Silence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent

This Advent season, we are reading Silence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent by Enuma Okoro. We have heard from Enuma Okoro in the Animate: Practices series in 2016. You can read our post about her here: Enuma Okoro.  Since then, Okoro was recognized on the 100 most inspiring women in Nigeria list in 2018, and this fall she is the Literary Guest-In-Residence at The BACASItaly Center for Culture, Arts and Science in Vallo di Diano, southern Italy. See her full bio, as well as links to articles she has written & her TED Talk on her website here: https://www.enumaokoro.com/enuma.

According to the book description at The Upper Room Bookstore:

Usually when we think of the Advent story, Mary, Joseph, and the angel Gabriel come to mind. Okoro approaches Advent a little differently, inviting us to sit for a while with Zechariah and Elizabeth and the story of how they came to bear their only son, John.

We'll be reading through this book together November 20th - December 18th. That means we'll be a little ahead of Advent, which officially begins December 1st this year, and we'll finish a week before Christmas. This gives all of us a little extra space to prepare our houses, families, hearts, minds, or whatever else needs to be prepared to really meet Advent this year. Looking forward to the journey!

Who is Enuma Okoro?

Enuma Okoro presents the 6th session in the Animate:Practices series - Service: The Needs Right Around You. 

From the Spark House website: 

Born in New York City, Enuma Okoro is a Nigerian-American author and speaker raised in four countries on three continents. Her academic background and training is in Psychology, Communications, Theology, and Counseling. She is a former Editor-in-Chief for SpotLight™ Quarterly Magazine, a certified Spiritual Director in the Ignatian tradition, and she holds a Master of Divinity degree from Duke University Divinity School, of which she is the former Director for the Center for Theological Writing. Enuma has written two books and co-authored two others. Her first book,The Reluctant Pilgrim: A Moody Somewhat Self-Indulgent Introvert's Search for Spiritual Community, was recognized by USA Book News as a 2010 Best Books Award-Winning Finalist in "Religion-Christianity."

Five fast facts

1. Lives between America, Nigeria, and France
2. Once dressed up as a poem for Halloween
3. Has been featured on ABC's Good Morning America, NPR, The Atlantic Monthly,The Guardian, The Washington Post, and CNN's In America
4. Was the first Black woman to preach at the historic American Church in Paris–Martin Luther King Jr. was the first black man to preach there in 1965
5. Loves dogs, sometimes more than humans