Passover, Easter, and a Supertanker

The March full moon, or Worm Moon...hmm...was yesterday, Sunday, at three in the afternoon. We were in the midst of a downpour and it was daytime, so we didn't see anything out there, let alone the moon. We were aware of its almost-full clarity on Saturday night. 

This moon is important for Jews and Christians, both with Passover and Easter. Yesterday marked the beginning of Passover and because Easter is on the first Sunday after the full moon of the Spring Equinox it will be this coming Sunday. Jesus was in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover in the days before his death, and the Last Supper was a Pesach seder. He agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane in the light of the moon. 

                                                                 

                                                              Gethsemane -- Julia Stanvoka 

I figure that us Groundlings need to acknowledge the rhythms and cycles of Earth and Moon which influence the seas as well as the seasons of our faiths. While we can calculate the tides precisely there is also a profound mystery to them which can open us to the Creator. 

Over the past few days one of the most important shipping routes on the planet, the Suez Canal, has been blocked by a supertanker. It was wedged so tightly against both banks that there was speculation it could take weeks to float the ship again. While there were excavation crews and tugboats doing their best to float the ship, it was last night's tide and the moon which probably set it free. 

The sky is clear here today, so we may see the moon tonight. If we can, we can ponder our place in the solar system with a sense of wonder. We can also have a sense of reverence as we make our way through Passover and Holy Week. 

                                                 Supertanker Ever Given floated in Suez Canal 

The Trinity of H2O

45 

Bless the Lord, winter cold and summer heat;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.
46 Bless the Lord, dews and falling snow;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.
47 Bless the Lord, nights and days;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.
48 Bless the Lord, light and darkness;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.
49 Bless the Lord, ice and cold;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.
50 Bless the Lord, frosts and snows;
    sing praise to him and highly exalt God forever.

                                Song of Azariah -- verses 45-50

This morning I cycled along the Bay of Quinte, not far from our home, and for the first time this Spring there was no ice that I could see, not even in the bays. We might get a skiff of ice on our now-full rain barrels overnight but the season of ice and cold is over until late this year and I'm glad. 

Still, three Sunday morning's ago we drove to the village of Battawa, just north of Trenton, Ontario, where there were four outdoor public rinks for skating and hockey. We had awakened early so we got there just after 7:30 AM to find that the Zamboni was just finishing the ice resurfacing. Within minutes Ruth had her skates on and was circling the pristine ice with no one else around. It was magical for her, as was another skate a few weeks ago on a cleared skating path along the Bay of Quinte. That day we skiied down the lake to the path with Ruth's skates in her backpack.

We had four or five weeks of unexpectedly cold weather this year, what we would have considered regular Winter weather in our youth. People here in Belleville embraced it, heading out on the Bay to ski, skate, fish, walk, and play hockey in droves. It was wonderful to see. 

I've already written about what a gift the "trinity" of water is, as solid, liquid and vapour. We can't take water for granted, in whatever form it takes. Ice is one of those miracles of the natural world which Canadians should celebrate. 

This actiivty made me think of a book by Canadian Helen Humphries called The Frozen Thames which explores the 40 recorded times the Thames River in London, England,has frozen through the centuries. In several of those years impromptu carnivals took place on the river. The last time the river was totally frozen was 1963, although a cold snap this Winter froze a portion. 

That early March skate was the last for Ruth and after that day temperatures began to climb and the rinks were closed. We managed to get in one more icy cross-country ski. 

And...on Tuesday I convinced Ruth to go for a paddle on the Moira River, which she conceded was lovely (she is tolerant of my madness.) To everything there is a season...

Birdsong and Mental Health

 1 Birds are singing, woods are ringing,

With thy praises, blessed King;

Lake and mountain, field and fountain,
to thy throne their tributes bring.

Refrain:
We, thy children, join the chorus,
Merrily, gladly praising thee;
Glad hosannas, glad hosannas,
Joyfully we lift to thee.

2 Waters dancing, sunbeams glancing,
Sing thy glory cheerily;
Blossoms breaking, nature waking,
Chant thy praises merrily. [Refrain]

As promised, the rain was teeming down before first light this morning. "No worries!" warbled the robins of the Dawn Chorus. One might assume that it was a sunny start to the day from listening to them. 

