Volume 30, Issue 1 Monday, February-02-15 MORNING STAR WYCLIFFE COLLEGE Admin Staff: Noah an Epic Story? - Peter Robinson We recently watched the movie Noah. My first reaction (in spite of the number of good reviews the film received) was that it simply wasn’t a good film. Instead it is a mishmash of reluctant hero meets Star Wars with a message not as much about dark and light/good and evil as a challenge to human beings regarding the way we care for the environment. The film’s director, Darren Aronofsky, has exercised a free hand in his use of the biblical story. Indeed he was quick to proclaim that it is the most unbiblical biblical movie ever made. For example just as Noah and his family are scrambling to escape onto the ark, giant waterspouts and huge misshapen ‘fallen’ angels force back the attacking mob that is chasing them. On the ark it is only the eldest of Noah’s three sons who has a wife. That subtle change in the story allows Aronofsky to raise the (optimistic?) possibility that humanity might die out shortly after the flood in order that the rest of the world might be set free to flourish. Yet, even though the film was not entirely coherent, after watching it I found myself continuing to ponder the many questions it raised even to the point of thinking of watching it again. So, while I cannot recommend it as a great movie it is worth watching for the way it engages with the biblical story. In spite of his claim to an unbiblical interpretation, Aronofsky, a professed atheist, displays a far more thought provoking reading of the story than one might suspect. Aronofsky, who grew up in a conservative Jewish home, engages with the story of Noah in a way that raises questions both about the text and contemporary readings of the text. Justin Chang in a review for Variety magazine goes so far as to suggest: ‘In his flawed, fascinating and altogether extraordinary “Noah” this everaudacious filmmaker has given us a bold and singular vision of Old Testament times — a picture that dares to handle a sacred text not with the clunky messages and stiff pieties we’ve come to expect from so much so-called “Christian cinema,” but rather with a thrilling sense of personal investment and artistic risk.’ At a time when our tendency in the church has been to ignore the Old Testament or to distil it down to support basic moral lessons it is refreshing to see someone engage the story as a story. To prod and to poke at it in a way that allows us to hear it again in a new way. The questions Aronofsky raises about God, creation and humanity are certainly fundamental to the story of Noah: where is God, how is God engaged with creation, what role has God given to human beings in this world and what have we done to the world? For example, a brief glimpse of human depravity part way through the film was reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s dystopic film The Road (a movie that I am not sure I could ever watch again). That portrayal of complete depravity gave me, for the very first time, a sense of how the story of the flood could be conceived as an act of mercy – destroying a (Continued on page 3) Accountant Sophia Chen Room 105, x3522 Business Office Peter Patterson Room 106, x3549 Paul Patterson Room 107, x3546 Wycliffe Serves! John Bowen Room L301, x 3534 Beth Fisher Room L301, x 2558 Chaplain James Robinson Room 233, x3540 Communications Rick Maranta Room 229, x 3548 Development Rob Henderson Room 102, x3538 Angela Mazza Room 101, x3524 Florence Chan Room 101, x2559 Front Desk Andy Witt IT Matt Glandfield Basement, x3531 Maintenance David Durance Paul Mason Basement, x3543 Principal’s Office Karen Baker-Bigauskas Room 104, x3521 Registrar/Admissions Barbara Jenkins Room 226, x3530 Sean Otto Room 228, x3525 Jon Clemens Room 230, x3547 Residence Don Lane Scruggs X 3030 MORNING STAR Page 2 Wycliffe News & Notes Faculty: Principal George Sumner ++ Room 103, x3521 Academic Dean Terry Donaldson Room L304, x3537 AD Director Ann Jervis ++ Room 232, x3539 BD Director Glen Taylor * Room 218, x 3541 Librarian Tom Power Leonard Hall, x3526 Permanent Faculty: Annette Brownlee * Room 233, x3540 Alan Hayes ++ Room L302, x3532 David Kupp Room 233B, x2561 Wanda Malcolm Room L303, x2557 Joseph Mangina Room 231, x3523 Judy Paulsen Room L302, X2560 Ephraim Radner * Room L301, x3533 Peter Robinson Room 225, 3529 Christopher Seitz Room L305, x3551 Marion Taylor Room 227, x3542 * on sabbatical Fall 2014 ++ on sabbatical Winter 2015 News for our International Students Wycliffe College recognizes the