Longest Night: Exploring the Winter Solstice

The winter solstice is opportunity for attentiveness that honors grief, welcomes lament, and meets the needs of those who are blue at Christmas. Join us as we create sacred space for people living through dark times while holding space for healing and hope. The program will take us from the science of the Solstice to the pagan worship which surrounds the events leading to seeing that the darkness of the day still allows for the coming light of Christ. The mood will be somber but enlightening. Please join us online as we take an earth care perspective and examine the longest night of the year. We encourage you to bring a candle or light of some kind with you to the program.

WEBINAR DATE: Sunday, December 21, 2025
Time: 7:30 pm Eastern (6:30 Central, 5:30 Mountain, 4:30 Pacific)
PRESENTER: Barbara Hassall and Lucy Youngblood

SPEAKER BIOS

Lucy Youngblood sees God as artist and composer. The trees are theme and variation, the ocean is a symphony, and the platypus is fusion jazz.  Years ago, she served a congregation that was surrounded by a national forest.  It was easy to see the beauty of Creation, but hard to see the effects of pollution and climate change from there.  She is a parish associate at Shandon Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC, and a graduate of Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, GA.  

Barbara Hassall is an Elder at the Sanctuary Church in Fort Lauderdale, holding the office of Clerk of Session. She has been the Moderator of  Tropical Florida Presbytery and Commissioner to General Assembly. Barbara serves as the Chairperson of the Florida Presbyterian Assistance Network (FLAPDAN), member of the Leadership Council, and commissioner to the South Atlantic Synod. In her spare time, she enjoys functioning as Pulpit Supply for her Presbytery.