Advent begins on November 29th (Sunday). Please join us as we prepare through prayer, reflection and sacrificial offerings, for Christ’s birth and our hope for his eventual second coming!
May this season renew our commitment toward helping our fellow brothers and sisters and remember that when we help the poor, the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the sick, the homebound and those in prison through corporal works of mercy, we are living Christ’s Greatest Commandment to love the Father above all else, in body, mind and spirit, and to love our neighbor as ourself.
Advent begins four (4) Sundays before the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) and Ends at the Mid-afternoon Prayer on the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas). We call the days and nights before the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) Advent, which means “coming.” The Church reads and sings about God’s promises. We tell the stories of many holy people: Mary and John the Baptist, Nicholas and Lucy. We strive for the time when God’s love will be seen in all of us, when peace will come through people’s acts of justice and love for each other. But, primarily, we wait. We wait for the blessed hope, the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ, when all will be one, and the Kingdom of God will flourish. The Son of God already came to us, born in the city of David. This is what we celebrate at the Nativity of the Lord, and in Advent, we ready ourselves and our hearts for this birth. But, we also wait for his coming again. We wait for his light to completely extinguish our darkness.
Source: The Year of Grace 2014 © 2013 Archdiocese of Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications, 3949 South Racine Avenue, Chicago IL 60609