MARCH 2015

anglicanlife
A Section of the Anglican Journal

March 2015

NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR

Take up
thy Cross

More on Page 6

facebook.com/anglicanlife

anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

Photo: Parish of St. Augustine

twitter - @anglicanlife

Christians in unity Why Seder?

Cynthia Haines-Turner

Columnist

Roman Catholic Archbishop Martin Currie (left) greets Anglican Primate, Archbishop Fred
Hiltz (right) at Queens College for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Photo: Matt Barter
Submitted by
The Rev. Dr. Alex Faseruk

As one would expect the

Week of Prayer for Christian
Unity took on a decidedly ecumenical atmosphere at Queens
College from January 19 to January 23 with preachers from not
only the Anglican Church of Canada, but also the Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of St. Johns, the
Presbyterian Church and the
United Church.
The initial preacher was
the Most Revd Martin Currie,
Archbishop of St. Johns who
preached at the 11:00 a.m.
service of Morning Prayer on
January 19th, which celebrated
the Confession of St. Peter. The
Archbishop reflected on growing
up in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia
and living in a community that
was comprised almost equally
of one-third of Anglican, Roman
Catholic and United Church congregants, and how the communities would often come together
in a spirit of Christian fellowship.
Also in attendance at Morning Prayer was the Most Revd
Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, and the Rt.
Revd Dr. Geoff Peddle, Bishop
of the Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador. Archbishop Currie and the Primate
worked together in Nova Scotia
when both were involved in the
administration of the Atlantic
School of Theology, which for 45
years has been involved in ecumenical theological education.
At the Eucharist on January
21st, the Revd Dr. Ian Wishart, in
an ecumenical gesture, preached
in part from the Greek portion

of Esther, which appears in the

Apocrypha. While this part of
Esther is not included in the
Bible used by Presbyterians, it
is part of the Bible used by the
Roman Catholic Church. As an
experienced and highly adept
preacher, Dr. Wishat was able to
successfully weave this reading
into his sermon. He also shared
that last year the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church
had prayed for Pope Francis.
The last ecumenical partner to preach was the Rev. Bill
Bartlett from the United Church
of Canada. Revd Bartlett has
previously been involved with
Queens College as an instructor
for the clinical pastoral education
(CPE) course. He talked about
barriers in the past between
denominations that were slow-

ly, but surely, being addressed,

although some continue to exist.
He lauded Queens for their commitment to ecumenism.
The Revd Dr. Alex Faseruk in
preaching to the Queens College
community over the semester has constantly emphasized
ecumenism for Christians and
notes that the student body at
Queens encompasses several
denominations, all of which
learn from one another in the
Christ-centered curriculum at
Queens. The Roman Catholic
Archdiocese and Queens have
come to an agreement in principle to offer a very innovative
new program, the Diploma in
Theology and Ministry (Roman
Catholic Option) with a planned
starting date of Fall 2015.

A chance conversation at
a social gathering just before
Christmas got us to chatting
about the Seder meal. The
group included people who did
not know what a Seder meal
was as well as those who had
attended both a Seder celebrated by Christians on Maundy
Thursday and a Jewish Seder.
What followed was a lively
and interesting discussion.
What is a Seder? Why do we,
as Christians, celebrate Seder
and should we?
Seder means order. The
order of the service takes place
around the dinner table before
and after a meal, which can be
a symbolic meal or an actual
meal. Individuals take turns
reading from Haggadah, the
telling. The Exodus story is

Hope Bear
Photo
Contest
Take a picture
with Hope Bear
wherever you travel!

To enter, go to

www.anglicanfoundation.org

anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

told, the rich symbolism of the

Seder meal recalls the story
of the slavery in Egypt of the
Israelites, questions are asked,
symbols from the Seder plate
are explained (for example, the
bitter herbs in the Seder meal
recall the bitterness of that life,
herbs are dipped in salt water
to remind them of the tears
they shed) and how Moses
led them to freedom (the unleavened bread a reminder of
how quickly they had to leave
Egypt, so quickly there was no
time for the bread to rise). But
it is the salvation story of the
people of Israel and it holds out
the hope of the coming of the
Messiah, a Messiah that Christians believe has already come.
The Seder, therefore, is not a
Christian event but Christians
are interested in it because
many believe that it was the
last meal that Jesus shared with
his disciples. It was at that meal
that scripture tells us Jesus said
do this in remembrance of me.
We participate in this festival
to remind us of Jesus roots in
Judaism. It is also part of our
faith tradition as the Hebrew
scriptures form part of our
sacred scripture.
A few years ago, I met a
couple, one of whom was Jewish and the other Anglican,
who introduced me to two new
additions to the Seder meal, an
orange and the cup of Miriam.
As it was explained to me, these
two symbols speak of the contribution of women. Miriam,
Moses sister, led everyone in
a dance and song after they
crossed the Red Sea. According
to tradition, Miriam had the
ability to find fresh sources of
water. The orange, symbolizing fruitfulness, rebirth and
renewal, is there to represent
the inclusion of those on the
margins. Originally introduced
by Dr. Susannah Heschel, it was
intended to symbolize solidarity with gays and lesbians, but
has come to include all those
who have been marginalized
from the community.
That other symbols could
be added to the Seder meal
to represent a deeper understanding of our faith traditions
partly answers the question
of whether or not Christians
should celebrate the Seder.
When observed with respect for
its origins and its intent, it is a
strong reminder of Gods providence and of the strength and
resilience of a faith community,
including ours.

