tell them of God’slove. We must be prepared to tellthem of the joy to be found intrusting the Creator. We must beprepared to tell them of our greathope in the Kingdom that God isbuilding.

At the same time, we knowthat we can do no more thanaccomplish our own preparationand be willing to give our theo-logical loaves and fishes to thehungry. We cannot feed the wholeworld. We cannot build the Cityof God; that is God’s work. So webring the fruits of our theologicallabours to Jesus the Christ, know-ing that he will take up our workand make it into the work of theKingdom.

The glorious news is that ourshortcomings are no limitation toGod. In fact, they are the waysthat God has made us. God wel-comes our efforts. God takes holdof us and our work and brings toour efforts the transformingpower of divine love. God, theMost Holy Trinity, blesses ourtheological enterprise and uses itas one of the building blocks ofthe Kingdom.

So, complexity is not myenemy. It is, indeed, one of thebeauties of God’s world. Togetherwe wrestle with our theologicalchallenges, trusting that God willbless both our investigations andour communications, enabling usboth to know and to share thewonderful news of the Kingdomof God. In that spirit of faithful-ness, I invite you to share in thework of Kootenay School ofMinistry. Come and learn, if youcan. Whether that is possible foryou or not, please remember thatJacob received a blessing becausehe asked for it. Do pray God’sblessing upon Kootenay School ofMinistry and stand with us as wemove into God’s future. ❑

Wrestling with God

Please support The HighWay by generouslygiving to the Anglican Journal Appeal.Half of what you donate goes to your localdiocesan newspaper.

THE REV. DR WILLIAM HARRISON

IS THE FIRST PRINCIPAL OF THE

KOOTENAY SCHOOL OF MINISTRY

Genesis 32:22-31— Jacob Wrestles at Peniel — sermon given at All Saints, Vernon, July 31