st. francis-in-the-wood winter 2007 newsletter

Winter Newsletter, 2007

St. Francis-in-the-Wood

IN THIS EDITION

• No E-Mails for a Month! • The West Vancouver Care Centre • Message from St. Francis’ Day • Frank Rigney • St. Francis at LUMS • Book Reviews • Conversations in the Universe of Faith • Cabaret! • Meditation Garden • The West Vancouver GoGos • Banner Day • The Cool Column and Special Events • Spiritual Formation and Direction • Youth News and Social Concerns • Third Sunday at Three Concert Series and

Christmas Giving Times Three • Christmas at St. Francis

W elcome to the Winter edition of the St. Francis-in-the-Wood Newsletter!

Inside this issue you’ll find reports on recent

events; as well as pictures of o u r n e w M e m o r i a l Garden, our new church banner and much more. This issue also contains details of our Advent and Christmas services; we do hope you will be able to join us to celebrate over the festive season.

We’re always on the lookout for feedback and contributions. Get in touch with us at the St. Francis Office:

St. Francis-in-the-Wood 4773 South Piccadilly Road, West Vancouver,

V7W 1J8 604 922 3531; [email protected]

http://www.stfrancisinthewood.ca

St Francis-in-the-Wood, Winter Newsletter

THE WEST VAN CARE CENTRE: DECEMBER 13TH CAROLS

O nce again it is the time of year when we attend the West Vancouver Care Centre with twenty

four Christmas goody bags containing tangerines, chocolate candy bars, homemade cookies and a small gift supplied by the Silver Harbour Senior Centre. Our thanks also go to the Sanctuary Guild, our usual small choir group and Angus who leads the service and carols.

George & Grace Coules

NO E-MAILS FOR THE RECTOR IN ADVENT!

W ell… not really, but I was reading a journal entry by Thomas Merton dated Advent 1946 where

he mentions that as monks they were not supposed to receive any letters during Advent. It made me think, “Wow, wouldn’t it be great to be able to do that – just stop opening mail or checking e-mails for a whole month!” Of course, it was easier for the monks because, for a start they were not allowed to receive many letters at all during the year so cutting them out altogether wouldn’t have been that big a deal. They also didn’t have to worry about the “business” side of the monastery – paying the bills etc. Plus in 1946 there was no e-mail, so life tended to go at a slower pace. Sometimes it’s a romantic daydream to just turn the clock back to what we may perceive now to have been a slower, gentler time or, better still, to stop the clock altogether, at least to catch our breath. But the reality often is that life keeps coming at us at a frantic pace and there’s no slowing it down let alone stopping it. Or is there? I recently found that I had so many different things I needed to do that I was virtually paralyzed such that it was difficult to make progress on any of them. It was easier to check e-mails, which inevitably brought more demands and therefore didn’t help the situation but gave the illusion that I was “doing something.”

In order to take charge of the situation (rather than be ruled by it) I decided that for ONE day I was not going to even log-on to my e-mails until the afternoon, thereby giving them no chance to deflect my morning. I usually check my e-mails first thing and then regularly during the day but this day I didn’t … and it was wonderful! By the afternoon I found I’d got so much done, the pressure was off, and by the time I got to the e-mails I found I was able to deal with them all much quicker and all at once. I’m sure many of you are thinking “Duh! How come it took you so long to figure that one out?” Others are no doubt thanking the Lord that they have resolutely refused to even get a computer! There’s nothing new or revolutionary about any of this and there’s a good chance you’ve heard it before but as we head into the “busy season,” or one that is perceived as particularly busy, it’s good to try and remain conscious rather than allow ourselves to be swept downstream. It comes down to knowing what we want and then ordering our lives accordingly (easier said than done, I hear you say). If we want time to slow down or stop we need (ironically) to put it into our schedules. It’s part of the reason I have morning and evening prayer each day and it’s why sometimes you may not receive a response to your e-mail until the afternoon!

So as we draw near to Christmas and it seems that life is accelerating may you be blessed with the grace to perceive time slowing down, even as the temperature drops, coming to a complete standstill round a b ou t m i d n i g h t on Christmas Eve. In that holy hour may you know in the stillness and peace the deep joy that all this is held in existence by Love.

Angus Stuart Rector

Sunset from Crescent Beach, White Rock


MESSAGE FROM ST. FRANCIS DAY May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatians 6.14.

T hose of you of my generation may remember it as “God forbid that I should glory, save in the

cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” – memorialized in the hymn: “In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o’er the wrecks of time; all the light of sacred story, gathers round its head sublime.” – it’s 537 in the blue hymnbook. This is the kind of text that I shrink from. When I was 25, I was quite prepared to preach on it. But after a lifetime of preaching, I hesitate, because of what I now realize is its depth and its challenge. But the one who hesitates is lost, and I wish to be found; so I must say what I can. My thought is that I would begin by asking what it meant to Paul, who wrote it some time around the year 50 of our era; and then what it meant to Francis, who heard Jesus speak to him in 1206, and received the stigmata in 1224; and then what it means to us, in our own time and place—Vancouver, West Vancouver, BC, Canada, 2007. So what did it mean to Paul? In the death and resurrection of Christ, Paul found the central meaning of his life, and, he believed, the central meaning of history. When I was a teenager and well into my twenties, I thought that being a Christian

meant loving God, obeying the rules, being nice (because I was an Anglican, and a Canadian), and eventually going to heaven. I sometimes shudder to think what a shallow take on the Christian faith I had

when I was ordained at the age of 24. Just take a moment now to focus on what you have typically thought it means to be a Christian. I had never taken Paul seriously, or Jesus seriously, for that matter. I now realize that what really being a Christian involves is entering as deeply as possible into the death of Christ and the resurrection of Christ; and this, I believe, is close to Paul’s feeling—“May I never boast of anything but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” For Paul, the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth scooped up all the forms of death and all the power of death, and all the energies of life and the presence of life in the world in which we live. Paul lived in the world. His faith didn’t take

him out of the world. His faith connected him inescapably to the world—he was nailed to the world, the world which God made and loves. His life involved inviting other people to find meaning in that death and resurrection; to bring all the ways in which they had been touched by death, and all the hopes they had for life, and pour them into their spiritual union with Christ, crucified and risen. In a text which scares me more even than this one, Paul reflects in 1 Corinthians 1 on the depth of this mystery: … the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. … Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. In the Christ who lived in the power of love up to the point of death, and who when threatened with death neither struck back in anger nor disobeyed God in any way, Paul saw the centre of meaning for the whole human race. Without the death and resurrection of Christ, there is no Christianity, no Christian faith. We would all be doing something else on Sunday morning.


