Appreciative Inquiry

Beware the "Listening Process," as proposed in a resolution to the West Virginia Diocesan Convention (resolution 2)

“A facilitated listening process using tools such as Appreciative Inquiry would afford us, as a diocese, an opportunity to listen to one another in a meaningful way, learn from one another and hold one another in respect and with love as brothers and sisters in Christ even as we explore our differing beliefs which we hold across a continuum concerning..."

(you know what)

And what is Appreciative Inquiry? Here is a description from AI commons,

“Appreciative Inquiry is about the coevolutionary search for the best in people, their organizations, and the relevant world around them. In its broadest focus, it involves systematic discovery of what gives ‘life’ to a living system when it is most alive, most effective, and most constructively capable in economic, ecological, and human terms. AI involves, in a central way, the art and practice of asking questions that strengthen a system’s capacity to apprehend, anticipate, and heighten positive potential. It centrally involves the mobilization of inquiry through the crafting of the “unconditional positive question” often-involving hundreds or sometimes thousands of people. In AI the arduous task of intervention gives way to the speed of imagination and innovation; instead of negation, criticism, and spiraling diagnosis, there is discovery, dream, and design. AI seeks, fundamentally, to build a constructive union between a whole people and the massive entirety of what people talk about as past and present capacities: achievements, assets, unexplored potentials, innovations, strengths, elevated thoughts, opportunities, benchmarks, high point moments, lived values, traditions, strategic competencies, stories, expressions of wisdom, insights into the deeper corporate spirit or soul-- and visions of valued and possible futures. Taking all of these together as a gestalt, AI deliberately, in everything it does, seeks to work from accounts of this “positive change core”—and it assumes that every living system has many untapped and rich and inspiring accounts of the positive. Link the energy of this core directly to any change agenda and changes never thought possible are suddenly and democratically mobilized.”

A.I. = Absent Intelligence

Linking A.I. to a change agenda might give you exactly the change you hope for.

If you have an agenda, you are not really listening.

And I always thought inquiring minds would appreciate the opportunity for a little "negation, criticism, and spiraling diagnosis."

Holy Cross Sunday

Fr. Dunbar provided today's sermon on Holy Cross Sunday at ECOOS. He did a great job providing some historical background and traditional meanings of the cross as well as more modern looks. Fr. Dunbar spoke about the vertical member of the cross being a visual representation of our favorite word, "I". With the horizontal crossing out the I, or a way of looking at the cross as a symbol of surrender of self to God.

I present to you the following quotation. Your job will be to guess the author and his/her denomination.

"Now the beautiful fact of the matter is that, at the core of Christianity, is the cross. It stands as a balance between earth and sky. It demands both a vertical and a horizontal. It demands both the love of God and the love of Man. It demands both worship and action. It demands both fine liturgy and fine fellowship."

"The horizontals need to be reminded of the need for reverence in worship, the need for contemplation and study and adoration and tradition. However, being more conservative/vertically minded myself, I (and others like me) need to be reminded that service of others, love of others, fellowship, peace and justice, and all that horizontal stuff is also true and necessary and good."

Can't guess, well it is Fr. Dwight Longenecker from Greenville South Carolina.
Former Anglican priest, now Catholic priest. His blog is "Standing on My Head" .

Today was also commissioning Sunday and this year things were done a little differently in that everyone present was asked to stand at the same time and be "commissioned" in their various ministries of service and/or worship. Even the pewster was asked to stand and be commissioned!

Ramadan, Fasting, and the Price of Oil

Remembering 9/11, praying for peace, but the bad guys might be praying for victory, and during the month of Ramadan no less.

I could not resist this lead sentence on "Fasting not fighting as Muslims mark Ramadan" by Charles Onians.

"CAIRO (AFP) - Muslims around the world this week begin the fasting and feasting month of Ramadan amid hopes of violence easing in some of the Islamic world's conflict hotspots but hit hard by rising food prices."

Never mind the problems with the construction of the lead sentence, or the paradox of "fasting and feasting month," I was interested in the mention of how high food prices were affecting Ramadan.

