Oct. 10 & Nov. 14 - events honoring St. Oscar Romero and St. Ignatius Loyola - Univ. of Notre Dame, Geddes Hall

Saturday Home Game weekends, 10:30 A.M. - 11:30 A.M.

Geddes Hall, Andrews Auditorium, campus of Notre Dame

October 10:  "Blessed Oscar Romero: Bearing Witness to the Good News of Jesus"
Margaret Pfeil, Associate Professional Specialist, Moral Theology & Christian Ethics.
November 14:  St. Ignatius of Loyola, Reformer: Speaking up for Catholic Tradition
Fr. Brian E. Daley, S.J., Huisking Professor of Theology, Notre Dame


Event is free to the public.
Also at mid-afternoon (3:30 p.m.) those Saturdays are ND Football Games.

Lincoln and Colored Troops (Civil War) - Lecture at Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, Springfield, IL (Robert Davis, re-enactor)

October 1, 2015

U.S. Colored Troops and the Civil War​

Where: Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum - Union Theater

More than 178,000 African-Americans fought for the Union cause during the Civil War, the vast majority of them serving in regiments designated as United States Colored Troops.  Presented by Robert Davis, Civil War Scholar and Re-enactor.  Other re-enactors will participate in the presentation to a certain extent, as well as, the presentation will include audio clips.  Event will begin at 6:30 p.m.

Billy Graham (September 29 release date of 2015 book on Heaven, Eternity, our Life Beyond)

Thomas Nelson Publishing will publish at the end of September 2015 the most recent Billy Graham book on Christian faith = WHERE_I_AM: Heaven, Eternity, and our Life Beyond.
Now in his 97th year, preacher and evangelist Graham invites readers to follow the "Gospel Plan of Salvation" (a different sort of direction-providing GPS) to the "ultimate destination... Heavenfound in Jesus Christ." Chapter titles such as "Power Forever: Choose or Lose (Joshua)" and "Praise Eternal: Suffering or Singing (Romans)" support Graham's assertion that there "are only two kinds of people: the saved and the unsaved." Urging readers to decide now where they want to spend eternity, he begs, "Please do not close this book until you open your heart to Him." Graham fears for Christians who focus on social justice issues rather than their personal salvation: "Don't think that just because you feed people and give money to the needy, you will earn eternal life." In chapters that read like sermons, Graham evokes biblical authority with his trademark "the Bible says," interspersing stories from scripture alongside reminiscences from his lengthy global ministries, working with such notable Christians as Chiang Kai-Shek and Pat Nixon. In the moving final chapter of what may be his last book, Graham's reflections on "when the Lord calls me home" proclaim his steadfast faith in the gospel message he has preached.
www.thomasnelson.com/


www.harpercollins.com/

Cultural History significant Date -- 55 years ago today

from NY TIMES e-newsletter:

ON THIS DAY

On September 26, 1960, the first televised debate between presidential candidates took place in Chicago as Republican Richard M. Nixon and Democrat John F. Kennedy squared off.

