The ‘saddest and yet happiest Christmas’
On the morning of December 6, 1917, what was at that time history’s largest man-made explosion erupted in Halifax harbour. Caused when a French cargo ship carrying explosives collided with a Norwegian...
View ArticleHeartwarming children’s books rework an ancient theme
Children love Christmas, so it’s hardly surprising that there’s a wealth of Christmas books for kids. We all know the classics: the perennially popular Visit from St. Nicholas (“ ’Twas the Night Before...
View ArticleChristmas stories offer homespun wisdom, nostalgia
“The promise and its fulfillment”: that phrase is apt shorthand for what Christmas means to the person of faith. And those words are nicely exemplified in the book in which we found them—Christmas with...
View ArticleA refreshing take on how to worship in and beyond the sanctuary
Worshipful is a well-written, ecumenically informed reflection on what it means for moderns to be engaged in praising God—not just in formal services of worship, but through the week as faithful...
View ArticleBook on ministry fails to gain traction
Books aimed at helping congregations and ministries respond to the presence of diverse cultures in society, and churches, are always welcome. Changing Lanes, Crossing Cultures is written with that...
View ArticleWitnessing the birth of a family
Family… Connections… At the heart of those ideas is our sense of self-identity, our very state of being: for we are, in some ways, defined by those to whom we are most closely connected. And, for most...
View ArticlePhyllis Tickle: Towering presence, prophetic vision
Phyllis Tickle: A Life will appeal to those who admire the prodigious talents of the late Episcopalian author, poet, essayist and marketing force behind North American religious book publishing. The...
View ArticleLife as improv?
God, Improv, and the Art of Living By MaryAnn McKibben Dana Eerdmans, 2018 ISBN: 978-0-8028-7464-1 230 pages All self-help and exhortation-driven books seem inevitably prone to treading precariously...
View ArticleIntimations of grace at the movies
The idea of grace is connected with the God-given gifts of virtue and redemption—worthy subjects for the person of faith to contemplate. But seeking intimations of grace at the movies can be a...
View Article‘Decolonization’ collection stimulates new ways of thinking about the Bible
Unsettling the Word: Biblical Experiments in Decolonization Edited by Steve Heinrichs; Illustrations by Jonathan Dyck Publisher: Mennonite Church Canada ISBN: 978-0-9959-7331-2 320 pages Available...
View ArticleCome from Away: Resurrection and Hope in Gander, Newfoundland
Do you remember where you were on Sept. 11, 2001? Most everyone has a story to tell about where they were on that day when the Twin Towers—centrepieces of New York City’s World Trade Center and once...
View Article‘Go and do likewise’: A review of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
In her film about children’s TV star the Rev. Fred (“Mister”) Rogers, an ordained Presbyterian minister, gifted director Marielle Heller chooses to focus not on the children for whom Mister Rogers’...
View Article‘Between Gratitude and Grief’
I shouldn’t be writing today. I should be packing CDs, getting an oil change, confirming concert details and making a checklist that includes “Don’t forget socks!”—a detail learned from experience. I...
View Article‘Who lives? Who dies? Who tells your story?’: Hamilton and the politics of...
July 2020 will be remembered for many reasons, but for fans of musical theatre like me, it will be treasured as the time when the film of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s blockbuster show Hamilton: An American...
View ArticleA journey through erased history: Kent Monkman’s Shame and Prejudice
You move through Kent Monkman’s art exhibit Shame and Prejudice: A Story of Resilience encountering found objects from Canadian museums, large canvases in the grand manner of European and American...
View ArticleKings and queens of love
In a review of the fourth season of Netflix’s “The Crown,” Dean Peter Elliott considers the intersection of royal fairy tales and sin. An estimated 750 million people worldwide watched the wedding of...
View ArticleA Parable for Pandemic Lockdown: The Map of Tiny Perfect Things
Am I the only one who needs, in these pandemic times, to be reminded what day it is? The post A Parable for Pandemic Lockdown: The Map of Tiny Perfect Things appeared first on Anglican Journal.
View ArticleEyes wide open: Race, class and gender on pandemic TV
In 1974 the feminist poet Carole Etzler wrote a song with this chorus: Sometimes I wish my eyes hadn’t been opened Sometimes I wish I could no longer see All of the pain and the hurt and the longing of...
View Article‘Contemplative Knitting’ spins a vision of prayer—stitch by stitch
Contemplative Knitting By Julie Cicora Publisher: Morehouse Publishing, 2021 168 pages ISBN: 9781640652620 Available through contemplativeknitting.com Knitting has been around for centuries, but it may...
View ArticleThe Courage to Understand and Draw Conclusions: Exterminate All the Brutes...
If you found Anglican Video’s award-winning film Doctrine of Discovery: Stolen Lands, Strong Hearts to be as powerful and disturbing as I did, you’ll want to see Exterminate All the Brutes, a four-part...
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