Doubt

"I live in a world filled with evil. And my faith cannot always endure it. My husband, who is not a Christian, fiercely says to me in the midst of an argument, 'In Rwanda, fifty percent of the people were Catholic.' His words stop mine on my lips; if religious faith cannot stop genocide, of what use is it at all?

"And thus I doubt. Doubt is to me the handmaiden to faith, its cop, the one that keeps faith straight. To doubt is an indication of freedom and a guard against fanaticism. But it is also so easy to doubt, so easy to be cynical, that the job appears to be to enlarge the part that believes, but only to enlarge it by taking the path made painful by the doubt and with the integrity born of the doubt rather than the inflation born of sentiment, heightened emotion, or the sometimes false camaraderie of a faith community.

"In The Production of the Word, his essay on Van Gogh, John Berger writes: "For an animal its natural environment and habitat are a given; for a man [sic]. . . reality is not a given: it has to be continually sought out, held--I am tempted to say salvaged.'

"Faith is the name I put to the seeking out, the holding, the salvage operation." (4)

Nora Gallagher, Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith

Connected to these thoughts is a post at Quaker Dave's that features an editorial by Leonard Pitts: Because you might not see this on too many other “progressive” blogs…

Thanksgiving Pictures

This is husband CB driving us to Austin from Corpus Christi on Thanksgiving morning. It took about 4 1/2 hours to get there.

Thanksgiving Day at eldest son DC's home. Here are three of my four children, since AE is in WA State. They are third child BJ, eldest son DC, and youngest child MJ.

DC's dog Sampson came outside to see banished Troy (BJ's dog), who was not allowed in the house in Austin because he is too rambunctious.

DC and MJ looking at the view from Mt. Bonnell, which is over 700 feet above sea level--that's high in Texas! It is a natural limestone formation that stands 200 feet (!!) above the ground. The view is lovely and showed me some autumn colors that I don't see further south in Corpus Christi.

This is Troy, BJ's Brittany Spaniel. He has so much energy that he is rarely still, which must be why he is so skinny. This was taken today at our home in Corpus Christi.

Tomorrow, the first Sunday in Advent, BJ and Troy will drive back to Houston. MJ will go back to San Antonio with her boy friend CS, whom she will take to the San Antonio Airport so he can return to school at Stanford. MJ will go back to Trinity University for the next few weeks until her winter break.

Advent Begins

Advent begins on Sunday, which is tomorrow. I've loved reading reflections of fellow bloggers about Advent. So far these have stood out:

• Ruth's Anticipating Advent: Anglican prayer beads
  
• Fran's Advent. Calendar.: video of Rowan Williams talking about Advent
• Jennifer's Advent Beginnings: waiting and Gunilla Norris
• Jan Richardson's blog The Advent Door: Entering a Contemplative Christmas
  

Advent is a time of waiting. Henri Nouwen wrote a piece entitled "Waiting for God" in Watch for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas. Here are a few quotes about waiting that I need to ponder from his words:

"Waiting, as we see it in the people on the first pages of the Gospel, is waiting with a sense of promise. 'Zechariah, . . . . your wife Elizabeth is to bear you a son.' 'Mary, . . . .Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son' (Luke 1:13, 31). People who wait have received a promise that allows them to wait. They have received something that is at work in them, like a seed that has started to grow. This is very important. We can only really wait if what we are waiting for has already begun for us. So waiting is never a movement from nothing to something. It is always a movement from something to something more. Zechariah, Mary, and Elizabeth were living with a promise that nurtured them, that fed them, and that made them able to stay where they were. And in this way, the promise itself could grow in them and for them." (32-33)

"The secret of waiting is the faith that the seed has been planted, that something has begun. Active waiting means to be present fully to the moment, in the conviction that something is happening where you are and that you want to be present to it. A waiting person is someone who is present to the moment, who believes that this moment is the moment." (33)

"Simone Weil, a Jewish writer, said, 'Waiting patiently in expectation is the foundation of the spiritual life."(37)

Day after Thanksgiving 2008

This is from last year's Day After Thanksgiving. Same holds true, though I did not shop today. Instead, I drove from Austin to Corpus Christi. I had no desire to shop and still don't.

We had a nice time with lots of eating at my son and daughter-in-law's house in Austin. Getting reconnected with her parents is nice, especially since we will see them at a wedding next weekend in San Antonio.

I am still trying to give thanks. As I told someone in spiritual direction last week, it helps one's attitude to say "thank you" for every little thing: from taking a breath to being able to sit down, get up, and move my hand. I am trying to stay in a grateful frame of mind.

