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Posted on 12/03/2006 12:12:32 AM PST by Salvation
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 Week 1: Saturday The light of the moon will be like that of the sun and the light of the sun will be seven times greater (like the light of seven days). On the day the Lord binds up the wounds of His people, He will heal the bruises left by His blows. (Isaiah 30:26) Reflection God, while His ways are still mysterious to us, is not on the sidelines of our lives. Just as Isaiah predicted, He has come, in Jesus, to bind up the hurt of His people, and through Jesus’ presence is still active in the world. Advent Action Find an opportunity today to be the hands of God, and "bind up" someone’s hurt. Say a kind word and listen with compassion to someone who is suffering. Before going to bed, say a decade of the rosary for your mother. Prayer Lord, flood me with Your light, and help me to brighten the lives of those whom I find most dark. |
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| Other Articles by Fr. Jack Peterson Printer Friendly Version |
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| Experience the Joy of Advent | ||
Advent is a season of joyful expectation. There are many sources of our joy during Advent. I would like to take a look at three of them: experiencing God's tender mercy, receiving a special gift, and serving others.
The Church watches three major figures as it prepares for Christmas: Scrooge, Jimmy Stewart and the Grinch. Actually, they are Isaiah the prophet, John the Baptist, and Mary, the Mother of God. The Gospel for the Second Sunday of Advent turns our attention to John the Baptist. John was the last of the Old Testament prophets and the first of the New.
Prophets have the job of calling us out of our stubbornness and demanding change. As the first New Testament prophet, John had the supreme privilege of introducing the whole world to Christ, the promised Messiah, and pointing out the surest path to a profound encounter with Jesus, the way of repentance. John attracted huge crowds because he spoke the truth in love. He helped people recognize the serious consequences of their sins and convince them that God is deeply pleased when we acknowledge them, humbly ask for forgiveness, and commit to avoiding them in the future.
I have found that one of the great joys of my life is receiving God's mercy in the Sacrament of Penance. In confession, I have found God's goodness and mercy to be beyond measure. I never cease to be amazed that God is willing to forgive me time after time. If John's baptism of repentance was so essential to the first coming of Christ, it will be equally essential for the coming of Christ anew into our hearts this Christmas. The fundamental connection of repentance with Christmas is why so many of the classic Christmas movies are stories about conversion.
Another Advent joy is the blessing of receiving a precious gift. When I was about 13 years old, I asked my parents for an over-the-top gift for Christmas. I never expected actually to receive it, but I tossed my wish out there anyway, as kids often do. When I woke up on Christmas morning, there was a motorcycle near our tree. I was completely overwhelmed. I do not remember at what point that year I finally stopped saying "awesome." To this day, I am astonished that my parents sacrificed for me and provided that present.
As I got older, I was able to realize that that gift from my parents was a very pale reminder of the greatest gift that the world has ever known - the Gift of God's only-begotten Son. My parents' sacrificial love represented in that gift was, in fact, a tiny little glimpse of our heavenly Father's sacrificial love poured out in the gift of Emmanuel, God-with-us. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Prince of Peace, the Mighty God, the Wonderful Counselor, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, was born of Mary, wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a borrowed manger. Is there a greater gift? Is there a greater cause for joy?
Finally, there is the joy that comes from serving others in love. We all have so much more than we need, yet God wants to give us even more. The key to this quandary is to give the gift of ourselves and what we have to those in need. Advent provides us with many opportunities to serve our families and those who have less - the poor, the elderly, the lonely, and the suffering.
A few years ago, the junior class president at Marymount University arranged to have a 30-person choir from a local middle school sing at our annual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. The children who sang were visibly thrilled to be at our event and our Advent tradition took on a joyful, new twist. I am sure that making those arrangements was an extra burden for our student leader at the end of the semester. Yet the effort to serve both the kids and the Marymount community added remarkable joy to our campus. Caring service comes with a built-in joy. Make it your intention to be a servant this Advent and you will know the joy of the Lord.
Advent is indeed a time of joyful expectation. Joy comes wrapped in many packages. Take the time to humbly repent of your sins, ask for the grace of God to fully appreciate the gift of the Christ-child, and commit yourself to serving those in need this Advent and you will enter into the joy of the Lord.
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Week 2: Second Sunday of Advent Prayer for the Advent Wreath Lord, our God, we praise You for Your Son, Jesus Christ, for He is Emmanuel, the Hope of all people.
