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The Birth of Jesus, Conclusions: Part XVI
by Ellie Stock 20 Jun '13

20 Jun '13

HOMEPAGE MY PROFILE ESSAY ARCHIVE MESSAGE BOARDS CALENDAR The Birth of Jesus, Part XVI Conclusions Luke concludes his birth story with a series of episodes designed to point to the story of the adult Jesus. First, in Luke’s story, the shepherds depart, while Mary “ponders,” then the “Holy Family” goes through the initiation rites of Judaism to root Jesus deeply inside of the faith of his people. He is circumcised, Luke says, on the eighth day and given the name Jesus (Joshua or Yeshuah in Hebrew/Aramaic). Then he is presented at the Temple on the 40th day, at which time a prophetess named Anna, later to be viewed in mythology as the mother of Mary, and an old priest named Simeon are introduced in brief cameo appearances. Simeon proclaims that in this baby he has seen the promised salvation that will bring light to the Gentiles and glory to Israel. Next, and in contrast to Matthew, who has the Holy Family flee into Egypt to avoid the wrath of Herod, Luke has them make a rather leisurely journey back to their home in Nazareth. This episode of Luke’s birth narrative is then closed with a summary statement informing his readers that “the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was with him.” This infancy narrative is thus completed. Luke then describes an episode that turns out to be the only story in the entire New Testament that purports to inform us about Jesus’ childhood. It is the narrative of the twelve year old Jesus being taken up to Jerusalem at the time of the Passover. It is a puberty rite story couched in religious terms, a kind of primitive bar mitzvah filled with familiar mythological content. It was designed to show just how remarkable the child Jesus really was long before his introduction to the wider public as an adult figure. It also has deep roots in the Hebrew Scriptures that we need to identify. Those familiar with these scriptures would also be familiar with the life of the prophet Samuel. He, like Jesus, was said to have had something of a miraculous birth. His mother Hannah was childless; she had been unable to conceive. In that patriarchal world, the woman was blamed for this condition and so she was called “barren.” She was one of two wives married to a man named Elkanah. His second wife, Peninnah, had children and was honored by her husband because of that. Hannah, however, felt shame at her inability to have a child and was even ridiculed by Peninnah because, as she said, “the Lord had closed her womb.” Hannah went up regularly to a “holy place,” the shrine at Shiloh. On one of those occasions, she was at the gate of the shrine weeping and praying for a child. In her prayers she stated her willingness to dedicate her child to God if her prayers were answered. In the emotional power of this prayer, she came to the attention of an old priest named Eli who thought at first that she was drunk. “How long will you be drunken?” he asks her as the conversation began. Hannah responded, “No, my Lord, I am a woman sorely troubled. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.” Hearing the content of her prayer, Eli promised her that her prayer would be answered. So he said to her: “Go in peace and may the God of Israel grant your petition.” Hannah then returned home and her barrenness was overcome; Samuel was born. It is a touching story. Luke is clearly familiar with the story of Hannah. When Hannah’s child, Samuel, was born, she sang a song of praise that began with the words: “My heart exults in the Lord.” Luke uses Hannah’s song as the model for the song he puts in the mouth of Mary that we call The Magnificat. The Magnificat begins with the words: “My soul magnifies the Lord.” I believe there is one other oblique reference to the story of Samuel in Luke’s birth narrative. In his genealogy of Jesus in chapter 3, Luke lists a person named Heli as the father of Joseph and thus the grandfather of Jesus. Heli is simply the Greek spelling of Eli. The old priest in the book of Samuel is thus related, Luke says, to the life of Jesus. Finally, when Mary and Joseph take the boy Jesus to present him in the Temple when he was 12 years old, Luke appears to base this story on the account of Hannah taking the boy Samuel “when he was weaned” to the shrine at Shiloh, where he would serve the priest Eli as the fulfillment of Hannah’s vow to dedicate her son, if she became pregnant with a boy, to the service of God. The visit to the Temple completed the cycle of Jewish initiatory liturgies. Jesus was, says Luke, circumcised on the 8th day, presented on the 40th day and dedicated at the age of 12 in the Temple at Jerusalem. The child Jesus was thus born with the destiny to serve God in all aspects of the Jewish tradition. This visit to the Temple at age 12 is also filled by Luke with hints of things to come. The boy Jesus claims the Temple for himself in his childhood, just as he will do later as an adult. In this episode, Jesus acknowledges God as his father, claiming this Temple “as my father’s house,” and stating that he must be about his “father’s business.” He is also in this narrative, said to have been lost “for three days” and when he was found, he was in the “my Father’s house,” revealing echoes of another three days in which Luke will say he was lost until raised by God into a new dimension of God’s presence. His body will then be referred to as the “New Temple.” It is interesting to note that Luke then moves immediately to the story of Jesus’ baptism by John in the River Jordan and the inauguration of his messianic career. Now Joseph disappears from Luke’s text and takes his place in the mythology of the ages, out of which he had come in the first place. With this story the birth narratives have completed their purpose. The meaning of Jesus’ life has been introduced to his followers. With this story we also reach the end of this series of columns, so it is time to summarize. There is nothing in the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke that was ever intended to be viewed as literal history. Both of these gospel authors knew that the birth narratives were designed to explain the source of power experienced in the adult Jesus of Nazareth. Both were trying to say that they had met a power and presence in the life of Jesus that human beings could not themselves have ever produced. Both picked symbols out of Hebrew history to flesh out their stories. Both knew that they were introducing a new idea into the developing Christian tradition. Both were surely aware that their stories of a miraculous birth for Jesus were unknown to Paul who portrayed Jesus as one who was “born of a woman,” as every human being is, and “born under the law,” as every Jew was. The