Next Bus Stop: Heaven

Friends and fans of the blogosphere's infamous Mad Priest know of his new challenge: creating a really snarky ad for London buses. Inspired by recent "atheist" bus ad campaigns, there's a fun little generator tool at Rule the Web; just be sure to save your creations to your hard drive or some other storage space that belongs to you.

Well, you can imagine my surprise when I realized I could sum up my basic philosophy on Christianity in one bus advertisement.

If you have posted one of your ad creations on your blog, feel free to post a link in the comment section. What an opportunity for shameless self-promotion - don't miss out!

Sunday Music - The Bruce for the middle-aged

Bruce Springsteen performing during the Superbowl half-time show? Who'da figured? In some way, I'll always love Bruce, because he kept some of us from being vaporized by disco music during my college years.

Since it's Sunday, this classic Bruce tune is the acoustic version. You might actually learn the words to this song today - and nope, it's not very "suitable." But it's all about the memories, babe.

Pretender To The Throne

I am pretty close to being way out of my league, from a literature perspective, but as a junior league political scientist I am pretty sure I understand the following statement:

Singling out the Lambeth Conference, Bishop Nazir-Ali said the Windsor Report specifically asked that those who participated in the ordination and consecration of Bishop Gene Robinson not be present at the Anglican gathering. "Despite this, they were invited to the Anglican Consultative Council meeting and they were the dominant presence. They were then invited to the Lambeth Conference."

Anyone hazard a guess as to who said that little gem?  Yep, you get three guesses and the first two do not count.  It comes from the one and only Right Reverend Michael Nazir-Ali.

In a recent article from (you know where) he goes on to say:

I asked why were they invited. I have not ever been given a satisfactory response. My concern is about those who laid hands on him. I am being responsible in asking that question. Of course I am willing to sit with people who differ. The Lambeth Conference is the closest thing we have to a Magisterium. I could not gather Eucharistically to teach the common faith. I have attended two Lambeth conferences, 1988 and 1998. It would have been my third conference. However (in conscience) I could not be present."

Now, I thought that the Archbishop of Canterbury was appointed by the Queen (or King) of England.  I have studied politics most of my life and I have got to say, these two statements are clearly made by this nifty Bishop with the idea that he is better than the current incumbent; smarter than the current incumbent and in all probability ought to be the incumbent.  The problem is that insulting in public the current Crown's choice cannot possibly engender warm and fuzzy feelings for +Nazir-Ali by Queen Elizabeth.  He goes on to endear himself with this quote:

The bishop ripped the present state of affairs in England saying, "Religion has stopped being a force in popular culture it had nothing to do with the elites. Politicians do not command enough respect to withstand the enormous challenges in the world."

And finally, as if John Locke came from some alien planet:

"What we need in the business of law making is increasing respect for conscience. Britain has a long respect for conscience. In recent legislation this has been neglected and denied and provision not been made for Christian believers. If we are going to have a strong tradition of public law we must respect conscience.

"Secularization and secularity are a reality, but we can see that in conducting the life of the nation today we still need the Judeo-Christian tradition to guide the nation. To be absolutely clear without it we have a serious threat of totalitarianism on one side or the other."

 

Now, I am not even remotely royal nor am I a successful politician but I would hazard  a guess that the Right Reverend Michael Nazir-Ali is on someone's short list, just not the Crown's.

PS: See hubris below.

Lynn's Football Food - Part 2 and Part 1 UPDATED

Okay now,  time is growing short.  You have all contributed before and now is the time to drag all those foods and recipes out from the back of the refrigerator and share them one last time.  The troll pies, and the sticky buns and the dips and the ribs and give us everything you got!!!

Football food doesn't have to be healthy - the season is short, at least compared to hockey. Heeding Fred's call for Super Bowl party recipes, I start you with something even the kitchen-challenged can make. Warning: this is a little addictive and it contains too much fat and sodium.

You can probably use reduced-fat sour cream to lighten it up. But why?


Mikey's Salsa Dip

This recipe isn't from a guy named Mikey - it's named for a young boy who ate huge amounts of it when I brought it to neighborhood football gatherings (Hail to the Redskins!) Mikey called it "Lynn Dip," so feel free to name it after anyone or anything that suits the occasion.

