Illuminating the Bible

The Saint John's Bible is the first handwritten, illuminated Bible to be produced since the invention of printing press over five centuries ago. Commissioned in 1998 by the Benedictine monks of Saint John's Abbey and University in Collegeville, Minnesota, it will include over 160 "illuminations" or full-colour illustrations. It is being created by a team of scribes, artists and craftspeople in Wales, under the artistic direction of calligrapher Donald Jackson, writing on vellum, using quills, natural handmade inks, hand-ground pigments and gold leaf. When finished, it will be more than two feet tall and three feet wide when open, covering 1,150 pages in seven volumes; five volumes have now been completed. A reproduction of the Gospels and Acts volume will be on display at St. Michael's College in Toronto April 16; Father Michael Patella, chair of the committee on illumination and text, will give a public lecture on 'Encountering God in Word and Image.'

These books are cheaper

The Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) has opened a non-profit used book store, cafe and performing arts venue in Winnipeg. Sam's Place is run mainly by volunteers and will raise funds for MCC's relief and development work. The venue offers thousands of used books, a 60-seat restaurant serving locally grown food and fair trade products, and a stage where emerging artists can perform and sell their CDs, self-published books and art. The store manager is Tim Collins, who came into contact with MCC Manitoba's prison visitation and community integration program, Open Circle, while serving time for bank robbery and other crimes. "Sam" is a life-size wood carving of a Komodo dragon who serves as a mascot and offers customers recommendations for books and menu items.

Four heads are better than two

Pope Benedict XVI has named two Auxiliary Bishops to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec City. Paul Lortie and Gerald Cyprien Lacroix join Bishop Gilles Lemay in assisting Archbishop Marc Cardinal Ouellet. Ordained in 1970, Lortie has served in a number of educational and administrative roles for the church and then as pastor for a number of parishes 1995 - 2008. Ordained in 1988, Lacroix served as a missionary in Colombia 1990 - 1998 and then became head of the Pius X Secular Institute in Canada. The Archdiocese of Quebec City ministers to 917,000 parishioners in 223 parishes and missions, served by 432 diocesan priests, 283 religious order priests, 90 permanent deacons, 3,393 religious sisters and brothers, and 80 lay pastoral workers.

But sometimes there is only one

The University of St. Michael's College, a Roman Catholic school affiliated with the University of Toronto, has appointed Father Mario O. D'Souza dean of the Faculty of Theology. He has been on faculty at St. Michael's since 1999 and teaches in the area of philosophy, education and religion. He has also been on faculty at the University of Windsor, St. Joseph's College at the University of Alberta, and Assumption University in Windsor.

Concert rings a bell

The final concert from Christian musician Steve Bell's recent 'Devotion Tour' was recorded by CBC Radio 2 and will be broadcast on Canada Live April 10 (Good Friday). The broadcast will begin with a gospel concert from Montreal, followed by the Steve Bell concert.

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He's back

The Jim Bakker Show will join the program lineup on the Christian Channel April 13. The hour-long Christian talk and variety show is scheduled to air Monday through Friday mornings, with a repeat broadcast in the late evening. The series, hosted by Jim Bakker and his wife Lori, was launched in 2003 and is taped in Branson, Missouri, where Bakker pastors Morningside Church. Bakker previously ran a broadcast ministry called The PTL Club with his first wife, the late Tammy Faye Bakker, but that ministry foundered in the 1980s when Bakker confessed to sexual improprieties and was imprisoned for improper use of ministry funds. Bakker says his message today is one of "hope and restoration."

A different kind of Christian broadcasting

At the Christian Book Expo in Dallas, Texas last month, Mike Anderson of The Resurgence asked theologian and author J.I. Packer of Regent College in Vancouver to offer some advice to a new Christian. Packer gave a brief response outlining the importance of Bible reading, prayer, worship, fellowship with other Christians and witnessing. On the spur of the moment, Anderson filmed the response, and he has now posted it online.

Some things are getting better

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada's Religious Liberty Commission (EFC RLC) has released a report on 'Religious Freedom in Vietnam: Welcome Progress with Notable Exceptions.' The 10-page document looks closely at internal church developments and government policy developments that took place in 2008 and early 2009, and it builds on previous annual EFC RLC reports on the progress of religious freedom in Vietnam. "The situation has been steadily improving," notes Don Hutchinson, chair of the EFC RLC. "However, there are still issues of concern and a need for continued advocacy on this issue before Vietnam's Protestant Christians and other faith minorities experience full freedom of religion."

Some things aren't

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada has publicly endorsed Bill C-268, which would amend the Criminal Code to impose mandatory minimum sentences on anyone convicted of trafficking persons under the age of 18. The private members' bill, introduced by MP Joy Smith, was debated April 1 and will be put to a vote April 22. If it passes, it will be sent to the Justice Committee for study and then returned to the House of Commons for two additional hours of debate and a final vote. Trafficking in persons has been described as a modern form of slavery. The United Nations calls it the fastest growing form of transnational organized crime, with up to one million people, mostly women and children, being trafficked throughout the world each year. This makes it the third largest criminal industry in the world, following arms and drug dealing, generating $7 to $10 billion annually for traffickers.

Some other things also aren't

Development and Peace is asking Canadians to urge their Members of Parliament to support Bill C-300. Presented by Liberal MP John McKay, the bill will require Canadian mining companies to respect Canada's commitment to international human rights standards. So far, the Canadian government has only applied voluntary standards, saying that enforcement is the responsibility of governments in the Global South. Almost 300,000 Canadians have signed postcards asking the Canadian government to establish an ombudsperson who would receive complaints from victims of Canadian mining companies. Development and Peace has heard from its partners in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East that Canadian mining companies have contaminated water sources, causing health problems for people and livestock. Debated on April 3, Bill C-300 is now being studied by a House of Commons committee and will then return to the House for a vote. Development and Peace is the official relief and development agency of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

April 9/2009