August 2014 - OE - lists.wedgeblade.net

August 25
by via OE 22 Aug '14

22 Aug '14

The next five postings ends my writing of a daily column for the Saipan Tribune. So you get the five. The usual caveat: curious, you're welcome; not, see you at the bend! Jaime -----Original Message----- From: Jaime R Vergara <pinoypanda2031(a)aol.com> To: editor <editor(a)saipantribune.com> Sent: Fri, Aug 22, 2014 2:53 pm Subject: August 25 Hang Gong Hang TianDa Xue My Lei Feng (anordinary male volunteer who died young is China's exemplar in volunteer work)while teaching at the Hang Gong Hang Tian Da Xue was spent on weekends with ShouWang school for children. Tian is "sky"that gives us "Aerospace", and DaXue is "big school", i.e., a university, thus, Shenyang AerospaceU. Other than the fact that the schoolname is lent to the subway stop a block away from the main gate, to delve into theschool's character is probably best read from calligraphy emblazoned near thefront gate. The phrase is De Neng Bin Jin Yong Yi Xiang Yuan. Individually, they denote for de = virtue, neng =competence, bin = together, jin = advance, yong = courage, yi =resolute, xiang = soar, and yuan = forever. My take is prosaic: "Resolutely advancetogether with competence and virtue soaring forever." I suspect that the aestheticprecedes consideration of the authentic; beauty trumps reality in the understandingof the phrase. The calligraphy rather thanthe spoken Putunghua is more helpfulto the Chinese reader. Big words to describe processes around educational aims inthe East include the influence attributed to Kong Fu Tzu, aka, Confucius, and the Mao-think that redefined it. In the West, the renaissance and enlightenmenteras girds the great walls of its learning. Since the Han of 206 BCE transcended the preceding Qin'sadherence to strict rules (often referred to as legalism), the thoughts of KungFu Tzu dominated the rhetoric of governance, simply because the activity ofrationalization followed the path of stability rather than the unsettling of thepugua paradigm, a pillar ingovernance "with Chinese characteristics." Two thousand years of dynastic turmoil is often analyzedthrough a ruling dynasty's adherence to the "mandate of heaven" that legitimizeda reigning family's status to rule justly and earned the fealty of the learnedand privileged class that in turn guided the affairs of the hoi polloi. The lower class correspondingly stayed faithful butsubservient to the upper class that supported ruling families until a change isdeemed necessary, not of the system itself but on the ruling family. In all these, the model of relationships fromtop to bottom, and bottom to top, is that of the "family", heavily virtue-ladenas a clan. The merit system in China judged one's familiarity withcalligraphic representations of Confucian thoughts and history; the civilservice exam that choose government roles had for a long time been the gaugedon one's acquaintance with the corpus of Confucian thoughts until Mao camealong and noticed that academia held the gates to the Communist Party andproceeded to chasten the halls of academy through exposure to agrarian postingand learning. Self-taught, the CulturalRevolution spawned the informal Dong NongBing Da Xue (Worker-Farmer-Soldier University) that upended the stability,equanimity, and tranquility of many urban dwellers and the illuminati. The renaissance in Europe 1400 CE was a return to classicalforms in literature and art, harking back to Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle,influencing the secular thought patterns of the west, and adhered to byJudeo-Christian-Muslim theologies. Ithankered back to Greco-Roman civilization. The constant was a transcendent Will of Deity emanating from themysterious YHWH of Jerusalem, Olympus' Zeus and the Forum's Deus. Thrones and miter were determined by articulatedcoherence of theologies invoking sacred writ. The enlightenment of the 1700 CE came as shock to the systemas evolution suggested that discernable cosmic intelligence referred to as deityis but personified human rationality that one aligned to or stand-up against inproud but resolute defiance. Chaos was theorder of creation, manifested notably in the changes brought about by the Americanand French revolutions. China's 1912 revolution challenged Confucian order, awakenednational sentiments against colonizing Europe and Imperial Japan, but retained thestranglehold of its decrepit civil service. The revolution in Russia erupted in 1917 that birthed a revolutionary whothought of contradictions; Mao-think got quoted in red books later. In 1949, change took the front seat whileConfucian stability sat at the back. Deng Xiaoping found a way of keeping stability in the yin-yang of chaosand order, and in pushing industrialization, introduced "nuclear"family as a live option and the individual as democracy's necessary component. Continuity is big in Chinese thought; chastened Confucius isback. Much of China's educational thrustremains on getting "certificated" in society though no longer on themandate of heaven as it is on the skill to assemble gadgets in the factoryline. When "certificated" U grads prefer to hawk shoeson the sidewalk's night market rather than wear office attire, it is time torevisit formal pedagogy. I have sevenyears to inject my contribution from inside the ramparts of its great wall. j'aime la vie pinoypanda2031(a)aol.com yesterday, appreciate; tomorrow, anticipate; today. participate. In all, celebrate!