So what might this have meant for Francis? It was just over 800 years ago, in 1206, that Francis, then 24, the same age I was when I was ordained—Francis, a young rich man who had heard a call to identify with the poor, kneeling in prayer in the ruined church of San Damiano in Assisi, heard Jesus--from the cross--say to him, “Francis, rebuild my church, which as you see, is in ruins.” At first he took this literally, gathered a group of friends, and started to rebuild San Damiano. Then the deeper meaning of the words of Jesus revealed themselves to him, and he realized that he had a message for the whole church, which needed cleansing from its corruption and rebuilding in faith and love. I remember being very moved on one occasion, meeting with a Franciscan tertiary, a member of the Anglican third order of St Francis, who shared with me this prayer: “O God, who when the hearts of many had grown cold sent blessed Francis ….” –that’s all I remember, but it’s enough. There was a warmth about Francis that touched the heart of thousands, and through them, the lives of millions. From the renovation of a building to the renewal of a community was a huge and necessary step. Let me point to just two aspects of his ministry: his taming through love of the wolf of Gubbio, as memorialized on the plaque, and his mission to the Sultan in Jerusalem, in search of peace. The first is emblematic of his love for animals and for all the natural order—brother Sun and sister Moon; the wolf who had terrorized the town of Gubbio responded to the love he perceived in Francis, and became his friend—members of different species, but friends. The wolf was not a pet of Francis, but his friend. It is this kind of love that our ecological crisis demands of us today. We need to move from exploitation of the natural order to friendship with the natural order. We need to move from being stewards of creation to being stewards in creation. Then his visit to the Sultan, during the crusades, and his appeal to the Sultan and to the Christians to find peace between them. Once again the geopolitical crisis of the world today is polarized between what we ignorantly call “Islam,” as if it were one undifferentiated thing, and what again ignorantly we and Muslims call “the West,” as if all of us in the western world, you and me and George Bush, all believed the same thing, or indeed that all Christians are the same. It is the kind of love that propelled Francis to seek out the other as a brother that we are challenged to today. Our challenge today is to learn to love Osama bin Laden as a brother. This is the

month of Ramadan, the holiest month for Muslims; I encourage you to reach out to any Muslims you meet at this time. All you have to say is “salaam aleikum”—peace be with you-- and you will have contributed to the peace of the world, and followed in the steps of St Francis. And then a later verse in our text: “I carry the marks of Jesus branded on my body.” It was in 1224 on Mount Alverno, on a retreat, that Francis received the stigmata. No-one understands the meaning of the stigmata in their entirety. All I can say is that Francis experienced in his own body the deep truth of Paul’s words. In receiving the stigmata, he received an outward sign of what had already happened inwardly in him: that he was welded to Christ in faith and love, and thereby to the world which Christ redeemed, the world in all its complexity and confusion—and if complex then, how much more complex now!


And so to us: “May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” The world in which we live is often overwhelming; if sorrows do not come to us personally, they come to us socially or politically. If we do not grieve with the people of Iraq and Afghanistan and Israel and Palestine and the Congo and Burma then our hearts are cold, as were the hearts of so many before the time of Francis. It is a truism of the spiritual life as Christians understand it that we can only move outward to the degree to which we have moved inward. If we have shrunk from being crucified with Christ, we will shrink from the miseries of death which we see in the world. If we have shrunk from being crucified with Christ, we will have prevented ourselves from having risen with Christ. If we have shrunk from being crucified with Christ, we will find refuge in a safe little space in which we can live a safe little life. But if we have surrendered to being crucified with Christ, we will have risen with Christ and will be able to be channels of Christ’s peace to the world which needs it so badly. As Paul goes on to say, “… neither circumcision (being a Jew) nor uncircumcision (being a Gentile) is anything; but a new creation is everything! As for those who will follow this rule, peace be upon them …” - the peace of Christ, the peace to which Francis referred in his prayer: “make me a channel of your peace.” The challenge of global warming calls us, the need for

dialogue and peacemaking with Muslims calls us, our own hearts call us. To be crucified to the world means, at least, to be permanently connected in prayer and action with the world as it is, the world in its needs, the world in its possibilities, the world in its hopes and fears and dangers, our world, the only world we have. But before we can pray this prayer, we need to pray another: bring me, O God, as deeply as I am able, into the death and resurrection of Christ. Let me be crucified to the world, as was Paul, as was Francis, as was Christ, and let me rise in your spirit in the world, as did Paul, as did Francis, as did Christ. When those around us see the marks of Jesus branded on our words and actions, if not our bodies, we will have realized in our own hearts and souls the meaning of this searching, demanding, scorching text: May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Amen.

Donald Grayston

This is the text of the sermon preached by Donald Grayston at St. Francis on the Feast of St. Francis,

October 7th 2007. Donald is former Director of the Humanities Institute

at Simon Fraser University and is a priest of the Diocese of New Westminster.

Basilica and city in Assisi


FRANK RIGNEY

O ne of our 8:00am Sunday Communion regulars was in the Sporting News this past Fall - Frank

Rigney. Frank played ten seasons as offensive tackle with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 1958 - 1967, went to the Grey Cup five times and won on four of those trips. In those days, Grey Cup rings were not awarded. Finally, forty-five years after his last win, Frank and the team were awarded rings in September, 2007 with limited news coverage here but big news in Winnipeg. Frank is still “big” in Winnipeg and in football circles. He is also a big man, but he now moves slower. He remains his understated self and Parishioners should know something of this “big man” in our midst. Frank grew up in East St. Louis, MO, where you had to be tough to survive – everyday, more so now! He received a football scholarship to the University Iowa where he received a Bachelor of Business Administration and was an all-star under legendary Coach Gerry Barns.

He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles but chose Winnipeg, as the pay was better and employment offered for the off-season. This phenomenon was common in the 50’s, 60’s even into the 70’s and every CFL city has many citizens who came to play and stayed for a business careers. BC Lions at one time had almost 30 such alumni here in Vancouver from 1954 to 1975 seasons. Frank’s other CFL recognitions are: • 1961 Outstanding Lineman. • 3 Seasons CFL All-Star. • 7 Season CFL Western All-Star. • Member CFL Hall of Fame. • Member Bomber Hall of Fame. Frank became a Group Underwriter with Great West Life in Winnipeg in 1958, transferred to Vancouver as Western Manager in 1968 and became Stock Broker, retiring from Canacord in 1992. In Vancouver, Frank spent twenty years as a TV colour commentator for football broadcasts as a sideline career. He also did commentary for CBC in both the 1980 and 1984 Winter Olympics. The Iron Man nature of ten seasons while missing only five games and needing only one surgery gave way to the need for seventeen surgeries to repair football related injuries after he retired. The price Frank paid for his sporting profession is huge. In 2003 he needed a titanium shoulder replacement. Shoulders give out on linemen! In 2004 he lost his right lower leg below the knee to a freak event following surgical repair to his foot. Despite his most recent surgeries Frank is back playing golf at Capilano when at home and Palm Springs in winter. Frank has three children; wife Donna often joins him at 8:00AM service. Another side to Frank; he once served as a Big Brother and through that he saw a need. He began the Big Brothers-Canacord Golf Fundraising week-end at Whistler. This was its 14th year in 2007 and raised $450,000.00 for the cause with Frank in charge as always. Church congregations contain many citizens from all of life’s strata of accomplishment, fame and fortune but for sports fans, Frank is our star at St. Francis.

Peter Kains


ST. FRANCIS AT LUMS The Lutheran Urban Mission Society based on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside works to help some of the city’s most needy by providing meals and fellowship twice a month. This Fall, St. Francis assisted the LUMS effort by preparing and serving one of their Saturday meals. Hilary Carpenter, who headed up the effort, reports on how dozens of volunteers and contributors united to serve a meal and forge a link between St. Francis and LUMS. Phil Colvin and Ilyana Voth then write about how the St. Francis youth are continuing that relationship.

T he second LUMS lunch undertaken by St. Francis took place on Saturday September 22,

2007. For the volunteers it was a two day event, the Friday being the food preparation day. Our menu consisted of stew with vegetables, mashed potatoes, a vegetable mix, bap buns, coffee and cookies. On Friday September 21, 2007 we had 28 volunteers. It was an incredible sight to see 265 lbs of potatoes peeled in 30 minutes, plus 50 lbs of carrots and 20 lbs of celery!! (Perhaps we should be challenging other churches to a peel off!!). When the vegetables were cooked they were added to the previously cooked meat. Although our meal was simple the cooking of the potatoes was a major challenge which resulted in a lot of creative thinking. Ladies pushing

wheelbarrows full of potatoes, SUV’s loaded with buckets of potatoes being taken home to cook all helped with the fun and comradeship. Once all the cooked potatoes came back the sight of our very talented men up to their elbows in steam, butter and milk mashing all these potatoes, while all crammed into the kitchen led to lots of laughter.

