Joyful!

Yes, my third book, “Joyful Spirit Bubbling” is available from mid-December 2023.

(A brief interjection to let you know that if you’ve signed up to updates from my website, I’ve also added you to the mailing list of Progressive Christianity Aotearoa, whose website and social media I administer. If you don’t want to receive the loose PCA network’s very occasional posts, it’s easy to unsubscribe.)

You can read the prayer from which the title is drawn here.

Here’s what publisher Philip Garside has said about my latest book:

Joyful Spirit Bubbling is a poetic journey through the seasons in Aotearoa New Zealand, capturing the essence of summer – December, January, February – and moving through Autumn and Winter to end with the revival and hope of Spring. The author offers poems, prayers, and reflections, most of which can be read aloud as part of a service of worship. The book explores the liturgical and calendar years.

The poems and reflections within the book touch on themes such as the flourishing spirit of growth, liberating spirit of compassion, and perceptive spirit of insight. Bronwyn incorporates elements of Māori culture, discussing concepts like manaakitanga (hospitality) and emphasizing the sacred in everyday life. She invites readers to celebrate the blessings in their lives, ranging from small kindnesses to the wonders of nature.

“Joyful Spirit Bubbling,” pays homage to the creative spirit in nature and celebrations. It calls for empathy and justice, urging readers to work towards peace and justice while holding in their hearts those in need. The text invokes blessings for the homeless, peacemakers, and those dedicated to social, racial, and religious justice.

This book is a rich tapestry of poetic expressions, prayers, and reflections that invite readers to appreciate the sacred in ordinary moments and actively participate in the shared drama of life.


You can order print copies from me, and both print and ebooks from the publisher.

Words of Spirit and Faith #3

The manuscript for “Joyful Spirit Bubbling” is with Philip Garside Publishing; it should be available before the end of 2023.

My third book of inclusive liturgy follows the seasons in Aotearoa New Zealand, starting with summer—December, January, February—and moving through Autumn and Winter to end with the revival and hope of Spring.

As soon as it’s available, I’ll add details here.

Just in time for Advent: “Something new” republished

Philip Garside (PGPL) has republished “Something new to say: words of spirit, faith and celebration for Advent and Christmas” in an expanded 2nd edition. Available in print and as an e-book, from all the usual booksellers, as well as direct from PGPL.

This collection celebrates a festive season where pohutukawa and rata are in bloom, friends gather around barbecues or picnic at the beach on Christmas Day, and many people travel to catch up with family or enjoy school holidays.

Reviewer’s comment
“Bronwyn’s words are more powerful and real than a thousand theological treatises on incarnation.” Rev Dr Margaret Mayman

The title comes from a Christmas Day reflection which Bronwyn led in 2010:

“Every year, in manses and studies and at the kitchen table, preachers and worship leaders approach Advent with a mixture of joy and trepidation. Joy, because Christmas is the penultimate Christian festival—each week the excitement builds, every week another candle is lit, every year is pregnant with possibilities—but trepidation, because December 25 after December 25, the person leading the service tries to find something new to say!”

Refresh and restart

After a ‘brief break’ that lasted a couple of years, I’ve now refreshed this website, and am ready to resume collating my work for the next book (or books).

I’d love you to join my mailing list, follow on Facebook and other social media, and generally continue supporting my work and sharing my Words of Spirit and Faith.

With an emphasis on social justice and intention of inclusiveness, I trust these words – and those in my publications – will provide progressive and evolving Christian resources.

Original photographs © Bronwyn Angela White, Kāpiti

Even our prickles and thorns…

Decorative gsrfen sculpture created with barbed wire
photo (c) Bronwyn Angela White
– Sanderson Gardens , Manaia, Taranaki

Seeing these beautiful garden sculptures, made with unused barbed wire from the adjacent farm, made me reflect that even our prickles and thorns can be transformed into creativity and aspects of grace.

