*blog:nashotah-anglican-orthodox-conference|Nashotah Anglican - Orthodox Conference*
This weekend I had the privilege of witnessing what may very well have been an historic event. Nashotah House hosted an Anglican-Orthodox Ecumenical conference, which, besides being quite interesting and inspiring, was also quite well-attended by men who wear purple and tall hats. Seriously — I don't think I have seen so many Bishops in the course of my whole life — much less in one room.
*blog:matriculation|Matriculation*
Thursday night, I matriculated. That's right. I signed my name in the Book, and I'm now officially a Son of the House. Which means, among other things, I now have the opportunity to be buried in the Nashotah House cemetery. Not sure if I'll take them up on that, though—I think I wait till after graduation to decide. (Lord willing that I graduate, and indeed that I live that long.)
*blog:general-update|Starting Classes*
After one (disorienting) week of orientation, and two weeks of classes at Nashotah House, I can report, quite gladly, that we are thoroughly enjoying ourselves. Thus far, life here is both what we expected and what we wanted. We are having a blast.
*blog:bumpy-beginnings|Bumpy Beginnings*
Sarah and I are on the road again. Well, sort of.
*blog:new-blog-channel:the-oyster-man|New Blog Channel: the Oyster Man*
For those of you interested in my (Nathaniel's) ongoing thinking and writing, I've started a new blog: the Oyster Man. The Oyster Man is going to be a miscellany from all the diverse things that I am studying, reading, and thinking about, and updated in proportion to the amount of free time and energy that I have.
*blog:pilgrim-road-retooled|Pilgrim Road Retooled*
Some of you may have been wondering what the fate of this website will be now that we have come back to the US. I am glad to report that, while we are no longer traveling in the subcontinent, the pilgrimage is far from over. In the spirit of that ongoing pilgrimage, I have been doing some work over here at our homepage. Here's a quick update on what's new and what's coming up.
*blog:americans-confused-about-spiritual-maturity|Americans Confused about "Spiritual Maturity"*
The Barna Group has just released an interesting study that gets to the heart of something I have felt about American faith for some time: a lack of clarity on what it means to “be” or to “make” a disciple.
*blog:day-in-the-life|A Day in the Life of a Child*
Here is a draft of the short movie I put together for the PEB. I follow a day in the life of a child in a Pakistani village.
*blog:indian-stations-of-the-cross|Indian Stations of the Cross*
This year's Good Friday liturgics emanating from the Vatican featured meditations for the Stations of the Cross written by Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil of Gwahati (India). Besides being a very nice contemporary presentation of the Stations, the wisdom and experience of the Indian Church is beautifully interwoven throughout the text.
*blog:pakistan-and-other-news|Pakistan and Other News*
Sarah and I have had a very busy couple of weeks! As the six-month mark of our journey approached, hotel clerks began to ask us about it. (Our visa lasts for ten years, but tourists are only permitted to stay for six months at a time.) So we had to make plans to leave the country.
*blog:rickshaw-wallahs|Rickshaw-Wallahs*
The autorickshaw-wallah is a minor lord of the Indian underworld. His travels and his mobility make him well-networked, and well-known amongst those who do things unseen by the law. He is accountable to no law but his own, for rarely does the law check his behavior. He feels no remorse lying plainly to the face of his customer if it will make him an extra fifty rupees. He is greedy, and he grows fat on commissions from a whole litany of shady deals.
*blog:amazing-picture|Amazing Picture*
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Some of them are worth even more. This picture encapsulates our time in India with effortless humor.
*blog:thrift|Thrift*
The other day at the Internet Cafe, I broke a 50 rupee note. Literally. I was taking it out of my hot and sweaty money pouch, and it just ripped in half. Whoops.
*blog:bundi|Bundi*
It seems to be wedding season in India. Sarah and I came to regret the cute little balconies that our rooms had in Ajmer and Pushkar.
*blog:saints-and-prophets|Saints and Prophets*
Here’s an interesting question we’ve been throwing around, and I’d love some other opinions on it. What is the difference between a saint and a prophet? Or (to give the question a more personal spin) which would you rather be?
*blog:moving-on-to-ajmer|Adventures in Ajmer*
Sarah and I have wandered on to Ajmer, another little holy oasis town in the Rajasthani desert. We passed through the city briefly on our tour with Lydia, and incidentally found it compelling enough to make another, longer visit.
*blog:chess-lessons|Chess Lessons*
So we’ve taught Nicky to play chess.
*blog:the-next-chapter|The Next Chapter*
On Tuesday night, we put Lydia on her plane bound back for America, thus closing another chapter in our India venture. We will be spending the next several days in Delhi, resting, reflecting, and planning the next phase of our journey.
*blog:pushkar-and-respect|Pushkar And Respect*
Pushkar is a built on the shores of a sacred lake, an oasis in the Rajastani desert surrounded by a congress of sharp hills. Legend has it that the lake was created by Brahmin himself, who dropped a lotus petal to the earth to create the body of water. It is a very ancient site of pilgrimage; a single dip in its waters is said to be worth several hundred years of ascetic exercise.
*blog:travels|Travels*
Sarah's friend Lydia is visiting us for the month of January. We have sketched out a loose itinerary; something that won't be hardcore tourism, but will also give Lydia a good swath of experience.