Hilary with some of those 50lb of carrots!

Friday preparations; Joan Mann with a wheelbarrow of cooked potatoes (left) and then the hardy team of mashers including Frank Rigney, Ian McBeath, John Gouge, Charlotte Burns and Mark Ballard (right)


On Saturday morning at 6.00am our volunteers heated up the food at home and brought it all piping hot to be transported by four drivers. We had a total of 15 volunteers at LUMS. On arrival we prepared the hall with tables, buttered buns, arranged cookies and bagged fruit. The serving went very smoothly due to another amazing group of volunteers, including members of the youth group who added the necessary energy and vitality and who incidentally now attend at LUMS on a regular basis. We served just under 500 guests in the space of 1½ hours with a hot nourishing meal that we would serve to our own families. There were requests for lots of seconds and our cookies are always a big hit.

It was only by the generosity of our merchants and parishioners that we are able to provide this meal. To all those who committed their time, humour, comradeship and help (that includes the drivers on Saturday morning who delivered all the food to the Downtown Eastside) to making this another successful LUMS meal. This type of outreach cannot be undertaken without you all. For some there is an indelible impression and memory left on those who attended on Saturday morning. Thank You. I believe that our visit to the downtown eastside was successful; we achieved what we set out to do that being to feed the hungry with a nourishing meal and brought friendship and caring. This event is our community extending an arm of friendship through the gift of food.

Hilary Carpenter

A fter having helped with preparing our meal at St. Francis, and then going to the Downtown

Eastside to serve it; it became clear to me of just how much volunteer work is vital to the ministry of LUMS. There is the preparation of the meal itself which, as Hilary reports, is an enormous effort. However, the act of serving it requires yet more time and talent. Volunteers are needed to set up for the meal at First United Church, to physically serve the guests food, drink and cookies. Others are needed to help clear tables, wash dishes to be used again almost immediately and to welcome and help new guests to take those seats which have just been vacated so as many people as possible can be served in a short space of time. Beyond all this there is, perhaps, the most important part of the continuing ministry; taking time to sit down with the guests as they eat and to hear their stories. To get a greater understanding of their problems. And to build relationships. If the energy of the regular

volunteers is solely taken up with providing food; LUMS only have half a ministry. After all, Jesus never sat in silence with those he dined with! Having spent one morning at LUMS; some of us who went along decided that we wanted to come back and to be more involved with their ministry. And to help other church groups who provide food but perhaps aren’t as blessed with willing volunteers as we are at St. Francis. Therefore, for the past two months; a group of our youth have been giving up a Saturday morning lie-in to go along to LUMS for each of their meals. Over a dozen youth have been involved so far, many have returned more than once and I already have volunteers signed up for 2008. Why is that? Perhaps because once we take the time to get involved with other peoples’ lives and, as Ilyana writes, feel so welcomed and needed, it’s hard to turn away from them. The thing with relationships is, once you build them, they tend to stick!

Phil Colvin

I thought LUMS was an amazing experience. You'll never hear so many "Thank you's" in your life. These people really appreciate what you give to them because they don't have much; very unlike us. When you're walking around, looking at all these people sitting, and waiting for food, you suddenly realize how lucky you really are. I'm so glad I took the time to go to LUMS and see really how some people live around here.

Ilyana Voth


BOOK REVIEWS With the Christmas season now upon us, many will be looking forward to those peaceful moments of rest and a good book. With that in mind, this issue we have gathered a number of reviews of books which you might want to investigate.

EAT, PRAY, LOVE Elizabeth Gilbert Penguin Books, ISBN: 978-0143038412

H ello God. How are you? I’m Liz. At a time

o f p e r s o n a l c r i s i s , depression and identity crisis Liz Gilbert recalls her first attempt at speaking directly to God. She remembers how she

has always responded to those who say that God is closer than we can imagine. From a very low point of her life this memoir describes ‘one woman’s search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia’, including a close relationship with God for herself. She begins by traveling to Italy to learn Italian and eat lots of Italian food. What does this have to do with a spiritual journey you may ask? Sometimes I wasn’t sure but I enjoyed her writing about it. She certainly enjoyed her first meal of spaghetti alla carbonara, artichoke with zucchini blossoms and ‘a dab of cheese in the middle’, followed by veal, warm bread, red wine and Tiramisu for desert! Her experiences in India and Indonesia are intense. Her personal struggles are laid bare. “I don’t want anyone to talk to me. I can’t tolerate anyone’s face right now. I even manage to dodge Richard from Texas for a while, but he eventually finds me at dinner and sits down – brave man – in my black smoke of self-loathing”. She struggles to find peace in her life and learn to stop trying to micro-manage every moment of life. Her writing is both honest and funny, and sometimes it is insightful and thought provoking. Reading this book on a recent flight from Ontario generated several chance conversations with flight crew and fellow passengers when they saw the title.

“Is it worth reading?” I was asked. It’s a New York Times best seller that is in most book shops. Take the time to read this entertaining memoir that is both funny and sad, shows vulnerability, confidence, despair and self-deprecation. You may want to challenge some of her discovery tools and conclusions but I think you will find that her journey takes you down one or two interesting and unexpected avenues of thought and expression for your own spiritual journey. Take a little from this book for your own life, but also just enjoy a well written, enjoyable book that makes a good bedtime read or a good evening read, lounging on the sofa, in front of the fire.

Marilyn McBeath

THE POWER OF NOW Eckhart Tolle New World Library, ISBN: 978-1577314806

E ckhart Tolle must be a very wise man for he has made

his home in Vancouver. Though he travels the world, including his native Germany, speaking about his ph ilosophy that has

transformed his own life and is having a profound effect on many others as well. Essentially “the power of now” is very simple: it is about being present in the present moment. Living in the “here and now” rather than letting our minds wander backwards and forwards into the past and the future but seldom stopping to rest in the present moment. It’s what Buddhists call “mindfulness” – being mindful, being conscious, being awake (Buddha means “awakened one”). Most of the time, according to Tolle, we live “unconsciously.” So considering Tolle must have made a fortune from the sales of his book (and others just like it) and has built an international reputation as a speaker and teacher, he is not really saying anything new. And perhaps he wouldn’t claim such – although it is clearly new to him and to many of us in the West who often live over-busy, frenetic lives. What he says can be clearly identified as mainstream Buddhist teaching on meditation, focusing on being present, being mindful or conscious in the present moment.


It is also consistent with Christian practices of contemplative prayer. indeed he quotes Christian sources as well as Buddhist, including Jesus himself in ways that are imaginative and refreshingly perceptive. The good thing about this book is that Tolle is able to make a simple yet profound insight available to us in ways that are accessible and easy to follow. Although what he is saying is simple it is often all too easy too miss. This book provides us with an opportunity to stop and see what is right there before our eyes. Moreover Tolle shows how many things, even things that we might consider to be distractions, can be used to bring us into and hold us in the present moment. In this regard he says a number of interesting things about pain and suffering that you may find helpful. I don’t agree with everything Eckhart Tolle says in this book – I would want to question much of what he says about relationships for example. I also feel that although the insight he speaks of is profound, I get the sense that it is the only thing he has to offer. Kind of a one-horse race – albeit a great horse! Living in the present is important – in a sense, he is right, we can live no where else and if we do not (literally) find our selves in the present moment then we are no where – but we are also people with a past (memories are an important part of who we are) and also a future (giving us a sense of hope). At the end of the day, we should perhaps take Tolle’s advice, which is not to take his word for it but try it for ourselves and see what happens. As he repeatedly says: he is not the teacher; each of us is our own teacher. So, get a copy of the book and see what you think.

