anglican life february 2015

8/9/2019 Anglican Life FEBRUARY 2015

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2/12

FEBRUARY 20152

Letter to the Editor The Presentation

A detail of “The Presentation at the Temple” by the Italian late-medieval painter AmbrogioLorenzetti (c. 1290 – 9 June 1348). Image via Wikipedia.

Continued from page 1

Until all receivea gift

ses spent forty days on MountSinai. Nineveh was given fortydays to repent. Jesus fastedforty days and ascended intoheaven forty days after hisresurrection. In God’s goodnesswe have been granted fortydays to take to heart the well

wishes of the merry seasonfor peace, goodwill, love, hap-piness, joy etc. in the hope oftheir fulfillment. So, did youhave a merry Christmas? HasGod, the Christ-child, made adifference? February 2nd theday when the infant Jesus waspresented, God opened widethe door of consolation for Jewand Gentile.

The story of the Presen-tation, as told by Luke, is richbecause of where it occurs andwho is present. The event takesplace in the Temple and withthe Holy Family are Simeonand Anna. The Temple is a placefor purification and reform.Simeon and Anna are thosewho watch and wait. Simeon’s

task as watcher is nished at theappearance of Jesus. He singsthat great song, “Lord, nowlettest thou thy servant departin peace.” Anna, a woman rank-ing with Sarah, Miriam, Han-nah, was held in high regardin her society. She is Psalm 84personied. She would “ratherbe a doorkeeper in the houseof the Lord than dwell in the

tents of the ungodly.” She haswitnesses that, “no good thingdoes the Lord withhold forthose who walk uprightly.” Shewaits and as soon as she sees,she proclaims. Between themthey introduce Jesus, Mary and

Joseph as a sign of new life,and they throw the switch forillumination, growth, strength

and understanding for Israeland all people.A keen Italian artist named

Ambrogio Lorenzetti depictedthe Presentation with the infant

Jesus sucking his ngers. Thisgesture makes Jesus like anyother infant so how is it thatSimeon and Anna were able torecognize him as the Messiah?Only by great faith, nurtured bywatching and waiting, do theysee who he is.

God is still among us andwhile we acknowledge this we

miss the evidence of God in andaround us.

When we see shortcom-ings in the church and on thestreet do we look for lameleadership to blame or do webelieve that God is here amongus, light in the midst of us readyto bring us to light and life?

By virtue of our Baptismwe are temples of the HolySpirit and while most of us gounnoticed in a crowd we holdthe potential, always and ev-

erywhere, to do good. As PeterBerensen, founder of AmnestyInternational, said, “It is betterto light a candle than curse thedarkness.”

Dear Editor,

In response to the arti-cle “Christmas Shoeboxes”in the November 2014issue of Anglican Life . Itwas at one of our AnglicanSynods that I rst heard ofOperation Christmas Child.The idea of little children inpoverty stricken parts of theworld receiving a simplegift, maybe the only giftthey would receive in theirlifetime, intrigued me.

I became involved inthis outreach program at St.David’s Anglican Church inPasadena. For many yearsit was my joy to coordinatewhat I felt was a worthwhileprogram. If some little childis reaching for a gift butnot receiving it, that makesmy heart ache and tells meone thing: we should sendmore gift boxes not fewer.

I believe that many ofthe same people who sup-port Operation ChristmasChild also support PWRDF,World Vision, Blind MissionInternational, CovenantHouse, Council of the Northand the list goes on. Andwell we should support asmany ministries and chari-ties as we can afford.

I also believe that thelittle ones should know thatit is because of God’s lovein people’s hearts that theyare receiving a gift. The lit-

tle book called “The Great-est Gift” that is given outwith the shoeboxes, whereit is allowed, tells the storyof Jesus - the greatest giftof all. What better way toobey the great commission.

I believe OperationChristmas child is import-ant to our own children aswell, as it teaches them toshare and to realize that theprice and size of the gift isnot important but that thelove that prompted the

giving is.In our culture, this placeof afuence, our childrenhave been given so muchthat they have lost much ofthe joy of gratitude. EachChristmas they expect andfor the most part get moreand more expensive gifts.

We had to realize thatno program or ministry isperfect for we are imperfectpeople. It seems to me thatthe ministry of the PerfectOne was also criticized,yet more than 2000 yearslater his ministry continues.That gives me courage for Iknow in my heart that if Op-eration Christmas Child isblessed by God it will con-tinue until every little handthat reaches out receives agift and learns that Jesusloves them and so do we.