huge change in your life leaving family and home to study here. We want to stand beside and support you to make your experience most meaningful and rewarding. Thus, Wycliffe College is happy to announce the hiring of Mr. Dhoui (Dewey) Chang as the International Students Coordinator. Throughout the year Dhoui will help with international students’ orientation and transition to life at Wycliffe and in Canada, organize events (on and off campus), and offer support where needed. The first event will be the LUNAR YEAR FESTIVAL DINNER on Feb 11th, 6pm for all INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS. This will be an intimate dinner at Wycliffe, a time of community, of getting to know one another and events, and of sharing stories. Please email Dhoui ([email protected]) to sign up. ‘Last Call for Graduands’ If you are expecting to complete your program and have not completed the Graduate Information form please do so this week. Once the list of potential graduands goes to Convocation Hall it is very difficult to add a name later. If you didn’t have your grad photo taken for the composite there is still an opportunity to do so either by visiting the Can Grad studio or joining one of the sittings at other locations on campus. Please contact Sean Otto for more details. Help us welcome the Rev. Julie Golding-Page to our staff. Julie, a Wycliffe grad, has been named Director of Indigenous Education and will work with indigenous bishops to plan theological education, both at Wycliffe and via distance learning. Starts for Winter Term on Friday January 16th VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 3 Editorial… (cont) (Continued from page 1) humanity so utterly twisted and debauched that destruction was grace – wiping clean that which could not possibly be restored or renewed; saving human beings from a life that was horrific. And surely framing our human situation in a way that grips us with a sobering sense of corruption is vital for us to begin to see the contrast between the flood and the cross with the power and horror of the cross as the ultimate demonstration of grace. That is not to say that the movie is truly representative of the story of Noah nor does it offer a coherent theology with which to engage the story of Noah. In his more critical review of the film, John Nolte argues that the God represented in this movie is more in keeping with Gaia than with the God of the biblical text. Nolte contends that Aronofsky’s Noah is the first environmentalist and that in the film the 10 commandments have been replaced with one commandment: Thou Shalt Not Harm Mother Earth Beyond What Is Absolutely Necessary to Live In a Tent as a Vegetarian. Nolte’s review highlights one of the weakest points of the film, the unapologetic proclamation of the gospel of environmentalism. Indeed Aronofsky’s evangelical defense of environmentalism is unlikely to win any to the movement because it is so strident. Yet even here there is a great lesson for us to learn. For surely one of the reasons why ‘Christian’ movies are so often weak, or just plain bad, is precisely because the desire to ‘convince’ the audience ends up distorting what the film is meant to communicate. A more subtle hand could have allowed some of the potent and beautiful images in the film to convey a value for the physical world more powerfully than the overwrought scenes in which humanity is chastised for abusing the world. In a paradoxical way the most intriguing element of the film was the way Aronofsky portrayed God. The God revealed in the film is for the most part silent while Noah, clearly the main character, talks a lot. God only ‘speaks’ with Noah and that is a rather murky and confusing communication through mysterious dreams. Noah does his best to interpret the dreams yet when he gets a warning about a coming flood he is left utterly confused about God’s intentions for humanity. In the biblical story it is exactly the opposite: Noah is silent and God, who is the main character, is the one who speaks. What is intriguing about this reversal is that it is so resonant with the way we tend to think about ourselves and God. God, is largely silent, while we, who are at the centre of things, have to do the best we can to figure things out for ourselves – or so we often assume. In the end what is perhaps most fascinating about the film is that it exposes our upside down cosmology, with humanity at the centre and God the silent and distant player with only a bit part in the drama. When we begin there, with Aronofsky, is it any wonder we have difficulty making sense of The Story? This Wednesday @ Wycliffe The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, will be in the Reading Room for a conversation with students (all Anglican M.Divs. are expected to attend). 