Angus Stuart

PRAY YOUR WAY Bruce Duncan Darton, Longman and Todd, ISBN: 978 -0232520194

M ore likely than not, anyone reading this

review prays. For some of us our prayer relationship with God is less than ideal - most of

us were taught to pray a certain way at a very young age. Now, rather than being a source of joy and peace, prayer becomes a dry duty.

During a recent marriage preparation meeting with Angus where we were discussing Myers Briggs Type Indicator theory I expressed a concern over the sense that something was missing in my own prayer-relationship. Angus, rummaging through his bookcase, tossed me a little book entitled Pray Your Way saying that perhaps I might find it interesting. Without going into great detail about MBTI for those of you not familiar with the theory, it simply states that there are as many different types of personalities as there are human beings but similarities can be listed and grouped based on distinguishable habitual preferences of thought and behavior. If we don’t all think the same way it follows that we won’t (nor should we) pray the same way. Here is a short excerpt from the book on what prayer is “…most people think that conduct is what matters and prayer helps it, whereas the truth is that prayer is what matters and conduct tests it. Prayer changes us. We cannot grow in prayer without growing in social and political awareness and a desire to do our part for the coming of God’s Kingdom on earth. Prayer is the impulse of God’s grace, urging and helping us to respond to the Spirit of love. As we make that response, so we lay ourselves open to being changed, to growing in thoughts, words, and deeds of love. The widespread longing in the hearts of people for a closer walk with God will bear fruit.” The author is Bruce Duncan, an Anglican priest, well-known for his workshops in the Myers-Briggs field. After clearly and simply outlining the MBTI theory he explains how different personality types are naturally drawn to different methods of prayer. I found it liberating to have affirmed that there is no right or wrong way to pray. Duncan’s explanation of our ‘shadow side’ and how it relates to our prayer-relationship, especially in mid-life, is fascinating. There is only one copy of Pray Your Way this side of the Atlantic and Angus has generously offered it for circulation; please contact the office if you are interested.

Marilou Appleby



CONVERSATIONS IN THE UNIVERSE OF FAITH Reflections on the recent Inter-Faith Series at St. Francis

W ay back at the Parish Retreat that was held at St. Francis in November 2005 the desire was expressed to find out more about other religions and engage in inter-faith dialogue. This led to the “Civilizations and Religions” course that was held here a year ago by Harold Rosen. This was followed up in the spring of this year with his course on “Women Mystics” drawn from a number of traditions including Christianity, Sufism (Islam), Baha’i and Neo-Platonism. It was always the intention however to hold a series not just about other religions but actually to engage with them and hear from people who actually practise them. Hence the recent series of evenings during October and November in which we heard from a Jew, a Buddhist, a Hindu and a Muslim. This was conceived as an initial mini-series in the hopes of it leading on to other things. The series was introduced by our bishop, Michael Ingham, who has long been interested in inter-faith dialogue and has written a book on the subject, Mansions of the Spirit. Bishop Michael began by giving us a statistical overview of religions of the world which held a number of surprises including the fact that Christianity comprises the largest group at 33.03% (17.33% Catholic, 5.8% Protestant, 3.42% Orthodox and 1.23% Anglicans). This is followed by Muslims at 20.12%, Hindus 13.34%, Buddhists 5.89%, Sikhs 0.39%, Jews 0.23%, other religions 12.61%, non-religious 12.03%, atheists 2.36% (2004 est.). In the United States in 2001 approximately 77% of the population identified themselves as Christian, which compares with 74.6% in Canada and 52.8% in British Columbia (Canada Census 2001). Bishop Michael went on to talk about the Thirty Theses on Inter-Faith Relations from the Lambeth

Conference 1998. Many of these resonate with our own thinking behind putting together the recent series of inter-faith speakers. For example: Thesis 1. We must have a real desire to listen to people whose faith and world-view is different from ours.

Thesis 2. Respect for the faith of others should not allow us to mock the beliefs and practices of others.

Listening and respect are at the very heart of our motivation in engaging in inter-faith dialogue. Similarly is the belief that engaging in such dialogue can and will lead to positive practical outcomes as articulated in, for example, theses 11 and 17: Thesis 11. The way religious communities relate to each other in one part of the world can have immediate and far-reaching effects on communities in other parts of the world.

This can, of course, be positive or negative depending on how we relate to each other. Thesis 17. Christians should be willing to work as far as possible in cooperation with people of other faiths in addressing human concerns and working for justice, human rights, and the environment.

There is a sense here of seeing beyond our differences and encountering one another on the level that we share in common – that is on the human level. As Ewan McGregor put it in his movie about circumnavigating the world on a motorcycle The Long Way Round: we all love our children, we all need to eat, we all need somewhere to sleep. One of the things that struck me personally as we listened to the various speakers is that often we

misunderstand each other because we expect other faiths or religions to conform to our expectations of what a faith or religion should be like. In reality it became apparent that often we are not comparing like for like. We perhaps think of Judaism simply as a religion but Rabbi David Mivasair made the point that most Jews are not religious.

Bishop Michael Ingham

Rabbi David Mivasair

He emphasized the notion instead of “peoplehood” saying that on a particular level he feels more connection with Jewish hut-dwellers in Ethiopia than he does with his non-Jewish neighbours in Vancouver. This connection is beyond religion though there are religious aspects, beyond nationality though Israel is seen as home, beyond race. It is difficult to define. It relates perhaps more to culture. It became apparent also that Buddhism is not a “religion” in the same way that we might think of Christianity as a religion. Dr. Adrianne Ross shared her experience of coming to Buddhism from a Jewish/Catholic background and spoke of having friends who would describe themselves as “Christian Buddhists.” Buddhism appeared to be more about following a practice of meditation rather than having to believe a set of doctrines or a creed. It is about following the dharma which can loosely be translated as “the way.” Interestingly, before the early followers of Jesus were called Christians by others (Acts 11:26), they described themselves as belonging to “the Way” (Acts 9:2; 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22). When Dr. Mandakranta Bose spoke of so-called “Hindu” traditions I became aware again of something very different from Christianity such that we cannot simply take our religious categories and apply them to Hinduism. For a start, there was no such thing as “Hinduism” until the British introduced the term in the late 19th century to describe the complex of traditions, beliefs and practices that they found in north-west India. Dr. Bose made the point that there is no founder of Hinduism in the same way that we can point to Moses or Jesus or Mohammed or even the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, who came out of that complex of “Hindu” traditions. It struck me that the traditions she was speaking about were very organic in the sense of embodying the spiritual life of the communities in which they developed. When we come to Islam however there is much more of a sense that we are dealing with a religion akin to Christianity in terms of having a founder, being more doctrinal and adhering to the teachings of its holy book, the Qu’ran. As Imam Fode Drame spoke about mercy, peace and love I became even more conscious of how similar we are. Many people were

surprised when the Imam said in response to the question, “Can there be such a thing a Christian-Muslim?” that Muslims are Christians in the sense

that they believe Jesus is both a prophet and a messenger and that they believe he will indeed return. Many people were surprised by some of the things that the Imam said that didn’t match up to our preconceived ideas about Islam based on images of extremism and fundamentalism that so easily attract media attention. Though he acknowledged that there is a wide variation amongst Muslims in terms of practice and outlook and this he attributed largely to culture. This is

something that could be applied to all four of our speakers – when asked a question they often replied that they were not speaking for all Jews or Buddhists or Hindus or Muslims and that you might get a very different answer from someone else. This of course could be said of Christians as well. Each of our inter-faith speakers spoke with dignity, poise and humility and they responded to our questions with grace and patience. I felt challenged by each one in terms of the authenticity of my own walk of faith but at the same time I felt affirmed. As I listened to each of them share from their own traditions I felt the call to go deeper into my own faith

to make it real in my own life. I was challenged and affirmed not just by what they said but how they said it and their whole way of being. There was frequently a sense that they were comfortable and “at home” in their own beliefs and traditions. I felt this particularly as I spoke with some of the young Muslim brothers and sisters who accompanied Imam Fode – they radiated a deep inner peace and a real joy in their devotion. I felt deeply privileged to have

met them and profoundly grateful that they came to be with us. They in turn expressed

gratitude for being invited and for the warmth of welcome they received from us. They have invited us for a return visit to their Mosque. Which leads to the inevitable question, where do we go from here? There is a real energy and a desire to move forward and build on this experience. Visiting the Mosque is certainly one thing we can organize in coming months. Dr. Bose also has said how much she enjoyed the experience of coming to speak to us and expressed the hope that we would meet again.

