#AdventWord #Water Our living world is powerful, yet even the strongest organism needs water to live. The words of the prophet Isaiah offer images of a shoot rising from a stump and showers watering the earth. These images point us to the sustaining power of water and remind us of the cleansing power of God. In this Advent season, may we prepare to receive the water that quenches every thirst and cleanses all, may we be ready to do good. The Rev. Chris Girata (VTS ’08) is the rector of St. Michael and All Angels in Dallas, Texas and sits … Continue reading Advent Word 2019, Day 13 ‘Water’

#AdventWord #Confess Confess: a beautiful two-sided coin. To confess is first to disclose. The work of Advent includes examining our consciences by taking a fearless look at ourselves and naming before God those actions not in order with our Creator’s call on our lives. To confess is equally to profess our deepest beliefs. This too is Advent work, for a people who live in hope, secure in the knowledge that we are forgiven and free in Christ Jesus. The Right Rev. Scott Barker is the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska and is a member of the VTS Board … Continue reading Advent Word 2019, Day 11 ‘Confess’

#AdventWord #House The prophet Isaiah invites us and ‘all the nations’ to go up to the ‘house of God,’ the place where God dwells (Isaiah 2:2). For the ancient Israelites it was the tabernacle, then the temple. For us the place where God dwells may be the church, or the natural world, or the inner depths of our hearts. It is the place to which we must return to learn to live well. Br. David Vryhof, SSJE, is a monk, priest, and community Communications Director of the Society of St. John the Evangelist, an Episcopal religious community for men in … Continue reading Advent Word 2019, Day 6 ‘House’