A Section of the Anglican Journal February 2014 Serving the Diocese of Kootenay

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

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Evangellii Gaudium PAGE 7

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We are...Together in Mission

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Y ou’ve heard about “Together in Mission” before. Last year, we concluded a

Feasibility Study about the pos-sibility of conducting a financial stewardship campaign in our diocese. Many people in the diocese worked hard at this task. I am deeply grateful for your work and your interest in being part of the study.

The result of the study was an 80–page report by Martha Asselin, the consultant with whom we worked. The study is chock full of data, and gives a very important picture of our diocese at this time in history. You can find the full report on our diocesan website at http://www.kootenayanglican.ca/together-in-mission/. Go ahead. Have a look. It’s good stuff.

The report tells us that there is strong support for a campaign, and that the biggest need revolves around develop-ing and nurturing leadership within the diocese—clergy lead-ership, lay leadership, and encouraging young people to become strong leaders.

The Diocesan Council has initiated leadership to move into the next phase. We have recruited a new committee to refine the case, to articulate a

compelling vision, and to begin implementing a campaign.

The committee is com-prised of Archbishop John Privett, Nissa Basbaum (Kelowna), Trevor Freeman (Fernie), Kim and Paul Glen (Okanagan Falls), Chris Harwood–Jones (Vernon), Robin Ruder–Celiz (Creston), Richard Simpson (Summerland), Sandra Stickney (Naramata) and Yme Woensdregt (Cranbrook). We will add more people as the

campaign progresses.The committee has already

met once at the Diocesan Centre. Three very important outcomes of that meeting are:1. We have set a goal of $2 mil-

lion, and we are refining the case, focusing on leadership development as a key ele-ment of this campaign.

2. We completed a “Request for Proposal,” which was sent to four fundraising consultants recommended by the Anglican Church of Canada.

By YME WOENSDREGT

We hope to have responses by the end of January so that we can hire a consultant by the end of March.

3. We are planning to hold a Leadership Weekend in late April or early May, bringing together all the clergy and representative lay leaders from every parish. We hope to inspire ownership in the campaign and to build enthusiasm for it; we want to hear any reservations peo-ple might have about the

campaign, and we hope to communicate a common vision.These are exciting develop-

ments. Please hold this cam-paign and the steering commit-tee in your prayers. This is an important moment in the life of our diocese; I look forward expectantly as God’s Holy Spirit leads us into the future. I pray we may respond faithfully and with open hearts to God’s call. Indeed, We are Together in Mission.

Page 2 The HighWay February 2014Archbishop’s Page

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

editor

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HighWThe

February 2014 The HighWay Page 3Columns

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By NISSA BASBAUM

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By ARCHBISHOPJOHN E. PRIVETT

In My View

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Choose Life

Dear Friends,

n my January column I wrote about a movement within the Diocese that I called “The Great Convergence”. Several

developments are coming together to draw us into a new future. I believe this is the work of the Holy Spirit and it brings with it a new sense of hope and a renewed sense of the possibilities for our Church. For much of my ministry in Kootenay I have been aware of a kind of resignation in our par-ishes. It goes something like

this: “We are doing our best, but we don’t really believe that we have much of a future. We are not sure our church will be here in another generation.” It is my conviction that that per-spective is shifting. We are looking forward with a renewed sense of mission and with a clarity of how to accomplish that mission which is greater

than any one of us. I was introduced recently to

a little book by Paul Nixon who works in congregational devel-opment in the United Methodist Church in the United States. His book, which is called, “We Refused to Lead a Dying Church!” is a compila-tion of stories from 15 congre-gations across several denomi-nations that renewed their life and mission focus. With these stories, Paul identifies some of the key elements which led to the renewal of these congrega-tions and shares some of the wisdom gleaned in the process.

As I think about our own challenges as a Diocese and read these stories I was reminded of the story of the death of Moses at the end of the Book of Deuteronomy. After respond-ing to the call of God and lead-ing his people out of slavery in Egypt; after a lifetime of facing the challenges in the wilderness,

Moses stands on the hills over-looking the Jordan River and he looks beyond the river to the Promised Land. He knows that he will not live to see his people settled in the land and he also knows that the way forward is full of promise but also full of challenge. He gathers the peo-ple together to renew the cove-nant between themselves and God and then he says to them, “I call heaven and earth to wit-ness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live...” (Deut. 30:19) Choose life.

There are many choices that lead to death and despair. We face them daily in our own lives and families. We face them in our communities and in the politics of our towns, province and country. We face them in our church as we come to Annual General Meetings and

n the summer of 1982, I rode my bike each day through the streets of downtown Toronto to get

to Queen Street Mental Health Centre, the hospital where I com-pleted my clinical pastoral educa-tion requirement. During that time, I developed a good friendship with a Baptist, with whom I often discussed theology. I remember one conversation in which she asked me a very blunt question about the Eucharist: “Why don’t Anglicans throw away the bread and the wine that is left after the distribution of communion? Why does it all have to be consumed?”