Dr. Adrianne Ross

Dr. Mandakranta Bose


It has been suggested that perhaps we could have series looking at a particular topic from the perspective of different traditions. I am conscious too that we have only had speakers from four of the largest “World Religions.” It would be good to hear from Sikhs, Baha’i, Aboriginal spiritualities and others to broaden and deepen our understanding. So there is no shortage of options, it’s just a matter of determining priorities as we move forward. I am really excited by the energy that this series has generated and I am looking forward to

how it unfolds from here. I am very grateful for everyone who has made the series so successful: Bishop Michael Ingham, our four inter-faith speakers and Louise Selby who provided not just refreshments each evening but put in thought and energy to give us an imaginative variety of food and drink to reflect the cultures and traditions of our speakers. It reminded me that whatever our spirituality it finds grounding and expression in the physicality of our daily lives.

Angus Stuart

Imam Fode Drame

This was an excellent series and I am most appreciative of being invited to take part. I am sure the understanding of different cultures and religions and the resultant dialogue is where today’s church should be... I was greatly moved by your guest speakers and hope to promote similar evenings at the Cathedral

I found the series educational and informative. In addition, I thought the personalities of each speaker somewhat reflected the attitudes and temperaments of their respective religions - which was assuring. Truly, there was much agreement that we each believe and worship one universal God. That the differences were not about God, but derive from politics and cultural behaviour. I feel what I learned has not only provided me some understanding of the other religions, but also comfort and satisfaction.

My only impression from the seminar was that the lecturer talks about the "pure" version of Buddhism, however, having lived in countries that practiced Islam and Buddhism, the actual practice of the religion is very different than these "pure" versions. I think Anglicans tend to be more open minded of other religions than other religions are of us.

The speakers were excellent and presented a challenge to us as Christians as to our behaviour and beliefs. As communication and mobility reduce the size of planet earth, Inter-Faith issues are becoming a major concern for all of us. I felt a need to revisit Bishop Michael’s Mansions of the Spirit.

We learned so much from each presentation and found that each speaker explained well his/her particular faith and belief system. It is critical, as our Canadian 'mosaic' continues to change and grow, that we have a better understanding of the other religions with which we now live.

SOME OF THE COMMENTS RECEIVED FROM PARTICIPANTS IN THE

CONVERSATIONS IN FAITH SERIES


Clockwise from below; The Ladies from Capri, Money-Money, Cabaret!, our talented cast, Welcome to Hell and Noah’s Boat

CABARET!

N ovember 23rd saw a cast of incredible entertainers take to the stage to help celebrate

the 80th anniversary of St. Francis-in-the-Wood. From show stoppers to ABBA medleys, skits and

Poetry, the evening was a toe-tapping success from start to finish. Special thanks go to Caitlin Bradley, Ian McBeath and Louise Selby for putting the whole thing together along with a cast and crew of dozens!

Phil Colvin


MEDITATION GARDEN In the Fall newsletter, we presented to you the plans for our new Meditation Garden. With work on the garden almost complete, we update you on the garden’s progress and share with you the thought behind each of the individual elements of the design

T he Meditation Garden at St. Francis-in-the-Wood is a place for remembrance of people and

places, and for reflection on events past, present and future with a tranquil garden setting that reconnects us with our own humanity, our s e n s e o f c o m m u n i t y a n d o u r compassionate heart. The garden utilizes two circles and two s q u a r e s o r g a n i z e d a l o ng t h e cardinal points. In addition to the circle and the square, the

garden’s form draws inspiration from two traditional design sources: the ‘Zen’ meditation gardens of Japan that combine simplicity of elements with layers of texture and hues of colour, and the courtyard ‘Cloister’ garden of European monasteries that typically used walls to enclose a central garden, separate from the mundane, and a primary focus skyward towards heaven and God. The enveloping outer circle is formed by a stone wall to craft the lasting foundation upon which the garden is held. On top of the basalt wall is an enclosing circle of Evergreen Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum) to help seprate the Meditation Garden from the adjacent pathways and roadways, and bring the visitor’s gaze inwards, towards the centre of the garden and towards themselves. The huckleberry’s delicate leaf and flower, combined with its reddish fruit provides an intimate scale planting for the small

garden space. Deer Fern (Blenchum spicant) and Maidenhair Fern (Adiantaum pedatum) are placed at the base of the huckleberry to add a subtle contrast of form, texture and green hues. Four Japanese Snowbell (Styrax japonica) trees are planted at the outer corners of the second square. The canopy of these small scale trees introduces a ‘ceiling’ at the outer edge of the garden to further direct the focus towards the centre. In the summer the trees produce large clusters of bell shaped, pinkish-white flowers that hang below the branches. Below the trees will be bamboo screens which will allow filtered views into the garden; inviting without revealing all within. The centre of the garden holds the inner circle, a moss covered ‘meditation mound’ that includes a few basalt columns. Collectively, this composition of stone and moss provides an engaging place for the eye to settle, focus and rest; allowing one’s consciousness to shift away from the ‘visual’ complexities and distractions of the day towards a place with a more inward, reflective focus. There will be two benches placed in the square for visitors to sit and rest. Bloomingfields Landscaping (owned by Brian Pomfret) has completed the soft landscaping in the garden. We expect the two benches and the bamboo screens to be here and in place before Christmas. As well, Kevin Connery, the Landscape Architect, will finalize the moss meditation mound in the center of the garden. The Meditation Garden at St. Francis-in-the-Wood is intended to be a spiritual place of memory and healing that nurtures gratitude, kindness and grace. We hope that you’ll come to visit and experience it for yourselves.

Diana Hutchinson; with explanations of the design elements by Kevin Connery


The new Meditation Garden at St. Francis

Constructing the garden’s stone boundary


MEETING AFRICAN GRANNIES - THE NORTH SHORE GOGOS

M id October was an exciting time for the GoGo Grannies in Vancouver. The Stephen Lewis

Foundation had arranged for six African Grannies to visit BC. Here in Vancouver we were very lucky to have a tremendous amount of exposure and the North Shore GoGo’s were very privileged to have two of the grandmothers billeted with a member in North Vancouver. Can you imagine leaving your little village in Africa and being transported outside the country of your origin to Canada? Leaving a lifestyle of grim reality of scrimping for survival, death and the HIV pandemic all around and suddenly being with a stranger from another village and “dropped” into a North American lifestyle? When you have been used to sleeping in a hammock or on the floor, and live in a mud hut, how would you feel at the introduction of a king size bed and a separate bathroom? Both Grannies were found huddled together in the smaller bedroom sleeping in the same bed. TV? Well, that was a major novelty – how could you explain what you had seen to people when you returned home? The North Shore GoGo’s held a pot luck dinner for our grannies. Talking with the grannies really brought home our “affluent” lifestyle. Fourteen women arriving with plates of food, which probably would have fed a village for several days, seemed over the top. Our meal plan was simple but here again imagine a North American dinner when you are used to eating your native foods. Another shock to their systems.