MARCH 2015

A holy Lent

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Geoff Peddle

Bishop

Eastern Newfoundland & Labrador

On February 18, the

season of Lent begins
with Ash Wednesday.
Lent is the period of
forty days (Sundays
are not counted) which
precedes Easter and is
a time of preparation in
which Christians make
ready to celebrate the
resurrection of Jesus
on Easter Sunday.
In the early centuries of the Christian
c h u rc h , t h e o b s e rvance of Lent was very
strict. Daily prayer was
obligatory and in some
places only one meal
a day was permitted,
usually in the late evening. Meat, fish, eggs
and dairy products
were forbidden. These
practices were relaxed
somewhat after the
ninth century but Lent
still retained a certain
spiritual discipline that

facebook.com/anglicanlife

we are familiar with

today.
The goal of Lenten
discipline is the restructuring of our lives
to better conform to
the example of Jesus.
This involves, firstly, an
awareness of our humility before God. Ash
Wednesday is the start
of this process when
we are reminded by
the symbol of ashes of
our mortal bodies and
their limitations (Remember you are dust,
and to dust you shall
return). And secondly,
we are challenged in
Lent to walk the path
Jesus walked, a path
of faithfulness to God
in which we devote
ourselves more fully
to prayer and acts of
charity.
During Lent we not
only give up certain
things, we also take
up other things so
that we become more
Christ-like in our lives.
Lent reminds us of our
humility and challenges us to reform our
lives in the image of
Christ. Let us keep a
holy Lent this year.
With my every
prayer for a blessed
Lent,
+Geoff

Honourary CLB
life membership

Lt. Gov. Frank Fagan (right) presents Bruce Tilley with an honourary life membership into the
Church Lads Brigade, as Bishop Geoffrey Peddle looks on . Photo: Bernard Davis
Submitted by
Captain Robert Murdoch

Colonel Albert Pelley, Governor and Commandant of the

C.L.B., takes great pleasure
in announcing that Mr. Bruce
Tilley has been awarded Honorary Life Membership in the
CLB.
A native of Bell Island,
Bruce J. Tilley was never a
youth member of the C.L.B.,
yet he held an abiding admiration for the Brigade all his
life. Mr. Tilleys first direct involvement came in 1993 when
he chaired the very successful
Door To Door operation of the
Marching Home Campaign
to rebuild our C.L.B. Armoury.
Then in 2003 at his retirement
as manager of the St. Johns
Board of Trade and when the
C.L.B. was encountering great
financial difficulties he chose

anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

to assist the Brigade in re-structuring its fundraising program.

Years later, when asked why he
chose the C.L.B. as his favourite
charity, he said I thought I
could make a difference . A difference he did make, over the
ensuing years he has presented countless papers, & reports
on all sections of our Brigade.
Since the beginning of
his involvement with the Brigade Mr. Tilley has also been
a stanch supporter of the Regimental Band, he was a driving
force behind both the fund
raising for new band uniforms
and with the recruitment and
retention of band members,
(he has also been involved in
recruiting new youth mem-

bers to CLB companies). More

recently, he has been sitting
on the committee dedicated to
raising funds for the Regimental bands 2016 Tour of Honour.
Despite other commitments
such as being a St. Johns city
councillor, Mr. Tilley has sat in
on endless committees and at
meetings, and is well known
for using his contacts and influences to further the interests
of the C.L.B.
It is with great pleasure
that the Brigade Council recognizes this tremendous body
of work of dedication and
commitment by Mr. Tilley and
hereby awards him an honorary life membership within
the C.L.B.

twitter - @anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

Highways and hedges

ANGLICAN LIFE in Newfoundland and Labrador is the newspaper
of the Anglican Church in the Province of Newfoundland and
Labrador. A co-operative effort of the three Dioceses in
Newfoundland and Labrador, it is publishes ten issues each
calendar year with an independent editorial policy.
Anglican Life is a section of the Anglican Journal
Editor:
The Revd Canon Sam Rose
8 Croydon Street
Paradise, NL
A1L 1P7
Email: samrose@nl.rogers.com
Advertising Rates and other information may be obtained from:
Bishop Donald Young
34 Fraser Road, Gander, NL, A1V 2E8
Phone: (709) 256-7701
Email: jointcommittee@nfld.net

Paid Subscription Rates:
Newfoundland and Labrador: $15.00
Outside the province: $20.00
International: $25.00
New subscriptions, cancellations, & changes of address should
be sent to:
Circulation
The Anglican Journal (attn. Bev Murphy)
80 Hayden Street, Toronto, ON, M4Y 3G2
(416) 924-9192 (O) (416) 925-8811 (fax)
Email: circulation@national.anglican.ca
Each parish is responsible for maintaining its own subscription
list - please notify your parish office of any changes. Changes
sent to parish offices may take months to take effect. Please
also send your updated information to Circulation at the
Anglican Journal (above) or to Don Young at 34 Fraser Road,
Gander NL A1V 2E8.
Articles and photographs: Send to the Editor (above)
Letters to the Editor:
Send to the Editor, Sam Rose (address as above). All letters
must include the writers name, address, and telephone
number. Telephone numbers will not be published. Anglican
Life does not publish letters under nom de plume. Letters
should not exceed 300 words (one double spaced typewritten
page), and are subject to editing at the discretion of the editor.

The Rev. Canon Sam Rose

Editor

And the lord said unto the

servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel
them to come in, that my house
may be filled. (St. Luke 14:23)
I have been inspired by
the some recent stories in this
newspaper concerning Anglicans leaving the safe confines
of their church buildings and
going out into the community
to make public declarations of
the Faith. Whether it be a church
putting a float in a Christmas
parade or walking the sacred
liturgy of the Stations of the
Cross in the streets, these are
good news stories that should
give us cause to rejoice.
I admit that it is not always
easy to wear Christianity on my
sleeve. More than once, I have
conveniently slipped off my
clerical collar when going into
a supermarket hoping not to
be noticed.
There is a tendency to think
that people must come to the
church in order to receive the
gift of Gods saving grace. And
by the church, I mean the building. How many Anglicans (and
other denominations, I would

These policies were adopted by the Anglican Life Committee.