As I got going I listened to an interview with a woman who is part of a research team which is looking at scientific reports on the positive effects of birdsong on the mental well-being of humans. Not surprisingly, we cheer up when we hear birds give voice, with up to a 180% increase. I don't mean to chirp these folks, but I did smile when I heard that percentage -- how do you measure something like this effectively?

Whether its science or spirituality, I can give my personal testimony to the positive effects of birdsong, or whatever we might term it. A couple of days ago we got out on the Moira River in a canoe for the first time this year. We saw and heard wood ducks, red-winged blackbirds, a pileated woodpecker, and a huge gathering of Canada geese which were on the last patch of ice on a pond in the river. When they took off it was a startling and impressive cacophony. We were grateful they headed away from us!

I mention these bird species because we might agree that they would benefit from a voice coach. There is nothing melodious about their cries, yet our spirits lifted at the sound. And some birds cheer us despite making no sound at all. Not long ago we scared a snowy owl out of a dead tree on the beach at Sandbanks Provincial Park. We watched its quiet flight along the shore and were thrilled. 

I can understand why the hymn from the old blue Hymnary above didn't make it past the cut for the red Hymn Book of 1971, let alone Voice United. I realize that while the King and throne stuff needed to go, the tone of praise for all creatures and all Creation still moves me.

I'll leave you with the song lyrics of those remarkable theologiians, Lennon and McCartney: 

 Blackbird singing in the dead of night

Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to be free

Happy Birthday David Suzuki...Moses?

Happy birthday Moses! Well, happy birthday of David Suzuki, who achieved 85 years yesterday. It's already been a good run for Suzuki who is revered by some and reviled by others. I don't know whether he would want to be called an environmentalist any more because he has reservations about some aspects of the environmental movement. Still, his life-long commitment to caring for Planet Earth, or Turtle Island is exemplary. He is a scientist who became the host of the CBC program The Nature of Things. He has been a passionate activist along the way, as well as a symbolic, sometimes abrasive figure in the broad picture of the environmental movement. 

When CBC television invited Canadians to participate in ranking the Greatest Canadian back in 2004 he came in at number 5, which was impressive. Thank God he was above Don Cherry. Suzuki has improved over time, while Cherry definitely has not.

 In some respects Suzuki has been a Moses figure, leading Canadians through the years in the wilderness of ignorance and denial regarding the climate crisis. While we were living in Halifax around the turn of the millennium I went to hear Suzuki on the Dalhousie University campus. He was speaking at 9 AM, an ungodly hour for students, so I got there half an hour early with a friend from the congregation. The line snaked around the building and while we got in we had to stand at the back of the balcony. That's a strong draw for someone who was well into his sixties at the time. 

Suzuki is not a fan of organized religion, so the biblical Moses comparison might annoy him. Through the years he has become increasingly spiritual, with admiration for the emphasis on living in balance with Creation demonstrated by Indigenous peoples. 

Our son Isaac was in Victoria a year ago February and while attending a course of the provincial museum he came upon Suzuki with one of his younger grandchildren. Suzuki has not given up hope for the planet, even though he has warned that the outcome of the climate crisis could be far more dire than the COVID pandemic. The book Letters to My Grandchildren includes his thoughts on a wide range of subjects, including his work through the years. 

There were times when the Moses of the exodus was ignored by God's people, with nasty consequences. Hear's hoping and praying that we'll listen to the men and women who are sounding the alarm and calling us to a different path for the sake of the Earth. 

World Water Day & Living Water

This morning I drove north of Belleville to walk at a conservation area along the Moira River, but I would have preferred to paddle. I did stop at a nearby boat launch and to my delight the river is now free of ice, or at least it is along the main channel. Less than two weeks ago we tentatively walked out on the ice to a small island just upstream. In the few minutes I was scoping the river out today I saw wood ducks, and a muskrat, and trumpeter swans. I was elated at the prospect of getting back on the water in a canoe or kayak, activities which saved our sanity through the bleakest days of the pandemic last year. 

This is World Water Day, so what better place to be than by a Canadian river. We are truly blessed in this country with an abundance of fresh and salt water. I do not take this for granted, and continue to give thanks for the beauty and variety, even into my dotage.

