Charitable feelings are of no use
without acts of charity.
Compassionate feelings are of no use
without acts of compassion.
Loving feelings are useless
unless they lead to acts of love.
The Priest and Levite may well have felt sorry
for the wounded man
as they steered a course past him,
and the Samaritan who stopped to help
may have been muttering
under his breath
at the inconvenience
the whole time.
How they felt
was immaterial to the wounded man.

Tobias Haller BSG (from here)

In our Sunday Forum today, I used two images to talk about the Holy Trinity. One of them was a slightly cheesy image of the Trinity, much like the one below (minus the humorous/offensive bits). The other was Rublev’s glorious icon. This gets my funny bone partly because of the art, partly because of the incongruity of Jesus’ question, and partly because of the Father referring to the Spirit as a pigeon. Call it a trinity of irreverence, or a unity of humor. You decide.

Of course, the image is from the MadPriest’s great blog, OCICBW. By the way, if you click the link, make sure you follow his advice before you listen to the audio file. I will not be held responsible if you hurt yourself or someone else.

From the Korea Times, via Not too much.

The ever-funny MadPriest has done it again:

MP’s caption: Dog in three persons. A canine Trinity.

Via Proper of the Day.

The Anglican Communion is in crisis over who has sex with whom. Sexual orientation can get you killed, but it’s not the death that seems to upset folks in the right. It’s the sexuality. Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe, the Anglican Church is under great threat — including loss of life. From today’s NY Times:

The parishioners were lined up for Holy Communion on Sunday when the riot police stormed the stately St. Francis Anglican Church in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital. Helmeted, black-booted officers banged on the pews with their batons as terrified members of the congregation stampeded for the doors, witnesses said.

A policeman swung his stick in vicious arcs, striking matrons, a girl and a grandmother who had bent over to pick up a Bible dropped in the melee. A lone housewife began singing from a hymn in Shona, “We will keep worshiping no matter the trials!” Hundreds of women, many dressed in the Anglican Mothers’ Union uniform of black skirt, white shirt and blue headdress, lifted their voices to join hers.

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One of my favorite bloggers has done it again. Over at ASBO Jesus, you can find this:

In our consumer society, that just about says it all. Actually, it’s probably optimistic to think that Jesus rates as highly as some of the brands in our lives. Of course, this illustration is meant to portray the irony of branding Christianity at all. Surely our whole lives (”seven whole days, not one in seven”) should be encompassed by Jesus. But we Christians don’t seem to get that right.

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Saw this one earlier in the week over on A Guy in the Pew. Kind of amazing, really.

So this is a purely self-indulgent post. OK, what post isn’t self-indulgent on a blog. Guess that was redundant. Anyway, this is my life when I travel, as written in the NY Times.

If you feel cramped when you fly, imagine the anguish if you were tall.

For extra-tall travelers, the discomfort continues long after the flight, as their feet dangle off the edge of hotel beds, forcing some to position their bodies diagonally, and as they dance what one tall traveler calls the “shower limbo” thanks to too-low showerheads.

“I truly believe it’s a serious disconnect. I end up literally booking everything myself, travel agents haven’t a clue,” said R. J. Brennan, director of strategic workplace for IA Interior Architects in its Chicago office, who is 6-foot-8. “In economy, my knees are embedded into the wire of the seat pocket — I’m literally wedged in and can’t move. On some small planes, I have to physically get off the plane to take my coat off.”

No need to reply. Just thought you’d like to know why I obsess over which seat on which kind of equipment on which airline when I travel.

I wonder if churches could help finances by having a “pew plus” section with better padding and more legroom?

The parish I serve, Christ Church in Lincoln, Rhode Island, is seeking a curate. This is a new position for a full-time curate — priest or transitional deacon. All sorts of great things are happening here, and we need more clergy leadership to sustain our numerical and spiritual growth.

If you (or someone you know) is interested, you can find a brief job posting on the diocesan website. You can visit our church website. To get a flavor for who we are, also visit our flickr site and our youtube channel.

A few days ago, I sent out an email to some friends. It’s below the fold, if you’d like to learn more. Email me or contact Betsy Fornal, our diocean deployment officer, with questions or to apply.

This is personally exciting — and our community it thrilled — because amazing things are happening in this little corner of Christianity. Spread the word — we’re looking for another guide on our pilgrimage adventure.

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