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Showing posts from August, 2008

The Greatest Unintentional Gospel Proclamation in Pop/Rock

To me, this has always been the greatest rendering of the Gospel message into the pop/rock genre. It captures the Fall (with Ivor the Engine Driver standing in for the Serpent), Confession/Repentance, and Forgiveness. The best part is the chorus of "You are forgiven!", which comes at the end, like the maddest peal of the bells of heaven. Confessions comes at around 5:38, and Absolution at about 6:03 ... I can't believe it Do my eyes deceive me? Am I back in your arms? Away from all harm? It's like a dream to be with you again Can't believe that I'm with you again I missed you and I must admit I kissed a few and once did sit On Ivor the Engine Driver's lap And later with him, had a nap You are forgiven, you are forgiven, you are forgiven ... (etc.) You are forgiven

Fort Michilimackinac ... and an idea for TEc.

We've just returned from a brief holiday to Mackinaw City, Michigan, and Mackinac Island. Perhaps I will spam you all with some more photographs later, but right now I'd like to show you this glorious cannon firing from Fort Michilimackinac ... my son Eliot took the photo. The Anglican church inside the fort was interesting, too. A sign informed us that under British rule, any soldier who failed to show up for church on Sunday was court-martialled! Given this proposed Resolution for TEc's 2009 General Convention ... I'm sure TEc could think of something creative to do along the lines of the Fort Michilimackinac court-martial idea. Thought-starters: Miss a Sunday, and it'll cost you 20 decades on the Millennium Development Goals rosary! Or, miss a Pledge payment, and they repossess your car!

Life is a Poorly-Tuned Carburetor.

I know what you're thinking: Mr. Hot Rod Anglican, what IS that doohickey that looks like the head on the Lost In Space robot? Dear Reader, it is the Power Valve from a Holley carburetor. And our neglect of it has been the hidden cause of much head-scratching around the Hot Rod Anglican Meteor Garage. It has caused a horrible hesitation in Eliot's engine, particularly under load (1200 - 1400 RPM) in 4th gear. Finally, we changed to one with a stronger spring ( 10.5 in Hg instead of 6 in Hg , for those currently tuning their own Holley 4150s at home). What a world of difference that made! Now the mighty 302 runs fast and smooth enough to scare us when we step on the Loud pedal! Like the power steering pump overheating problem (another affliction out of which we have seen a happy issue), it seemed like we had tried everything, and that the problem would never go away. But, God wanted us to work harder on the problem before being rewarded with success. At long last, the success...

Collect Pie

'Splain That To Me, Lucy!

Okay, I'll admit to being a little slow at catching on to Anglican political posturing, but as I understand it , the Anglican leaders at the Lambeth Conference agreed to moratoria on: (A) Consecration of actively homosexual bishops and same-sex blessings; (B) Incursions into the U.S. by foreign archbishops/primates. Did I get that right? Because it strikes me as odd. Here's an analogy that explains how I see it: The Firemen and the Arsonists In my analogy, bishops are like firemen. They are responsible for putting out the flames of heresy wherever they may appear. The primates (or, in the U.S., the Presiding Bishop) are the Fire Chiefs. But in The Episcopal church, way more than half of the firemen have given up on putting out the flames of heresy, and have gone over to the other side: they are now arsonists , setting congregations and dioceses alight with the flames of heresy. The Presiding Fire Chief herself is actively engaged in burning down the buildings of Scriptu...

Hey, hey Baby Blue, well I wrote you a Song ...

As long as it ended up, I still could not fit all my favourite bloggers into this little ode. My apologies if your name does not appear in the song ... I was still thinking of you, and thanking God for ya. Same goes for ++Henry Luke Orombi, and all the other fine Global Anglican bishops and archbishops I could not cram in there. Lyrics are posted here.

He must become greater; I must become less.

He must become greater; I must become less. (John 3:30, NIV) This is the summer that Eliot has come into his own as a car mechanic. In past years, through my own grievous fault, he was not trusted to do much of the difficult mechanical work. Either I was afraid he'd get hurt, or I was impatient and knew I could perform a given task more quickly myself. But this year has brought a quantum leap forward for our relationship as co-mechanics on his car ... no longer do I ignore any suggestion made by my son ... because I have realized that I do so at my peril. He has saved me from hurting myself a few times, and from damaging the car. He has saved me time, in the long run, by reminding me of things I'd forgotten to do. And in fact he has come up with with some great suggestions for better ways of performing certain tasks. I am becoming more and more his partner, less and less his mentor. It feels great.