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And the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon all those men and women who have done and preserved in these things and will make a home and dwelling place in them. And they will be children of the heavenly Father, Whose works they do. And they are spouses, brothers, and mothers of our Lord Jesus Christ.We are spouses when the faithful soul is united by the Holy Spirit to our Lord Jesus Christ. We are brothers, moreover, when we do the will of His Father Who is in heaven; mothers when we carry Him in our heart and body through love and a pure and sincere conscience; and give Him birth through holy activity, which must shine before others by example."
These are the words our Father Francis in a later admonition and exhortation to the Brothers and Sisters of Penance. We are an "Easter People" ~ living the new life that Christ won for us through his life, death, and resurrection. It is equally true that we are also a "Christmas People" ~ bringing this new life to a world through our daily saying YES to the will of the Father and giving birth to Him through our acts of charity. It was God's love for us - his divine charity, that came in the flesh for us in Bethlehem so many years ago. Now, as followers of Jesus, we are called to make that divine love physically present again ~ to make Yonkers another Bethlehem, where Christ can find a home through our acts of kindness. By loving our neighbors and being good to them we make Christ present and and will attract new members to the Body of Christ by our shining example.
May God bless you and your family this Christmas season and remember...
We are a Christmas People!
~ Fr. Andrew
Enjoy the messages of the Saints and of our Pope and U.S. Bishops.
- Erma
Without love, nothing is pleasing to God.
- Pope St. Clement of Rome
It is of no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our
preaching.
- St. Francis of Assisi
Watch how you live. Your lives may be the only Gospel your sisters and your brothers will ever read.
- St. Dom Helder Camara
We believe that the Word became flesh and that we receive His flesh in the
Lord’s Supper. How then can we fail to believe that he really dwells in us?
- St. Hilary of Poitiers
How different our world would be if everyone could accept the Good News of
Jesus and share the vision of faith.
- U.S. Bishops
Peace is the companion of humility.
- St. Hildegard of Bingen
If you are what you are meant to be, you will set the world on fire.
- St. Catherine of Siena
Never let the thought of Jesus leave your mind but meditate constantly on
the mysteries of the cross and the anguish of his mother as she stood
beneath the cross.
- St. Clare of Assisi
The cross of Christ is the true ground and chief cause of Christian hope.
- Pope St. Leo the Great
Washing one another’s feet means above all tirelessly forgiving one another, beginning together ever anew.
- Pope Benedict XVI
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; The calf and the young lion shall browse together, with a little child to guide them.
Isaiah 6:11
My St. James/ St. Joseph students in lower Manhattan have been collecting toilet and paper towel rolls in preparation for making their Advent wreaths. Some may be hand-crafted of real or artificial materials and the rolls turn into candles. The children will soon learn the candles symbolize the light of Christ coming into the world. The evergreen symbolizes renewal in Christ, the kind of renewal hoped for by those before Christ's first coming, and the ultimate renewal we long for in Christ's second coming. The circular shape symbolizes the completeness of God. It is likely the symbolism came after the actual wreath was conceived of, but that does not detract from the power of the symbols.
The candle colors are derived from the traditional liturgical colors of Advent and Christmas, purple and white respectively. The rose color likely is derived from an old Catholic custom of wearing rose colored vestments on the third Sunday in Advent (and fourth Sunday in Lent), called Gaudete Sunday, i.e. "Rejoice" Sunday. Each candle is first lit on the appropriate Sunday of Advent, and then the candles may be lit each day as a part of the individual or family's daily prayers. Certain candles have been given various names.
Candle 1. Hope (purple)
Candle 2. Peace (purple)
Candle 3. Joy (rose; the corresponding Sunday is "Gaudete Sunday")
Candle 4. Love (purple)
Candle 5. Christ (white)
Advent prayers are focused on waiting, watching, and hoping for the Lord's coming. As we compete with toy advertisements, Happy Holiday greetings (What ever happened to MERRY CHRISTMAS!) and yes, Santa Claus, Advent is needed! It reminds us and our children what we indeed are waiting for.
The God of Hope, has brought us Peace.
The God of Joy, Guide us with his Love,
With the Love our Father in Heaven He has given us His little child to lead us! Let us be an example to our children and show them the “reason for the season!”
May the divine light of Christ's heart
be with you and your family this Christmas
Frances
Article brought to you by: Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)The Word took our nature from Mary
By St. Athanasius
10/1/2010
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
The body of the Lord was a true body: It was a true body because it was the same as ours. Mary, you see, is our sister, for we are all born from Adam.
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (Catholic Online) – We present an excerpt from a letter of St. Athanasius, considered one of the champions of the Council of Nicea in 325 AD:
A letter of St Athanasius
“The Word took to himself the sons of Abraham, says the Apostle, and so had to be like his brothers in all things. He had then to take a body like ours. This explains the fact of Mary’s presence: she is to provide him with a body of his own, to be offered for our sake. Scripture records her giving birth, and says: She wrapped him in swaddling clothes.
"Her breasts, which fed him, were called blessed. Sacrifice was offered because the child was her firstborn. Gabriel used careful and prudent language when he announced his birth. He did not speak of “what will be born in you” to avoid the impression that a body would be introduced into her womb from outside; he spoke of “what will be born from you,” so that we might know by faith that her child originated within her and from her.
"By taking our nature and offering it in sacrifice, the Word was to destroy it completely and then invest it with his own nature, and so prompt the Apostle to say: This corruptible body must put on incorruption; this mortal body must put on immortality.
"This was not done in outward show only, as some have imagined. This is not so. Our Savior truly became man, and from this has followed the salvation of man as a whole. Our salvation is in no way fictitious, nor does it apply only to the body. The salvation of the whole man, that is, of soul and body, has really been achieved in the Word himself.
"What was born of Mary was therefore human by nature, in accordance with the inspired Scriptures, and the body of the Lord was a true body: It was a true body because it was the same as ours. Mary, you see, is our sister, for we are all born from Adam.
"The words of St John, the Word was made flesh, bear the same meaning, as we may see from a similar turn of phrase in St Paul: Christ was made a curse for our sake. Man’s body has acquired something great through its communion and union with the Word. From being mortal it has been made immortal; though it was a living body it has become a spiritual one; though it was made from the earth it has passed through the gates of heaven.
"Even when the Word takes a body from Mary, the Trinity remains a Trinity, with neither increase nor decrease. It is for ever perfect. In the Trinity we acknowledge one Godhead, and thus one God, the Father of the Word, is proclaimed in the Church." Read more...
