Hello again and happy Hallowtide, Faithful Families of Community!
As the days get shorter and the weather (finally) cools off, the church prepares for some of the
most special and sacred occasions. We begin this month with the celebration of All Souls Day,
an ancient Christian tradition of honoring the dead, and as soon as November ends, we mark
the beginning of a new year in the Church's calendar, with the start of the Advent season.
This is also a time of heightened stress and anxiety for many. The stress of gathering with that
side of the family, the pain of loved ones absent from the dinner table, the pressure of getting
just the right present or throwing the perfect party, the gloom of growing dark and deepening
chill. And on top of it all, a presidential election that has filled the country with fear, dread,
bitterness, anger, resentment, and all kinds of human ugliness and that looms in uncertainty
over the future.
In times like this, we can turn to our tradition as a source of strength—in particular, the Psalms.
Psalms are the songbook of God’s people, and far from being a hundred and fifty cheery little
poems about how dandy things are when you have faith, they reflect the full spectrum of
human emotion. Lament, joy, longing, hope, fear, rage, doubt—you can find a Psalm for it.
We will be leaning heavily on the Psalms in our worship this month, and so this can be a great
opportunity to bring church home with you during the week.
Reading the Psalms together, out loud, can be a really powerful way for your family to be
honest with one another and God about how you are feeling, while grounding you in reminders
that God’s faithfulness endures in times of difficulty and darkness.
Because Psalms sometimes have confusing or difficult language in them, it can be nice to have a
resource that paraphrases them when reading together with younger listeners. I recommend
either Psalms for Little Hearts by Dandi Daley Mackall, or Psalms for Young Children by Marie-
Hélène Delval. Below I have listed some Psalms by topic if you would like to bookmark them in
your Bible.
However you read them, I hope the Psalms can be a source of consolation and encouragement
for your family this month.
—Rev. Stephen
Psalms of praise: 8, 19, 47, 103
Psalms for when you are sad: 6, 43, 102
Psalms for when you are worried or afraid: 13, 56, 121
Psalms for hope in the midst of despair: 12, 22, 77
Psalms for when you need peace: 23, 46, 62