In a statement issued on Wednesday afternoon, the Bishops acknowledged that their decisions will be “the cause of profound anguish to many LGBTQI+ people and their allies”, and that it “leaves some important questions unresolved”.

The statement confirms decisions taken by the House of Bishops in October, to subject stand-alone services of blessing for same-sex couples and the reconsideration of rules that bar the clergy from entering into same-sex marriage to further synodical processes (News, 17 October).

After heavy criticism (News 24 October and 30 October) and lobbying (News, 12 December and 19/26 December), from both sides of the debate, the Bishops met again in December, when they opted to defer the final decision until their meeting on Wednesday of this week (News, 19/26 December).

A working group will now consider how legislative steps on clergy same-sex marriage and stand-alone services could be taken forward, and consult on what “pastoral episcopal provision” might be appropriate if any further changes are proposed. This new group will, the statement says, report to General Synod by November 2028.

Read it all.

The Living in Love and Faith (LLF) process will come to an “imperfect” and “untidy” end in February, the House of Bishops has said#samesexblessings #churchofengland #churchnews #churchtimes #Synodhttps://t.co/U994MD89i4

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 14, 2026

In his book, Why Liberalism Failed, Patrick Deneen noted that many societies that advanced around individual rights and freedom from religious constraints ended up with less happy people. He famously writes, “Among the greatest challenges facing humanity is the ability to survive progress.” 

Andrew Sullivan, in an article entitled “The World Is better Than Ever: Why Are We Miserable?” adds: ‘As we have slowly and surely attained more progress, we have lost something that undergirds all of it: meaning, cohesion, and a different, deeper kind of happiness than the satiation of all our earthly needs.’

–From a December 14, 2025 sermon

Our lack of biblical literacy compounds into theological illiteracy. When we don’t know our Bibles, it follows that we will also lose our theological moorings. Last year’s State of Theology report by Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research gave a stark assessment of local church discipleship. Surveying evangelicals on basic Christian belief, they found the following:

• In response to the statement “God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam,” 47% of evangelicals agreed.
• In response to the statement “Everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God,” 64% of evangelicals agreed.
• In response to the statement “Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God,” 28% of evangelicals agreed.

Something is wrong. Each of these statements can be easily challenged as faulty with relatively little Bible knowledge. How can our churches be filled with people who are active and involved but have so little biblical grounding to show for it?

Read it all.

The discipleship gap:

“We have followed a discipleship strategy of lowering the bar on learning environments…We beg people apologetically to come to a 6-week study, promising it won’t have homework. Yet people want to do hard things.”

Read the article:https://t.co/VoPSE3EV3M

— Jen Wilkin (@jenniferwilkin) January 8, 2026

Gracious God, who hast inspired a rich variety of ministries in thy Church: We offer thanks for Richard Meux Benson and Charles Gore, instruments in the revival of Anglican monasticism. Grant that we, following their example, may call for perennial renewal in thy Church through conscious union with Christ, witnessing to the social justice that is a mark of the reign of our Savior Jesus, who is the light of the world; and who livest and reignest with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

#Birmingham UK, the #statue of Charles Gore, the first bishop of Birmingham, outside the main entrance to the St Philip's Cathedral 😎#BirminghamWeAre #Statues pic.twitter.com/HTcjcAX1Wq

— Daniel Sturley Photography (@Daniel_Sturley) May 11, 2025

O Almighty God, who by thy holy Apostle hast taught us to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto thee, as our reasonable service: Hear us, we beseech thee, as we now come to thee in the name of Jesus Christ; and give us grace that we may dedicate ourselves wholly to thy service, and henceforth live only to thy glory; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

Guten Morgen mit einer kleinen Winterimpression, heute wieder aus Bayern. #Bayern pic.twitter.com/tOq8VNAYZG

— Thomas Stiegler (@StieglerThomas) January 14, 2026

For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying,

“I will proclaim thy name to my brethren,
in the midst of the congregation I will praise thee.”

And again,

“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,

“Here am I, and the children God has given me.”

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage. For surely it is not with angels that he is concerned but with the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make expiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.

–Hebrews 2:11-18

A Glorious Frosty Morning. -2°C. Rooks. pic.twitter.com/YIcwGWxtCg

— Yorkshire Wolds Weather (@WeatherWolds) January 14, 2026

Meanwhile, just when we needed to consolidate our remaining strengths, to re-energise parish ministry, and to reinvigorate the ordained ministry with funding, affirmation, and a theological rationale, the opposite course of action has been pursued: centralised control of policy and resources, disparagement of the parochial form of Anglican life, and devaluing of the ordained vocation.

