Canadian Aboriginal Genocide

"...It quickly became obvious that business, government and the
church had been working together for more than a century to grab the
lands and resources of west coast native people like the Ahousahts,
using missionary work and the residential schools as a pretext to do
so. It wasn’t about “Christianising the heathen” at all, but about big
money, and getting rid of the indigenous people, who prevented the
European takeover by their continued occupation of the land. "

"Love and Death in the Valley" by Kevin Annett

Muggin' at the Mermaid's Mug

It occured to me that I've been mostly sharing items of interest lately, and opinions etc... but not much about what we're up to these days. Well, here's something I was up to last month:

Memoirs of a former Playboy centerfold

This story of the power of God's grace, is worth sharing
...(from PTM newsletter:)

Susie Scott Krabacher shares her wild ride from an abusive childhood to the Playboy Mansion -- from a life in disarray to one of faith, love and charity.

Susie Scott Krabacher with Vicki, a resident at one of her facilities for children in Haiti.

ASPEN, CO (ANS) -- Drawing on her own pain and experiences - the beatings from her mother, the sexual abuse from her grandfather, the denial of her father about everything going on, a centerfold spread in Playboy magazine, eerie encounters at the Playboy Mansion, the suicide of her brother -- Susie Scott Krabacher's book Angels of a Lower Flight: One Woman's Mission To Save A Country. One Child At A Time weaves a story that culminates with her resolve to never let any other child suffer the way she did.

The children she has chosen to help are the sick and orphaned in Haiti. With passion and an eye for detail, Krabacher describes what drove her to Haiti as well as what she has accomplished during her many visits to this impoverished country that the United Nations has termed "the worst slum on the planet."

There she encountered extreme poverty like she'd never seen before, as well as countless abandoned children, deadly gangs roaming the streets, a government oozing with corruption, and filth and despair at every turn. Her passion and desire to help these forgotten children led to the creation of the Mercy and Sharing Foundation, a non-profit organization which she runs with her husband Joe Krabacher, an Aspen attorney and real estate developer. The foundation is dedicated to providing a safe haven for abandoned, malnourished, and impoverished children in Haiti. Under Krabacher's direction, Mercy and Sharing now runs three schools, two orphanages, feeding centers, a hospital and an abandoned baby facility in Haiti. Krabacher's compassion knows no boundaries. She has held dying orphans so that they didn't pass away alone, and she has searched the morgue in order to give a proper burial to those she tried to save while they were hospitalized.

Prior to her current work, Krabacher worked extensively as a model and actress, appearing as the centerfold in Playboy magazine as Miss May 1983. She credits her renewed Christian faith and the purpose she found in caring for the world's poor as the factors that led to her life's transformation.

"To enter into suffering is why I was placed on earth," she writes. "From the time I was four until the moment I set foot in Haiti, I wondered what assignment God had in mind for me. Although my life's calling in Haiti is difficult, I hope I never run from it. To care for others is what I was created to do. My ability to care came from my own struggles."

In 2006, Krabacher was honored by World of Children, Inc., an international children's advocacy group dedicated to honoring exceptional child advocates from around the world. In 2004, she was granted The Humanitarian Rose Award, presented by The People's Princess Charitable Foundation, Inc., which was established to further Diana's commitment to help the needy. In addition, she has received the International Humanitarian Award from the National Association for the Advancement of Haitians, the National Achievement Award from E-Town Radio, the Citizen Cool Award from the Ben & Jerry's Corporation, and the Gift of Life Award from Rotary International. She is a member of the Miami Children's Hospital Hall of Fame, and has been awarded honorary citizenship in Haiti. Krabacher spends nearly every waking hour working for the children of Haiti, either fundraising in the United States, or providing hands-on help in Haiti for the 3,300 children in the care of Mercy and Sharing.

Susie with children in a Haitian village.

Krabacher's book, Angels of a Lower Flight, takes readers inside the turmoil and eventual triumph of Krabacher's life -- everything she has been through, from childhood to the present, including the coup overthrowing Haiti's dictator Aristide. Not for the faint of heart, her memoir is a wake-up call to all Americans about what's going on just a few hundred miles from our shores, in addition to what still goes on in abusive homes right here in the United States. By sharing her story, Krabacher hopes to save children from misery, wherever they may be.

Cassie Nelson and Lori Ames
Assist News Service

Joshua 'fit the battle of Jericho...

I'm participating in a joint effort with some other church members to read the bible in just 90 days. It's a challenge. But, I got through the "begats" of Genesis, and the meticulous and often bizarre details of law-keeping lists in Leviticus... whew!

Now, as I move into the book of Joshua, it's interesting to link Biblical events with archaeological evidence. While it can be a self-defeating trap to try to "prove" the bible by archaeology (thereby raising doubt in the bible when the archaeology is used to refute it), it is fun to watch the evidence as it unfolds.

For example, while it's proven that the walls of Jericho did collapse and the city was burned, there continues to be controversy over how the biblical timelines and the historical timelines overlap. It's also interesting to note the concurrent widespread destruction across Canaan:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jericho
Kenyon's date of around 1550 BC is widely accepted based on this methodology of dating. Notably, many other Canaanite cities were destroyed around this time.

And we're still singing about it some 3,500 years later - cool:
Check this classic version by Mahalia Jackson: (click for the link)...

And the Seycove Junior Concert Choir in Nelson, B.C. gives a good performance:

Passed On...

I discovered today that Floyd Red Crow Westerman died last month. Here's a short survey of his life from Wikipedia:

Judging from the Youtube comments and Google-hits related to the man, I don't think the Wiki report does him justice. He's obviously made an impact on people, especially in the First Nations communities where he was so well known.

This song, "Missionaries" decries the legacy of damage done by Imperialistic Religion operating falsely under the banner of Jesus Christ. It will take a long time and a lot of humility by those who truly follow Jesus, to hopefully undo some of this hurt:

Worth remembering

God doesn't make mistakes. That baby is there for a reason.

Interesting article on the New Atheism

This article regarding current trends in Atheism and Chritian philosophy proved to be interesting. Here are a couple of excerpts. Click the title or the link below to see the entire article:

The "New Atheism" as "Good News"
While the new atheism has generated worry among Christians, perhaps it isn't warranted. One gets a sense of growing worry among atheists as well, and for good reason.
by Randal Rauser

The last few years have seen the rise of the so-called “New Atheism”. a loose coalition of vociferous atheists who have denounced Christianity and religion generally in a number of high profile, bestselling books including Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion
...
While the new atheism offers little new by way of argument, it conveys the erroneous impression that orthodox Christianity is on the ropes intellectually speaking. On the contrary, Christianity has experienced renewed vitality through recent work in New Testament scholarship and philosophy of religion.

With regard to New Testament studies, just a few short decades ago it was widely assumed that the historical Jesus was all but inaccessible to critical scholarship. However, today works like N.T. Wright’s monumental The Resurrection of the Son of God (Augsburg Fortress, 2003) defend an orthodox picture of Jesus Christ on solid historical and evidential grounds. (Indeed, such is the evidence that even Pinchas Lapide, a Jewish scholar, has concluded on wholly historical grounds that Jesus was resurrected!)

..., the new atheists, to their credit, acknowledge that Christianity makes factual claims about the world, and thus that it is disingenuous to consign it to the realm of private feelings. Not only have they returned the question of factuality to discussion of Christian faith, but they have thereby placed discussion about God at the center of national consciousness and serious public debate. As such, they have unwittingly provided a golden opportunity for Christians to enter the public discussion and set the record straight. And that, it seems to me, is good news indeed.

http://www.christianity.ca/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=5307