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Fwd: GMCA Aug 18
by David Zahrt via OE 22 Aug '14

22 Aug '14

*MON AUG 18* *Ladora to Homestead, IA* It was a 16.8 mile route to Homestead. Highway 6 is parallel to the railroad so it was mostly level. At Marengo I chose not to go by Grandma and Grandpa Zahrt’s house. As I remember the last time I went to the location, the house had been demolished and replaced. I went by the Cemetery but I don’t know where their stones are, so I decided not to spend a lot of time in the cemetery. One of the stones readable from the highway read ‘John Zahrt’. I’m sure he would have been a relation of mine! I looked forward to Homestead because that’s where we had our meal for those attending our wedding 55 years ago. The building is still there but it is no longer a restaurant. Homestead is an Amish community and most of the residential area is off from Hwy 6. A fellow that established a community store/produce center hosted us. He let us use his grounds. There were a series of meetings in the afternoon. Gavain returned and indicated his truck is not worth repairing. So we’ll have to find another way to pull the Commode. A new Marcher from Iowa has arranged for his brother to pull it to West Branch. We have a stay-day in Coralville/Iowa City so that will give us some time to find an alternative. (*Did you notice in the picture of the windmill on the hood of Gavain's truck? One resourceful guy! Bet he is in mourning. lz)* I spent my time journaling and setting up the tent. The evening meal was provided for us—a series of casseroles in aluminum pans. It was delicious and nutritious. A neighbor brought some rhubarb—stalks, leaves, and all—and dropped it on one of the tables. I discovered it, found a cutting board and a knife, and ‘dressed’ it up. When Mary (one of our self-described kitchen-maids) came by I asked what she would do with the rhubarb. She didn’t know and asked what I would do with it. I spelled out the steps and she asked me to cook the rhubarb for breakfast. That would mean getting up at 4:30 AM so I went to bed. -- Peace, David

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Fwd: GMCA Aug 17
by David Zahrt via OE 22 Aug '14

22 Aug '14

*SUN AUG 17* *Brooklyn to Ladora, IA* We got up late. I helped pack up the kitchen then left for Ladora and found there are no public facilities. The only gas station in town is closed and For Sale. Our campsite was the Soccer Field. It had restrooms and a giant shed with walls on the east and west sides. I also discovered that the trucks had not arrived. Gavain is running his truck on vegetable oil--a bio-diesel truck. It alternatively burns diesel if need be. We’ve labeled it the commode truck. It had a leak in the fuel system that has damaged the engine. JJ’s pickup, the Gear truck, and the Kitchen Truck all stayed behind to help find the means needed to repair the truck. Gavain has been with the March pulling the Commode since Lincoln, NE. He had fuel line troubles that he, and some of the Marchers repaired shortly before we reached Des Moines last Monday. When the vehicles finally arrived (minus the Gavain’s truck) the Kitchen Truck was pulling the Commode trailer. We've rented the Kitchen Truck from U-Haul and by contract the only trailer they’ll allow us to pull is a U-Haul trailer. It will be interesting to see how we work this out. (*Photo of bio-diesel truck and commode, below.)* There were 2 meetings in the afternoon. The first was a phone conference with our WDC coordinator to begin the conversation on how and what we do when we reach DC. We arrive on Saturday, Nov 1, but no one is in the office on Saturday. And the following week all of the legislators will be in their home states. We have some work to do! Later on there was a meeting to evaluate the Des Moines Rally. The reflection on the Rally was designed to further enhance future rallies. After dinner Bernice told her life story. [image: Inline image 1] -- Peace, David

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Fred
by Darlene via OE 22 Aug '14