only special claim Paul made for Jesus was that he “was descended from the House of David, according to the flesh.” God for Paul had declared Jesus to be the son of God, not through a miraculous birth, but through “his resurrection from the dead.” (See Romans 1:1-4). They also knew that Mark, whom both Matthew and Luke had incorporated into their gospel accounts, not only had no birth story, but he had also stated that God first entered Jesus at his baptism. Mark even portrayed Jesus’ mother as thinking that the adult Jesus was “beside himself” (see Mark 3), that is, “out of his mind,” when he came to his adult life. That is not the response of one who has been told in advance that her child will be holy, “the son of the highest.” No, both Matthew and Luke were not writing about the literal birth of Jesus. That will be the later agenda of the fundamentalists. Then we saw how these two evangelists developed their stories out of the Hebrew Scriptures. Matthew borrowed from Isaiah, who wrote of kings coming to the “brightness of God’s rising” and bringing with them “gold and frankincense,” to get his narrative of wise men and their guiding star. He adapted for his narrative of Jesus a Moses story about a wicked king who tried to destroy God’s anointed one at birth. He has Jesus repeat the life cycle of the Jewish nation by coming “out of Egypt.” He creates the character of Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father, out of the account of Joseph the patriarch in the book of Genesis (37-50). The two Joseph’s are all but indistinguishable. Luke also borrows images from the Old Testament to describe the birth of John the Baptist. He lifts a story from the book of Daniel to explain how John’s father, Zechariah, got the news that he was to be a father and why he could not speak. He lifts the account of John post-menopausal birth out of the Abraham and Sarah story in the book of Genesis. He populates Bethlehem with shepherds because it was the birthplace of David, the “Shepherd King.” He borrows a text from Isaiah to get his manger and a text from the Wisdom of Solomon to get his “swaddling cloths.” Both narratives are artfully crafted pieces of haggadic Midrash. No Jewish reader would fail to notice that. The two stories are deeply contradictory if one treats them literally, but both serve as overtures to the story of the life of Jesus, introducing themes that will be developed more fully in their later gospel accounts. For most people the birth stories are probably the most familiar part of the New Testament. They are also probably the most misunderstood. They are victimized by the annual Christmas pageants held in most churches. They are distorted by hymns sung, oratorios heard and sermons preached each Christmas season. They are celebrated in lawn crèches built, Christmas cards sent and store windows dressed during the holiday season. Like all birth stories, however, they are not really about the birth of the hero, but about the adult life of the hero. Once we break them out of their literal prison, they take on a new wonder, a new meaning and a new power. That is what these 17 columns over the past two years have also been designed to do. I hope they have succeeded and that the next Christmas season can be entered with open minds and hearts and without the need to defend Jesus from those who think that the only way to be true to Jesus is to literalize the words of the New Testament. ~John Shelby Spong Read the essay online here. Question & Answer Judith, from Atlanta writes: Question: My question to you is about a column you wrote about two years ago describing your second visit to China. Did you actually witness everything you talked about or did someone else tell you these things? The reason I’m asking is because I read/saw an article on China last year (I can’t remember the source but I think it might have been Time Magazine to which I subscribe). The article showed this beautiful modern city but there were no folks in it. The writer said the high rises and buildings were only a façade and inside many of them it was an empty shell. Since I have already jumped to conclusions, I’ll be interested in your response. Answer: Dear Judith, Yes, indeed, I wrote about things I saw and about which I had an opportunity to ask after I had seen them. I doubt if your source for the idea that China is building massive cities that will be unoccupied was Time Magazine. That is far too reputable a news source to engage in that kind of fear mongering or irrational claim. China has 1.3 billion people and the new condominiums and apartments that we saw in about ten cities are occupied immediately after construction. There have been new planned cities built from scratch to house people in towns and villages that were flooded out of their homes when the Three Gorges Dam was built. These may have remained vacant for a few days after completion until the residents in the condemned towns and villages could be moved in, but that would be as close to what you describe as I can imagine. When dealing with a rival or enemy country, I think one must always be aware of the possibility of misrepresentation for propaganda purposes or even the paranoid imagination of the unbalanced among us. Thank you for your letter. ~John Shelby Spong Announcements The Latest Book from John Shelby Spong Is Now Available! Order The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic Today! In The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic, John Shelby Spong argues that this last gospel was misinterpreted by the framers of the fourth-century creeds to be a literal account of the life of Jesus. Rescuing John’s Gospel from its creedal captivity, the author provides a unique primer about how to be a Christian in the post-Christian twenty-first century. The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic was designed first to place Jesus into the context of the Jewish scriptures, then to place him into the worship patterns of the synagogue and finally to allow him to be viewed through the lens of a popular form of first-century Jewish mysticism. The result of this intriguing study is not only to recapture the original message of this gospel, but also to provide us today with a radical new dimension to the claim that in the humanity of Jesus the reality of God has been met and engaged. Click here to read the: Preface of The Fourth Gospel- by Bishop Spong Any questions or concerns, please contact us at support(a)johnshelbyspong.com or 503-236-3545. Copyright © 2013 ProgressiveChristianity.org, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you have a membership at our website. Our mailing address is: ProgressiveChristianity.org 3530 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Unit 1 Portland, OR 97214 Add us to your address book .