“I can’t give you a definitive answer,” I said, “but I can tell you why it makes sense to me not to throw away the leftover bread and wine. What is happening at the time of the consecration is that the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ; in the act of raising up the bread and the wine and consecrating these elements, the priest is raising up the Body of Christ – symbolically, the members of the gathered community. If the bread and the wine are representa-tive of the community, then throw-

ing away the “leftovers” would essentially be the equivalent of casting aside the “leftovers” of that same community.”

“Hmm,” my friend respond-ed. “That does make some sense.” I breathed a sigh of relief!

Since that time, a particular task that I have on occasion had to perform, has reminded me of that conversation. It is a task which I have always found difficult to do.

At the church in which I served in the Diocese of Niagara, we had a somewhat unique way of introducing newcomers to the con-gregation. A new parishioner had suggested that she would find it helpful if parishioners’ pictures were immediately accessible for viewing before and after the service on a Sunday morning. In response

could find a satisfactory way of let-ting them go.

Here, then, I find myself returning to the symbolism of the Eucharist and the changing of the bread and the wine into the Body of Christ. Some, though not all Anglicans, believe that if consecrat-ed wine is spilled, the item on which this wine lands should be burned; for example, altar linens or a piece of carpet. Once upon a time, I might have considered this to be a little extreme and, even now, my practical side probably still thinks this. Nonetheless, the act of burning the material illus-trates and emphasizes that the con-secrated wine is, indeed, the blood of Christ and therefore, the life-blood of the community. As such, at least metaphorically, the stain cannot – and should not – simply be “washed out.”

A ritual of burning – which could perhaps take place each year at the Easter Vigil – may be the way in which we in the church – can appropriately let go of those from our community who have, for whatever reason, moved on. In fact, a ritual of burning may well be the one way in which all of us can express our reverence and respect for those we love even as

we know we have to let them go.

to this request, one of the children in the congregation painted a tree on a wall near the worship space, and “paper doll cut-outs” of each household were placed on this “family tree.”

Over the years, that wall was received with enthusiasm and cer-tainly proved to be a useful tool in assisting people with the identifica-tion of the members of our congre-gation. Besides this, the playfulness of both the artwork and the paper doll cut-outs lent a bit of colour and joy to an otherwise drab off-white wall. In fact, there was only one side effect from that endeavour that proved to be problematic. That side effect, however, was no small complication.

When a couple separated and divorced, or someone moved away or died, it was not only awkward but in many cases heart-wrenching to remove their picture from that family tree. In fact, there was a resistance to taking their photos off the wall. For this reason, that task often fell to me; one situation brought home the difficulty in a particularly painful way.

Somewhat unexpectedly, a long-time Transfiguration parishio-ner died. Isabel was a good age and she died well; in fact, the way most of us would want to – in her sleep. I was on holiday at the time and went back to St. Catharine’s to do her funeral. Upon returning to work at the end of our vacation, I

discovered Isabel’s picture still on the wall, left I assumed for me to remove. After church one Sunday, I took the picture into my office to dispose of it – but I wasn’t able to do this.

As I went to throw away the green leaf on which Isabel’s paper doll cut-out was pasted, I couldn’t let go of it or, more accurately put, I couldn’t let go of her. I hadn’t ever been able to do this with other pictures so I have no idea why I thought I would be able to do it that time. Most of the photos that came off the wall usually ended up in my desk drawer, placed there in a Scarlett O’Hara, “I’ll think about that tomorrow,” sort of way. But I never thought about it; instead, in order to avoid the reality of having to say good-bye, I would leave the cut-outs in the drawer.

Those pictures – those people from the parish who were no lon-ger a part of our church family – were, for me, not unlike the left-over bits of bread and wine follow-ing communion. Just as I am unable to imagine disposing of any of the members of the community as they are symbolized by those bits of bread and wine, I also could not dispose of those photographs, each of which represented a piece of the life-breath of Transfiguration’s fam-ily. Yet I knew they could not for-ever remain in my desk drawer, untouched because neither I nor anyone else in the congregation

he theme in this month’s HighWay is “Memorial.” In addition to the

memorial for Allan Reed, who preceded Nissa Basbaum as Dean of the Cathedral, and the memorial for the Rev. Randy Wood, a distin-guished Military Chaplain and priest of Kootenay, Archbishop John’s column challenges us to “Choose Life,” and not be part of dying Church.

