Today is the St. Patrick's Day weekend. For lots of people it will be a day of parades and partying. I wonder how many people know that the first St. Patricks Day parades were a way of raising funds...

All day yesterday, throughout the snowstorm which dumped a foot or more on Toronto, I was in contact with church members, trying to convince them to make the decision to close for Sunday morning....

A week away from the congregation, five days of no internet connection, and nothing to do but read books and think. Disconnection is good. Getting connected again is good too....

This past week I went away for a reading and study week - a retreat and time away from congregational life, to replenish the spiritual well a little bit. I had rented a lovely little cottage in...