Transcript Greetings to the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee. As your bishop, it is good to be able to share a Christmas word with you. The late writer Madeleine L’Engle wrote a poem several years ago reflecting on Christmas. It is entitled, The Risk of Birth, Christmas, 1973. I would like to share it with you: This is no time for a child to be born, With the earth betrayed by war & hate And a comet slashing the

 Click here for more information and registration on the REI Presentation day. Transcript – Hi, I’m Bishop Brian. I have a couple updates with our work on Becoming Beloved Community that I want to share with you. This past Monday evening, we completed what was a three-week conversation with Greg Garrett, the author of “A Long, Long Way.” Greg’s book looks at Hollywood and racism. And for the past three Monday evenings, a group of us gathered in conversation

 Jody Davis has done outstanding work for the Diocese of East Tennessee in his capacity as our Diocesan Youth Coordinator. It is not surprising to me that the Diocese of West Texas has recognized Jody’s many gifts and called him as the next Director of the Duncan Park Camp in Colorado. It is bittersweet to lose Jody and Gracie, but it is a joy to know that Jody’s dream to run an Episcopal camping ministry is possible now. Jody

Transcript “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” This past Sunday, the First Sunday of Advent, we read from the Book of Isaiah. It was a great help to me to hear that I am clay and that God is the potter. We all are a work in God’s hands. If as the calendar 2020 draws to a close, you feel like a

 Transcript Hi, this is Bishop Brian. And for this Reconciling Thought, I’d like to reflect some on what it means to be lost and to be found. Last Wednesday, and this is true every Wednesday, the staff and others are invited to join with us on a Wednesday morning prayer that we do together. And if you have interest in that, at the end of this video we’ll let you know how to reach out to join us for

In this edition of Reconciling Thoughts, Bishop Brian offers a reflection on a passage from Ecclesiasticus from the readings at morning prayer that speaks to our particular time at the end of both the calendar and liturgical year. Transcript A reading from Ecclesiasticus 43:23-33: By his plan, he stilled the deep and planted islands in it. Those who sail the sea tell of its dangers, and we marvel at what we hear. In it are strange and marvelous creatures, all kinds of

 A transcript is available below. Holding Onto Hope: A National Service for Healing and Wholeness The National Cathedral is hosting Holding Onto Hope: A National Service for Healing and Wholeness on Sunday, November 1, 2020, at 4:00 pm. You can watch on their Facebook Page here or online here. The event will be led by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and will feature: The Most Rev. Michael Curry, presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church  The Rev. James Martin, bestselling author

  – Hello. I’m Bishop Brian and I’m speaking to you in early October, right around the time that the church celebrates Saint Francis. In the Episcopal church, we take great joy in celebrating Saint Francis by blessing of the animals. This past Friday, October second, I was at Episcopal School of Knoxville and blessed animals early in the morning in a car line with other clergy from our Diocese. And on Sunday, at Saint Francis in Ooltewah, Tennessee, took