Magic Statistics

Michael Moore posted this little diatribe at his website today:

CBC has locked out its union workers, an action that is abhorrent to all who believe in the rights of people to collectively bargain. Why the great and honorable CBC is behaving like an American corporation is beyond me.

What has the CBC done to cause Mr Moore to come down on it like a ton of lard bricks? It's going to show Bowling for Columbine tomorrow evening—during the lockout. "I do not want my film being broadcast on the network unless it is willing to let its own workers back in to work and promises to bargain with them in good faith."

Interesting that Mr Moore equates showing his film with "behaving like an American corporation". Doesn't that mean that Bowling for Columbine supports the behaviour of American corporations? No, wait, that can't be right.

Be that as it may, Canadians who have been following CBC programming during the labour dispute know perfectly well why our national broadcaster is showing Moore's crappy film: It's scraping the bottom of the barrel.

via Bourque.

Latest in an occasional series of prayers by Christians of ages past. Previous entry here; complete list of entries here.

O gracious and holy Father,
Give us wisdom to perceive you,
intelligence to understand you,
diligence to seek you,
patience to wait for you,
eyes to see you,
a heart to meditate on you,
and a life to proclaim you,
through the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

St Benedict (c. 480-c. 547) was born in Nursia and sent to Rome to study. The degenerate life of the city caused him to flee to the country and live as a hermit in a cave. After many disciples joined him, he established a monastery at Monte Cassino, about halfway between Rome and Naples, and lived there until his death.

At Monte Cassino, he wrote the final version of his Rule, inspired by monastic teaching from John Cassian and St Basil of Caesarea. The Rule gives instructions for how the monastic community is to be organized, and how the monks are to spend their time. An average day includes about four hours to be spent in liturgical prayer (called the Divinum Officium, the Divine Office), five hours in spiritual reading and study, six hours of labour, one hour for eating, and about eight hours for sleep. The Book of Psalms is to be recited in its entirety every week as a part of the Office. A Benedictine monk takes vows of "obedience, stability, and conversion of life". That is, he vows to live in accordance with the Benedictine Rule, not to leave his community without grave cause, and to seek to follow the teaching and example of Christ in all things.

The widespread usage of the Rule of St Benedict has earned him the title "Father of Western Monasticism". He is also, of course, a namesake of the present pope.

The parish church in the town of Harlech, Wales, is dedicated to St Tanwg (pronounced "TAN-oog") a saint so obscure that he is not listed in The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, nor can I find any reference to him on the Internet. So, all the information I have comes from a two-page leaflet I picked up in the church. The leaflet says that Tanwg came to Wales from Brittany, France, in the 6th century as one of the companions of St Cadfan. Cadfan and his band of missionaries traveled widely in western Wales and established a large monastery on Bardsey Island.

On this map, Bardsey Island is the unnamed island off the end of Lleyn Peninsula, and Harlech is located on the east side of Tremadog Bay

St Tanwg's Church is a small church built in 1840 on the High Street of Harlech. It replaced the former parish church situated about a mile south of town. This photo shows St Tanwg's chancel with the communion table and rail.

(Click on photos for larger views.)

Below is a scroll painted over the door of the church. The text is Genesis 28:17, in Welsh and English: "There is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

I won’t pretend to be able to transcribe the Welsh translation, but those who are interested in viewing digitized images of the 1588 Welsh Bible should click here. The page with Genesis 28:17 is here.

Harlech is best-known for its castle. This page has a series of spectacular shots. Like Conwy Castle, it was built by King Edward I of England in an effort to enforce the subjugation of the rebellious Welsh.

The Welsh did remain quiescent for a time but, in the late 14th century, the charismatic noble warrior-prince Owain Glyndwr led what was to be the last armed Welsh rebellion and succeeded in returning Wales to home rule. But the English were determined not to give up Wales. Twelve years of constant warfare ensured that Glyndwr and his people enjoyed no peace. The surrender of Harlech Castle in 1409 marked the end of Glyndwr’s leadership. His family was taken prisoner, but Owain escaped and was never captured, despite the offer of huge rewards. The location of his burial is uncertain and remains a subject of controversy, as does the legacy of the man himself. To this day, he is a great folk hero to the Welsh people and an inspiration to Welsh nationalism.

Links to all my blog posts about British churches and Christian sites can be accessed through the box located at the top of the page.