Don't hold onto the past...

Forgive. Encourage others to to do as well.

If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do.

What are you hoping for?

What are your neighbours hoping for?

Are you a part of 'family' in your neighbourhood?

Do you spread it around your neighbourhood?

Wondering how to begin?

Start with 'Hi.'

It'll help you immensely to get to know people in your neighbourhood better.

Neighbourhood Life

Merry Christmas & Happy Hobbitdays...

I found it is the small things, everyday deeds of ordinary folk, that keep the darkness at bay. Simple acts of kindness and love.

Is this what your neighbours see?

Merry Christmas!

Life on the prairies.

The art of gifting

What are you 'giving' this Christmas season?

Have you thought about 'presence'?

Good question.

Happiness, means nothing other than having lots of stuff,
having more stuff than your parents,
and having children who will have even more stuff.

Right.

Discover the recreation in your neighbourhood.

Romans 14:17

For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Be on the lookout for Good News in your neighbourhood.

Don't be ignorant.

Get to know & begin to love your neighbours.

It's true for you too.

It dawned on me for the first time, really. It had dawned on me before, but it really sank in: the Christmas story. . . . There it was. I was sitting there, and it’s not that it hadn’t struck me before, but tears came down my face, and I saw the genius of this, utter genius of picking a particular point in time and deciding to turn on this. Because that’s exactly what we were talking about earlier: love needs to find form, intimacy needs to be whispered. To me, it makes sense. It’s actually logical. It’s pure logic. Essence has to manifest itself. It’s inevitable. Love has to become an action or something concrete. It would have to happen. There must be an incarnation. Love must be made flesh.  Bono

christmas giving

When I look critically at my life, I find that my generosity always occurs in the context of great wealth. I give some of my money, some of my time, some of my energy, and some of my thoughts to God and others, but enough money, time, energy, and thoughts always remain to maintain my own security. Thus I never really give God a chance to show me his boundless love. HNouwen

It's never too late to catch the wave...

Discover spiritual life in your neighbourhood!

Are you holding a grudge against any of your neighbours?

Let go....

Look for someone to share in the adventure.

You can make beautiful music wherever you live.

Are you playing your part?

Luke 2

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Everyone can pitch in to help!

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

Do you believe in God? or

Do you live out God?

Many people in the church have decided to take on the name of Christ and nothing else. 

This would be like Jesus walking up to those first disciples and saying, 

"Hey, would you guys mind identifying yourselves with me in some way? Don't worry, I don't actually care if you do anything I do or change your lifestyle at all. I'm just looking for people who are willing to say they believe in me and call themselves Christians." FChan

Can you have community without proximity?

You can only love your neighbour as much as you can love yourself.

Where are you seeing God at work these days?

Each of us is a unique masterpiece in God's eye...

This is the secret of life -

'the self lives only by dying, finds its identity (and its happiness) only by self-forgetfulness, self-giving, self-sacrifice, and agape love.' PKreeft

Apartment & condo hermits can be found...

Be willing to put yourself out there & work at drawing others out of their shells.

Pray & ask God for guidance & wisdom - it will come!

Sometimes our neighbours need more than just our words...

Love does.

Don't be a chicken...

Invite some neighbours over.

Be a big-hearted family!

Some neighbours are jerks...

Love 'em anyways!

Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. If someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it. If someone grabs your shirt, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.

What could happen in your neighbourhood?

A neighbourhood is so much more than a geographically localized area. It is the place we call home, where our children play, and where we have the most invested financially and emotionally. If we care about any place in our community, it would normally be our immediate neighbourhood.

Very few people actually visit their neighbours, though.

Roughly 1 in 4 have had a neighbour over to their house or apartment in the past 12 months. The same small percentage was invited to a neighbour’s home during the same time period.

And patterns of neighbourhood connections are pretty much set after a few years. People who have lived in their neighbourhood for 20 years are no more likely to socialize with neighbours than those living in the neighbourhood for three years.

Does connecting with your neighbour really matter anymore?

Apparently it still does to Jesus!

Have some fun in the 'hood.

Cynicism, pessimism, loneliness and feeling a distrust of other people.

Someone is going to have to reach out to your neighbours with their hands and feet...

Be willing to break out of your ethnic bubble -

... whatever it is!

Why aren't people loving their neighbours/hood?

When people are asked about what prevents them from participating in activities that could make their neighbourhood a better place to live the the answer is surprising.

We generally think that not having enough time would top the list. But it doesn't.

The the major obstacle to participating more fully in neighbourhood life — is the feeling that they don't have much to offer.

In Christ your little life takes on enormous meaning.

The best way to love your city is to love your neighbours/hood!

Van City can be a lonely place...

One in three people living in metropolitan Vancouver say it can be difficult to make friends here. 

Seventy per cent have never had a neighbour over. And 47 per cent do not trust or do not know if their neighbours trust each other.

These are just a few of the key findings contained in Connections and Engagement — a 44-page summary of a metro Vancouver-wide survey released today by Vancouver Foundation.
The survey of 3,841 residents measured people’s levels of connection and engagement to their friends, to their neighbourhoods, and to the community-at-large.

“Last year, through community consultations, we heard that people in metro Vancouver are becoming increasingly disconnected and disengaged from community life. We did this survey to help us better understand this issue from the point of view of our residents,” says Faye Wightman, Vancouver Foundation President and CEO. “While there is a lot of good news in the survey, we are particularly interested in identifying the gaps — the areas where our resources can help improve community and neighbourhood life.”