Conversation at the table was very revealing for all of us. When a woman looks you in the face and tells you that her son is willing to sell one of his organs in order to pay for his university education (he is lucky to have gotten this far and wants to break the cycle of poverty for their family); when you know that the small amount of money involved could have been underwritten by many of the people present, it makes you stop and think, this is the reason why we hold our garage sales, strawberry teas and other events. The second granny commented that yes, she had the antiviral drugs but she could not get enough food for herself and her grandchildren so she gave the food to the grandchildren, and because she had bad reactions to the drugs, when taken without food, she elected not to take the drugs! When we asked why, she commented that not all the countries in Africa gave the widows food or money or drugs, each country handles the situation differently. As you can imagine by the time we had met the six grandmothers and their support workers we came away with a lot more knowledge of the plight within the African nations and a clearer focus as to why we do what we do, and why we will continue to do it. If you are interested in joining us please contact Hilary Carpenter at 604.921.9557 or Susan Cooper at 604.925.5796.

Hilary Carpenter and Susan Cooper

Grandmothers from Zambia (above) and Malawi (right) aided by the Stephen Lewis Foundation and GoGo Grannies.

© Hilary Hall

BANNER DAY

T wo years since it was first conceived the St. Francis

Banner has now been completed and was unveiled and dedicated on Sunday, November 25. The banner was designed by Anne (Goddess) Baird and the stitching produced by Sharon Quan. Together they have taken the design and made it a reality with the help of Charlotte Burns, Jill Coombes, Teddy Madden and Susan Snow (who moved to Toronto in the summer). The original painting has been silk-screened onto satin and then backed with cotton batting. The women divided the jobs between them often taking the banner to their own homes to do their part. Charlotte and Sharon focused on the quilting, Teddy took care of the backing and binding and provided overall guidance and Jill took responsibility for the beading and embellishment. Sharon commented how the experience over the past months of coming together and passing the banner from hand to hand has enabled the women to really get to know one another and has built community amongst them. The banner, which will hang below the balcony in Church and will accompany us to Diocesan and other events, depicts St. Francis surrounded by animals indigenous to Canada standing in front of the Church. The cat in the arms of St. Francis bears something of a resemblance to a certain regular portly feline visitor to the Church…! In the water in the foreground there are a rich variety of sea creatures and birds. This flows into the border which shows some aspects of the life we are blessed with here: Lighthouse Park, the dock in the cove, people on the rocks and on the water in boats, a cruise ship, a floatplane…. The banner truly reflects this place in which we live and the life we live and it encourages us to make the link between this and a deeper level of spirituality as symbolized by St. Francis himself.

The banner is stunning and a great addition to our life and worship at St. Francis expressing something both of who we are and who we aspire to be in this place to which God has called us. Everyone who has worked on this project is to be congratulated for a job well done and for such a wonderful gift to our Church – truly a labour of love. We are also grateful to all those people who contributed anonymously to underwrite the financial aspects of the project. You know who you are – Thank You!

Angus Stuart


Anne Baird and Sharon Quan with the completed banner

A Dedication Prayer for the Banner

Almighty God, Creator of the earth and sea and sky and all that dwell therein, Lord of the deeps, Spirit breathing through the forests: Thank you for this place to which you have called us and for this people of whom we are part. Thank you for this life we share and for the riches of our world depicted in the banner. May this banner help us as we delight in all this to recognize that it is all a gift and so lead us deeper into you. May this banner both reflect who we are and summon us to be all that we can be. As we rejoice in who we are, we honour you, we honour one another, we honour all creation and we ask that you would take us and make us and shape us into the people you would have us be in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Banner dedication service at St. Francis on Nov. 25th 2007


AREA

1. Energy Conservation

2. Reduce / Reuse / Recycle

3. Ground Care & Maintenance

4. Transportation

5. Church Communications

6. Religious Education

7. Worship and Liturgy

8. Environmental Justice

PROJECTS / KEYWORDS

Energy audit. Energy label. Set targets to reduce consumption.

* Weigh trash and recyclables. Set reduction targets. Procurement policy.

Fertilizers. Pesticides. Herbicides. Mulching. Mowing.

Carpooling. Busing. Biking. Schedules. Bike rack.

Web sites. Bulletin. Newsletter. Notice Board. Hymns & Songs.

* Teach Children one environmental course per year. Adult education. Footprint reduction.

* One environmental Sunday per year. Environmental themed prayers and songs in regular worship.

Commit to work on one environmental justice project per year.

THE COOL COLUMN Going for Green Parish Accreditation

A lmost coincidental with the release of the latest IPCC (Climate change) Report, the new St.

Francis Green Parish Committee met on November 15th to discuss what had been learned at the St. Catherine’s Environmental Conference. The road ahead for St. Francis quickly became obvious and pressing: go for Green Parish Accreditation, the sooner the better. So what is Green Parish Accreditation, you say?

A Green Parish models sustainable behavior for its members as individuals and as a faith community. The Green Parish programme of the Diocese of New Westminster stipulates that parishes seeking Green Parish Accreditation will have twelve months to document completion of a series of projects in eight Action Areas all aimed at reducing energy consumption and creating awareness of environmental issues, as follows:


Howe Sound and Unnecessary Mountain


Some of these things we have already accomplished or are good at (fluorescent lighting, recycled paper, kitchen procurement, grounds practices, bulletin etc.) but there’s lots of work ahead. The next big step is an Energy Audit, and then we’re really into it! Stay tuned. Carbon Offsets Meanwhile, as the fly-away season approaches, a quick word on high flight. I have learned that an AirBus A340 burns about 6000 litres of jet fuel to climb from the Vancouver runaway to cruising altitude, and a further 80,000 to get to Toronto. While a New York, Miami, Mexico or Hawaii flight would be in the same ballpark, it would take much, much more to get to Europe or the Orient. And double all the numbers if you plan to come home. And it all becomes greenhouse gases!

Uniglobe Travel’s Green Flight programme allows travelers to counter the effect of their flight’s CO2 emissions by investing in Green Flight credits when booking through Uniglobe. The credits go to Federal Government approved sustainable environmental projects. Phone Uniglobe for more information; 604 715 2600. Air Canada also offers a Carbon Option plan; http://www.aircanada.com. For the WestJet plan, go to http://www.offsetters.ca. There’s always the question: “How do I know the offset funds will be properly spent?” Here’s where faith becomes really important. Some day all aircraft will be green-powered. That’s beyond tomorrow. Have faith. Buy carbon offsets.

Roger Sweeny

SPECIAL EVENTS

T o welcome everyone back after summer holidays we held the salmon BBQ and a

very special thanks should be given to Diane and Keith Hill for supplying all the freshly caught salmon. With the days speedily going by we were soon were preparing for the Harvest Dinner. This was our usual turkey and trimmings meal with volunteers bringing some fabulous fruit pies. Thanks to those generous folk and of course to all those who stayed to clean up afterwards. This is always a major task made to look easy by the efficiency of a “kitchen team”

The Conversations in the Universe of Faith series was a very interesting series as far as I was concerned. I chose to serve, with coffee, food that was appropriate to the religion being spoken of that evening. By doing this I learned such a lot about each religion, its likes and dislikes in regards to food, and met some wonderful people from other faiths along the way. From a personal view this has been very rewarding.

