Here, once again, are my weekly ramblings, restored to their rightful day of the week. This is a chance for me to address all the topics I wanted to write about during the week but couldn’t make into a whole article.
Today the pope denounced the imbalance of wealth that exists between the world’s rich and poor. He is well-qualified to speak about such things since he heads the richest organization in the world. The wealth of the Vatican is beyond measuring, but must extend into the hundreds of billions or more likely into the trillions of dollars. He could gain just a little bit of credibility if he had said that they were going to donate the proceeds from the sale of a couple of statues or paintings, or maybe donate the proceeds from the sale of some of the millions of acres of land they own just here in Ontario. But no, we know that won’t happen. The pope can denounce the imbalance all he wants, but until he starts to be part of the solution rather than the cause of much of the problem, his words count for nothing. Of course he compounds his sin by asking God to help those who are “most tried by the unfair distribution of wealth that God destines for all his children” when he, himself, could address this problem better than anyone in the world.
I have owned J.I. Packer’s book Knowing God for several years now and have never stopped to read it…until yesterday. I knew it was going to be a good one and am not surprised to find that after the first few chapters it is just an excellent book. Between that and Putting Amazing Back Into Grace I could have back-to-back winners here!
For the past four Sundays my church has been meeting in the local AMC Theatre since all the other buildings in town were either booked or were too expensive. While it has been a new experience, it has generally been a good one. Where I was concerned that it would drastically change the look and feel of the church, I think it has actually been a good thing for us. Immediately outside the doors of the cinema we are in as a cafe area with tables and chairs, and people begin to arrive early to sit and yack with their friends. The sense of community, which I feared would be lost, has actually increased. And the acoustics in that theatre are really good which makes doing the music a joy!
That’s all I’ve got for today! Enjoy the rest of your Lord’s Day and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.