The key gaps the survey uncovered are:

Metro Vancouver can be a hard place to make friends.
31% say it is difficult to make new friends here. And 25% say they are alone more often than they would like to be. These same people are also likelier to experience poorer health, lower trust and a hardening of attitudes toward other community members.

Our neighbourhood connections are cordial, but weak.
74% know the names of at least two of their neighbours but the connections typically stop there. 70% have not visited a neighbour’s home or invited a neighbour over. And 47% do not trust or do not know if their neighbours trust each other.

The most often-cited reason for not knowing neighbours is that people seldom see each other (46%). However, another significant reason seems to be indifference. People have little interest in getting to know their neighbours or say they prefer to keep to themselves (32%).

Many people in metro Vancouver are retreating from community life.
In the past year, only 23% took part in a neighbourhood or community project.

It isn’t a lack of time that stops people from getting involved. The most often-cited reason for not participating in neighbourhood and community life is a feeling that people have little to offer.

There are limits to how people see diversity as an opportunity to forge meaningful
connections.
35% have no close friends outside their own ethnic group. And 65% believe that most people prefer to be with others of the same ethnicity.

Many people believe all new immigrants and refugees, regardless of where they come from, would be welcome in their neighbourhood. However, a significant number of residents rank which groups they believe would be the most and the least welcome.

The affordability issue in metro Vancouver is affecting people’s attitudes and beliefs.
54% believe Vancouver is becoming a resort town for the wealthy. These same people also tend to think that there is too much foreign ownership of real estate.

The survey report can be found on our website at:  www.vancouverfoundation.ca/connect-engage

How far does love go

in your neighbourhood?

When people have regular conversations with their neighbours, more than just a smile or a wave, those neighbourhoods are safer, there’s less crime and people feel much more optimistic about the possibility of working with each other to solve local problems.

The first and last time Dave Meslin and his neighbours hung out together in their midtown Toronto neighbourhood was during a fire on their street that drew everyone from their homes to share in the experience of watching the flames.

“It made me think we’ve never all been together or hung out on the street and here we were, 30 or 40 of us just watching the fire while it was happening,” says Meslin, a writer and community organizer.

“After being in Vancouver, it made me very aware of the disconnect we have with our neighbours.”

Meslin was speaking in Vancouver in September at a community summit called Alone Together: Connecting in the City, a series of talks and public sessions on why that city has so many lonely people.

Recent research by the Vancouver Foundation found that social isolation was the single largest concern for residents in the metro Vancouver region, a surprise to many community organizers like Meslin, who thought homelessness or housing affordability would rank higher.

The concerns raised by the research findings and the summit, the first of its kind in Canada, prompted one Vancouver city councillor to propose a council motion creating an Engaged City Task Force.

The task force will try to increase neighbour-to-neighbour engagement and find ways for the city to connect with its citizens and vice versa.

The Vancouver Foundation, which manages more than 1,400 endowment funds worth almost $735 million, held the summit along with Simon Fraser University Public Square, an initiative by the university to engage community groups.

Denise Rudnicki, the foundation’s director of strategic engagement, said the negative attitudes that stem from loneliness — such as feeling less trusting of others or a lack of cohesion with neighbours — can spread within a community.

“This survey held up a mirror in the community and everyone could see themselves in it,” she said. “When people have regular conversations with their neighbours, more than just a smile or a wave, those neighbourhoods are safer, there’s less crime and people feel much more optimistic about the possibility of working with each other to solve local problems.”

Rudnicki said it comes down to residents connecting and trusting each other. Trust can jump the fence to spread to the larger community committed to solving social issues from cleaning up a park to addressing homelessness.

The survey also found that people who live in highrises over five storeys had a diminished level of trust, putting the onus on developers, especially in the dense downtown Vancouver areas, to figure out ways to engage residents. Simple things such as putting shared laundry facilities near a rooftop garden may be one way to foster engagement in the residential silos.

Twenty-five per cent of people surveyed said they felt lonely in metro Vancouver and one in three said they found it hard to make new friends in the community. One person wrote that in the seven years he’s lived in Vancouver after moving to the West Coast for a job, he has never been asked to go out for a beer.

Shauna Sylvester, executive director of Simon Fraser University Public Square, said the summit repeatedly heard that many felt disengaged from the community despite Vancouver’s widespread use of social media and its reputation as one of the most livable cities in the world.

“Why is it we have become so cloistered in our social network interactions but we aren’t choosing to connect with the people around us?” Sylvester said.

“We heard that if you’re in Saskatchewan or in Winnipeg and you first move there, you would receive 10 invitations for dinner in your first week, but people go months or years without receiving an invitation here.”

Get into the neighbourhood trenches

Work with your Father in the neighbourhood...

He's already up to something...

Turn intentions into actions.

Be a community builder, not a community buster!

Get outside!

Say no to nature deficit disorder!

Canadians don't fear the cold - the cold fears Canadians!!

Yes, this is a problem...

Just Do It!

Stop wasting time running after the perfect community. Live your life fully in your community today. JVanier

We'll change a neighbourhood when we love its kids...

Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift?

Life is good in the parish...

If I had a thousand lives to live in this century, I would go into parish ministry with everyone of them. HEFosdick