This theme occurs again in the article about the Harrison Memorial Church in Crawford Bay who are ❑

A Ritual Burning

are faced with plans, budgets and the possibilities of the com-ing year. The faithful choice is always to choose life. That choice begins with a confidence in God’s presence and guidance and often involves putting our own survival needs aside so that something new can be born. It involves making decisions that consider the needs of others, the greater good and the gener-ation yet to come.

IN MY VIEW, the future will be shaped by the choices we make today. We always stand on the edge of some Jordan looking toward a prom-ised future and the call of God comes to us across the wilder-ness, across the centuries and across our own fears and hesita-tions, “I have set before you life and death - Choose Life”!

Faithfully,

+John

encouraging local people to attend musical events in an attempt to bring back lapsed members. All these articles tie into the front page story regarding Kootenay Diocese participating in a campaign entitled “Together in Mission.”

It would seem that to look forward to the future requires a financial commit-ment as well as developing stronger lay leaders. If we want the church to survive then it is necessary to invest in it with our energy as well our resources.

One of the ways Kootenay Diocese is invest-ing in the future is through the Kootenay School of Ministry, which is making it

Editorial

By JONN LAVINNDER

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Hold on to those G wordsBy LAWRENCE MASCARENHAS

he message of Jesus is simple (not sim-plistic) and pro-found. It is spoken

to ordinary people, mostly uneducated. Unfortunately, through years of “theologiz-ing,” the Church has made the message more complicat-ed and often irrelevant to daily living.

n It is important to begin with God’s Gratuitous Gift, often referred to as Grace.

n Grace can be understood as the “undeserved” Gift of God.

n “Undeserved” ensures we cannot lay claim to the Gift, as an “entitlement.”

n “Undeserved” also maintains the Gratuitous quality of the Gift.

n When one receives such a Gift, the only response can be Gratitude.

n But the response of Gratitude must be Genuine. The Book of Common Prayer aptly uses the words “unfeigned thankfulness.”

n Genuine Gratitude has nothing to do with “political cor-rectness” or just being well mannered or polite in saying “thank you.”

n A good test of Genuine Gratitude is when it overflows into Generosity.

n Generosity is not to be linked only to money/material things. The Generosity here referred to is best character-ized as Gentle Generosity.

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Lawrence Mascarenhas is a retired Anglican Minister who worships and helps out at All Saints, Vernon

possible for clergy to be raised up from the local church. In this area of educa-tion we are leading the rest of the country who are look-ing at what we are achieving here. I know this because I have the privilege of reading all the diocesan newspapers across Canada.

EfM Canada has its administration offices here, and this is another important tool to strengthen laity in Christian ministry. The majority of people who com-plete the EfM program become leaders and mature Christians. We can no longer be “pew warmers” and rely on paid clergy to do all the work, spiritual and other-wise.

n Gentle Generosity respects, ennobles, uplifts, nourishes and sustains the receiver.

n Gentle Generosity deal with “how” rather than “how much” the “widows mite” (Mk. 12:42) comes to mind.

n Gentle Generosity is patterned on its source God’s Gratuitous Gift/Grace.

n The Gentleness is such that the giver is hardly aware of being a giver (Mt. 6:3) who acts as a channel of Grace.

n It is crucial that we do not reverse the process: Grace Gratitude Generosity.

n When Generosity is not an overflow of Gratitude for Grace, it can easily become self-glorification, paternalis-tic and condescending. Such generosity only humiliates and can even insult the receiver.

n Living out the process: God’s Gratuitous Gift/Grace prompting within us Genuine Gratitude overflowing into Gentle Generosity can be our GPS (God Positioning System) on our journey of faith.

n It helps to navigate us on our Way and make it easy to check our progress. ❑

Page 4 The HighWay February 2014 February 2014 The HighWay Page 5Around the diocese

Stair-lift for St. Andrew’s, Trail

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By JENNIFER SIRGES

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Memorials

Recollections of Rev. Randy Wood

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ovember was another busy month at St. Andrew’s, Trail.

This year, the doors were open wider and the welcome even warmer than before. After long anticipation, an inclined plat-form stair-lift has finally been installed, making access to the building’s washrooms and meet-ing hall possible for everyone.

Until recently, worshippers could attend services in the sanctuary, but had to navigate down an imposing flight of stairs just to reach the wash-rooms. Meeting rooms and kitchen facilities are at a lower level still, out of reach not only for disabled members of this Anglican faith community but also for those with disabilities who wish to join in the variety of non-religious community events hosted here.

Funding for this project was provided in part from local community support, and in part from grants received from the Government of Canada, namely the Enabling Accessibility Fund and the New Horizons for Seniors Program. A generous grant was given by

the Rotary Club in Trail through a trust provided by late Rotarian Gus Erickson. Together with in-kind support provided by local businesses and professionals, and financial resources raised by the church community, the stair-lift was installed in October.

