Episcopal Life Online Daybook -- Today is Wednesday, July 11, 2007. The Church calendar remembers Benedict of Nursia, abbot of Monte Cassino, (c.480-540)
* Today in Scripture: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm
* Today in Prayer: Anglican Cycle of Prayer:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acp/index.cfm
* Today in History: On this day in 1533, Pope Clement VII excommunicates England's King Henry VIII for remarrying after his divorce.
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WEEKS AHEAD
Full calendar: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_1669_ENG_HTM.htm <http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_1669_ENG_HTM.htm
Events
7/11/2007
OMAHA, Nebraska: Anti-racism training in Province VI
7/14/2007
APPLETON, Wisconsin: Annual Eucharistic Festival
7/15/2007
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Celebrate the state of South Carolina
7/19/2007
COLUMBUS, Ohio: Global Mission Event 2007
7/28/2007
SEATTLE, Washington: Episcopal Church night with the Mariners
8/14/2007
GURNEE, Illinois: Episcopal Day at Six Flags Great America
8/23/2007
MEMPHIS, Tennessee: Haiti Partnership dinner
8/31/2007
HENDERSONVILLE, North Carolina: Solo Flight conference for single adults
Music
7/11/2007
NEW YORK CITY: Music in the garden
7/27/2007
HOPKINTON, New Hampshire: Ceilidh gathering
8/21/2007
HOPKINTON, New Hampshire: Village harmony
8/25/2007
NORTH CONWAY, New Hampshire: Bach festival chorus
Full calendar: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_1669_ENG_HTM.htm
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Catalyst: "God's Echo: Exploring Scripture with Midrash" from Paraclete Press, by Sandy Eisenberg Sasso, Afterword by Sister Joan Chittister, 168 pages, hardcover, c. 2007, $19.95
[Source: Paraclete Press] The Rabbis of old believed that the Torah was divinely revealed and therefore contained eternal, perfect truths and hidden meaning that required ongoing elucidation. The meaning of a text was more complicated that simply reading it. And meaning changed over time. This understanding of how the Bible mystically relates to all of life is the fertile ground from which midrash emerged. "The rabbis believed that nothing in the Bible, not the choice of words or their spellings, not the order of events or the relationship of one text to another, was haphazard or inconsequential. Everything was there with purpose. They deemed it their responsibility to discover connections and harmony where on the surface none appeared to exist. A text may contain multiple meanings. Time is of no consequence. They felt free to read back into old stories what happened in future eras, and to see in the early stories of Genesis a foreshadowing of future events."
In this engaging book, Rabbi Sasso explores how midrash originated, how it is still used today, and offers new translations and interpretations of more than twenty essential midrash texts.
To order: Episcopal Books and Resources, online at http://www.episcopalbookstore.org or call 800-903-5544 -- or visit your local Episcopal bookseller, http://www.episcopalbooksellers.org