hello

Greetings to each and everyone of you.


This section for English-speaking viewers –
and all those enjoying the culture –

has developed over the months and is now offering materials of all kinds:

texts, images, poems, videos, etc.

It will continue to provide you with rich contents week after week.

 

6th Sunday of Easter, C

28 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Advocate, Holy Spirit, Jn.14:23-29, Teacher

We are all familiar with the Ads section of the newspaper, the special area of ‘Job description’. Many people looking for employment will consult this regularly.

Job ads in newspaper page with marker and some jobs marked

poetrybydeborahann.wordpress.com

Today gospel (6th Sunday of Easter C, Jn.14:23-29) gives us, somehow, a job description of… the Holy Spirit! This expression may seem irreverent when speaking of God’s Spirit, so let us say that this text tells us what is the special role of the Holy Spirit, what is his function in our lives.

But our human words are all deficient when speaking about God – the Holy Spirit does NOT play a role, nor does he have functions!

We could say more appropriately that this Gospel text shows us what the Holy Spirit wants to be for us, what kind of relationship he wants to have with us. And it is Jesus himself who tells us in very clear words:

“The Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all I have said to you.”

First, the Holy Spirit comes to us from the Father and he comes in the name of Jesus, to continue doing what Jesus has started doing in us and for us.
If any of us had to appear in court for a serious matter, we would want very much to have a good lawyer who would plead in our favour – someone who is ‘for us’. Well, the Holy Spirit is precisely this: our ‘Advocate’, someone who is literally ‘for us’ – someone who can defend us, even against ourselves!

He is also our Teacher, ready to teach us “everything” says Jesus – everything we need to know, everything we want to know about God, about ourselves, about life, about what God wants for us and from us. And, as we may be inclined to forget some things, he will remind us of ‘all’ that Jesus has said.

The gospel is so simple a message, so strong a promise, so wonderful a presence, why on earth do we not believe it?!

Source: Images: poetrybydeborahann.wordpress.com   depositphotos.com

World Day for Safety and Health at Work – 28 April

27 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: developing countries, economic recession, global competition, ILO International Labour Organisation, labour relation, policymakers, pressure, psychosocial risks, work-related stress, working hours

wcms_450061This year, “Workplace Stress: a collective challenge” is the theme of the campaign of the World Day for Safety and Health at Work. The report will draw attention to current global trends on work-related stress and its impact.

Today, many workers are facing greater pressure to meet the demands of modern working life. Psychosocial risks such as increased competition, higher expectations on performance and longer working hours are contributing to the workplace becoming an ever more stressful environment. With the pace of work dictated by instant communications and high levels of global competition, the lines separating work from life are becoming more and more difficult to identify. In addition, due to the significant changes labour relations and the current economic recession, workers are experiencing organizational changes and restructuring, reduced work opportunities, increasing precarious work , the fear of losing their jobs, massive layoffs and unemployment and decreased financial stability, with serious consequences to their mental health and well-being.

In recent years, there has been growing attention to the impact of psychosocial risks and work-related stress among researchers, practitioners and policymakers. Work-related stress is now generally acknowledged as global issue affecting all countries, all professions and all workers both in developed and developing countries. In this complex context, the workplace is at the same time an important source of psychosocial risks and the ideal venue to address them in order to protect the health and well-being of workers.

Source: Text & Image: ILO (International Labour Organisation)

World Malaria Day – 25 April

24 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: disease, glabal partnership, malaria, mosquitoes, parasites, scientific advances, WHO

RBM_logo_headerWorld Malaria Day is observed on April 25 each year.
Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to people through the bites of infected mosquitoes. About half of the worlds’ population is at risk of malaria, particularly those in lower-income countries. It infects more than 500 million people each year and kills more than one million people, according to WHO. However, Malaria is preventable and curable.

The World Health Assembly instituted World Malaria Day in May 2007. The purpose of the event is to give countries in affected regions the chance to learn from each other’s experiences and support one another’s efforts. World Malaria Day also enables new donors to join in a global partnership against malaria, and for research and academic institutions to reveal scientific advances to the public. The day also gives international partners, companies and foundations a chance to showcase their efforts and reflect on how to scale up what has worked.

