Protective barriers are going to be set up around the Washington National Cathedral, in the country’s capital, in anticipation of Hurricane Irene, which is expected to hit the country’s mid-Atlantic region.

The cathedral suffered heavy damage during the magnitude 5.8 earthquake that hit the area last Aug. 23. As a precautionary measure, it will remain closed at least until Sept. 4. Hurricane Irene is expected to touch the mid-Atlantic any time from Aug. 26-28.

Protective fencing and perimeters will be set up over the weekend around the cathedral in order to lend further protection for the staff and public.

Damage assessment ongoing

Amid preparations for Hurricane Irene, a team of architects, stone masons and engineers continue to assess the extent of the damage that was rendered to the cathedral, both structurally and aesthetically, after last Tuesday’s earthquake. They will also draw up a plan on how to proceed with repairs.

Three spires out of four that were situated atop the central tower snapped off, while the fourth has become misaligned. These were the most imposing features of the cathedral’s edifice, and they are expected to be the most difficult parts that will be repaired.

Huge fissures were detected in the cathedral’s east end on its flying buttresses. Some of the oldest parts of the building have cracks, including some of its 700 limestone angels and other figures on the cathedral’s exterior.

Smaller spires also are being checked, some of which also revealed fissures. Repair work is being done to ensure that these artistic figures will be sufficiently stabilized to avoid accidents of any additional falling debris.

Engineers have said that the damage rendered to the British Gothic cathedral is reparable, and overall, the 300-foot-high edifice remains structurally sound.

It has been estimated that millions of dollars will have to be raised for repairs. The insurance policy of the cathedral does not include coverage for damage caused by earthquakes.

The cathedral had already been tightening its budget lately. Some years ago the staff was cut down from 170 to only 70, and spending was cut in half amid an economic slowdown that affected its endowment.

Symbolic space

The Washington National Cathedral has been the site of the country’s most high-profile public events, and is a symbolic space for worship in the country.

It has been the site where presidential memorial services and state funerals have been held, and was also a place for prayer when the country faced times of difficulty. The cathedral was built in stages from 1907 to 1990.

The cathedral, which on the average attracts some 300 tourists daily, will be closed up to Sept. 4, at least. Its four regular Sunday worship services will, for the time being, be celebrated at Washington Hebrew Congregation.

The scheduled commemoration of the 10^th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, focusing on the theme, A Call to Compassion, is likely to proceed as planned, including a special performance of a Brahms Requiem by the Marine Chamber Orchestra. The United States Navy Band Sea Changers will also perform with the Cathedral Choir on Friday. The commemoration will be capped on Sunday evening, Sept. 11, with A Concert for Hope, featuring Denyce Graves, Patti LaBelle and Alan Jackson.

Expect something different with the first Life and Faith Tour, produced by veteran concert promoter Ronnie Jackson, NBC13 said.

More than simply another concert, Life and Faith Tour is a whole day, major event with leading Christian celebrities that will have four different shows going on simultaneously, similar to Disney World, NBC13 said.

For music lovers, Jackson has gathered Amy Grant, MercyMe, Point of Grace, Aaron Shust, Shenandoah and others to perform 30 minutes each of their music (Amy Grant and MercyMe will perform for one hour each) on the main stage, NBC13 said.

Another stage will feature Christian comedians and gospel performers. For book lovers, face-off time with 20 leading Christian authors will be had in the authors’ tent.  Finally for children, there will be a space for inflatable rides and characters from VeggieTales, NBC13 said.

Jackson, who is from Kenbridge, Va., lives in North Carolina. He had been planning this family event for three years. “People will go to something like this before they’ll go to church with you,” he told NBC13.

He sees this event as a chance to use his 30 years of experience in concerts promotion to do something meaningful.

The tour has already played in Richmond (June 19), and is slated for Rockingham N.C. (July 10), and Atlanta (July 24), NBC13 said.

The tours will all be at NASCAR tracks which permit room for some 70,000 people and has space for free parking. Jackson calls it a perfect fit, NBC13 says.

Jackson’s company, CivicTix which owns the tour, will give Habitat for Humanity a house for every sellout show. Also, those who purchase their tickets online may donate $10 of the cost to any charity they wish that is on the tour’s website (http://www.lifeandfaithtour.com), NBC13 said.

“The whole point of this tour is giving back,” Jackson told NBC13.

Where You Sit and The Company You Keep Is Vitally Important

We have taken a longish time look in detail at this last day in the physical life of Jesus Christ as Dr Luke relates it in Chapter 22, but it is important that we do not hurry over the crucial issues raised in this passage. It is also helpful too to read the parallel passages in Matthew Chapter 26 and Mark Chapter 14. These accounts are given to us for a very real purpose.