Layout & Design by: The Editor
Printed and Mailed by:
Webnews Printing Inc.
8 High Meadow Place
North York, ON, M9L 2Z5

Circulation: 20,288
anglicanlife

imagine) have long lamented,

Why wont they just come to
church? Whats wrong? What
must we do to get the people
into the church?
Perhaps these are the right
questions but asked in the
wrong way. In seeing the courage of those Anglicans who
literally take the Gospel out into
the highways and hedges, maybe we should be asking, Why
wont the Church just go to the
people? Where does the Church
need to be in order to share the
Good News of Jesus Christ?
And by the Church, I mean, of
course, the Body of Christ - you
and me - moving out into the
places where we live, and work,
and worship.
This movement outwards
is not only a physical one, but
also a spiritual exercise. In the
Gospels, Jesus is usually found
in the middle of peoples messy
lives and offers them new life.
The more we read of Jesus
mingling with the crowds, the
more we see Gods Kingdom
being released and lived out.
Even when Jesus retreats from
the busy demands of his life
and ministry, people still seek
him out.
I just spent an incredible
week on retreat at the Shrine of
Our Lady of Walsingham in England. Being on retreat meant
taking time to get away and
be closer with Jesus through
worship, silence, prayer, and
reflection. Every day we spent
one hour of corporate silent
prayer before the Blessed Sacrament which was exposed on
the Altar. As I gazed on the
glorious Monstrance containing
the Blessed Host and smelled
the sweet incense wafting in the
air, it was, as St. Peter declared

on the Mount of Transfiguration,

indeed good to be here.
However, after the retreat
ended, I found myself walking
through the loud and busy
streets of London where no
silence or stillness could be
found. On the way to the Underground to catch the Tube, I kept
noticing people sitting on the
sidewalks with hands extended
begging for some spare change.
They sat there in the cold, often
in dirty rags, begging for help.
As I walked by them, I kept
thinking of something I read
from the late Anglo-Catholic
Bishop Frank Weston who said
in 1923, You cannot claim to
worship Jesus in the Tabernacle
if you do not pity Jesus in the
slumIf you are Christians then
your Jesus is one and the same:
Jesus on the Throne of his glory,
Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament,
Jesus received into your hearts
in Communion, Jesus with you
mystically as you pray, and Jesus
enthroned in the hearts and
bodies of his brothers and sisters
up and down this country.You
have got your Mass, you have got
your AltarNow go out into the
highways and hedgesGo out
and look for Jesus in the ragged,
in the naked, in the oppressed
and sweated, in those who have
lost hope, in those who are struggling to make good. Look for Jesus. And when you see him, gird
yourselves with his towel and try
to wash their feet. (Our Present
Duty, Anglo-Catholic Congress,
1923. By Frank Weston, Bishop
of Zanzibar. Published by the
Society of Ss Peter and Paul,
London, n.d.)
Indeed, Jesus is already out
in the world and he is calling
you and me to come and serve
Him.

MARCH 2015

Holy Cross in Daniels Harbour

No definition

Allison Billard

Columnist

On Saturday, November 22, 2014, the congregation of Holy Cross

Anglican Church celebrated 50 years of ministry in the community
of Daniels Harbour. Archdeacon John Meade celebrate at the Holy
Eucharist and retired Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Leonard Whitten offer the
homily. Also at the time of the fellowship, Mrs. Hannah Pittman and
Rev. Terry Rose cut the anniversary cake. The congregation, diocese,
and the wider community offer thanks of gratitude to allwho made
this celebration success. Holy CrossAnglican Church looks forward
with great faith to the new model of cluster ministry in their parish.
Photograph and story submitted by the Rev. Terry Rose

facebook.com/anglicanlife

anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

I often wonder what

our Creator thinks about
our society and our need
to define every little aspect of our humanity. Ive
been thinking a lot about
one of those definitions
lately and Ive discovered
that the way we talk about
gender is frustrating.
It is probably not a
secret that I count myself
among the multitude of
feminists out there working every day towards
better equity and equality
between the sexes. I think
everyone should get a
fair wage for their work,
I think we should all treat
each other with respect,
and I believe that if we all
just looked out for each
other the world would
surely be a better place.
I also count myself
among the pink loving,
dress wearing, lets just
put on some makeup and
paint our nails kind of
girls. But I also love my
jeans, and sweatpants,
and spending the evening watching hockey.
I am also a mom of
two rambunctious and
mischievous boys. Boys
who love dirt and noise
and trucks and trains.
They also love playing
house, watching Dora

the Explorer, and playing

dress up. They like to read
stories, sing songs, and
play music (which typically involves banging
mercilessly on my upright
piano until I cannot bear
it any more).
The study of science
has shown us that boys
and girls often develop
differently, but there are
no blanket truths. Stereotypes are simply that,
gross generalizations that
may apply to some but
not to others. This reality
is what fueled the fire
under the Pretty in Pink
movement in response
to a single hate-filled
opinion piece about girls
wearing pink. There was
mass outrage that anyone
would openly express
(and a paper publish)
such a nasty column directed at small children.
Thankfully, I have seen
many wonderful responses which restored my
faith in humanity.
But I often wonder
how our Creator feels
about these things. He
created us male and female, and gave us free
will, hoping that we would
choose to love and follow
him. No where do we find
it written that boys must
like and do certain things
and girls another. This is
all cultural, and changes
in each generation.
I hope we can stand
back from the stereotypes and the controversies and the differences
in opinion and accept
that each of us, young
and old, male and female,
are all created in Gods
image, and he loves us
just the way we are. If he
can grant us that, surely
we can grant it to each
other, no?

