Category Archives: Ministry

7 Quick Takes: Is The Week Over Yet????

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

The Pope and female deacons. I’m seeing some flipping out over the announcement by the National Catholic Reporter that the Pope is creating a commission to study women deacons. Yeah… not a world-changing issue. If the Pope does anything, the result will probably look like what deaconesses do in the LCMS, effectively just being dedicated church workers who happen to be female. I don’t think female deacons/deaconesses will do any baptisms/weddings/funerals or anything like that.

— 2 —

#NeverTrump I just want to make it incredibly clear that there is no valid reason for voting for Donald Trump. NONE. Seriously, neither former president Bush is endorsing him and neither is Paul Ryan. These are three people with knowledge of the job and of how the government works. (Yes, I am siding with those three. Hell has indeed frozen over.)

#NeverTrump

Oh… and in case anyone was wondering, I would say the same things about the Cruz/Carly ticket, if not making worse criticisms. Trump is a blowhard saying what he says — Ted Cruz actually *BELIEVES* it. I’m honestly not sure who is more unfit of the Cruz/Carly duo — even John Boehner had foul things to say about Ted Cruz (with whom he *WORKED* and who was on THE SAME SIDE) and I tend to side with Boehner on this. (And yes, I actually said I was agreeing with John Boehner. Start watching for the four horsemen of the apocalypse to appear in the sky.) Carly Fiorina has no legislative experience and she completely screwed up Hewlett-Packard, laying off a number of my classmates’ parents. In short, that ticket would have screwed up the country as much as Trump will if he is elected.

— 3 —

So… who to vote for instead of Trump? Do what all the other intelligent Republicans are doing — FIND ANOTHER CANDIDATE. Here is a lovely story on the subject. And Republicans, if you actually want my vote and my support, try running someone articulate and intelligent who has more than a middle school knowledge of how the government works.

— 4 —

Yet another reason the pro-life movement can be an embarrassment. Simcha Fisher had this lovely tweet a few days ago:

Dear #prolife organizations: If there’s no one good to endorse, you don’t have to endorse anyone. Easy peasy, no soul-selling necessary.

Their endorsement of Trump is one of many reasons I will *NEVER* give money to Priests for Life or the Susan B. Anthony List. Shame on you!

— 5 —

Drop boxes for babies. Simcha had a fabulous piece on the Safe Haven drop boxes for babies that are being put into place in Indiana. It’s a good idea because they would allow mothers to surrender their babies in such a way as to put them in a safe place that protects the child and also allows authorities to automatically be notified that the child is there. The mom could remain anonymous and it would mean that there would not be any babies left in toilets or dumpsters. (The founder of the company making the boxes, herself, was a child conceived from a rape and her mom abandoned her at the hospital as a newborn.)

She also describes the combox on the original Gawker piece and it’s definitely one that I would not read even if I was paid to do so.

— 6 —

Prayer request. I managed to get a rheumatology appointment for next week. Could you please pray that we can get records sent to them so that I’m not walking in there without any documentation of my fibromyalgia? Thanks! This is really my only shot of getting a gabapentin prescription and I’m definitely having issues with the lowered dose.

— 7 —

Special intention. I know I’m vague-blogging again but I could use prayer for a special intention. Please and thank you!

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

{five favorites}: Miscellanea (LXI)

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#5Faves

One

Orthodox Celts. This is another installment of “Jen is a music snob” but I love the vocal harmonies that are reminiscent of what I hear when I’m listening to Eastern Orthodox liturgical music to fall asleep at night. And seriously, what is with the step-dancing on the cliffs in “Rocky Road to Dublin”?!?!?!?

Two

The High Kings. They are probably my favorite for “Rocky Road of Dublin” and “The Little Beggarman”. I like their version of “Màiri’s Wedding” but not as much as the version by Van Morrison and the Chieftains.

Three

Austism-friendly activity bags. Two ELCA congregations in Pennsylvania made autism-friendly activity bags. I’m seriously wanting one for my kiddo!

Four

Office supplies. Staples is my idea of nirvana. 🙂 I got a back-up set of pens for my planner (because it’s color-coded) and I almost started drooling in the three aisles of Tar-zhay that had binders and notebooks and pens.

Five

My friend John. I did something somewhat stupid and got into a fight with someone on his Facebook wall over an asinine statement that Muslims have to stop using the name Allah because it’s the Arabic word for “God” and they should have to use a different word. (Trust me… it was pretty bad.) I had history and linguistics on my side but the guy was seriously nasty to me. John not only backed me up but unfriended the guy for his treatment of me. John is the guy I trusted to be Daniel’s buddy last summer during VBS — he is a stand-up guy and the person I go to if I have *ANY* weaponry questions because he knows his stuff. 🙂 I know he’ll catch flak from some of his Facebook groups for backing me up and I appreciate it especially because of that.

Go love up Ashley and the others.