In verse 54Jesus is led away, humbly but with dignity, and Peter follows, afar off and at a safe distance.

There is no safe distance when you are distancing yourself from Jesus. Peter is watching, trailing behind, and in great danger. We are called to come close, and draw near and be right at the very heart, and be involved, participating faithfully, following and serving Jesus, where He has placed you and appointed you.

Peter continues following, from a distance from the Garden of Gethsemane, through the valley, up the slopes past the Temple, watching where they were going, keeping an eye on what they were doing, and being careful not to be discovered and found out.

We have followed that route from Gethsemane on various occasions and it has not changed all that much over these past two thousand years.

The man who had vowed never to leave Jesus side was now keeping his distance.

Verse 55. Peter sat down with them. He sits down in the wrong place. We have to watch our company and be careful who we are with, and where we are seen. At times it matters.

Jesus would sit down with sinners, and mix with anyone, but this was different.

A young girl sees Peter – “This man was also with Him.” Here was an opportunity to witness for Jesus, and Peter denies His Lord. “Woman, I don't know Him.”

Peter was prepared to take on 200 soldiers and religious leaders with his sword, but the words of a young girl floor him. Sometimes it is the little things that get us down and defeat us, especially when we are sitting where we should not be sitting.

Trailing behind and falling behind and moving into the wrong company, and denying Christ. There is a progression, all within about the space of an hour.

Verse 58. Again Peter denies having any knowledge of Jesus. “You are also one of them.” We must be prepared to be called 'one of them' at times too.

Verse 59. Around that charcoal fire Peter must have become involved in the conversation. Someone recognised his accent, and accused him of being a follower of Jesus. If only he had kept his mouth shut, but he opened it on the wrong occasion, and kept it shut when he should have been speaking. “I don't know what you are talking about.” And immediately, the cock crows, and through the High Priest's Courtyard they eyes of Peter meet the eyes of the arrested Jesus.

You can go into that courtyard today. It has been uncovered and excavated, and you can look into the cell where Jesus would have been held. They are on the same level. When they were still doing the archaeological work I jumped over the rope and checked things out. Yes, the eyes of Peter and the eyes of Jesus would have met. It is interesting to check out what can be checked in Jerusalem and Israel, and to find it all accurate and authentic.

That loving look shattered Peter. After you have failed someone like Jesus, it is hard to look them in the face. He went out and wept bitterly. Peter seemed to have made such a mess of following Jesus. In a way, yes, but 30 years later he is still there.

Three times Peter denied Jesus as he was sitting around a charcoal fire. Two weeks later Jesus is around another charcoal fire and three times gives Peter the opportunity to declare his love and loyalty. It is good to get it all sorted out. Not only is it good. It is essential to have all these matters and issues sorted out and resolved.

Originally here:
Word from Scotland

Author bio:
Alexander “Sandy” Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness – on the Moray Firth Coast – not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40 a.m., New Orleans time, at wsho.com.

A Jet Propulsion Laboratory worker filed recently a case in the Los Angeles county against his superiors for a demotion which he said was discriminatory of his views on intelligent design.

David Coppedge, an information technology specialist on the Cassini space mission exploring Saturn, claims he was demoted after he distributed religious DVDs in his office.  Coppedge had been a leader on the system administrator team for the Cassini mission.

Coppedge discussed intelligent design with JPL scientists, a theory that believes an intelligent being – not evolution or random processes – created life and the universe.

His supervisors sent him a memo telling him to stop discussing religion.  Coppedge claims he stopped talking about intelligent design with his coworkers in March 2009.  However, he was demoted the following month, in April.  The Defendants in the lawsuit include his supervisor, JPL and the California Institute of Technology, which runs JPL.

Coppedge also claims he met with his supervisors, who told him that the written warning was inappropriate, and that it would be removed from his file.  The suit calls this as an admission of liability of religious discrimination and retaliation under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act.

JPL’s spokeswoman, Veronica McGregor, said that the firm hasn’t received the lawsuit so it can’t comment yet.   JPL is a federally funded research firm that is also a NASA contractor.

Coppedge is active with creationist Web sites.  He edits the blog, “Creation-Evolution Headlines” and sits on the board of directors of Illustra Media, the group that publishes the DVDs he distributed.

His lawyer William J. Becker said, “I think it’s unfortunate that JPL, which is interested in exploring the origins of the universe would be hostile to the argument of intelligent design. If anything, JPL is the premier space exploration resource in the world.  It ought to have openness to this theory.”

Sources:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gMJEWENPHiOAPxtwNwVz2cpeURwwD9F69K9O3

http://sensuouscurmudgeon.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/update-david-coppedge-vs-jpl-19-apr-2010/

http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_14909557