22 Aug '14

I remember Fred in so many ways, his kindness, his sense of humor, his love of process, his willingness to work hard, his awareness of himself and how could I forget , his love of sports. He use to tease me about fact sometimes he would have to wait for me when a football game wasn't quite finished. I pray for you, Fred, that your wonderful mind will remain strong and that you will feel God's love and presence. Darlene Erickson Sent from my iPhone

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Global Buzz September Issue
by ICA International via OE 21 Aug '14

21 Aug '14

Enjoy catching up with what is happening in ICAs across the globe.....If you wish to SEND a report...send to your ICA contact person OR...go to the members section on the ICA International website Please click the link below for the September issue of the Global Buzz Global Buzz Report: September 2014 or copy and paste this URL into your browser's address bar http://ica-international.org/buzz/7dayreport-14/2014-09-01.php ICAI Communications

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8/21/14, Spong: On Teaching at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley
by Ellie Stock via OE 21 Aug '14

21 Aug '14

HOMEPAGE MY PROFILE ESSAY ARCHIVE MESSAGE BOARDS CALENDAR On Teaching at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley They came mostly from the West Coast, although one was a Methodist minister from Chesterfield, Virginia. They represented the vast array of the traditions in American Christianity. Two were Roman Catholic, some were Episcopalians, several were Presbyterians and American Baptists, but the majority was from the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church. There were three representatives of Judaism and they added a unique dimension that I greatly appreciated. Most of them were ordained, but about a dozen were in seminary, preparing for ordination. All of them were lively, engaged, receptive and eager. What is it I am describing? This is a brief outline of those I met during a week of teaching at the summer school of the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. It was an exciting week and clearly one of the highlights of a remarkable and stretching summer for me. The Pacific School of Religion is one of the nine theological schools that formed a consortium around the University of California in Berkeley between the years 1958 and 1968. The others were the Church Divinity School of the Pacific (Episcopal), the San Francisco Theological Seminary (Presbyterian), the Starr King School for Ministry (Unitarian-Universalist), the American Baptist Seminary of the West, the Pacific Lutheran Seminary, the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology (Roman Catholic), the Jesuit School of Theology (Roman Catholic) and the Franciscan School of Theology (Roman Catholic). Since the formation of the consortium, two “centers” have also moved into the area, one the Center for Judaic Studies and the other the Center for Black Studies. Without losing their individual identities, these schools have formed a close knit coalition. Under the terms of their agreement, they eventually pooled all of their books and resources to create a single magnificent theological library, known today as the Flora Lamson Hewlett Library. It rivals the best theological libraries in the Western World. Then they instituted open class registration to allow any student in any of the member schools to enroll in any class offered by any member of their corporate faculty. The best New Testament scholar, the best ethicist, the best church historian or the best theologian may not be on the same denominational faculty. Relationships among the potential ordinands are formed across denominational lines. The member schools then created the Graduate Theological Union (GTU), where PhDs are offered in all of the major areas of theological learning. Today GTU graduates hold key faculty appointments in denominational schools across the country. They also formed a summer school to which alumni could come for a “refresher graduate course of study.” On a number of occasions over the past twenty years, I have had the pleasure of serving on the faculty of this summer school, which is now under the auspices of the Pacific School of Religion, universally referred to as PSR. It is my major opportunity to be in dialogue with the various Christian expressions in the western part of the United States. This summer school still operates on the academic standards of its first parent, the Graduate Theological Union. It also continues to include all traditions and it maintains its commitment to walk on the edges of faith. PSR was originally affiliated with the denomination that we today call the United Church of Christ, but it now has also formed ties with the United Methodist Church and the Christian Church, sometimes known as the Disciples of Christ. The United Church of Christ traces at least one of its many roots back to the work of the reformer named Huldrych Zwingli, who was probably the most radical