Wrecking Buffalo: Public Br

The Public Bridge Authority took down eight homes along Busti Avenue yesterday after a restraining...

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Construction Watch: Toronto

Things are looking up in Toronto. There are approximately 150 high-rise buildings under construction in Toronto, more...

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Craziness: $200 Million Par

It has only taken nearly three decades, but Buffalo's 6.2 mile light rail system may...

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Rev. Drew: May 2011 Archives

City May 26, 2011 1:25 PM

Theological Thursdays: What would you do with our Tower?

Rev. Drew 33

It's over 400 ft' tall, beautiful, historic, empty and leaky. Lafayette Ave. Presbyterian Church's tower never really served a purpose other than looking good, and now it is causing us a headache. Setting up scaffolding and doing the repairs will cost around $30,000. This is may be a small amount of money for some organizations, but it is not for us.

Our status as a National Historic Landmark should help--eventually. It has allowed us to apply for and receive a preservation grant from the state's environmental protection fund, as well as historic tax credits. All of these monies, of course, require other monies to be spent. While we are hopeful that the contingencies attached to these monies can soon be set, at the moment our historic designation has only served to slow down the permitting process, not to provide cash for tower.

We're not the only ones with this headache, mind you.

City May 19, 2011 5:07 PM

Theological Thursdays: Is it over? For our schools?

Rev. Drew 18

If Harold Camping is right, this will be my last submission to Buffalo Rising.

Now, I have no problem with going on record in saying ahead of time that Camping is not only wrong in his date (I know--risky, right?) but in his whole understanding of eschatology (the study of "Last Things").

That, however, is not my primary concern. What's interesting to me is that rarely is there such a clear test of whether people believe

City May 12, 2011 10:36 AM

Theological Thursdays: A theology of bicycling

Rev. Drew 3

Because I have the pleasure of leaving for work early on Sunday morning, I just might be the participant out for "Buffalo Bike to Work Week," next week. For me, Bike to Work Week begins when Lafayette Church celebrates "Bike to Church Sunday," and hosts the "Blessing of the Bikes."

Is there a theological foundation for my choice to bike more and drive less?

Of course!

Bikes build community. And Community is important to people of faith, who

lifestyle May 5, 2011 5:13 PM

Theological Thursdays: The Last Days of Osama bin Laden

Rev. Drew 21

Last Thursday, I was fortunate to be invited, along with other area clergy, to take in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot as presented by Road Less Traveled Productions. I, like everybody else in the audience, had no idea that the man behind the 9-11 attacks was about to die, but the questions raised by the play prepared us for the weekends events. The main one being: "Is any person beyond forgiveness?"

Now, it certainly is understandable to answer, in cases like Judas', or bin Laden's that

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