Authors: Alydia Smith

Here is a story of two songs: a hymn from our existing collection and a folk tune I grew up with. VU 468 “Let us talents and tongues employ” (tune LINSTEAD, Jamaican; words by Fred Kaan, 1975) is a joyous communion hymn that is all about abundance: “Loaves abound!” “Linstead...

“Then the prophet Miriam, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing. And Miriam sang to them.” —Exodus 15:20–21a I don’t know what the Holy Family brought with them when they were fleeing Herod. I don’t know...

We, the Gathering Worship editorial team, would like to introduce ourselves to the whole Gathering Worship community! Get to know a bit about who’s behind the names that appear frequently on your page and screen—the people who put it all together. Meet Alydia Smith. What Brought Me to Worship Leadership...

Blessed Season of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, Gathering community, Many of us are starting to plan and prepare for the Advent and Christmas season. Luckily, the ACE issue of Gathering is packed full of great resources that you will want to mark as Favourites,* such as “Welcoming Children into the...

In the past three years, as discussions on mental health and wellness have become more prevalent, pithy sayings like “It’s okay to not be okay” have flooded social media streams. But the way social media has responded to women like Simone Biles, Meghan Markle, and Naomi Osaka, who choose to...

I am the vine; you are the branches “Don’t tear down an entire branch for one perfect fruit.” This is advice from my father, who, in his youth, often did just that for the perfect mango, killing the branch for one fruit. Perhaps this is why I resist the description...

Lenten Greetings and Happy Birthday GatheringWorship.ca! We have been online for about a year now, and with your feedback, support, and patience, we continue to grow our beloved online worship-planning tool. Thank you! For our first birthday, we would like to extend our deep gratitude to all of the amazing...

I do not believe that dismantling racism within the church is possible in my lifetime; like extracting flour from a cake already baked and ingested, it would literally tear us apart. Even though I will never experience a fully anti-racist church, I know that having one is possible and necessary...

Happy New Year! What are your plans for Lent and Easter this year? In Lent, I always plan to say no to something (fast) so that I can say yes to something else (feast). What do you hope to feast on? What are you thinking of fasting from? Here is...