Much has already been demolished, especially at the local level; much more has been weakened and made more difficult. It is hard going, these days, in parishes for clergy, together with churchwardens and other hard-working lay people. There are social and cultural reasons for the uphill nature of the task in the present era, but lack of support — in able clergy, in financial resources, in moral affirmation, in practical wisdom — is another. The Church of England on the ground is an ailing and failing Church. How has all this come about?

A minority of activists (lay and ordained General Synod members, some bishops and an Archbishop, and the Archbishops’ Council collectively) have contrived and conspired, over a period of years, to change the nature of the Church, to replace it with a different and alien ecclesial model. That replacement model is essentially managerial rather than relational, bureaucratic instead of organic, centralised in place of localised — all varnished over with the vacuous rhetoric of “leadership” (seldom has such a necessary concept been so misappropriated and abused). And all accompanied by complacent theological illiteracy and ignorance.

Centralisation of resources and of decision-making, whether at the national or diocesan level, subverts the institution as a whole. It sucks the life and energy out of the very places in which life and energy are primarily generated: the parish and (potentially) the diocese.

Read it all.

"We are now living in an upside-down, topsy-turvy, Church. Turning things the right way up again needs us to begin with the ethical imperative. What needs to affirmed, above all, is the priority of the ethical for thinking and acting" #ChurchofEngland https://t.co/oYoYqMdtQC

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 6, 2026

here is a difference between a revolution and a counterrevolution. It is a recurrent mistake of the American media to conflate the two. That is because the success of 1776—the 250th anniversary of which we celebrate this year—predisposes us to sympathize with revolutions. I can think of no better explanation for the naivete of much liberal commentary on subsequent revolutions: France in 1789, Russia in 1917, China in 1949, Cuba in 1959, Nicaragua in 1979, Egypt in 2011 and, most relevant to today, Iran in 1979.

Let it never be forgotten that, in The New York Times on February 16, 1979, the Princeton professor Richard Falk confidently asserted: “The depiction of [the Ayatollah Khomeini] as fanatical, reactionary, and the bearer of crude prejudices seems certainly and happily false. What is also encouraging is that his entourage of close advisers is uniformly composed of moderate, progressive individuals.” Moreover, “the key appointees” in the new revolutionary government had “a notable record of concern for human rights and seem eager to achieve economic development that results in a modern society oriented on satisfying the whole population’s basic needs.”

“Having created a new model of popular revolution based, for the most part, on nonviolent tactics,” Falk gushed, “Iran may yet provide us with a desperately needed model of humane governance for a third‐world country.”

Nope….

Read it all.

The West wants a revolution in Iran. What’s actually happening is a counterrevolution—and history shows those are usually doomed to fail, writes Niall Ferguson. https://t.co/WjZRsgcy5R

— The Free Press (@TheFP) January 13, 2026

In the books under review, three authors from different disciplines and backgrounds seek to fathom this revolution. They are: Tim Berners-Lee, who has written a memoir with a focus on his status as the inventor of the World Wide Web, though he also examines surveillance capitalism, tech monopolies and polarization. His title derives from a phrase he typed at the opening ceremony for the Olympic Games in London in 2012: it was “my statement about what I wanted the web to be”. Then there is Cory Doctorow, an author, blogger and journalist who presents a “natural history” of…the process by which internet platforms are “getting worse” – along with his views on how this decline might be arrested. Finally, there is Nick Clegg, former British deputy prime minister and Facebook/Meta employee. His book is also concerned with the future of the internet, and is described by Tony Blair as “a wake-up call we cannot afford to ignore”. All three authors agree that the internet is suffering from at least one, and perhaps several, pathologies. But they disagree about the most effective remedies.

Read it all.

I suspect that people in the 4th century were better equipped than we are to discuss points of theology. But Hilary also recognised, like Wittgenstein 1,600 years later, that words can lead thinkers astray. He took a conciliatory stance towards those who said that the Son was similar to the Father, not the same. Obviously they are not the selfsame person, though the Council of Nicaea declared they are of one substance.

Anyway, Hilary wrote in a separate book, on the Psalms, that humanity finds salvation in Christ alone, Son of God and Son of man. In assuming human nature, he has united himself with every human being: “He has become the flesh of us all.”

This insight might be useful in trying to understand the puzzling question of why Jesus underwent baptism at the hands of John the Baptist. After all, Jesus had no sins to be cleansed from. 

I think Hilary agreed with Ambrose that Jesus was baptised “because he wished, not to be cleansed, but to cleanse the waters, so that they, being purified by the flesh of Christ that knew no sin, might have the power of baptism.”