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A 6 minute video on the secrecy vs privacy debate - Ken Wilber savvy
by LAURELCG＠aol.com 16 Jun '13

16 Jun '13

Jim asked for our takes, but I haven't yet decided. It's definitely a difficult question. Jann McGuire ____________________________________ From: dailyevolver(a)dailyevolver.com To: laurelcg(a)aol.com Sent: 6/16/2013 6:09:36 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time Subj: Living in A Post-Privacy World; Witch Hunts in New Guinea; 31 Flavors of Good News Come and check out the newest posts on The Daily Evolver Is this email not displaying correctly? _View it in your browser_ (http://us5.campaign-archive1.com/?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a678cb&id=8242046c6c…) . (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) _ Read and listen to the posts below on this week's Daily Evolver:_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6… d=7ce3354019&e=53a6ebda4f) LIVING IN A POST-PRIVACY WORLD; WITCHCRAFT IN NEW GUINEA (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a…) ____________________________________ 31 FLAVORS OF GOOD NEWS (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) _Friend on Facebook_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a…) _Follow on Twitter_ (https://www.twitter.com/DailyEvolver/) _Forward to a Friend_ (http://us5.forward-to-friend2.com/forward?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a678cb&id=82…) (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) Join Us for a live weekly conference where we explore current events from an integral perspective every Tuesday evening. Have a listen to previous calls _here_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) on Integral Life. _follow on Twitter_ (https://www.twitter.com/DailyEvolver/) | _friend on Facebook_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) | _forward to a friend_ (http://us5.forward-to-friend2.com/forward?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a678cb&id=82… &e=53a6ebda4f) Copyright © 2013 The Daily Evolver, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website. Our mailing address is: The Daily Evolver 2805 Broadway Boulder, CO 80304 _Add us to your address book_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/vcard?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a678cb&i…) _unsubscribe from this list_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a6…) | _update subscription preferences_ (http://dailyevolver.us5.list-manage.com/profile?u=45e24e74a28fd2cde24a678cb…)

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Re: [Oe List ...] Remembering Barbara
by LAURELCG＠aol.com 16 Jun '13

