News & Messages

Ten Resources for Advent 2021

1. TryTank and the monks of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist are producing a new resource aimed particularly at smaller congregations. That said, any congregation can use it and we have also paired it with an adult forum curriculum. From Christ the King Sunday to Christmas Day, they have six sermons each about 12 minutes long. They are based on the Sunday lectionary. The sermons will be available on the web and can be played as a sermon during the service. Find more information here. 
2. This Advent season Living Compass is offering a daily email devotional, Living Well Through Advent 2021: Practicing Patience With All Your Heart, Soul, Strength, and Mind. The devotional includes reflections from Robbin Brent, Steven Charleston, Jan Kwiatkowski, Jason Lavann, Amy Sander Montanez, Lisa Senuta, and Scott Stoner. The emails will begin on Sunday, November 28, 2021. You can sign up to receive the devotions on their website: Living Well Through Advent — Living Compass (scroll down to where it says “enroll to receive each day’s reading via a daily email”).
3. Advent Unbound: A Companion to Pádraig Ó Tuama’s “Poetry Unbound” | In this Advent devotional, we let scripture and “Poetry Unbound” (a podcast from the Irish poet and theologian Pádraig Ó Tuama) be our guides, together pointing us toward weekly practices that can help deepen and enrich our experience of the season – a perfect way to prepare for the hope, peace, joy, and love of Christmas day.
4. Close to Home from A Sanctified Art | This daily devotional follows the Revised Common Lectionary (Year C) through Epiphany. Each day offers something new: commentary, poetry, visual art, hymns, journaling, and Sabbath prompts. As you walk through these prompts and readings day by day, may you be comforted by the One who dwells intimately with us.  
5. Advent Calendar Templates 2021 | Praying in Color Using an Advent calendar is my favorite way to pay attention and pray during the four weeks of Advent. Unlike the store-bought versions, my calendars have no doors, just blank spaces for the days of Advent. Each day I fill one space with a prayer or meditation– in words, doodles, and color. The daily practice of drawing on the calendar gives me a creative and simple way to immerse myself in the Advent experience and to prepare for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. The accumulation of daily doodlings forms a colorful tapestry and a record of my spiritual journey for the weeks leading up to Christmas. This practice feels prayerful and playful. No artistic skill is necessary! 
6. Journeying the Way of Love Advent Calendar 2021 is free from The Episcopal Church via download. It is particularly good for older children, teens, and adults. There are prompts for reflection and potentially discussion together. Examples include setting a timer for three minutes and repeating the prayer “Here I am, God” until the time is up; taking a different route to work, school, or play and noticing what you encounter differently; and considering what part of gathering for worship fills your heart with hope. This pairs well with other Way of Love resources like the Advent Curriculum here and is available in English, Spanish, and French.
7. Family activity: How to make and use an Advent wreath!
8. In the Advent Toolkit from Episcopal Relief and Development, there are DIY projects for families and communities that will take you from Advent to Christmas and through Epiphany. You will find DIY wreath ideas with prayers and reflections, DIY creche ideas, and information about St. Nicholas.
9. For the eighth year in a row, #AdventWord will gather prayers via a global, online advent calendar. Forward Movement, the new home of AdventWord, will offer 28 daily meditations and images during this holy season beginning Sunday, November 28. Gathering a worldwide community, #AdventWord provides a daily meditation, visual image, and invites your personal reflections via social media to share your own Advent journey. 
10. Advent Music | From the Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary, “Waiting with Expectation and Hope: A Spotify Advent Playlist.”

Daily Advent Reflections Available

Advent is a time when we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. As we prepare for the Christ-child, we would like to offer you reflections to help you enter into the beauty and splendor of this glorious season. This year we have collected reflections based on the Daily Office readings from people, both lay and clergy, across the diocese.

These reflections are available to you in three different ways: 

1. For those who wish to have things printed off, we have a pdf of all the reflections for you. You may also make copies of the reflections available for people in your parish who do not have electronic access.

2. If you prefer to get an email with the day's reflection sent to you, you can sign up for that here. We just need your name and email address. I will then send you an email with the reflection each morning. 

3. Each day's reflection will be posted on a blog on our website. You can access that here.

A special thank-you to Mother Mindy Valentine Davis for compiling all the reflections. I'm so delighted that we have so many different voices represented for the Advent season. 

Wishing you a blessed Advent season!

~Sara Bitner, Communications Officer

Call for Submissions: Daily Advent Reflections 2020

As a diocese, we are pulling together a resource of Daily Advent Reflections for 2020. We would like to have as many churches represented as possible. We ask that these daily reflections be 500-800 words and based on the Daily Office readings. Clergy or talented laypeople are invited to write a reflection. We will be publishing this resource in two ways. First, we will make a pdf file available that contains all of the reflections for those who do not have electronic access or prefer paper copies. Individual churches would be responsible for printing and sending to their shut-ins or those without technology. Second, we will be able to send these reflections out daily by email. Individuals or churches will subscribe to receive the emails. If your church would commit to submitting a reflection, please fill out the form here by October 15. We will assign dates for the reflections by October 20 and the end products will be due for light editing and compilation by November 5. If you have questions, please contact Rev. Mindy Valentine Davis at  .