twitter - @anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

Photos: Parish of St. Augustine

Taking faith to the streets

Submitted by
Archdeacon David Pilling

How do we successfully proclaim the Good

News to our neighbourhood? How do we seek
to go beyond the walls
of our church building and go out into
the world to proclaim?
These questions have
shaped much
of my theological thinking, and thus
my ministry, in
recent years.
Th e s e q u e s tions have also
begun to shape
how I lead and
serve within the
worship capacity of my position.
Becoming
the Story you
tell was presented to the
Clergy of this
province in early November
2013. I believe
it is one of the
most complete
offerings that
our church has
produced since
publishing the
Book of Alternate Services in 1985. It was designed for the Seasons
of Lent and Easter and
offers some very practical and doable suggestions for the liturgy,
the proclamation of the
Gospel and Bible Studies. The premise suggests that we are meant
to be more than mere
spectators in our worship life and that our lit-

urgy should shape and

mold our profession of
belief. Worship should
shape our profession of
belief to the point that
we do become part of
the story we tell.
As we engaged this
program, our Deacon,
the Revd Bob Earle was
able to recruit actors
from within the parish

We w e r e s o i n trigued by this program

that we wanted to find a
new way of proclaiming
the message on our
Churchs most solemn
day. We chose to engage our neighbourhood, Memorial University, with a liturgical
retelling of the Way of
the Cross. Combining

public statement, that

churches across the
spectrum of practice, to
join together in witness
on our most solemn
day, and by allowing so
many within our midst
to carry the cross across
campus, to proclaim
scripture and to pray
together, we found new
ways to become the sto-

who would each take a

role as the Gospel was
acted out, and not just
read. The use of the
entire worship space of
the church to make this
possible allowed each
worshipper to experience both the surprise
of the Gospels message and the passion of
Jesus as He told these
wonderful parables
heard every Lent.

with the clergy and congregations of Pius X Roman Catholic, St Davids

Presbyterian, Emmanuel Chinese Congregation, Pentecost Church
on Campus, Denominational Chaplaincies
of Memorial and us, St
Augustines Anglican,
we did the 14 Stations
of the Cross. This was
wonderfully refreshing
for we were making a

ry we tell and to engage

our neighbours. We
did find that a variety of
people spontaneously
joined us in our progression.
We had invited our
Bishop, The Rt Revd
Dr. Geoff Peddle to be
with us at the beginning of our journey,
when we had the International Gospel Choir
of Newfoundland and

anglicanlife

Labrador, comprising
manly Anglicans from
a number of African
countries, to lead in the
musical ministry of our
Church and we invited
him back again for the
last Sunday of Easter
for a service of Confirmation. During this service, through song (Sesame Streets, Who is the
person in your
neighbourhood?) And visual (pictures
of our Good
Friday Stations
of the Cross),
we presented
our neighbourhood to our
Bishop. After
the confirmation, Bishop
Geoff invited
the Congregation to come
forward, to
seek anointing
as we affirmed
the growth we
had experienced by becoming the story we tell.
This Lent
we are again
pleased that
we will be using the program, Becoming the Story you
tell. We are even more
pleased, that on April
3, 2015, Good Friday at
12:00 noon, the churches located on Elizabeth
Avenue in St Johns will
again be worshipping
t o g e t h e r a s c o l l e ctively we engage our
neighbourhood with
the Greatest Story Ever
Told.

MARCH 2015

Prayer quilts help warm hearts

The Parish of Bonne
Bay North Prayer
Quilt Group donated
six prayer quilts for
children and adults to
the Transition House
in Corner Brook. Angela Decker, Chair of
the Rocky Harbour
Regional Womens
Committee, accepted the donation of
the Prayer Quilts
on behalf of Transition House (Corner
Brook) and graciously volunteered to ensure the quilts are
dropped off to the facility. Photograph and story
submitted by Dale Decker.

A growing parish
Submitted by
Eugene Toope

The Anglican Parish of

Windsor-Bishops Falls recently swelled its numbers
in that St. Albans Church
at Grand Falls-Windsor
increased its roster by
having ten new members
officially join and be received into the Anglican
Faith.
It is noted that The
Anglican Parish of Windsor-Bishops Falls recently
appointed the Rev. Jeffrey
Blackwood as Rector of
our Parish and we offer
our Congratulations and
Best Wishes. Rev. Jeff, as
he prefers to be called,
hails from Greenspond,
Bonavista Bay. He received
his early Education and
High School at Greenspond and Wesleyville.
Throughout his high
facebook.com/anglicanlife

school years Rev. Jeff was

employed with Tourism.
He completed BA/Religious studies at Memorial
University and while there
was employed as a page at
the Newfoundland House

of Assembly
He attended Queens
College and did Chaplaincy work at Cape Breton NS
Health Authority as well as
a clergy placement at St.
Marys Anglican Church,
anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

St. Johns, and an Internship at Fogo Island. He

also served briefly at his
home parish of Greenspond-Newtown-Pound
Cove in Bonavista Bay.
Rev. Jeff comes to us

having served two years

as Rector of the Anglican
Parish of Bay LArgent,in
Fortune Bay.