16 Jun '13

Dear Marilyn, Your sweet and tender tributes to Barbara and other colleagues who have left us care for us all. Thank you. Love and blessings to you and Joe, Jann McGuire In a message dated 6/15/2013 2:59:07 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time, marilyncrocker(a)juno.com writes: Dear Pat and family, You and I communicated in 2011 at the time of Bill’s passing, and again, may I extend my condolences to you on the loss of Barbara, one terrific lady. I first met Barb in 1968 on the West Side of Chicago when my husband, Joe, and I arrived for an “intern year” with the Ecumenical Institute – a commitment that extended for 22 more years as we became members of the Order Ecumenical. Barb was then Barbara Pouler, and I’m not sure she had yet even met Bill. The EI staff lived in the former Bethany Seminary, just off the Eisenhower Expressway, and there always seemed to be “repairs and improvements” necessary. As part of our discipline, we had quarterly “work weekends ” when we scraped and painted and transformed the spaces used by participants in regular weekend courses as well as apartments used by staff families. Barb and I were often assigned to the same “team” and her company and philosophical conversations made those long, laborious hours so full of delight for me – always replete with lots of laughter. Barb helped me to mollify my tendency to take everything so seriously. In 1976 I had the treat of being assigned to work with Barb and Bill in Kreutsburg Ost, Germany and El Bayad, Egypt, where my role was to train them to take over two of the leadership roles Joe and I had played the year before in facilitating the first 8 Human Development Consults. What a gift they were --and such a pair of “quick studies” in the complex research and planning processes of the week-long consult in the local community, plus another week writing the summary document – a key tool for garnering funding for the local socio-economic renewal projects – Barb with her easy-going “ well let’s think this through another way” approach, and Bill with his proactive “let’s get moving or we’ll never pull this off!” I loved them both so much and consider the 2+ months I worked with them a treasure – even tho ’ that “assignment” had required that I leave Maliwada village in India (and my husband and 5 year-old twin sons) just three weeks after we had arrived from NYC! I’m sure Bill and Barb filled you in over the years on those quick-turnaround responses to “the mission.” What I beheld in Bill and Barbara’s relationship was akin to what I have been blessed with – true and unconditional love. My husband, Joe, 14 years my senior, and now 85, is wrestling with progressive memory loss; Bill was 10 years younger than Barb, and must have mourned the loss of her presence and spark as his partner in so many activities, especially after she entered the long term care facility. I hope her last days were comfortable, and that her two years without Bill had some significant meaning and spiritual substance. I say this without knowing at all what her illness or frailty was, but believing that if such were within reach, she would embrace it. When Bill and Barb visited us here in West Newfield, ME about 10 years ago, they gifted us with a lovely Crate and Barrel bowl – far more generous than the usual overnight guest’s gift. I fill it with bananas, grapes, strawberries, tomatoes – variously, whatever the season – and always think of them. The other image from their visit is a funny one: at that time our guest room was on the first floor (now it is on the 2nd with queen sized bed and private bath) and the old fashioned double bed only allowed one night table with lamp in the far corner – plus the guests would have to trek to the bathroom through the living room and the dining room! Ever the one to care responsibly for space requirements and intellectual pursuits, Barb asked me – “So, kiddo, how will Bill (who chose to sleep on the side near the door in order to get to the bathroom quickly) be able to read HIS book if we’ ve only got one light?” We immediately hooked up a floor lamp. J That is such the Barb Alerding I love!! Please know that as long as many of us continue “on this mortal plain,” I will hold Barbara before us as one of the first “new” women – of the ilk that have, indeed, shaped history. With love and appreciation, Marilyn Marilyn R. Crocker, Ed.D 123 Sanborn Rd West Newfield, ME 04095 _______________________________________________ OE mailing list OE(a)lists.wedgeblade.net http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net

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Remembering Barbara
by Marilyn Crocker 16 Jun '13

