We Didn't Start The Fire!

This comes from a recent email I received.  I remember loving this song as a kid, and now I'm really starting to learn what I was "singing" when I sang along... Enjoy the photos and history lesson from 1950-mid 1980s!

"Whether you are a Billy Joel fan or not, you probably remember his great song, "We Didn't Start the Fire." Here it is, set to pictures... very, very cool. I never did know the words. Turn up volume, sit back and enjoy a review of 50 years of history in less than 3 minutes! Thanks to Billy Joel and some guy from the University of Chicago with a lot of spare time

and Google." 

Directional Note: On the screen at the top left gives you full screen....top right lets you pause... Bottom left shows the year."

  http://yeli.us/Flash/Fire.html

Yom HaShoah--Day of Rememberence for the Holocaust

Yom HaShoah
יום השואה

Sunday, April 11th, is Yom HaShoah or Day of Remembrance for the Holocaust.  This date (27th day of Nisan in the Jewish calendar) marks the anniversary of the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto.  It is an opportunity to remember the 6 million people (Jews, Gays, Gypsies, physically and mentally disabled, Slavs, and more) who lost their lives because of Hitler and the Nazi's. 

Today, April 9th, marks the death of Dietrich Bonhoeffer 65 years ago in Flossenberg Concentration Camp.  He was hanged by the Nazi's for his assassination attempt on Hitler. 

For whatever reason, Steve and I chose to watch Schindler's List on Easter evening.  We didn't get to finish it, but instead finished it on Wednesday night (I don't recommend not finishing it in one sitting--it's too dark to leave off in the middle and wait for the ending--I liken it to the feeling on Good Friday when Christ is dead... it's a long 3 days wait till Easter)(Note--it's Rated R for a reason--it is not a movie for children or youth).  It is a powerful film and a wonderful example of the human spirit that prevails despite numerous difficult and horrible circumstances.  I had not seen it before, and it has left a mark on me.  I didn't know this weekend is the Yom HaShoah, but it gives me a new appreciation for this day of remembrance. 

Check out these links to learn more:

Yom HaShoah   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yom_HaShoah  http://www.ushmm.org/remembrance/dor/

Shoah Foundation http://college.usc.edu/vhi/

Bonhoeffer http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/online/bonhoeffer/

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum http://www.ushmm.org/

Oskar Schindler http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/focus/schindler/
Award-winning 1993 Film "Schindler's List" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108052/ 

In 1996 I visited Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp outside Berlin, Germany.  In 2001 I visited Buchenwald Concentration Camp, outside Weimar, Germany.  If you ever have the chance to visit a concentration camp, or watch Schindler's List, or both, I highly recommend it.  We must remember what happened.  We must do what we can to prevent this atrosity from ever happening again. 

Holy Hilarity or Being Piously Irreverent...

You choice! The Sunday after Easter is sometimes celebrated as Holy Hilarity Sunday.  I prefer the term "Piously Irreverent".  In honor of Holy Hilarity, I present the following piously irreverent links...

Just when you thought you had seen it all--Barbie has a new profession.  She's a 2nd Career High Church Episcopalian Priest!

 http://www.religionnews.com/index.php?/rnstext/barbie_gets_ordained_and_has_the_wardrobe_to_match/

And for another view of Jesus Christ, I present Bobble-Head "Buddy Christ"... (He lives on the bookshelf in my office in case you want to see him in person!)


http://www.jayandsilentbob.com/buchbo.html

















And for my female clergy friends out there... From Rev. Gal Blog Pals revgalblogpals.blogspot.com/

TOMs Shoes: Good for the Sole!

Today (April 8th) is National One Day Without Shoes:
TOM's Shoes make shoes to sell and for every pair of shoes they sell, they give one pair away to someone in need.  http://www.toms.com/

Check out the Facebook group for more info:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/One-Day-Without-Shoes-With-TOMS-Shoes/384309457888?ref=ts&v=wall

This Activity was featured on The Today Show this morning:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/36259451#36259451

Can you go one day without shoes? 

How many pairs do you own? 

I just counted and I own 21 pairs (including hiking boots, snow boots, shower shoes, bedroom shoes, and sneakers, just to name a few...) we truly live in a country of abundance and plenty!

Leave a comment to share your shoe story...

Favorite Easter Tradition

Easter traditions run deep in many families and churches... as a Moravian growing up, my favorite Easter tradition was cleaning graves and putting out flowers in God's Acre (A Moravian Graveyard) in Old Salem.  Though I haven't gone for years now, I love spending Saturdays in Old Salem, walking among my Moravian forefathers and foremothers.  Jessica Jones for North Carolina Public Radio had this piece on NPR, which is a great clip about this tradition this week:

The weblink is: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125554714&ft=1&f=10

Worshiping in the graveyard at sunrise may seem strange to some, but it is our reliving of the Easter story when the women disciples (Luke 24:1-12) went to the tomb early on the first day of the week (Sunday) to find the tomb empty.  "The Lord is Risen. The Lord is Risen, Indeed!" The plain, matching headstones remind us of equality in death.  Cleaning the graves reminds us of the women going to prepare the body of Christ.  Putting out fresh flowers remind us that He is not here, He is alive.  The beautiful, fresh flowers are an important part of Easter--they remind us that Hope Lives--Christ is Risen! 

(This is New Philadelphia Moravian Church's God's Acre, but Old Salem looks very similar at Easter!)