Bishop in the Grove is just shy of three years old. The coming Solstice is its anniversary.

I’ve written here about my doubts, my interests, my questions and my fears. I’ve engaged with Pagans, polytheists, Druids, Christians, atheists, Buddhists, Humanists, and many a wayward Witch. I’ve written my way into and out-of Paganism, and I’ve found myself reoriented back toward the religion of my youth. This blog has documented a great many shifts in my thinking; some exciting for my readership, and others not so much. I’ve offended people, challenged people, encouraged people, praised people, and in all of it done my best to be honest, kind and thoughtful.

I’ve fallen short a few times, but I’ve given it my best.

And now it’s time to say goodbye to this blog.

I’m no longer walking in that grove I entered into back in 2010. I’m investing myself in a completely different study, one that is not the blending of Pagan and Christian paths that I thought it might be. I’m building community with other Christians — on ground and in person — and I’m planning to undergo a focused course in spiritual direction after the 1st of the year. I’m actively discerning what feels like a “call”, and considering the possibility that this call is one to ministry. I’m not certain whether this is a call to ordained or lay ministry, or whether it might just be a call to a simple Christian practice. But I know that my heart is being pulled to serve others. That’s how this whole wonderful mess got started.

Writing on this blog allowed me to cultivate a voice I never knew I had. It validated the part of me that isn’t the performer, or the “minor-league celebrity,” or any of the other things I’ve been known for in my music career. It validated something much simpler and more ordinary, but also much richer and more complex: the pull toward the Divine.

I will continue to write about my journey on my new web journal, Holy, and I will keep BITG online as a web archive. I’m looking forward to using the new Ghost blogging platform, which emphasizes simplicity in web publishing. It’s much less dependent on the “bells and whistles” you might find in a WordPress backend. I’ve given thought to blogging my way through the Episcopal Lectionary, or maybe even the Daily Office. I’m not sure yet. But feel free to follow along, if you’d like.

I pray that all those who have visited this blog and contributed to my spiritual journey continue to grow in your own spiritual lives. I pray that you be led to the spiritual homes that nurture you, and that inspire you to engage fully with the world you live in. I pray that you increase your capacity to love, and that you extend this love outward and inward without reservation.

Thank you for walking with me.

Blessings, Teo