Articles with pandemic

Art by Oliver Roberts and Aleksander Hardashnakov; photo by Brian Bukowski; copyright 2020; all rights reserved

ON/side our Walls

design by Aleksander Hardashnakov

In the midst of a global pandemic we have, among other things, found ourselves without a venue for anything except relief efforts for the most vulnerable. We are known for our long-standing interest in justice, but we also care deeply about art, music and beauty.

Our Community Director Zachary Grant proposed an outdoor exhibit on our walls where they can bee seen by passersby and also be shared online. He and Oliver Roberts of Loon Gallery together curated this small show of three pieces. We welcome your comments and look forward to exhibiting more work through the summer, including inside if that becomes possible.

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path in the woods (Photo by Malka on Unsplash)

Life after Covid-19

Sherman Hesselgrave

God’s people have a rich repertoire of tales about surviving floods, plagues, political upheaval, and every form of human cruelty. Some of the stories that come to mind: Joseph (of “technicolour dreamcoat” fame), who was thrown into a deep pit by his brothers to die, later becomes the Minister of Agriculture in Egypt and the one who saves those very brothers and the whole family from starving to death. The prophets Elisha and Elijah performed life-saving miracles for widows. Jesus brings his friend Lazarus back from the dead. Paul is rescued after a shipwreck in the Mediterranean.

Many of us have been wondering how some of the positive things we have been experiencing in the midst of this pandemic can be incorporated into life after Covid-19. Those of us in leadership at Holy Trinity have been thinking about this as well. What kinds of technology might become part of a new routine? What implications are there for how we use our space in the future? What do we do to stay connected to people who have found us via Zoom during this time? These are not easy questions to answer, but day by day more and more people are acknowledging that the new normal will look different than what “normal” used to look like for us.

My sojourn among you will conclude in a few weeks, but those continuing on the Vestry Executive Committee will be mindful of these questions as the pandemic moves on. Keep track of ideas that occur to you that deserve further discussion and consideration down the road.

Emotional Mastery in Dark Times

Workshop Series

Disciplines from DBT to Cope (and Maybe Sometimes Even Thrive) Amid Sorrows, Terrors and Horrors

Alejandra Lindan

Some of us have already met a couple times for what was intended to be a “one-off” workshop based in dialectical behaviour therapy (aka DBT, which is the model I work from in my therapy practice). But some have expressed interest in coming back together to deepen these practices of anchored grieving amid the incomprehensible. As I’ve said, the vibe is more practical than group hug, and yet there’s a deep and spiritual lovingkindness that underlies these gatherings. 
So we’re planning on offering this now as a monthly series during, but for small gatherings of 6-8 people at a time. Every other month will be a repeat of the original “intro” workshop for those who haven’t been to that and are interested. On the alternate months, we’ll branch out into deeper and/or complementary practices that extend from these. If there’s greater interest than 6-8 people per month, we’ll figure it out. 

Car caravan to protest city and provincial neglect of homeless in pandemic

Tomorrow, May 6th, at 12 noon,  Torontonians will hold a car caravan protest to demand that the city and province immediately house all people experiencing homelessness in order to prevent COVID-19 deaths. Protesters will draw attention to the basic hypocrisy of governments asking people to “stay home” and practice physical distancing while abandoning thousands of homeless people in congregate living arrangements in shelters and respites. 

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