After reading how some Muslims were aiming for a peaceful month,

"Pakistan marked Ramadan by halting a major military campaign against Taliban rebels on its border with Afghanistan,"

while others were clearly taking aim at their enemies,

"But in Somalia Islamist militia commander Yusuf Mohamed Siad told reporters that his fighters will intensify attacks against government and Ethiopian forces.
'We will double our attacks against the Ethiopians and their Somali government stooges even during the month of Ramadan until we root out the enemy of Allah from the country,' he said."

we learn about the economics of Ramadan,

"But soaring food prices have left many Lebanese worried about making ends meet, with charities working to provide low-income families with food to survive the month.

Gulf governments enjoying windfalls from high crude prices and high-profile companies are keen to be seen to be sharing some of their wealth with the less fortunate, splashing out on free iftars for the poor.
With inflation running in double digits in many Muslim nations, governments have been trying to ensure an adequate supply of staples in order to prevent retailers from taking advantage of Ramadan to raise prices."

Am I hearing echoes of things being said elsewhere about greedy oil companies, and the government being responsible for the food supply and the prices?

Feeling somehow responsible for the plight of the feasting fasters, I dug a little deeper looking for the source of my angst.

What have we been told to be the cause of high food prices? This from the IMF,

"• Strong food demand from emerging economies, reflecting stronger per capita income growth, accounts for much of the increase in consumption. Although demand growth has been high for some time now, the recent sustained period of high global growth contributed to depleting global inventories, particularly of grains.

• Rising biofuel production adds to the demand for corn and rapeseeds oil, in particular, spilling over to other foods through demand and crop substitution effects. Almost half the increase in consumption of major food crops in 2007 was related to biofuels, mostly because of corn-based ethanol production in the US; and the new biofuel mandates in the US and the EU that favor domestic production will continue to put pressure on prices.

• At the same time, supply adjustment to higher prices has remained slow, notably for oil, and inventory levels in many markets have declined to the lowest levels in years.

• The policy responses in some countries are exacerbating the problem: (i) Some major exporting countries have introduced export taxes, export bans, or other restrictions on exports of agricultural products. (ii) Some importing countries are not allowing full pass-through of international prices into domestic prices (less than half a sample of 43 developing and emerging market countries allowed for full pass through in 2007).

• Drought conditions in major wheat-producing countries (e.g., Australia and Ukraine), higher input costs (animal feed, energy, and fertilizer), and restrictive trade policies in major net exporters of key food staples such as rice have also contributed.

• Financial factors: the depreciating US$ increases purchasing power of commodity users outside of the dollar area; falling policy interest rates in some major currencies reduce inventory holding costs and induce shifts from money market instruments to higher-yielding assets such as commodity-indexed funds."

I just knew the U.S. was to blame, but shouldn't food prices fall during Ramadan if everyone fasts? I would have guessed that per capita caloric consumption and prices would fall.
Those iftars must be quite a feast.

GAFCON...FLICT

Today marked the beginning of another Sunday School year. Episcopalians at ECOOS, with the possible exception of the adult Forum Class, were given God's permission to take the summer off (as far as education, supper clubs, etc. goes). They were welcomed back by Mary Cat who gave today's sermon focusing on community and congregation before referencing Matthew 18:15-20 and giving us a little discussion on conflict and conflict resolution at the local level.

It was not the purpose of her sermon to highlight the conflict in the larger Church, but the readings from Ezekiel 33:7-11 and Romans 13:8-14 were an open invitation to take on the issues. Of course, Bishop Henderson wants us to be "mission" and not "issue" people since he has seen what happens to congregations who start inquiring about issues.

Alas, the rector and vestry of St. Christopher's in Spartanburg on May 4, 2008 may have taken Ezekiel to heart,

"You, mortal, I have made a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me." v. 7.

Or perhaps they recalled Romans 13:13-14,

"let us live honourably as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarrelling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires."

Or perhaps they remembered the failed attempts at conflict resolution as outlined in Matthew 18:17,

"If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax-collector."

