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Like Jesus being tempted in the wilderness, during this pandemic we are in a wilderness being tempted by fear, worry and sorrow – but we do not walk alone. God is doing a work of transformation in us, and guiding our journey forward into the new church, the church that God needs us to be. (Time: 8:42.)

Video Transcript

This is Bishop Hughes in the Diocese of Newark. And I want to talk with you about these past nine weeks, this journey that we have been on – in particular the way in which this journey is viewed by me as the spiritual leader of this diocese.

There is a hunger emergency going on in our state right now as a result of the pandemic and the large number of people who have lost their jobs. Bishop Hughes reminds us that one of the ways that we love our neighbors is to help them have enough food to eat.

Bishop Hughes looks back at these eight Sundays that we have not been in our church buildings and that we have worshiped from at home, and asks, "What is God doing with us right now?"

 
Bishop Hughes invites all of us to do something that might be a first for us – to write down our prayers during this pandemic and share them with the diocese, as a way to help each other. (Time: 4:13.)

Video Transcript

This is Bishop Hughes in the Diocese of Newark and I want to talk with you about prayer. Prayer has been on my mind, and especially because I keep wondering about the specific prayers we might be saying on our own in response to living through a pandemic.

There can be a point when dealing with this pandemic where not only does our spiritual health need help but our emotional and mental health need help. Bishop Hughes reminds us that there is no shame in asking for that.

Even though we're under a stay-at-home order and have to maintain physical distance, we're still connected by our hearts, by our loves and by God's love for each of us – and we can continue to nurture our connection to God and to each other without leaving our houses.

At the first Easter, the women were going to tell the disciples the tomb was empty when they ran into Jesus. Bishop Hughes asks, where are WE running into Jesus?

As we prepare to celebrate Easter in our homes instead of our church buildings, Bishop Hughes reflects on what the story of Hagar teaches about how God can help us deal with circumstances beyond our control.

Holy Week this year is going to be a very different experience for us. Bishop Hughes talks about how we can still find holiness in it. (Time: 4:59.)

Video Transcript

This is Bishop Hughes in the Diocese of Newark. I want to talk with you today about Holy Week, and Holy Week in this time that we live in. It is going to be a very different experience of Holy Week this year. One where we enter in individually, where we enter in in families, where we enter in with a loved one or maybe by ourselves and we enter in to Holy Week in our own homes.

Though we may be physically distant we are connected to a God who loves us, and we are connected to each other, and all of the people that God loves. We may be in the wilderness for a while but I promise you every day of that wilderness we will be a sign of life or we will see a sign of life. (Time: 5:30.)

(The barking you hear in the background is Bishop Hughes' "Canine to the Ordinary," Abbey.)

Video Transcript

This is Bishop Hughes of the Diocese of Newark, and I want to talk with you today about signs of life in the wilderness.