 

Source: Text: timeanddate.com  Image: Partenariat RBM

5th Sunday of Easter, C

21 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Acts 14:21-27, Paul and Barnabas, we work with God, what God does with us

sculptor-carving-working-gypsum-bust-sculpture-68282196It may happen to you as it sometimes happens to me: we read a text and… suddenly we are ‘hooked’ on a sentence, our attention is completely taken up by a few words. The meaning of the whole text remains in the background, we focus on the few words that have struck us.

This is what happened to me when reading the text of the first reading of this 5th Sunday of Easter (year C, Acts 14:21-27). We are told that: “On their arrival, they (Paul and Barnabas) assembled the church and gave an account of all that God had done with them” (v.27).

These words can be understood in two ways: what God had done with them, meaning that God is working with Paul and Barnabas. We usually think about this the other way around! We say that we work with God, WE cooperate WITH HIM in carrying out his plan. But here, it is as if God is the one whose collaboration is given to the two apostles.

A second interpretation of what God had done with them is that God works with whatever materiel he finds in us – what we are, what we do, what we work at – God uses this to carry out his plan. An interesting idea – God is ready and willing to make the best of what is available… in us, at the moment. It is with this that he will create his… masterpiece. Like a master sculptor who uses a given piece of wood, or stone, or marble, to work with.

The story is told of a man who was known to have a very bad temper. He was, by nature, very impatient and he could get very angry for matters that people around would qualify of no importance. One day, someone thought it could help the man if this was pointed out to him. The reply was not long in coming, and really witty too: “Just wait! God is not finished with me yet!”

And each one of us can also say: « God is not finished with me… yet!...

Source: Image: Dreamstime.com

 

International Mother Earth Day – 22 April

21 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: John McConnell, Margaret Mead, Mother Earth, sustainable environment, tree planting
www.local416.ca

The April 22 Earth Day, founded by Senator Gaylord Nelson, was first organized in 1970 to promote ecology and respect for life on the planet as well as to encourage awareness of the growing problems of air, water and soil pollution.

Some people prefer to observe Earth Day around the time of the March equinox. In 1978, American anthropologist Margaret Mead added her support for the equinox Earth Day, founded by John McConnell. She stated that the selection of the March Equinox for Earth Day made planetary observance of a shared event possible.

Source: Text: Timeanddate.com

2016 Theme: Trees for the Earth
Earth Day was first celebrated in the United States in 1970 and is organised by the Earth Day Network.  Its mission is to broaden and diversify the environmental movement worldwide and to mobilize it as the most effective vehicle to build a healthy, sustainable environment, address climate change, and protect the Earth for future generations. With this year’s theme, looking forward to its 50th anniversary, it sets the goal of planting 7.8 billion trees over the next five years.             

Source: Text: UN website  Image: www.local416.ca

World Hemophilia Day – 17 April 2024

17 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: hemophilia, hemophiliacs, low clotting factor, protein in the blood

Supported by the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH), hemophilia awareness day was first established in 1989. The date of 17th April was chosen to honor Frank Schnabel the founder of WFH, worldhemophiliadaylogowhose birthday falls on the same date.
Hemophilia is a condition in which bleeding is prolonged. Hemophilia is a condition present from birth and is normally inherited; you can’t ‘catch, hemophilia or pass it on to others. In some rare instances, hemophilia may develop later in life (typically affecting people in the 50+ age group). 

The incidence of hemophilia is quite low. Statistics on the incidence of hemophilia vary however, it is estimated that in the United States 1 in every 5,000 -10,000 people are born with it.
When a person without hemophilia bleeds, normal levels of clotting factor, a protein in the blood, causes the blood to clot and stops the bleeding. However, hemophiliacs (people with hemophilia) have lower levels of clotting factor in the the blood and bleeding continues for much longer periods.

Source: Text & Image: www.whathealth.com

On April 17, 2024, the global bleeding disorders community will come together to celebrate World Hemophilia Day. The theme of the event this year is “Equitable access for all: recognizing all bleeding disorders”. The World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) vision of Treatment for All is for a world where all people with inherited bleeding disorders have access to care, regardless of their type of bleeding disorder, gender, age, or where they live.

