#happyeaster! #Alleluia!
7:30am. A very quiet @stjpiccadilly , while 60 people eat breakfast in the hall after a glorious Dawn Eucharist.
Last night a group from the parish were baptised and confirmed at @stpaulscathedrallondon by @the_outsider48 and Bishop Emma @dioceseoflondon . So moving and so joyful (and there may have been some post-Eucharist TikTok shenanigans…)
This morning was a very VERY early start. Folks stay overnight for a prayer vigil in church, and as the city slowly wakes up and the light begins to arrive, the first thing we do is ‘go out to greet the dawn’….
The 11am Eucharist will be a festive celebration of all that’s sacred, holy, and truly alive. God’s grace abides. The Spirt does what the Spirit always does. 💖💖💖🙏🙏🙏
Drawing at dusk on a London canal walk with @jacquelinenicholls@laurafoxartist . Great to meet @jewish_woodcuts@david.hoch and many more as we made our way from Regent’s Park to @sqft.space for their exhibition party. It was a celebration of Spring too, and as the light changed across the Equinox hours, we shared this beautiful Jewish blessing for the blossoms and our connections with nature and light.
רוך אתה ה’ אלוקינו מלך העולם שלא חסר בעולמו כלום וברא בו בריות טובות ואילנות טובים ליהנות בהם בני אדם
Blessed are You God, Ruler of the world, Who left nothing lacking in God’s world, and created in it good creatures and good trees, to give pleasure and benefit to all people. Amen. ✨🌳🌸
@traceyeminstudio at @tate
Dancing, sewing, painting, grieving, praying, and just being alive. I’ve never seen so many women responding with such emotional intensity at an exhibition before. So much empathy and so much suffering, and so much raw honesty and celebration too. Felt like the right place to be the night before #internationalwomensday
“The light shines in the darkness,” the Gospel of John tells us. A bright light, the brightest star, and the darkness will never eternally, not now and not ever, overcome it. That, if the Magi had not made their journey, would’ve been a possibility, would’ve been something perhaps by faith, not just conceptual but maybe even faithfully, eventually one day real for them. But they responded to the call, they had to see it, they had to be there.
There’s a lot of stuff to do in New York City, like in London, and you’ve chosen to be here. Thank God for that. You could do all kinds of things with your day and each one of you may be here for a different cluster of reasons. And it’s because with whatever we have, with all that we bring, we’re bringing our hearts and we’re bringing our whole selves. No matter where and how God finds us, God does find us.” From “The Gifts of the Magi,” sermon preached by the Reverend Dr. Ayla Lepine, Associate Rector of St. James’s Piccadilly in London, on Epiphany Sunday, January 4, 2026. #episcopal #sermon #episcopalchurch
@bokani ’s new exhibition at @stjpiccadilly expresses the power and tenderness of Mary and Elizabeth greeting each other, with Jesus and John the Baptist in their wombs. Bokani’s also placed smaller sculptures, luminous and vivid, throughout the church. It’s a new way of seeing Advent. They glitter in candlelight and reflect the sacred space and its people back to themselves, asking deep questions about holy presence and God’s freedom. This season the chapel is also home to the nativity sculptures carved by Clinton Challoner from a catalpa tree that stood in the courtyard at the church for many years. Mary holds Jesus, and he stretches out towards us, and this space is alive with memory, light, simplicity, and eternity. Grateful for these artists. @the_vcs@siobhanj6@art_xianity@arieltheartisan@_ultrabasic@joost_liketoast@devonabts
The Atlantic on a crisp Advent day. The waves are bigger than they seem. Ocean ASMR is surely the best kind there is. We spent hours out here, watching the horizon and rejoicing in the sudden spray of saltwater power. Found a natural volcanic rockpool just big enough to swim in. This is one of the most beautiful and strange places on earth to swim, both calm and mega dramatic. (@rsalterra@gvforrester thought of you!) My third swim of the day. Were there a ton of sea urchins, slippery rocks, and all the things the sign sternly warns visitors about? Of course there were and I DID NOT CARE. Did my non-swimmer husband patiently hold the towels in the wind and take a bunch of photos while laughing at my decision to fling myself into a chilly and mildly risky water experience? Yes, obviously, as usual, while laughing.
That last one is seriously summery winter afternoon on the south of the island. Which I obviously spent reading about @rorystewartuk ’s new book in @lit_review about a rainy chilly region of the UK, for contrast…..
4 December. Sunset along a rocky coast. Moonrise over the volcanic mountains. And a DJ being really silly. They’ve decorated the palm trees for Christmas. This is my first ever experience of the winter sunny holiday phenomenon and it’s A Thing. Having a slight sunburn in Advent feels genuinely Very Wrong, as a London-based Canadian. Would I do it again? Yes. ✨💖