St. Andrew’s is very pleased now to be able to properly wel-come individuals with mobility challenges. The new stair-lift can accommodate a person in a wheelchair, or equally well an individual who can ride safely on a fold-down seat. No longer

will disabled people be unable to participate. Now, all who participate in worship services, funerals, concerts, and commu-nity events will be able to access downstairs washroom facilities, meeting spaces and refresh-ments.

In November alone, St. Andrew’s offered hot choco-late in the garden during the Cenotaph service, served 107 at the Food Bank, hosted three theatrical performances in Iona Hall, welcomed an educational group for a weekend study pro-gram, accommodated a public health support group, and cele-brated the feast day of St. Andrew with a gala party.

Not a building just for Anglicans, the facilities of St. Andrew’s Church are now accessible and welcoming for all.

An inclined platform stair-lift installed at St. Andrew’s, Trail

et me share some recol-lections about Lieutenant Colonel, The Reverend Randolph Scott Wood

Lth., CD, and PP. It is a marvel that a wee boy

born in Newbury Port, Massachusetts on 11 April 1934 could have had such a life until 30 November 2013. His Mom and Dad, Ruth and Ralph Wood, would have been proud of him. When Ruth died Randolph went to live with Grandma Rachael Card in Walton, Nova Scotia. Walton is a rather tidy, tiny town in peaceful rural Nova Scotia. It is intriguing that some of the most interesting people come from such small Canadian settings.

Next thing we know about Randy is that he is in The University of King’s College which is nestled in a corner of the campus of Dalhousie University, Halifax. It is here that our boy learned the depth of theology, the height of biblical understanding, and the width of pastoral care.

A Musical Christmas at Harrison Memorial Church

arrison Memorial Church, Crawford Bay swelled its congregation to

standing room only with a cele-bration of music this Christmas. Like many churches throughout Canada, Christmas carol sing-ing brings out the crowds, who otherwise rarely darken the doors of a church.

The program of music was accompanied by the Many Bays Community Band. The band of 17 members played the follow-ing instruments: piano, electric bass, violin, tuba, trumpet, trombone, French horn, flugel-horn, flute, clarinet, bass clari-net. In addition, there were 5 vocalists. Music was under the direction of Deberah Shears (piano) and Donnie Clark

(trumpet, clarinet and bass clar-inet).

The program included many carol classics as well as popular songs and the audience joined in after two verses of instrumental music. Each sec-tion of the band was featured:

Woodwinds, Brass, and Clarinets. My personal favorites were the clarinet and Flugelhorn Trio who played: Laudate Dominum, A Holy Child, Angel’s Carol and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Pie Jesu.”

Afterwards there was a lib-

eral supply of hot cider and Christmas faire, and special thanks were given to Jim and Karen Gilbert and Ross Shears for decorating and lighting and Brenda Panio for the program.

Brenda Panio who is a Lay Minister at Harrison Memorial

said, “The congregation has shrunk quite a bit, but we hope local people will start coming back to church through pro-grams such as this.” Donations from the concert were given to the church for its upkeep.

By JONN LAVINNDER

Band director Donnie Clark on trumpet

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Memorial for Allan Reed

n December 27 at a Eucharist in Thanksgiving for the life of Allan

Rupert Reed, his family, the Cathedral congregation and the Diocese bade him a final good-bye. Before he became Dean of Kootenay and Incumbent of St. Michael and All Angels’ Cathedral (2001 – 2009) Allan served the Church faithfully in the Dioceses of Rupert’s Land and Algoma, where he was also Dean.

Allan was a dreamer who lived life with an extraordinary combination of creativity and zest, expending talents and energy recklessly. When his Winnipeg parish was encum-bered by the cost of a newly completed building program and skyrocketing interest rates he conceived and created a Medieval Banquet that ran for eight February nights for six years and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. It was so

popular that tickets had to be bought a year ahead of time. The Winnipeg Symphony asked Allan to create similar fundrais-ing evenings in the Winnipeg Convention Centre. The Symphony would provide the music, three churches would provide the volunteer labour and Allan was to create the pro-gram. With typical pizzazz he talked Peter Ustinov into play-ing the Lord of the Feast, Danny Kaye to be the Jester and Anne Murray to reign as Queen of the Feast. He also planned that the knights would ride in on real horses. Unfortunately the rules wouldn’t allow volunteers to serve food in the Convention Centre so the idea died aborn-ing, but like all of Allan’s great ideas it was breathtaking in its conception.

In 1986 Allan married Norene Morrow, a classical singer and choral director whose creativity and energy

matched his own. Together they produced some marvellous events in the parishes they served. They also produced three children – Philip, Andrew and Gillian – in whose charac-ters and accomplishments they took great and pardonable pride.

