Vol. 1, Issue 1: Entering into Advent
Unto thee, O Lord, will I lift up my soul
Welcome, friends!
It’s such a privilege to enter a new Church year alongside you in this space - our inaugural issue of Signs + Seasons, filled with a whole spectrum of voices…each one wrestling beautifully with the Advent season, asking questions, sharing ideas & experiences.
Inviting us to hold arrival and waiting in the same open hand, Advent trains us to see that this is the daily practice to which we’re called: to affirm that beauty exists alongside suffering, glimmers of completion among the incomplete, and that Christ is the loom through which all of these mysteries of the broken and the lovely are woven.
In the posts below, you’ll find unique lenses for seeing Advent. We pray that these will help you enter into the season with fresh eyes!
Pax vobis,
From the Editors
An Outdoor Lessons & Carols for Advent
- shares a beautiful tradition, adapted for sharing in community, that brings a unique flavor to Advent.
Cultivating a Sacramental Vision
- interviews about the impact of sacramental vision in our faith!
St. Thomas grey, St. Thomas grey / The longest night & the shortest day
- explores the beauty in the Advent holiday of Thomasmas.
Around Substack
Glory to God, Peace to Men
This beautiful piece by
emphasizes Advent’s role as a pattern of worship in our lives.
Do you think you can bear living here?
- of draws a poignant connection between imagination and the hope embedded in Advent.
Shoes in the hall, Lussekatter, and Winter's arrival
- walks us through farm life in December, and the hopefulness dotted throughout the month.
Advent I, II, & III
- has a series of thoughtful Advent posts that dive into the music of the season, interwoven with beautiful reflections.
Advent: Waiting in the Dark
Artist
takes us through the expectant-waiting of Advent, accompanied by her ethereal paintings.
Advent: The Uncanny Mirror of Birth & Death
In a touching article,
encounters both death and birth in Advent.
Creative Family Advent
- provides low-stress, doable activities for the season!
Around the Web
From Darkness to Light: Reclaiming Advent
- shares her family’s experience of folding Advent into their home, and how that profoundly realigns their experience of Christmas.
Inspired by the Visigoths: Intensifying a Short Advent
- dives into the history of the Old Hispanic Advent and dovetails it into the context of modern life.
Living the Season Well & Ad Vent
Poet
has created a gem of a book - as well as a web site - to help foster intention in the Christmas cycle.Jody also shares her poem “Ad Vent,” a comforting reminder of the intent in this season.
Fasting with the Orthodox
- shares a beautiful reflection on the Orthodox tradition of fasting during the lead-up to the Nativity!
Are You Ready to Receive the Gift of Advent?
Through the lens of Simeon’s testimony,
crafts a poetic meditation on Advent.
Join us for our second edition of Signs + Seasons!
In peace,
Kristin, Sara, & Dixie
Wow! This is packed full of delightful reading! Thank you! Can’t wait to take my time and indulge in much needed quiet, reflective reading. ☺️
Absolutely splendid! Looking forward to exploring this rich array of offerings :)