Decorative gsrfen sculpture created with barbed wire

https://www.gardenfestnz.co.nz/gardens/sanderson-garden/

“Rainbow Trinity” in Q-Spirit blog

I’m thrilled that Kittredge Cherry has included one of my prayers in her blog about “Trinity,” the last image in Doug Blanchard’s gay Passion of Christ series: Trinity Sunday: Holy Spirit blesses same-sex couple as Gay Passion of Christ series ends.

You can find “Rainbow Trinity” and other inclusive, progressive liturgical writing on this website. You might also enjoy the prayer I wrote for Transgender Remembrance Day.

While you’re here, check out the music by Amanda Udis-Kessler written especially for my hymn, “Faith of Metaphor and Mystery” which has a version for same-sex and mixed raced weddings.

You can download the score and recording (free) from Amanda’s Queer Sacred music website.


Kittredge Cherry, founder at Q Spirit is a lesbian Christian author who writes regularly about LGBTQ spirituality. She holds degrees in religion, journalism and art history. She was ordained by Metropolitan Community Churches and served as its national ecumenical officer, advocating for LGBTQ rights at the National Council of Churches and World Council of Churches.

photographs © Bronwyn Angela White

New music for contemporary hymn lyrics

An exciting new collaboration!

You can now download (free) the music score of hymn, “Faith of Metaphor and Mystery“, with brand new music written by Amanda Udis-Kessler, from my http://www.spiritandfaithwords.com website.

You can also download an MP3 recording sung by Ken Janzen from Amanda’s site, Queer Sacred Music.

Capture

Out of season

These hymn lyrics have been lurking around the edge of my consciousness for a while, never quite satisfactory, nowhere near complete. Then, of a sudden, the spark of a ‘completing’ idea arrived and this simple hymn is the result.

It flows from my years of living in Wellington, the capital city of Aotearoa New Zealand, where I still travel to – an hour by train from Kapiti Coast – to attend my faith community, and see the doctor, dentist and optician I’ve been with for decades!

There’s a local saying, “You can’t beat Wellington on a good day!” This hymn celebrates that simple gift, and our place as city dwellers.

Our city in the spring – hymn lyrics

If you enjoy this, you might also like “Botanic Garden Prayers“.

Liturgy in a time of isolation

Are you missing your faith community?

Do you wish you could find some progressive, inclusive, contemporary liturgy while you can’t get to your regular church service?

This time of government or self-imposed isolation is ideal for polishing off those projects we’ve had in mind for a while: stash-busting for crafters, jigsaw-making for puzzlers, housework for procrastinators…

As we’re in the season of Lent, coming up to Easter, I’ve recorded myself reading some Easter-themed liturgy resources: prayers, poems, reflections, hymn lyrics. I’m not a professional video maker or worship leader, and they’re not the smoothest audio visuals in the YouTuberverse, but I hope you’ll enjoy and be inspired by them.

Here’s a link to my Easter – Passiontide – Liturgy playlist on YouTube.

You might even decide to buy one of my books, so you can read the resources in your own time. Blessings, and peace be with you in this strange Passiontide, as we face a suddenly ambivalent future.

Here are links to other progressive, inclusive, online resources:

St Andrew’s on The Terrace, Wellington

St Michael’s Uniting Church, Melbourne

Durham Street Methodist Church, Christchurch

Winter is coming… and spring, summer & autumn – but not just yet

After a year largely spent with family or working on art+craft projects for various exhibitions (yes, thank you, I’ve managed to sell quite a few items of jewellery, knitting and stitched fibre art), I’ve finally begun compiling the next book in my #Spirit and Faith series.

My plan was to follow both calendar and liturgical years, including liturgical resources suitable for Summer and Advent, Autumn and Passiontide, Winter and Pentecost, Spring and Season of Creation. 60 pages in, and I’m only up to Easter!

What a problem: I’ve got too much material. I’ll have to spread it over two books: one liturgical and one seasonal – or to put it another way, a collection for “high and holy days,” and another for “ordinary time”. Which should I work on first?