A Deacon’s Musing

Knowing a Prophet!

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:01:52-06:0022 January 2010|Tags: Climate Change, Good News, Justice, Presbytery, Prophet|

I was once at a Presbytery meeting in Northeast Saskatchewan and, as is the wont of United Church folk, we were discussing Justice stuff. We like to talk about Justice in UCC circles – in fact it is often one of the glues that bind us. And in that time – I think we were revisiting discussions around uranium and our involvement in the global trade of nuclear technology and its impact on lives and the environment, when someone piped up and said, “Why are prophets so grumpy?” There was a pause and then laughter …

Gallery|2009

Dea. Richard2017-01-26T20:12:14-06:001 January 2010|Tags: A Deacon's Musing, Art, Creativity, Gallery, Prayer|

There are the images used throughout 2009 for A Deacon's Musing. I hope that the visuals chosen speak to the words used in each blog. Just as importantly, I hope they not only complement

Advent|Do-ers & Be-ers

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:06:20-06:002 December 2009|Tags: Advent, Beatitudes, Sabbath, Stories|

Advent is here and I have to admit that I am feeling some melancholy. This time last year I was in Israel-Palestine with Christian Peacemaker Teams. It was easy, I am aware of the irony, in that place to be a Do-er and and Be-er at the same time. Each day began and was framed by worship that was grounded in using The Beatitudes as a way in which to experience the Holy in places that were not always easy and in which the temptation for apathy and cynicism was always present. Using our hearing of The Beatitudes made it possible to be fully present as a Do-er!

The Divide

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:06:43-06:0011 November 2009|Tags: Generational Theory, Good News, Leadership, Narrative Budget, Stewardship|

Okay, I have a need to offer confession before proceeding! First of all, I am looking at that crazy calendar that is a life in Accountable Ministry and realise I have two similar Tasks that are pending. Both are sitting in my Outlook Calendar and require me to write something that is reflective and, hopefully, also useful and meaningful.

The Journey

Dea. Richard2025-12-11T12:12:53-06:001 October 2009|Tags: Choice, Confession, Journey, Leadership, Patterns|

We are all, individually and collectively, on a journey. In our United Church context, we openly name – Confess – the things that separate us from God and one another. We struggle, however, with our own stuff. How do we share our own dysfunction, our own brokenness?

A Proposal

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:08:01-06:0022 July 2009|Tags: Community, Intentional Community, Leadership, Orthodoxy, Temptation|

Okay, I admit it; I’m often coming back to community as a theme. In fact, were I to be completely honest, I would say that it is central to my own longing that lies at the centre of my faith. And, if I continue on this trajectory, I guess it is also why I am so invested in the necessity for healthy and effective leadership. The promise of a healthy community depends on the leadership that models it.

Letting Go

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:08:55-06:007 May 2009|Tags: Early Church, Fellowship, Leadership, Revelation, Vulnerability|

I was recently at a meeting and it was, as has been the case over the last two years, a meeting in which there was a lot of energy. This particular group of men and women have been meeting to review where the congregation has been, discussing where it currently is, and imaging where the Spirit might be guiding. In times of such intentional reflection there is always richness. This group, as with most that engage with leadership, modelled self-challenge, as well as comfort in listening to ideas that were either new or difficult. I suspect that many who are in leadership, either Ordered or Lay, have been in this place. And, as my own experience has evidenced, there are moments of profound insight, perhaps even revelation …

Choices

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:09:42-06:002 April 2009|Tags: A New Creed, Community, Prayer, Star Trek, The Borg|

In my last Blog, Oh, the Temptation ..., I ended it with the following observation: “In the end, while mumbling below my breath, it all revolves around choice and to my frustration, I do not remember Jesus ever pushing someone through a door, merely pointing out that there were and are many doors on the journey of our lives...”

Lent|Opt-In or Out?

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:10:25-06:0011 March 2009|Tags: Choice, General Council, Generational Theory, Lent, Sin|

So there I was at a meeting of the one of the levels of the Court of the United Church of Canada (there are four fwiiw: Pastoral Charge, Presbytery; Conference; and General Council). These Courts are not intended to be hierarchal, in fact when they work well; it lives out a way of being – of governance – that operates from the bottom -> up.

The Cookie Monster

Dea. Richard2026-01-15T11:12:48-06:0012 February 2009|Tags: Cookie Monster, Fair Trade, Leadership, Sesame Street|

I remember clearly the “One of these things is not like the others” Sesame Street song from the Cookie Monster a little too often since entering into a formal process toward accountable ministry in the United Church of Canada. Of course it is only now, as I have considered this latest blog why that would be ...