By the way, if you have never read Gratefulness: The Heart of Prayer by David Steindl-Rast, gift yourself with this book. As the extended title suggests, it is "an approach to life in fullness." Maybe it is time for me to re-read this favorite book of mine.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the USA

I just baked a pecan pie to take to my son and daughter-in-law's for the dinner tomorrow in Austin. This afternoon I am going to fix our traditional stuffing and cook a small turkey just for our family. We like to have leftover sandwiches! Tomorrow morning we'll drive to Austin for the two-family Thanksgiving with AA's family and our family. I am still very impressed that AA is such a hostess after only two years of marriage!

And AA just called asking me if I was bringing "the" green jello salad? I had not planned on it, but she said DC called her from work and asked if we were having it. I never knew anyone was attached to that lime and fruit jello salad that appears every Thanksgiving and Christmas (because that's what my mother did!). Guess the jello salad is a "tradition" I had not realized.

Jan, reading glasses and leaves

Here I am looking out our front door at MJ when she got her new camera in June--with my ever-present reading glasses on. I have so many pairs of glasses laying around the house, but can still get panicky when I cannot find a pair. Unlike me, husband CB has three designated pairs--on the table where he reads the newspaper, by his computer desk, and always in his pocket. I am much more haphazard.

Wreaths are very popular in this part of TX for front doors. I have various seasonal ones in trash bags under the bed. Right now the door is bare, because I've never gotten out the wreath with leaves on it. Soon, I'll just get the Christmas one out. . . .That's sad though, because I love fall leaves and have ignored my (fake) ones this year. (There are no autumnal colors in Corpus Christi.)

I still have a bowl of dried leaves that daughter AE sent me from Germany about five years ago.

Stuffing oneself and its consequences

I don't seem to have much to write about these days, so I'm giving you cartoons. My daughter-in-law AA asked for my stuffing recipe, which pleases me. But now I ponder the choice of stuffing myself during this thanksgiving week. . . .

A different Thanksgiving. . . .

This is dedicated to my vegetarian daughter AE:

The Cat's Whiskers

Buy Nothing Christmas?

I love to give presents. I also love to receive presents. However, I know Christmas giving has gotten out-of-hand. I am investigating, pondering, and thinking about how my family will celebrate this year, or it may just be how I celebrate. . . .

So here's another site I have found about spending in this holiday season. It was started by Canadian Mennonites: Buy Nothing Christmas. I'm not ready to buy nothing, but I am interested in the alternative suggestions they list here. There are 50, so one idea or more may be relevant to a family that isn't ready to eliminate all spending.

Resources, like book suggestions and printable info, can be found here.

And on this page, Aiden Schlichting Enns writes:

PEOPLE CAN CHANGE

"How can we, as ordinary people, change society for the better? I'm not a politician, lobbyist, professor or big-time consultant (I'm currently a graduate student and a journalist). I'm tired of feeling like I can't do anything.

"So, even if it's insignificant, I've decided to participate in a Buy Nothing Christmas. It's an experiment - I'm curious to see what happens. I think it's a great way to challenge our own consumer mindset, to put our faith into action, to offer a prophetic "no" to unfettered free-market consumer capitalism, and an excellent way to generate some good dinner-table discussions on the topic of economics, politics, religion, and what we're not getting each other for Christmas."

I like Aiden's observations. . . .reminds me of Buy Nothing Day.

Superior Scribbler Award

Border Explorer graciously honored me with the Superior Scribbler Award. I am touched that someone who works for social justice and writes so eloquently would choose me as one of her honorees! Wowee!

Well, here's how this thing works:
*Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass The Award on to 5 most-deserving Bloggy Friends.
*Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author & the name of the blog from whom he/she has received The Award.
* Each Superior Scribbler must display The Award on his/her blog, and link to this Post, which explains The Award.
* Each Blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award must visit this post and add his/her name to the Mr. Linky List. That way, we'll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who receives This Prestigious Honor!
*Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules on his/her blog.

Now it is difficult to choose bloggers who have not already been chosen for this award. I choose ALL on my blog list on the left, but specifically honor these five:

Jennifer at An Orientation of Heart describes her life, ministry, and books she is reading. She always chooses beautiful images to go with quotes and other reflections. Not only has she introduced me to new books to read, but new artists to explore.

Roberta at Spiritually Directed posts every day with spiritual quotes and poems combined with unique images that inspire and confound me.

Dave at The Quaker Agitator makes me want to be a Friend like he is. He blogs about the injustices of the world that I often ignore, except that he won't let me. His quote on the masthead tells his philosophy: "Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace."

Katherine at Meaning and Authenticity is the friend who brought me into the blogging world. Her blog title tells you exactly what she writes about--religion, spirituality, psychology, and politics--passionately and honestly.

Seething Mom writes scathingly about the bigotry towards gays in the USA from the perspective of a mother of a gay child, just as I am. She expresses what I often cannot. She defends those who are so marginalized in our society.