Marjorie JonesCorner Brook, NL


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3FEBRUARY 2015

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The dead of winter

Ron Clarke

Columnist

are the fluffy clouds ofwarm blue skies? Virtually

everything, it seems, hasbeen killed by mid-win-ter’s frost, smothered by asuffocating blanket of colddeep snow.

Our blue summerponds and lakes, even themighty seas, are mono-chromatic sheets of white.Our sometimes bellowingseas, our roaring water-falls, and our babblingbrooks are silenced.

All nature, it seems, is

DEAD.A visitor from another

planet, Mars or some-where unknown now,would reasonably as-sume that our deadenedlandscape would neverchange.

We, of course, knowthe difference. Each“dead” winter eventuallywarms in spring, resur-recting all nature into glo-rious foliage of summer.Our world is wondrouslyALIVE again.

That’s the way our lov-ing, creating God intend-ed it to be- and that’s theway it ALWAYS will be.

And doesn’t humanlife resemble the godlypattern of nature?

We are born fresh andnew and full of life, wehave our “spring” so tospeak. We “blossom”.

Then we have our“summer”; our “faculties”develop to their fullness.We create; we achieve.

Our energies “ow”. Adultlife seems so wonderful.We are indeed “beautiful”.

Then our autumn slow-

ly but surely occurs. We“age”. We weaken physi-

cally. Our “beauty” fades.We begin to rely more andmore on others.

Our winter inevitablycomes too. Physical de-terioration occurs, slowlysometimes, but too oftenrapidly. We eventually die.Our visitor from Mars, in afuneral home, would as-sume that a silent corpsewould remain foreverDEAD.

But, we know for surethat is not the case. JESUSCHRIST has assured usthat we will surely res-urrect, live again in suchglorious life that defiesour imaginations.

And our new life, un-like that of nature, willnever, never fade orchange. Each believerin Jesus Christ will liveFOREVER in our eternalsummer bliss.

Let’s be patient. Springand summer will come!

January - but more soFebruary - has traditional-

ly been referred to as “thedead of winter.”Usually that title has

been entirely appropriate,because everything innature this time of yearseems DEAD.

Where is the greengrass of summer? Thegreen guilt of leavesadorning our well-for-ested landscape? Thesplendid beds of multi-co-loured flowers? Where

Carols in the LabyrinthSubmitted by

Claudia Yetman-Long

On December 14,2014, the Labyrinth Parkat Church of the GoodShepherd, Mount Pearlwas filled with music.Around a lighted star,and an empty manger,the voices of forty peo-ple singing Christmascarols rang through theforest in preparation forthe holy season, andthe arrival of the ChristChild.

Led on guitar by An-drew Reid, the parish’sdirector of music, carolswere also sung as theoutside nativity set andChristmas tree were lit.People walking on the

municipal trail adjacentto the labyrinth slowedto enjoy the event, andsome came to join in.

Following the music,everyone was invitedinside for hot chocolateand treats, hosted bymembers of the parish

Youth Group.It was a tting way to

prepare for Christmas.The labyrinth is lo-

cated directly behindthe Church of the GoodShepherd on RichardNolan Drive. All are wel-come to come and use it.


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FEBRUARY 20154

ANGLICAN LIFE in Newfoundland and Labrador is the newspaperof the Anglican Church in the Province of Newfoundland andLabrador. A co-operative effort of the three Dioceses inNewfoundland and Labrador, it is publishes ten issues each

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The Rev. Canon Sam Rose

Editor

Religious terrorism

It is hard to believethat not long into this

New Year of 2015 we haveseen yet another terroristattack, this time in France.Extremist members ofthe Islamic State militantgroup raided the ofcesof the satirical magazineCharlie Hebdo, killing 12people - including eight journalists and two policeofcers. This evil act of ter-ror was done in the nameof religion - supposedlyin retaliation for offendingthe name of the ProphetMohammed.

Unfortunately, thiskind of religious terrorismis becoming more com-mon and frequent. Onlya few short months agoour Nation’s Capital wasattacked by a young manwho, in addition to hav-ing mental health issues,claimed religious perse-cution was a cause forstorming the Parliamentbuildings. Tragically, thisrise in hatred against the

West has suffered manyinnocent casualties.