Allan was big in stature, girth, vision and cooking. He always produced large amounts of food, vats of soup, highly decorated Easter eggs as big as footballs and boozy preserves with names like “Very Merry Sherry Jelly.” It seemed Allan believed he had to feed five

thousand. Allan was also big in heart. When he was a bachelor he always seemed to have a vari-ety of people living in his house. At a time when I was going through a rough patch — I was unemployed and appar-ently growing ever more unem-ployable — Allan invited me to share his home and provided hospitality until I got back on my feet.

Above all Allan was a faith-ful parish priest. As a liturgist his warm and informal style reached out to people. On Judgment Day priests will be judged not on their achieve-ments or their brilliance or the positions they held or the hon-ours they received, but on their faithfulness to their calling. When Allan meets his Maker we can be confident that he will hear these words: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant”.

By DAVID CRAWLEY

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He, like me, learned at King’s whatever it was we were supposed to learn in class and out of class. We sat at the feet of professors like C.W.F. Stone, Page, Uhler, J.B. Hibbitts and Mr Roberts.

For lads from small towns this was quite a challenge. A challenge for Randy and for me, and an even greater challenge for the professors. Randy was successful enough that the College graduated him. He was also ordained Deacon in 1957 and ordained Priest in 1958. Bishop Waterman of the Diocese of Nova Scotia is responsible for laying hands upon Randy. Something the good bishop and his successors did

not regret. Newly minted, Randy was dispatched by rail to Saskatchewan, rural that is, to learn the trade of parish priest. Somehow I have trouble imagining Randy threshing wheat, but he must have. The farmers of that area knew how to train pastors.

In due course Randy became Captain R. S. Wood of the Royal Canadian Chaplain Corp, later the Canadian Forces Chaplain Services (Protestant). His military career began in 1964 and lasted until he retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1984.

Let me share one or two mem-ories from the chaplaincy days. Randy served in places like Calgary with several regiments and units. He learned the language of the sol-dier and the ways of army life. Posted to Germany, Randy soon became a legend before his time. You may not know, may not even suspect this, but Randy was known as a practical joker. So I was not amused when I was told Randy was coming as my boss to Canadian Forces Base Borden. To my surprise this Randy was a pussycat. He was decent and caring bloke. With his family he lived in Alliston, some miles away. To save travel Randy spent long days and

evenings at the base and in the chapel office. He worked hard; a workaholic mode he had in his genes. His Advent sermons that year of 1979 were master pieces of theological insight that were deliv-ered in less than 30 minutes or more on a Sunday.

Anyway, Randy’s perfor-mance evaluation of me was so good that year and so surprising to me in light of his reputation, that the powers that be promot-ed me and moved me out of harm’s way.

Randy retired from the Canadian Forces in 1984. He became rector of St. Matthias, West Mount, Montreal. By this time I also retired from chap-laincy and was now in Kootenay Diocese at Trail.

One day Bishop Fraser Berry phoned me. What could I tell him about some priest called Randy Wood. I did not lie to the bishop. I said enough to allow Randy to come as Incumbent to Creston. With Nancy and Miranda and Gavin in tow he settled into Kootenay life. He and I worked together

as regional deans. We spent much time in Kelowna at meet-ings with Bishop Berry and later on, Archbishop David Crawley.

Randy and Nancy moved to Penticton and St. Saviour Parish in 1993. Randy retired from there in 1997. They moved to the log house in Boswell. Not quite ready to hang up his spurs, Randy took on the temporary supply clergy position, working almost full time for ten years at Creston United Church. Finally he let go and took his leave of work. By this time his health was beginning to suffer and the seriousness of this became clearer as the next years came along.

Randy loved his Shanghai-la along the shores of Kootenay Lake. Here he flew his Canadian Forces ensign. His garden lilies became renowned. I remember one year he split and stacked 17 cords of wood for his fireplace. I know because I came and helped him do the 17th cord.

I shall miss you old buddy. Until we meet again.

By ART TURNBULL

Stair-Lift Project Benefits from Local and Government of Canada Funds Photograph by Catherine Wetmore

Harrison Memorial Church, Crawford Bay

Randolph Scott Wood, Christ Church, Creston, 14 December 2013.