3:00—tea & cookies; 3:25—presentation Archbishop Hiltz will also preach at Holy Eucharist in Founders’ Chapel at 4:45 p.m. MORNING STAR Watch for information about events for Creation Care Week in February... Page 4 2014-15 Student Council: Senior Student Martin Tam VP Theology Beard Montgomery VP Spirituality Orvin Lao Secretary Aidan Armstrong Treasurer Jeff Potter Social Chair Philip Stonhouse 2nd Year Rep Terry Spratt House Advocate Tira Ingersoll Day Student Rep Sarah “Sorry Ms.” Jackson Sports Rep Danny McMullen Green Chair Deanna Hove Mission Chair Elizabeth Achima 1st Year Rep Kira Moolman WADSA Lane Scruggs & Joshua Martin In the Residence: Res-Don Lane & Chantelle Scruggs Men’s Floor Dan McMullen Women’s Floor Sarah Lee Student Council News & Notes... Coffee and tea will be provided! Bring your friends and hope to see you there! Sports Spirituality "Hey Team, we are off to a good start in intramural sports, lets keep it going! This Thursday Feb 5th 8 pm basketball. We will meet in the Wycliffe lobby at 7:30 with our T-Cards. And we will try and keep our winning streak in Ultimate alive this Saturday Feb 7th at 10:30am! We will meet in the Wycliffe lobby at 10 with our TCards and blue shirts. Shrove Pancake Tuesday Breakfast Lunch (1:002:00pm, Refectory) Orvin February 10, 2015 Interested in mission or representing families? Student council is looking for individuals to fill these very important positions on council. If you are interested please talk to the Senior Student Martin Tam or another member of council. See you there!" Thanks, Dan Pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs, fresh fruits, maple syrup and the fixings! $4 per person, or you can pay with your meal card. Please RSVP at the Front Desk or with [email protected] Wycliffe ESL Cafe Need to practice your English? Join us at the Soward Reading Room on Monday Nights , 7:00pm-8:30pm! There will be group conversations in English and a brief look into Canadian culture. Additional Announcements Student Council Elections Nominations for next year’s Senior Student will open on Monday February 2nd. See the job description below. Nominations for other position will open after Reading Week. The AT HOME is this Friday. There is still time for you to sign up for the supper. The sign up is at the front desk and will be there until noon on Wednesday. Just to wet your appetite for the dinner that the kitchen has cooking up for us, here is the menu: APPITIZER: Spring mix with Mini Bocconcini Cheese, Cherry Tomato And Balsamic Dressing ENTRÉE’: Prime Rib of Beef Au Jus Potato Au Gratin Green Beans with Carrots and Toasted Sesame Seeds VEGETARIAN ENTRÉE’: Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms DESSERT: White Chocolate Raspberry Cream Cake with Raspberry Coulis **Gluten free and Dairy free Options will be available After dinner there will be Latin dance lessons, some time for Latin dancing that will drift into modern music and dance. Come dressed up. Dresses and suits are the norm, but all are welcome. The description of the Role of Senior Student is as follows: The Senior Student shall act as President of the Student Council and preside over its meetings as well as General Meetings of the students. The Senior Student shall act as chief election officer and act as liaison between faculty/administration, students, residents and the Student Council. In addition to these responsibilities, the Senior Student may provide pastoral care, may support and direct student events and programs, and facilitate the ministry and leadership the Council seeks to provide. The Senior Student may be a Wycliffe theological resident or day student. The Senior Student must have been a member of the Wycliffe student body for 4 semesters. Nominations will be held: February 2-6th; with voting taking place after Reading Week. Other position nominations and elections will follow election of the Senior Student. VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 5 Check out these new Library Titles! A short selection of new titles added to our collection recently. Unless already signed out, these are available on the Recent Acquisitions section on the ground floor of the library. Enjoy! Tremper Longman III. Old Testament essentials: creation, conquest, exile, and return. