This is always a tender time of year, awash with so many memories and traditions. It can be made even more tender as we experience grief, loss, separation, and variety of other life happenings.
As a congregation we are intentional about making room for this part of the holidays in our worship and fellowship together. Each Sunday in Advent when we light a different candle for “hope, peace, joy, and love,” we do so not to mark how we feel in the moment, but what we long for. We light candles, but we also name the shadows.
We also draw special attention to this season’s tenderness in our annual Service for the Longest Night, held each year on December 21, the longest night of the year. This is our guiding metaphor for the service: that while we live in a world of darkness, after that night, more and more light will be coming into the world.
This service is a time of quiet reflection, prayer and encouragement—a time to seek peace, cry tears, light candles, and find comfort in knowing that you do not walk alone.
Our service this year will be held Tuesday, December 21, at 6:00 pm, in the sanctuary. I hope you will join us, but know that even if you cannot, candles will be lit for you, and we pray their light would reach you.