Odds and Sods

Sometimes I hear people - particularly of my over-55 generation - carping about "kids these days." A few nights ago I went to a youth production of Les Miserables (School Edition). It was marvellous and a joy to see what talent, hard work and commitment can accomplish. With a little help from dedicated adults, of course.

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I've started reading Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. Afghanistan 30 years ago. I've heard it is an excellent book and an absorbing read. Who knew 30 years ago that today we would have Canadian troops in Kandahar?

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It's "apple blossom time in Annapolis Valley," with lots of wholesome activity in the air: a festival with Princess teas and coronations and a Grand Street Parade, a gala, and a craft fair - something for everyone coming up from May 31st till June 5th.

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Is there ever a "prettier" time for a garden than in spring? I am loving the colours - especially the pale yellow of primulas, the bright pink of creeping phlox, the various shades of green, and the gorgeous colours of flowering crab trees.

Taking Off With Canary's Comments

The challenging Canary in her comments to my last post has me thinking further on the Pagels book and its ideas. Yes, the gnostics had many esoteric practices as Canary notes but it was a very diverse movement. Pagels says that making generalizations about gnosticism and reaching consensus as to what it was about is difficult.

I am not particularly interested in gnosticism per se. I read people such as Pagels to further my understanding of religion, in general, and Christianity, in particular. The theological motto "faith seeking understanding" appeals to me.

I also have Pagels' first book The Gnostic Gospels (Vintage, 1981) which received widespread acclaim when it first came out in 1979. In her conclusions at that time she said that in writing the book it did not mean that "I advocate going back to gnosticism - much less that I 'side with it' against orthodox Christianity" but she found the debate interesting not only as an academic historian but as a person concerned with religious questions. One of the key questions is what is the source of religious authority? what is the relationship between religious authority and one's own experience?

For example, the tradition asserts a literal resurrection event. Pagels states that Christianity would likely not have survived and become the powerful and appealing world religion that it is today without this assertion. If the gnostic manuscripts being studied by Pagels had come to light earlier than the 20th Century they would have been considered "madness, blasphemy and heresy" because the gnostics understood "resurrection" in much more spiritual terms. The gnostics (in general) talked of encountering the Risen Jesus spiritually in the present. Sounds like many leading thinkers and theologians today!

But what does any of this matter anyway? I think Canary would agree that there was little in gnosticism that had to do with moral and ethical concerns. Isn't it more important to feed the hungry/ clothe the naked/ visit the sick/ care for the poor and love one's family and one's neighbour, the everyday "cross-bearing and cross-sharing," than it is to enter into trance like states, see visions and have so-called "religious" experiences?

I do like the point of Pagels book (Beyond Belief) that what matters in religious experience involves much more than what we believe or say that we believe when we recite the creeds. What is it that we love? What is it about our faith that we couldn't do without? What draws us to Church on a regular basis? What attracts us?

Believer or Seeker?

For some time I have been reading Elaine Pagels Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas. It is one of those books I've been picking up and putting down, but I've finally finished it. As with most non-fiction I generally find something of interest, so now for a few thoughts:

Pagels is a historian of religion and a scholar involved with the study of the Nag Hammadi manuscripts. These manuscripts were found in Upper Egypt in 1945 and are sometimes called "the gnostic gospels." They are "outside" the traditionally accepted gospels which form the New Testament, that body of writing accepted as revealed truth by the Christian Church. I am reminded that recently another similar manuscript, "the Gospel of Judas," has been in the news as historians attempt to transcribe it and debate its significance. Beyond Belief is not purely an academic work as Pagels brings much of her own questioning, religious quest and search for a spiritual home into the book. But it is the work of "an academic" with many footnotes detailing rigorous research.

In Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas Pagels paints a picture of the first 400 years of Christianity when it was becoming an established religion. During those years the "orthodox" version of the Christian tradition took hold. The canon for believers and the key statements of faith - the creeds - were formulated. To be a Christian was to be baptised and to believe in certain faith statements, primarily that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, indeed, the incarnate God, the Word of God. During this formative period certain writings - the familiar New Testament including the four gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - were given "the stamp of approval," as it were by the "Fathers of the Church," and others such as the gospels of Thomas, Judas, Mary Magdalene and so on, were rejected. According to Pagels, even though we just discovered these writings in the 20th Century it does not mean that they were not known in the early centuries. There were many, many ideas then, it was a time of great flux.

Perhaps the main idea that these gnostic gospels such as "The Secret Gospel of Thomas" teach is that the kingdom of God is within each of us, that each person, like Jesus, has the spark of divinity within them and that each of us can directly seek God through our own spiritual intuition.

