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Among Women, Blessed
The following poem, for a long time while I kept revising it, bore the working title, “Closing in on Christmas.” I’m glad my poetry group agreed I should change the title once it found its final form. And now that we’re deep into Christmas, why don’t I share my Advent poem? Click on the title
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Christmas Day
Selection I—All Years Merry Christmas! [There are three different sets of readings for Christmas Day. In my experience—admittedly, only with cathedrals—the first set is used on Christmas Eve, while the second and third are used in services on Christmas Day. Since they don’t change from year to year, my intention is to use one each
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The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Year A—December 21, 2025 We are closing in on Christmas! This week’s readings are compact: they get to the point. Sort of. They hold out familiar words and images, and we can walk right in and take those words and images as if from the shelf, and move along our merry way to Christmas. Unless,
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Advent 3
Year A – December 14, 2025 Lectionary readings:Isaiah 35:1-10James 5:7-10Matthew 11:2-11Psalm 146:4-9or Canticle 15 (the Magnificat, or Song of Mary) This icon type, Theotokos of the Sign, depicts the expectant Mary. Her posture is one of prayer, and while her son is still in her womb, we see him as God, arms extended in a gesture of
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Advent II
Year A—December 6, 2025 Readings:Isaiah 11:1-10Romans 15:4-13Matthew 3:1-12Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,and a branch shall grow out of his roots. So begins the reading from Isaiah this week. Christians have understood this passage in light of Jesus, who the Gospel writers cast as a literal descendent of David
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The First Sunday of Advent
Year A – November 30, 2025 Note: I am beginning a series of blogging on the Sunday Eucharistic lectionary—the Revised Common Lectionary as used in the Episcopal Church—paired with artwork. This project has its origins in bulletins I used to make for St. Andrew’s Church, Livonia, although I wrote much shorter reflections. Lectionary readings:Isaiah 2:1-5Romans
The Sound 