Monthly Archives: December 2014
The Christmas Pageant
It was the three-year-olds on stage that impressed me. Not with their cuteness, though that seemed to be what most adults were focusing on. It was their poise. I didn’t pay much attention to the song, “Away in a Manger,” I think. They weren’t singing; that was the older children’s job (further back on the […]
MLK
I have always been a black and white sort of guy, with clear ideas of what is right and what is wrong. That belief in absolutes can put me at odds with the society and culture I live in. As I grow older though, I have softened a little, I think. Not in my belief […]
Memorial Museum of the Battle of Normandy
When we visited the Juno Beach Centre I came away with a feeling of not having heard the whole story. Don’t get me wrong – we thoroughly enjoyed the Centre and spent about six hours exploring it and the Beach. But I felt like something was missing. The Memorial Museum of the Battle of Normandy, […]
York Minster V – Rest In Peace
I have no idea what plans my children have, if any, for my earthly remains. Since I am planning on living forever, or at least a good long time, the subject hasn’t come up. How we deal with the physical shell that is our body post-mortem does vary from culture to culture and time to […]
York Minster IV – The Tour
Like most churches, York Minster depends on volunteers to provide much of the labour that needs to be done. The tasks though for the 500 volunteers can be rather different from what you would find in most churches. I’ve never been asked to give a guided tour of my church, though on occasion I have […]
York Minister III – The Undercroft
Underneath York Minister Cathedral is a wealth of information, an historical museum with information that spans almost two millennia. For me that alone was worth the price of admission to the cathedral – the magnificent architecture and artwork were a bonus. This is a site with a rich history – the cathedral having been constructed […]
York Minster II – Renovations
Our visit to York Minster Cathedral stirred up conflicting emotions, to put it mildly. I still haven’t worked through exactly how I feel about the place. I was impressed by the dedication to worship and Christian witness. But the financial implications of maintaining such a heritage building are staggering. Certainly I recognize its historical significance. […]
York Minster I – Evensong
Sometimes it is the little things that catch your attention. In this case it was a worn step. Stone is a pretty durable substance. I can only imagine how many hundreds of thousands of feet it must have taken to leave an impression, to wear down the step in the choir of York Minster Cathedral. […]
On Horseback
Going through some of the photos from this year’s European vacation I noticed that there were pictures of horses almost everywhere we went. Not real horses though. Except for the ones in Caen Castle, these horses were intended as accents to the statues of the riders. So thinking that a picture is worth a thousand […]
Richard III
When we were in York, England, this past summer local people were still a little put out over the final resting place of Richard III, who died at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. Richard’s bones were discovered two years ago (identity confirmed through DNA testing) beneath a parking lot in Leicester. Sic transit gloria […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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