of the fathers of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. True to this heritage this church has been deeply engaged in the cultural struggles against racism, in support of women’s equality in both church and state, and in the fight for justice and the full inclusion of gay and lesbian persons. Many churches that began as “Community Churches” have wound up affiliating with the United Church of Christ. People who feel trapped in pockets of rabid fundamentalism can normally find a home in the United Church of Christ. The UCC has been a tower of strength for me throughout my career, upholding and affirming me and my ministry in ways that the Episcopal Church and indeed my own seminary in Alexandria, Virginia, sometimes found it difficult to do. I have always felt a debt of gratitude to them. PSR reflects the values of the United Church of Christ and I appreciate its affirmation. The week that I teach in the summer session of PSR is always the hardest week of my year. In the five days I was there in July, I delivered 11 lectures, while presiding over 22 hours of class time. Twenty of the hours were from 9:00 a. m to 1:00 p.m. each of the five days from Monday through Friday. The other two hours came in a Tuesday evening “public lecture” of an hour’s duration to which the entire Berkeley community was invited, and which was followed by a full hour of questions and discussion. When the time required for the preparation of this much content is added to the class time spent in delivering it there were very few moment left for anything other than the necessary sleeping and eating. Those who were taking my course for credit were also required to produce in that one week a paper of 5-10 typed pages. So reading and grading these papers also required time. Before I left on Saturday, I had returned the papers to their authors and handed in their grades. My subject for this week was the gospel of John and it was based on my newest book, The Fourth Gospel: Tales of Jewish Mystic. The assignment given to the students for their papers was to take a single episode or a single character out of the Fourth Gospel and, working with my book plus one other drawn from the ranks of the greatest Johannine scholars, to develop that episode or that character in a full way. By the world’s greatest Johannine scholars, I meant people like Rudolph Bultmann, C. H. Dodd, Edwyn Hoskyns, E. F. Scott, Raymond Brown, John Ashton, C. K. Barrett, Urban von Wahlde and B. F. Westcott, who are, in my opinion, the authors of the classics in this field. I also added to that list two women biblical scholars, Sandra Schneiders, a Roman Catholic, and Elaine Pagels, an Episcopalian, both of whom have moved me greatly, plus two non-Western biblical scholars, Ravi Ravindra and Jey J. Kanagaraj, both natives of India and both of them reflect an “Eastern spirituality.”. Since I had become convinced by my own Johannine study that none of the episodes described in John’s “Book of Signs,” (i.e. chapters 2-11), ever happened in history and that almost all of the major characters in John’s gospel are literary figures not historical figures, I was interested to see how each student would approach the assigned task in developing his or her paper. The results exceeded my greatest expectations. In the classes themselves, however, there was some shock expressed at some of the Johannine ideas that I proposed. I share some of those with my readers so that you might get a sense of the way the classes went: 1. The Prologue of John’s gospel (John 1:1-18) is not about either pre-existence or Incarnation. It was rather based on a passage in Proverbs 8. 2. The Epilogue (John 21) is a later addition to this gospel and needs to be looked at separately. 3. John’s entire gospel (John 1-20) is not the work of a single person, but of at least three separate authors and none of the three was John, the son of Zebedee! 4. The “Second Coming” in the Fourth Gospel is not a future event to be anticipated, but one that has already actually occurred. John relates it in chapter 20, when Jesus breathed on his disciples in the locked room on Easter evening and “they received the Holy Spirit.” Thus the “second coming” occurred just “a little while” later as John’s Jesus promises constantly. 5. Nicodemus, the star of chapter 3 of John’s gospel, was not a person of history, but a symbol of those Jews who came close to Jesus, but only under cover of darkness, and who were never able to become disciples. 6. John refers to two members of the twelve, Nathaniel and the “disciple whom Jesus loved,” neither of whom is mentioned in any other part of the Christian tradition. These two figures also serve as bookends for John’s gospel. Nathaniel stars in chapter 1 and “the Beloved Disciple” stars in the last week of Jesus’ life (13-20). I regard both of them as literary symbols, not as people of history. Nathaniel is a symbol for Paul, an idea I got from E. F. Scott, a Canadian scholar whose John book was published in 1907. The “Beloved Disciple” is a symbol of the ideal believer, who is willing to follow Jesus all the way to the cross and through it to the resurrection, an idea I received first from Rudolf Bultmann, long time Professor at Germany’s University of Marburg, whom I regard as the greatest New Testament scholar of our time… 7. Other literary characters in the Fourth Gospel, and therefore not people of history, include the Samaritan woman by the well (John 4), the man crippled for 38 years (John5), the man born blind (John 9) and Lazarus who was raised from the dead (John 11). 