Introducing a Vita Poetica Selection

Why another journal? Why now?

Letter from Co-Editor Caroline Langston

It’s been a strange ten months since Vita Poetica’s mission—to bring DC-area (and beyond!) writers and artists of faith together in new ways—became an unexpected online adventure.

So much has been lost to us during this time of quarantine—the regular embraces and enthusiastic conversations over coffee and wine that sharpen our artistic perspectives; the enveloping kenosis of worshiping alongside fellow congregants in our faith communities; the scratch of pen on paper as we help line-edit our friends’ manuscripts.

But so much also has been gained. In this COVID season, we’ve hearkened back to the oral and epistolary conventions—now conducted via Facebook and Zoom—that undergird the scriptural traditions that guide our lives. We’re finding new ways to read and understand together, while apart. At the same time, our work expresses the longing we feel for that future moment when we can all—from across the DMV—get together once again.

So herewith, Vita Poetica is launching a selection of works, a discrete online journal that gives a snapshot of what we’re producing and how we’re thinking. We’re hoping it can spark conversation and future engagement among us, and also serve as a record of this unprecedented time in which we’re living. We’re starting off the series with a discrete selection drawn from our contributors and friends—but we hope that you, too, will consider becoming part of the conversation.