                                                                    Moira River this morning 

I've written often enough about the symbolism of water in Judeo/Christian scriptures, including Jesus' promise to provide Living Water to the Samaritan woman he encounters at a well, the longest conversation he has with anyone in the gospels. 

On this day we can be aware of the spiritual gift of water and its sacramental importance within our faith. 

As gospel people, called to justice, we can also be mindful that a shocking number of Indigenous communities within the borders of Canada do not have safe, drinkable water. Five years after Prime Minister Trudeau made a commitment to end this water crisis there are still more than 60 long-term water advisories in place. 

Thank God for Living Water. Please God, motivate leaders to bring about justice. 

Oh yes, I would appreciate your prayers that Ruth's heart will open to getting on the water this early in the season. 

Women and Care for Creation

                                           

                                                                      Wetsuweten Women 

Today is International Women's Day and I'm thinking of the Canadian women who have been fearlessly at the forefront of protecting the environment, of which we are a part as humans. These women often have a connection to Creation through their religious background.

Tzeporah Berman is an environmental activist and author who considers her passion for the Earth as a natural extension of her Jewish values. She said it’s an important part of tikun olam, repairing the world, but also tzedakah, which comes from the Hebrew word for justice. She said her environmentalism is “interwoven” with her Jewish identity.

Dianne Saxe is an environmental lawyer and was the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario until her position was eliminated by the miserable Ford government. Saxe is Jewish as well and also speaks of tikun olam. 

Annamie Paul is now the leader of the Canadian Green Party and as a Jew she is guided by the Jewish concept that if you save one person, you save the world. 

                                                        Green Party of Canada Leader, Annamie Paul

Elizabeth May is a Member of Parliament and former leader of the Green Party of Canada. In the past she would say that after she finished as Prime Minister of Canada she planned to become an Anglican priest. I have spoken with her personally about faith and active response to environmental issues. 

Katharine Hayhoe is a climate scientist who teaches at a university in Texas, but is a proud Canadian. She is an evangelical Christian in a state where many evangelicals deny the climate emergency as a mistaken tenet of faith. I've heard Hayhoe speak in nearby Kingston, and she is a hopeful, prophetic voice for the planet.

Autumn Peltier is a teen from Manitoulin Island, an Indigenous woman who has taken on the mantle of Waterkeeper and taken her message all the the way to the United Nations. She is a remarkable person who understands the spiritual traditions of her people, which we can all take to heart.

While I'm not familiar with the individual women of the Wetseweten First Nation, I admire their collaborative resolve in cherishing and protecting their traditional lands. 

Our Judeo/Christian scriptures invite us to be Groundlings, those who respect and honour Creation. This is certainly a central aspect of Indigenous spirituality.

Thank  the Creator or all these women and so many more who are providing insightful leadership for this crucial time. 

                                                              Autumn Peltier, Waterkeeper

Heavens Above!

Margaret Nazon: Milky Way Starry Night. (Collection of the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre; image via Glenbow.)

When I left your house this mornin'

It was a little after nine
It was in Bobcaygeon, I saw the constellations
Reveal themselves one star at a time.

                        Chorus of Bobcaygeon by the Tragically Hip 

The conclusion  of Psalm 19, the lectionary psalm for the day concludes with verse 14:

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart 

be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock, and my redeemer. 

Slight variations of this verse were the prayer before many a Sunday morning sermon for my minister father, for me over nearly four decades, and now our son, Isaac. As important as the conclusion of this psalm is, the opening words which speak of the heavens declaring the glory of God are just as meaningful for me. 

I love getting lost in a view of the night sky as well as relishing lengthening daylight hours as we move toward equinox and solstice. These are the everyday miracles of our existence on "the third rock from the sun." 

Here is a poem by British cleric Malcolm Guite which interprets the psalm beautifully: 

XIX Caeli enarrant 

 In that still place where earth and heaven meet

Under mysterious starlight, raise your head

And gaze up at their glory:  ‘the complete

 

Consort dancing’ as a poet said

Of his own words. But these are all God’s words;

A shining poem, waiting to be read

 

Afresh in every heart. Now look towards

The brightening east, and see the splendid sun

Rise and rejoice, the icon of his lord’s

 

True light. Be joyful with him, watch him run

His course, receive the gift and treasure of his light

Pouring like honeyed gold till day is done

 

As sweet and strong as all God’s laws, as right

As all his judgements and as clean and pure,

All given for your growth, and your delight!

