in this issue
I
n his Charter Day address in the Bryn Athyn Cathedral, Chancellor Brian W.
Keith reviewed the history of the observance, why we celebrate it each year, and
what it means for the Academy of the New Church. “The founders of the Academy,”
he said, “had a vision from the Lord of what life could be – in this world and the
world to come. They saw in the revelation to the New Church the Lord’s purpose
in all creation, a heaven from the human race. This is why we are here – to support
and promote a heavenly existence.” (Page 16)
At the Charter Day banquet, Brian D. Henderson, the new director of the
Glencairn Museum, explained how the museum was part of the original vision
of the Academy, how it enriches the Academy’s current mission, and how it is
embracing the challenge to extend its reach as one of the preeminent religious
museums in the world. Crispin Paine, a renowned authority on religious museums,
visited Glencairn last year and said its goal of becoming a leader in the interpretation
of religion is not just a dream but is within our reach. (Page 21)
As part of a series of sermons accompanying this year’s Journey campaign, The
Seven Practices of Peace, the Rev. Dr. Ray Silverman preached a sermon in Bryn
Athyn, What Does it Mean to Be a Human Being? The Journey relates to the seven
days of creation, and this sermon focuses on the sixth day. This was when God said,
“Let us make man in our own image,” and called this day not “good,” like the others,
but “very good.” Why was that? (Page 29)
The new year is a good time to reflect on patterns in our lives and what we might
like to work on changing. In a sermon, Seeing Patterns, the Rev. Eric H. Carswell
uses the story of Ahab to illustrate whether or not we are willing to acknowledge
our patterns and hear what the Lord is teaching us. (Ahab was not.) It is through
such efforts to improve ourselves spiritually, he said, that we can commit ourselves
“to the personal work that will help this year be a better year for us and for all those
who come in contact with us.” (Page 35)
The Secondary Schools of the Academy of the New Church earned designation
last year as a model school for the Gurian Institute, which studies differences in
male and female brains and is a leading advocate of teaching to those diffe &V