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Pentecost ‘Way of Love Revival Weekend’ to include concert, worship

May 17, 2021
Office of Public Affairs

The Episcopal Church invites all to join virtual celebrations

Join The Episcopal Church as it greets Pentecost with One in the Spirit, a Way of Love Revival Weekend designed to fan the flames of hope, celebrate difference, honor creation, foster beloved community, and send people toward Jesus’s Way of Love. The weekend of events includes the following:

  • Friday, May 21, 8 p.m. ET: Washington National Cathedral’s Vigil of Hope
  • Saturday, May 22, 6-7:30 p.m. ET: Concert for the Human Family and “From Many, One” Community Conversations 
  • Sunday, May 23, 4-5:30 p.m. ET: Churchwide Pentecost Revival Worship from Philadelphia, Navajoland, Seattle, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C.

“Pentecost is the season when we celebrate the birth of the church and the Spirit landing on the glorious diversity of God’s people,” said Presiding Bishop Michael Curry. “Thanks to vaccinations and CDC recommendations, it’s also the moment when lots of our churches can finally open their arms more fully to the public. We want to mark this moment of renewal with a revival and pray that God would rain blessing, guidance and power down on all people.”

Curry has led revivals across the church since early in his term. With the advent of pandemic, he and his team have partnered with groups like Washington National Cathedral, the Diocese of Central Gulf Coast, and the Union of Black Episcopalians to host virtual revivals and prayer services.

The Pentecost Way of Love Revival Weekend begins Friday, May 21, at 8 p.m. ET with Washington National Cathedral’s Vigil of Hope. Poised on the edge of reopening, the nation carries deep wounds following more than a year of global pandemic and public reckoning with centuries of racial injustice. All are invited to gather in word and music to acknowledge the sorrow of this past year and gaze toward the hope rooted deeply in faith. Learn more here.

The weekend continues on Saturday, May 22, at 6 p.m. ET with the first in a series of virtual Concert for the Human Family and Conversations Across Difference. Filmed at Philadelphia Cathedral in compliance with COVID protocols, the May concert features a diverse team – including Nashville pianist and composer Kory Caudill and Baltimore-based hip-hop artist Wordsmith – offering original music inspired by the Prayer for the Human Family.

The concert is framed by the From Many, One: Conversations Across Difference effort, with a pair of musicians sharing their stories at the opening of the concert. Bishop Curry will host further conversation after the concert and then invite the entire audience to share in small group Conversations Across Difference. Register for the free concert and conversations at https://events.episcopalchurch.org/concert-series/.

Most churches will have their local Pentecost celebrations Sunday morning. All are invited to a virtual Pentecost Way of Love Revival Worship Service on Sunday, May 23, at 4 p.m. ET. The spirit-filled celebration will draw on the gifts, testimonies, songs and voices of Episcopalians in cathedrals and communities across the church, including St. Mark’s Cathedral in Seattle, Indigenous churches in Navajoland and South Dakota, Christ Church Cathedral in Philadelphia, Washington National Cathedral, and Christ Church in St. Louis.

“We’ll pray next to bee colonies on Seattle’s cathedral roof and chant and give thanks for the earth with Navajo leaders. We’re going to celebrate our diversity, bless God’s creation, and receive the gifts of the Spirit for all that’s ahead,” said Jerusalem Greer, the church’s staff officer for evangelism. “It’s time for us to live the Way of Love out in the world in a new way.”

The Pentecost Way of Love Revival Worship Service will be aired on the Episcopal Church’s various web channels, including Facebook and www.episcopalchurch.org.

For more information about the Revival Weekend, contact Sarah Alphin, 212-716-6102, or Jerusalem Greer, 212-716-6219. For more about the Concerts for the Human Family, contact Jeremy Tackett, 212-716-6042.

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