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2014. BS1194.L66. Tom Power, Theological Librarian. Jacques Ellul . On being rich and poor: Christianity in a time of economic globalization. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2014. BR115 .E3 E5513. Brian Neil Peterson. The authors of the deuteronomistic history: locating a tradition of ancient Israel. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. BS1181.17 .P48. [Brian is a graduate of Wycliffe College.] Richard Plass and James Cofield. The relational soul: moving from false self to deep connection. Downers Grove : IVP, 2014. BV4509.5 .P58. Rebekah A. Eklund, John E. Phelan. Doing theology for the church: essays in honor of Klyne Snodgrass. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2014. BS2397.A1 D64 [Includes essays by N.T. Wright & Richard Longnecker.] NIV NoteTaker’s Bible FREE copies of the NIV NoteTaker’s Bible are available for all students, faculty and staff, at the Front Desk. If you would like a FREE copy, please speak to Andy. Wycliffe and the Churches Wycliffe College is working to build stronger bridges with churches of different denominations. One thing that will help us is to understand how we are presently perceived by non-Anglican churches. So . . . if you are not from an Anglican background, you can help by telling us how your church felt about your decision to come to Wycliffe, and how they feel about it now. Below is a link to a very brief (6question) online survey. And to inspire you, there will be a draw for a $100 credit at Crux, open to everyone who submits a response (and leaves their name) by Feb. 7th! You can complete the survey by visiting www.surveymonkey.com/r/325s7p8 If you have any questions, drop us a note at [email protected] For all first year M.Div. and M.DivP: A Lunch Meeting to Explain Field Education at Wycliffe This is late notice but I’d like to gather you during lunch on Wednesday to explain the Field Education Program at Wycliffe, and begin to have you sign up for meeting with me to discuss your field education placement for second year. Bring you lunch to Cody at 1 p.m. on this Wednesday, Feb. 4. Annette Brownlee Chaplain & Director of Field Ed. TST Biblical Department Seminar: 4:00p-5:30p in Cody Library Thurs, Feb 26: Andrew Knight-Messenger (McMaster University) “The Status of the Modern Study of the Ancient Jewish Court Tale: Analysis, Issues and Prospects” RESPONSE: DR. JUDITH NEWMAN (Emmanuel College) Thurs, Mar 12: Dr. Nadav Sharon (post-doc fellow at Univ. of Toronto) “Contrasting GraecoRoman and Jewish Views of the Future of the Roman Empire” Thurs, Mar 26: Andrew Witt (Wycliffe College) “‘In the Person Of’: An MORNING STAR Page 6 Proof-Readers Needed… We are looking for some proof-readers to help our international students… If you are interested, please contact Karen Baker-Bigauskas in the Principal’s Office, Room 104, 416-946-3521, [email protected] (There is a budget for this, so you will get paid.) Also, if you are an International Student needing help with proof-reading, please let me know and we will try to connect you with someone. Israel Trip—Orientation Sessions For the next four Wednesday evenings—January 28 and February 4—there will be an optional orientation meeting for the forthcoming Israel Trip. The time will be from 6:45-8:45 p.m. Location—WLR Alternative Sessions For students unable to attend the Wednesday evening orientation sessions for the upcoming Israel trip, there will be two alternative sessions offered by Prof. G. Taylor on Tuesdays January 27th and February 3rd from 6:30—9:45 p.m. in the WLR Those not travelling to Israel, but who would like to learn more about the geography and sites of Israel in biblical times, are welcome to join us! Glen Taylor will be leading the sessions. (Students going on the Israel trip are strongly encouraged to attend either the Tuesday or Wednesday sessions.) International Wycliffe Student Ministry Opportunities in 2015 Potential Student Placements: 1. Bangkok, Thailand, Cornerstone English as a Second Language Ministry 2. Hanoi, Vietnam, English Language Coach 3. Colombo, Sri Lanka, parish based ministry 4. Tarime, Tanzania, parish based ministry 5. Gambella, Ethiopia, Theological Education placement with a new Anglican Seminary. Ministry with refugees. For more information, or an application, please speak with Karen in the Principal’s Office, Room 104. Canon Kim Beard will be at Wycliffe to talk to people interested in International Ministry Opportunities on Thursday February 26th at