I (Richard Manley-Tannis aka me) began blogging with the United Church of Canada (UCCan) during the Emerging Spirit Programme in 2008. Though I approach the world through a Christian lens, I celebrate that all human truths fail to fully appreciate a universe & reality that cannot confine the Holy. In A Deacon’s Musing, I meander & ruminates, reflect & challenge. Hopefully some of it makes sense & I invite you to ask questions, push me to clarify & listen with intention!
I have journeyed journeyed with alternatives to the Canadian adjudicative judicial system & continues to endeavour to merge my practical conflict resolution & organisational development experience with appropriate theological & academic explorations. As well, I really appreciates the nuances of organisational & systems analysis. In such pursuits, I utilise such tools as Appreciative Inquiry & the Enneagram. In 2014, I began my PhD with The Taos Institute & Tilburg University. In this next journey of learning, which ended in 2020 with my graduation in the Netherlands, the completed project was an academic exploration of shifting the UCCan’s narrative from one of deficit and fear to one of abundance, mission and hope. The project ends with a practical application (i.e. workshops) to assist congregations live out the findings of the dissertation.
Since 2018, I have had honour to fill the role as Principal of St. Andrew’s College in Saskatoon, SK, Canada. In this capacity I am excited to be part of a team that is engaged in nurturing and preparing leadership in the church through the explicit lens of justice!
Now I am wide-eyed-open to where Creator is next inviting me …
Feather’s Fall|Stephen #1
The light was bright. He wanted to close his eyes. He longed to close them. But the inhibitor was doing its job – inhibiting! He sat in the chair surrounded by shiny metal walls with no seams. The questions had been asked and he didn’t have answers for them. Of course they thought he did, man he wish he did! He tried to tell them, in fact he cried it, yelled it, whined it, whimpered it … he wasn’t sure they realised he wasn’t some uber-touch-Way-preaching nut, because if they didn’t he wasn’t sure he could hold on much longer …
#MicroPoetry|December ’24 Reflections
The #MicroPoetry of the blog began as a creative practice in 2012. Using the confines of twitter's 140 characters, this discipline has been a generative opportunity to use words to poetically muse. Starting in 2017, brief reflections became another way to explore the use of these verses as part prayer, thought, reflection, challenge or something in-between. I hope these monthly collections offer you space to be, reflect and consider how your own choices might help you and other #ShineOn.
#MicroPoetry|December ’24 Memes
Too often it seems that words and images are placed against one another. The gift of a meme, when hopefully done well, is that the word and the visual serve to complement and enhance one another in a way that either one or the other - on their own - is unable to fully convey meaning. I hope, therefore, that these mash-ups of #MicroPoetry and their original accompanying image amplify meaning that one or the other could not fully convey!
Gallery|#ShineOn
This photo collection contains the unfolding meme creations of #ShineOn images. I hope, as you explore this expanding resource, one speaks to you so that you may, in turn, so embolden another person to embrace the spark divine that they too are.
#MicroPoetry|December ’24 Verses
Every month I tweet #MicroPoetry! In 140 characters, they are part prayer, thought, reflection, challenge or something in-between. I look forward to sharing them with you and hope that they may lead to reflection, musing and perhaps even discussion!
#Quotes|’24 Memes
It is my sincere hope that these quotes, which seem like wisdom to me, help us harness the capacity of words to liberate, heal and inspire us to compassion in our interactions with one another and with ourselves.
#MicroPoetry|November ’24 Reflections
The #MicroPoetry of the blog began as a creative practice in 2012. Using the confines of twitter's 140 characters, this discipline has been a generative opportunity to use words to poetically muse. Starting in 2017, brief reflections became another way to explore the use of these verses as part prayer, thought, reflection, challenge or something in-between. I hope these monthly collections offer you space to be, reflect and consider how your own choices might help you and other #ShineOn.
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