7 Quick Takes: Please Iz Can It Be Caturday?!?!?!?!?

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

A quickie explanation of the Protestant Reformation. This is seriously cracking me up but it is historically accurate.

— 2 —

Interesting pastor bios. I’m greatly amused at what came about from the #realclergybios hashtag on Twitter. Some were funny, some were serious, and all were pretty realistic.

— 3 —

An oldie but goodie. This piece has been around for a year but is timeless. You should share it with all the medical professionals you know.

— 4 —

Predictions about the faith in the future. My former bishop shared this on Facebook yesterday, It’s 10 predictions about the future Church and shifting attendance patterns. I think it’s probably applicable across the board.

— 5 —

An interesting link-up. Anne of Modern Mrs. Darcy is doing a link-up of the things that are saving my life right now. As soon as I’m done with this, I’ll go make and add my list.

— 6 —

Disputing the reigning theory about cat-calling. Christen Brandt of NYC manages to nail why cat-calling is not dependent on one’s outfit. Apparently, a guy on a subway started saying things like “damn, nice legs” to her… when she was wearing a heavy parka and boots because apparently the 5 inches of legs that were showing were there just for him. I’ve gotten cat-called while wearing clothes that don’t even show the shape of my body before and I am a bit aggravated that some men’s lack of boundaries are being blamed on us women.

— 7 —

Picking my Lenten discipline. Y’all have 9 hours to go before the raffle ends to pick my Lenten discipline. There have been some pretty good suggestions thus far.

**UPDATE** The winner is Laura of Coptic Dad and Mom!!!

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

7 Quick Takes: Refugee Takes, School, and Choral Evensong

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

Refugee take #1. The French are suggesting that we use “Da’esh” instead of ISIS. This is why. It actually makes sense.

— 2 —

Refugee take #2. Not all Muslims agree with Da’esh. (The vast, vast majority find them despicable.) The closest Muslims to what they believe are the Wahhabis who control things in Saudi Arabia. This piece explains why. It’s also why Saudi Arabia has not taken any refugees thus far — they don’t take Christians (the country is officially 100% Muslim and those who convert to something else face death) and it’s a Sunni Muslim theocracy so any Shi’a Muslims are out of luck.

— 3 —

Refugee take #3. I have seen some pretty foul behavior from my fellow Christians over the whole refugee issue in talking about how we should not welcome refugees to the USA and this is one of those times when I actually *AM* calling out people in my own life for their behavior. (I’m usually pretty reserved, but not on this subject.) Jamie the Very Worst Missionary actually has a pretty good take on all of this. Ditto with Ryan Dueck.

I think my friend Sarah of Fumbling toward Grace put it best when she quoted something she had read at the beginning of the refugee crisis (and she would like me to clarify that she can’t remember who said it):

“We don’t help refugees because they are Christian. We help refugees because we are Christian.” (emphasis mine)

— 4 —

Refugee take #4. To maybe shut a few people up and remove the complete atmosphere of unfounded fear that seems to be pervasive, here is what *ACTUALLY* happens with refugees and immigration from an *ACTUAL* immigration attorney.

Now can the fearmongering stop?

— 5 —

The school sitch. Daniel *FINALLY* started school up here this week. He was a little nervous on Monday (his first day) but when he saw the toys, he looked at me and said “bye!” which was my cue to leave. He seems to like his class, his teachers, his aides, and his therapists thus far and I’m hoping it remains a good school and a good program for him.

— 6 —

Choral Evensong. We have a new rector at my church in San Jose and she is a fan of choral evensong so we’re doing it for the Thanksgiving service next Tuesday night. If you’re in the area, let me know and I’ll give you the details!

— 7 —

Gary Haugen’s TED talk. Fifteen years ago, I heard Gary Haugen of International Justice Mission speak at Urbana 2000. It changed my life and the way I look at a lot of the world. (You can watch it here.) He’s done a TED talk. Go watch it! Do it now!

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

7 Quick Takes: Thoughts While Trying to Get My Kiddo to Sleep…

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

Dealing with SSA is an occasion of sin for me. Every so often, the Social Security Administration makes people receiving SSI prove that they qualify medically (what… you thought “SSA” was “same-sex attraction?) so I spent the better part of two evenings filling out a ton of paperwork and copying about 50-100 pages of documentation to send in to their office in Pomona. The 50-100 pages of documentation are the assessments and IEP from March because it’s a triennial IEP. (Every three years, they do a whole new battery of tests to see if an IEP is really necessary. In Daniel’s case, that would be a resounding “YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”) I couldn’t fit the documentation in the envelope they sent so off to the post office for a Priority Mail envelope I went! The good thing about using them: I can track it to make sure the SSA office received it as I’m completely convinced from past experience that their mailbox is connected to a paper shredder with all the paperwork they lose! (Currently, it is sitting at the sorting center in City of Industry.)