Louise Selby

Harvest Dinner, October 20th 2007

SPIRITUAL FORMATION AND SPIRITUAL DIRECTION Mary Millerd

I t has been a busy fall! This fall I facilitated two programs that support our spiritual formation and spiritual direction. The first was viewing Brian Swimme’s DVD called The Powers of the Universe and discussing our response to his perspective. Although Brian Swimme does not talk about God directly he invites us into an exploration of the energies that are at work in the universe. For me, this has been helpful for much of my ministry has been to work with people who have been hurt by the church or who have become disillusioned by it’s structure. Using a ‘neutral’ language often supports people to open up to sharing what they believe rather than the beliefs they have been taught to have. I like to use Brian Swimme’s DVD in the hope of creating a spaciousness for us to explore and name our own interpretation of God’s role in it “all.” For those of you who would like to explore the area of cosmology and spirituality using a Christian language, Bruce Sanguin’s book: Darwin, Divinity, and The Dance of the Cosmos: An Ecological Christianity is very good. Bruce is the minister at Canadian Memorial Church and Centre for Peace in Vancouver. Comments from participants;

Brian has an interesting way of describing our spiritual journey and how we are interdependent with the universe. Everything we do has an impact. The discussions afterwards were the best part-everyone had their own unique interpretation of Brian's words. It was great to have Mary there to help clarify and interpret. I would highly recommend it as a way to hear the age old message in a new way. Marguerite Wahl For me the best episode was actually the first one where Brian Swimme introduced what he calls the "Ten Powers of the Universe." Each subsequent program then explores each one of these ten "powers" but the first one gives an overview that introduces the totally new and fresh way he is looking

at "life, the universe and everything" and inviting us to join in the conversation. The most captivating idea I found to be "pure generativity" which is the idea that space is not just empty space i.e. a vacuum, but, if I have understood correctly, an energetic or generative space out of which all matter and all that exists comes, continually. In each of the subsequent programs Swimme not only explores the "power" in question in relation to the cosmos but attempts (not

always successfully!) to relate it to h uman c h a ra c t e r i s t i c s a n d experience. This series is not for people who think they already understand how the cosmos works or who are impatient with new ways of looking at things but if you're willing to try on some new ideas and see how they fit (does my bum look big in this?) and are open to seeing where it all might lead, the series has proved to be the start of many exhilarating conversations. Angus Stuart

The second opportunity was a “Facilitator of Healing” class which follows the “Self-Healing” class which I taught last year. The kind of healing

we do is an energetic healing. Merton states in, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, “The greatest need of our time is to clean out the enormous mass of mental and emotional rubbish that clutters our minds and makes of all political and social life a mass illness. Without this housecleaning we cannot begin to see. Unless we see we cannot think.” When we do an energetic healing we are supporting ourselves and others to let go of the energies in the mental and emotional parts of us that interfere with our connection with our essence, the Godseed within us. As well, my understanding of Jesus’ time in the Desert where he was tempted by the Devil was a period of purification where Jesus saw options for his life that he was able to say “No” to, as well as saying “Yes” to God. What we say “No” to and “Yes” to influence our participation in the divine plan. Learning how to clean one’s own energy and to support another as they clean theirs helps us to see clearly, to discern where God/Spirit is asking us to respond in the world and to feel the resources within us to take action. In the healing classes the intention is to grow in awareness of our spiritual journey through the stages of purification, illumination and union (letting go, new insights and wholeness are other words that can be substituted).

Brian Swimme


Comments from participants As a new participant to energy and healing work I found the experience opened a door to my soul that has been waiting to be discovered. The tools and skills taught are fun, enlightening and liberating in a warm, supportive, respectful and non judgmental atmosphere. How fun to engage and learn about my inner spiritual essence and in turn learn new ways to be in this world. Trish Panz

Mary's classes on energy awareness suit my needs to view and interact with my environment in a different way. It's exciting to listen and learn about a different way of thinking, and to be a part of the healing environment so evident in Mary's classes. The benefits of increased self-awareness and self-confidence have helped to open my heart and mind to the myriad of possibilities in life. Judy McLeod In a time when I have been struggling with many things your class was an oasis and a time to return to peace and remembering some thing that I have forgotten. I am not alone. I am looking forward to future classes. Shirley Bonner Mary, thank you for the opportunity to practice my skills as an energy worker. It is a privilege to work with a Master at my side. Energy healing is exciting as it connects me with the unfathomable Cosmos, the ever giving Gaia, my history, my future and the unseen world of Spirits and Angels. _What could be more wonderful! I am connecting to all that is and assisting another. Carol Robers I was very happy to be able to share my ministry with you in my sermon at church in October. Growing in awareness of energy, spirit, mystery (whatever name you would like to call it) has been a passion of mine for a very long time. Brian Swimme’s DVD provides an exploration of these energies. This is not a new area to be explored although when I first began to study energy, almost thirty years ago, people thought I was pretty weird. Karen Armstrong also speaks about energies in her book A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam

(New York: Ballantine Books, 1993). She writes: “All we can know about God is the bare fact of his existence. Yet, as a practicing Jew, Philo [first-

century Alexandrian philosopher] did believe that God had revealed himself [sic] to the prophets. How had this been possible? “Philo solved the problem by making an important distinction between God’s essence (ousia [the Greek word for “being”]), which is entirely incomprehensible, and his activities in the world, which he called his “powers” (dynameis) or “energies” (energeiai)…Philo sees them emanating from God, rather as Plato and Aristotle had seen the cosmos emanating eternally from the First Cause.” The discussion of God and how God reveals himself in the world has continued down the centuries. The

Cappadocians in the 4th century wrote the Nicene Creed which names the relationship of the Trinity… “Father,” “Son” and “Spirit” are only “terms that we use” to speak of the energeiai by which he has made himself known. Hildegard of Bingen, 12th century, the hesychasts (contemplatives in the 14th century), the Celtic tradition, Thomas Merton and so on, help us to explore our understanding of the being and the activity of God, all of which, I assume, will continue to remain out of our intellectual grasp and will continue to draw us into mystery and to a direct experience of the divine. One need only turn to the mystics in our tradition to continue exploring this discussion.

Thomas Merton writes in Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander:

“At the center of our being is a point of nothingness which is untouched by sin and by illusion, a point of pure truth, a point or spark which belongs entirely to God, which is never at our disposal, from which God disposes of our lives, which is inaccessible to the fantasies of our own mind or the brutalities of our own will. This little point of nothingness and of absolute poverty is the pure glory of God in us. It is so to speak His name written in us, as our poverty, as our indigence, as our dependence, as our sonship/daughtership. It is like a pure diamond, blazing with the invisible light of heaven. It is in everybody, and if we could see it we would see these billions of points of light coming together in the face and blaze of a sun that would make all the darkness and cruelty of life vanish completely.”

Mary Millerd

Thomas Merton


WINTER SPIRITUALITY CLASSES Self-Healing Class – Energy Awareness

Monday, Feb. 4, 2008 from 7:00 – 9:00 for 8 consecutive weeks. Place to be announced. Cost $200.00 Facilitator: Mary Millerd To register please contact Mary at 604-921-7149 or [email protected]. In this class we will be exploring our own energy/essence, learning energy tools and techniques to support us as we grow spiritually. Tools that help us to let go (purify), to create room for new insights (illumination) that promote our wholeness, wellness and congruency (union) will be taught.

Facilitator of Healing

The class that began this fall will continue after Christmas. Pre-requisite: Self-healing class.

Have a de-LIGHT- full Christmas!