twitter - @anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

Clicky clackers

Ron Clarke

Columnist

Recently I had to visit

our family doctor. Nothing
terminal, mind you, just
something that had to be
looked into (literally).
The waiting room was
jammed, as I expected it
to be, and so, there were
only two empty chairs left
in a corner. I settled down,
expecting a long wait.
Almost immediately

a little old lady came

to occupy the last empty
chair, right next to me. It
turned out that she was
exactly my age (85), so
conversation came easily.
Look at all the people,
she mused. Were the
only old ones!
After our usual howare-yous, etc., we noticed
something very interesting about all the others.
Look at all those
flat things theyve got in
their hands, she said,
and theyre all clicking
away with both hands.
They dont seem to know
theres anybody but themselves here.
Ive seen people doing that everywhere she
said, even on the bus, in
the malls, everywhere.
Of course Ive never seen them do that
in church, she stated,
because theyre never
in church; Im sure they

would click away if they

were.
Isnt it amazing,
though, how much electronic devices have taken
over our communications
with each other!
Is that really all good??
Electronic communication, it seems, takes far
too much of our time.
Some retired friends of
mine tell me they spend
much of their time that
way. Retirement could
provide them all kinds of
opportunity to do things
that would help others,
and give them great satisfaction. Volunteering, for
example, or visiting other
elders who are stuck in
various places where they
would dearly appreciate
company.
Family time is often
diluted by electronics. I
visited a relative recently
for some family chit-chat
and pleasure. The moth-

er, I discovered, was engrossed in game shows

on TV. Both teens were
clicking on their gadgets
and gave me only a quick
hi. Father and I retired to
the kitchen.
I know the advantages of being wired-tothe-world, but modern
communications, to me
at least, seem so impersonal.
Even the lowly old
telephone connects people more personally. You
hear the warm voice.
Then, too, electronic
devices, can be and so often are, abused. Scams
etc. hurt far too many people far too often.
Electronic devices can
be, and are, very powerful
shapers of our attitudes.
The good and evil seen on
TV, etc. can strongly influence children and youth.
Negative attitudes can be
especially powerful. Peo-

ple have killed sometimes

just for the notoriety.
Electronic communication is only one aspect of
modern living that is double-sided, that can be real
good, but also real bad.
We who truly believe
in Jesus Christ must be
acutely aware of the dangers that face us today. We
must not merely observe
whats going on around
us; we must be really active, in word and deed,
in promoting the Good
word of the gospel. We
must live in such a way
that we really illustrate to
others how meaningful,
how wonderful, it is to live
for Christ.
Electronic and mechanical devices will
eventually disappear. The
things of the world, however interesting, will become obsolete.
The word, and the ways
of God, will last FOREVER.

The churchs business is friendship

Rev. Canon Gerald Westcott

Columnist

Ive read somewhere

recently that loneliness
is epidemic in Canada.
Our technology, social media and Internet
connectedness, as important and useful as
they are, can in no way
meet the deeper needs
of the human soul. The
human heart is made
for friendship with God
and with others. In our
fragmented, distracted
and disconnected society, the church should
be a place of warm wel-

come and intentional

friendship.
At one level in the
life of the church, we
need to foster an open
presence and friendship with all those who
come across our path.
Not just with those
who look and think like
you, but especially with
those who are different
than you. Friendship
with God is inclusive
of all souls and all of
creation. There are
risks involved in this
open stance to friendship. Being open and
present to someone
who challenges your
comfort zone translates
into being willing to be
stretched and changed
yourself.
We recognize the
place and value of
community friendship,
but the soul also needs
friendship on a more intimate level. There can
be people in our lives
who share common
interests and living experiences whom we are

called into friendship

with. Such friendships
can be found supportive in family life, professional living, and
a multitude of social
settings.
Probably the most
important form of
friendship is the soul
friend (or Anam Cara in
the Celtic tradition). A
soul friend is someone
you can share deeper
movements of heart
and spirit. It is someone who can help you
recognize barriers and
obstacles in our egos
and minds, as we open
up to our deeper spiritual hearts. This deeper
spiritual heart is our
truest self made in the
image of God. A life is
more fully lived when
lived out of this deep
place of loving union,
and deep place of
friendship. Soul friends,
by opening spiritual
hearts, each to the other, experience deep
love which pours out
upon all other friend-

anglicanlife

ships and relationships.

The Churchs business is friendship. So
lets be intentional on
being friends with
those in our church,
friends with our community and beyond,
and friends with God
- our longed for Friend.
In the human heart
there is a natural longing
for friendship.
Friendship
that promises
more life,

in an unfolding
mysterious
experience.
Where
friendship and living
become synonymous.
Where
loving constantly
is still not enough.
Where
the friend reveals the
longed for Friend.

MARCH 2015

Blessing of the animals

Submitted by
Willie Loder

On October 11, 2014 on

Thanksgiving weekend the people and animals in Marys Harbour, Labrador were blessed by
the Rev. Gail Coley McDonald
in St. Mary the Virgin Church.
There were dogs, rabbits, budgie birds, and their owners,
along with visitors.
I visited Mary Harbour for
Thanksgiving weekend to be
friends who brought their two
dogs to the service. Rev. MacDonald has blessed the animals
every year since coming to
serve in the Parish of Southeast
Labrador. This service was also
Rev. McDonald's final one since
she has moved to the parish of
St. Thomas in St. Johns.
It was a beautiful and blessed weekend and we have lots to
give thanks for by being there.