It is not fair nor correctto say that all Muslims arereligious terrorists. Re-

member the Crusades? Itwas Christians who led aholy war against the Islam-ic people in the MiddleAges, but not all Christianswere extremists. Remem-ber Northern Ireland?Christians of differing de-nominations were killingeach other in the nameof God for over 30 years.Certainly the rise of theserecent terrorists acts arelinked to militant Islam,but there are far, far more

Muslims working to bringpeace than war.When will all this end?

It does not seem this vio-lence will be over soon.Unlike the wars of yester-year, the enemy is not con-ned to a specic location.Radical fundamentalistsno longer need to travelto far away lands to be in-doctrinated. The internetis the medium by whichthose seeking convertsto their message can nda way to spread their evil

message of hate. Radicalscan locate ways to buildbombs or connect withother warped groups sim-ply by pressing a few keyson their computers.

It is tempting to jointhe bandwagon of politi-cal commentators who saythat all religion is evil andshould be removed fromthe public sphere. How-ever, as a Christian, I can-not simply abandon my

faith because of the riseof radical religious terror.While I will never be ableto understand those whowant to reject all religion,

a part of me wondershow much the world hassuffered because of thosewho claim some authorityon knowing what Godwants for the bettermentof the world.

To be honest, beingabsolutely sure of some-thing has always botheredme. If I am denitely cer-tain about something, es-pecially what God wants,than I do not really needfaith. I will probably nev-

er be a fundamentalistsince my religious faithhas always left me withmore questions aboutGod than answers. Andmy faith has evolved as Iget older and experienceGod in new and differingways. There are timesI’d love to be completelysure about who God isand what God wants, butI think that would be arather boring relationship.The exciting part of faithis discovering what God

wants, not thinking I haveall the answers for others.

If there is one thing Iam absolute about, it isthat the God I worship, asrevealed in the person ofJesus Christ, wants onlyone thing of us - to lovethe Lord our God, and tolove our neighbour as our-self. I will only accept loveover any type of hatred.


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5FEBRUARY 2015


Lake Melville ACW Healing theleper

St. Andrew’s Anglican Church Women in the Parish of Lake Melville(Happy Valley-Goose Bay) held a catered Christmas supper on De-

cember 16th, where all ladies of the congregation were invited to at-

tend. Thirty-six ladies attended and were greeted with a visit by Santahimself. There was a delicious meal of ham, chicken parmigiana, rice,scalloped potatoes, and vegetables, with two choices for dessert. Theladies enjoyed some Christmas games, door prizes, and best of all,wonderful fellowship. Lavenia Dyson-Burkhart, a member of St. An-drew’s congregation and ACW in Lake Melville Parish was presentedwith a going away memento during the ACW Christmas supper asshe and her husband Tom will be moving to Kentville, Nova Scotia,early in 2015. Lavenia and Tom will be missed by all. St. Andrew’s con-gregation wishes them God’s Blessings as they begin the next chap-ter of their lives. Photograph and story submitted by Julie Russell

The Rev. Michael Li

Columnist Jesus healed a man withleprosy (Mark 1:42). The word“leprosy” was used in biblicaltimes to designate differentkinds of serious skin diseases.It was not limited to whatwe know today as leprosy.Because of his sickness, theman must live alone (Leviti-cus 13:46). Jesus expressedcompassion. He touched theunclean leper. The man wascured. The cure meant that theman would no longer have to

live the life of an outcast.Very often, the humanbody can heal itself with ourwhite blood cells killing thevirus in the body. The healingof this leper was a miracle.Miracles show that God is atwork in a new way. The pur-pose of miraculous healingwas theological, not medical.For example, Jesus healed onlyone of the sick at the pool ofBethesda (John 5:3); becauseone was enough to teach thespiritual truth. If Jesus’ pur-pose had been the healing ofthe sick, He would have healedthem all. During His publicministry on earth, Jesus didnot heal all the sick.

Andrew Wilson wrote:“God never says no to a requestfor healing. He either says ‘Yes’

or ‘Not yet’” (Christianity Today,

November 2014, p. 34). Godis able to enable healing tooccur with or without medicalmeans. If we do not receivehealing now, we will ultimatelybe healed. Physical death isthe ultimate healing. Deadpeople do not get sick anymore. When the dead receiveshis/her resurrected body, he/she will never perish again.