Waiting We light a candle today, a small dim light against a world that often seems forbidding and dark. But we light it because we are a people of hope, a people whose faith is marked by an expectation that we should always be ready for the coming of the Master. The joy and anticipation of this season is captured beautifully in the antiphons of hope from the monastic liturgies: See! The ruler of the earth shall come, the Lord who will take from us the heavy burden of our exile |
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Week 2: Monday Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, He comes with vindication; With divine recompense He comes to save you. (Isaiah 35: 4) Reflection In a world where political instability threatens long established order, where crime in our country seems out of control and unstoppable, there seems to be plenty to be afraid of. Isaiah reminds us that God’s power is beyond anything on this earth that could frighten us. "Be strong" and "fear not" this Advent. Advent Action Send a Christmas card to a young person you know and care for. Remind them that you are praying for them, and remind them of the faith significance of the upcoming holiday. Prayer Lord, You are my strength and with You here, my own fears fade right away. |
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Week 2: Tuesday Then will the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; then will the lame leap like a stag, then the tongue of the dumb will sing. Streams will burst forth in the desert, and rivers in the steppe. The burning sands will become pools, and the thirsty ground, springs of water; the abode where the jackals lurk will be a marsh for the reed and papyrus. (Isaiah 35: 5-7) Reflection In Advent we celebrate the miraculous transformations Isaiah talks about: the lame leaping and streams of water bursting forth in the desert. We also celebrate seemingly ordinary events, the birth of two babies, John the Baptist and Jesus, that are part of the unfolding of God’s salvation plan. In every event of our lives, God is there, with His mercy and love and purpose. God desires that all should feel His mercy and love just as the desert sands would experience the overflowing spring. Advent Action Let God’s mercy and love operate in your own life. Make up with a friend or family member you have been fighting with. Prayer Lord, may I joyfully overflow the confining boundaries I have set to my love. |
Our Lady of Guadalupe: Protectress of the Unborn
Was Our Lady of Guadalupe Wrong?
METHODIST CHURCH DISPLAYS VIRGIN OF GUADALUPE
GUADALUPE DEVOTION IS CROSSING INTO PROTESTANT DENOMINATIONS
Relic From Guadalupe Tilma to Tour U.S.
The Amazing Truth of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Celebrating 470 years of an ongoing miracle, the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe 1531
Science Stunned by Virgin of Guadalupe´s Eyes
OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE [Read only]
Our Lady of Guadlalupe
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December 12, 2006    Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe Old Calendar: Our Lady of Guadalupe (Third Class, U.S.)
In 1910 Our Lady of Guadalupe was declared Patroness of Latin America, and in 1945 Pope Pius XII declared Her to be the Empress of all the Americas. She appeared to an Indian convert named Juan Diego on December 9, 1531. She left a marvelous portrait of herself on the mantle of Juan Diego. This miraculous image has proved to be ageless, and is kept in the shrine built in her honor, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
"Hear me and understand well, my son the least, that nothing should frighten or grieve you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. Am I not here, who is your Mother? Are you not under my protection? Am I not your health? Are you not happily within my fold? What else do you wish? Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything." — Our Lady to Juan Diego
Juan Diego obeyed the request, but the bishop was skeptical regarding the message, even though he perceived that Juan was a humble, and well meaning Catholic. Juan reported the bishop's doubt to Our Lady at Tepeyac Hill, and she asked him to return to the bishop once again, bearing the same message. The bishop once again heard the story, and told Juan Diego to ask Our Lady for a sign that it was indeed herself that wished for the church to be built. When he returned to the hill, Mary gave Juan Diego such a sign. Miraculously, roses appeared on the hill in the middle of winter, and Juan gathered them in his tilma, or cloak. Our Lady arranged the roses in his tilma with her own hands, and Juan returned to the bishop's presence. When Juan released the tilma, allowing the flowers to fall to the floor, it was revealed that a miraculous image of Our Lady had imprinted itself on his tilma (see above). The bishop immediately fell to his knees, and came to believe in Juan Diego's message. A church was built on the spot of the apparition, as Mary had requested, and 8 million people converted to Catholicism in a short period of time upon hearing of or viewing the miraculous image of Our Lady. The tilma of Juan Diego has been the subject of much modern research. The tilma, woven out of coarse cactus fiber, should have disintegrated after 20 years, but although over 500 years have passed the tilma is still in perfect condition. The pupils of Mary in the picture reflect the Indians and clergy present at the time of the first revelation of the image. No paint was used, and chemical analysis has not been able to identify the color imprint. Additionally, studies have revealed that the stars on Mary's mantle match exactly what a Mexican would have seen in the sky in December of 1531. Patron: The Americas; pro-life movement. Things to Do:
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Week 2: Wednesday "Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden light." (Matthew 11:28-30) Reflection Are there burdens I can let go of? Sometimes we make other people’s problems our own. What burdens that are not my own can I give to God? Remember the old phrase, "Let go and let God." Advent Action Send a card to a friend or loved one who lost a family member during this year. Let them know you are praying for them and thinking of them this Christmas.
Prayer Lord, I give over all my cares to Your most Sacred Heart that I may be at rest in You. |
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In the winter of 1531, a poor, 57-year-old Aztec Indian living five miles outside of Mexico City encountered a miraculous happening on his way to morning Mass. First he heard strange music coming from Tepeyac Hill, and then he heard a woman's voice calling his name. Juan Diego climbed the hill and encountered a young woman, appearing to be of his own people in physical appearance and dress. The woman identified herself as the Virgin Mary, and told Juan Diego to ask the bishop of Mexico City to build a church on the hill to assist in the conversion of the nation and be a source of consolation to the people.