Stop Harper from Deporting Iraq War Resisters

There are 19 confirmed actions this Saturday to call on Stephen Harper to immediately halt the deportation of Iraq war resisters in Canada. Please check the events listings forward them to friends and family and join the actions on September 13.CALGARYSaturday, September 132-4pm A Presentation by US war resister Chuck Wiley at Parkdale United Church2919 8th Avenue NWEDMONTONStop the Deportations!Let U.S. Iraq War Resisters Stay in Canada!All Out to Elect an Anti-War Government!SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 131:00 P.M.RALLY AT CITY HALLRally called by the NoSPP.ca Group and supported by the Council of Canadians, the Edmonton Coalition against War and Racism and other organizations.FREDERICTONSaturday September 138 am to noonLeafletting at the Saturday Farmer's Marketfor more info: Graham at 292.6503 or info@frederictonpeace.orgGUELPHSaturday September 132:30 p.m.FILM SCREENING of Breaking RanksThornbrough Building, Room 1200University of Guelph- with Guest speaker US war resister Steve YoczikOrganized by the Guelph Peace Alliance
HAMILTONSaturday, September 131 P.M. Sharp – 1:45 P.M.New Federal BuildingBay St. Across from Copps Coliseum Sponsored by the Hamilton Coalition to Stop the Warhttp://www.hamiltoncoalitiontostopthewar.ca/Please call (905)-383-7693 for more detailsHALIFAXSaturday September 1312 NoonSpring Garden LibraryOrganized by the Halifax Peace Coalition. for details visit http://www.halifaxpeacecoalition.ca/ or email hfxpeace@chebucto.ns.caKITCHENERnote NEW RAIN LOCATION10:30 A.M. – Material distribution and signing of the petition at Speakers Corner in Kitchener (King & Benton)12:30 P.M. – Gather at the STIRLING AVE MENNONITE CHURCH in Kitchener for a support rally (near corner of Weber, short walk from King St. bus). Speakers include US war resister Dale Landry. Live music, and refreshments.Contact person: Erik Lankin (519-498-9811) Let's support these people of conscience and stop the deportations! LONDONSaturday September 131 pmRichmond/Central at Victoria ParkMarch to the Federal Building and then to Covent Garden Marketfor more info visit http://www.londonresisters.ca/ MONTREAL À Montréal, samedi, le 13 septembre, à midi :PIQUETAGE DEVANT LE COMPLEXE GUY-FAVREAU,200 boul. René Lévesque ouestIn Montreal, Saturday 13 September, at noon:PICKET IN FRONT OF COMPLEXE GUY-FAVREAU200 René Lévesque West info-at-echecalaguerre.orgNELSONJOIN US IN A DAY OF ACTION! SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 13th9:00 - 3:00 COTTONWOOD MARKETCome by to sign a letter to Harper and Finley demanding that the deportations STOP, and that the motion passed in Parliament be ENACTED. You'll also have an opportunity to send a postcard to Robin Long. We'll have petitions, information, and conversation to share. Don't miss this opportunity to stand up for Jeremy Hinzman, his family, and all of the Iraq war resisters who are under the threat of deportation! Spread the word.
OAKVILLE Saturday September 131pmLakeshore Rd, in front of Towne SquareLakeshore Road and George Street
OTTAWA 2pm –mass leaflet at entrance to Byward Market (corner of William and Rideau Streets)3:30pm – march to Prime Minister's Office (crnr of Elgin and Wellington sts5pm – filmscreening and fundraiser at Cafe Nostalgica (University of Ottawa)contact: goresisters@gmail.com
OWEN SOUNDSaturday September 132 p.m.Owen Sound & North Grey Union Public Library824 First Avenue West, Owen Sound– Short Presentation on the need to support the US Iraq War resisters in Canada. Includes a book launch.
SIDNEY, BC Saturday September 131 pm to 3 pmLeafletting in Conservative MP Gary Lunn's ridingcorner of Beacon and Secondfor more info vlannon@pacificcoast.net
ST. JOHN'SSaturday September 131 pmVictoria Street GazeboFeaturing Special Guests - US War Resisters Ryan and Jennifer Johnson
TORONTOSaturday September 131 pmRally at Lake Devocorner of Gould and Victoria Streets (Dundas subway; one block north and east)with US war resisters Jeremy Hinzman & Nga Nguyen, and Patrick and Jill Hartmore info: 416.598.1222 or resisters@sympatico.ca
VANCOUVERSaturday September 131 pmVancouver Art GalleryRobson Street sidefor more info contact vanresisters@yahoo.ca or 778.837.1475
WINDSORSaturday September 1311 am to NoonPicket at Market SquareTELL HARPER TO STOP DEPORTING IRAQ WAR RESISTERS!Organized by the Windsor Peace Coalition. Info: http://www.windsorpeace.org/WINNIPEGSaturday, September 13, 20081:00 pmMemorial Park (northwest side of Broadway Ave and Memorial Blvd)speakers include Iraq war resister Phil McDowell, and Vietnam resisterscontact: peacenews-at-mts.net

