Welcome to Advent! Our Journey to Bethlehem has Begun! Below are some informational tidbits, prayers, dates and events of note!
Quick Calendar:Sunday, December 4th- Pastoral Plan Town Hall, 6 pm. How are we doing? Come share your voice! We are listening!
Thursday December 8th- Feast of the Immaculate Conception
Sacred Heart- Vigil,( December 7) 6 pm
Sts. Martha and Mary- December 8, 8 am
St. Rose of Lima- December 8, 7 pm
Saturday, December 10th- 12Noon- Rosary for Those Affected By Abuse, Sacred Heart Church- Members of the Archdiocesan Office for Pastoral Outreach and Support will be available to talk after the Rosary.
CCC Advent Mission: "In the Cool of the Night"
Sunday, Dec. 11 St. Rose 4 pm with Pageant
Monday, Dec. 12 Sacred Heart 7 pm Penance Service
Tuesday, Dec. 13 Sts. Martha & Mary 7 pm Mass and Social
Please join us each night and receive the graces of this holy season.
Wednesday, December 14th- Family Rosary Night at St. Rose
Saturday, Dec. 24 Christmas Eve
Masses: 4pm in all Churches plus a Mass at Sacred Heart Hall
10 pm - Sts. Martha and Mary and Midnight Sacred Heart
Sunday, Dec. 25 Christmas Day
Masses: 9 am at St. Rose 10 am at Sts. Martha and Mary 11 am at Sacred Heart
Ongoing: Eucharistic Adoration(with Divine Mercy Chaplet)
Every Friday 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Sacred Heart Church
More Info and Prayers for this November and December!
Sunday, Nov. 27 First Sunday of Advent
The journey begins- and the preparations are underway. The first of the candles are lit- the pink one we light on the third -Gaudete or Joyful Sunday, when we lighten up and prepare to welcome the Christ child just two weeks away. Along with the traditional Advent calendar, please put a small Advent wreath on the table to gather around throughout these days- it’s a simple and powerful symbol that every family is a Holy Family.
Blessing of the Advent Wreath
Lord our God, we praise you for your Son, Jesus Christ: he is Emmanuel, the hope of the peoples, he is the wisdom that teaches and guides us, he is the Savior of every nation. Lord God, let your blessing come upon us as we light the candles of this wreath. May the wreath and its light be a sign of Christ’s promise to bring us salvation. May he come quickly and not delay. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Tuesday, Dec. 6 Feast of St. Nicholas
The absence of the “hard facts” of history is not necessarily an obstacle to the popularity of saints, as the devotion to Saint Nicholas shows. Both the Eastern and Western Churches honor him, and it is claimed that after the Blessed Virgin, he is the saint most pictured by Christian artists. And yet, historically, we can pinpoint only the fact that Nicholas was the fourth-century bishop of Myra, a city in Lycia, a province of Asia Minor.
As with many of the saints, however, we’re able to capture the relationship which Nicholas had with God through the admiration which Christians have had for him—an admiration expressed in the colorful stories which have been told and retold through the centuries.
Perhaps the best-known story about Nicholas concerns his charity toward a poor man who was unable to provide dowries for his three daughters of marriageable age. Rather than see them forced into prostitution, Nicholas secretly tossed a bag of gold through the poor man’s window on three separate occasions, thus enabling the daughters to be married. Over the centuries, this particular legend evolved into the custom of gift-giving on the saint’s feast. In the English-speaking countries, Saint Nicholas became, by a twist of the tongue, Santa Claus—further expanding the example of generosity portrayed by this holy bishop. -from Don Miller, OFM
Wednesday, Dec. 7 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor
Prayer for Deceased Veterans
O God, by whose mercy the faithful departed find rest, look kindly on your departed veterans who gave their lives in the service of their country. Grant that through the passion, death, and resurrection of your Son they may share in the joy of your heavenly kingdom and rejoice in you and with your saints forever.
May we mark this day in deep respect, love and gratitude to those who died on that fateful day, And strive to honor them by acts of peace, mercy and love today. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Music: For Freedom by Avalon
Thursday, Dec. 8 Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary
This Holy Day of Obligation has only been around for about 160 years celebrating that Mary conceived without sin. This is a great time to put up our creches, I think of the figures my parents bought, beaten up over the years, missing parts, but still beautiful, like each of us. In its present form the custom of displaying figures depicting the birth of Jesus Christ owes its origin to St. Francis of Assisi, who made the Christmas crèche or manger for Christmas Eve of 1223.
Blessing of a Creche
God of every nation and people, from the very beginning of creation you have made manifest your love: when our need for a Savior was great you sent your Son to be born of the Virgin Mary. To our lives he brings joy and peace, justice, mercy, and love. Lord, bless all who look upon this manger; may it remind us of the humble birth of Jesus, and raise our thoughts to him, who is God-with-us and Savior of all, and who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Music: Real by Nichole Nordeman
Blessing of a Christmas Tree
Lord our God, we praise you for the light of creation: the sun, the moon, and the stars of the night. We praise you for the light of Israel- the Law, the prophets, and the wisdom of the Scriptures. We praise you for Jesus Christ, your Son: he is Emmanuel, God-with-us, the Prince of Peace, who fills us with the wonder of your love. Lord God, let your blessing come upon us as we illumine this tree.
May the light and cheer it gives be a sign of the joy that fills our hearts.
May all who delight in this tree come to the knowledge and joy of salvation.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Music: Family Tree by Dave Barnes