Joy!
The liturgical color for this week is rose (or pink) as a reminder to “wake up!” It’s a call to snap out of complacency and prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord, to prepare ourselves with JOY! “Cry out with joy!” we hear in Isaiah 12, for “the Lord is in our midst,” writes Zephaniah.
Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit! Joy goes beyond mere moments of happiness that come and go.
In our Sunday Gospel we hear that John the Baptist brought good, joyful news to his followers:
Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit! Joy goes beyond mere moments of happiness that come and go.
In our Sunday Gospel we hear that John the Baptist brought good, joyful news to his followers:
“...one mightier than I is coming!
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire!”
I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire!”
Ask the Holy Spirit for the gift of joy this Advent and may we all be witnesses of that joy.
While many of us are running about purchasing presents and wrapping gifts in preparation for Christmas, let us take a moment during this Advent season to contemplate one of God’s greatest gifts to us: friendship.
We might be tempted to think that we alone are responsible for the friendships we have created throughout our life. We might think that we alone have chosen our friends.
The Christian writer, C.S. Lewis explains that, in reality, a few small changes in our life would radically alter our group of friends. A little difference in the date of our births, a few more miles between houses, the choice of one school or another, or a topic being raised or not upon a first meeting - any of these are chances that might have kept us apart.
For Christians, however, there are no chances. The Lord has been at work guiding our lives and our friendships. It is by His generosity that we are blessed with the gift of our friends.
Here are a few ways you can extend generosity to your friends this Advent. Pick one or two that you’d like to commit to this season!
- Ask a friend how you can pray for them
- Pray for a different friend by name each day
- Invite a friend to your Bible study or church service (or the Parish Penance Service, 40 Hour Devotion, or Advent Reflection)
- Offer to help a friend with an upcoming task or project
- Give a good spiritual book to a friend who likes to read
- Treat your friend to a nice lunch or morning cup of coffee
- Give an honest and thoughtful compliment to your friends
- Send a kind message to a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while
- Invite a friend to join you and your family in your Christmas activities
- Share something positive about your faith with a friend who might not believe
"This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."
We invoke your intercession, Blessed Mother, Our Lady of Guadalupe. You appear to us in ways we can understand. We pray for all our Catholic Christian brethren who suffer religious persecution for their faith. We ask you to cover them in your mantle, give them courage of heart and firm faith in the presence of your Son in their suffering.
María, madre nuestra, que fuiste elegida por Dios para ser la madre de su Hijo, enséñanos a ser siempre fieles a Dios como lo fuiste tú. Protégenos a nosotros y a todos tus hijos allí donde se encuentren y ayúdanos a siempre dar testimonio de nuestra fe siguiendo tu ejemplo. Te lo pedimos por Cristo, tu Hijo, nuestro Señor.
Amén.