God does not choose toheal all of us physically now.Otherwise, people would rushto become Christians if theChristian faith provided ex-emption from sickness. Ourchurches would be full everySunday if Christians did notget sick at all. In reality, weare not intended to live foreverin this earthly body (Hebrews9:27). If God heals every dis-ease, then no one would everdie. God is keeping perfectwholeness for us in the life tocome. Until that time, we arestill subject to physical death.Sickness and death keep ourdoctors and funeral home di-rectors busy.

There is an example of AmyCarmichael (1867-1951) whospent fty-ve years minister-ing to children in India. Thelast nineteen years of her lifewere spent in bed in almostconstant pain due to an injuryfrom a severe accident. Yet itwas during these years thatshe did more writing - poems,and 16 additional devotionalbooks. These books contin-ue to minister to thousandsthroughout the world thoughshe died many years ago. Hadshe not been conned to her

bed, she would never havehad the time to write. Thepermissive will of God allowshuman suffering in our midst.In the case of Amy Carmichael,many are being blessed by herwritings.


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FEBRUARY 20156

An ‘Open Door’ for all

Submitted byRev. Canon Roberta Woodman

‘Twas 3 days before ChristmasHumber Deanery was busy,

Preparing the way,For the hot turkey dinner.With men in the kitchen

Cooking up a stormIn just a few hours

The servers would arriveTo set the tables and

Prepare a surprise.The doors would be open

To guests one and all Dinner would be served

Along with a smile.Christmas carols were played

Twas a musical event Some sang with Saint Nicholas

As gifts he would present.Stockings were lled with

Hats, socks and gloves Apples, clementines,

Candy and junk.Eighty guests were served by

Fifty on-site volunteers;

Gymnasts lled the stockings;By two senior seniors

The puddings were made.Such a great event,

A good time had by all What a joyous occasion;

What a wonderful celebration; As together we marked our

Saviour’s birthBy giving in service

And answering the call.The Open Door is amazing And brings joy to us all,

As each Monday we serve A free lunch in the hall.

So grateful are weFor the donations that pour in

To keep the Door OpenTo welcome everyone in.

Through the JointWorking Group of theAnglican Parishes ofthe Humber Deanery,The Open Door wasbirthed on April 28,2014. This was estab-lished as a way of be-ing the church wherethe church is needed.By hosting a free lunch

at the Cathedral of St.John the Evangelisteach and every Mon-day, and distributing agoodie bag containingfruit, granola bars, andpersonal hygiene items,The Open Door reach-es out to anyone whomight enter through itsdoors. To date morethan 1300 people havebeen served by 600 vol-unteers. Donations fromparishioners, The Angli-

can Church – Marks ofMission, and corporatesponsors enable TheOpen Door to providethis ministry. We arevery grateful to all whosupport this ministry aswe reach out beyondourselves to answerGod’s call to serve.

Labrador City holdsConfrmation

Conrmation in Labrador West- on Sunday November 30, 2014, 10 young people from Lab-rador City and Wabush were conrmed by Bishop Geoff Peddle at a service of Conrmationheld at St. Paul’s, Labrador City. Submitted by The Rev. J. Peters.


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7FEBRUARY 2015


St. Philip’s sees Christmas growthSubmitted by

Courtney Hiscock

After holding three ser-vices at St Philip’s Angli-

can Church in St. Philip’sone has to rejoice and givethanks for the opportunityto celebrate the birth of ourSaviour Jesus Christ on thatmost Holy Night.

The rst service begunat 4 PM with the Sundayschool pageant. The churchwas ll to capacity that wehad to bring in chairs toaccommodate the parish-ioners. This service includethe Celebration of the HolyEucharist.

The other two service

was at 7 PM with a FamilyEucharist and 11PM withthe Midnight Eucharist.

With this year’s threeservices, we saw the largest

participation in our Christ-mas Eve worship. The parishunder took a stewardshipvisitation in early Decemberto new section of our town,

good weather and moreimportant the rector believeis a renewal that is occurringin the parish at this time.We give thanks to the Fatherfor his blessings upon us.

On behalf of the parish,we wish to extend to thereaders of Anglican Life ahappy and prosperous New Year.

A debrillator has beenplaced in the church by thekind donation of parishio-ners. We recently installedtwo screens and projectors

to enhance our worship atSt. Philip’s church. Thesewere gifts given from theestate of one of our parish-ioners.