8. John has given to other characters, who clearly were people of history, entirely new personalities. On this list are the mother of Jesus, Peter, Pilate, Thomas, Andrew and Phillip. To convince my students that all of these speculations were in fact true was not my purpose. I wanted to inspire them rather to raise different questions, to let their minds escape the boundaries of yesterday’s biblical assumptions. Did it work? The only way to know is to listen to the sermons from the pulpits from which my students will preach in the next year. They may well become controversial, but I am convinced that Christianity will die of boredom long before it dies of controversy. So I am not bothered by that possibility. I only know that they were great students. ~John Shelby Spong Read the essay online here. Question & Answer Shirma Cadogan, via the Internet, writes: Question: I read your answer your answer to a question from Ken Austin from Maroubra, Australia, and I was deeply moved. I understand and agree with all you said in your answer to Mr. Austin, but please go a little further (and forgive me if you’ve answered this before), but what did John mean to imply when he put the words in Jesus’ mouth, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh to the Father but by me.” Exactly what is meant by that declaration? Thanks for taking the time to answer the question. Answer: Dear Shirma, Yes, I have answered that question before, but it seems to keep coming year after year. It is one of those biblical texts which, over the centuries, has been used to validate a missionary imperialism and to denigrate the other religious traditions of the world. My experience is that whenever a person, a church, a denomination or a religion claims to possess the truth and thus be the only valid pathway to God, that person, that church, that denomination and that religion turns demonic. There is an incredible arrogance present when any human being or any religious tradition believes that it has cornered the market on the truth of God and can therefore judge anyone who disagrees with them as wrong, inadequate, heretical or whatever. To quote this text from John 14 to justify that concept also reveals little more than a profound biblical ignorance. This Johannine text is in what we call the “farewell discourses” in that gospel, which constitute chapters 13-16. It reflects a struggle between the synagogue authorities and the Christian movement, which was until about 88 CE still a part of the synagogue. After the split which separated the synagogue from the church, various new claims were made for Jesus by his followers. Among these claims in John’s gospel was a series of sayings we now call the “I AM” sayings. No one other than the Fourth Gospel ever suggests that these “I AM” sayings were spoken by Jesus in history and most scholars assume that John wrote these words, not that Jesus ever said them. “I AM” was the name of God revealed to Moses in the Exodus story of the burning bush. The synagogue authorities had declared that the followers of Jesus were outside the synagogue, outside the faith of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses. The followers of Jesus countered that claim by saying that in Jesus they had found a new revelation of the God of Abraham and Moses and that the same God the Jews met in Abraham and Moses, the followers of Jesus had found present in Jesus. So they portrayed Jesus as the one in whom the life of God was newly revealed. It is the life of God in Jesus that we Christians dare to worship. Jesus is our gateway to understanding God, so we have said that to follow Jesus is to enter God. This was their counter claim hurled against the excommunicating Orthodox Jews, who dismissed them from the synagogue. It never occurred to that author of the Fourth Gospel that these words would someday be used as a weapon of religious imperialism. I treat the “I AM” sayings more thoroughly in my book, The Fourth Gospel; Tales of a Jewish Mystic so that is as far as I can go in this brief format. The lesson one might learn from this text is that NO ONE should quote a text from the Bible unless he or she knows and understands the context out of which those words come. John Shelby Spong Announcements Have you checked out our online store recently? Buy a Bishop Spong classic and help support our mission! This email was sent to elliestock(a)aol.com why did I get this? unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences ProgressiveChristianity.org · 708 Broadway · Suite 105 · Tacoma, WA 98402 · USA

