The prayer is among a new generation of spiritual tools specifically designed for the horror of mass shootings. Written by an Episcopal priest for the bishops, it was constructed with the cruel assumption of its growth, with additional shootings that result in more than four deaths continually added at the end. The litany now takes more than 12 minutes to pray.
“So begins the Plague Quilt. Measure, cut, feed squares and strips through the sewing machine. My mind busy, less busy, quieter, quiet. Examining a wonky corner of a 9-patch quilt square the thought occurs: this pandemic has revealed all the wonky corners of our world, our country, our lives, and relationships; where are my wonky corners?”
“The thing is, if we are offspring of a living God in Whom we live and move and have our being, then we should be able to be very concrete and clear about where we see God moving in the world around us. In our parish life, for sure, but also in the world at large; we should not be able to pick up a newspaper without seeing God at work in its pages.”
An Episcopal nun, Claudette Monica Powell or Sister Monica, is Sister Superior at her convent in New Jersey, Community of St. John Baptist. At age 55, she also has over 48,000 followers on TikTok. Her video on skincare has received over 277,000 views.
“Thus, we saw three kinds of gaps: one that is the better for being joyfully and playfully filled; one that was once been filled but now testifies to and lamented an absence; and one that makes visible a gap and an opportunity for growth that might otherwise have gone unnoticed.”
“This virtual revival will lift up Jesus and invite us to renew our commitment to establishing God’s Beloved Community,” Coleman said. “We welcome all people, especially Episcopalians, regardless of race or ethnicity, to join us in engaging the continuing realities of racism and racial injustice today while experiencing the vibrant spirituality that has enabled Black people to persevere and thrive against the odds.”
“Too many times, though, I’ve tried to capture God – using this methodology or some other. Capture, like the disciples tried to capture eternity at the Transfiguration, promising to erect tents as though experience with God could be possessed. Intellectually, we know experience cannot be possessed, I know it cannot be owned.”
“I want words filled with love
dripping with grace
overflowing with kindness.”
We know that The Episcopal Church was associated with Indigenous schools during the 19th and 20th centuries. We must come to a full understanding of the legacies of these schools.
“It’s hard to overstate the strength of this feeling, among white evangelicals in particular, of America being a white Christian country,” said Jones. “This sense of ownership of America just runs so deep in white evangelical circles.” The feeling that it’s slipping away has created an atmosphere of rage, resentment and paranoia.