16 Jun '13

Dear Pat and family, You and I communicated in 2011 at the time of Bill's passing, and again, may I extend my condolences to you on the loss of Barbara, one terrific lady. I first met Barb in 1968 on the West Side of Chicago when my husband, Joe, and I arrived for an "intern year" with the Ecumenical Institute - a commitment that extended for 22 more years as we became members of the Order Ecumenical. Barb was then Barbara Pouler, and I'm not sure she had yet even met Bill. The EI staff lived in the former Bethany Seminary, just off the Eisenhower Expressway, and there always seemed to be "repairs and improvements" necessary. As part of our discipline, we had quarterly "work weekends" when we scraped and painted and transformed the spaces used by participants in regular weekend courses as well as apartments used by staff families. Barb and I were often assigned to the same "team" and her company and philosophical conversations made those long, laborious hours so full of delight for me - always replete with lots of laughter. Barb helped me to mollify my tendency to take everything so seriously. In 1976 I had the treat of being assigned to work with Barb and Bill in Kreutsburg Ost, Germany and El Bayad, Egypt, where my role was to train them to take over two of the leadership roles Joe and I had played the year before in facilitating the first 8 Human Development Consults. What a gift they were --and such a pair of "quick studies" in the complex research and planning processes of the week-long consult in the local community, plus another week writing the summary document - a key tool for garnering funding for the local socio-economic renewal projects - Barb with her easy-going "well let's think this through another way" approach, and Bill with his proactive "let's get moving or we'll never pull this off!" I loved them both so much and consider the 2+ months I worked with them a treasure - even tho' that "assignment" had required that I leave Maliwada village in India (and my husband and 5 year-old twin sons) just three weeks after we had arrived from NYC! I'm sure Bill and Barb filled you in over the years on those quick-turnaround responses to "the mission." What I beheld in Bill and Barbara's relationship was akin to what I have been blessed with - true and unconditional love. My husband, Joe, 14 years my senior, and now 85, is wrestling with progressive memory loss; Bill was 10 years younger than Barb, and must have mourned the loss of her presence and spark as his partner in so many activities, especially after she entered the long term care facility. I hope her last days were comfortable, and that her two years without Bill had some significant meaning and spiritual substance. I say this without knowing at all what her illness or frailty was, but believing that if such were within reach, she would embrace it. When Bill and Barb visited us here in West Newfield, ME about 10 years ago, they gifted us with a lovely Crate and Barrel bowl - far more generous than the usual overnight guest's gift. I fill it with bananas, grapes, strawberries, tomatoes - variously, whatever the season - and always think of them. The other image from their visit is a funny one: at that time our guest room was on the first floor (now it is on the 2nd with queen sized bed and private bath) and the old fashioned double bed only allowed one night table with lamp in the far corner - plus the guests would have to trek to the bathroom through the living room and the dining room! Ever the one to care responsibly for space requirements and intellectual pursuits, Barb asked me - "So, kiddo, how will Bill (who chose to sleep on the side near the door in order to get to the bathroom quickly) be able to read HIS book if we've only got one light?" We immediately hooked up a floor lamp. J That is such the Barb Alerding I love!! Please know that as long as many of us continue "on this mortal plain," I will hold Barbara before us as one of the first "new" women - of the ilk that have, indeed, shaped history. With love and appreciation, Marilyn Marilyn R. Crocker, Ed.D 123 Sanborn Rd West Newfield, ME 04095

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FW: Mandela and UMC
by Lynda Cock 15 Jun '13

15 Jun '13

For all you with Methodist ties, thought you might be interested to see the link from the Global Board of Church and society about Mandela: http://umc-gbcs.org/faith-in-action/word-from-winkler-nelson-mandela Lynda

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Interesting reflection on David Brooks and Tom Friedman
by James Wiegel 15 Jun '13

15 Jun '13

What is your sense of what is going on with whistle blowing? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barton-kunstler-phd/the-vaudeville-rhetoric-o… Jim Wiegel "There is wisdom in turning as often as possible from the familiar to the unfamiliar. It keeps the mind nimble, it kills prejudice, and it fosters humor." George Santayana 401 North Beverly Way, Tolleson, Arizona 85353-2401 +1 623-363-3277 skype: jfredwiegel jfwiegel(a)yahoo.com www.partnersinparticipation.com Upcoming public course opportunities: ToP Facilitation Methods, Sept 17-18, 2013 ToP Strategic Planning, Nov 5-6, 2013 Facilitation Graphics, March 19, 2013 The AZ Community of Practice meets the 1st Friday of each month 1-4 pm Facilitation Mastery : Our Mastering the Technology of Participation program is available in Phoenix in 2012-3. Current program began on Nov 14-16, 2012 See short video http://partnersinparticipation.com/?page_id=55 and website for further details. AICP Planners: 14.5 CM for all ToP courses

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In Celebration of the Life of Peter Adams Whitney 6.8.2013
by Marilyn Crocker 15 Jun '13

