Apprentice Yourself to Jesus: An Invitation

Apprentice Yourself to Jesus: An Invitation

Beloved in Christ, 

In my address to convention last month, I invited all Minnesota Episcopalians to spend this next year deepening our discipleship. In a time of great change and uncertainty, I believe the Holy Spirit is inviting us to set aside our anxiety about building the institution for a season, rediscover our vocation to be gardeners, and tend to our root system: deepening our relationship with Jesus through ancient practices and new experiments, through daily prayer and dwelling in scripture, through cultivating closer relationships with one another and with those closest to God’s heart, the poor, marginalized, and suffering of the world.

I’ve heard from a number of you that you’re excited to say yes to this invitation and are eager to begin this deepening journey. To help us with this, in the weeks and months to come, we’ll be offering a number of resources to help all of us dig more deeply into discipleship: we’ll share stories from around the diocese about ways your fellow Episcopalians are deepening their prayer lives or experimenting with ways to get to know and serve their neighbors; we’ll offer sacred practices for you and your community to try; we’ll continue to hold space for you to connect with one another.

Next Sunday, November 27th is the first week of Advent and the beginning of the new year for us in the church. What better way to begin the year than with committing to a year of deep discipleship? This week’s newsletter is full of resources to help you do just that. Click the link for ways you can learn more about what it really looks like to root in Jesus, and please, share these practices and opportunities widely with your faith community.

Beloved, as we learn to garden again, I believe the Holy Spirit is inviting us to play in the dirt together for a while and see what God might grow as we partner with the Holy Spirit who, alone, orders the seasons of our lives, and who, everywhere, is causing new life to spring forth in the Episcopal Church in Minnesota. It’s a singular and extraordinary gift to have been called into this work together in this moment. 

Grace and peace,

The Right Reverend Craig Loya
X Bishop