Orthodox Church Bilingualism; Germans Rearm; Wednesday in Muncie

Another workday done, another visit to the chiropractor; emails read, this post written; such was my Wednesday. Not sure what to do now. The following is what I have read that I feel worth sharing.

I belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church, therefore Xenophobia in the Cloak of Progress (Public Orthodoxy) concerns me. St. George in Fishers mixes Arabic in the chants, but not in the preaching. I do not think the church's Arabic speakers are that great. It is a bit thrilling to hear the Arabic. St. Barnabas of Indiana, here in Muncie, does everything in English, even though the priests are Serbian, but our community is clearly English-speaking. I worry that those from this area who might find a home in the Orthodox Church will be put off by the worries of ethnic exclusion - for all that this is a heresy in the Orthodox Church - while also recognizing that the Orthodox Church is an immigrant church, that it has a history extending back through many languages to the time of the Apostles, and this history is part and parcel of the Orthodox community. Bilingualism seems the best solution for retaining our ties to our church's history, just as our icons remind us of our predecessors.

 The Alarming Stakes of German Rearmament - Boston Review - for the first time in over two centuries, most of the world does not seem alarmed by the phrase "Germany rearms". This is as close to criticism of a strong Germany army as I have read. I am willing to give Germany a break, that it has learned the lessons about itself as a military power. So, from bully to defender of the weak?

Document prepared for Kremlin outlines Russia’s negotiating stance - The Washington Post. Rubio says the ball is in Russia's court, but do the Russians know how to play ball? Will Trump support the rapist or the victim? Time will tell; more will die until then.

There was another rejection for "No Ordinary Word":

Thank you very much for submitting your work to Soundings East. Among the many submissions we received, we were delighted to read yours, but unfortunately this selection will not be a fit for our upcoming issue. We do hope you'll consider submitting again during future reading periods.

Best Wishes,

Salem State University Soundings East

http://www.salemstate.edu/soundingseast

Maybe I can further clean out my email.

sch