Thoughts, prayers, anecdotes, opinions, and personal reflections of CCS staff
CCS Principal Maylanne Maybee writes: Ann Naylor tells me that part of life at CCS is we keep fooling ourselves into thinking that once large events are over – like the Annual Service of Celebration or the 120th Anniversary – things will settle down to “normal” and we won’t feel quite so overwhelmed. Not so….
On October 11, CCS was thrilled to host a dialogue between Raheel Raza and Stan McKay on the themes of diversity, transformation, and hope. Here are some snippets of their conversation: Read Raheel’s blog post reflecting on the event, including some lovely quotations from Rumi. What is praised is one, so the praise is…
As part of their session on Creation and the Environment during the fall learning circle, students in the Social Ministry Year wrote laments. Lament is a form of psalm dealing with loss, grief, anger and concern. Glorious God who has lovingly shaped this world, Interconnected systems intricately woven to sustain life. But humans have arrogantly…
“What are some strengths and skills that the diaconate bring to ministry?” That’s one of the questions current students asked the diaconal community that gathered in Winnipeg from October 11 – 14, 2012 to celebrate CCS’ 120th anniversary. Lively discussion ensued, and the combined wisdom of the group is captured in this word cloud. The…
Principal Maylanne Maybee writes: Has CCS ever done such a thing before? Has there ever been anything like it? About 100 people – students and staff, past and present, graduates, Friends, supporters, and honoured guests – converged in Winnipeg from Thursday evening until Sunday morning. People came from Victoria, BC to St. John’s, Newfoundland, from…
Marion Pardy’s sermon for the CCS 120th Anniversary worship service on Sunday, October 14, 2012: Listen to audio (MP3) of Marion’s sermon. Scripture: Job 14: 7-9; Romans 8: 22-28, 31-39; Mark 4: 30-34 In preparation for today’s sermon I attempt to purchase a bracelet, with a small glass ball hanging from it, containing a…
If you’ve been a CCS student or supported a student in their field placement, you might have come across the CCS program “placemats”. We use them in orientations to literally lay out the diaconal ministry training program. The placemats are large laminated pages that say things like “Social Ministry Year” or “Learning Facilitator” or “External…
Principal Maylanne Maybee writes: I have spent the last week in two very different places and climates. From Wednesday to Sunday, I stayed with Phina Borgeson, a friend and fellow deacon in Santa Rosa, California as a base for leading a retreat for about a dozen deacons and others “in process” for becoming a deacon….
CCS’s Ann Naylor reflects on the “Feast for Friends” held at the Sandy-Saulteaux Spiritual Centre on September 22, 2012: Children are playing – working together to create a structure from the wood in the carefully stacked woodpile, sharing ideas, negotiating, being stubborn, cooperating, joking, celebrating their accomplishment. Adults are sitting together in circles – sharing…
The videos from September’s “Second Fridays at CCS” presentations are now available, so even if you weren’t in the room at lunch-time on the second Friday of the month, you can still be part of the experience. Dianne Baker, who served with the Ecumencial Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel, and Louise Simbandumwe, social justice…
Principal Maylanne Maybee writes: A lot goes on at CCS, inside and out, from one day to the next and one week to the next. Last Tuesday the Program Committee met by conference call, with lots of conversation about short-term courses, a new six week course for those preparing for the Anglican diaconate, the Program…
CCS Principal Maylanne Maybee writes: A week ago a gathering of CCS Friends and neighbours met in the home of Ted and Janice Dodd–who often and generously host CCS parties in their comfortable and sprawling house – to toast the accomplishment of Dr. Lori Stewart. Lori is a grad of CCS (U1987) who recently completed…
Ann Naylor reflects on the 41st General Council of the UCC, August 11-18, 2012 “You are doing well, relatively speaking, but you need to muscle up because the hardest sprint is yet to come and it’s not optional for this church.” (Marie Wilson, Commissioner, Truth and Reconciliation Commission, August 17, 2012 address to the 41st…
CCS Principal Maylanne Maybee writes:This is the second week of my first LDM! Fourteen students signed up for the August course at Woodsworth House in Winnipeg: ten women, four men; seven from the United Church, four from the Anglican Church, three from other traditions (Mennonite, Lutheran, and non-denominational). I have been apprenticing with Ted Dodd…
From Principal Maylanne Maybee: The big news of this week is announced below – Marc Desrosiers’ unexpected resignation effective August 3, 2012. He has been offered a position that will use and compensate his gifts and skills to the fullest. His resignation is effective almost exactly one year to the day after I began as…