Praying compline with my dying dog
During her dog's last night, Katy Shevel turned to the ancient prayer of Compline to offer a sacred goodbye filled with love, grief, and abiding joy.
More Stories from this Author
A blessing for when to stay or to leave
A prayer for those facing tough decisions by Katy Shevel.
Staying, leaving and the blessings of Orpah and Ruth
Ruth stayed. Orpah left. Both were blessed. Choosing the right ending requires courage, faith and grace, writes Katy Shevel.
Holy yearnings: a prayer for the end of the year
This prayer by Katy Shevel is for anyone feeling the weight of nostalgia, the ache of loss, or the hope of new beginnings.
When friendships change
Katy Shevel reflects on the challenge and gift of maintaining friendships through adulthood and life's different seasons.
AI, humanity and the unveiling mirror
Artificial intelligence reflects our imperfections, but that is not the whole story, writes Katy Shevel.
Tea time and liturgical time: Finding grace in repetition
Katy Shevel's daily ritual of drinking tea provides punctuation and structure to her days — and reminds her that she is held within the broader design of God’s time.
Forgiveness: Drawing close to the wound
What happens when you are denied forgiveness? Katy Shevel shares her experience and how she is finding a way forward.
We don’t create — We reclaim
After a season of upheaval, Katy Shevel reflects on what it means to reclaim something.
Pilgrimage reflections from the messy middle
What's the difference between transition and transformation, wonders Katy Shevel?
What is Epiphany?
Katy Shevel briefly explores the historical meaning of Epiphany in the Eastern and Western churches, as well as the use of Star Words in modern Protestant congregations.
What is Advent?
When did Advent start? Why decorate with purple? When did the Advent wreath become popular? Katy Shevel answers all these questions and more.
A Thanksgiving benediction
Katy Shevel offers a benediction to use in a Thanksgiving worship service or over your Thanksgiving meal.
Why was Miriam punished for speaking out?
Katy Shevel wrestles with Numbers 12 where Miriam is punished by God for questioning Moses.
Choosing our seasons
Rev. Katy Shevel processes her recent divorce through the lens of Ecclesiastes 3. Are we subject to the patterns of life? Or do we have agency in naming our own “seasons”?
Small but steady witness: Big lessons from little churches
Katy Shevel reflects on the lessons she learned in pastoring a small church and the value of these congregations.
A prayer for milestones
A prayer for the transitions of life.
“Ode to Joy” and the harrowing of hell
Katy Shevel contemplates Christ's descent into hell on Holy Saturday through the lens of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Ode to Joy."
The blank canvas of winter
I love waking up early on a quiet winter morning to a fresh snowfall. I am perennially amazed when overnight everything is..
Beauty in virtual worship
Like many others, my church pivoted to virtual-only worship and programming for much of January. It was a difficult decision, but one..
Smell, memory and Christmas
One whiff of anise seed transports me back to childhood Christmases in a little Iowa farmhouse… Every Christmas, my late grandmother made..
How playing piano taught me to pray
It was one of my very first nights at seminary. Some new friends and I explored the town: walking the Princeton campus,..
Pastoring through a computer screen
It was September 2020. I had just ended a five-year stretch as a solo pastor, having ushered my small rural congregation through..
We carry ourselves wherever we go: Post-quarantine wisdom from the Desert Mothers
Quarantine is a period of social isolation to help arrest the spread of disease. Turns out, it is also apparently the time..