Pagels states that whether "the Church" (Roman Catholic, Baptist, Anglican or whatever branch of Christianity one belongs to) likes it or not, each generation relives, reinvents and transforms what it receives. But, Pagels is careful to add, we have an enormous human capacity for self-deception, so it would be wise for us to balance our seeking with our believing.

If you think Pagels is another Dan Brown of The DaVinci Code, think again. There is no comparison. Pagels is not out to discredit the early Church or to make it sound as if there was a conspiracy of silence to hide certain documents. There are no demonic cabals and no secret societies. As a woman, one might expect Pagels to rant at the paternalistic nature of the early Church but she is too far above that. She simply recounts how the choices for belief were made and leaves it up to us, her readers, to decide if we can continue as Christians to be both believers and seekers - as I think she herself is, and as I, too, try to be.

Mulberry's Comment and Some Gardening Plans

I've been reading and thinking about the quotes from A Gardener's Diary posted by Mulberry after "The Joy of the Garden." I especially like "to own a bit of ground and to scratch it with a hoe" as it made me think of another line from someone - "to seek your heaven daily in a bit of ground." That seems to be the essence of gardening, the simplicity of the act of cultivating a plot of earth no matter how small.

I have been working on my perennial bed and border and I've decided it's badly in need of refurbishing, if that's the right word! Too many plants are overgrown and crowding one another out so I plan to dig some up and move them around to other places. I'm just hoping it's not too late for this. Last night I was talking to a woman who is doing just that and potting up and selling some of her extra perennial divisions. We agreed that perennial beds look much better with some spaces between the plants so that is what I plan to work on next.

The Joy of the Garden

We've had an early spring, some people have been working in their gardens for a month. But, like many others around here, I didn't get started in my garden until this weekend. As usual, when I am working in my garden on a warm spring day time passes quickly and I become absorbed in my tasks of digging and weeding and transplanting. Sometimes I even think about my garden philosophically!

Gardening can be peaceful and meditative. In Finding The Still Point Tom Harpur writes that in Okinawa gardening is considered a religious experience, as even plants are thought to be imbued with spirit. Celtic spirituality sees God in creation, in the connectedness of all things. The Buddist monk Thich Nhat Hanh who has written so much of an ecumenical nature, drawing the parallels between Christianity and Buddhism, urges us to be mindful in all our activities of this connectedness. Thus in the garden we can be mindful that each flower, each shrub, each tree, and yes, each "weed" contains the sun, contains the clouds, contains the ocean and contains the minerals and other nutrients from the soil.

I think perhaps that that is the real joy of the garden: working the earth, feeling the warmth of the sun and knowing that with some water and tender loving care our plants will grow and flowers will bloom.

Well Worth the Read

My book discussion group met yesterday to talk about Karen Joy Fowler's The Jane Austen Book Club. Everyone agreed that it was an entertaining novel in itself regardless of whether you were a Jane Austen fan or not, although I do think the book was more avidly read by those who enjoyed reading (or re-reading) the Austen books.

Overall, our group thought that The Jane Austen Book Club was a cleverly structured book in which the characters and theme were more important than the plot. While we didn't think the book had the potential to become "a literary classic" we agreed that it was well worth the read, as much for its delightful humor as for any other reason. We thought that Fowler had done admirable research (we spent considerable time reading the appendix of Austen-related material) and was obviously well-versed in the Jane Austen books. We couldn't decide though whether or not she "loved" Austen herself as, at times, she seemed to be taking digs or spoofing Austen through her characters.

Here's my assessment of our books this year:
1. Sons of Fortune by Jeffrey Archer - only fair *
2. The Full Cupboard of Life by Alexander McCall Smith - a nice little read ***
3. Rockbound by Frank Parker Day - interesting **
4. The Constant Gardener by John LeCarre - very good ****
5. Sea Glass by Anita Shreve - good ***
6. Adultery by Richard B. Wright - very good ****
7. The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler - very good ****

I'm certainly glad I've read all these books; I wouldn't likely have picked them on my own were it not for the group, and it's interesting to read a variety of fiction. But, I'm not sure I can say of one of them that it was powerful, moving, challenging or totally absorbing.

Keeping It Simple

Bridge is a partnership game and it helps if you and your partner are on the same page - or at least are reading the same book. I play bridge with the same partner on a regular basis. Once a week my partner and I play duplicate bridge competitively. We have a wonderful "working" relationship but even at that things can go wrong. When they do we always wonder what to say that may help one or the other of us to save face or add a little humor to the proceedings. I just read an article in Bridge Bulletin the official monthly publication of the ACBL (American Contract Bridge League). In "Viewpoints," the editor Brent Manley applies a number of quotes attributed to Yogi Berra to the game of bridge. I think a few of these could be applied to some of the situations my partner and I find ourselves in. A few examples:

Last night my partner put me in 3NT (3 no trump) when a Pass would have been more appropriate. As my partner said, hopefully, "maybe my 8's will grow up," she might well have used Yogi Berra's famous phrase, "It ain't over till it's over." As a matter of fact she was right and we made the game.