Ground Zero Memorial -- Inter-faith service at New York City, NY

article posted by writers-editors at Nat. Catholic Reporter [http://ncronline.org/ ]
In front of one of the last remnants of the World Trade Center and among representatives of various faith traditions Friday Sept. 25, 2015,  Pope Francis movingly called for families of victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks to honor those killed by becoming instruments of peace and reconciliation.
After praying alongside those of Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths at an interfaith service at the Ground Zero memorial, the pontiff said he hoped their presence together at a place of such destruction would be a sign that peace is truly possible.
"I trust that our presence together will be a powerful sign of our shared desire to be a force for reconciliation, peace and justice in this community and throughout the world," said the pope, speaking in front of the retaining wall of the fallen towers, which is preserved at the memorial.
"For all our differences and disagreements, we can live in a world of peace," Francis said.
"We can and must build unity on the basis of our diversity of languages, cultures and religions, and lift our voices against everything which would stand in the way of such unity," he said. "Together we are called to say 'no' to every attempt to impose uniformity and 'yes' to a diversity accepted and reconciled."
Saying such unity "can only happen if we uproot from our hearts all feelings of hatred, vengeance and resentment," the pope asked the hundreds present for the occasion to "implore from on high the gift of commitment to the cause of peace."
"In this way, the lives of our dear ones will not be lives which will one day be forgotten," he said. "Instead, they will be present whenever we strive to be prophets not of tearing down but of building up, prophets of reconciliation, prophets of peace."
Francis was speaking Friday as part of a service which saw poignant reflections from Jewish and Muslim leaders, a prayer of remembrance from the pope, and Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Christian, and Muslim meditations.
The multitude of different colors and patterns on the various religious attire worn by the 400 to 500 people in the audience stood out in the drab, concrete room: pink caps and red sashes of cardinals, pastel yellow and burgundy turbans of Sikh religious leaders, saffron robes of Buddhists, traditional prints of Native Americans, embroidered yarmulkes of Jews, embroidered jubba robes of Muslims.
The service was marked with evocative imagery. Before entering the memorial, the pope left a white flower on one of the new reflecting pools at the site where the towers once stood. He spoke only feet away from the 36-foot-tall “Last Column," the last steel beam removed from the World Trade Center site.
Before the service, Francis met with 20 family members of first responders who were killed while trying to help after the attacks on 9/11.
Meeting those families, the pontiff said, "made me see once again how acts of destruction are never impersonal, abstract or merely material."

Peter Cartwright 2015 -- Pleasant Plains UMC, near Springfield, IL

Cartwright Memorial Sermon October 11

The Peter Cartwright Memorial Service will be held on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015 at the Peter Cartwright UMC in Pleasant Plains, Illinois.

Retired IGRC pastor, the Rev. Dr. John Sims will be speaking. Worship is at 10:30 a.m.

The annual sermon is sponsored by the church ,the IGRC Commission on Archives and History, and the IGRC Historical Society.  

When did Lincoln free the slaves? 1862? 1863? 1865?

On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of January 1, 1863.


NY TIMES on this date in history - - -

Yom Kippur has a movable date on the Western calendar (January - December) -- this week in 2015

from an online posted article at CHABAD dot-org/


Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, falls on the Hebrew calendar date of 10 Tishrei. Here are the coinciding secular dates for upcoming years:
2015:   September 22-23;
2016:   October 11-12;
2017:   September 29-30.


Note: The Jewish calendar date begins at sundown of the night beforehand. Thus, all Yom Kippur observances begin at sundown on the first secular date listed, and conclude the following day at nightfall.

Sunday religious event ahead of first day of new term for the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS)

Sunday, October 4, 2015

63rd Annual Red Mass ·

10:00 a.m.

The 63rd Annual Red Mass will be held at the Cathedral on Sunday, October 4 at 10 a.m. The John Carroll Society hosts the Red Mass for its members and guests, including many government officials (especial notable are the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court) with attendant security.
www.stmatthewscathedral.org/ Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C.

Norman Wirzba (third Thursday, October 2015, Heck Lectures, Dayton, OH) -- Come to the Table: Renewing Faith and Fellowship

What should Christians eat? How much and how often should we eat? Where should we eat? With whom should we eat? In taking up these questions, the 2015 J. Arthur Heck Lectures—Come to the Table will explore the unique power of food to renew our fellowship with God, with one another and with the world.
The 2015 J. Arthur Heck Lectures will be held on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2015, at United Theology Seminary. Dr. Norman Wirzba is featured as Heck Lecturer, speaking on the theme, “Come to the Table: Renewing Faith and Fellowship through Food.”
United’s annual Alumni/ae Awards Banquet, featuring the class of 1975’s induction into the Eckels Society, is scheduled the day before, Wednesday, Oct. 14, at United’s Dayton Campus. Dr. Wirzba will also speak during the Banquet.
www.united.edu/heck-lectures