Ecumenical gathering at Gander BaySubmitted by

The Rev. Gerald Giles

During the Adventand Christmas Seasons,Holy Trinity Church,Wings Point in the An-glican Parish of Gan-der Bay hosted twoEcumenical Serviceswith the Gander BayUnited Church PastoralCharge, PentecostalPastoral Charge, WingsPoint and the SalvationArmy Charge at Hor-wood.

On December 12,

2014, an EcumenicalCarol Hymn Sing washeld under the musicaldirection of Mrs. GertieHodder. There were 38guitar players and anaccordion player repre-senting four denomina-tional groups, with 240in attendance.

On January 6, 2015,an Ecumenical Epiph-any Service was heldat Holy Trinity Church.Clergy that participatedwere Rev. Gerald Giles

(Anglican) Officiant,Major Lorne Hiscock(Salvation Army) did thesermon, Major Ella His-cock (Salvation Army),

Rev. Shepherd Munikwa(United Church), Pastor

Kirby Noseworthy (Pen-

tecostal) and Mrs. Stel-la Mills (LLM) did thereadings and prayers.The Choir consisted

of members from HolyTrinity Church choir and

the Gander Bay SouthUnited Church PastoralCharge Choir with or-ganist Mrs. Elaine Deck-er. Solo selections were

done by Mrs. GertieHodder (Anglican), Ma-

jor Lorne Hiscock, TylerHart and Nikita Nip-pard (Salvation Army),with 170 in attendance.Following each service

there was time for lunchand fellowship which

was enjoyed by all.


8/12

FEBRUARY 20158

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Bishop Peddle holdsAdvent Quiet Day

The Rev. Everett Hobbs

Columnist A study has been released by

the Church Times concerning thestate of the Church of England. Itis called Church Health Check.and consists of four parts, the rstthree offering a diagnostic inves-tigation, and the fourth remedialtreatment. The consensus is thatshe needs treatment and needs iturgently. This report is relevant toour Canadian Church.

About 1/3 of British societyidentify themselves as Anglicans,the majority of these from theolder generation- about half over60, while only 1 in 10 in theirtwenties. About 83% of theseAnglicans do not go to churchother than on occasions. Of the17% churchgoers, half go weekly

and half ‘regularly’. Church atten-dance has been declining for morethan a century, much steeper sincethe 1970s.

Anglican identity is not beingtransmitted from one generationto the next. The hopeful factoris that young people are opento ‘faith’ but not to ‘religion’e.g. the Church. Two complaintsabout the Church - ‘it is boring’‘it is prejudiced’. People see a

disconnect between social valuesand Church teaching, resulting ina gulf in values between over-60sand under-50s. Moral consensusin society generally has shiftedand even Christians do not followwhat the Church teaches.

Recent rapid decline in An-glican baptisms, weddings andfunerals attest to the decline. TheC of E’s greatest failure has beena refusal to take the decline seri-ously. Pentecostal and immigrantChurches are growing. Manyseekers under 30 go also to ‘infor-mal’ churches outside the estab-lished denominations. There are 4categories of people the Church isfailing to reach: men; the young;the poor; and Christians who nolonger belong. Many express a‘belief’ in God but they take donot take Church teaching as theirguide, but prefer to make up theirown minds. A study of universitystudents revealed that only 1of 10 who identify as Christiansattend church or participate inany way. But they pray regularlyand live the Christian life as theyunderstand it.

Both standard worship andnewer forms fail to attract , andit seems impossible to create anall-inclusive form of worship. Apost-liturgical Church needs tond a post-liturgical form of wor-ship. The Church does not make

good use of its building andspecial occasions to engage withthe community and as a form ofevangelism.

There are issues about theidentity of the Church in a secularworld. How is belief formulatedand expressed? What is the func-tion of a parish today?

The report is available as abook How Healthy is The Churchof England ? (Linda Woodhead)

Submitted byThe Rev. Edward Keeping

On Saturday, Novem-ber 6, 2014, Bishop Geof-frey Peddle led an AdventQuiet Day at St. Philip’sParish, from 10:00amto 2:00pm. There wereabout ninety - ve peoplein attendance from theParish of St. Philip’s andfrom other parishes in theregion.

The Bishop gave twomeditations in the morn-ing, followed by pot lucklunch around noon. Fol-lowing lunch the bishopoffered a third reection,followed by Holy Com-munion and closing withanointing with Holy Oilfor “strengthening” by theHoly Spirit.

