Warm June 2016 Greetings!
Note
the dozen or so bicycles the youth
group has painted up, fitted with flowers and placed
around Castleton
Sunday
there is the auction of one,
https://www.facebook.com/Castleton-UC-Youth-Group-1582509922048218/ Thanks
to Marshall Gummer,
and
a news article about it at
http://www.northumberlandnews.com/news-story/6735310-castleton-youth-group-creates-colourful-bike-planter-project/
There
are pictures at https://www.facebook.com/erich.bojarzin/posts/10207472476705095
The
youth are also selling chocolate to finish
funding the paint and flowers.
Following
their letter to a few politicians and stake holders
for Attawapiskat, they have received a letter back
from Lou Rinaldi.
David will be on summer break during July; Sunday
services continue as below. For pastoral
emergencies call Rev Darlene Keddy of Baltimore United
Church at 416-876-3637
Mitchell Jackson’s tribute to Doug Deviney which he
wrote and sang at the Celebration of life is found at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFLvSibj96Y&feature=youtu.be
along with
a photo journey
Coming events for Castleton Grafton United Church
Service
time: Grafton
9:15 Castleton
11:00
Sunday
June 26, Canada Day
services
See
the100 Mile Diet Booth in the Memorial Hall after the
parade
Sunday
June 26,
10 am One
bicycle hand-painted by the Castleton United Church
Youth Group is to be auctioned off at the Gummer
auction in the Castleton Town Hall, Thanks to
Marshall. It is presently profiled in front of the
Castleton church and in above links
Sunday
July 10,
11:00
Vernonville Anniversary Service -no
service in Castleton or Grafton
Sunday
July 3, 17, &24, 9:15
Joint
services in Grafton; no service in Castleton
Sunday
July 31 11:00 Joint
service in Castleton; no service in Grafton
With
the new sitting area at the back of St. Andrew’s,
there is a significant selection of books and tapes at
the back for any wanting them.
Sponsorship We have applied for our second sponsorship family, this
time in co-operation with Trinity Cobourg. There are
envelopes at the back for contributions.
-payment to Trinity United Church, noting that
it is for Flight to Hope 2. The Syrian family
presently in Lebanon is: Malik 35 -mother, Seham
(Susue) 6 -girl, Mahair 14 -boy, Shahair 12 -boy,
Samir 10 -boy.
The
latest Column is in this weeks print version of
Northumberland News but at send time is not yet online
though may be
here in future.
A few quotes and snippets:
Don’t worry what people
think; they don’t do it that often. ~
Unknown
The secret to living well and
longer is: eat half, walk double, laugh triple, and love
without measure. ~ Tibetan proverb
Those who make you believe
absurdities can make you commit atrocities. – Voltaire
Look into your own heart;
discover what it is that gives you pain. And then
refuse, under any circumstance whatever, to inflict that
pain on anybody else. – Karen Armstrong
LGBTQ folks commit suicide 14
times that of the rest of the population.
Jamie Watt
Baptism is one's ordination into
ministry. If you won't ordain women, why do you
baptize them? ~ Leonard Sweet
The
sense of commonwealth, of shared sacrifice, of trust, so
much part of American life, is eroding fast, spurred on
and amplified by an amoral internet that permits a lie
to circle the globe three times before the truth can get
started. Ken Burns in his 2016 Stanford
Commencement address.
"Human kindness has never
weakened the stamina or softened the fibre of a free
people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be
tough." -Franklin D. Roosevelt
Re Canadian Billionaire of
Panama papers fame getting honorary degree at York U
-"We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great
ones to public office." Aesop
Education
is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a
vessel. – Socrates
"Constant kindness can
accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness
causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to
evaporate." -Albert Schweitzer
“God's first language is
Silence. Everything else is a translation.”