These words bring us to the responses the overwhelming majority of Anglicans have with the Episcopal Church's failure to listen to the orthodox, and it's failure to heed calls to give up the ways of the flesh and return to the Communion. You find these sentiments at the core of the GAFCON 2008 Final Statement,

"The first fact is the acceptance and promotion within the provinces of the Anglican Communion of a different ‘gospel’ (cf. Galatians 1:6-8) which is contrary to the apostolic gospel. This false gospel undermines the authority of God’s Word written and the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as the author of salvation from sin, death and judgement..."

"The second fact is the declaration by provincial bodies in the Global South that they are out of communion with bishops and churches that promote this false gospel. These declarations have resulted in a realignment whereby faithful Anglican Christians have left existing territorial parishes, dioceses and provinces in certain Western churches and become members of other dioceses and provinces, all within the Anglican Communion..."

"The third fact is the manifest failure of the Communion Instruments to exercise discipline in the face of overt heterodoxy. The Episcopal Church USA and the Anglican Church of Canada, in proclaiming this false gospel, have consistently defied the 1998 Lambeth statement of biblical moral principle (Resolution 1.10). Despite numerous meetings and reports to and from the ‘Instruments of Unity,’ no effective action has been taken, and the bishops of these unrepentant churches are welcomed to Lambeth 2008."

To the GAFCONers, the Episcopal Church must now be considered Matthew's Gentiles and tax collectors.

My understanding is that Gentiles and tax collectors are fair game for conversion. We have gone past the issue stage, but we in the Episcopal Church can still be saved but it may be through the mission and outreach of the GAFCONers.

WWTAD

Satellite image from NASA


This week's poem from Poem of the Week might have been chosen because of the Atlantic hurricanes taking aim at the U.S. Or maybe I just read that into it.

James Thomson (1700-1748)
from SUMMER

"HOW chang'd the Scene! In blazing Height of Noon,
The Sun, oppress'd, is plung'd in thickest Gloom.
Still Horror reigns, a dreary Twilight round,
Of struggling Night and Day malignant mix'd.
For to the hot Equator crouding fast,
Where, highly rarefy'd, the yielding Air
Admits their Stream, incessant Vapours roll,
Amazing Clouds on Clouds continual heap'd;
Or whirl'd tempestuous by the gusty Wind,
Or silent borne along, heavy, and slow,
With the big Stores of streaming Oceans charg'd.
Meantime, amid these upper Seas, condens'd
Around the cold aërial Mountain's Brow,
And by conflicting Winds together dash'd,
The Thunder holds his black tremendous Throne,
From Cloud to Cloud the rending Lightnings rage;
Till, in the furious elemental War
Dissolv'd, the whole precipitated Mass
Unbroken Floods and solid Torrents pours"

Finding new meanings in poetry or images may be part of the intent of the artist. When we make Biblical interpretations of various verses, chapters, or books, I wonder what the author would do. WWTAD?

Madonna and Child

Throughout the ages the subject has been irresistible.










Well, almost irresistible.

God Calling

The Original Hotline

Mary Cat focused on God's call for today's sermon. Overall, she did a good job, although we did not get any enlightenment on Romans 12 9-31.
I sure would like some help with 19-20,

"19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God;* for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ 20 No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’"

This struck me as still being in the spirit of vengeance particularly that part about heaping burning coals on their heads through acts of kindness, and also transferring vengeance to the Lord is not the same as abolishing it from the heart.


Vengeance is such a typical human response to being wronged (and very Roman) that the writer of Romans 12 needed to explain how Christians should behave in such situations. How he got there is the unsaid part of the snippet we read on Sunday. I can only conclude it was by the example of Christ that such an unnatural response as "feed them," or "give them something to drink" could be instructed regarding one's enemies.
In this respect Christianity has something in common with the eastern religions and the principle of Ahimsa. The notion of carrying the principle of non-violence into the realm of law, justice, and politics has been the part that has been most difficult for all of the world's religions that dare to preach the principle as we have been instructed in Romans 12.

To illustrate this point witness the violence against Christians in India this past week.

WWGD (What would Gandhi Do?)