The Bishop’s themewas the Season of Advent.He spoke about expecta-tion, waiting, and partic-ularly about preparationfor Christ’s Return and for

Christmas as we prepareourselves to receive theChrist Child and to givehim a birth place in ourhearts at his nativity.

The theme, though,was particularly based

on the first chapter ofSt. John’s gospel, espe-cially reective on thesewords: “The word wasmade esh…..and dweltamong us….full of graceand truth.” The medita-tion gave insights into thegreat miracle and mysteryof the Holy Incarnation, ofthe Word made esh, ofGod coming to the earthas one of us, taking onour humanity, walking onthis earth with us, and theimplications of this to ourwalk with God. Throughhis reections the bishopshared “story telling” asa way to immerse us intothis great mystery and alsoas a way to help the listen-ers to be opened up to themood and the message ofAdvent.

The Bishop, in speak-ing about our humanbrokenness, said that the“cracks” that are so much apart of our humanity is oneway through which God’s

light can enter us. It wasan insightful and helpfulexpression.

Bishop Geoffrey’s easeof presentation and hisown peaceful self, madethe Quiet Day especially

meaningful to his listeners.We give thanks to BishopGeoffrey for providing at-tendees with spiritual foodfor the journey in faith asthis Holy Season unfoldsand as we meet our Godin Jesus the Christ.

We give thanks aswell for the opportunityin having the Bishop do-ing his Advent Retreat inour parish because it tiesinto what we are work-ing towards as the parishmoves forward. We areworking toward havingthe parish give leader-ship in teaching the Faith:people deepen their ownspiritual lives and fulllingtheir Baptismal ministry.We are called to be a lov-ing and forgiving churchso we want to put this inpractice as we continue togrow in the love and graceof our Lord Jesus Christ.Let us work together asa church in 2015 to fullwhat we are truly called to

do as baptized person byproclaiming by word andexample the Good Newsof God in Christ?

God here among us,Light in the midst of us,Bring us to light and life.

behold a new statement of identity a new application process annual request for proposals

YOUR REVITALIZED FOUNDATION WITH YOU IN MIND

anglicanfoundation.org


9/12

9FEBRUARY 2015


The Rev. Greg Mercer

Columnist

Mutual forgiveness

February is the monthwhen Saint Valentine is cel-ebrated around the world

– better known these daysas simply, ‘Valentine’s Day.’This day of romance findsexpression in the exchange ofcards, owers and other giftsaddressed and presented astheir ‘Special Valentine.’ Asimple act of romance showshow couples appreciate oneanother – who can argue withthat? Forgiveness, however, isfar more important. Forgive-ness is of the highest orderof love. Mutual forgivenessis one of the building blocks

of a successful marriage andrelationship.

In the Anglican Traditionwe don’t allow people to writetheir own marriage vows. AsAnglican’s we believe that

Marriage is a gift from Godand a means of his grace (aSacrament) where two peopleenter into a spiritual union oflove, “as Christ is united withhis Church” (BAS, pg 541).Marriage is intended to bea way in which each partnerhelps the other to becomewhat God meant each one tobe, their deepest and truestselves. This is the intent ofthe marriage covenant as laidout in our prayer books and isquite at odds with what cou-

ples sometimes say to me, i.e.,“we want to make each otherhappy.” While we hope to ndhappiness in our relationshipswe have to admit that we can-not make other people happyall the time. How can we?We are not in control of theirthoughts and feelings or theirwill. This then is a false expec-tation. To quote The Bishop ofLondon, The Right ReverendRichard Chartres in his addressto William and Catherine onthe occasion of their marriage,“ As the reality of God has fadedfrom so many lives in the West,there has been a correspondingination of expectations that

personal relati ons alone will

supply meaning and happinessin life. This is to load our part-ner with too great a burden. Weare all incomplete: we all needthe love which is secure ratherthan oppressive – we needmutual forgiveness – to thrive” (Church Times, April 2011).

No two people sees eye-to-eye all the time; we are alldifferent. And to complicatethings, when life gets stressful,as it will with children, job de-mands, nances, etc., and wend that things do not go the

way we expect them to, whatdo we do. Our inclination is tostrike back, to lash out, or evento walk away. Mutual forgive-ness is as much about forgivingourselves as forgiving ourpartner. Forgiving ourselvesfor those times we strike backdampens the res of fury andenables us to deepen our ap-preciation for the other person,be it our spouse or some othermember of our family.

