In other parts of the country, particularly out West, beef barbecue is the norm. Here in North Carolina, pork BBQ is king. So I was surprised when, at a recent meeting in Houston, I saw the back of a T-shirt that read: “Best Butts in Town.” On the front was an ad for a BBQ joint. A few days later, as the kids were setting table for dinner, I told my wife about that T-shirt, saying: “You know it’s got... Read more

The following Notice was sent to me by Fr John Salem, Pastor of St George Antiochian Orthodox Church in Houston, Texas. I’m posting it here as one example of the local efforts of an Orthodox community. Hurricane Katrina Relief Thank you all for the many inquiries into helping aid all the evacuees of this great disaster of the Gulf Coast. As of now, we will list the ways that you can help. I.O.C.C. (International Orthodox Christian Charities) has asked us... Read more

CNN.com has been posting the names of those who wish to let loved ones know they are alright after the storm. Read more

Banging out the kitchen door, I kickedbefore I saw it a thick glass baking dishI’d set outside for dogs the night before.It skidded to the top step, teetered, tippedinto an undulating slide from stepto step, almost stopped halfway down, then lungedon toward concrete, and I froze to watch itsplinter when it hit. Instead, it kissedthe concrete like a skipping stone, and rangto rest in frost-stiffened grass. Retrieving it,I suddenly felt my neck-cords letting goof something like a mask of tragedy.I... Read more

But right in the middle, a statue of Jesus is still standing, unscathed by the storm, save for the left thumb and index finger, which are missing. The missing digits immediately set off speculation of divine intervention. Many in the Quarter are now saying it was the hand of Jesus, the missing digits to be precise, that flicked the hurricane east just a little to keep the city from suffering a direct blow. And the search is on for those... Read more

Thursday, September 1 Plugging HERE, H E R E, and h e r e …As I noted last night, N.Z. Bear at TTLB has set up a registration page for bloggers who want to participate in the Hurricane Katrina Blog Relief Day fundraiser–inspired by Hugh Hewitt–set for tomorrow, Sept. 1. Glenn Reynolds is keeping a master list of charities, continually updated. Bookmark it. He writes: The plan for tomorrow’s flood-aid blogburst: I’d like each blogger participating to put up a... Read more

The following petition may be inserted into the Ektenia of Supplication (immediately after the petitions for the Hierarchs and the Clergy) at Vespers, Orthros and Divine Liturgy: “Let not stormy waters drown Thy people, O Lord, and let it not ravage the earth utterly. But as Thou art good, do Thou direct the rushing of the water, and, as Thou art mighty, do Thou command that it become a moderate course with healthful air, O Thou Who art rich in... Read more

It appears that Bridge-Building Images has had a divorce from Robert Lentz — amicable or not, I couldn’t say, but except for a few oddities their offerings are more Orthodox. They’ve also eliminated the rainbow from their logo. On the other hand, they’ve picked up Monastery ‘This is as dull as Novus Ordo ought to look’ Icons. I’m not sure how Monastery Icons washed up on BBI, but (depressingly) they make the often … loopy BBI images look distinguished. At... Read more

Dean Calvert, responding in Comments HERE, writes: Great questions … here’s a couple more … why is the patriarch of Jerusalem a Greek at all? And why is the synod of Jerusalem made up of almost entirely Greek bishops (go look it up – I think there are two Arabs) when the flock is entirely Arab? And why is the wealthiest of all the patriarchates (Jerusalem takes in millions per year from the various pilgrimage sites) unable to provide even... Read more

Father John Henderson, Dean of the Mississippi Valley Deanery, reports that all of the Antiochian clergy and laity in the Deanery are safe and sound — but it is too early to know about property damage. This Deanery includes nine communities in Arkansas (Little Rock & Springdale/Fayetteville), Louisiana (Lafayette & Metairie/New Orleans), Mississippi (Madison/Jackson & Vicksburg), and Tennessee (Memphis, Grand Junction & Franklin/Nashville). Father Peter and Khouriya Pamela Nugent and their children of St Basil Church in Metairie/New Orleans evacuated... Read more