Posted on Wed, Dec 28, 2011
2011 is coming to a rapid close. More than one person has told me of their eagerness to be done with the year. Health issues, job losses, and other setbacks generate hope that something good will materialize once a different calendar is put in place. The start of a new year signifies change. Even if there is nothing momentous on the horizon, January 1st seems to hold the promise of better days to come.
The feast of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (January 4) is well placed. She is a perfect example of what it takes to start anew. Widowed at a relatively young age, she had to find a way to take care of her five children. After living for a time in Italy with her ailing husband, she also had to cross back over the Atlantic to resume life in America. Talk about facing some daunting prospects! Elizabeth joined forces with two other women and opened a school in Baltimore, making it the first free Catholic school in the United States. She also went on to start the Sisters of Charity, which now includes six independent branches across the country. Members of these religious communities work in areas of Catholic education, healthcare, and ministries to the poor.
We often hear that crisis can be the doorway to opportunity. In the life of Elizabeth Ann Seton, this was certainly the case. We don’t know how much time she spent wishing away the year in which her husband died and her fortunes turned sour. What we do know is that she seized the moment to make a difference that would ripple through the country and across the years.
Bright Ideas
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Learn more about the life of Elizabeth Ann Seton, America’s first native-born saint, by clicking here!
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Download my “5 Ways to Start a New Year” poster. Use it as a personal reflection or as a discussion starter for your family or class on how to mark the turning of a new year.
photo © iStockphoto
Posted on Mon, Dec 26, 2011
Sunday, January 1st, is The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God (Solemnity and holy day of obligation). Plan to spend time this week reflecting on the readings and preparing to celebrate the Eucharist. Gather in My Name offers "Question of the Week" - a free resource to incorporate the Sunday Eucharist into your religion classes, family discussions, or community activities.
Question of the Week: What do you keep in your heart to reflect on?
Reading 1 Reflection: Numbers 6:22-27
Reading 2 Reflection: Galations 4:4-7
Theme: Mary reflected
Gospel: Luke 2:16-21
Looking for discussion Questions for the above Reading Reflections? Click here!
Posted on Wed, Dec 21, 2011
A few years ago I received a Christmas catalog that featured a set of snowmen dressed as the Holy Family. The accompanying blurb promised that the trio would restore the true meaning to the season. I dubbed them the “roly-poly Holy Family.”
I suppose that having decorations that at least refer to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph could be considered part of the real reason for Christmas, but snow figures seem to push the boundaries. What’s missing, most of all, is the reality of the Holy Family. These weren’t make-believe characters in a book of fairy tales, but real people who lived through some pretty harrowing times. There were the angelic visits announcing daunting news; the disturbing dreams that roused them from sleep in order to flee a maniacal king who thought nothing of slaughtering innocent babies; and the birth of a child destined to fulfill long-awaited promises of salvation. Theirs was no winter wonderland, but a journey of whole-hearted trust in God for whom “nothing is impossible” (Luke 1:37).
The feast of the Holy Family, usually celebrated on the Sunday following Christmas, marks a time to honor these three flesh-and-blood figures of faith and promise. It is also an occasion to consider the holiness inherent in domestic life. Jesus was born into a family who nurtured, protected, taught, and raised him to adulthood. Although we know little about his life as a youth, it is not hard to picture him doing the same things any well-loved child would do – playing games, learning to read, helping with household chores, moving into larger social circles among his relatives, neighbors, and townspeople. Through it all, Mary and Joseph are there to model what it means to live by faith and to illustrate what makes a family holy.
Bright Ideas
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Use the Feast of the Holy Family (December 30) to plan a family outing. Discuss what makes your family “holy” and what you each admire about the Holy Family.
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Look for ways to extend Christmas charity to families in need. Check with your parish social ministry coordinator about programs and projects that provide services and resources for homeless families.
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Download my prayer for families and use it in your home or classroom.
photo © iStockphoto
Posted on Sun, Dec 18, 2011
Sunday, December 25th, is The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas) Solemnity and Holy Day of Obligation. Plan to spend time this week reflecting on the readings and preparing to celebrate the Eucharist. Gather in My Name offers "Question of the Week" - a free resource to incorporate the Sunday Eucharist into your religion classes, family discussions, or community activities.
Question of the Week: How does Jesus' Incarnation bring you joy?
Reading 1 Reflection: Isaiah 52:7-10
Reading 2 Reflection: Hebrews 1:1-6
Theme: Good News of Great Joy
Gospel: John 1:1-5, 9-14
Looking for discussion Questions for the above Reading Reflections? Click here!
photo © iStockphoto
Posted on Wed, Dec 14, 2011
Each year, decorating the Christmas tree is an occasion for storytelling in our family. The ornaments are the trigger. Some date back to my childhood and before, so they offer an opportunity to relate stories about my parents and grandparents. Others were hand-made during the early years of our marriage. Ron was in the Coast Guard at the time and, on the nights he had to be at the base, I used my free time to paint or crochet bells, stars, and angels. Others were made by our children when they were in pre-school or accumulated during our family travels. Each ornament has a memory attached to it, ones that seem to grow warmer with each year. In some ways, our Christmas tree tells the story of our family.