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Winds and Waves December Issue - This is your invitation to contribute
by Robyn Hutchinson via OE 19 Aug '14

19 Aug '14

To read in your browser click here Dear ICA and many other colleagues around the world, We have had quite a lot of exciting feedback from the Back to the Future edition of Wind and Waves. We hope you saw it, and other previous issues (see here) We are constantly exploring how we can make this magazine more user friendly and accessible to as wide an audience as possible, and are always delighted to have your suggestions. Now we prepare for the December issue. ICA's PLEASE FOWARD THIS INVITATION, or similar, TO ALL YOUR MEMBERS, for their contribution, and that of their networks, as appropriate. "Image shift through coaching and mentoring" The Wind and Waves team invites submission of articles for the next edition of Wind and Waves Magazine. We hope that each ICA would take responsibility for sourcing relevant articles from members and non-members for each edition. December WW Theme working title is: "Image shift through coaching and mentoring Sharing a wide range of practice in the field of coaching and mentoring across the globe stories and examples of processes and practices help to change peoples lives please see attachment for more ideas and aspects of mentoring and coaching that you might like to consider writing about. See here Winds and Waves format: 1. In-depth leading topic article 2. Supporting articles on theme 3. Other theme related items 4. Reports, stories, events, works in progress (Guidelines see here) For the December edition featuring COACHING and MENTORING, we are looking for items from: * those involved in this work, in a paid or voluntary capacity, and its impact * personal stories from colleagues around the world who have experienced life change through practical application of these processes and methods, and the future potential * anyone involved in other exciting human development works in progress Contributions could include reports, poems, images, songs, and stories about the people and organisations that you are working with, the breakthroughs that you have had, your learnings and insights, and your thoughts on future directions. We also want to include reports and notices from ICAs and other organisations of initiatives, programs, significant events and dialogues taking place anywhere in the globe. Does your ICA, individual members, or someone you know have a story to share? Please forward an invitation as appropriate to your networks. TIME FRAME for WIND AND WAVES - December edition Leading Topic: Image Shift Coaching and mentoring Indication of article to be sent: by Friday, October 3 (send to Isabel, Peter, Robyn) Finished article deadline: Friday, October 24, 2014 (send to Isabel, Peter, Robyn) Publication: December, 2014 By October 3, Please let us know these details on the article you / other person plans to write: 1. Title - subject line: story proposal........ 2. In the email body: 2 SIMPLE sentences not "paragraph-sentences" a. The story to share is about: .......... b. The point of the story for the reader is:....... 3. Estimated length............ 4. The number of photos, diagrams, images, that will accompany the article.... 5. Your name and author's name....email addresses for both Please send the above information to Isabel, Robyn and Peter Ellins, by October 3. Some guideline tips for your attention, include: - avoiding jargon; remembering that this is a public magazine; - audience is ICA and many others - Items can be in English and Spanish. With many thanks in anticipation, Robyn Hutchinson: hutchinsonsydney13(a)gmail.com Isabel de la Maza: isadelamaza(a)vtr.net Contributions Coordinators, for the W&W team Please send cc to Peter Ellins, peter(a)icai-members.org If you did not receive a copy or notice of the last edition of the magazine, please contact: Peter Ellins: Email: peter(a)icai-members.org; or Robyn Hutchinson: Email: hutchinsonsydney13(a)gmail.com

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Fwd: GMCA Aug 13-14
by David Zahrt via OE 19 Aug '14

19 Aug '14

*WED AUG 13* *Des Moines to Mitchellville, IA* I inquired about bike trails and was able to find one. I had to ride around the south end of the Fairgrounds where the State Fair was still going so the traffic was bumper to bumper. I finally got to the trail and took it to Altoona. It was so nice to be on a trail—shade, no traffic, and gradual inclines. At Altoona I got on Hwy 6: it should be called Old Hwy 6 because it’s an old highway! On the way I saw as number of cattle yards. I was reminded of the times I managed a herd of cattle. I kept them where I wanted them, and moved them from one place to another opening and closing gates. They had been trained to be obedient to my commands. That reminded me of the woman on the March that wants to treat the marchers like a herd of cattle. Mitchellville has a Woman’s Correctional Institution. I wondered if the woman who’s treating the March like a herd of cattle should be placed in the Correctional Institution. I rode into Mitchellville and discovered that I had ridden 2 miles past the Daniel Mitchell Park where we were to camp at night. So I rode 2 miles back to camp. There were meetings scheduled but the Marchers were late, so they didn’t happen. JJ and I went back to the library in Mitchellville. We stayed and didn’t look at our watches. We left for camp wondering if we’d missed dinner. We were late but there was still something to eat. There was no evening meeting. I put my sleeping bag/mat out under a tarp. The tarp collected dew and my sleeping bag was very damp in the morning. I won't do that again unless the tarp is waterproof. *THUR AUG 14* *Mitchellville Park to Newton, IA* I left as soon as the Circle-up was done. I have forgotten that Iowa has such rolling terrain: up and down hills on old Hwy 6. They’ve re-named this section F48. Colorado and Nebraska had shoulder (bike lanes) 5-7 ft wide. I don’t understand why Iowa has such poor bike lanes. Sometimes they’re non-existent. The best ones are 2 ft wide. If they are 3 ft wide they have washboard-like grooves that leave a little more than a foot for the bike to ride on. I went to the 1st Presbyterian Church. Right across the street was the United Presbyterian Church: both giant buildings! There was a potluck and a series of presentations. One of the presenters was a Dan Kelley, a state legislator who knows Ed, and he sited all of the work Iowa has been doing to create investments in and employment for renewable energy. When the presentations were finished we were introduced to the families that were hosting us overnight in home-stays. Carl and Barb Zacheis hosted 5 of us; Ed, his son plus a dog, Kelsey, Juliana, Zach S., and me. Kelsey is among those who have filed *Our Children’s Trust *lawsuit against the State of Oregon. She was recently informed that she will be on Bill Moyers’ show. On arrival I immediately took a bath in the tub. Then I went downstairs to the lounge where the rest were gathered. We didn’t talk for long because the plan was to return to the church at 7am. That meant getting up, packing, loading, and returning to the church by 7am. We went to bed and kept the morning schedule. -- Peace, David