Read it all (subscription).

As I gear up for the start of Hilary term, I’m grateful for this primer on Hilary of Poitiers by ⁦@BeardyHowse⁩. Sacred Mysteries: The man who gave his name to Hilary term https://t.co/LGYEs5rM9o

— Fitzroy Morrissey (@fitzmorrissey) January 10, 2026

O Lord our God, who didst raise up thy servant Hilary to be a champion of the catholic faith: Keep us steadfast in that true faith which we professed at our baptism, that we may rejoice in having thee for our Father, and may abide in thy Son, in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit; thou who livest and reignest for ever and ever.

“He did not lose what He was,

but began to be what He was not.

He did not cease to possess His
own nature,

but received what was ours.”

– Hilary of Poitiers pic.twitter.com/J6fDKcIEgB

— Steve Meister (@SteveMeisterVDM) December 25, 2025

O Thou, in whom we live and move and have our being: We offer and present unto thee ourselves, all that we are and have, our thoughts and our desires, our words and our deeds, to be a living and continual sacrifice.  We are not our own; therefore we would glorify thee in our bodies and our spirits, which are thine; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Baptism of Christ.

The Sinless One to Jordan came
To share our fallen nature's blame;
God's righteousness He thus fulfilled
And chose the path His Father willed.

(No, Epiphanytide is not over and continues to Candlemas on 2nd February). pic.twitter.com/y7txAuNdDz

— Ninefold Kyrie (@Gda1238) January 13, 2026

Therefore we must pay the closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For if the message declared by angels was valid and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard him, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his own will. For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere, “What is man that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man, that thou carest for him? Thou didst make him for a little while lower than the angels, thou hast crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for every one. For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through suffering.

–Hebrews 2:1-10

Guten Morgen mit einer kleinen Winterimpression, heute aus Bayern.#Bayern pic.twitter.com/ZrMIuYYPxL

— Thomas Stiegler (@StieglerThomas) January 13, 2026

Archbishops are “colluding” to dismiss an abuse investigation, a victim has claimed.

Dame Sarah Mullally, who is the current Bishop of London, will legally become the Church of England’s top bishop in a ceremony at St Paul’s Cathedral on Jan 28.

However, it was revealed in December that she has been the subject of a complaint over her handling of an abuse allegation in which a victim, known as Survivor N, was allegedly groped and had sexual comments made to him by a priest. 

The complaint was being looked into by the Archbishop of York, the Most Rev Stephen Cottrell. On Thursday, he decided to dismiss the complaint against her.

However, The Telegraph understands that the Archbishop of York made the decision while he is also the subject of a complaint made by Survivor N, known as a clergy discipline measure (CDM), regarding his “conflict of interest” in the matter.

Read it all.

🔴 Remarks made after complaint over Dame Sarah Mullally’s handling of case is dismissed

Find out more ⬇️https://t.co/wl5m5Dg6t3 pic.twitter.com/8Ug8y8iOkW

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) January 9, 2026

Religion rather than secular society is often blamed for using violence to achieve its aims. Professor Howard in Broken Altars: Secularist violence in modern history, in contrast, demonstrates convincingly how violence has been used more often by secular regimes against religion. He seeks in this book to “bring needed nuance and perspective to a complex, often fraught topic”.

He sets out three definitions of secularism: passive secularism, combative secularism, and eliminationist secularism, and focuses in his book on the latter two, describing as passive secularism what we in the West would consider to be characteristic of a tolerant political regime with liberal principles — church-state separation, freedom of conscience, and freedom of the press — all vital ingredients of a democratic system.

He presents, as examples of combative secularism, three case studies of early 20th-century modernisation: Mexico, Spain, and Turkey. 

Read it all.

Xenia Dennen reviews a study of #secularism in its aggressive forms 📚 #books #bookreviews https://t.co/o2xDU7RWds

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) January 11, 2026

10. What statement about friendship can be more sublime, more true, more valuable than this: it has been proved that friendship must begin in Christ, continue with Christ, and be perfected by Christ. Come, now: propose what in your opinion should be the first question about friendship.

IVO. I think we should first discuss what friendship is, lest we appear to be painting on a void, not knowing what should guide and organize our talk.

11. AELRED. Is Cicero’s definition not an adequate beginning for you? “Friendship is agreement in things human and divine, with good will and charity.”

12. IVO. If his definition suffices for you, it’s good enough for me.

–Aelred of Rievaulx Spiritual Friendship I.10-12 (Lawrence C. Braceland, tr., Marsha L. Dutton ed., Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2010), p.57

12th January – St. Aelred of Rievaulx.