Plant, Pray, and Proclaim

 

A  group of gardeners from St. Luke’s in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From left to right, the Rev. David Morris, Donna Drake, Roberto Morales and Jimmie Reed. Photo: Donna Drake

We have plenty of flower beds in our large suburban backyard here in Belleville, but we also have three raised vegetable beds which have been the source of food for our table and delight for our grandchildren -- who knew that pulling a carrot could bring so much joy? 

Last year we also applied for and planted a raised bed in a community garden  not far from our home. There are about a dozen of these Community Development Council beds on the property of the St. Columba Presbyterian  congregation and the water supply is from their building. Many churches have land which has been transformed into gardens such as these and it's a wonderful initiative. Whether they produce veggies for the less fortunate, or give opportunities to garden for those who don't have property, or just provide the pleasure of getting dirt under fingernails, these projects are good news. 

I read recently about an initiative in Philadelphia called Good New Gardens, which sounds wonderful:

Good News Gardens, an initiative of the [Episcopal] church’s Evangelism and Creation Care offices, launched last spring. It blends faith and agriculture and asks participants to plant, pray and proclaim, with the hope of feeding those in need while stewarding land and fostering community. Good News Gardens has gained enough traction that the church recently hired its first coordinator/agrarian evangelist to support a widening vision of how Episcopalians can connect and care for each other while tending the earth.

           Beekeeping at St. Mark’s Cathedral, Seattle, Washington. Photo courtesy of Brian Sellers-Petersen

The expressions of this project are varied in different locations, including beekeeping on the roof of a cathedral. As a one-time hobby beekeeper I'm impressed. 

There is a photo in the piece I read which shows a statue of St. Fiacre, the patron saint of gardeners in the midst of a ploughed field. We have our own St. Fiacre who is complaining about being cooped up in the garage all Winter and is impatient about resuming his spot in a flower bed. 

In scripture, abundant spiritual life is often right alongside the abundance of gardens and fields. When our flower and vegetable gardens come to life there is always a sense of creation and recreation, which is profoundly spiritual and a reflection of our Christian hope. And we are the Groundlings of the Creation story in Genesis, "adamah" -- dirt people, and proud of it.

Read more and be inspired. I love that a bed or two was planted between gravestones in one location. 

It won't be long now!

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2021/03/03/good-news-gardens-begins-its-second-year-of-praying-planting-and-proclaiming/ 

St. Fiacre watching over Jerusalem Greer’s garden in Arkansas. Greer is The Episcopal Church’s staff officer for evangelism and the creator of the Good News Gardens program. Photo courtesy of Jerusalem Greer

Reading the Book of Nature

 

Ruth, who is definitely the better half of this household was up before dawn finishing the gripping novel, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. A short while later she was reading Dr. Kitty Cat aloud to her enraptured three-year-old granddaughter. Ruth reads to her several days a week via Facebook. She wasn't aware that this is Unesco World Book Day, but she certainly got a running start on the spirit of the celebration.

Later in the morning she was bookish again, as we walked by the Bay of Quinte. A saunter in the natural world might not seem like a good read but some Medieval Christian writers would beg to differ. They suggested that God's revelation was through two books, the Bible and Nature. There is a later and quite famous quote by Francis Bacon which reiterates this. 

I'm a book-lover on both counts. I do enjoy delving around in the bible and find that I always learn something new. The same can be said for the "text" of Creation. No two readings are alike when outside, and God is revealed in a great variety of ways through the seasons. I think of the people who have been so familiar and attuned to their fields and forests  that they've read them like a book, 

I appreciate that the spirit of World Book Day is about the printed word rather than time in nature. Yet the latter story is so often an engrossing page-turner with endless outcomes. Why not appreciate the Creator in both ways?  

