Category Religion
Education Museum II
It is located in a former church, which isn’t that surprising. As I have previously noted, when Ypres was rebuilt following the First World War there were a lot of churches that had been destroyed that were rebuilt just as they had been once the conflict started. A century later there is no need for […]
Believing The Hard Things
Christians celebrate Jesus’ birth today, and the rest of the world joins in because everybody loves a party. Not that he was actually born on December 25, but any day is good enough. There are historical reasons why this particular date was chosen, but I’m not going to provide a history lesson today. You probably […]
Santa’s Flight and Santa’s Fight
It was 1983, which meant there was still a news wire in the radio station newsroom. I was working Christmas Eve and was keeping watch for breaking new stories. It was a quiet night, except for the recurring item from the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), which was tracking Santa Claus’ flight across North […]
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 […]
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. […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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