A talented author, theologian, preacher and diplomat, Aelred rose to become abbot of Rievaulx between 1147 and his death in 1167. He wrote a book on Spiritual Friendship in which he shared that God was pure reciprocity. pic.twitter.com/0bPfn8hLtK

— Ninefold Kyrie (@Gda1238) January 12, 2026

Almighty God, who didst endow thy abbot Aelred with the gift of Christian friendship and the wisdom to lead others in the way of holiness: Grant to thy people that same spirit of mutual affection, that, in loving one another, we may know the love of Christ and rejoice in the gift of thy eternal goodness; through the same Jesus Christ our Savior, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

O God, who endowed Saint Aelred, Abbot of Rievaulx,
with the gift of fostering Christian friendship
and the wisdom to lead others in the way of holiness,
grant to your people, we pray,
that same spirit of fraternal affection,
so that in loving one another
we may know the love of… pic.twitter.com/8TTT9c47fW

— Catholic Church (@catholicEW) January 12, 2026

Eternal Father,
who at the baptism of Jesus
revealed him to be your Son,
anointing him with the Holy Spirit:
grant to us, who are born again by water and the Spirit,
that we may be faithful to our calling as your adopted children;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

✨☀️ A bit of inspiration for the dark days: sunrise at York Minster. pic.twitter.com/3TXVAaGwDR

— Andy Marshall 📸 (@fotofacade) January 12, 2026

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

–Psalm 1:1-3

The Duke of Portland Boathouse that sits on Ullswater, illuminated by the hues of sunrise.

Some mornings surprise you. The colour came out of nowhere, with just enough time for me to screech into a parking spot and dash to the shoreline. A clichéd shot, but for good reason 🫡 pic.twitter.com/vS5ty4t9IP

— Verity Milligan (@VerityMilligan) January 12, 2026

Almighty God, who at the baptism of thy blessed Son Jesus Christ in the river Jordan didst manifest his glorious Godhead: Grant, we beseech thee, that the brightness of his presence may shine in our hearts, and his glory be set forth in our lives; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

Baptism of Christ in the River Jordan by John the Baptist, surrounded by angels and with a golden dove of the Holy Spirit descending

BL Add 49598; Benedictional of Æthelwold; 963-984 CE; England S; f.25r @BLMedieval pic.twitter.com/q9OAZulAH7

— Ennius (@red_loeb) January 11, 2026

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ”˜After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me.’ I myself did not know him; but for this I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” And John bore witness, “I saw the Spirit descend as a dove from heaven, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him; but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ”˜He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

–John 1:29-34

Baptism of Christ – today is the Feast.
c. 1480–1490
Workshop of Veit Stoss
John the Baptist baptizes Christ in the presence of an angel. The composition follows a popular engraving by Martin Schongauer of about 1480.

(Met Museum) pic.twitter.com/6bYUHCkNXw

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) January 11, 2026

O God, who by a star didst guide the wise men to the worship of thy Son: Lead, we pray thee, to thyself the wise and the great in every land, that unto thee every knee may bow, and every thought be brought into captivity; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

6 Jan, Epiphany: The Magi Follow the Star, from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier, 1602–4. Attributed to Payag. Allahabad, made for Prince Salim. They are dressed like Portuguese merchants, but they ride camels.
Cleveland Museum of Art pic.twitter.com/xbw31YwjSx

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) January 6, 2025

“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people: “You have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, says the Lord.

“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when men shall no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ but ‘As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.’ Then they shall dwell in their own land.”

–Jeremiah 23:1-8

A bit of pre-sunrise colour in the Phoenix Park this morning. pic.twitter.com/IMLBIKmF0o

— Sryan Bruen Photography (@sryanbruenphoto) January 10, 2026

When we do come near to Jesus, let us ask ourselves this question, “Do we see more in Jesus than other people do?” for if we do, we are God’s elect taught of God, illuminated by his Spirit. We read in the Scriptures that when these wise men saw the young child they fell down and worshipped him. Other people might have come in and seen the child, and said, “Many children are as interesting as this poor woman’s babe.” Ay, but as these men looked, they saw: all eyes are not so blessed. Eyes that see are gifts from the All-seeing One. Carnal eyes are blind; but these men saw the Infinite in the infant; the Godhead gleaming through the manhood; the glory hiding beneath the swaddling bands. Undoubtedly there was a spiritual splendor about this matchless child! We read that Moses’ father and mother saw that he was a “goodly child”; they saw he was “fair unto God,” says the original. But when these elect men saw that holy thing which is called the Son of the Highest, they discovered in him a glory all unknown before. Then was his star in the ascendant to them: he became their all in all, and they worshipped with all their hearts. Have you discovered such glory in Christ? “Oh!” says one, “you are always harping upon Christ and his glory. You are a man of one idea!” Precisely so. My one idea is that he is “altogether lovely,” and that there is nothing out of heaven nor in heaven that can be compared with him even in his lowest and weakest estate. Have you ever seen as much as that in Jesus? If so, you are the Lord’s; go you, and rejoice in him. If not, pray God to open your eyes until, like the wise men, you see and worship.

