Here we are on Christmas Day, the end of Advent, but also the beginning of the season of Christmas, not just a single day. For some, a season of Christmas means the season of social over-commitment. Where the season is extended because there are so many family and friend gatherings that the celebration extends into January. But, in the church calendar, the season is marked by the time between the Feast of the Nativity on December 25 until Epiphany on January 6th….
Read MoreOn November 11, I trudged slowly through freshly fallen snow, to the front door of the long- term care facility, my Mom’s home for almost three years. The walk was slow, deliberate, knowing this would be the last time I passed through the door. Before sunrise that morning, her caregivers called, well acquainted with moments like this, letting us know it was time to return after days of keeping vigil by her bedside. My mother’s long journey with dementia was nearing its end…
Read MoreHope is an audacious thing. It’s this fine silver thread that weaves itself in and through our hearts and binds us to Possibility in a way that defies reason and explanation. We trust Hope, against all odds. We see it, that fine silver thread, glimmering in the darkest of spaces, and its beauty is so heartbreakingly breathtaking that all we can do, sometimes, is weep in its presence….
Read MoreThis felt like the worst year of my life. Maybe in retrospect it will not even crack my top five, and I doubt it will crack 2025’s global top billion, but my therapist says not to gaslight myself by making it a competition. In any case, I don’t feel like writing on the Advent Reader themes of Coming Light or Hopeful Presence right now….
Read MoreI love the unexpected twists in today’s Gospel reading. These departures in the narrative from what we might expect keep us rooted in Advent’s true discipline—watching and waiting in the real, messy details of our lives and the world around us….
Read MoreWhat is a true prophet? The frail reed is the religious system of oppression (amongst others) of Creator Sets Free Day. This is Jesus pointing out the failings of a system of life that created barriers to community, barriers to being viewed as a full person, worthwhile in life. He points out that these things are happening not because cure is the only way to be included in life and have value….
Read MoreFor me, reflecting on 2025 is filled with moments of excitement and joy, but also moments of deep personal sorrow. Maybe that's why I was drawn to the lectionary reading of Ruth. It’s the resilient story of two women, Ruth and Naomi, daughter-in-law and mother-in-law. After experiencing the deep sorrow of losing their husbands, they find themselves in a period of placing one foot in front of the other, despite the unknown destination…
Read More“Dear Nick,” one fan wrote. “I’m feeling empty and more cynical than ever. I’m scared to pass these feelings on to my little son.” Australian rock legend Nick Cave, 68, invites fans to ask him anything, typically responding with deep compassion to one person per week. The letters are honest and raw, shot through with spiritual longing…
Read MoreThe vision that unfolds in Isaiah 11:1–10 is heart-stopping. We begin with a picture of new life, new possibilities springing from death: “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.” This isn’t just poetic language. It’s a promise that when all seems lost, God brings something new….
Read MoreIn the British comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, there is a scene that is ancient and yet so contemporary. The legendary King Arthur appears before a peasant named Dennis to ask for directions…
Read MoreHere’s an ancient and revolutionary idea I’d like to introduce to you this Advent season: You are the light of the world.
You may read this and say, “Really? What’s so revolutionary about that? Did Jesus not say that?”
Yes, he did…
Read MoreWelcome to the 2025 New Leaf Advent Reader. We have been offering Advent reflections from the New Leaf community since 2018, and we are glad to bring you reflections again this year. Here at New Leaf, the team is so grateful for the community that contributes …
Read MoreEvery year since my kids were old enough to anticipate Christmas, I have hoped to add practices to our family routines to mark the days of Advent with a touch of the sacred among the commercialism that crowds in at this time of year. So far, I have had little success making space for my idealism, and this year is no exception…
Read MoreI start decorating my home for Christmas early. It isn’t really out of excitement, more practicality. Thanksgiving is actually my favourite holiday, so over the years, I’ve collected a bunch of decor for the earlier celebration. Orange is my favourite colour, fall is my favourite season and way back when I was a varsity athlete, Thanksgiving was the only weekend in the fall term I had enough days off in a row to go home. Then as a pastor, it was the main holiday I had the most flexibility around my work…
Read MoreWater is life. We need it to survive. A hot July afternoon has us craving for multiple glasses of the cold stuff. Water is also comfort. Nothing beats a steaming cup of chai on a chilly December morning. But water outside my body, especially deep water, is a different matter altogether. It presents itself as danger…
Read MoreThere is a big difference between a paper cut and a stab wound. Though some might argue that a papercut hurts much more, it heals quickly, and soon you forget all about it. It was just a little cut and, after all, the paper didn’t mean to hurt you. Stab wounds, on the other hand, are rarely accidental…
Read MoreWelcome to this place outside where you were told the Light lived.
Welcome to a place of fear-filled change, mighty rest, or rebellious hope…
Read MoreI live in Regina, SK, on Treaty 4 Territory, where it is pretty dark this time of year.
I love it.
I savour it.
When it starts to dissipate, I find myself thinking fondly about when it will return the following year…
Read MoreThis year, four of my closest friends are navigating their first Christmas after separating in their respective marriages. As a child of divorced parents myself, Christmas is always a reminder of relationships unravelled. This year our community is unravelling further still. My heart yearns for the contrast of cold weather and warm homes, for hot drinks over long conversations, for a peaceful break from the hectic rhythms of the year, while my mind knows some of those conversations will be heavier this year…
Read MoreChristmas records appear in heavy rotation when the calendar hits December 1st at my house. I can't help it; I'm just a sentimental fool for Christmas music. I have some well-worn favourites, but my most cherished cuts will always be the jazzy classics. Give me Bing Crosby and Carol Richards crooning out "Silverbells," and I'm already imagining decking the halls of my house with garland and lights…
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