February 2014 The HighWay Page 7Columns

Page 6 The HighWay February 2014

By NEIL ELLIOT

Evangelii Gaudium – The Joy of the Gospel

In My Good Books

The Rev. Marcella Mugford is a member of the Diocesan Spiritual Development Committee

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Preparation for Lent

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Neil Elliot, Priest for Kootenay Summits, BC ++Playing with Gravity++

By MARCELLA MUGFORD

HBy YME WOENSDREGT

This column has been written with the intention that it may be reprinted in local newspa-pers for the religion page. Yme will be writing a short article each month expressly with this purpose in mind. You are free to reproduce the article with-out prior approval. Drop us a line anyway... The Editor

t has been almost a year now since the new pope was elected and after a flurry of activity and excitement things seem to

have settled down some-what. There continues to be a renewed sense of hope, especial-ly for our Roman Catholic sis-ters and brothers. This is in sharp contrast to the challenge many felt on the election of his predecessor…There is a sense of hope for all of us, all Christians around the world, because the Pope leads the most populous Christian denomination. New life for the Roman Catholic Church is new life for the whole church. So the release in late November, in the season of Advent, of the first significant statement on faith from the

new Pope, had the potential to affect us all. It did not disap-point. His book Evangelii Gaudium is over 200 pages. (And you get it free.) Moreover it is a book which is intended for ordinary people to read. Whilst there are some technical terms, especially later on, the language is not dense ecclesiastical or theologi-cal language. The whole tone of the document is intended for all to hear. For example:

I invite all Christians, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ. No one should think that this invitation

is not meant for him or her, since “no one is excluded from the joy brought by the Lord.” The Lord does not dis-appoint those who take this risk; whenever we take a step towards Jesus, we come to real-ize that he is already there, wait-ing for us with open arms. (sec-tion 8)

This is direct communica-tion. Notice the Pope says “I” not “We.” He uses simple hum-ble language. And he addresses “all Christians”; he does not mean just Roman Catholics, he means you and me as well.

This is an inclusive docu-ment. Its theme is the joy of the Gospel, and it continues the positive tone which Pope Francis has set since day 1 of his Papacy. Because of the length of the document, I initially found it a bit difficult to nego-tiate. Then I discovered the

index at the end of the docu-ment which sets out the chapter headings and sub-headings and the pattern of the argument became much clearer. There is much to be considered here. I wonder how the Pope has had time to write this as well as do the many other things which have taken his time.

In this document the Pope is clearly drawing our attention to some particular challenges, which he believes impede the proclamation of the Gospel. The first of these challenges is the culture in which we live, the worldwide culture of capitalism which he sees as oppressing the poor. We should remember that Pope Francis took his name because he wanted to make his Papacy about the poor. This document is addressing that issue. The Pope also challenges pastoral workers to a more posi-

tive and generous life and wit-ness. He challenges preachers to take their work more seriously and to a renewed confidence in preaching, “Let us renew our confidence in preaching, based on the conviction that it is God who seeks to reach out to others through the preacher, and that he displays his power through human words.”

I don’t suggest you read all of this, certainly not in one sit-ting. But I do encourage you to read some of this. Read the first few pages and look at the index and see what might speak to you and read that. This is a work of gentleness and power, a spirit filled, prophetic piece of writing from a father to the Church. I believe that in read-ing it we will all grow and dis-cover the joy of the Gospel.

e are approaching Lent, a season for introspection; a time to examine

our actions, our values and how they reflect the way we live. There are many ways of doing this, and no one right way.

The following is a partial list that you might find helpful. I suggest you try a few, until you find one that you resonate with. They all start by asking God for guidance. Then take a couple of deep breaths to let your mind slow down and focus on the task at hand:

1. Pray one of the creeds or the Lord’s Prayer. If you choose to pray with the Apostle’s Creed, you would look at the first phase or two; repeat the words slowly a couple of times, either out loud or silently. What do the words “I believe in God the Father, Almighty” mean to you today? What is your rela-tionship with God Almighty? How does this designation of God relate to

you? Write down your response to these questions. When you have spent several minutes with this phrase, you may move onto the next, “Creator of heaven and earth.” Ask yourself the same three questions, and wait and listen. Then write before moving onto the next phrase. You may want to take one phrase a day during Lent. Have all your answers on the same piece of paper,

so you can read it as one whole reflection when you have completed the exercise.

2. Take part in studying an appropriate book with a group of people.

3. Participate in a Quiet Day organized in their own par-ish.

4. Go on a Retreat at a retreat center.

5. Do a Retreat at home. I know someone who sched-ules a day or weekend with the other people in her house. They agree to give her a time of silence. She stays in her bedroom, unplugged from all electron-ic devices. Meals are left outside her door. Used dish-es are picked up. Phone messages are given to her after the retreat time. In the silence, she prays, and reads.

6. Hike to a spot where you are surrounded by nature and spend time walking, sitting, listening, and being aware of

the Spirit that surrounds them.

7. Take time to read the daily lectionary each day, and ponder what God is saying to them through scripture.

8. Say one of the Daily Offices (Morning Prayer, Evening Pray, Compline, or another prayer service) daily during Lent. This includes daily scripture readings and reflec-tion time.

This is a short list of some of the commitments you might make for the season of Lent. There are many other possibili-ties as well. I encourage you to consider now what you will do during Lent. Commit yourself to doing something that is pos-sible within your present life circumstances.