lunch. VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 7 MORNING STAR Page 8 VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 9 MORNING STAR Page 10 VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 11 MORNING STAR Page 12 VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 13 MORNING STAR Page 14 Prayers Please … Lana Joy Postma, born at home Saturday weighing 8 lbs 9 oz. She little sister to Sophie, Logan and Samuel. Natalie and Lana are doing well. It will be a bit of an adjustment having 4 under age 5 in the house, so your prayers are appreciated! Jason Postma Wycliffe Community Prayer List: We want your petitions and Thanksgivings Antoine Rutherford had cancer surgery January 21st please continue to keep him and his medical team, and care givers in your prayers. On the sideboard outside the Chapel is a notebook for you to write down prayer requests. They are gathered up and lifted to God every Friday in Morning Prayer. We encourage you to bring all of your lives to God in our Chapel and this is one way we try to make that happen. Children, residents, students, staff and faculty—everyone. Please keep those going to Israel in your prayers as they plan and prepare for their trip. It is our privilege to be trusted with your prayers. Please continue to pray for Terry Donaldson who had a pacemaker implanted on Thursday January 29th. Annette Brownlee+ Chaplain Coffee Hour Please join fellow students, faculty and staff for coffee Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings in the Soward Reading Room at 10:50 a.m.—11:10 a.m. Bring your own mug (if you need a mug, please visit the Development Office to purchase a Wycliffe ceramic or travel mug.) Brought to you by the Interested in getting to know some of our Trinity colleagues? Compline on Hoskin is starting up again for the term, every Monday at 9:10 p.m., alternating between Trinity Chapel and the Founders' Chapel. If you would like more information or to get involved, contact Ilana at [email protected]." Wycliffe College Alumni Association. Reminder to Chapel Greeters: Wednesday’s Schedule 3:00—gather for tea & cookies (Lobby) 3:25—Archbishop Fred Hiltz (Reading Room) 4:45—Holy Eucharist—The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz (Preacher) 6:00—Community Dinner Please remember to arrive 15 minutes prior to service time, check in with the Sacristan and light the candles. Reminder to Readers: Please arrive 15 minutes prior to service time and mark your reading. VOLUME 30, ISSUE 1 Page 15 Please note that we will be using the BCP for the Daily Offices during February. WYCLIFFE COLLEGE Visionary leaders with Good News for a vibrant church in a changing world. January/February 2015 Sunday 1 Monday 2 Tuesday 3 9 5 10 11 12 Pancake Tuesday Lunch Lunar New Year MP: A Witt 16 17 18 FAMILY DAY Reading Week Reading Week ESL Cafe 15 4 Thursday Friday 6 Playgroup WE & Pr: Archbish- MP: J Paulsen op Fred Hiltz ESL Cafe 8 Wednesday Saturday 7 AT HOME 13 Playgroup 14 19 20 21 Reading Week Reading Week Pr: Philip Der College Closed Shrove Tuesday at Wycliffe—Tuesday February 10th @ lunch We will once again have a “Pancake Lunch” to recognize Shrove Tuesday at Wycliffe (a week early). Please sign-up at the Front Desk to make your reservation (so the kitchen knows how many pancakes to make) by Monday February 9th. $4.00 per person, or use your lunch card. Do you know someone in grade 11 or 12? Are they seeking to deepen their faith, form lasting friendships and be transformed? Awake is seeking students to join us for an incredible week during March Break! We are inviting youth leaders, pastors and parents to encourage their youth to attend. Awake is a unique immersion experience at Wycliffe College during March Break. Through conversation, community, worship, formal teaching and experiential learning, students will deepen their faith and build a solid Christian foundation for whatever they will do. In addition to Wycliffe College’s top-rated faculty, students will also be mentored by some of the most dynamic theological grad students at Wycliffe. Awake is especially designed to give teenagers a safe and welcoming space to wrestle with big theological and philosophical questions, to interact with students and faculty whose lives are centered around these pursuits, and to build community with other youth seeking to understand how the Christian faith relates to life in 21st century Canada. For more information, check out our website: https://awake.wycliffeserves.ca
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