By Hankookilbo - Published Apr 13, 2026 Hankook Ilbo, Korea Visitors crowd the Yeongnangho Cherry Blossom Festival around Yeongnangho Lake in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, April 11. Yonhap {Ken Gray - As a child growing up in Victoria on Harlow Drive my street was drenched in pink cherry blossoms every March of April. I have fond... Continue Reading →
Jesus is risen โ So what?
Photo Credit: ScottProject Photography/Kamloops Tourism, Kamloops BC A sermon for the congregation of St. Saviour, Penticton on the Second Sunday of Easter Sunday, April 12th, 2026 by the Very Rev. Ken Gray I know itโs not the traditional, formal Easter greeting many of you prefer: โThe Lord is risen / He is risen indeed; Hallelujah.โ... Continue Reading →
Rise up, you calm and quiet American voices
Artistic rendering of Donald J. Trump by KJG We all know them; whether we live in the US, or hail from north of the Canada/US border. The late Allan Fotheringham (1932-2020) whose column appeared on the final page of Macleans Magazine for decades, used to describe Americans as individually, the nicest kind of person you... Continue Reading →
โThe world has lost a voice of unmatched eloquence and integrity” โ RIP Stephen Lewis
[Notes from a CBC article here] Former politician, diplomat and activist Stephen Lewis has died at age 88. Lewis was a former leader of the Ontario NDP, Canadian ambassador to the United Nations and a longtime journalist and environmental activist. The Lewis family said in a statement on Tuesday that he died peacefully in hospice... Continue Reading →
Such excellent sermon feedback
From Andrew DeCourt on Facebook who writes: I usually script my sermons. I do this to be precise, respect time, and keep a record of what Iโve said. But yesterday morning, I felt nudged to call an audible. I switched my sermon text an hour before church and preached directly from my heart without any... Continue Reading →
Saving choral music by bike in the UK
The CEO of the Cathedral Music Trust is visiting 100 choirs across England and Wales over 50 days of cycling Meg Elliot writing in Cycling Weekly The late afternoon light is falling in greens and oranges and reds on the cathedral's terracotta floor. People clutter the pews as the music starts up, complex, layered sound... Continue Reading →
I’ll be damned if Trump or Epstein or Chavez are going to steal my hope in the goodness of humanity โ Anne Lamott
[Anne Lamott] We sing a hymn in church whose refrain ends, "and all around is sinking sand," and I have felt this since, oh, approximately November 2024. Everyone I know felt this, the existential instability, the sinking of our hearts. We did what we do โ tried to take care of each other and not... Continue Reading →
Such a great story out of Kamloops
By Matt Henderson, Kamloops Food Policy Council - Posted on CFJC Today Kamloopsโ latest Food System Assessment shows a community and sector that is not only adapting to change but steadily building a more connected and resilient local food landscape. Releasing later this year, the 2025 report highlights strong progress across several areas of the... Continue Reading →
An ending, and a beginning
Another in the series: Stories from Somewhere, by Ken Gray โIn marriage, husband and wife give themselves to each other, to care for each other in good times and in bad. They are linked to each otherโs families, and they begin a new life together in the community.โ โ Liturgy of Holy Matrimony โI hope... Continue Reading →
Wind warning
[Ken Gray] Those who live, work, or recreate with me know only too well my frustrations coping with hearing loss. The disability grows in influence on me every single day; and on others. Recent frustrations include connecting my phone to my hearing aids, to the point where the only remaining option is to send my... Continue Reading →