May God bless you during your time of reflection.

... that In–Between Time

o–hum! Here we are again in February. It’s one of those blah times

for many of us. True, the gov-ernment gave us another day off this month, a Family Day on February 10. It’s a way to break the long time between New Year and the celebration of Easter. But February still feels like one of those months where nothing special happens... except (maybe) Valentine’s Day.

The wonderful, joyful cele-brations of Advent and Christmas are just a distant memory. The trees have been

taken down and shredded, the decorations and lights packed away for another year. The shepherds have returned to their flocks in the fields (and hoping they’re still there!) and the magi are on their way back to their own land. The angel choirs have all but disappeared.

Winter just hangs on and on and on. It’s cold and grey and yucky outside and spring feels like it will never come. We are starting to gather up our tax receipts and statements for that annual drudgery.

Bleh!In the church, we’re starting

to gear up for Lent, that most counter–cultural of all seasons, since our society isn’t given to introspection and reflection and confession. But it’s not quite here yet. It’s late this year, and what we’re really looking ahead toward is the AGM.

For many of us, that’s enough to put us to sleep. Somehow spread sheets and budgets and reports don’t seem to be as “spiritual” as worship or Christian education or fel-lowship, and we can’t get too excited about it.

Yes, it’s February. That in-between time. That time of waiting for the groundhog to see his shadow (which reminds me of the movie Groundhog Day, where the same day keeps repeating itself over and over again—perhaps a fitting meta-phor for the whole month.)

In these in–between days, the scripture readings in wor-ship focus on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. In some ways, it’s easier to be a follower on the high, holy days. It’s somewhat harder in those down times, when nothing much seems to be happening. It’s easy

to get lost in complaining about the weather or wishing for something to happen.

Yet it’s precisely in these kinds of in-between times that Jesus comes to us in our lives and whispers, “Come on, follow me.” It’s precisely in these kinds of in–between times that we are being invited to live out the good news we heard at Christmas, that God is with us.

Imagine being a sign of God’s life in the world in that February-time when everything seems dead and the rebirthing of spring is yet to begin.

Imagine bearing God’s light into the darkness of our world and the greyness which marks some people’s lives.

Imagine living with God’s compassion in the slushy times of life, the ho–hum moments when we anticipate nothing good will ever happen.

Imagine those AGM’s as a time to tell those amazing sto-ries of how our parish is living out God’s healing love in the world; a time when budgets express how we long to be known as God’s people living out God’s gospel purposes in our small corner of the world.

Imagine the in-between’ness of February as a time to remem-ber that Jesus invites us to do some of the most important work of our lives—to fol-low and love.

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n the early 60s Cecil Day was the rector of St. David’s, Castlegar. He went about on his parish

duties in a Volkswagen Beetle. One day he mistakenly left his Eucharistic vestments in his unlocked vehicle. When he returned to it, the vestments were gone. From then on, he was on the lookout for a lady who would be wearing a skirt made from one of his chasubles.

eIn another parish, several

hundred kilometers to the northeast, I counted among my parishioners a European couple. The man was German and his

wife Scottish. I can still see Hans on his bicycle headed for work, rain or shine, with a box over the rear tire for parcels. They came to the interior of the lower mainland, where they had been members of a rather con-servative denomination. Due to dwindling numbers, in time the church was taken under the aegis of the Anglican Church of Canada.

Three incidents regarding this couple remain in my mem-ory. An archdeacon came to visit them from the Vancouver area. They had been friends for a number of years. We were invited to share an evening with them. This involved dinner. The most memorable item was a cold potato soup called vichyssoise. Its full name is crème vichyssoise grace—(iced cream soup of Vichy). This may

not sound too appetizing to some on cold winter nights, but it was delicious!

This European couple were faithful communicants of the parish Eucharist. On one occa-sion, I had just begun to preach when the wife began to sob uncontrollably. I thought per-haps there had been a death in their family. Following the ser-vice, I spoke to her attempting to discover the reason for the excessive flow of tears. She blurted out, “A woman read the Gospel.” There is a tradition of long standing that only a per-son in orders should read the Gospel, and that person should be male, but still I was surprised at her reaction.

I prepared both of their children, Ron and Patricia, for confirmation. Following that event, Patricia showed me a new prayer book she had been given. When I examined it, I discovered it was of the 1928 vintage. I told her that it was no longer in use. I learned the reason for giving the 1928 edi-tion rather than the 1962.