Remain where you are

The Rev. Everett Hobbs

Columnist

A brother went to see

Abba Moses, a desert monk,
and asked him for a word. The
old man said, Go and sit in
your cell and your cell will
teach you everything. (Sayings of the Desert Fathers)
The desert monks of the
early Church lived lives of
solitude, having little contact
with others. Essentially they
were by themselves - and
with God. The cell was their
home, usually a cave or a hut
in an isolated place. Their
lives consisted of praying, fasting keeping vigil, scripture
reading, doing penitence and
manual labour. Engaged in
facebook.com/anglicanlife

this way against a background

of solitude and silence, they
sought the truth about themselves and God.
This way of life contains
a great wisdom but few can
live like the desert fathers
and mothers or contemplative
monastics today. How can
we practice staying in our
cell? We need time to be
alone and find out what is false
in our lives, our deceptions
and denials, our fantasies and
illusions, our irritations and
projections, our shallowness
and superficiality, our conformity and disguises, our
vulnerability and weakness,
our ambiguities and questions and the list goes on. It
is what Jung calls the shadow
side of life. Unearthing this
false self is how we become
our true self. Confronting
the shadow can be a painful
business and so we avoid
it. Pascal claims that all the
troubles that we have come
from not being able to stay
in our chambers Once we
undertake the practice of
staying in our cell, we will
find it becoming a place of
love and light, a place where
God dwells. The Light shines

in the darkness, showing us

our true condition, what we
are really like, what needs to
be removed and healed, what
we can be, what God wants us
to be. It requires making time
for solitude and silence, even
15 minutes daily.
Another form of staying
in your cell is how we deal
with our difficulties and challenges. How do we handle
lifes problems and pain? Do
we face them head-on or find
ways of escaping them? Staying in your cell means to stay
with the situations or people
causing grief, to remain where
you are, especially what we
dread. We may be inclined
to run away, distancing ourselves physically or emotionally. Instead we need first to
accept and them embrace
what is going on.
Those becoming Benedictine monks make a vow of
stability. It means to stay in
a particular community and
live with the same people
the rest of their lives. You will
only find fullness of life where
you are now: changing your
circumstances will not make
it easier, rather delay it as you
may be running away from
anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

your self. If a situation is abusive and damaging, you may

need to escape it.
We need to recognize the
many ways we avoid staying
in our cell. Two obvious ones
are distractions and busyness,
as we fill up our lives with
possessions and activity which
take up all our time and there
is no space for solitude and
silence.

There are various tools

that others use in helping to
identify false self and find the
true self: Examen, lectio divina, journaling, dreamwork,
MBTI personality profile, the
Enneagram., stages of faith
theory, Rule of Life
The desert testing of Jesus
can be seen as staying in your
cell. Lent can be a time for us
to spend more time in our cell.

Go where life takes you, but plan ahead.

As a free spirit, you rarely look back. But you

should look ahead - especially to protect your
loved ones when youre no longer there.
All it takes is a little preplanning.
Decide now on the funeral options and funding
arrangements that best meet your needs. Youll
lessen the burden for those who are left behind.
To learn more, call the number below. Well send
you a free Wishes and Memories Planning Guide.
Well also provide you with a no-obligation
consultation.
So make your plans, today.
Then follow your path wherever it leads.

FUNERAL HOMES
Preplanning
Crematorium
Chapel
Monuments
Flowers

Corner Brook Deer Lake

Stephenville Crossing
Port aux Basques Burgeo
Port au Choix Lanse au Loup
Happy Valley - Goose Bay

634-0077 1-888-868-6800
During your most difficult times... we are here to serve you.

6102663

twitter - @anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

10

Environmental stewardship

The Rev. Greg Mercer

Columnist

The earth is the Lords

and all that is in it, the world
and those who live in it
(Psalm 24:1).
Blessed are you, O
Lord... forever and ever.
Yours, O Lord, are the greatness, the power, the glory,
the victory, and the majesty;
for all that is in the heavens
and on the earth is yours;

yours is the kingdom, O

Lord... for all things come
from you, and of your own
have we given you (1st
Chronicles 29:10,11, 14).
The nature of all resources come from God and belongs to God. Search the
Scriptures, from Genesis
right through to the New
Testament, and you will
discover Gods unique relationship with creation.
Equally important is that
he has commissioned us as
stewards to act responsibly
in how we care for what
belongs to God. Sad to
say, this is not always the
case and just the opposite
happens we destroy Gods
creation, sometimes unknowingly and other times
completely indifferent to it
as if we own it. But not only
does Scripture support the
notion of environmental
stewardship, as Christians
we pray about this in our

churches. How can we pray

about something and not be
prepared to do something
about it, not even to speak
out about it.
Not all environmental
issues are easy to resolve.
Some are great moral issues
that only those in the top
levels of Government have
the power to resolve, like
the production and burning
of fossil fuels and its effects
on climate change. For
years now scientists have
been telling us that climate
change, and especially global warming, is considered to
be one of the most pressing
and severe global environmental problems facing
humanity. And the effects
of this are only going to escalate in the future causing
monumental problems for
generations to come. What
do we do; what can we do?
Our economy transportation, electricity, jobs, and

much more -- depend on

fossil-fuels. But then again
we measure our stewardship
by healthy ecosystems and
sustainable, responsible
consumptions.
We can start by learning
as much as we can about the
effects of CO 2 released from
fossil fuels, and its effects on
climate change. As stewards
of Gods creation we can certainly find better and safer
ways to heat our homes.
Where possible we can car
pool to work. All this is to say
that there are any numbers
of small steps that we can do
as Christians who pray about
these things.
But environmental stewardship is not just about
the effects of fossil fuels on
climate change. Every time
we drive an animal to near
extinction we are destroying
Gods creation. Littering
is a big problem; what we
throw in our garbage is a big

problem -- plastic bags in

particular are a huge danger
to wildlife and create havoc
for the environment costing
our economy millions of
dollars every year. This is
one area where we can make
a significant difference; it is
just a matter of reducing,
reusing, and recycling.
As Christian Stewards we
have a responsibility to pray
and to care for what belongs
to God, and truthfully we can
make a difference. Read
your Bible and learn how
the care of Gods creation
is a moral issue. Join other
Christians and take a stand
on what matters to God.
Contact elected officials and
let them know the environment cannot sustain greed
and exploitation. Write your
local newspaper or your
church paper or start a blog.
Everything we do as a steward of Gods creation is an act
of service and worship.