Lastly, learn from these wise men that when they worshipped they did not permit it to be a mere empty-handed adoration. Ask yourself, “What shall I render unto the Lord?” Bowing before the young child, they offered “gold, frankincense and myrrh,” the best of metals and the best of spices; an offering to the King of gold; an offering to the priest of frankincense; an offering to the child of myrrh. Wise men are liberal men. Consecration is the best education. To-day it is thought to be wise to be always receiving; but the Savior said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” God judges our hearts by that which spontaneously comes from them: hence the sweet cane bought with money is acceptable to him when given freely. He doth not tax his saints or weary them with incense; but he delights to see in them that true love which cannot express itself in mere words, but must use gold and myrrh, works of love and deeds of self-denial, to be the emblems of its gratitude. Brothers, you will never get into the heart of happiness till you become unselfish and generous; you have but chewed the husks of religion which are often bitter, you have never eaten of the sweet kernel until you have felt the love of God constraining you to make sacrifice. There is nothing in the true believer’s power which he would not do for his Lord: nothing in our substance which we would not give to him, nothing in ourselves which we would not devote to his service.

Read it all.

Epiphany scene below from the Lower Rhine which dates to the mid-12th century. The relief is now part of the collections @V_and_A #Epithany 📷 My own. pic.twitter.com/PsqN4ibFpk

— Kevin Wilbraham (@KPW1453) January 6, 2024

Lyrics: I will sing with the spirit, alleluia. And I will sing with the understanding also, alleluia. (1 Corinthians 14, v.15)

“Recently we celebrated the day on which the Lord was born of the Jews; today we are celebrating the one on which he was worshiped by the Gentiles; because salvation is from the Jews (Jn 4:22); but this salvation reaches to the ends of the earth (Is 49:6). On that day the shepherds worship him, on this one the Magi. To those the message was brought by angels, to these by a star. Both learned about him from heaven, when they saw the king of heaven on earth, so that there might be glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will (Lk 2:14).”

For he is our peace, who made both into one (Eph 2:14). Already from this moment, by the way he was born and proclaimed, the infant is shown to be that cornerstone; already from the first moments of his birth he appeared as such. He began at once to tie together in himself two walls coming from different directions, bringing the shepherds from Judea, the Magi from the East; so that he might establish the two in himself as one new man, making peace; peace for
those who were far off, and peace for those who were near (Eph 2: 15. 17). Thus it is that those hurrying up from nearby on the very day, and these arriving today from far away, marked two days to be celebrated by posterity, and yet both saw the one light of the world.

–Sermon 199, On The Lords Epiphany

Bartolomé Bermejo (c. 1440 – c.1501) was a Spanish painter- Epiphany, 1480, a depiction of the Adoration of the Magi, Royal Chapel of Granada pic.twitter.com/bJnQyWIKJh

— Yiannis Einstein-Ιωάννης Αρβανιτάκης (@yianniseinstein) April 24, 2025

Listen to and ponder it all–more than once.

You may find the full text there (note that the audio is TS Eliot himself reading the poem).

God of all creation, who dost call us to make disciples of all nations and to proclaim thy mercy and love: Grant that we, after the example of thy servant Julia Chester Emery, might have vision and courage in proclaiming the Gospel to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ, our light and our salvation, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

Today the Episcopal Church commemorates Julia Chester Emery, Lay Leader and Missionary, 1922 pic.twitter.com/hDSpwf8pJY

— The Anglican Church in St Petersburg (@anglicanspb) January 9, 2024

Lord Jesus Christ, who in the offerings of the wise men didst receive an earnest of the worship of the nations: Grant that thy Church may never cease to proclaim the good news of thy love, that all men may come to worship thee as their Saviour and King, who livest and reignest world without end.

Hoping everyone across the UK is ok this morning, following Storm Goretti. Take care out there and have a lovely Friday 🥰 pic.twitter.com/MBYPA9tBTH

— Andrew Edwards (@AndrewOpera) January 9, 2026