Mary Millerd

YOUTH NEWS

T his Fall, the St. Francis youth have laser tagged, video gamed, watched a whole lot of movies and eaten plenty of interesting dinners (Thai curry; a hit. Badly cooked fettuccini; not so much) But it’s not all just about food and fun! Following on from the St. Francis provided meal at the Lutheran Urban Mission Society; we now have a regular group of senior youth who serve the homeless on the Downtown Eastside fortnightly (for more information, see the article on LUMS elsewhere in this newsletter) We also got a taste for what life might be like on the poverty line in other countries when we spent an evening as Peruvian families making sneakers for the fashion conscious Western market whilst trying to stay on top of hyperinflation and volatile market forces! We also helped out the

St. Petersburg Children’s Hospice appeal by baking and selling pies on St. Francis Day. Our Ignite group, meanwhile, has been watching those movies and TV shows but have been using them as a basis for discussions on heroic choices, guilty pleasures and what makes a modern man or woman? We’ve also continued our new tradition of All Age Worship services; the next of which will be taking place on December 9th and which includes this year’s Christmas Pageant. And then, after Christmas, we start it all over again!

Phil Colvin


SOCIAL CONCERNS

W hat a glorious season to report on your Social Concerns Committee, which has an abundance of good news. Do you remember our student, Mercy, from Kenya? We heard from her and are delighted to report that she graduated with high marks from high school last year and now is studying in Nairobi on the way to becoming a dentist. (Social Concerns sent her a glitzy watch as a graduation present). Mercy is a success story from CHESA and she and her gracious father thank everyone at St. Francis. Another good story from Social Concerns is the “First Steps” (VitaCow and VitaGoat) soy milk program which we have so generously supported, both through a major church drive and through money given through the Social Concerns committee. Five new VitaGoats are now working at co-operative farms in Kwangon Province, North Korea, where they are serving soy milk to 7,000 children daily. Added to the 45,000 children First Steps was already reaching at its existing soymilk operations, the total has surpassed 50,000! We should be proud of our part in this huge operation, started by one woman with a dream, Susan Ritchie, who visited and inspired us just over a year ago. Another person with a dream is Father Alexander from St. Petersburg. He spoke to us in September about the little children who are fighting and dying of cancer, often without pain medications, family

support, or good doctors. Father Alexander’s dream was to build a hospice in St. Petersburg. This is now St. Francis’ dream as we focus our giving this fall and through Christmas on helping these little children. So, when you come to church these days you will hear of this gentle man and his dream of a hospice, and we hope you will see it in your heart to support him through Social Concerns. A further good story is the one of two orphan brothers who are making a life together, working to earn enough money to support themselves, and studying at school and university. To assist them Social Concerns has provided some of the tuition needed for studies at SFU. Without the help of generous parishioners, these young men could be lost in the cracks of our society. The committee thanks all those who help the brothers navigate their affairs successfully. Your committee has also had the joy of giving donations to other worthy causes, including Doctors Without Borders, Union Gospel Mission, The Lutheran Urban Mission Society, Primates World Relief Fund and others. Our meetings are a gift we give ourselves. If you would like to join us in this work of gratitude and giving, please notify the church office. We would welcome others with a vision of service to the local community and beyond.

Penny Collett

Vita Goats making milk in North Korea


THIRD SUNDAY AT THREE COMMUNITY CONCERT SERIES

W e have had an exciting start to our third season. The concept of these community concerts was based on the Vancouver Sun Community Concert Series which they no longer sponsor. The idea to bring music to a neighbourhood and to provide a reason for people to get together seemed worth continuing. I am not so sure that it has been too successful in bringing this immediate community together, but as time goes on, this will hopefully change. In the interim, the concerts do reach the wider community of western West Vancouver. One indirect service of the concerts is that people often say, ‘Oh, I have heard of St. Francis-in-the-Wood’ as they crane their neck around. When I suggest that they may wish to look around, they are usually very keen. It is a lovely way to be introduced to the church as a facility and then to meet some of the parishioners and Angus, if they choose.

Wednesday at Ernie’s (award winning Rhythm and Blues band) was a fabulous kick start. The audience was rather frustrated to be sitting in the pews when really we all wanted to dance in the aisles. Best of all though, for me, was that the band was comprised of our neighbours, in particular Mary Millerd. So, not only was the concert in our community, it was our community. October brought us a seasonal and fun concert that was musically excellent and included wonderful costumes. I could only imagine my entire face and upper body in green face paint! The ensemble brought us lively & dramatic excerpts from musicals including Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd and Jekyll and Hyde. November was the Winter Harp concert and, our first sold out event. This concert was a transcendental experience that beautifully ushered in the Christmas season. I loved what was written in their programme:

Winter Harp concert at St. Francis


One of the hardest things to find in December is Christmas. It is easy to find the malls, the traffic jams and the lists of things to do and buy. But it is not easy to find the stillness, the magic, the mystery that is Christmas. For a couple of hours we were, in fact, able to escape into the stillness, the magic and the mystery. The last concert of 2007, “Do you Hear what I Hear?” on December 16th featuring pianist Angela Witzke will prove to be another opportunity to escape and refocus on ‘the stillness, the magic and the mystery’ of what will be only a week away. The first concert of 2008 will be a pleasure and treat. Eugene Skovorodnikov is not a pianist to miss. Of course, the reception following each concert is an opportunity to socialize with friends and meet new neighbours. So consider inviting a friend or two to Sunday lunch and then bring them to the concert, a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Or tell a friend(s) about the concert and the reception following is rather like a cocktail hour and you could

have them for dinner afterwards. The concert will provide a shared experience. We have begun to look for corporate supporters for our concert refreshments. In September, A & W (thank you Jacqui Wilkinson) supported the reception, and this month Wild Horse Canyon wines was the reception supporter. If you have any ideas or suggestions for me to pursue, please do let me know. By reducing our reception costs, or by receiving financial support, Third Sunday at Three Community Concerts is able to bring in more expensive events such as Winter Harp. As always, these events don’t happen in a vacuum. Thank you so much to Lynn Coules for taking all the phone messages and emails, to Helen Nesbit for her yummy cookies, to Gaye Macdonald for help in the kitchen, to Joan Mann for always pitching in with the clean up (“because I live so close”), to Brian Pomfret for helping to move signs, to Avis Robinson and Phil Colvin for taking digital photos, to Caitlin Bradley for her help and knowledge, and most importantly to Angus who is always there - front and centre - in support.

Kathleen Glynn-Morris


CHRISTMAS GIVING TIMES THREE

This little girl’s name is Alisa Lugosova. Alisa and her sister have been patients of the Children’s Hospice in

St. Petersburg, Russia, for over a year. Alisa has leukemia, her sister has multiple birth defects.

Several members of St. Francis have suggested an alternative means of sharing the blessings of Christmas through a donation to Children’s Hospice in another’s name. Consequently, cards with Alisa’s picture and more will be available from the church.

For more information please contact John Kessel ([email protected]) or the church office.

It’s a three-fold gift. Such a donation in another’s name will help to provide children like Alisa and her sister with medical care, counseling, social and rehabilitation therapies, nutrition - all the support poor children and their families need when struggling with terminal, severely disabling and life-limiting conditions. It will also warm a friend’s heart and perhaps give them a new sense of connectedness with the Church at its very best. It isn’t a new idea. Wise Men (and women) have done it before. But the best part is how such a gift can love your whole world together.

Christmas at st francis-in-the-wood

December 2 7pm Advent Carols by Candlelight

December 9 10am Children’s Christmas Pageant followed by “Deck The Halls Party”

December 16 3pm Third Sunday @ 3 Concert - “Do You Hear What I Hear?”

A Classical and Traditional Christmas featuring pianist Angela Witzke $15 at the door including refreshments

December 23 7pm Nine Lessons And Carols

December 24 5pm Family Communion Around the Crib

8pm Community Carols

11pm Midnight Mass

December 25 10am Family Eucharist

St Francis-in-the-Wood Anglican Church 4773 South Piccadilly Road

West Vancouver BC V7W 1J8

Tel: 604 922 3531 e-mail: [email protected]

www.stfrancisinthewood.ca

st. francis-in-the-wood winter 2007 newsletter

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