I have heard that one should never google oneself … maybe because you might not like what you find. Or maybe because there’s misinformation.
When Ann and I decided to use a few of my reflections from the UCC 2017 Lenten study book “Parables, Prayers and Promises” as the basis for conversation for the Picnic and Prayer series that begins on Monday, I thought I would just check and see what’s out there about it. The whole endeavour began when a friend from St. John’s United Church told me just before this year’s Good Friday service began that she was enjoying re-reading the book during Lent. And I thought “really? That’s funny … isn’t it kind of dated?” Apparently not.
The book is out of print. It was out of print before Lent 2017 was over. The UCC must print a very limited number of their publications, but it has always been available as an e-book, and still is available in that format at UCRD, Amazon, and Indigo for around $6.00.
A few years ago I got a call from a faith leader in Ontario that was doing a study on the book.
I continue to be amazed and very curious at the independent life the book seems to lead.
Anyway … I ended up googling “Parables, Prayers and Promises” and I was surprised to find this come up – it was AI generated:
“Parables, Prayers, and Promises: Daily Devotions on Jesus (eBook) is a Lenten resource by Martha Martin providing 40 days of reflections, anecdotes, and prayers to deepen one's connection with Jesus. The book connects the parables of Jesus to daily life, offering a blend of wit, wisdom, and spiritual guidance.”
Wow, I thought … “that’s kind of flattering”. A deeper search led me to a review from my very good friend Paul Hutchinson from Northern Ireland when he wrote a short review about the book on the Corrymeela Centre’s website. As Paul points out, there are a few reflections from my time spent as a volunteer with the community in 2011. You can read the review at:
https://www.corrymeela.org/news/113/parables-prayers-promises-by-martha
Some of the stories and anecdotes may sound familiar … they are stories from my life that I have told over the years in sermons, bible studies and blogs. Obviously we won’t be doing all of the reflections in the book during our time with Picnic and Prayer. Ann and I have chosen a couple to reflect on each week. The format includes references to music, youtube videos, poetry, and movies. All forms of popular culture. Which, for those who know me, know that’s a huge part of my life and how I make sense of the world around me.
Here are a couple of the links that are referenced in the first few reflections just to peak your curiosity:
(more P’s … Peter Rollins The Power of Parable)
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=The+Power+of+Parable+Peter+Rollins
(from Bruce Almighty, God explains miracles to Bruce)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akrcYSLRluA
(How to Be Alone - Andrea Dorfman and Tanya Davis)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7X7sZzSXYs
If you are not an e-reader, you can get a copy of each week’s reflections emailed to you, or you can pick up a hard copy at the back of the church on Sundays or by dropping by the office during the week on office hours. And if you sign up for the study, I will send out a weekly email with some of the links that are in the book.
The whole story of how the book came to be is an interesting one, which I will share briefly at our first session. It was written over 6 months during the fall and winter of 2015/16 during the height of my ruptured Achilles tendon saga.
It is interesting, and sometimes a bit disconcerting to google oneself. I did find in one item that came up about the book that it referred to a completely different author’s profile … a Martha Martin who lives in Ontario, is an award-winning teacher-librarian (not true) and calls herself the Book Babe (definitely not true). Oh well … beware of imposters.
This Sunday is Pentecost … the birthday of the church. We will be celebrating the day with a few special activities with the children, a very short sermon, and the sacrament of communion. We are inviting folks to wear red … or orange … or yellow to represent the flames of the Spirit that the early church experienced. We will also be blessing our good news leaves from the Lenten and Easter seasons so they can be released to bless the world … and we will be placing new symbols on our tree. We hope you can join us.
Blessings
Martha