It is only human for usto expect certain things fromthose closest to us, the peoplewe love and share our liveswith. But forgiveness is notabout what you want. It isabout letting go of self, deny-

ing self and reaching into yourown resources of love withcompassion and empathy toforgive yourself as well as yourdearest. Forgiveness is abouthealing and reconciliation.

We all have grumpymoods and times when wefeel resentful about somethingour partner did. There will beother times when we may feelguilty about something weshould or shouldn’t have done.If we didn’t love and care forour partner, we would not feel

this way. But forgiveness isa means of God’s grace andan attitude that reminds usthat we are doing the best weknow at that time. As we movetowards our partner in lovefollowing the example of JesusChrist, we learn to cultivate anattitude of forgiveness. Andwhere forgiveness is practiced,there is hope.

Now, after reading this ar-ticle and you still have time togive your loving Spouse/Signif-icant Other a card or small giftfor Saint Valentine’s Day, thenseize the opportunity. Givinga gift as a ‘Special Valentine’ isalso a way of saying that youare sorry.

New Year’s Levee

Bishop Geoff and KathyPeddle welcomed visitors onNew Year’s Day at St. Thomas’Parish Hall for his rst Levee.Over one hundred peoplegreeted in the New Year withthe Bishop. January 1st isalso the Bishop’s birthday, soall were treated to birthdaycake as well. Photo by MatthewBarter.


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FEBRUARY 201510

Kevin Smith

Columnist

Kevin Smith is the gift planning consultant for the Anglican Church of Canada.He can be contacted at 709739-5667 or by email:[email protected]

Looking for Christmas

The deadline forsubmissions toAnglican Life isthe 1st day of

the month

A sad story

Recently, a friend con-ded in me to say that hisbrother in law (aged 53)had passed away rathersuddenly. Without a will!

My immediate re-sponse was that thewidow should consult alawyer immediately. The

problem was that thewidow has health issuesand the husband, in trying

to shield her, had not pre-pared her for this possibil-ity. In fact, the widow hadno idea how much moneythey had, what banks theydealt with and how themonthly bills were paid.

Fortunately, the friendwho contacted me wasa financial advisor andcould help her throughthis morass. Not everyoneis so lucky.

I am reminded of thewords of lawyer LeslieKatzer, in a recent articlein the Globe and Mailwritten by Tim Cestnick,

“If you don’t make awill, you forfeit your rightto say how you want your property and possessionsdistributed. The law steps

in to make those deci- sions, beginning with a spouse and followed by

children – a process thatcan be cumbersome andexpensive. If no next of kinmaterializes, your estate goes to the government.”

Katzer goes on to saythat: “Death is forever.You can’t consult a lawyerfrom the grave......You maythink you are saving mon-ey by doing it yourself, but you are probably addingto the expenses your ex-ecutors will incur – andthese costs will come outof your estate.

The Public Legal In-formation Association ofNewfoundland and Lab-rador has published abooklet, “Seniors and theLaw” which is availableon the internet. The pur-

pose of this booklet isto provide general legalinformation about various

issues impacting seniorsin this province. A wor-thy read!. The questionis posed, “why should Imake a will?” and this istheir answer:

A will gives you somecontrol over what hap- pens to your estate after you die . You can knowthat your things will goto the people who youwant to have them. If youdie without a will, or in-testate, your estate willbe divided amongst yourliving relatives accordingto a provincial law, theIntestate Succession Act. This may mean that your possessions will not go tothe people that you want.”

In other words, that

Act may make decisionsabout the division of yourestate that you would not

necessarily condone. But,by this time, you have nosay because you havedied without a Will.

I recommend that youshould consult a lawyer.Then you can be con-fident that you have aproper legal Will whichexplains what you wantdone with the things youown, your estate, afteryou die. That’s a goodresolution for 2015.

