When I lived in Israel, my favourite "holy site" - by far - was the Garden of Gethsemane. Christian tradition holds Gethsemane as the place where Jesus heaved in gruelling prayer (even sweating drops of blood, according to the gospel of Luke) prior to being betrayed and arrested. Suitably, the episode is often described as "the Agony." … Continue reading Prayer as Movement
Finger of Death
Often before we eat at drop-in (our church gathering with people from the street), I'll ask if anyone would like to pray for our meal. On this particular morning, I looked around and someone who I had never seen before raised his hand. Grateful, I walked towards him and gave him the microphone. A beautiful, articulate prayer poured through the speakers. Afterwards, … Continue reading Finger of Death
Silence: Love Suffers Long in Scorcese’s Latest
Warning: Contains Spoilers. Moments before Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) apostatizes (that is, abandons the faith), he sees five bodies mummified in burlap, hanging upside down in pits. Their necks have been nicked, slightly, to prevent blood from amassing in their heads in favour of it dripping into the pits. They are alive, groaning into the night … Continue reading Silence: Love Suffers Long in Scorcese’s Latest
The Humility of God (Part Two)
Read Part One Here Around 1764, Catherine the Great acquired a collection of paintings - including several Rembrandt's - that would subsequently hang in galleries connecting various pavilions of the Winter Palace and Imperial Hermitage. I don't believe The Return of the Prodigal Son was one of these initial acquisitions, but it makes sense that … Continue reading The Humility of God (Part Two)
The Humility of God (Part One)
This summer, my parents invited Jennifer and me (for a two year wedding anniversary gift!) on an eleven-day Scandinavian cruise. You read that right. The itinerary included stops in Norway, Germany, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, as well as two days in St. Petersburg, Russia. There was so much beauty to imbibe, from the vastness … Continue reading The Humility of God (Part One)
Best of 2016
This is the post excerpt.
Mark Kozelek Live at the West End Cultural Centre
Being an avid fan of Sun Kil Moon, I had heard much about Mark Kozelek's on and offstage antics. With regard to the former, I heard that he often publicly disparaged people if he thought they were inattentive (aka talking or slouching) while he was playing, that cell phone usage of any kind was prohibited, … Continue reading Mark Kozelek Live at the West End Cultural Centre
Views From New Windows
There it is. The world's first (documented) photograph. It is a heliograph, taken in 1826 by French scientist Joseph Nicéphore Niépce which required him "exposing a bitumen-coated plate in a camera obscura for several hours [an estimated eight] on his windowsill" [National Geographic]. It's a shoddy image by today's stands, but one can only imagine the almost … Continue reading Views From New Windows
Best Films of 2013
You've no doubt heard about my meticulous (albeit high-strung and some-would-say-pointless) documenting of every film I've watched since the summer of 2005. If you haven't, you can bring yourself quickly up to speed here and here, where you can read the 2005 and 2006 lists, respectively. 2013 was no exception and today I bring you … Continue reading Best Films of 2013
My Story
I've attended three weddings this summer and had the privilege of singing at two of them. Weddings are lovely occasions; I love all the pomp and circumstance, not to mention the quite palpable sense of sacredness they evoke. Frequently during these ceremonies, I feel so very moved.Several summers ago, I woke up on the morning … Continue reading My Story
Writing Is Prayer 