Legacy giving thriving in England

Kevin Smith

Columnist

An article in a recent
edition of the CHURCH
TIMES wondered what
impact the death of the
baby boomer generation in the United King-

dom would have on legacy giving or as we call

it in Canada, planned
giving.
The writer Rachel
Giles reported that the
Church of England receives more than 5000
legacies each year
worth about 44.2 British
Pounds or 82.6 Canadian
dollars. Earlier she wrote
that the UK legacy market generated more than
2 billion British Pounds
per year and continues,
Only 6 per cent of people leave a legacy in their
will but this 6 per cent
provides 13 per cent of
all incomes to charities
in the UK. In addition,
she quotes statistics that

show that death rates

are lower now than they
were a decade ago. She
also writes that demographic shifts are going
to mean further opportunities for charities:
From 2020, the baby-boomers generation people who were
born between 1946 and
1957 will start to die in
increasing numbers. This
group represents 22 per
cent of the population
of the UK. From 2020
onwards, deaths will
start to climb, peaking
in around 2040......Rising
care costs for the boomer generation could potentially erode legacy
gifts too. If people are
living longer with high
care costs, says Simon
Burne of the Childrens
Society, it is possible
that when they die, the
amount of money left
will be reduced, because
assets have been remortgaged or sold off.
Ms Giles wondered
how the Church of England viewed the impending changes in so-

anglicanlife

ciety. She interviewed

Eleanor Gill, the legacy
fund raising officer at the
Church of England who
says, We are aware that
people are living longer,
and the cost of living is
increasing, and we will
always encourage individuals to remember
their family first....But,
no matter how large or
small, each gift can make
a significant impact on
a churchs ministry and
mission. People have
chosen to support the
work of their church for
hundreds of years, and I
believe they will continue to show that support.
Ms Gill notes that
like many charities, the
Church of England is
talking more openly
about the importance of
making a will and leaving a legacy. As a sector,
were communicating
more effectively, and
sharing stories where
a legacy gift has made
a real difference to our
work. She continues,
Fund raising is evolving
and there will always

be new and innovative

ways to support your
favourite causes; but
legacy giving will never
be replaced.
Thats an interesting
point of view from across
the water and not unlike
what is happening in
the Anglican Church of
Canada. Our planned
giving program, under
the national direction of
Archdeacon John Robertson at General Synod,
is thriving and, I suspect,
will continue to do well
into the future.
Kevin Smith is the gift
planning consultant for the
Anglican Church of Canada.
He can be contacted at 709
739-5667 or by email:
kevinsmith709@gmail.com

The deadline for

submissions to
Anglican Life is
the 1st day of
the month

MARCH 2015

11

Laurence Coughlan
lifetimes. Their parents
were prominent Tories in
Columnist
England. Tories at this time
This article was great- regarded themselves as
ly assisted by an item descendants of the Stuart
in the Encyclopedia of line of the monarchs of
Newfoundland and Lab- England.
Whatever the affairs
rador(1981), Volume 1,
pp. 548-49. Readers who between churches, Lauhave further interest in the rence Coughlan was subReverend Mr. Coughlan sequently ordained by the
should attempt to consult Bishop of London and was
this article by Catherine appointed to the Mission
F. Horan which includes of Harbour Grace and
a bibliography of writ- Carbonear in Newfoundings on Mr. Coughlan. Ms. land and arrived there
Horans work is especially in either 1765 or 1766.
relevant for information on There is some question if
Mr. Coughlans non New- he had been living there
foundland life for which in- before these dates and
formation is often skimpy. had returned to England
Laurence Coughlan to be ordained. His Irish
was born and grew up in heritage and his fluency
Ireland. It is assumed that in the Irish language may
he converted from Roman have made him attractive
Catholicism to the new for preaching to the large
doctrine of Methodism by number of Irish settlers in
the Wesley Brothers in the Conception Bay.
Mr. Coughlan may have
early 1750s. He became
one of John Wesleys first arrived at his mission at the
converts in Ireland, but beginning of September
there seems to have been 1766. There were 5621
some doubt about the rest persons living in Concepof Coughlans life, as we tion Bay in 403 families
know it. It may very well of which there were 4494
be a fact that the barriers English persons and 1127
between faith groups were Irish persons. He notes
more flexible in those years that Natives(English?) atespecially when it came to tended church regularly
recruiting missionaries and some Irish came to
for distant colonies. It has hear Mr. Coughlan preach
been suggested that the in their native language.
Wesleys regarded them- There were 90 children
selves as retaining a con- in Harbour Grace able
nection with the Church to go to school. He hired
of England during their Mr. George Jenner to be
David Davis

facebook.com/anglicanlife

school master, temporally

approved by the Society
for the Propagation of
the Gospel(SPG) which
paid for the upkeep of the
missions. Mr. Jenner was
the nephew of Edward
Jenner who developed

by The Rev. Mr. Clinch

at Trinity obtained the
smallpox vaccine to try in
Newfoundland.
Mr. Coughlan established a chapel about five
miles from the church
and planned to build a

