Ordinary Time Greens

Swiss chard and chives are just some of the
'shades of green' growing  in my garden.

We're in the midst of the season after Pentecost--also known as Ordinary Time. It's the longest period of the church year and because it emphasizes Christian life it allows for an immense amount of symbols and visuals in worship. This is a time of growth. Where our studio is located in Pennsylvania we are in the midst of the growing season in the garden. Our raspberries are coming in, the small tomatoes are red, the larger tomatoes are heading toward their full size and there is an endless array of green all about. As we see the gardens and the produce at the farmer's market change  we have an appreciation of why the liturgical color for this season is green. It is a season of growth, new life and building up of the church, and therefore a time of hope.

See the entire picture of this stole here.

Ordinary Time certainly doesn't need to be 'ordinary'. How can you celebrate the mystery of Christ during this time? We saw this green batik fabric that has been dyed on a soft pima cotton and knew it was perfect for Ordinary Time....so many greens within the one piece of cloth! We've turned it into a stole embellished with a tree of life cross--a symbol told of in Genesis and the Book of Revelations. Using this cross also causes us to think of John Calvin's description of the tree being a symbol and memorial of the life received from God. What do you see and how do you embrace this time of growth?