— 2 —

I resonate with this. A friend sent me this article on how doctors take women’s pain less seriously. I’ve had several ovarian cysts and on a scale of 1-10, the pain is an 11. It is seriously the worst pain I have ever had and required Demerol to even remotely touch it. (Waking up after abdominal surgery is a 7.) Anyway, I agree — doctors do not take our pain seriously and I say this having a fairly high pain tolerance. This might also be why many doctors think fibro pain is imaginary.

— 3 —

Prayer request. My dear friend Mandi is in the home stretch of her pregnancy and I would like to ask if you’d please pray her through. Thanks!

— 4 —

Srsly?!?!?!?!? I’ve had a couple of friends whose younger sisters have gone through this. I get the need for modesty but subjecting young women to a hem test like this one is just wrong. Equally if not more wrong were some of the adult comments.

— 5 —

What are the odds??? All three radio stations I listen to on a regular basis (Air1, NPR, and a classical station) are having their pledge drives right now. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If I could afford to give to all three, I would totally do it just to make the madness stop!!!

— 6 —

Prerequisite baseball take. So… THE METS KNOCKED THE DODGERS OUT OF THE PENNANT RACE LAST WEEK!!!!! The Mets also just took the National League pennant. (I feel that any news about Dodger losses trumps any other baseball news unless it’s the Giants winning.) I haven’t even looked to see who the Mets will play!

— 7 —

I’ve been saying this for a while… Yet another person talking about the movement of my peer group to more ancient forms of worship. Not all of us want rock n’ roll!

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

7 Quick Takes: Church Secretaries, Books, and Going Gluten-Free

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7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

Church office fun. I’m subbing for the church secretary this week and having fun doing it. Wednesday involved getting to be present for Bible study before immersing myself in Microsoft Publisher and Microsoft Word. Today was more Microsoft Publisher fun, Microsoft Word, and whatever my priest needed to be done. Tomorrow, I get to do bulletins. I am so excited!

— 2 —

The County Fair. Daniel’s class is heading to the LA County Fair next Friday. We had a note come home asking if we wanted to volunteer to go too. My answer: “no.”. (It will be hot and I hate heat. Yes, I live in a desert; but I didn’t get a say in that.) Jon’s answer: “yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” You gotta love a non-traditional family where the dad is the field trip chaperone. 🙂 I think they’ll have a fabulous time.

— 3 —

Holy Mirth. Fr. James Martin, S.J. posted something for Joke with the Pope which has people donating their favorite jokes in the name of charity. I’m thinking of all my favorite religious ones (that aren’t in Fr. Jim’s book, Between Heaven and Mirth) and the cause for which it will go.

— 4 —

Take me out to the ballgame. Jon and I are headed to a Dodgers game tomorrow for Episcopal Dodgers night. It will be the first professional sporting event that I have ever attended so I’m excited. I wish it was the Giants or Mariners or the Cards (or pretty much any other team besides the Dodgers or the Yankees) instead; but hey, at least I will be able to say that I’ve been to an MLB game. I’ll probably root for the Pirates since it is against my sports allegiances to root for the Dodgers. (For those not in the know, the Dodgers are the mortal enemies of my Giants.)

On my to-do list today: acquire some Giants socks so I can represent my boys at the game. (According to Jon and my priest, I am not allowed to wear any Giants shirts.)

— 5 —

A book launch party for introverts. The latest book from The Bloggess is coming out next week and she’s having a book launch party via Google Plus. The launch party and the book are very likely both going to be NSFW but any fan of The Bloggess already knows that. 🙂

— 6 —

G.K Chesterton. Someone donated a book of Father Brown mysteries to my mother-in-law’s Little Free Library and she set it aside for me. I’ve only read a handful so far but they’ve kept my attention. This might be a book that I can pick up and put down every so often while I wait for my favorite authors to come out with their latest works.

— 7 —

Mmmmm… gluten-free. My bloodwork did not come back positive for celiac disease so it’s fairly likely that I don’t have it. Even if the biopsies from the endoscopy/colonoscopy don’t come back positive for it, I am considering going gluten-free for a month to see if it makes any difference with my stomach issues.

For more Quick Takes, visit Kelly at This Ain’t The Lyceum.

The VBS version of “Earth and All Stars”

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Here is the version of “Earth and All Stars” that Margaret put together from the list of things that the kids gave us that can praise God. This is the tune.

1. Rainbows and dirt,
Girl scouts and campers,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
Dinosaurs and sheep,
polar bears and penguins,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
He has done marvelous things;
I too shall praise him with a new song.

2. Tacos and fries
and people who love Jesus,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
Cupcakes and trains,
trucks and school buses,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
He has done marvelous things;
I too shall praise him with a new song.

3. Sunsets and space,
drums and princess Leia,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
Electric guitars,
trombones and clarinets,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
He has done marvelous things;
I too shall praise him with a new song.