First Day of Autumn -- Autumnal equinox is 4:21 a.m.

from Old Farmer's Almanac :
What is the Autumnal Equinox?
Fall begins on September 23, 2015 early in the morning at 4:21 a.m. Eastern Time Zone. The autumnal equinox is when the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator from north to south. (The celestial equator is the circle in the celestial sphere halfway between the celestial poles. It can be thought of as the plane of Earth's equator projected out onto the sphere.)
Another definition of fall is nights of below-freezing temperatures combined with days of temperatures below 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
The word equinox means "equal night"; night and day are about the same length of time. This occurs two times each year: Vernal in late March and Autumnal in late September.
In addition to the (approximately) equal hours of daylight and darkness, the equinoxes are times when the Sun's apparent motion undergoes the most rapid change. Around the time of the equinoxes, variations in the position on the horizon where the Sun rises and sets can be noticed from one day to the next by alert observers.
From here on out, the temperatures begin to drop and the days start to get shorter than the nights.

Born on September 19 -- Happy Birthday, William Golding!

from Writer's Almanac (American Public Media: Garrison Keillor):


September 19 is the birthday of author William Golding, born in St. Columb Minor, Cornwall, England (1911). He was the child of a science teacher and a suffragette, and grew up in a house that was built in the 14th century. He was afraid of the dark, but his father gave him no sympathy because his fear was not rational. Golding started writing poetry when he was seven, and tried — and failed — to write his first novel when he was 12 years old. He was often angry and embarrassed about being from a lower social class, and was fond of taking his frustrations out on the other schoolboys. He attended Oxford and studied science at first, because his father wanted him to. In his third year, he switched to the study of literature, and published a book of poems the year before he graduated. For four years, he worked in a London theater as a writer, actor, and producer; he also took a job as a social worker to make ends meet. In 1939, he took a job as a teacher of English and philosophy in Salisbury; it turned out that he loved teaching, even though he was often dealing with unmanageable boys.
In 1940, Golding joined the Royal Navy, and grew to love the sea. But what he saw during his six years of service during World War II troubled him. He was faced with a huge ethical decision when he learned that he would have to take the ship across a minefield in order to be on time for the D-Day operations. He couldn’t decide whether to risk the lives of his men or the lives of all those participating in D-Day who needed their help. He made the decision to risk the journey, but later, he learned that the minefield wasn’t real — it was put on a map to fool the Germans, and his whole moral dilemma had been based on something that wasn’t even real. “I began to see what people were capable of doing,” he later said. “Anyone who moved through those years without understanding that man produces evil as a bee produces honey, must have been blind or wrong in the head.”
When the war ended, he came home and returned to the classroom. He also wrote four novels, but none of them were published. It was his fifth attempt, and the first to be published, that people know best. That book was inspired by his years as a teacher, and colored by his war experience. He came up with the book’s title by translating the Hebrew name of a powerful demon into English: “Beelzebub” means “Lord of the Flies.” Golding’s novel is the story of a group of English schoolboys whose plane crashes on a pristine desert island during a nuclear war. Without the restraining, civilizing presence of adults, the boys begin to act according to their worst natures.
The manuscript was rejected 21 times before he sent it to Faber and Faber in London. It very nearly failed there too — an in-house reader called it an “absurd and uninteresting fantasy about the explosion of an atom bomb on the Colonies. A group of children who land in jungle country near New Guinea. Rubbish & dull. Pointless.” But a new editor, Charles Monteith, saw potential in the book and fought for it. It wasn’t a smashing success right away; it only sold 3,000 copies in the United States, and it went out of print the next year. But it was rediscovered in the 1960s and has become a classic of 20th-century English literature.