the treatment for smallpox,

a widespread disease in
the England at the time.
Mr. Jenner left the school
because the salary of 16
was too low. Mr. Jenner
was the means where-

good house for the 30

boys and 12 girls who
attended the school. In
1770 he established the
practice of having communion once a month and on
greater intervals at places

anglicanlife.blogspot.ca

around the Bay in eighty

communities. In c.1771
Mr. Coughlan found a new
school master for Harbour
Grace, Mr. Griggs, who
was given a certificate by
the Governor. The lack of
a school house and other
needs slowed the usefulness of the school master.
In 1774 Mr. Coughlan
returned to England and
met the SPG and resigned.
Although Coughlan
did not return to Newfoundland there is some
evidence that he corresponded with people in
Newfoundland, such as
a letter referring to John
Stretton of Harbour Grace
(see the article by the writer in Anglican Life, June
2008).
Mr. Coughlans leaving of Newfoundland has
been ascribed to ill health
brought on by the harsh
weather and his vigorous work schedule covering a large area such as
Conception Bay, but an
equally likely cause was
his desire to ameliorate
the working conditions
of the servant-fishermen.
One of the things he tried
to introduce was one day
of rest per week (Sunday)
which was opposed by
the merchant-planters, the
employers. They lobbied
the Governor to hobble
Mr. Coughlans efforts.
Mr. Coughlans background may not have endeared him to the established inhabitants such as
George Davis, one of the
leading merchants of the
area who led a campaign
against Mr. Coughlan.
The Channel Islands
merchant-sea captains
seem to have been anti-Coughlan and they were
particularly influential
in Harbour Grace. They
held many of the waterfront fishing rooms at the
time. These rooms were
especially convenient for
unloading and processing
of fish.
Mr. Couglans influence was continued in
Newfoundland in the development of Methodism.

twitter - @anglicanlife

MARCH 2015

12

St. Giles turns 50

The Church of St. Giles
celebrated their 50th
Anniversary. In attendance were numerous
clergy as well as the
Honourable Darin King,
past and present congregation
members,
and the Rev. Gloria Wendover, the parish priest.
Everyoneenjoyed a celebrating worship service
that was presided over
by Canon Tom Moulton.
In Honour of St. Giles
Anglican Churchs 50th
anniversary the Honourable Judy Foote sent a
plaque to commemorate the occasion. Later all enjoyed a potluck
luncheon provided by
church members. The
eldest lady, Mrs. Louise Cluett, aged 98 and
Mr. Melvin Grandy, the
eldest man, age 88 cut
the cake with Rev Wendover. The celebration
was on September 28th
2014. Photograph and story

submitted by Robynn Toal.

anglicanlife

NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR

YES! I enjoy reading Anglican Life. Enclosed is

my donation of support:
$25

$50

$100

Other $___

NAME _________________________________________
TELEPHONE ( ________ ) _____________________________
ADDRESS _______________________________________
TOWN _________________________________________
PROVINCE __________ POSTAL CODE ______________________
PARISH ________________________________________
EMAIL _________________________________________

Method of payment:

Mail your gift to:

Anglican Life
34 Fraser Road
Gander, NL
A1V 2E8

Cheque

Credit Card
VISA

Mastercard

Card #____________________________
Expiry (Month) __________ (Year) _________
Signature__________________________

YES, I wish to receive an Income Tax Receipt

Charity Reg No. 107020232 RR0001

anglicanlife

Lenten Communion
by Katharine Tynan

Rest in a friends house, Dear, I pray:

The way is long to Good Friday,
And very chill and grey the way.
No crocus with its shining cup,
Nor the gold daffodil is up,
Nothing is here save the snowdrop.
Sit down with me and taste good cheer:
Too soon, too soon, Thy Passions here;
The wind is keen and the skies drear.
Sit by my fire and break my bread.
Yea, from Thy dish may I be fed,
And under Thy feet my hair spread!
Lord, in the quiet, chill and sweet,
Let me pour water for Thy feet,
While the crowd goes by in the Street.
Why wouldst Thou dream of spear or sword,
Or of the ingrate rabble, Lord?
There is no sound save the song of a bird.
Let us sit down and talk at ease
About Thy Fathers business.
(What shouts were those borne on the breeze?)
Nay, Lord, it cannot be for Thee
They raise the tallest cross of the three
On yon dark Mount of Calvary!
So soon, so soon, the hours flown!
The glorys dying: Thou art gone
Out on Thy lonely way, alone.
Katharine Tynan (18591931)

Irish nationalist writer Katharine Tynan was born in Clondalkin,

a suburb of Dublin, in 1859. She was educated at the Dominican Convent of St. Catherine and started writing at a young age.
Though Catholic, she married a Protestant barrister; she and her
husband lived in England before moving to Claremorris, in County Mayo. Tynan was friends with W.B. Yeats and Charles Parnell.
Involved in the Irish Literary Revival, Tynan expressed concern
for feminist causes, the poor, and the effects of World War Itwo
sons fought in the warin her work. She also meditated on her
Catholic faith. A prolific writer, she wrote more than 100 novels,
12 collections of short stories, reminiscences, plays, and more than
a dozen books of poetry, among them Louise de la Vallire and
Other Poems (1885), Shamrocks (1887), Ballads and Lyrics (1891),
Irish Poems (1913), The Flower of Peace: A Collection of the Devotional Poetry of Katharine Tynan (1914), Flower of Youth: Poems
in Wartime (1915), and Late Songs (1917). She died in 1931.
(Source: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/katharine-tynan)