The Delight of Urban Wildlife

 

                                                                 World Wildlife Day 2021 Logo 

In my other, Lion Lamb, blog I reflected on this United Nations World Wildlife Day. I talked about the efforts of people who live in our neighbourhood the east end of Belleville, Ontario, to stop development of green space nearby. A portion of  these woods contain old growth maples and oaks, and the stream running through it is part of a Provincially Significant Wetland. This area is less than half a kilometre away from our home yet deer, beaver, foxes, coyotes live here. There are birds galore, including blue herons, red-bellied woodpeckers, and various hawks. 

For me razing a portion of these woods for cookie-cutter housing would literally be a sin, a violation of our covenant with the Creator. I appreciate that others who oppose this subdivision project may not share my theological sensibilities, but I was impressed with the eloquent and informed opposition presented at Monday evening's Belleville Planning Committee Meeting. 

We aren't always aware of the critters in the midst of our communities, those which also call it home. Even in Toronto, aka the Big Smoke, there is surprising diversity. Of course Tdot (really, that is a nickname) has many ravines  and parks which are real gems. One of our daughters lives in the High Park area and we saw an egret in a pond on one walk. 

                                               Don Valley Trail, Toronto: photo by Andrew Budziak

Today on CBC Metro Morning there was an interview with Andrew Budziak, a Toronto photographer, who is determined to take photos of all 42 mammal species which are residents of the city. While there are no roaming lions, and tigers, and bears, aha, there is considerable variety, including flying squirrels Just before he spoke with host Ismaila Alfa he'd encountered four deer. 

Yes, saving superstar fauna is important, as the World Wildlife Day logo suggests. How wonderful though, for us Groundlings to live alongside and preserve the diversity of Creation, right where we are. Doing so is downright biblical. 

Here is the interview link: 

https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-39-metro-morning

And here is the Belleville Petition if you would like to sign:

https://www.change.org/p/save-our-community-greenspace-by-stopping-development-of-the-hanley-park-north-subdivision?signed=true

Honouring an Indigenous Elder

 

Murray Whetung of Curve Lake First Nation, seen here in Nov. 11, 2019 Yesterday I received an email from our United Church Region notifying that a long-time participant in the life of our denomination had died approaching the age of 100. Murray Whetung was an Indigenous person who was involved in many important ways in the attempts of the UCC to engage in apologies to and reconciliation through the decades. I thought I would share a portion of the content of the email with you. I never met Murray but he deserves to be honoured for his wisdom and contributions to the United Church as an elder and leader.  Murray Whetung - February 26, 2021 Many across our region will be saddened to learn of the death of Murray Whetung, who passed as the moon was setting and the sun was rising Friday morning, in his 100th year.  Murray, from Curve Lake First Nation, was a revered Elder of the Indigenous United Church.   The decorated World War II veteran was a central participant in so many key moments in the history of our church – including being one of those present at Laurentian University when The United Church of Canada offered our country’s first Apology to Indigenous Peoples. Some may remember an interview with Murray which was part of “Truly and Humbly,” the documentary, chronicling that significant 1986 event.

 

Murray was chosen as the first Leading Elder of The All Native Circle Conference along with Gladys Taylor and served for many years on the Board of The Francis Sandy Theological Centre, at Five Oaks.  After years of support on that Board, Murray enrolled in the program and in his early 70’s was recognized as a Designated Lay Minister and served at the Alderville First Nation.   For many decades Murray was active at the General Council level in all aspects of our denomination’s efforts at Healing and Reconciliation. The 1986 Apology  Long before my people journeyed to this land your people were here, and you received from your Elders an understanding of creation and of the Mystery that surrounds us all that was deep, and rich, and to be treasured.  We did not hear you when you shared your vision. In our zeal to tell you of the good news of Jesus Christ we were closed to the value of your spirituality.  We confused Western ways and culture with the depth and breadth and length and height of the gospel of Christ. We imposed our civilization as a condition of accepting the gospel.  We tried to make you be like us and in so doing we helped to destroy the vision that made you what you were. As a result, you, and we, are poorer and the image of the Creator in us is twisted, blurred, and we are not what we are meant by God to be.  We ask you to forgive us and to walk together with us in the Spirit of Christ so that our peoples may be blessed and God’s creation healed                    The Right Rev. Bob Smith General Council 1986 The United Church of Canada