Author Archive: pwoodbeck
Hebrew, Hebrew, and Hebrew
I will begin by sending my apologies for not posting sooner, but to be honest it has been one of those weeks. We began Monday morning with a bit of anticipation with learning Hebrew. Okay, well it might not have actually been anticipation, it might have been more like terror. So we went to class, […]
Continue ReadingYear Number 4 Begins
I arrived in Halifax yesterday around 5, just a bit late, as the flight out of Toronto was delayed. I was met at the airport by a friend, who is also in the program, who had timed it so that he, who was driving from Ontario, could swing by the airport so that I could […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure Part 6
Hi all, It was yet another very early start. The sky was a hazy brown when our group headed to church, Haidan Christian Church in NW Beijing. We attended one of the seven services they have each Sunday. That is only the tip of this church’s reach: they have 58 meeting places in other parts of […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure Part 5
Hi all!Today started before 6 am as we had an trip on the bullet train to Beijing. The Nanjing north train station looks like it is a set for a Star Trek episode. It is ultra modern . As we had been warned, the train doors open for only a short time so we had to […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure Part 4
Now…..today was the first day of the conference at Nanjing Union Theological Seminary. My presentation on church and society was paired with a presentation on feminist theology in the Chinese church which was very interesting. The professor began with looking at Mary as the traditional model for religious women. In China 70% of new members are […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure Part 3
I will not say too much about our full day in Suzhou since I’ve made two blogposts on the UCC delegation page. Today we were up early and off on the bus to Nanjing. I don’t know if I have mentioned already but I have been surprised at the extent of English signage on the highways, streets […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure Part 2
t’s been a couple of days since I last wrote. The jet lag is finally retreating and the smog is getting more dense. Monday we spent the morning in conversation with the executive members of the China Christian Council. Several of them have multiple roles. One is the President of Nanjing Seminary, another is the Dean. We […]
Continue ReadingSharon’s China Adventure
We arrived on time in Shanghai on Saturday afternoon. After eighteen hours in transit it was good to be here. We have been hosted by staff from the China Christian Council. Tony met us at the airport and has been a great guide. He got us settled at our hotel, The Baron Business Hotel, right near the […]
Continue ReadingOn The Road Again
I suppose that this should actually be titled “In The Air Again,” but no matter either way I will be on the move today, making my way back home. I sit here in my residence room trying to get packed up before I make my way over to the hall for my last breakfast here […]
Continue ReadingOn The Rock
Tonight at the General Council meeting the youth led worship. We know that ought can be wonderful conduits for the spirit and tonight was no different. There was a theological reflection offered by a young man who spoke of how appropriate it was that we are looking at changing the church as we sit here […]
Continue ReadingGeneral Council 42, Corner Brook
As my third day at the General Council 42 meeting comes to a close I find that I have a great deal to reflect on in the next few months. We have only now begun to look at the Comprehensive Review and although I cannot say much about what is before the court, I will […]
Continue ReadingAnother Year Complete
I am just finishing up my last class of the 2015 Summer Session at the Atlantic School of Theology. This last class has been transformative in challenging me to think from a perspective of Virtue Ethics. This can be life changing, but it is up to me to integrate this into how I see how […]
Continue ReadingAlmost Done
I know that I have been remiss in posting and for that I apologize. It has been a very hectic few weeks here in Halifax. The music course that I was involved with over the last couple of weeks was more intense than I expected and so took up a lot of my time and […]
Continue ReadingHappy Canada Day
It is morning here in Halifax and I am sitting at my computer trying to write a paper that is due tomorrow. I wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy Canada Day. I find it rather interesting that on a day that we celebrate this country of ours, I am writing a […]
Continue ReadingAlmost 1/3 Of The Way Through
I must first begin by saying that I have been a bit remiss this week. I have every intention of writing this post on Sunday evening as we prepared to begin our second week of study, but it seemed that life really got in the way. There were assignments to complete, reading to do, and […]
Continue Reading