Every year as Christmas approaches I begin to ‘look for Christmas’ insome unexpected act of kindness, the mending of a long standing riff,the lost being found, that sort of thing. This year I found Christmasin a warm and inviting home on Christmas Eve in Sandy Cove. Whenthe Anglican Charitable Foundation for Children learned that JamesManuel, the very special little boy who lives there, was in need of a

special chair, one that would afford him greater comfort, they gladlyagreed to provide it. As was clearly visible in the faces of James’ parents ,the gift made for a Happy Christmas for the entire family. Christmashad come in a special way, as it does every year...when we search for it.Submitted by Rev. Marlene Harvey

Members of the Parish of Bonavista built a Christmas parade oat based on ‘A ChristmasCarol’ for the annual Bonavista Christmas Parade. Characters included Bob Cratchit, Mrs.Cratchit, Martha, Belinda, Peter and Tiny Tim (with crutch). Another public presentationof the Christian gospel compliments of Charles Dickens. Submitted by The Rev. Shaun O’Connor.


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11FEBRUARY 2015


Happy holidays

Stella Walsh

Columnist “ And the second is

like it: ‘Love your neigh-bor as yourself.’ ” - Mat-thew 22:39

I came to the end ofthe e-mail and paused,

fingers poised abovethe keyboard. How toclose the message? Itwas getting toward theend of Advent, and Iknew these people had aJewish background, butI could not rememberif they kept Christmastraditions or followedJewish traditions. My im-

pulse was to wish thema Merry Christmas, but Idid not know if it wouldhave any meaning forthem. I could leave outa holiday closing, butgiven the spirit of theseason that seemed sortof Grinch-like. I hesi-tated for another fewseconds and then typed“Happy Holidays andEvery Blessing to you all

during this Season.” I hit“send” and immediatelywondered what otherChristians would think ofthat closing?

Interestingly, this oc-casion to ponder theappropriate seasonalgreeting came shortlyafter I had taken part ina discussion on Face-

book about whether ornot Christians shouldpromote the politicalstance generally knownas “Keep Christ in Christ-mas.” An article hadbeen passed aroundsaying, in general, thatit is not Christian to be-come political about ourtraditions and greetings,using them as a sort ofweapon that separates

us from other culturesin an “us and them” po-sition. The article positsthat Jesus did not en-courage Christians tobe political, but rather toshow love and respect.Of course, not all Chris-tians agree with this po-sition and the discussioncan become heated.

For myself, I had atrst been taken aback bythe article. However, af-ter reecting on the mainpoints, it made sense tome. And, when I statedmy feelings publicly, Ifound myself on the re-ceiving end of somecriticism. That did notupset me. I have longsince decided that pub-lic discussion can be a

good and useful thing.Reflecting on the

timeliness of this e-mail,I found myself feelingglad that this opportu-nity had arisen so soonafter the Facebook dis-cussion. I knew for surenow that I would be un-comfortable pushing mybeliefs and traditions

at people of anotherculture, as if being aChristian makes me abetter person than theyare. I do not believe thatJesus set out to teach usthat at all.

At a time of yearwhen many cultures, not

just Christians, engage inmany different celebra-tions and traditions, I feelthat it was very appropri-ate for me to sign off ina more general way. It is

much easier to shout ourgreetings as if they arepolitical slogans to bashothers with when you arenot in a relationship withreal people who have aculture and beliefs dif-ferent from your own.Knowing these peoplepersonally gave me amuch more respectfulpoint of view. I under-stand more fully nowthat Jesus did not cometo start a political revo-lution and I understand

why He discouraged it.

On November 25, BishopGeoff Peddle dedicated andblessed a new Columbarium2014, the seventhcolumbarium in the AnglicanCemetery on Forest Road inSt. John’s. It contains 48 large

niches, each of which willhold two cremated remains.The site will be landscapedwith trees, owers andpark benches where familiesand friends can come toremember, and celebratethe lives of their lovedones inurned here. Submitted byArthur King.


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‘Innitely More’ successful tourInnitely More, the Gos-

pel-singing duo, performedon Sunday, October 19,2014 at St. Martin’s Cathe-dral in Gander. In additionto a concert on a Saturdaynight, they also performedat the morning and eveningservices the following Sun-day. This photo was takenduring the Sunday morningfamily service by parishio-ner, Stella Walsh. InnitelyMore are husband and wifeduo, Innitely More (AllisonLynn and Gerald Flemming).

St. Alban’s ACW of GrandBank held a Christmas Din-ner and Fun Night on De-cember 3, 2014. Instead of

exchanging gifts the ladiesbrought items to donate tothe Grace Sparks House. Sub-mitted by Mary Keeping.

anglican life february 2015

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