www.resisters.ca

A Prayer for the World

This week in coffee shops and supermarkets, in chance encounters along the trails, people could be overheard commenting that summer has finally made an appearance in the Bow Valley. It is now the beginning of August and I will readily agree that these past days have been particularly beautiful in this mountain valley. Warm, sunny days with hardly a cloud to obscure the blue sky, followed by a refreshing cooling as the day draws to a close with remarkable sunsets painting the sky and highlighting the mountain landscape with splashes of color.

I have made a special effort these past evenings to move onto the front deck of my home where I can enjoy the surrounding mountains and watch in awe as the pace of the weary day is hushed and made ready to be renewed by a night’s peaceful rest. On the table beside me are some of my favorite inspirational books and tucked in their pages are various scraps of paper, each having something written on it that has inspired or had meaning for me: a quote, a thought, a prayer.

At my feet and running the full thirty foot length of the deck is a flower garden lovingly nurtured by my wife Margaret. You would have to ask Margaret if you wanted to know the names of all the plants all I can tell you is how much I appreciate their beauty, scents and texture as well as the bees and hummingbirds which they attract.

As I follow the advice given in the first verse of Psalm 121 I allow my gaze to rise from the garden to Mount Rundle across the valley. The sun is about to disappear behind the mountain peak and the sky is painted an indescribable array of pinks, reds and purples. I find myself holding my breath as if doing so could prolong the wonder and beauty of this moment.

Slowly I relax my gaze and reach for one of the books at my side. As I lift a book one of the slips of paper drops to the deck. I reach for it and begin to read the prayer written upon it. To my amazement the last two lines of the prayer read:

“Let the Earth, nourished by rain,
bring forth flowers
to surround us with beauty.
And let the mountains teach our hearts
to reach upward to heaven.”

The prayer is called A Prayer for the World and it was written by Rabbi Harold S. Kushner. As I read this prayer I became convinced that this was the perfect and respectful way to end my day. It also occurred to me that the Rabbi’s prayer could be said by persons of all faiths and even people with no faith.

I share it with you now hoping that it will touch you as it has me and that tomorrow you will awaken to a new day equal in awe and wonder as the one I have just enjoyed.


Rev. Frank Doe
Spiritual Director,
Rocky Mountain Centre for Progressive Faith and Works Ltd.


A Prayer for the World

“Let the rain come and wash away
the ancient grudges, the bitter hatreds
held and nurtured over generations.
Let the rain wash away the memory
of the hurt, the neglect.
Then let the sun come out and
fill the sky with rainbows.
Let the warmth of the Sun heal us
wherever we are broken.
Let it burn away the fog so that
we can see beyond the labels,
beyond accents, gender, or skin color.
Let the warmth and brightness
of the Sun melt our selfishness.
So that we can share the joys and
feel the sorrows of our neighbors.
And let the light of the Sun
be so strong that we will see all
people as our neighbors.
Let the Earth, nourished by rain,
bring forth flowers
to surround us with beauty.
And let the mountains teach our hearts
to reach upward to heaven.

- Rabbi Harold S. Kushner

When Clergy are Bullied

As difficult as it is for us to admit the abuse of clergy by senior officials in the church and by some laity is more common than we would care to admit. Many would rather bury their heads in the sand than admit that such at terrible situation could exist in our Church.