Strengthening America via Music and Financial Support

www.farmaid.org/


Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp organized the first Farm Aid concert in 1985 to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on the land. Dave Matthews joined the Farm Aid Board of Directors in 2001. Farm Aid has raised $48 million to promote a strong and resilient family farm system of agriculture. Farm Aid is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to keep family farmers on the land. Farm Aid accomplishes this mission by:

Promoting Food from Family Farms

We know that to keep family farmers on the land we have to increase the number of people buying their good food. From our annual concert event that features family farm food and unites farmers, artists, and concerned citizens, to our inspiring and informative television, radio, mail, and web campaigns (including our HOMEGROWN.org website), we are building a powerful movement for good food from family farms.

Growing the Good Food Movement

In order for family farmers to thrive we have to create more markets for them, giving more people the opportunity to access family farm food. Farm Aid fosters connections between farmers and eaters by growing and strengthening local and regional markets and working to get family farm food in urban neighborhoods, grocery stores, restaurants, schools, and other public institutions.

Helping Farmers Thrive

Since 1985, Farm Aid has answered 1-800-FARM-AID to provide immediate and effective support services to farm families in crisis. Now Farm Aid’s online Farmer Resource Network connects farmers to an extensive network of organizations across the country that help farmers find the resources they need to access new markets, transition to more sustainable and profitable farming practices, and survive natural disasters.

Taking Action to Change the System

Farm Aid works with local, regional, and national organizations to promote fair farm policies and grassroots organizing campaigns designed to defend and bolster family farm-centered agriculture. We’ve worked side-by-side with farmers to protest factory farms and inform farmers and eaters about issues like genetically modified food and growth hormones. By strengthening the voices of family farmers, Farm Aid stands up for the most resourceful, heroic Americans—the family farmers who work the land. Farm Aid’s Action Center allows concerned citizens to become advocates for farm policy change.
THE 30th Concert takes place on September 19, 2015 at Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Wear Purple on Monday, September 21, 2015 - World Alzheimer's Action Day

www.alz.org/

Alzheimer's Action Day is Monday, September 21st - Go Purple With A Purpose

Remember to GO PURPLE WITH A PURPOSE ON SEPTEMBER 21ST.

Join  Monday, September 21, 2015 with others.  Wear your purple Walk t-shirt or something purple to show your support.

There are many different ways you and your company can support going purple on Alzheimer's Action Day, September 21st:
- Make a donation to your local Alzheimer's chapter - call 1-800-272-3900
- Schedule a "purple with a purpose" event to raise awareness at your company
- Turn Facebook purple
- If you own a business, create a purple product
- Create a fundraising/awareness campaign by selling Forget-Me-Not flowers
- Be an advocate - write to your local legislators and representatives about increasing funding for Alzheimer's disease.

WEAR YOUR PURPLE WALK T-SHIRTS - BE RECOGNIZED!

Catholic Freedom and Secular Power (September 16 forum - Notre Dame, IN) - 50 years after Vatican II

http://forum2015.nd.edu/


Ross Douthat, author, blogger and New York Times columnist, will speak on “Catholic Freedom and Secular Power: How the Religious Liberty Debate Has Changed Since Vatican II,” at 4 p.m. September 16, 2015 (Wednesday) in the Decio Theatre of the University of Notre Dame’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.
Established by Father John Jenkins (University President) in 2005, the Notre Dame Forum has featured major talks by leading authorities on complex issues including immigration, sustainability, global health, the global marketplace, K-12 education and the role of faith in a pluralistic society. Douthat’s visit is co-sponsored by Notre Dame’s Tocqueville Program for Inquiry into Religion and Public Life.
The lecture is free and open to the public. Doors open 30 minutes prior to the event.

