Below is the text of the bishop’s sermon offered during The Great Vigil of Easter at St. George’s, Summerville on Holy Saturday, April 4, 2026: Easter begins in darkness. Early on the first day of the week, before the first light of dawn, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had…
Dear Diocesan Family, As we approach Holy Lent in the middle of Black History Month, I want to take a moment to remind us all of the courage upon which our diocese is anchored. Our diocesan Racial Justice and Reconciliation Commission has done outstanding work convening conversations and written materials chronicling the lives of brave ancestors in…
Dear Friends in the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina, In his message on Sunday, Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe said “like Jesus, we live in frightening times.” He reminded us of the importance of rooting our lives in “Christ’s ministry of justice, reconciliation, and love.” As events have unfolded in communities across the nation, particularly in…
Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley preached the following sermon on January 22, 2026 during the board meeting for the National Association of Episcopal Schools (NAES) in New York City. The Most Reverend Sean Rowe, presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church, was the celebrant of the service. Unraveling the Tale In recent weeks, I’ve been reminded how important…
A Reflection from Bishop Ruth in the Week of Dr. King’s Birthday In recent weeks, I have been reminded of the spiritual necessity of slowing down. I was given that gift on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, where the landscape itself resists haste. Walking where generations have walked, praying where centuries of prayers have risen,…
Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley offers a word to the people of the diocese on this 10th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Emanuel Nine, remembering the victims and survivors of the horrific massacre at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston on June 17, 2015. With gratitude for all the work being done by the people of…
Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany – Holy Cross Faith Memorial, Pawleys IslandSunday, February 9, 2025 Good morning Holy Cross Faith Memorial. I’m so happy to be back with you; I’ve been missing you. Thank you for your ministry in this place. Thank you, Father Wil and to your whole team for all you do to…
St. Peter’s, Charleston – Epiphany 2025 – January 9, 2025 at 6 pmBishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley shared a sermon for the first service in the next chapter of the historic St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Charleston (West Ashley), as it looks to reopen later this year. Epiphany is the time when we see the light. The…
March 29, 2024 – Good Friday – Grace Church Cathedral, CharlestonWatch the video of this service on the Grace Church Cathedral YouTube page at this link(the video should begin at her sermon, around 45:20) Blessed Good Friday. The first thing I want to say to you is thank you. Thank you, Grace, for all of…
July 30, 2023 – Ninth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 12A) There is a vault deep inside the Arctic Circle between Norway and the North Pole where open source software is being meticulously preserved for future generations in a decommissioned coal mine. This amazing repository, called the GitHub Arctic Code Vault, includes even the simple explanation…
June 4, 2023 – Trinity Sunday Orion’s belt has always been my favorite constellation—because it is the main one I remember my father teaching me as a child. It was the one we most often looked for together. I learned years ago from a friend about Orion’s neighbor—Pleiades, which is her favorite. I’d never paid…
April 23, 2023 – Third Sunday of Easter Easter week, Nathan and I had the chance to get away. While we were at the beach, I read a novel called Still Life by Sarah Winman—some of you may know it. Set mostly in Italy just after World War II, it tells the story of unlikely…
