From The New York Times:By BONOGuest columnist(Published: September 18, 2010)I’ve noticed that New Yorkers, and I sometimes try to pass for one these days, tend to greet the word “summit” with an irritated roll of the eyes, a grunt, an impatient glance at the wristwatch. In Manhattan, a summit has nothing to do with crampons and ice picks, but refers instead to a large gathering of important persons, head-of-state types and their rock-star retinues in the vicinity of the United Nations building and creates, therefore, a near total immobilization of the East Side. Can world peace possibly … [Read more...]
Leaps of faith
September 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Luke 16:19-31 I am a rich person. I know this because I looked it up on globalrichlist.com, where I entered my income from last year and discovered that I rank in the top 13.74 percent of the wealthiest people in the world.[1] According to this web site, I am the 824,785,999th richest person in the world, this out of the approximately 6.8 billion people now living. That is an amazing ranking, isn’t it? I was astonished when I found out how rich I am, when compared to the rest of the world. At the same time, I also am a poor person. I know this because I looked in the … [Read more...]
Mission: Now is the time for prophetic action on the MDGs
September 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment
From Episcopal News Service:By Devon Anderson and Ian Douglas, September 22, 2010(The Rt. Rev. Ian T. Douglas, Bishop of Connecticut, upper left, and The Rev. Devon Anderson, Executive Director of Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation, bottom left.)[Episcopal News Service] This week the eyes of the world turned to the U.N. Summit on Millennium Development Goals, where world leaders have spent the last few days considering a "global, results-oriented action plan" to accelerate progress toward achieving the goals -- which include cutting extreme poverty in half, reducing child … [Read more...]
Forgiving extravagantly
September 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Luke 16:1-13 Jesus is in the middle of telling a series of parables about finding that which once was lost – parables of the lost sheep, lost coins, a lost son, all of which were easy to understand and cause for rejoicing – when he launches into yet another story, this time about a rich man’s steward caught with his hand in the till, and once again, we are set back on our heels and left to wonder: Did he really just say what we think he said? Did Jesus really just lavish praise on a thief, on a crooked manager, on a cheat? And did he really just instruct his disciples – did … [Read more...]
Sometimes we are called to hate
September 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Luke 14:26 It would be so much easier this morning if we were listening to Matthew’s Gospel, wouldn’t it? The Gospel where Jesus, pretty much in the same setting, says, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me”? But we don’t have Matthew this morning, with its emphasis on love. No, we have Luke. And in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is not as gentle, not as nuanced, not as loving. For in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus says: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and … [Read more...]
Avoiding mission drift
September 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment
From The Alban Institute: By Peter L. Steinke Visiting a relative who lives on the Great South Bay off the shores of Long Island, several of us joined him for a boat ride. We were on the bay in early afternoon, enjoying the breeze and fast ride. Some dark, scattered clouds cast shadows on the water, but the sky was mostly blue. The weather forecast called for sunshine with scattered showers in the evening. But several of the dark clouds suddenly bonded together. A strong breeze accompanied the darkening sky. Within minutes, everything became gray, concealing any sight of land. The … [Read more...]
