It’s Carol Service at church this morning. Typically the 4th Sunday of Advent focuses specially on Mary, the “Mary of the Annunciation.” Church today will pay homage mostly to “Mary of the Nativity,” including her pondering of what happened on Christmas Day and afterward. In this space today, I return to Mary of the Annunciation,... Continue Reading →
Feel free to complete the phrase above with the response: “Here followeth the anthem.” Since the Anglican Book of Common Prayer of 1549 the rubric welcomes and encourages musical creativity and ability in the public services of Morning and Evening Prayer. Visitors to Anglican cathedrals and larger parish churches throughout the Anglican Communion may find... Continue Reading →
Reposted from Sylvia Olsen’s blog here Dr. Sylvia Olsen is an author, story-teller, knitting designer, housing specialist and teacher, Sylvia Olsen is an eclectic mix of her creative and academic pursuits. Her books have received numerous awards and nominations and many are Canadian best sellers. Her knitting designs have received attention across Canada and the... Continue Reading →
A sermon for the congregation of St. Stephen, Summerland on Sunday, November 16th, 2025, the Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost by the Very Rev. Ken Gray Early in the Spring of 2002, while rector of this church I received a call from ecojustice colleagues at the Anglican General Synod in Toronto. “Would you be willing to... Continue Reading →
The Very. Rev. Ken Gray, All Saints tide 2025 -- This article first appeared in the November issue of TOPIC, the Newspaper of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster, Vancouver BC Canada As we remember saints, sinners, and all souls together through the triduum of Halloween, All Saints, and All Souls let me also honour... Continue Reading →
A sermon for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost, November 9th, 2025 for the congregation of St. Stephen, Summerland by the Very Rev. Ken Gray The original title of Norman Lear’s 1971 TV sitcom All in the Family was Those Were the Days which ended up as the show’s theme song. I can imagine J D... Continue Reading →
I met Bonnie a little over a year ago up on the hill at the Summerland Ornamental Gardens on the grounds of the Summerland Research Station. Dressed in jeans and a green shirt her small frame belied her confident energy; she was buzzing around like a Queen Bee (an adult, mated female that lives in... Continue Reading →
An old bridal tale goes: Something old,something new,something borrowed,something blue . . . In a different tone and context, the good book reminds us: No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. (Mark... Continue Reading →
A sermon for the congregation of St. Stephen, Summerland, Canada — The sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, September 28, 2025 — The Very Rev. Ken Gray We heard some months ago Jesus’ declaration of blessing and woe: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you... Continue Reading →
No sermon from me today but a beautiful reflection from our friends at the Center of Action and Contemplation. I have read it several times, each time finding something jarring, beautiful, and different. Dr. Gary Paul Nabhan describes how Jesus’ parables invited listeners to find wisdom in their daily agricultural circumstances . . . Nabhan... Continue Reading →
Take Note - Reflections on life, music, politics, retirement and more by Ken Gray 