Showing results by author "Peter Menkin" in All Categories

Pieter Bruegel’s epic masterpiece The Way To Calvary depicts the story of Christ’s Passion set in Flanders under brutal Spanish occupation in the year 1564, the very year Bruegel created his painting. From among the more than five hundred figures that fill Bruegel’s remarkable canvas, The Mill & The Cross focuses on a dozen characters whose life stories unfold and intertwine in a panoramic landscape populated by villagers and red-caped horsemen.

This work was originally a set of transcription notes from a talk given by Father Michael Fish, monk, New Camaldole of Big Sur, at Incarnation Monastery, Berkeley. Father Michael spoke of his life in contemplative prayer as a Benedictine living in Big Sur at Immaculate Heart Hermitage. In an effort to catch the poetic sensibility of his long talk of more than an hour, held in the urban monastery chapel, I distilled the notes from the talk I attended as a poem.

Read a number of shorter, interesting pieces including one on Rowan Williams and meeting the Pope with Benedictine Camaldolese monks, and a short essay on Elvis Presley singing Gospels. Read also about Lewis Lapham, and even a book review on Christ's last words - all by Peter Menkin.

The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco recently offered and continues to offer a unique show that explores (in audio alone) a question with a question: "Are We There Yet?" In an effort to find out about this uniquely special, creative museum, which is known in San Francisco but not even as far away as Los Angeles, let alone the rest of the world, this writer asked a Jewish law legal expert what is meant by asking a question with a question.

A listener interested in St. Benedict’s Rule will find this 600 plus page work, published by The Liturgical Press a scholarly work. It can be used as a reference for reading, as in study, or as a reference work (so I think). The book speaks of St. Benedict’s sense of moderation, and his humility, an earmark of the book about the Rule itself, and a hallmark of the author who is a monk and priest.

The Reverend Doctor Herbert F. Brokering, pastor, author, lyricist, speaker, and hymn writer of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died Nov. 7 of congestive heart failure at his apartment in Bloomington, Minn., according to his son, Mark. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America news service says in its report, "Brokering, 83, was a member of St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Bloomington."

Another in the series of ongoing interviews with American poets. This interview with University of Delaware Professor Jeanne Walker is part of the special subset in this series called American Anglican poets. This writer talked by phone in June, 2011 with Jeanne from his home office north of San Francisco to Jeanne, who was in that morning time at her home in the Philadelphia, PA area. We spoke for an hour, and the poet was forthcoming about her work as a poet, and as a University Professor of English .

A collection of voices in interview from American Jewish Community regarding the real concern by them of bullying Jewish students on some University campuses plays a significant role in unmasking anti-Israel actions and behavior as anti-Semitism. That is the Jewish Community thesis and argument brought to legal remedy through Federal Law that is the theme of this series.

An American journalist named Ben Harris, who works for Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), is traveling the world in search of stories about Jews in their various communities. This lively interview with Harris, the "Wandering Jew", about his travels and traveling, was done mostly by email, with two conversations via webcam on Skype. When this writer spoke to Harris off the record for background, he was in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency offices in New York City, but the reported interview via email comes mostly while he was abroad.

Peter Menkin of The Church of England Newspaper conducted significant interviews with three Rabbis on the topic of religious education. These interviews are unique due to the new success of Internet education and its use in Jewish learning and the teaching of the Torah, as well as Orthodox Jewish adult education.

Senior Minister, Reverend Matt Broadbent of Los Altos, California Foothill Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, spoke with this writer by phone and webcam via Skype in February, 2010 about same sex marriage and same sex blessings. This is the first of a series of interviews with different clergy denomination members on the subject. Two other upcoming interviews are with The Rt. Reverend Marc Andrus of The Episcopal Church, USA (San Francisco Bay Area known as Diocese of California), and Rabbi Stephen Pearce of Reform Temple El Emanuel, San Francisco.

Before Nelee Langmuir's death in Summer, 2010, her daughter wrote of her mother's experience as a Hidden Child. She wrote of it 2005, September 3 and Debra Wanner in so doing added her voice as a new generation to her mother's story. Here she serves as an introduction to the condensed narrative that follows of Nelee's oral history that tells of her remembrance of that time in her childhood, and that of her sister's, when through the help of good people in France, she and her sister escaped from the German Nazi occupiers.

In this interview with Shari Karney, Esq., the attorney and commentator discusses her opinions on the subject of child molesting, specifically referencing the recent Sandusky trial.

There is increasing American national attention on the often secret subject of child molesting and child molesters. Attorney Shari Karney of Santa Monica, California, has been working on these kinds of cases with others in the United States and especially California - almost as a crusade, as revealed in this interview.

In a conversation spanning half hour segments numbering seven on the same number of separate days this religion writer talked with the Reverend Doctor Lawrence Michael Cameron, OAC. The subject: Mental Illness. That is the Reverend Doctor's business and has been for 25 years as a pastoral counselor. We talked by phone to his home in Indiana from mine in Mill Valley, California. An advocate for the mentally ill, Doctor C, as he is affectionately known, bent his comments to let the listener know of his favorable sense of hope for mentally ill people and their treatment.

I want to encourage the nation as a whole decide through a political process that one man and one woman is best for society. To see the political process working in society and not see the judicial side by fiat put such marriage on us. The standard of the bible specifies marriage between one man and one woman. In this unique hour and a half interview with The Reverend Doctor Wayne Grudem by telephone from the writer's home north of San Francisco with the Reverand at his Phoenix area home.

This interview with Marie Howe, American poet and teacher, is the first of a series of three different interviews with American poets. Note some poems by Marie from her new book The Kingdom of Ordinary Time, are included in the Addendum to the interview - by permission of the poet, and of W.W. Norton publisher. Marie writes poetry of religious and spiritual kind, and other works most lovely and engaged in what one critic called the metaphysical.

From one of the poems appearing in the interview-article with Scott Cairns, Missouri USA Poet: Advent Scott Cairns. We talked by phone between my home in Mill Valley, California and his home in Missouri; the interview follows. Though Scott Cairns wrote his answers after a background conversation, there was one follow-up to his answers to the questions. That was asked in writing by email and answered in writing by email.

In an effort to discover what the Yale Institute of Sacred Music does - and even take a look at how the Institute of Sacred Music explores Christianity - these two interviews were developed. The first is with Martin Jean, Director of the Institute. He speaks directly to the listener about the Institute. The second interview is with new fellow at the Institute for Sacred Music, David Stowe. He exemplifies one aspect of exploring Christianity and looking at Sacred Music.

This book draws on case material from Yale Professor, Sister Janet Ruffing's experience with directees and students for many years as well as postmodern understandings of the narrative-creating self.

An interview with filmmaker Melissa Howden about her grandfather, US Army Chaplain "Ted" Howden. Chaplain Howden is considered a holy man by many. He was an Episcopal Priest who died in WW II in a POW camp.