-Thomas Keating
I never told you to hate
anybody. I don't care where they're from, what they look
like, who dare in love with, or the worship, why is this
so difficult? – Jesusish
To those who perpetrate
violence against the LGBTQ+ community with their violent
discourse and their violent policies, We don't want your
prayers. To those who refuse to say that black lives
matter, We don't want your prayers. To those who blame
our prevalent gun violence on the Islamic community, We
don't want your prayers. Instead of empty prayers, give
us compassion; give us equal rights. – Brittany Caine –
Conley
If one kid on a playground
was hitting the others with a stick… Would you take the
stick away, Or give every other one a stick? – Gun
management now
The world is indeed full of
peril, and in it there are many dark places. But still
there is much that is fair. And though in all lands,
love is now mingled with grief, it still grows, perhaps,
the greater. – JRR Tolkien
Exercise is celebration of
what your body can do, not punishment for what you ate.
Timothy McVeigh, killed 168
American women, men, and children. He injured 600 more.
He perpetrated the worst case of domestic terrorism in
US history. He wasn't black or brown. He wasn't a Hindu
or a Muslim. He was a White American Christian. – Worth
considering when you hear anti-Islamic and anti-people
stuff.
I respect culture, tradition
and religion, but they can never justify the denial of
basic rights. – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Sometimes you find yourself
in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes, in the middle
of nowhere, you find yourself.
Hate. It has caused a lot of
problems in this world, but it has not solved one yet. –
Maya Angelou
It's time to remember who you
really are, not who others have told you to be. You are
a powerful human being, stand in your power confidently.
~ Chantelle Renee
Once a year, go someplace
you've never been before. – Dalai Lama
When Jesus comes back, I sure
hope he doesn't land in America. Being a progressive
rabbi from the Middle East, teaching a message that’s
antiwar and anti-rich, while claiming the poor are
oppressed, and that those who don't welcome immigrants
will be excluded from his kingdom, Christian leaders
would most likely have him deported. – Benjamin L
Corey
It is the possibility that
keeps me going, and though you may call me a dreamer or
fool or any other thing, I believe that anything is
possible. – Nicholas Sparks
Truth is a force of
transformation, which is why people fear the truth.
Truth always causes change. There is no such thing as
absorbing the power of the truth and having your life
remain the same. You have to build up the stamina to
manage the power of truth. – Carolyn Myss
Always pray to have eyes that
see the best, a heart that forgives the worst, a mind
that forgets the bad, and the soul that never loses
faith. – Zig Ziglar
It is surely an exercise of
faith for us to see Christ in each other. – Dorothy Day
"When toxic rhetoric and
behaviour ... becomes normalized, it allows extremists
to de-humanize women who don't agree with them on
political matters, helps them justify their deranged
actions,'' "In short, violent speech begets violent
acts.'' ~ The Alberta
Federation of Labour following death threats on
Premier Notley
What lies behind us and what
lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies
within us. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
When something doesn’t work,
it’s not a failure. It’s an experiment that gave you
some data. The only way it becomes a failure is if you
don’t learn what you can from it. ~ Charles
Duhigg
Living with integrity means:
Not settling for less than what you know you deserve in
relationships. Asking for what you want and need from
others. Speaking your truth, even when it might create
conflict and tension. Behaving in ways that are in
harmony with your personal values. Making choices based
on what you believe, and not what others believe.
At that very moment when
things are difficult -at that very moment of panic or
fear, that moment of loneliness or anger – that is
actually the key moment for a person who is wishing to
open their hearts and their mind, because these are
moments where life can soften us. The difficulties of
our lives can soften us, make us kinder to each other
and make us more compassionate. ~ Pema
Chodron
Courage does not always
roar. Sometimes it’s the quiet voice at the end of the
day saying: I will try again tomorrow.
I’ve never heard anyone
complain that Christians act too much like Jesus. Even
the hardest, angriest, most anti-God athiest will
complain that the problem with Christians is that we
don’t act enough like Jesus. ~ Karl Vaters
Sometimes you will never know
the value of a moment, until it becomes a memory. – Dr.