Healthy Aging after age 45 -- website suggestions

http://healthaging.net/

10 Tips for Rein­vent­ing Your­self dur­ing Sep­tem­ber 2015 (Healthy Aging NATIONAL Month): 

1. Do not act your age or at least what you think your cur­rent age should act like. What was your best year so far? 28? 40? Now? Pic­ture your­self at that age and be it. Some peo­ple may say this is denial, but we say it’s pos­i­tive think­ing and goes a long way toward feel­ing bet­ter about your­self. (Tip:  Don’t keep look­ing in the mir­ror, just FEEL IT!)
2. Be pos­i­tive in your con­ver­sa­tions and your actions every day. When you catch your­self com­plain­ing, check your­self right there and change the con­ver­sa­tion to some­thing pos­i­tive. (Tip: Stop watch­ing the police reports on the local news).
3. Have neg­a­tive friends who com­plain all of the time and con­stantly talk about how awful every­thing is? Drop them. As cruel as that may sound, dis­tance your­self from peo­ple who do not have a pos­i­tive out­look on life. They will only depress you and stop you from mov­ing for­ward. Sur­round your­self with ener­getic, happy, pos­i­tive peo­ple of all ages and you will be hap­pier too. (Tip: Smile often. It’s con­ta­gious and wards off naysayers.)
4. Walk like a vibrant, healthy per­son. Come on. You can prob­a­bly do it. Ana­lyze your gait. Do you walk slowly because you have just become lazy or, per­haps, have a fear of falling? (Tip: Make a con­scious effort to take big strides, walk with your heel first, and wear comfortable shoes.)
5. Stand up straight! You can knock off the appear­ance of a few extra years with this trick your mother kept try­ing to tell you. Look at your­self in the mir­ror. Are you hold­ing your stom­ach in, have your shoul­ders back, chin up? Check out how much bet­ter your neck looks! Fix your stance and prac­tice it every day, all day until it is nat­ural. You will look great and feel bet­ter. (Tip: Your waist­line will look trim­mer if you fol­low this advice.)
6. How’s your smile? Research shows peo­ple who smile more often are hap­pier. Your teeth are just as impor­tant to your good health as the rest of your body. Not only is it the first thing peo­ple notice, but good oral health is a gate­way to your over­all well-being. (Tip: Go to the den­tist reg­u­larly and look into teeth whiten­ing. Noth­ing says old more than yellowing teeth!)
7. Lonely? Stop brood­ing and com­plain­ing about hav­ing no friends or fam­ily. Do some­thing about it now. Right this minute. Pick up the phone, land­line, or cell and make a call to do one or more of the fol­low­ing: Vol­un­teer your time, Take a class,  Invite some­one to meet for lunch, brunch, din­ner, or cof­fee. (Tip: Vol­un­teer at the local pub­lic school to stay in touch with younger peo­ple and to keep cur­rent on trends, take a com­puter class or a tuto­r­ial ses­sion at your cell phone store to keep up with tech­nol­ogy, choose a new per­son every week for your dining out.)
8. Start walk­ing not only for your health but to see the neigh­bors. Have a dog? You’ll be amazed how the dog can be a con­ver­sa­tion starter. (Tip: If you don’t have time for a dog, go to your local ani­mal shel­ter and vol­un­teer. You will be thrilled by the puppy love!)
9. Make this month the time to set up your annual phys­i­cal and other health screen­ings. Go to the appoint­ments and then, hope­fully, you can stop wor­ry­ing about ail­ments for a while.
10. Find your inner artist. Who says tak­ing music lessons is for young school chil­dren? You may have an artist lurk­ing inside you just wait­ing to be tapped.  Have you always wanted to play the piano, vio­lin, or tuba? Have you ever won­dered if you could paint a por­trait or scenic in oil? What about work­ing in wood? (Tip: Sign up now for fall art or music classes and dis­cover your inner artist!)

America's post-war changes (20th Century war in Vietnam: Ford Administration)

from NY Times dot-com:

ON THIS DAY On September 16, 1974, President Ford announced a conditional amnesty program for Vietnam War deserters and draft evaders.