Source: Text & Image: https://wfh.org/world-hemophilia-day/

International Day against Child Slavery – 16 April

15 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles, Uncategorized
Mots-clés: Child slavery, child soldiers, economic system, fight for justice, Iqbal Masih, unemployment

IM18th Anniversary of IQBAL MASIH’s murder, Christian non-violent militant for Justice in the fight against Child Slavery in the world. Murdered on 16th April 1995, in Pakistan, when he was 12. [1983-1995] Testimony of true activist and solidarity trade- unionism.

Every day we can find products made by enslaved children in our homes, in our streets, in shopping malls, in our consumption. At present, millions of children breath the smoke of rubbish landfills, they risk their lives as pearl divers, they work in the mines to get the minerals for our cosmetics, for new technologies, they are kidnapped to become child soldiers, they live amidst bullets and rapes in the streets, they are used for the trade in human organs, in brothels, in sweatshop,… Children who have been deprived of their childhood and education. Children who are subjugated, enslaved, humiliated.

There are more slaves at present than at any other time in history. Children are forced to participate in the international planning of work, resulting from a perverse economic system. This world crime, far from disappearing, is on the rise in number and cruelty. Let us not be carried away by a manipulated language: they are child slaves, they are not child workers!

When we talk about an economic crisis in international forums and in the media, no one says that this crisis will be paid by the poor, and especially by the children who will be aborted or subjected to more bondage.

Child slavery is the first problem facing the world of work, and as well as unemployment, it is the result of a savage economic system. Unemployment and Child Slavery have the same causes and therefore common solutions. Child slavery is a moral and political problem, and its solution can only come from these two fields: the Moral and the Political ones. We therefore demand that unions and political parties denounce the causes of child slavery. We must defend children’s right to have a school, an education, a family, to be able to play and become Persons.

Source: Text & image: solidaridad.net

 

4th Sunday of Easter, C

14 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Care, close communion, comfort, Concern, Good Shepherd, Jn.10:27-30

Jesus-Good-Shepherd-wide-i vividscreen.incoMany of us like to have some pictures in our missal or our Bible; this makes it easy for us to find a special text or a reference we often come back to. The pictures may have been there for months, even years and… we do not pay much attention to them any longer. We may not notice anymore what the picture represents, at least many of the details do not retain our attention. They are printed papers…

The same could be said of the statues in a chapel or a church – we are so used to seeing them there that they do not catch our eyes any more. We know they are there, but… while some of us will stand before one of them, many of us pass by. These are plaster representations, or works of art like sculptures or carvings.

But what about another type of representation? What about a ‘word-picture’ – a live description by someone who introduces himself? This is what today’s gospel (Jn.10:27-30) gives us, a picture in words, a vivid description, an introduction to oneself and… it is given by Jesus himself! In a few words, in short sentences, Jesus gives us a summary of who he is and what he wants to be for us.

“I know my sheep…       I give them eternal life;       They will never be lost.      No one will ever steal them from me.”

It is all there, in what I call the 4 Cs: Care, Concern, Comfort, Close Communion – there for each one of us, there for today and every day, there… if only we accept to be… his sheep.

Source: Image: vividscreen.info

World Art Day – 15 April

14 avril 2016
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: art, artists, human soul, IAA, museum, reflections, story of humanity

n_18099_1The IAA (International Association of Art) designated April 15 as World Art Day with the intention that it will be a day for all artists and art lovers in the world to celebrate, not only members of IAA. The idea is to create a day to emphasize the importance of art in the lives of everyone, of all ages and races. Every gallery, museum, art center, university and artist are free to organize their own activities.

The President of IAA World, Mexican Rosa Maria Burillo Velasco said, “Art is the most genuine expression of the human soul, shaped in images, words, sounds and movements enduring reflections that describe us the story of humanity. World Art Day will permit to all the artists and art lovers of the world, to feel the power and the preciousness of art simultaneously and let all of us breathe its importance for all nations of the World.”

Source: Text & Image: Daily News, Turkey April/11/2012