Did you pray or protest?

I had a wonderful day with 20 women from my church on a retreat. We spent time praying and learning from each other. I enjoyed getting to know the women as individuals. Many of the women told me they enjoyed the retreat and suggested we do it again.

Catherine of Siena:

“You eternal Trinity are the artist and I your handiwork have come to know that you are in love with the beauty you have made.”

Meanwhile, on Broadway.....

"300,000 protesters marched Saturday 29 April through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

"We've been lied to, and they're going to lie to us again to bring us a war in Iran," said Marjori Ramos, 43, of New York"

Make your voices heard

If you had pick one, which would you choose?

A march to protest the WAR IN IRAQ and IRAN, IMMIGRATION RESTRICTIONS, ENVIRONMENTAL INJUSTICE.

or

A retreat at an Episcopal Convent to learn about prayer and spiritual community.

It's a difficult choice, but I have to chose prayer over protest. I believe prayer is stronger.

I'll pray for everyone marching on April 29th and for the soldiers and civilians dying in Iraq.

Wake up WASHINGTON

China Wins Over Washington, but D.C. Proves a Bit Tougher

In Washington the state, Mr. Hu beamed as he hobnobbed with the capitalist kings of computers, coffee shops and airplanes, who are among those making a mint in China's markets.
In Washington the city, Mr. Hu got a rather frostier reception. A dissident heckler startled him on the White House lawn, a White House announcer called his country the Republic of China — did someone say Taiwan? — and a senator warned that China should open more of its markets to American products, or else.

Yet while the disparate receptions awarded Mr. Hu would appear to indicate a deep divide in the United States' approach to China, the breach, in fact, might not be so deep: never mind the talk, nobody really wants to rock the boat.

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Americans are upset about Darfur, but find China an acceptable business partner. This is hypocritical since China is currently underwriting the genocide in Africa.

"Chinese oil purchases have financed Sudan's pillage of Darfur. Chinese-made AK-47"s have been the main weapons used to slaughter several hundred thousand people in Darfur so far, and China has protected Sudan in the U.N. Security Council."

Nicholas D. Kristof - OpEd New York Times Sunday April 23, 2006

Where are the voices of protest? It was the other Washington that provided a voice for those who protest the unlikely union of China and Washington.

WASHINGTON - The arrival ceremony for Hu Jintao was interrupted by a protester who appealed to President Bush to stop the Chinese president from "persecuting the Falun Gong."The woman began shouting from the top of a camera stand that had been positioned directly in front of the two leaders so that news photographers could record the arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House.

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Friday Photo Blog

Celebrate the beauty of every flower and the opportunities of every day!