Reformation anniversary approaching (October 1517 -- 500 years ago) -- Travel special documentary for TV

After spending ten days filming our upcoming public television special on Martin Luther and the Reformation, we were tuned into statues of Martin Luther. He seems to be on squares and in front of churches all over Germany. Here in Dresden, in front of the Frauenkirche, we met another Luther — hand on his Bible, as if reminding people of his mission to translate the Word of God from Latin into the people’s language, so all could read it for themselves.
http://blog.ricksteves.com/

Blessings in a Backpack -- National Day to focus -- September 17, 2015

http://blessingsinabackpack.org/


This little girl is smiling since she no longer has to fight hunger pangs each and every day. Along with Isabel* (see website), 16 million kids across America leave school on Friday, not knowing if they will have food to eat that weekend. That is one in five children.

Across America, 69% of public school children, including Isabel, are fed by the free and reduced meal program during the school week. But who will feed them this weekend?
At Blessings in a Backpack, we not only feed hungry kids, but we let them know that others value them. The bag of food that children receive from Blessings in a Backpack as they leave school on Friday tells each child that their community cares about them. That we are here to help them through life’s most difficult times.
That’s where you come in – help us feed more than 76,000 children, like Isabel, across the country this weekend by investing in Blessings in a Backpack today.
Childhood hunger is a problem, but it is one we can solve together.  Join us in showing children across America that we are here to help.
Thank you very much for your continued investment in feeding the future of America!
A message from the C.E.O.

Who was "O. Henry" ? [not the candy bar]

from Writer's Almanac dot-org (American Public Media: Garrison Keillor):
September 11 is the birthday of William Sydney Porter, better known as O. Henry, born in Greensboro, North Carolina (1862). He's the author of the beloved short stories "The Gift of the Magi" and "The Ransom of Red Chief," and he became a writer while serving time in a federal prison for embezzlement. He was sentenced to five years, but was let out after three for good behavior; during his incarceration he published 14 stories, and wrote about 400 more upon his release.
Henry said: "You can't write a story that's got any life in it by sitting at a writing table and thinking. You've got to get out into the streets, into the crowds, talk with people, and feel the rush and throb of real life — that's the stimulant for a story writer."

Fourteen years ago -- an ordinary Tuesday morning in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C.

ON THIS DAY

On September 11, 2001, suicide hijackers crashed two airliners into the World Trade Center in New York, causing the 110-story twin towers to collapse. Another hijacked airliner hit the Pentagon and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.

On this date in 1919 (bringing the veterans home)

posted at NY TIMES -- e-newsletter feature:

ON THIS DAY

On September 10, 1919, New York City welcomed home Gen. John J. Pershing and 25,000 soldiers who had served in the United States 1st Division during World War I.

Happy Birthday, Jane Addams!

from BIOGRAPHY dot-com:
Jane Addams, known prominently for her work as a social reformer, pacifist and feminist during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was born Laura Jane Addams on September 6, 1860, in Cedarville, Illinois. The eighth of nine children born to an affluent state senator and businessman, Addams lived a life of privilege. Her father had many important friends, including President Abraham Lincoln.
In the 1880s, Addams struggled to find her place in the world. Battling with health problems at an early age, she graduated from the Rockford Female Seminary in Illinois in 1881, and then traveled and briefly attended medical school. On one trip with friend Ellen Gates Starr, the 27-year-old Addams visited the famed Toynbee Hall in London, England, a special facility established to help the poor. She and Starr were so impressed by the settlement house that they sought to create one in Chicago. It wouldn't be long before their dream became reality.  In 1889, Addams and Starr opened one of the first settlements in both the United States and North America, and the first in the city of Chicago: Hull House, which was named after the building's original owner. The house provided services for the immigrant and poor population living in the Chicago area. Over the years, the organization grew to include more than 10 buildings and extended its services to include child care, educational courses, an art gallery, a public kitchen and several other social programs.
In 1963, the construction of the University of Illinois' Chicago campus forced Hull House to move its headquarters, and, unfortunately, most of the organization's original buildings were demolished as a result. However, the Hull residence was transformed into a monument honoring Addams that remains standing today.

