Longest Night Christmas Prayer

Nativity, 2022 (Ukraine) by Irenaeus Yurchuk.

Jesus,
Sweet Baby Jesus
Born in the midst of a collapsing empire
Hidden in plain sight from everything and everyone official


When different factions of the religion
were all claiming to be the “truer” one
Each saying if you don’t worship our way
You don’t belong to God.

You were born when a Messiah
Seemed to be around every corner
Lamps were left on at night and demagogues and dynamic cult leaders
Were followed at whim, because people needed hope

And the gulf between who was poor and who was rich
The distinction between who was citizen and who was not
The taste in one’s mouth when people called one another
Foreigner, Outsider, or Different was sour and full of hate

Violence was everywhere
Children, the Poor, The Elderly, The Lonely, the Sex Worker
were Ignored or Forgotten
Laws were passed against anyone deemed Unclean in any way (oh my Queer siblings!)

Jesus Christ, you were born in a time
When no one was receiving proper healthcare
So people banged down your door
for a bit of healing

And my heart aches
With the familiarity, you could be born today
Is this why you have to be born into today’s world?
Have we forgotten why we need you?

Sometimes I wonder if you haven’t returned
Because we haven’t learned enough?
Heretic thought I know
But I sit in the hate and terror and worry Jesus

Jesus Christ, we need you. A baby
A sneak king full of healing and mischevious teachings of Grace
Jesus we need someone who will sit in the dirt with the marginal
and embody the Peace so much that we will sit in the dirt with you.

Sweet baby Jesus, though I know we picture angels, shepherds, & magi
I think that a baby born in the war-torn dark
might be the truth
Help us to sit with that, in the shortest day and longest night I pray.

Amen.

Feel free to use/adapt/share with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta

Finding Christmas

Prophets Promised
Angels Appeared

Mary Upended
Joseph Recognized

Elizabeth Visited
Zechariah Hushed

Stars Illuminated
Magi Perceived

Herods Lied
Israel Trembled

Shepherds
Animals Snuggled

Jesus Appeared
God Incarnated


Christmas Accomplished

Feel free to share/use/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta

In addition to being read as a poem, this probably could be used as some kind of Pop Up Pageant with silly masks, puppets or the like. I would hand it out and then have the congregation read the verb when the character “appears”

Please Support my Writing, I am Funding some of my Doctorate in Creative Writing as a Public Theologian through donations https://gofund.me/554d36e3 Thank you to all those who have donated, I have successfully completed 2 years thanks to your support.

Full Advent Resources

Tender Christmas

God,
I’m praying
a tender prayer
for Christmas

For all those for whom
they have a tender and surrendered faith
because of all they have gone through.

Because you cannot surrender
until you’ve been through a battle
and so for all those who have felt like
Advent
Christmas
or just Living
has been a battle this year
I want to pray the prayer of thanksgiving

that you are still here
you are beloved
and God is with you–

And I hope you have found yourself in the Christmas story
whether it is in
Mary, not so meek,
Joseph conflicted but quietly obedient
Magi, shepherd, even if it is the donkey, the innkeeper or the star

I hope and pray that you find a corner to belong in
Because this is your story too

But if you do not, know, that’s ok
Maybe the space for you is in the silence
or the darkness of the night
or the wavering light of the candle

God I hope you know that
God is here
God is with you
God loves you
no matter what

And that is what makes Christmas
Especially when you feel tender
and like you have to give up
May God hold you in the Palm of God’s hand
Whenever and wherever that happens

Amen.

Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta and if you quote the tweet be sure to credit Traci Rhoades and Rev. Jes Last

Please Support my Writing, I am Funding some of my Doctorate in Creative Writing as a Public Theologian through donations https://gofund.me/554d36e3 Thank you to all those who have donated, I have successfully completed 2 years thanks to your support.

Full Advent Resources

With thanks to Jes Last and Traci Rhoades for their inspirational conversation

Traci Rhoades: I met with a mentor of mine yesterday. He said my faith was in a better spot, more tender and surrendered than ever before. Ya'll, tender and surrendered are not easily gained. They come out of hard seasons if we let them. Reverend Jes Kast: Oh I understand and resonate with this, tender and surrendered are not easily gained indeed purple heart.