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FERGUSON SITUATION UPDATE, Weds, August 13- Monday, August 18
by Ellie Stock via OE 19 Aug '14

19 Aug '14

Hi folks, As you've been following the news, the saga in Ferguson/Dellwood continues--another update below. Many of you have probably experienced similar situations in the 1960s or even much later. One song that was led by several black participants accompanied by a drum during a prayer march Saturday, was "This Little Light of Mine, I'm Going to Let It Shine". I thought of Charles Moore. Ellie elliestock(a)aol.com West Florissant Avenue was blocked off again Wednesday night, August 13--due to protesters in the street which ended in a confrontation with police/tear gas when the protestors wouldn't disperse. Helicopters continued to hover over the area until after we went to bed at night. Reporters and a St Louis alderman were arrested for no reason. We continue to take our daily morning walks through the back streets of Dellwood (where we live--Dellwood is surrounded on three sides by Ferguson) and Ferguson and talk with black neighbors and residents. All are against the violence but all feel the officer should be charged. Some (but not all) of the protesting crowd is thinking with their feet and responding from emotion and personal experience of previous harassment by the police. Others are praying calmly but earnestly with their feet. The protests will continue for a while. Thursday morning, August 14, one peaceful march went through the fire department prior to a press conference given by the police chief. Senator Claire McCaskill was also in the neighborhood and responded to reporters after the press conference, expressing the hope that the militarization of the police response would decrease. Gov. Nixon was back in town, put the highway patrol in charge of the riot control, met with a number of community groups and put in place a different plan for dealing with the protestors, especially during the evenings when crowds were gathering around the burned out QT station. That seemed to work better--police interacting with the crowds instead of threatening them. Thursday evening a peaceful march, consisting of church and other community groups was marching up and down West Florissant Road. I would guess maybe 300 or more people were involved. The road was open but traffic slow due to people gathering. When we returned from an event at 11pm that same evening, crowds were still gathering and marching on the street. Marches and vigils were held in NYC, Chicago, Kansas City and other cities. Ferguson covered in global news. Friday morning, August 15, the Ferguson police chief announced the name of the police officer. Unfortunately, he also gave info re a robbery that Michael Brown participated in before the police officer stopped him in the street--which was not related to the robbery. That announcement plus still shots and video of the robbery are seen by the black community as a diversion by the police department to take the attention away from the killing of the teen and evidence in defense of the office; and it escalated the tension after it had quieted the night before. Name speakers, including Jesse Jackson spoke at a Methodist church in Ferguson tonight. We decided not to go. Crowds were still gathering and protesting on West Florissant--the main street where the "action" is occurring. Al Sharpton returned for another rally Sunday. Saturday, Aug 16, at noon, a week from the day/time Michael Brown was shot, we went to the prayer vigil organized by local ministerial groups. It started at the site on Canfield Drive, the street where Michael Brown was killed. It is the main, but not big, road in a low-income apartment complex. To our surprise, Jesse Jackson was there. He was a much more subdued Jesse and led two very helpful prayers. Then pastors were asked to fan out and meet with/listen to residents on the street and around the apartment complex which we did for a while. Then, we started walking toward West Florissant, turning on West Florissant and walking north into Dellwood up to Chambers and West Florissant (not quite a mile) The walk turned right and headed east on Chambers--we had to leave and walked back home. There were hundreds involved, black and white, local, regional and out of town folk. Peaceful but passionate. After cleanup from some looting Friday night, people gathered on West Florissant all day, despite rain much of the day, most dispersing by the newly-established midnight curfew. However there were those who were non-compliant, so the highway patrol (now in charge of crowd control) used tear gas to disperse some and arrested others. One person was shot--not by police. No looting Saturday night. The helicopters stopped flying over but the whirling and swirling of competing multi-levels of law enforcement and governments trying to deal with this situation still hover over the situation. By Sunday morning, August 17, the street was calm when we drove through on our way to church. By the time we returned from church (almost 3pm), traffic was clogging the street--don't know if there was another march or people just rubbernecking as they drive by the protesters gathered there. We turned off and took the back road home. Sunday, we and part of the Earth Care Team led a service, that we had been preparing for weeks, at Second Presbyterian Church (Central West End, St Louis)--related to God's creation--originally to be held outside in Tower Grove Park, but due to the rain, we held it around tables in the fellowship hall, with an indoor picnic afterwards. The theme of the service was "The Garden Extraordinaire" in three parts: "Experiencing the Extraordinary (Awe and Wonder) in the Midst of the Ordinary", "The Groaning of Creation", and "Tending the Garden". Beginning with a context for the service and during "The Groaning of Creation" and "Tending the Garden" and intercessory prayers, we were able to reflect/share around the tables the issues re caring for God's creation and also the Ferguson situation and write down some next possible steps to support Ferguson and address racism. During the offertory, I sang a song I wrote "Let the Earth Breathe". The last lines are timely for both creation and civil unrest: Let rhythms of peace still conflict's pace, emerging, connecting in trust's healing place, bold creatures revealing hope's eternal face, beloving, one dwelling in Earth's sacred space. Sunday afternoon we watched the Al Sharpton rally held in a packed church where Michael Brown's parents, their lawyer, Jesse Jackson, Capt. Johnson (Highway patrol officer in charge of crowd control) were present. In the evening, before curfew, the turbulence returned. Again, on TV, we watched until after midnight reporters making the announcement about the autopsy, the protestors, the looters, the armed police and trucks maneuvering for control of West Florissant Road. As the crowd was dispersed with tear gas, protestors and looters moved north on West Florissant into Dellwood, three blocks from our house. We heard gunshots from our house. The now-familiar helicopter returned, hovering noisily overhead with its spotlight focused on West Florissant--not a comforting lullaby. Monday, August 18, schools' starting date was postponed again. The National Guard is on site. A press conference was held with more details about the autopsy--conflicting conclusions being used from these preliminary results of the autopsy. More comments from Gov. Nixon, President Obama. Protests in downtown St. Louis. The residents, feeling unsettled, are disgusted with the violence that has destroyed much, disrupted the daily work and patterns of the community, and don't want the violent elements of the protestors to be tolerated. A peaceful protest to end at sundown is being called for this evening. Meetings of collaborating groups continue to evolve. Reporters are ubiquitous. And so the situation continues to unfold, minute by minute.

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Sustainable September at ICA-USA
by Terry Bergdall via OE 18 Aug '14

18 Aug '14

I was struck recently with David Zahrt's report about difficulties his co-marchers had in answering the question "what practical action can be taken in response to the immense challenges confronting us due to climate change?" There is, of course, no simple answer. In addition to our neighborhood work on sustainability -- by which we mean an emphasis on justice, equity, and diversity, etc, as well as environmental action -- ICA-USA has a full schedule of events occurring next month. For your information, please find attached a full description of "ICA Sustainable September." These activities has also given us courage to venture into "crowd funding" for the very first time. Please take a look the link below and provide some feedback on what you think makes "crowd funding" efforts most successful. We also, of course, would appreciate you passing this on to friends and any other support that you might have offer. Thanks, Terry https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ica-sustainable-september

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