Labor Day - origination of American date in September

from AMERICAN Public Media (Minnesota Public Radio, Garrison Keillor):
Today (September 7, 2015) is Labor Day. Most countries besides the United States celebrate Labor Day on May 1st, International Workers' Day—a date that was chosen in part to commemorate the Haymarket riot in Chicago on May 4, 1886.
We know that the first Labor Day celebration in this country occurred on September 5th, 1882, in New York City, and was organized by the Central Labor Union; but there is a debate over whose idea it was in the first place. Labor Day became a national holiday in 1894, partly because it was a convenient way for President Grover Cleveland to appease an angry workforce after he violently broke up a strike.
In 1884, railroad workers in Pullman, Illinois went on strike. The town of Pullman was built for the sole purpose of housing people connected with the Pullman Palace Car Company, from the regular workers to Pullman himself. Everyone in the town worked for the railroad, which dictated their wages as well as their rent. In 1893, the nation went into an economic depression, and workers' wages were slashed, but they were still working 16-hour days and the company was still taking the same amount for rent out of their paychecks. So Pullman workers went on strike. Railroad workers across the nation who belonged to the American Railway Union joined the strike, refusing to switch trains with Pullman cars on them. Soon anyone who sympathized, union workers or not, joined in the cause, and riots broke out all over. Passengers and mail couldn't make it west of Chicago.
Grover Cleveland declared that the actions of the workers were criminal, and he sent 12,000 troops to control them. Soon the strike was over, the head of the American Railway Union was sent to prison, and all Pullman workers were required to sign a form saying that they would never strike again. The strike was officially declared over on August 3rd.
Unfortunately for Cleveland, the general public was not too happy with his hard-line stance. So he rushed a Labor Day bill through Congress, and six days after the strike ended, Labor Day was declared a national holiday on the first Monday of September.
These days, only 11.9% of American workers belong to a union, and among private sector workers that number is down to 6.9%. For most Americans, Labor Day has become a time to celebrate the end of summer with a last barbecue or camping trip.

2015 National Medals of Arts - National Humanities Awards: excellent group to be honored by Pres. Obama (September 2015)

story with details at PBS Org slash-newshour:
Actress Sally Field and author Stephen King are among luminaries set to receive a National Medal of Arts or a National Humanities Medal from President Barack Obama.
Obama will bestow the honors on 18 people and three institutions during a White House ceremony Thursday (September 10, 2015).
Field, of Los Angeles, is receiving an arts medal for showing dignity, empathy and fearlessness in performances that have touched audiences worldwide, as well as for showing those same qualities in her off-screen advocacy for women, LGBT rights and public health.
King, of Bangor, Maine, is also receiving an arts medal for combining storytelling with analysis of human nature, and for thrilling readers through decades of work.
Alice Waters, chef-owner of the organic restaurant Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California, is receiving a National Humanities Medal for her work as a champion of a holistic approach to eating and health.
The National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities were created by Congress in 1965 to provide grants to support artistic excellence and creativity, and to advance the understanding and appreciation of history, literature, philosophy and language. Both independent agencies are celebrating their 50th anniversaries this year.
The remaining recipients are:
National Medal of Arts:

• John Baldessari, visual artist, Venice, California
• Ping Chong, theater director, choreographer and video and installation artist, New York City
• Miriam Colón, actress, theater founder and director, New York City
• The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, New York City
• Ann Hamilton, visual artist, Columbus, Ohio
• Meredith Monk, composer, singer and performer, New York City
• George Shirley, tenor, Ann Arbor, Michigan
• University Musical Society, Performing Arts Presenter, Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Tobias Wolff, author and educator, Stanford, California

National Humanities Medal:

• Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, historian, Auburndale, Massachusetts
• Annie Dillard, author, Key West, Florida
• Clemente Course in the Humanities, Annandale-On-Hudson, New York
• Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, novelist and philosopher, Boston
• Larry McMurtry, novelist, essayist and screenwriter, Archer City, Texas
• Everett L. Fly, architect, San Antonio
• Jhumpa Lahiri, author, New York City
• Fedwa Malti-Douglas, professor and scholar, Rhinebeck, New York
• Vicki Lynn Ruiz, historian, Irvine, California

Couple loses beloved dog following car wreck - reunited 6 weeks later

from Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
Yellowstone National Park is known for its wildlife, including bears and wolves. But for six weeks, one animal that roamed the park didn't belong.