15 Jun '13

Dear OE Colleagues of all generations, Joe and I have just returned from attending the glorious celebration of the completed life of Peter Adams Whitney. The service was held on Saturday, June 8, 2013 at Burke Mountain Academy in East Burke, VT, longtime home of Peter, his wife Carol, and daughters Maya and Joleil. Joining Anna and Dick Stanley, and of course Ken and Clare Whitney, Joe and I represented the OE "first generation." I would like to offer this as an initial reflection, trusting that members of our "second generation" will have much more to share with video and digital photos documenting this amazing event. We didn't know Peter as well as we had, in the past, many of his close OE contemporaries who were participants in the celebration - Keith Boivin, Nancy Griffin, Brad Grow, Brenda Johnson, Andy St. Clair, Denise and Rick Stanley and Pete's bro, Mark. But yes, we came to know him more recently -- probably lots through his parents Ken and Clare, dear friends since the early days of the Movement in New England, who, more recently, often stayed with us in ME en route to their regular visits to East Burke, VT. Nevertheless, I'm guessing all of the 300 or so people gathered at Burke Mountain Academy, like us, learned much more about this unique and unrepeatable bundle of energy, love, commitment, passion and care that is Peter Adams Whitney's continuing gift to life itself. As affirmed by those who eloquently offered words of remembrance in the service, Peter's legacy lives on in the powerful, positive influence of his life on everyone in attendance. We learned Peter's legacy is one that speaks on behalf of justice and civic responsibility in the community, especially in support of ethical practices in the public sector workplace; that advocates for and leads the authentic, creative engagement of youth in sports, arts, drama; that adamantly insists upon consistent loving relationships with family and friends; that rejoices in the beauty of the natural world and urges living gently on planet earth; and that invites profound enjoyment of LIFE itself, just as it is. I am attaching a part of the celebration program - the liturgy Peter Whitney and his childhood friend Peter Johnston, liturgist for the service, created together. May we all give thanks for this well-lived life - Alleluia, alleluia, Amen!! Grace and peace, Marilyn Marilyn R. Crocker, Ed.D 123 Sanborn Rd West Newfield, ME 04095

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FW: Barbara Alerding obituary
by Lynda Cock 15 Jun '13

15 Jun '13

Thinking of Barbara and her family today. Pat Horgan is Bill's sister. _____ From: Patricia and Denis Horgan [mailto:thehorgans@comcast.net] Sent: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 6:13 PM To: Ryan, Bob; Rowan, Jean; Richardson, Clare; McCormick, James; LaFlamme, Erika; Jeffrey, Alayna; Horgan, Timothy; Horgan, Tanya; Horgan, Hillary Wasch; Horgan, Denis; Horgan, Daniel; Webster, Christine; Masters, Patrick; Masters, Dan; Masters, Alyce & Bill; Masters, Louise; Curtis, Mary; Berry, Lorrie; Barning, Terri; Alerding, Steven; Alerding, Philip; Alerding, Lynda & Philip; Alerding, John Cc: Young, Wesley A.; Wilhoite, Jo Ann; Tonikka Terrell; Pam Mckinney; Lynda Cock; joaquina rodriguez Subject: Barbara Alerding obituary Barbara's obituary can be seen at the following link for Crown Hill Funeral Home: http://www.crownhill.org/obits/obituaries.php/obitID/251855 The obituary will also be printed in the Indianapolis Star on June 12. Best wishes to all -- Pat

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Help with a Song
by Joyce Sloan 14 Jun '13

14 Jun '13

Hello Colleagues, I am trying to find the words to the song with the line "It is God who gives every man his life and God who takes his life away" I checked the only songbook I have titled "Songs For Those Who Care" and that song is not in it. Thanks, Joyce

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Re: [Oe List ...] OE Digest, Vol 15, Issue 17
by David Flowers 14 Jun '13