Books, Books, Poetry, Books

Here it is, the Booklist (Remember this is TWO classes worth) One is Poetry and the other is Experimental Poetry

……so it can be seen as either intimidating or fun
Please peruse and find what you can at your local library! I’m told with ZONG its best to read it before Splay Anthem and to start with the end, which explains a lot of it!
Maggie Nelson, Bluets 
Sam Stephenson, Gene Smith’s Sink 
Aisha Sabatini Sloan, Borealis 
Nicole Rudick, What Is Now Known Was Only Once Imagined 
Terrance Hayes, To Float in the Space Between 
Aracelis Girmay, The Black Maria 
John Edgar Wideman, Writing to Save a Life 
Chris Kraus, After Kathy Acker 
Heather Christle, The Crying Book 
Muriel Rukeyser, The Book of the Dead 
Eileen Myles, Afterglow
M. NourbeSe Philip, Zong! (Wesleyan Poetry Series) by 
Nathaniel Mackey, Splay Anthem 

About 1/3rd I could acquire from the library (not bad) only one was an expensive new release and it was half off (whew originally $60). I, of course, bought a bunch used. So the total was $113.80. I admit I was like wow that’s a lot; ok not really for two classes of books. So if I could grab another $120 of fundraising that would be amazing.

https://gofund.me/47b40357

Joseph, A prayer

God,
Today, I’m imagining
Joseph as the squishy parent.

Mary was the one with the justice cries
And the mom look, that got Jesus into ministry
Maybe Joseph was the one with the physical play

And the squishy hugs–
Maybe Joseph was the one who reminded Jesus
Your only human, too

Maybe Joseph was the one who showed Jesus
mortality was ok,
because he was (probably) the parent who died first.

God, I’m thinking of that fierce encounter with an angel
where Joseph was already, heart in mouth, trying to figure out
how to react full of humanity and peace

God, I’m so thankful for Joseph
And today I’m hoping
he was the squishy parent.

Amen.

Feel free to use/adapt/share with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta

Please Support my Writing, I am Funding some of my Doctorate in Creative Writing as a Public Theologianthrough donations https://gofund.me/554d36e3 Thank you to all those who have donated, I have successfully completed 2 years thanks to your support.

Full Extended Advent Resource

Canva artwork of Joseph by Pastor Katy Stenta feel free to use with credit

Magnificat

The Rich are against my religion
God,

I am ready to magnify
Pregnant calling for the downfall of the mighty
and the poor being filled with good things

Raising up all those who have
Never
Ever, Been empowered before

I can picture Mary and Elizabeth
glowing and tired, demanding you step up and step in God

In a world, where the hospitals are full of sick children
again
I am more than ready to demand healing

God I am tired of this human nonsense:
where money is ready for war, but not for childcare, food or healing

I am am ready for magnficat
to Magnify
All the things you promise (instead of the humans)

I am hungry for the time when justice turns the world upside down
the moment when we can see the hope of all children
incarnate
in a baby

I am pregnant with it.

As my kiddos say
Lets Go, God

Let’s Magnificat,
We have been waiting for it
Forever

Amen.

Feel free to use/adapt/share with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta

Magnificat Artwork by Katy Stenta on Canvas feel free to use/share with credit

Advent

Advent is about waiting
Because we are waiting
For the poor to be filled with good things
For women to believed
For the prisoner to be set free
For healing

We don’t need practice in waiting
We know Christmas is a quiet participation in the miracle that is yet still unfolding

We want to participate in the waiting, and the greed smashing, equity making, creation beauty that is Christmas

So we are an advent people.
Proclaiming the Magnificat together with Mary:
Until the Alleluias of Christmas
Are born

feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta

Joy And Justice, Advent 3

God,
God of joy
that tastes like justice
on the tongue

God of comfort
that are the warm embrace of
to be one’s full self on the street

God of blessings
that cannot be divided or mangled
that are not confused with wealth or greed

God, I hear your voice
establishing justice on the earth–
in the midst of all of this! Still, we hear it!

Under the stars, there is justice
You breathe it into your people–
A dignity that is inborn, that all people
are beloved and worthy of love

We are inherently made in God’s image
There is not one single exception,
and Mary’s Magnificat, calls down Justice

Come let us Sing with her
And Call down Food
and Fill those in Need with Good Things

Come Jesus, I Cry in Joy for your Justice
I cannot wait, so I too will dream and wrok
And Dream for this World.

And say a prayer for it too.
Amen.

Writing, Creative Writing D. Min

Hello Folks,

Do you know that an average over 200 people use my resources a day?

That means that everyone gave me $10 my Doctorate in Creative Ministry would be funded.

The next step is a double week intensive in January!

I have successfully funded 2 years in Creative Writing and shared resources thanks to all of the donations I have received thus far.

This means that every single contribution counts! It has been so meaningful to me to have your support along the way. I would not be writing without you. I have received contributions from $10-$500, and each of them have been so amazing.

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