From Prisoners of Pandemic to Prisoners of Hope: A Day of Reflection on Being Church in our Emerging Reality

SATURDAY, JULY 24, 9:30 A.M.–12 P.M., in-person in Bloedel Hall or virtually via Zoom. Register here or below. 

led by The Rev. Canon Walter Brownridge, Saint Mark’s Theologian-in-Residence

“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.”  —Desmond Tutu

The past 16 months have been traumatic for many of us, and on so many levels. Pandemic, climate signs of foreboding, and a renewed cycle of racial reckoning. As COVID-19 recedes, in some way, we may feel divided. Some of us may feel that our energies are depleted, and others are eager to leave our isolation and enjoy the summer, and life returning to a sense of normalcy.

Yet, this may be a good time reflect and ask questions of meaning, faith, healing, and that big word: Hope. People in the midst of dark times, as the quote from Archbishop Tutu above notes, certainly need hope. I contend that we need hope when coming out of a difficult period and into the unknown. So yes, we must remain Prisoners of Hope. Together we will explore how hope is a muscle—that must be exercised as a spiritual discipline.