Page CXVI proves that “old” hymns can have new life. The band wants to make “some of the richest, most meaningful, and moving pieces of music ever written” accessible and known again.
This week, to promote the release of their next album, Hymns II, you can download Page CXVI’s first Hymns album at http://pagecxvi.com/share.
The download includes chord charts for the hymns on the album (which includes Come Thou Fount, In Christ Alone, My Jesus I Love Thee, When I Survey The Wonderful Cross, and three more).
The new Facebook API (Application Programming Interface) is so easy and unrestricted that someone has built this site where anyone can plug in any Facebook username — and see what results.
While no secrets will be exposed, the search results may reveal things that might otherwise take some time to obtain.
Give it a test run by typing your own Facebook username name into the site. If you are surprised by what you see, this guide will show you how to increase your Facebook privacy.
Education for the sake of education is a hard sell in an age dominated by the market economy. The hardest “sell” of all may be to get a college student to consider biblical or theological studies.
In a world dominated by the market economy, the purpose of education is “to provide useful information and marketable skills that will enable students to compete and survive in the jungle of the global market” (Goheen and Bartholomew, Living at the Crossroads, 166). What advantage do students gain over their peers by taking courses in Bible and theology? How does such an education equip them to live and contribute in a market economy?
Christians who are critical participants in culture have a different understanding of education. The purpose of education is not to serve the god of mammon or the market. From a Christian perspective, education is, as Goheen and Bartholomew put it, “for the purpose of equipping students to witness faithfully to the gospel in the whole of their lives” (170).
Biblical and theological studies (or teaching Bible) is contrary to the interests of the market economy which dominates our lives. It is “impractical,” a “waste of money” and “worthless” when measured against what the market economy holds to be of ultimate value. But for Christians who believe that the biblical perspective on life is the real story by which our lives are to be lived, there will be great value attached to an endeavor that challenges the idols of our age.
So, in the midst of a culture that tries to stifle Christian witness and in a global economy that undercuts that which is of ultimate value with cheap knockoffs, I teach Bible.
Stations of the Cost are fourteen images with poetic reflections on the social, economic, and environmental issues surrounding the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in the pattern of the ancient Christian liturgy, the Stations of the Cross.
Sitta canadensis has been busy at the bird feeder underneath the big blue spruce for the past few days. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology describes the Red-breasted Nuthatch as “an intense bundle of energy” and that description of the bird’s behaviour matches what I have seen.
Red-breasted Nuthatches move quickly over trunks and branches probing for food in crevices and under flakes of bark. They creep up, down, and sideways without regard for which way is up, and they don’t lean against their tail the way woodpeckers do. Flight is short and bouncy.
The Cornell University site also notes that Sitta canadensis is the only North American nuthatch with an eyestripe, and the only one with extensive rusty or cinnamon on the underparts. It has what is described as a “yank-yank” call which sounds like a tiny tin horn (Listen here).
Here in the Truth North, Strong and Free, a toboggan is used on snow to slide down a hill or other slope for winter fun. Unlike a sled or sleigh, a toboggan has no runners but rides directly on the snow.
Dressing in a tobogganwas not something I had known about until today. However, here in the True North, Strong and Free, we would refer to such a knit hat as a toque (or tuque), which is apparently another unique Canadian term.
The wisdom of the masses at Wikipedia helped to clear up my confusion while admitting that “it is extremely confusing when people refer to a seasonal hat with the name of a specific winter sled” (Toboggan-Wikipedia).
I guess it is no surprise that those living in a land of long winters would come up with a few unique terms for items associated with the season.
I’ll be the first to admit that my handwriting has deteriorated as I’ve spent more time with the keyboard than with the pen. However, I do marking the old-fashioned way — spilling lots of (green) ink on the submitted papers and assignments — and hope that the students are able to read my scribbled comments.
It is obvious that keying (whether at your computer or on your phone) is corporeally different from writing by hand. But neuroscience is suggesting that it might also result in different cognitive skills:
Cursive’s flow works the brain differently and builds distinct cognitive skills. Handwriting reinforces reading and spelling, develops motor memory as it becomes automatic, teaches students to focus and may help them remember what they learn.
Neuroscientists know that the brain changes throughout life depending on how we use it.
As keyboards replace cursive, new neural pathways are created and new cognitive skills replace the old.
The quote is from Toronto Star reporter Andrea Gordon’s piece on “The Death of Handwriting” — part of her feature series, Disappearing Ink.
If the handwriting is on the wall for cursive, neuroscientists fear that the cognitive skills that handwriting builds may be lost or, according to one psychiatrist, that our brains “will develop in a different way that no one has really thought through.”
That, of course, has implications for all of us, especially those who are engaged in the field of education.
What Would Jesus Buy? follows Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir as they take a cross-country trip in the month prior to Christmas 2005, and spread their message against what they perceive as the evils of patronizing the retail outlets of several different large corporate chains.
Don’t let the irreverent comedy in this film sidetrack you from its provocative examination of the commercialization of Christmas, materialism, over-consumption, globalization, and the business practices of large corporations.
Directed by Rob VanAlkemade and produced by Morgan Spurlock.
Watch the entire film now (Google Video) (91 minutes):
The local newspaper had a feature article recently about the burrowing owl, which is an endangered species. It is estimated that there are fewer than a thousand breeding pairs left in Canada, mainly in Saskatchewan and Alberta. The mission of the Saskatchewan Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre is to promote conservation of the owl and its native prairie habitat.
The newspaper article related this and more about the centre’s efforts and let readers know that they could support its conservation efforts. A tax-deductible donation allows you to “adopt” an owl, which means you get a picture of your adopted owl along with an official adoption certificate.
But, everyone who makes “a $100 donation receives a life-sized stuffed burrowing owl” (emphasis added).
I’m sure there is an important detail missing here that might involve the word “replica” or something similar.
Page CXVI proves that “old” hymns can have new life. The band wants to make “some of the richest, most meaningful, and moving pieces of music ever written” accessible and known again.
Education for the sake of education is a hard sell in an age dominated by the market economy. The hardest “sell” of all may be to get a college student to consider biblical or theological studies.
