Seven whole days

OK, I think the headline is more dramatic than the actual story, but I learned this trick from mainstream media.

Back in November, I wrote about Purity Solutions (no, I did not make up that name), a maker of “hands free” dispensers for Holy Communion. The idea is that the grubby hands of priests could contain germs, bacteria, or cooties. Someone might get flu! So you just load up a sleeve of wafers into the dispenser and drop them right into communicants’ hands. Well, it turns out that this entire market is threatened by a lawsuit. A lawsuit! Oh noes!

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This has nothing to do with anything, but this photo does evoke “party!” at least for me.

This photo was created by “camera tossing”, which is just what it sounds like. If you want to learn more and see some more examples, go have a look at Wired’s article.

Caution: 7WD urges you NOT to try this at home. In any case, this is probably an activity that shouldn’t be combined with New Year’s Eve revelry.

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If CNN can do a recap, why not 7WD? Here are the ten most popular posts from 7WD this year, in order.

1. When Tom Wright gets it totally wrong…
2. 10 liturgical changes inspired by swine flu fear pandemic
3. An update on the Rev’d Ann Holmes Redding
4. Of “bonds of affection” and misplaced anxiety
5. Parsing Rowan: Catholic, Covenant, and “chosen lifestyles”
6. Does the Good Book have “bad” bits?
7. Is Facebook killing people and ruining the church?
8. Denouncing Dave Walker
9. Of pastoral petulance
10. Easy fix: block all quizzes on Facebook

You might also be interested to know that the number of unique visitors was up over 60% from 2008, though the number of page views remained almost flat. Year over year, more people used browsers like Firefox and Safari and thus escaped the beast that is Internet Explorer. Screen sizes went up. Internet connections got faster.

All it all, 2009 was a good year here on 7WD. I hope you have enjoyed reading my little offerings now and then. Please come again (and again and again) in 2010. Even better, please leave lots of comments. We love comments.

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All of the following questions are actual Google queries that brought people to this blog in 2009. In case someone types them again, I thought I’d answer some of your questions, dear readers. These are some of the 2,790 unique Google queries of this year. I assure you I have not made up any of these questions, though I cannot say the same for some of my answers.

Can a person get saved in the episcopal church? Yes. That happens in the sacrament of baptism, though that’s questionable if it’s been heavily edited.

Do Anglo-Catholics have a valid eucharist? Wow! Better you than me asking that one! I assure you that Anglo-Catholic Eucharists are very likely to be valid. I can also assure you that even asking that question is probably going to get you a front yard full of angry thurifers. These people do NOT like to be questioned about their liturgical proclivities.

Do Episcopalians display US flag in sanctuary? Not if they have any respect either for the altar or for the US flag. It could be OK to display a flag in the nave, but the sanctuary is definitely out of bounds.

How do I know what God is saying? Ah, that’s a question for the ages. There are no easy answers. God is most likely NOT saying whatever people claim with 100% certainty.

How does a blessed red pen look like? You’ve stumped me. I’m thinking this is either a trick question or else the answer is “blessed objects usually look the same before and after they are blessed”.

How is Jesus amazing? All kinds of ways, but here’s a video of The Amazing Jesus to get you started.

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Thanks to Laura Toepfer, I across this obit for our present decade. The author is spot on.

But just as the AOL deal, the last hurrah of the roaring ’90s, contained the seeds of that happy epoch’s undoing, so too do the final ignominies of the Aughts, maybe, offer some turning point of their own. Though we may still reflexively blame our national penury on some specific Them — and though we might even be right about it — it’s a lot harder now to hide from reality. Our institutions and our icons and our dollars may be discredited, but at least we’ve shed some illusions.

Yes, we all (right and left) continue to blame them. Maybe in the last couple of years there are a few rays of compassion shining into our self-centered society. That compassion may help us to look honestly at who we are, which could lead us to understand that they are us.

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The Christmas Day attempt to destroy an airplane failed, thankfully. That effort, however, did yield some things. The TSA immediately ramped up security theatre. People began to plot attacks on Yemen, where the plan is said to have been hatched. Freedoms were curtailed as never before, as TSA agents showed up in the homes of bloggers who dared to share the government’s (ridiculous) plans. And for what? Is the panic justified? That’s just what Nate Silver (of fivethirtyeight.com) and Jesus Diaz (of gizmodo.com) decided to show us. It turns out, as I’ve been saying, this is much ado about not much. Here’s the skinny, in one delicious infographic.

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Photo by Sean Dorgan, from here.

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While this was first preached on Christmas night, I think it’s fitting for this season — perhaps it will help us all stretch out our sense of the mystery of glorious Christmas Eve services. Enjoy these words of Isaac of Nineveh (d. 700).

This Christmas night bestowed peace on the whole world;
So let no one threaten;

This is the night of the Most Gentle One -
Let no one be cruel;

This is the night of the Humble One -
Let no one be proud.

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A picture is worth a thousand words. This chart shows that inertia is worth more than 20 million Americans. That number is a conservative guess of how many Americans will still not have health insurance if Obama’s health care plan is passed by both houses of Congress. This chart shows the big picture: America pays more for health care than any other country, but has decidedly unimpressive results. Until we have true reform, we will continue to overpay for lousy health care. And over 20 million people will suffer the brunt of our inability to change our system, as they rely on emergency rooms instead of regular care.

It’s not too late. If you are a US voter, contact your senators and representative. Demand true reform and universal health care.

Chart from National Geographic, via the Daily Dish.

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From here.

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An extraordinary video about the feelings of displacement experienced by a Korean immigrant to the US. The artist, Hye Yeon Nam, was awarded the Runner Up in the Grand Prize category of the Metropolis Art Prize 2009.

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