Oh Holy Spirit of Life and Love, that arises within and between us:

In this season when the light returns and our world is covered in beautiful and desolate whiteness,

We gather.

We gather in all the ways we’ve learned are possible,

to hold space for hope, for wholeness, for courage.

We gather in all the ways it is possible to be human-

tired, energized, empty, full, discouraged, joyful-

and to seek everything that is needed for us to survive and thrive.

We remember the miracle of the tipping point that is the Winter Solstice,

and we seek to create a tipping point toward a peaceful and just world.

We remember the miracle of eight days of flame out of one day’s worth of oil-

and we seek to maintain the hope that we too can keep making a way out of no way.

We remember the miracles of the birth of Jesus-

the journey of his parents, the shelter of the stable, the laboring of Mary, the presence of the witnesses-

and we remember that each night a child is born is a holy night.

We feel the reverence that accompanies the bringing of light and life into the world,

and we offer our gratitude in return for that gift.

And we know that the Love that saves us all is present among us this season,

for we carry it with us and bring it into being,