“Mom said they changed THE LITANY.”

eIn my short lifetime I have

attended three church deconse-crations*. The first was for St. Nicholas Church in Winndel. There aren’t many churches in North America with the patron-age of St. Nicholas. That desig-nation didn’t catch on as it did in Europe. The second was Erickson, southeast of Creston, and the most recent was St. Francis-in-the-woods, Queen’s Bay, which is just across the road from our acreage on Kootenay Lake. These events took place under the Episcopal tutelage of David Crawley, the eighth bishop of Kootenay. As the deconsecration at Queen’s Bay went on apace, without any planning or artifice we realized that we had gathered at St. Francis Church on St. Francis’ day, the fourth of October. At this third deconsecration, I remember the bishop saying to me, “Jim, we can’t go on meet-ing like this.”

I

Pope Francis – available free from the Vatican Website

By JIM HEARNE

The Vicar Remembers

Humourist, Canon Jim Hearne (retired) was the priest in charge of ten churches in and around Kootenay Lake

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Columns

Editor’s Note:*Deconsecration refers to removing the sacred charac-ter of a place for secular use.

Page 8 The HighWay February 2014Camp etc.

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ove is in the air this month with Valentine’s Day and Family Day making

it easier to think warm thoughts for the coming camping season. Now is the best time to be making those summer plans, even though it seems a little early with snow still on the ground and a chill in the air. Just think summer…ah!

The camper curriculum chosen for the 2014 season is from

Inside Out: Christian Resources for Outdoor Ministries and is entitled “Get Real”. If you are interested to learn more the following web-site reference will lead you to the curriculum. www.church-campresources.com/index.html As is mentioned in the curricu-lum materials “Get Real teaches campers that we are not created in the image of popular culture. We are created in the image of God, who loves us just as we

are and asks us to love others in the same way.” In past years these curriculum materials from The National Council of Churches have been popular with Owaissi campers as well as the chaplains who find them easy to use and engaging for the campers.

As mentioned in the January issue of the Highway the members of the Camp Owaissi Society have launched an “unplugged and unforgetta-ble” campaign to raise $30,000

by May 2014. The targeted areas for donation are the fol-lowing:Program Equipment

canoes, paddles, small float-ing dock, rescue boat, archery/astronomy.Capital Improvements

painting upgrades to staff/camper accommodation.

Sponsor a camper Go to www.campoac.com

for information to make a donation.

Those interested in summer employment at Camp Owaissi please be sure to check the web-site often this month as all available employment positions, application processes and camp contacts will be posted for you to access.

Consider renting a water-front camp-site or RV site for the entire summer, April to October. Camp Owaissi has Family Site Rentals available through the website. Go to www.campoac.com and click on

Family Site Rentals. Although the deadline for application is now past there are still spaces available for rental. These sites are not connected to the camp-er programs and are located on the lake and away from the fun and frolic of the resident camp-ers. The site locations are tran-quil, rustic, “unplugged and unforgettable.” An ideal way to spend your summer! Please con-sult the website for further information regarding available amenities.

The Camp is available for Group Rentals during the week in the months of May/June and September/October. During the summer months, July/August the camp property is available for rental on the weekends Friday evening – Sunday after-noon. Camp Owaissi is a favourite location for family reunions and church congrega-tion gatherings. For more infor-mation go to www.campoac.com and click on Group Rentals.

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Owaissi 2014“Here We Go Again”

By PAM WILSON

Photograph by Christine Houghton

New Piano Arrives at St. Saviour’s, Nelson

fter a number of years of fundraising, as well as searching for a suitable instru-

ment, a new grand piano has been delivered, unpacked and set up at St. Saviour’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral.

Five years ago when Tobias Jenny became organist and music director at St Saviour’s, he introduced the church as a concert venue to many local musicians. These musicians, along with the audiences, were impressed by the superior acoustics as well as the architec-tural beauty of this heritage church. While the existing grand piano had a beautiful sound and worked well as a ser-vice instrument, it was not up to the demands of concert use. As this would restrict expansion of the venue for concert usage, Tobias, together with local pia-nist, Robert Hargreaves, spear-

headed a fundraising effort to purchase a suitable replacement. Since that time, four fundrais-ing concerts were organized with all the concert revenue donated to the Piano Fund.

Many generous donations from individuals and groups have also been received. These

efforts culminated this Fall when the ideal grand piano, a 20 year old Kawai was located in Edmonton. After confirma-tion of its mint condition, inside and out, by local piano technician, Terry Halleran, it was decided that this opportu-nity could not be passed up

despite the Piano Fund being $4,000 short of the purchase price. The old piano, a loaner, has since been generously donated for sale with all pro-ceeds going towards the short-fall. In this regard, it is hoped that its eventual sale will raise $2,500.

It has been an impressive community effort to get to this point. All look forward to the new piano enhancing many future Nelson musical perfor-mances.

Terry Halleran, Bob Hargreaves & Tobias Jenny at completion of installation.

Photograph by Greg Scott

By GREG SCOTT

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