Archive for November, 2009

This is the fountain of Le Thoronet Abbey, France.

Dar and I had profound encounters with God at this abbey, which I write about in Clairvaux Manifesto (pp.213-214). That particular day began in Arles and ended in Cannes. The next day began in Nice and led up the A8 into Northern Italy to a former spiritual habitation for nuns in the mountains of wine country. A peacock greeted our vehicle as a glorious meal was spread out for us under an arbor of grape vines…

Back to the fountain at Le Thoronet, I imagined the many Cistercians who gathered there (like David and Jonathan), sharing the hesed of YHWH,

I have begun reading Nijinsky. Human beings are such beautiful, yet injured, creators. I’ve just now been reading  Secrets of Nijinsky. Just a few moments ago, I was watching the afternoon of a faun on YouTube, having no idea who Christian Comte was, or what he was up to; fascinating!

My study of Nijinsky began last night, just  before our Calgary book launch. A friend (and gifted dancer) lent me Romola Nijinsky’s book about her husband. I think I’ll purchase a copy.

My reading of Nijinsky has me in more books; Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason and Augustine’s City of God are open.

Here I stand on the threshing floor remains of Cluny, at one time the largest freestanding building in Europe. The Cistercian reformation was (in part) a reaction to the Cluniacs. I don’t have a PhD in Cluniac reform, so I won’t pretend I’ve spent years studying old Latin, but the Cistercians did return to a strict observance of the Rule of St. Benedict, and added some new documentation clarifying some things.

I like that Pope Benedict XVI has a TV website. I wonder what Bernard would have done with such technology from his abbey in the forest of central France. It’s encouraging to read Benedict’s words of late on Bernard and the Cluniac Reform; for me the timing is spot on.

This is Luke and I maneuvering the mists of Bugaboo Falls; so fresh and majestic. Earlier that morning, as we hiked into the falls as a family, a wedding party was completing their photo shoot, rose petals everywhere, joy in the air.

Earlier today, a friend on Facebook brought The Manhattan Declaration to my attention. I read the declaration a number of times and recognize the complexity of layers and tags. Being a reader of history and strategist by nature, I see many of the alignments, agendas, and opportunities.

There’s stuff that’s bigger; like this tower in Paris I’m gawking at. But, what about the God stuff? How do we view that? Which words do we use to convey such profundity? I have a hard enough time describing the Eiffel Tower.

When an orator wrestles words into text, is all the art lost? On the contrary, maybe the artist has to be found. I have always loved playing music into words.

I am now going to break the cardinal rule of Christian publishing. Rule number one, you never tell people God told you to write a book. Well, I’m sorry….

Today, I cracked open a copy of The Lost Symbol for the first time and found myself reading a ritual in freemasonry. Reading the first few pages of Dan Brown’s novel took me back to my visit of Rosslyn Chapel, which I wrote into Clairvaux Manifesto, in a short story entitled Scotland (pp.167-171).

There are those who claim Bernard of Clairvaux to be an Esoteric/Gnostic. One reason being, his uncle was one of the original Knights Templar. Today, high level Freemasons call themselves Knights Templar and Knights of Malta. In the opening pages of Clairvaux Manifesto, in a chapter entitled Fiat Lux (pp. 11-22), I briefly mention the origin of the Cistercians and Knights. Later in the book, I share a Malta Journal Entry (pp. 178-182).

Here’s Mike and I standing outside The Rooms in St. John’s, Newfoundland (basilica in background).

A crew of us found ourselves in the middle of a small team of Olympic torchbearers prepping for their run. Mike immediately pulled out his cameras and started filming; I started talking; Geoff started snapping pictures; Pete started texting on his blackberry; and Bethany kept her eyes to the skies.

Three weeks ago, I didn’t have an iPhone, a website for the manifesto, or a travel budget for a book tour!

Recently, a friend purchased me two tickets for U2 at BC Place on October 28 (thanks Paulo)… so Dar and I adventured across the mountain passes in our Jeep; where we purchased a 16GB iPhone 3GS in Vancouver, stayed with friends who treated us to an amazing time (thanks Kevin and Karla), enjoyed a larger than life front row experience (thanks Bono and Edge), and held Clairvaux Manifesto for the first time (thanks Friesens and UPS).

From a Bernard with earbuds to a 320 page sealed envelope ready for distribution, Clairvaux Manifesto has come a long way. We’re just polishing the last details of the website before official launch (in a couple of days).

Over the past week, I personally distributed 40 books in Vancouver and on Vancouver Island. The manifesto is already in Korea and on it’s way to the UK. Soon it will be in China and Honduras. There are a number of copies already in Ontario and more are already being hand delivered to friends in Newfoundland.