1 - 16 oz. container sour cream
1/2 of a 1 oz. package Ranch dip mix (I use Hidden Valley original)
1 cup chunky salsa (I use medium heat)
Optional garnish: diced tomatoes and green chiles
Corn or tortilla chips for dipping (oh, use any type of chip you like)

Blend sour cream and Ranch dip mix until smooth. Stir in salsa and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours - overnight is probably better. Dust off your chip'n dip set, fill bowl section with dip and put corn chips on the plate part. Impress your guests with the optional garnish of tomatoes and chilies. If you don't have a chip'n dip server, a regular bowl and plate will work just fine - but it might look a little tacky to serve it from the sour cream container

The original recipe for this dip calls for an entire package of Ranch dip mix and 1/2 cup of salsa, so feel free to play with this to suit your taste. It would probably be good with RO*TEL tomatoes replacing the salsa. This particular version is just the result of my faulty memory, because I forgot to write down the directions when a friend told me how to make it.

Sunday Music - Amazing, uhm, well...

Alright, fellow Boomers, if this doesn't make you shake your head then smile, I've really missed something about Aerosmith. Good stuff!

Robert Duncan and Hubris

Hubris  is a term used in modern English to indicate overweening pride, self-confidence, superciliousness, or arrogance, often resulting in fatal retribution. Hubris was most evident in the public and private actions of the powerful and rich. The word was also used to describe actions of those who challenged the gods or their laws, especially in Greek tragedy, resulting in the protagonist's downfall.

While we were all watching the world change Bobby Duncan was busy trying to change the world.  Did you know that one may now apply for recognition by the Anglican Church in North America.  Here is how the first of several article begins:

The process for applying to be recognized as a diocese, cluster or network of the Anglican Church in North America is now available.

“This is an exciting time for those who have worked and prayed for so many years that we might have a united Anglican home in North America. May God guide all of us as we begin this work,” said Bishop Robert Duncan, archbishop-designate of the Anglican Church in North America.

Mr. Duncan has declared open season on joining a province that does not exist. Or rather, exists in the minds of  a few supercilious folks who are most assuredly arrogant.  Keep in mind that the official response from the Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury is that "we will let everyone know when the process for application for a new province is received." 

The website to view all the documents is :

http://www.united-anglicans.org/stream/2009/01/applicationsavailable.html

The final paragraph provides the finishing touch for Mr. Duncan:

The Anglican Church in North America is being born at an extraordinary moment in Anglican history. Pray with me that all of the complexities of this birth will be characterized by grace and charity among us, met with wide recognition and favor among our local and global partners, and be to the greater glory of God, the significant extension of the kingdom of Christ Jesus and all in the mighty power of the Holy Spirit.

Faithfully and Expectantly in Christ,

The Rt Revd Robert Duncan

Archbishop-Designate

Anglican Church in North America

Hubris.  

Stick a fork in Mr. Duncan 'cause I believe he is done.

The Worst Nightmare EVER!

The Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori has been sentenced to three years in a Nigerian jail for insulting the Primates Council.   ++Schori wrote a novel four years ago, which contained a passage referring to the unnamed sitting primates of the GAFCON primates Council. It sold just seven copies. She admitted the charge of insulting the Primates Council, but said she was unaware she was committing an offence.

Her self-published book, called "Up Your Nose With a Rubber Hose," was hardly well-received; in fact the only copy which is still known to exist sits on the shelf of the Nigerian National Library, freely available to the public.

Shackled in leg irons, and wearing standard-issue prison pajamas, Bishop Schori was quickly found guilty, with the Archbishop of Canterbury as the spokeswoman of the three bishop panel telling the court: "She has written a book that slandered the Primates, especially Mr. Duncan and Mr. Akinola, the Archbishop of the Southern Cone  and the bishop of San Joaquin and the entire Global South."

The court initially sentenced her to six years in jail, but reduced the term because of her guilty plea.

Before the trial Bishop Katherine had seemed stunned by what was happening to her, describing it is like a ''bad dream''. But she is just one of a growing number of people being investigated and charged under GAFCON's draconian "lese-majeste" law, as the police and army try to suppress what they fear is a rising tide of anti-conealoneialist sentiment. More than 3,000 websites have now been blocked, and one New Hampshire Bishop was jailed for six years in November for an anti-GAFCONIAN speech he made just a stone's throw from the old Lagos Cathedral last July. Several other people including Fr. Mark Harris and Fr. Jake are now awaiting trial.

As a repentant primate, ++Katherine Jefferts Schori does at least have a good chance of being pardoned by the Moderator, according to the BBC correspondent in Lagos, +Michael Nazir-Ali. The Moderator did the same for a Fort Worth man given a 10-year sentence two years ago for defacing his portrait.

As our own Madpriest was heard to say:  "Phew! That's alright, then."

Check it out -- see "Of Course I Could Be Wrong"    

Lo sentimos, pero este era demasiado bueno para pasar. (Hope that gets it.)