This Is Where We Live

I've been learning a lot lately about the affordable housing crisis in Canada. After the Great Wars, we had a series of governments that made investments in social and affordable housing, but since the 80s, almost nothing has been done. As a result, a lot of the subsidized housing for people living on the poverty line has become run down and less than suitable for habitation even as rental fees increase. 

Our governments throw around a lot of big numbers when it comes to talking about their investments in affordable housing, but what many people don't realize is that those are often past years' numbers on repeat, while housing needs continue to increase year by year. The rising number of homeless people on our streets is indicative of our governments' failure to actually invest in housing for those living on the margins over the last 30+ years. It seems they prefer to throw money at temporary shelters in the winter! 

What governments forget is that people with permanent roofs over their heads don't require the vast amounts of taxpayer funds that homeless folks do when it comes to shelters, mental health and addictions treatment, basic medical care, and wrap-around services.

If a society's success is based on how well it treats its most vulnerable citizens, a walk around our downtown core indicates that ours is far from successful. 

Local filmmaker Eric Rice has put together what promises to be a powerful little movie of re-enacted interviews with people living on the streets here in Edmonton. It's showing at the Garneau Theatre on the National Housing Day of Action, Tuesday, November 22 at 7 p.m. It will be followed with a panel discussion. Tickets are $10 in advance, at This-Is-Where-We-Live.eventbrite.com, with funds supporting the work of the Edmonton Coalition on Housing and Homelessness (ECOHH).

If you're in the Edmonton area, I hope to see you there. And if you want to help me promote this event, leave a comment in the box below. Thanks!

God is ecumenical

Here's a definition of ecumenical, according to Merriam-Webster:

ec·​u·​men·​i·​cal | \ ˌe-kyə-ˈme-ni-kəl  , -kyü- \

Definition of ecumenical

1a: of, relating to, or representing the whole of a body of churches

b: promoting or tending toward worldwide Christian unity or cooperation

2: worldwide or general in extent, influence, or application

Of course, if we're talking about God, who isn't just focused on Christians, definition #2 is the better choice. God is all of those #2 things!

As a cradle Catholic, I absorbed the somewhat divisive mindset that we Catholics had a direct line to God -- well, more direct than anybody else because of Jesus and all that apostolic tradition, or so we liked to think. Of course, it took a while for me to understand that all sorts of other spiritual traditions were around for millennia before Jesus, and that they also held the beauty, goodness, and truth that is God's. Faith in God is "worldwide or general in extent, influence or application," indeed.

Fortunately, I had lots of little ecumenical experiences as I grew up -- starting with having friends who weren't Catholic -- or even Christian. Each of those experiences taught me more about other versions of God's goodness, truth, and beauty, broadening my understanding. I was also fortunate to be surrounded by adults who, for the most part, weren't black and white thinkers, and didn't discourage me from learning about the faith of others, or sharing my faith with them. 

The only big problem was that my friends weren't allowed to partake fully in the meal of thanksgiving shared in my church because they hadn't converted to Catholicism. For me, this has always made very little sense, because God knows our hearts and works in each of us in different ways -- why should we all have to believe exactly the same way before sharing a eucharistic meal? At my present Sunday community, the Community of Emmanuel in the inner city, no one is turned away, and the embrace of God is real. I often walk into God's embrace with tears trickling down my cheeks. No one should ever be excluded!

When a friend invited me to help her lead Taizé prayer in Edmonton some 30 years ago, I found an ecumenical home that seemed to fit. And when I walked into the Church of Reconciliation in the Community of Taizé in June of 2014, I found myself on my knees, in tears of joy because the holiness/wholeness of the place was tangible. Even the Syrian Muslim refugees staying with the Brothers at the time prayed with us and ate of the beautiful, fresh, delicious bread of morning eucharist. I wallowed in the Spirit of ecumenism in a church that was home for everyone regardless of their belief, found deep communion in a bible study with a group of strangers whose beliefs were somewhat different than mine, and came away more ecumenical than capital C Catholic, I'm afraid.

Since then, participation in Taizé prayer has become even more meaningful to me. When Covid shut the world and our churches down in March 2020, the Community of Taizé held a prayer broadcast every night via their Facebook Page or Youtube channel, and the online community attended by the tens of thousands (me included, 83 days running). The community continues to broadcast prayer daily and weekly, a blessing for those who want to pray in that beautiful place but can't visit in person.

Faith is faith, and God loves it in all of us. If you are ecumenically inclined and live in the Edmonton area, I invite you to come and pray one Sunday evening per month with our local Taizé community (see poster below). All are welcome. Bring friends!