An Australian shepherd named Jade was found in the Canyon area Friday (September 4, 2015), 42 days after she went missing.

"She's skin and bones, but otherwise she seems perfectly fine," owner David Sowers of Denver, CO said.

Sowers said Jade ran off July 23 after an auto wreck on July 23 while he and his girlfriend, Laura Gillice, were driving through the park with the dog.

"When they tried to get her out of the car she bolted and she ran into the woods," Sowers said. "She disappeared for, like, 15 days, and I thought she was gone."

Over the last several weeks, signs were posted and an Internet campaign started asking park visitors to keep an eye out for the dog. Traps with dog food were even set.

Reports of Jade being seen roaming the park started coming in. Sowers and his girlfriend, who were both injured in the wreck, had returned to Yellowstone several times to look for the dog before finding her Friday.

"I haven't been following doctors' orders very well," said Sowers, who suffered injuries to his ribs, arm and leg in the accident. "They told me not to be doing this, but I wanted to find my dog."

On Friday morning, Gillice was with their other dog when she saw something black and white across a meadow.

In less than a minute "she started running toward me," Gillice said.

Sowers said other than a small cut on her lip and losing weight, Jade is OK.

"It's a miracle," Gillice said.

Bad news on trends for SAT result monitoring -- report in WASH. POST online (September 2015)

“SAT scores at lowest level in 10 years, fueling worries about high schools,” by Nick Anderson: “Scores on the SAT have sunk to the lowest level since the college admission test was overhauled in 2005…The average score for the Class of 2015 was 1490 out of a maximum 2400, the College Board reported Thursday. That was down 7 points from the previous class’s mark and was the lowest composite score of the past decade. There were declines of at least 2 points on all three sections of the test — critical reading, math and writing.” The scores, experts said, “reflect a troubling shortcoming of education-reform efforts. The test results show that gains in reading and math in elementary grades haven’t led to broad improvement in high schools.”
www.washingtonpost.com/

Day of Confession, Repentance, Prayer-Commitment (Sept. 6, 2015) - African Methodist Episcopal denomination to sister churches

from Google BLOG UMC Worship - BlogSpot.com/

Bishops of The African Methodist Episcopal Church have asked all Christians to make this coming Sunday, September 6, 2015, a day to preach about racism and call for acts leading to its eradication in the United States.

It’s a bold call. And it’s one United Methodists are already committed to, both in our baptismal covenant and in our official resolutions. In baptism, we pledge to “renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world, and repent of our sin” (not just feel sorry, but change our ways), and, “accept[ing] the freedom and power Christ gives us, … resist evil, injustice and oppression in every form in which they present themselves”… “in union with the church which Christ opens to people of all ages nations and races.” If that weren’t enough, we say, flat out, “The UMC is committed to the eradication of racism”, and we call for “every annual conference, district and local congregation within the US have a strategy and a program which educates and supports systemic and personal changes to end racism and work multiculturally,” even requiring those preparing for ordination to participate in multicultural education and anti-racism training (Resolution 3374, 2012 Book of Resolutions, pp. 453-454).
http://umcworship.blogspot.com/2015/09/day-of-confession-repentance-prayer-and.html

Music and those diagosed with Alzheimer's Disease

Music can reduce agitation in people with Alzheimer’s Studies have shown music may reduce agitation and improve behavioral issues that are common in the middle stages of Alzheimer’s disease. In the late stages, music can provide a way to connect, even after verbal communication has become difficult.