Bullying can take many forms:

Threats

Gossip

Failure to enforce church canons that may be helpful to clergy

Not providing fair and reasonable priced access to church courts when clergy have a grievance

Accurate and public record keeping of instances when bishops may be using their power unfairly

Financial arrangements made with clergy but then not kept

Giving clergy inaccurate profiles when trying to attract them to ministry in a parish.

The following two articles were recently published by the Church Times and I bring them before you for your attention:

- Report Urges Church to Face Up to Its Bullies
http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=57406

and

- Parish Guidlines Aim to End Bullying
http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=55281


Please feel free to share this communication with others who may find it helpful.

Bishop Marc Andrus on the California Supreme Court's Ruling in favour of Gay Marriage

The California Supreme Court ruled today that in California all people have the constitutional right to marry and raise a family, regardless of sexual orientation. Below is the text of a statement from Bishop Marc in response to the ruling:

"I welcome the ruling of the California Supreme Court affirming the fundamental right of all people to marry and establish a family.

All children of God should be afforded the same rights under the law, and this decision recognizes that all Californians, regardless of sexual orientation, have equal access to one of our fundamental human institutions.

This decision gives our church another opportunity to partner with our state to ensure that all families have the support they need to build relationships that strengthen our communities, state and country.

Jesus tried to free his disciples from a narrow definition of what it means to be his follower. In Matthew 10:42, Jesus says "whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward." God affirms the good in the world outside the boundaries of religious creeds and dogmas. In this spirit, we also affirm and rejoice in this decision by the California Supreme Court precisely because we are Christians.

Clearly, this momentous decision will have ecclesial implications for the Episcopal Diocese of California. I intend to be in prayerful consultation with the people of our diocese to see how we can use this decision to strengthen our support of our lesbian and gay sisters and brothers, and our witness to God’s inclusive love.

The Diocese of California will issue an appropriate statement in due course.

The Rt. Rev. Marc Handley ArchBishop of California

Is It Moral? What Would Jesus Say?

To people of faith, the following news release is from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, January 2, 2008


Dear friends and members, Today the Centre released The Great CEO Pay Race, by Hugh Mackenzie. The study finds that Canada's best paid 100 CEOs will have pocketed the national average wage of $38,998 by 10:33 am on January 2nd. The news release for the study is pasted below. The CEO report and an online tool to find out how quickly the top 100 CEOs earn your salary are available at http://nl1692.policyalternatives.ca/ and http://nl1694.policyalternatives.ca/.
New Year’s party still going for top CEOs

TORONTO – By the time most Canadians roll up their sleeves to begin a new year of work, Canada’s best paid 100 CEOs will already be having a good year: They’ll pocket the national average wage of $38,998 by 10:33 am January 2nd.

And they will continue to earn the average Canadian wage every nine hours and 33 minutes for the rest of the year, according to a new report on CEO pay by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

“Most Canadians are heading back into work with a mound of Christmas bills and financial worries but for Canada’s best paid 100 CEOs it’s like Santa Claus delivers every nine hours,” says the report’s author, CCPA Research Associate Hugh Mackenzie.“

"That’s what happens when you make an average of $8,528,304 – which is the average of what Canada’s 100 best paid CEOs made in 2006.”

On average, the best-paid 100 CEOs make more than 218 times as much as a Canadian working full-time for a full year at the average of weekly employment earnings.

“That represents a significant gap between the rich and the rest of us – especially the working poor who earn the minimum wage,” Mackenzie says.

By 1:04 p.m. New Years’ Day, the best paid 100 CEOs pocketed what will take a minimum wage worker all of 2008 to earn. Every four hours and four minutes, they will keep pocketing the annual income of a full-time full-year minimum wage worker.

“We have to ask ourselves, are those at the top of the income heap really worth so much? And are those at the bottom really worth so little?”

--Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives410-75 Albert Street, Ottawa, ON K1P5E7tel: 613-563-1341 fax: 613-233-1458http://nl1691.policyalternatives.ca/caw567