Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

Our phones, we love them and we hate them. Can we pray with them?

I work for the Brothers of the Society of Saint the Evangelist who in their Rule of Life talk about being “Men of the moment, up to the mark of the day.” This Advent the Brothers are inviting people worldwide to celebrate Advent through prayer, meditation and by contributing to a global Advent calendar.

Each day for Advent the Brothers are sending out by email a daily word, meditation and beautiful image. The emails are “time warped” so that they arrive at 5am wherever a person is on the planet. To subscribe visit www.ssje.org/adventword.

“5:00 am is about the time we get up to pray. Of course you can look at your email after 5:00 am,” said Brother Jim Woodrum, SSJE, “People maybe surprised to know that monks have cameraphones too and we are showing people how to pray with their phones this Advent. If you are inspired please snap a picture and Instagram it.”

The daily email will invite participants to take a photo with their phone or tablet to represent the word for that day – these include #Abide, #Thrive, #Become, #Imagine – and post the picture toInstagram adding the day’s tag plus #Adventword.

“People need help with their daily spiritual practice,” said Brother Geoffrey Tristram,SSJE, Superior. “During Advent, we anticipate the coming of Christ, an event that awakens our deepest desires and longings. This Advent, we are inviting you to join us in looking clearly and honestly at our lives and taking action. Subscribe to our Advent Calendar and, every day, a new gift will arrive in your email inbox, offering you a moment of solace and reflection on the true meaning of Advent and the coming Christmas season.”

When you wake up everyday this Advent we hope that you will first use your phone to pray! We hope you will use your phone to share an image that is meaningful to you and help create an Advent Calendar filled with image from all over the world.

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