Seuss
"There are only two ways to live your life. One is as
though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though
everything is a miracle." - Albert Einstein
Far too many people have no
idea what they can do, because all they been told is
what they can do. – Zig Ziglar
Jesus did not come to suffer
and die. Rather Jesus conceived of his mission as one of
good news to the poor, the liberation of the captive,
that is, experiences of liberation and abundance of life
shared between those who had been on the underside of
dominant systems of religion and state of his time… He
did not seek to be killed by the powers that be, but
rather to convert them into solidarity with those they
had formerly despised and victimised. – Rosemary Radford
Reuther
If a man says I love God, and
hates his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not
his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom
he has not seen? And this commandment we have from him,
that he who loves God love his brother also. – 1 John 4:
20
Put your sword away, for
those who take the sword will perish by the sword. –
Jesus in Matthew 26:52
In solitude you will find
that even silence is too noisy when you're not at peace
with yourself. ~Caitlin Poster
Cataract is the third biggest
cause of blindness. Religion and politics remain the
first two.
Three things in life are
important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be
kind. And the third is to be kind. – Henry James
Stop creating a life that you
need a vacation from. Instead move to where you want to
live, do what you want to do, start what you want to
start, and create the life you want today. This isn't
rehearsal people. This is your life. – Dale Partridge
Most accomplishments
were achieved by people who at first but no idea what
they were doing. Brendan Burchard
“My
friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better
than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us
be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we'll change
the world.”
― Jack
Layton
What is Radical Islam? Look at Malala Yousafzai.
She is radical Islam. She was shot in the face and how
did she respond? “I do not even hate the Talib who
shot me. Even if there is a gun in my hand and he stands
in front of me, I would not shoot him. This is the
compassion that I’ve learned from Muhammad the Prophet
of Mercy, Jesus Christ, and Lord Buddha.” That’s
radical. That’s Islam.
let-me-introduce-you-to-radical-islam/-Malala
https://cannasos.com/blog/hot-news/jimmy-carter-medical-marijuana-cured-my-cancer
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/parenting/fathers-day/dad-becomes-me-how-globe-writers-see-the-man-who-raised-them-inthemselves/article30486717/?click=sf_globefb
https://www.buzzfeed.com/emeynardie/13-childrens-books-that-encourage-kindness-toward-26paw?utm_term=.jnvkJQxN8
http://qpolitical.com/1-bono-shares-heartbreaking-story-led-faith-jesus-christ/
http://news.stanford.edu/2016/06/12/prepared-text-2016-stanford-commencement-address-ken-burns/
For
those who like poetry:
https://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/133.html The Summer
Day by Mary Oliver
poem:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/4/26/1520269/-Black-woman-responds-to-Megyn-Kelly-s-claim-that-Jesus-is-white-and-it-s-stunning
The sun shines not on us but
in us.
The rivers flow not past, but through us.
Thrilling, tingling, vibrating every fiber
and cell of the substance of our bodies,
making them glide and sing.
The trees wave and the flowers bloom
in our bodies as well as our souls,
and every bird song, wind song,
and tremendous storm song of the rocks
in the heart of the mountains is our song,
our very own, and sings our
love.
~ John Muir
Sometimes
you are unsatisfied with your life, while many people
in this world are dreaming of living your life..
A child on a farm sees a plane fly overhead &
dreams of flying.
But, a pilot on the plane sees the farmhouse &
dreams of returning home.
That's life!! Enjoy yours...
If wealth is the secret to happiness, then the rich
should be dancing on the streets.
But only poor kids do that.
If power ensures security, then officials should walk
unguarded.
But those who live simply, sleep soundly.
If beauty and fame bring ideal relationships, then
celebrities should have the best marriages.
Live simply. Walk humbly. and love genuinely..!
All good will come back to you...!!!
Tired
And lonely,
So tired.
The heat aches,
Meltwater trickles
Down the
rocks,
The fingers are numb,
the knees tremble.
It is now,
Now that you must not give in.
On the path of the others
Are resting places,
Places in the sun
Where they can meet.
But this
Is your path
And it is now
Now that you must not fail.
Weep
If you can.
Weep.
But do not complain
The way chose you---
And you must be
thankful.
-Dag Hammarskjold
Morning words from Mary
Oliver -- Songs of the Builder
On a summer morning
I sat down
on a hillside
to think
about God—
a worthy pastime.
Near me, I saw
a single cricket;
it was moving the grains of the hillside
this way and that way.
How great was its energy,
how humble its effort.
Let us hope
it
will always be like this,
each of us going on
in our inexplicable ways
building the universe.