Update from the Cornerstone Forum

Message from Gil Bailie

Dear Friends,Agony

I apologize for being so tardy in sending out this newsletter. In it I
will just report on some of the things we have been doing and make a suggestion how we can stay in touch more easily.

First the brief report:

AUSTRALIA:
In January I made a very brief trip to Australia to give several talks at the annual Anglican Clergy Summer School for the diocese of Brisbane. I had spoken to the same group about five years ago, but there were new faces among the ones I recognized from the earlier visit. We had a fine time, and my hosts were, as always, most gracious. Since I was only in Australia for four days, the trip was a bit exhausting, as you might imagine, but it was a delight.

THE MARCH FOR LIFE:
Since this is the year I will be moving back to California (more on that in a future newsletter), and since the whole time I've lived in New England I have been on the road during January, I was determined this year to attend the March for Life in Washington on the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that has led to so many millions of innocent deaths.

I was only at home from the Australian trip and a stop on the way back in California for one day before driving to Washington for the March, but I am so happy I did. It was a moving and inspiring event.

WEBLOG:
Before, during, and after the March I posted several weblog items dealing with the abortion issue and the March. During the March itself I took photos with my cell phone and posted quite a few photos on the blog. For a cluster of photos from the March, go here. For blog posts dealing more explicitly with the abortion question and/or the labored effort on the part of both the administration and the media to ignore or downplay the size of the March, go here, here, here, and here. For something on a related but more personal note, go here.


REFLECTIONS ON FAITH & CULTURE:
The Cornerstone Forum Weblog

"Healing the Schizophrenic Division Between Worldliness and Piety"



Now that you have a case of carpal tunnel syndrome from all the clicking you did above, let me suggest a convenient alternative: Subscribe to the Cornerstone Forum Blog. If you have a "reader," you know about this, if not, then setting up one is easy. You can watch a video about it here.

But the easiest way to begin working with a website and weblog "reader" have new blog posts from our weblog sent to it, is just to click on the icon below and subscribe to Reflections on Faith & Culture.
RSS
Once you're subscribed, all you have to do is bookmark your reader and check it occasionally to see which of your favorite blogs and websites have posted new items. While we're still ponder how we might take better advantage of Facebook and other social networking tools, the blog is something I've been doing for years, and it is a good way for us to stay in touch. You can leave comments on the blog when something interests you or when you want to agree or disagree with something I have posted.

Speaking of which, the January 31st blog post, A Sunday Reflection, explains the origin of the subtitle quoted above. In it I reflect on the tension between "worldliness and piety" because my blog posts often deal with controversial features of the "faith and culture" matrix. I hope it is clear that my critiques of political developments emerge out of my concern for culture as the central greatest influence on our moral and religious lives, and that my concern for culture is rooted in my faith that Christianity is the sine qua non of Western civilization, and that any weakening of its influence is inevitably accompanied by social, political, moral and existential consequences of the gravest kind. In other words, when I raise political issues, it is not as a political partisan, but because I see the cultural and moral damage this or that political trend or program threatens to inflict. On what I regard as the critical issues of our time I am hardly a fence-sitter, and I will make mistakes, but I will try in each case to speak the truth as I am given the grace to see it. And I hope you will make regular visits to the blog, bookmark it, and subscribe to it if you find it helpful. Again, it's here.

FINAL WORD

New York -- Washington, DC -- Wyoming
Upcoming Videos
Our need for your help


Randy and I will be traveling to New York and Washington, DC the third week of March, visiting with some of those with whom we have worked and corresponded, and with whom we hope to collaborate in the future. If you are interested, please contact us by replying to this newsletter.

And, finally, I will be traveling to Wyoming during Holy Week to lead a student retreat at Wyoming Catholic College in Lander, and to give talks in Jackson. The dates and times of the talks in Jackson have yet to be determined, and I'm told that the WCC retreat may be able to accommodate a few people from the community. So if you are interested in either venue, reply to this newsletter and we will get back to you with details.

Meanwhile: Randy took several hours of video of the talks I gave and discussions we had at Montserrat Jesuit Retreat Center in Dallas in December. He has plunged into the Herculean task of editing them and hopes to have some video available online in due course.

YOUR SUPPORT

Finally: Thank you for your many kindnesses and for your support. Even in the midst of a very
difficult economic times, we have been blessed by a number of new monthly donors, and we are both gratified and grateful for their donations. If you can join them with even a small monthly donation, it will be a great help to us. If you can help us, the donations page of our website is here. If you would like to speak with Randy about supporting our work, email him or call 866-506-5451.

With a heart full of gratitude,

Gil Bailie