The liturgies we celebrate during the season of Christmas tell our story as a Christian family. The late Henri Nouwen described it as the fulfillment of our greatest expectations, the birth of God into a world in agony. The simple birth of a child in a faraway time and place is a story some of us have heard hundreds of times, yet it never loses its poignancy. Humble shepherds from nearby fields and noted astrologers from exotic lands both come to pay homage to the Holy Child, Emmanuel – “God with us”. Could there be a better story to tell this and every Christmas?
As Advent passes its mid-point, the anticipation for Christmas grows. Some watch, with justifiable alarm, the ramping up of the season as one of commercialism, completely devoid of its original and sacred meaning. We can’t look to the media or the mall for our sacred stories, however. They are ones we tell around festive trees and holy tables where we come to share our story of hope and boundless joy. As you and your family go about your Christmas activities, may you re-discover that sacred story embedded in your own.
Bright Ideas
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Engage children in the re-telling of the Christmas story. Use the figures in a crèche to illustrate each part of the story as you read it aloud with your family or class.
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Download my blessing for a Christmas tree and use it as part of your home or class celebration.
Posted on Sun, Dec 11, 2011
Sunday, December 18th, is the Fourth Sunday of Advent! Plan to spend time this week reflecting on the readings and preparing to celebrate the Eucharist. Gather in My Name offers "Question of the Week" - a free resource to incorporate the Sunday Eucharist into your religion classes, family discussions, or community activities.
Question of the Week:
The angel reassures Mary. What reassurance does Christmas bring to you?
Reading 1 Reflection: 2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16
Reading 2 Reflection: Romans 16:25-27
Theme: Do not be afraid
Gospel: Luke 1:26-38
Looking for discussion Questions for the above Reading Reflections? Click here!
Posted on Thu, Dec 08, 2011
The “O Antiphons” are a tradition of prayer during a period of time known as the Octave of Advent. Thus, they begin on December 17th and continue through the 23rd. The seven antiphons are traditionally recited prior to the Magnificat during Vespers as part of the Liturgy of the Hours. The eighth day of the octave is Christmas Eve, so Vespers for that evening is the Christmas Vigil.
Most of us are familiar with the simple Advent hymn, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” which forms the last of the seven O Antiphons. In like fashion, each of the preceding antiphons highlights a name of the Messiah. The “O” at the start of each gives them their unique title.
- O Wisdom…
- O Adonai…
- O Root of Jesse…
- O Key of David…
- O Rising Dawn…
- O King of Nations…
- O Emmanuel…
Even if not used as part of the Liturgy of the Hours, the O Antiphons provide a beautiful framework for reflection in the week preceding Christmas. As holiday activities, ramp up, they provide a respite in the midst of the day to consider different aspects of this sacred season. They also offer parents and catechists a way to help children turn their focus from Santa Claus to Jesus, thus restoring the real “reason for the season.”
Bright Ideas
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Pay particular attention to the music being sung at church during Advent. What words of anticipation do you hear in them? Use this as an entrée for conversation with children to deepen their understanding of Advent.
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Download my reflections on the “O Antiphons” and incorporate them into your personal reflections, as well as into your family or class activities. These seven cards that could be cut and used on a day-to-day basis throughout the Octave of Advent.
Posted on Sun, Dec 04, 2011
The celebration of Epiphany was originally the feast of Christmas. In many cultures today this is when gift giving takes place. Decorations are not taken down until this feast is over. At Epiphany the Church celebrates the manifestation of the Son of God as the Savior and Messiah. The adoration of the Christ child by magi from the East represents the welcoming of the Good News of salvation by all nations.
Start preparing for the Feast of the Epiphany with Gather In My Name: A Celebration of Epiphany event.
Gather In My Name offers a full, multigenerational event for the celebration of Epiphany!
Objectives:
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To understand the meaning of Epiphany as a manifestation of God in our midst through the person of Jesus Christ.
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To learn the different manifestations that are represented in the accounts of Christmas, the visit of the magi to the Christ child, the Baptism of the Lord, and the wedding feast at Cana, and how these relate to the threefold mission of Christ.
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To recognize Epiphany as a special time to support the work of the missions and to name a specific way to bring this supportive response into action.
Faith Response:
Participants will be able to explain the meaning of the word epiphany and how it applies to the manifestation of Jesus as the Son of God.
To get more information about this Gather In My Name event, click here!
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