Black Friday

Black Friday is what the day after Thanksgiving is known as; a major shopping day in the USA. That is probably why I am staying an extra day in Austin with daughter MJ, but now I am re-thinking that reasoning because of learning about Buy Nothing Day. First I looked at this article by Eugene Cho here, on Jim Wallis' God's Politics blog.

So that sent me to the Buy Nothing Day site.

And now look at the short (1 1/2 minutes) video I found about it:



So what do YOU think?

Gift of Prayer

Gracious God, we thank you for the gift of prayer. What an extraordinary thing that we can pray to you, unburden ourselves before you, place our cares, woes and joys before you. I confess I find praying an awkward business. I keep thinking, Who am I to pray? But I know that to be false humility, hiding my prideful desire to be my own creator. So we pray a prayer of joy in prayer, asking that we become your prayers for one another. Amen.

Stanley Hauerwas, Prayers Plainly Spoken, p. 23

Sharing?

Seattle, WA

Richard Rohr and the Enneagram

I am very excited that I am going to this Richard Rohr conference over New Year's Eve in Albuquerque, NM! I am also amazed, because dear husband CB is going with me, even though he does NOT want to attend any of the meetings. And I only learned this today, because one of his fellow choir members told me that CB was talking about me wanting to go, which was news to me. I'd talked to CB about it this weekend, but he was discouraging about the expense of air fares and did not want to talk about it. With the "percolating" time, he decided to gift me with this!

It will be good to hear Richard Rohr speak and also learn more about the enneagram. I have haphazardly looked into it, but have varied between different numbers. . . .Duh!

This is what the website says about the conference:

"When we learn things deeply it is usually because we can see a pattern within ourselves, and then we cannot deny the truth in general. The enneagram is a patterning tool that moves people rather quickly beyond black and white thinking, beyond mere psychological theories, to see, instead, through the lens of human personality. This is why we find ever more knowing flowing from the Enneagram--and non-dual knowing, at that.

"Russ Hudson and Richard Rohr will lead you on a journey of laughing and weeping at yourself and the world. They will help you uncover some of the ever more fruitfulness of this marvelous spiritual tool!

"The weekend will offer lectures, practices and affinity groupings, all in a context of transformation for our selves, compassion for our companions, and prayer for the world."

It sounds like an enervating way to start the New Year!

Butterscotch Brownies

I baked Butterscotch Brownies today, a favorite of my children. It's a recipe from the ancient Betty Crocker's Cook Book for Boys and Girls, which I mentioned when I gave the recipe for Iced Butterscotch Brownies while back. I had forgotten how good they are, so I am giving you the recipe below. However, be aware that I usually triple or quadruple the recipe given. This was a big hit today as the snack at my EFM class.

You can tell that this is an OLD recipe, because there is so much fat and sugar in it. BUT these are very good!

Butterscotch Brownies

1/4 cup butter (1/2 cube)
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
optional 1/2 cup chopped nuts

Grease an 8 inch square pan.

In a saucepan melt the butter over low heat. Take from heat and stir in brown sugar.

Into cooled mixture, stir in 1 egg.

Mix together flour, baking powder, and and salt. Then add to wet mixture.

Stir in vanilla and nuts, if desired. Spread in pan.

Bake for 25 minutes in 350 degree F. oven.

Cloud of Unknowing

Found at Anamchara. Drawn by Naked Pastor.

More about Sarah Palin. . .yet again

"(Lincoln appointed a New York senator, William Seward, as his secretary of state. He promptly bought Alaska, known as “Seward’s Folly,” which ended up bringing us the folly of Sarah Palin)."

Maureen Dowd--column here. (The column is more about Hillary than Sarah.)

And a friend emailed me the "most emailed" link (as of this moment) at The New York Times, which is by Dick Cavett--"The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla." Here are a few of his gems:

"I suppose it will be recorded as among political history’s ironies that Palin was brought in to help John McCain. I can’t blame feminists* who might draw amusement from the fact that a woman managed to both cripple the male she was supposed to help while gleaning an almost Elvis-sized following for herself. Mac loses, Sarah wins big-time was the gist of headlines.

"I feel a little sorry for John. He aimed low and missed."

"A woman in one of Palin’s crowds praised her for being “a mom like me … who thinks the way I do” and added, for ill measure, “That’s what I want in the White House.” Fine, but in what capacity?"

A column by someone I avoid (but didn't today), Bill O'Reilly condemns all the continued criticism of Sarah Palin, but I find these other columnists hitting my funny bone, while also pointing to the truth. Palin is striving to become a GOP power force.

*And I do not think feminists view Sarah Palin with amusement. I look at her in disbelief, disgust, and antipathy.

Gay Marriage by Keith Olbermann

I found this over at Presbyterian Gal's and was moved to tears.

Whatever your opinion about gay marriage, watch/listen to this!

Also, Quaker Dave has copied an editorial by Leonard Pitts that is worth reading in connection with this issue. Go here.