KEN STUPAK HONOURED

Winnipeg Police Chief Keith McCaskill is shown giving 'Volunteer of the Year' award to Ken Stupak. The banquet for volunteers was held on April 18th.

Ken is the PAOC chaplain at University of Manitoba where he has served for a couple decades.

The award was given for outstanding service and dedication. Over the past 12 years Ken volunteered 2600 hours with Victim Services.

GLIMPSES OF GRACE

Glimpses of Grace:


Reflections of a Prison Chaplain


By Donald Stoesz


Book can be ordered at www.donaldstoesz.com


Donald Stoesz is a Mennonite Pastor and a prison chaplain in service at the Bowden Institution (Annex).

His intention, in writing this book, was to share insights drawn from his experience, with other people working in the prison system. He has, in fact, written a book of interest to anyone who would like to know more about the nature of prisons and prisoners. Most of us have a flawed understanding of jails, drawn from movies not always noted for accuracy.

When the general public knows that a crime has been committed, it is glued to newspapers and radio until someone is arrested for the crime, and brought to court. Once the prisoner is behind bars, the populace will go on to the next hot story.

There is more to know about the losses and heartache caused by broken families and bad choices, drug use and alcohol, and this author has brought them to our attention. He does not excuse the offences of the detainees, his job is to listen, share the personal journey of the prisoner and offer whatever spiritual guidance and grace will be accepted.

The book consists of 120 vignettes, each one-page long, and covering a wide range of interactions and situations. These are well written, and interesting with names and personalities changed for privacy sake. A pertinent Bible quotation ends each page.

Stories and circumstances show that people we may think of only as “convicts,” are real people. They are, of course, people with dreams and hopes. They don’t want to be forgotten by family, and they love having visitors. They are men who wish their situation was different than it is. The reality and their responsibility in that reality is sometimes forgotten, or ignored. Some people, most often Christians, find a ministry in visiting offenders in prison. They receive training, and then take part in the community with worship and conversation. Romance has bloomed in prison, but sometimes creates problems.

Many religious groups are represented in the prison population. There are Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Native Spirituality and Wiccan. There has to be understanding by staff of differing beliefs and practices.

We also read here about Disassociation and Segregation, better known as “the hole.” Some prisoners find a measure of safety in such a place, the irony of a prison within a prison.

Reverend Stoesz leads us quite gently to a better understanding, showing us that everyone he meets and counsels has his own story, his own excuses, and his own needs. Very often the circumstances of their life and upbringing have been appalling. Still their violence and bizarre behaviours demand incarceration. Very often the only thing the chaplain has to offer is sympathy, a listening ear and the love of God. Bowden Institution is “just down the road,” how little we know about these “neighbours.”



http://www.albertalocalnews.com/reddeeradvocate/lifestyles/columnists/Bowden_Institution_inspires_prison_chaplain_122667759.html
Peggy Freeman is a freelance writer living in Red Deer.

INCOME LEVELS ACCORDING TO RELIGION

Pew Research has released a new study that ranks income levels according to one's religion. It's interesting that Christians for the most part have lower incomes in North America than some of the other religious categories.

There is also a strong tie between education levels and income. Read the New York Times article here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/magazine/is-your-religion-your-financial-destiny.html

MINISTRY LESSONS FROM A MUSLIM

Eboo Patel has a message for evangelical leaders.

'While holding firmly to his belief in Islam, he also affirmed church leaders. "Even though it is not my tradition and my community," Patel wrote after the conference, "I believe deeply that this type of evangelical Christianity is one of the most positive forces on Earth." '


Intrigued? Read the Christianity Today article at:

http://www.ctlibrary.com/le/2009/spring/ministrylessonsfromamuslim.html

PROSELYTIZING IN MULTI-FAITH ENVIRONMENTS

Church consultant and trend-watcher Ed Stetzer wrote this insightful article in Christianity Today.

If you are wondering where you fit into today's religious realities, consider this quote from the article and then jump to the link to explore some good insights into multi-faith relationships.

If anything, "God is dead" has been replaced with "God is back." Economists John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge, an atheist and a Roman Catholic, wrote a fascinating book in 2008 with that title. In it they noted that while statistics about religious observance are notoriously untrustworthy, most surveys seem to indicate that the global drift toward secularism has halted. Quite a few surveys show religious belief to be on the rise. They reference one source that says that "the proportion of people attached to the world's four largest religions—Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism—rose from 67 percent in 1900 to 73 percent in 2005, and may reach 80 percent by 2025."

Full article here at http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2011/april/proselytizingmultifaith.html

NON-NEGOTIABLES IN MINISTRY

“What are three non-negotiable principles upon which I base my pastoral ministry?”

1. Humility
2. Listening
3. Grace

The scripture says Jesus knew who he was, where he came from and where he was going.  This is the foundation of humility.  We cannot serve humbly if we feel the need to constantly defend and explain ourselves.  Knowing that we are children of the Father and having a sense of our own history and destiny gives us the freedom to be who we truly are.  Humility keeps us from getting overly self-absorbed.

The ministry of listening must be rooted in humility.  If we are willing to listen to those above us and those below us, God will always have something to say through them.  We must meet the challenge of listening without rushing to our agenda for that moment.  If we feel that those in authority above us are unsuitable, we stop listening.  If we feel that someone is below us, we are tempted to stop listening or hear what we want to find fault.

Isaiah said the Messiah would not break a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick.  That would be grace.  If I do not practice grace in my ministry to others, I lose sight of what it means to be a pastor.  Jesus takes a ‘bruised reed’ and binds it up.  He adds support to sustain the life in that person.  The one who has lost their fire is not snuffed out, but nurtured back to flame.

It is my prayer that New Song Church will embrace these qualities in greater measure.  This three-fold braid makes for a strong rope.  Humility, listening and grace – that ought to pull a big load.

BABY BOOMERS ARE TURNING 65

John Armstrong has some good thoughts about the Baby Boomer Generation turning 65 at the rate of 10,000 Americans per day.

http://johnharmstrong.typepad.com/john_h_armstrong_/2011/01/the-longevity-revolution-the-boomer-shift-is-coming.html