14 Jun '13

regarding God Song GOD Tune: Blowing in the Wind It is God that is always driving man to care about the coming day. And yet God is the mystery who takes each man's security away. It is God that makes man seek happiness. but does not allow his joy to stay. It is God who gives every man his life, and God who takes his life away. It is God that drives man to search for love, and yet man is constantly pursued. By that force which finally casts each one out into loneliness and solitude. It is God that drives man to knowledge and truth, but always denies him certitude. It is God who drives every man his life, and God who takes his life away. It is God that gives the desire to achieve, and yet death leaves man's work undone. It is God that summons man to do good, and neglect his duty to none. And yet God is the voice that pronounces guilt, for man's war with self is never won. It is God who gives every man his life, and God who takes his life away. On Fri, Jun 14, 2013 at 12:38 PM, <oe-request(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote: > Send OE mailing list submissions to > oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > oe-request(a)lists.wedgeblade.net > > You can reach the person managing the list at > oe-owner(a)lists.wedgeblade.net > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of OE digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Three Angels Gave Their Gift to History (Jann Barr) > 2. Help with a Song (Joyce Sloan) > 3. Re: Help with a Song (Frank Knutson) > 4. Re: Help with a Song (Joyce Sloan) > 5. Re: Help with a Song (Marge Philbrook) > 6. Re: Help with a Song (Karenbueno) > 7. Re: Help with a Song (Joyce Sloan) > 8. Re: Help with a Song (David Yost) > 9. Re: Help with a Song (Doris Hahn) > 10. Re: Help with a Song (Karenbueno) > 11. Re: Help with a Song (Karenbueno) > 12. Re: Help with a Song (Joyce Sloan) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:07:12 -0500 > From: Jann Barr <jannbarr(a)gmail.com> > To: Order Ecumenical Community <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> > Subject: Re: [Oe List ...] Three Angels Gave Their Gift to History > Message-ID: > < > CAODiJUu9RsT-BkN5gQr+mGuD7wFAeKYhBgJDkwRhYO+Mc3p+VQ(a)mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252" > > These colleagues speak my mind. > > Jann Barr > > > On Wed, Jun 12, 2013 at 9:24 PM, Marilyn Crocker <marilyncrocker(a)juno.com > >wrote: > > > Thank you, dear Wanda ?**** > > > > ** ** > > > > Indeed, Peter, Tony and Georgianna -- as your presence lingers with us in > > robust energy, creative dance, articulate language and much more,,,,**** > > > > ** ** > > > > You are our angels, our meditative council members, our exemplars > indeed. > > **** > > > > ** ** > > > > And yes, we are most blessed having encountered you,**** > > > > ** ** > > > > For this we give abundant thanks,**** > > > > ** ** > > > > Marilyn & Joe on behalf of our OE community **** > > > > ** ** > > > > Marilyn R. Crocker, Ed.D**** > > > > 123 Sanborn Rd**** > > > > West Newfield, ME 04095**** > > > > ** ** > > > > *From:* oe-bounces(a)lists.wedgeblade.net [mailto: > > oe-bounces(a)lists.wedgeblade.net] *On Behalf Of *Wanda Holcombe > > *Sent:* Wednesday, June 12, 2013 6:45 PM > > *To:* Listserv OE; Listserve Dialogue ICA > > *Subject:* [Oe List ...] Three Angels Gave Their Gift to History**** > > > > ** ** > > > > Peter, Tony & Georgianna....you are my 3 strange angels & will forever be > > part of my life:**** > > > > DH Lawrence's poem kept going over & over in my brooding over the > > greatness of the these 3 that were part of my life in so many ways & will > > forever be part of my history as well....**** > > > > > > > > **** > > > > Not I, not I, but the wind that blows through me!**** > > > > A fine wind is blowing the new direction of Time.**** > > > > If only I let it bear me, carry me, if only it carry me!**** > > > > If only I am sensitive, subtle, oh, delicate, a winged gift!**** > > > > If only, most lovely of all, I yield myself and am borrowed**** > > > > By the fine, fine, wind that takes its course through the chaos of the > > world**** > > > > Like a fine, an exquisite chisel, a wedge-blade inserted;**** > > > > If only I am keen and hard like the sheer tip of a wedge**** > > > > Driven by invisible blows,**** > > > > The rock will split, we shall come at the wonder, we shall find the > > Hesperides.**** > > > > > > > > **** > > > > Oh, for the wonder that bubbles into my soul,**** > > > > I would be a good fountain, a good well-head,**** > > > > Would blur no whisper, spoil no expression.**** > > > > > > > > **** > > > > What is the knocking?**** > > > > What is the knocking at the door in the night?**** > > > > It is somebody wants to do us harm.**** > > > > > > > > **** > > > > No, no, it is the three strange angels.**** > > > > Admit them, admit them.**** > > > > ....dh Lawrence **** > > > > **** > > > > ** ** > > > > _______________________________________________ > > OE mailing list > > OE(a)lists.wedgeblade.net > > http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/oe-wedgeblade.net > > > > > > > -- > Jann Barr, Scheduler > Live Oak Friends Meeting > ph: 832 863 8705 >

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