Last evening I was at Hillhurst United Church in Calgary. It was wonderful to be with these good folks, to speak to them, and to engage in some back-and-forth with other speakers. I did it all from the small apartment I call home in Toronto. And another speaker joined in from Copenhagen! It was another way to meet—a way that I expect and hope will become more common.

Late yesterday afternoon I received an e-mail from a faithful church member in rural Ontario. The words sounded harsh to me, questioning the Moderator’s priorities (going to Copenhagen) when the church at home needs so much attention. Most e-mail messages provide no real contact information, but this one had some clues. So I tracked down a phone number and had a good conversation with a wonderful woman last evening.

Last-minute updates from Copenhagen are arriving on my Blackberry in these minutes leading up to the official opening of the Fifteenth Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP15).

I’ve been out of the country this week fulfilling a leadership commitment to the North American Ecumenical Stewardship Center, made long before becoming Moderator. It sometimes seems easier to get a perspective on Canada from a distance, and at table with those of other nations.

 Could it be? Is it a possibility? What would it mean to the followers of Christ that call themselves Christians because they believe that "Jesus died for my sins".

Welcome to my blog—a place to reflect with me on God’s abundant healing of soul, community, and creation. I hope you will visit often and be part of this sacred conversation.

The front page of the morning newspaper quotes an 11-year-old girl saying, among other things, “If you’re going to go through life, truth is big.”

Welcome to my blog — a place to reflect with me on God's healing of soul, community, and creation. I hope you will visit often and be part of this sacred conversation.

My first official stop as Moderator was on the beach at Naramata Centre on Wednesday, August 19. Within a cathedral of light reflected by earth, lake, and sky, the community gathered for worship. Lake Okanagan was at my back as I donned the moderatorial stole for the first time since the installation service. As I draped it over my shoulders, the fringe of the stole touched the sand at my feet. My immediate reaction was to gasp and blurt out to the crowd “Oops—don’t tell anyone it touched the ground!”

Hello, WC,

I am doing a service on Creation stories in my UU church in a couple weeks. I'm reading though Virginia Hamilton's In the Beginning, an excellent collection of creation stories from around the world trying to pick out some to read in the service. It's oriented to older kids, but the style makes it a good choice for reading in the service since the renditions are fairly short and read aloud well.