One of the things that is constantly amusing to us is that my partner's "finesses" never seem to work. If she guesses a king to be in right hand opponent's hand it is always in left hand opponent's. Perhaps I will try this Yogi phrase next time, "It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." That should make her feel better!

In this world of duplicate bridge my partner and I occasionally win - that is, we are scored as one of the top pairs for that club game. Many times we are "in the middle." But, just once in awhile, much to our chagrin, we come in dead last. Ah, yes, perhaps now with Yogi we can say, "It's not the heat, it's the humility." Or, maybe then we can say, "we made too many wrong errors."

Yes, my partner and I just need to learn to keep the game simple.

Weird Dreams

Does anyone else have weird dreams? I'm still thinking about this one:

I am having dinner out and we get up to leave. My coat is missing. I find an old jacket that belongs to me in a packed closet. I go outside, my car is missing. The scene changes - no longer a restaurant, it is now a hospital with weird indoor/outdoor parking. I go back and forth looking. things become more and more ominous. I open doors, go down corridors, in and out. Increasingly weird and scary people appear and tell me to follow them, they know where my car is. I am feeling more and more panic stricken. We come to a hospital desk and someone says, "we have a call from this lady's heart specialist."
"But," I say "HOW DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?"

This wakes me up and I feel utterly grateful that I have been dreaming!

It's More Than A Game

There is magic in the air. The breeze is gentle and warm. The bright green of the fresh spring grass is set off by the brilliant yellow of the forsythia shrubs in full bloom. Greetings are called out, and excited talk and laughter fills the air as golf clubs are taken from cars or the club storage room. Groups of four women happily set out to find their tee-off hole. For the next two hours a game of golf will be played in a co-operative scramble format, but the real activity will be "catching up" on how the winter was spent or in getting to know someone new. It's the annual Ladies Opening with the usual ritual of a game, a dinner meeting, socializing and signing up for various matches.

Today was just such a day for me, and as I looked around at the gathering I was filled with gratitude. I thought: these women are a large part of my circle of friends and aquaintances; I am so blessed to be surrounded by love and laughter and caring; I am so fortunate to have found this special place.

Golf - it's more than the game that is important.

A New Look

A friend and I just went for lunch in a village near where we live in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley. We were impressed by the many changes we saw around us in the village. It seems to be in the process of reinventing itself as somehat of a centre for the arts. Lunch at the ArtCan Cafe and Gallery was delicious and after lunch we spent some time looking around the gallery and art supply store. I did some drooling over the $25 sable brushes! Perhaps when I perfect my acrylic painting techniques I will treat myself. Or should that be the other way around? Maybe buying some quality materials would help me improve my painting. After lunch we strolled along the street and were attracted by a very welcoming space advertising yoga, tai chi, dance and fitness classes. Poking our noses inside for a look we were greeted by the owner who welcomed us in and gave us a tour of her new Ocean Spirit Studio. We were most impressed with the renovations she has made to what was formerly a rather dark antique store and framing place. The most dramatic renovation was the addition of many large windows framing a beautiful river view. Whether or not we sign up for a class, my friend and I decided the village will be on our "must do again soon" list.

H.H.Money

There is an expression, "you can pick your friends but you can't pick your relatives." This expression seems to be most often applied to in-laws if we go by the many "in-law" jokes in circulation. Sometimes you get lucky and you end up with a relative who is also a friend. This is how it is with my sister-in-law and me. When we get together it's always the same - good conversation, a few laughs, just sharing our lives. It is always fun to share something new with her even if it's only looking around a shopping mall as we did yesterday.

My sister-in-law and I have quite different interests, but I still remember a joint venture of ours about twenty-some years ago that we thought might make us - perhaps not rich but - a few dollars. We bought a race horse together. Well, he was only a "$1000 claimer" running on the harness racing circuit at small race tracks in the Maritimes. But my sister-in-law knows horses and she assured me that H.H.Money (yes, that was his real name) had a heart as big as they come and with proper training and a great deal of TLC he would perform for us. With visions of future 1st place finishes still to come, we were excited.

Money was coming along well and he was showing promise until, alas, he broke a leg (and our hearts) and was out of commission for some time. Keeping a race horse who doesn't earn his keep is an expensive proposition and one that neither of us could manage. We had to see that Money was put comfortably out to pasture.

We still laugh when we think of our experience as race horse owners and we still say, somewhat ruefully, "well, if he hadn't broken his leg." If only.