Thanksgiving Eve Eucharist

Reminder...

Canterbury@U.L.M. Holy Eucharist today at 5:30 p.m. Mother Dawnell will celebrate and Father Whit will preach. We sure hope to see you there!

Bayou Park is the green space on the U.L.M. campus directly across Northeast Drive from the Library and on the Library side of the Bayou. Bring a lawn chair or blanket if you want to sit!

Fall Back!

It's that time again: Across most of the United States,daylight savings time (DST) will end at 2 a.m.
on Sunday, November 2, when clocks will fall back to standard time. Set your clocks back one hour before going to bed on Saturday night!

Convention Changes!

Storm Damage responsible for

Changes in Diocesan Convention!

The Site for the 35th Annual Convention has changed. We will meet at

the following location for all events:

Bayou DeSiard Country Club

3501 Forsythe Ave., Monroe, LA 71201

There is also a change in the agenda. Here is a broad outline:

Friday

Lunch on your own

1:00 Registration

2:00 Business

4:30 Holy Eucharist

6:00 Silent Auction

7:15 Banquet

Saturday

Light breakfast provided prior to beginning of meeting

8:30 Business

Noon Adjournment

Lunch on your own

Clergy Spouse luncheon cancelled.

Parking spaces are limited, so please carpool as much as possible.

These changes are a result of the damage wrought by the storm on

Monday. As you may know, Monroe was struck by an F2 tornado on

Monday. The Garden District was hit hardest. Grace Church sits in

the midst of that neighborhood. Access to the area is limited and power is

disrupted. As a result, we are unable to meet at Grace Church.

As the outline above suggests, we will follow a significantly revised

agenda. Given our space and the available time, we will dispense with

workshops, hearings, and vendors. This is regrettable but unavoidable.

Please be on the lookout for a ministry fair day in the future in which

some of these canceled sessions will be held.

Most importantly, let us keep the people of Monroe in our prayers.

Many are enduring the negative impact of this storm. At the same time,

let's also acknowledge the grace and grit of these good people who, in

the midst of trial, have worked quickly and effectively to host our Convention. 

Nothing keeps that Monroe Convocation down!

  

The Rt. Rev. Jacob W. Owensby, Ph.D., D.D.

The Diocese of Western Louisiana

Canterhury@ULM...

Tailgate in the Grove today. Good time had by all!

The Art & Power of Conversation

Joseph Kisses His Brothers, by Cornelius

So today we talk about talk. Each one of today’s lessons tells us something about the art and power of talk.

And it’s timely. Today’s society seems addicted to talk. We tweet. We post status updates on Facebook and other social media. Our news media provide talking heads 24/7.

Talk, talk, talk. And so often, it seems that, rather than talking with each other, conversing, if you will, we are screaming past each other.

I no longer try to have serious discussion of important topics on Facebook. Too often have I witnessed such talk turn into ugly, personal attacks. These exchanges are more like drive by shootings than conversations, or even arguments—which can be totally civil and useful when done well.

So what does each of our lessons tell us today about the art and power of talk?

 

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The Archdeacon's sermon, last Sunday at St. Luke's Chapel, Grambling, La. 

Not a Show-Off God

Last Sunday at St. Thomas' & St. Alban's:

Last spring I attended the triennial assembly of the Association for Episcopal Deacons. Our keynote speaker and workshop leader was Eric Law, an Episcopal priest and author of several book, including “Holy Currencies: 6 Blessings for Sustainable Missional Ministries.”  

Law has gone from writing books to founding a center for congregational development and stewardship called the Kaleidoscope Institute. Our Bishop has just decided that some of Law’s work needs to be in the curriculum of our Diocesan school of ministry for lay people. So, the St. Thomas’ chapter of the Daughters of the King is a step ahead of everyone else on that because they studied this book together last spring!

To kick off his workshop at the deacon’s conference last year, Law had the assembled deacons—as I recall, around a hundred of us—play a silly little game that ended up making a big point. With the help of the organizers of the conference, a bunch of these bookmarks were handed out. Some people got none, some got 2 or 3 and a few got 5 or 6.

Then, Law said, this game has just two rules. 1) If someone gives you a bookmark, you must take it, and 2) the person who ends up with none.. wins. When I give the signal, Law said, you will have 10 minutes to give away all of your bookmarks.

Well, I don’t remember if anyone won that game. And I don’t remember how many bookmarks I ended up with, but I’m pretty sure it was more than I started with. I got down to zero a couple times, but no sooner had I done so than someone would come along and thrust a bunch into my hand.

Now, you might be thinking, “Well, duh! The rules of the game were set up to make sure that happens!” And, indeed, they were. The value of the game was not that it was a “fair” or “objective” test of anything. The value of the game.. was in what it revealed about how humans think!

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