Ukraine in our hearts and souls

News from Ukraine is, too often, heartbreaking. I cheered when the Kerch Strait Bridge in Crimea was put out of commission (a prayer for the brave truck driver...) but realized retaliation was coming too. And the reaction of the perpetrators of this war has been to create further devastation, though the people of Ukraine continue to stand as strong as they can under the barrage. All we can hope and pray for seems to be a miraculous change of heart for the perpetrators, and continuing blessings and courage for the people of Ukraine as they live through hell on earth.

I'm sure we all know people who are affected by this, who have loved ones in Ukraine to worry about. So when I received an email from Irena asking me to promote a concert in support of Ukraine, I decided to share the information here, and wherever else I can. As Irena noted, the guardian angels of the Ukrainian people must be exhausted, so a little prayer, love, and fundraising here is something we can do to keep Ukraine and its people in our hearts and souls...

I leave you with a video that Irena sent of a song/prayer that will be sung at the October 29th concert, "A Ukrainian Prayer" by John Rutter. Powerful music that I hope to hear in person... maybe I'll see you there.

Giving thanks

Yesterday at Community of Emmanuel, during our Sunday Thanksgiving service, I was suddenly struck by the strongest sense of gratitude for the community's presence in my life. 

For the blessing of a sage smudge to start the service.

For Jake, who shares small snippets from his life -- this week, his frustration at having to buy a construction safety hat for a job that only lasted a day and only paid three hours.

For Mary-Joy, whose well-worn bible is a constant presence -- and reference.

For Bruce, who brings coffee to Lydia, one of our 90+ year old matriarchs, when he gets his own tea.

For Sister Florence, whose gentle, listening presence and smile is a calming influence for our community.

For Henry, who sometimes falls asleep on the counter where he sits.

For Annie, coffee-maker extraordinaire, who knows everyone and watches out for us all.

For Mary-Lou, who has more go than the energizer bunny when it comes to serving coffee.

For Farley, his philosophical wisdom and soothing music.

For Michelle, whose Standing Stones services and sharing of Indigenous wisdom always have me nodding my head in affirmation of teachings older than Christianity.

For Jim, who keeps an eye on the front door in case of latecomers or people in need.

For Quinn and his un-wordy liturgies that collect all our prayers simply and beautifully.

For simple communion, offered to all, no questions asked.

For volunteers who help us pass out the second communion of coffee and lunch bags after the service.

In looking around and appreciating all these folks, I got choked up and lost my voice for the last couple of lines to the hymn that closed the service:

I will go Lord, if you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart.

There is so much to be thankful for in my life -- my parents, sisters, husband, kids, friends, my dream job at the Winspear Centre for music (Friday night's performance was incredible!), our garden, our home, good health, the list goes on.

But in struggling with the church of my childhood and its exclusivity over the last few years, I was deeply moved by the people of the Community of Emmanuel at the end of Sunday's service, and deeply grateful for how Creator led me to this place that has welcomed me so deeply. 

Thank you, God, for everything.

+Amen

P.S. What are you grateful for today?

A bit of irresistible Francis lore

If you've been around these moodlings for any length of time, you'll know I have a special appreciation for St. Francis of Assisi, whose feast day we celebrate today. He's the patron saint of animals, simplicity, and ecology, and the founder of the Franciscan community that some of my favourite people are part of. 

Looking back over 12 years of Simple Moodlings (yup, I missed another Moodle-versary on September 19th, oh well), I see frequent mentions of St. Francis among them, too many to list here.

But I can't resist re-moodling this link to my favourite bit of St. Francis lore (I wish I was the genius who wrote it) -- God and St. Francis talk about lawns.

And I'll leave you all with a simple prayer that I think he would have liked. St. Francis addressed Brother Sun and Sister Moon like ordinary people, and I suspect he would have spoken to Father Sky and Mother Earth, too, and resonated with Indigenous spirituality as a whole.

We prayed this prayer at our Standing Stones service at Community of Emmanuel this past Sunday, a simple prayer that includes sky, earth, and the four directions. It's a wonderful way to wrap up the Month of Creation:

O Father Sky,

Hear us and make us strong.

O Mother Earth,

Hear us and give us support.

O Spirit of the East,

Send us your wisdom.

O Spirit of the South,

May we tread your path of life.

O Spirit of the West,

May we always be ready for the long journey.

O Spirit of the North,

Purify us with your cleansing winds.

Hiy Hiy, Amen.