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SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16 7:30am Mass (Cantor & Organ) 9:30am Mass (Choir & Organ) 11:30am Mass (Spiritu Contemporary Group) 1:00pm Hallelujah Chorus (Choir room) 2:00pm 7th & 8th Grade Schola (Choir room) 3:00pm Hosanna
(Choir room) 4:00pm Advent Vespers (Church) 6:15pm Mass (No music) MONDAY, DECEMBER 17 8:30am Word/Eucharist (Chapel) 6:00pm CCW Christmas Party (St. Joseph Hall) 7:00pm Bell Choir Practice (Narthex) 7:00pm Earthen Vessels Group(Choir Room) TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18 8:30am Mass (Chapel) 9:15am Chair Aerobics (Seniors Room) 1:00pm Adoration Committee Mtg. (St. Clare) 1:30pm Script/Comm (Presbyterian Homes) 2:00pm Script/Comm (New Brighton CC) 7:15pm Spiritu Group (Choir Room) WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19 8:30am Word/Eucharist (Chapel) 9:45am School Mass 10:45am Seniors Meeting & Lunch (Seniors Rm.) 6:00pm Sr. High Service Club II (Youth Room) 6:30pm Cantor Rehearsal (Church) 6:30pm Jr. High Holi-Dance (School Gym) 7:15pm Choir practice (Choir Room) THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20 8:30am Mass (Chapel) 9:15am Chair Aerobics (Seniors Room) 10:15am Mass (Innsbruck) 2:15pm Script/Comm (Trevilla) 7:00pm Script/Comm (St. Anthony) 7:00pm Communal Reconciliation (Church) FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21
8:30am
Mass (Chapel)
9:15am
Chair Aerobics (Seniors Room) SATURDAY, DECEMBER 22 11:00am Private Reconciliation (Church) 4:30pm Mass (Earthen Vessels Contemporary) SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23
7:30am
Mass (Cantor & Organ)
9:30am
Mass (Choir & Organ) 11:30am Mass
(Spiritu Contemporary Group) 1:00pm Greening of the Church
(Church/Plaza) 1:00pm Hallelujah Chorus (Choir room) 2:00pm 7th & 8th Grade Schola (Choir room) 3:00pm Hosanna
(Choir room) 4:00pm Communal Reconciliation (Church) 6:15pm Mass (No music) 7:00pm Greening of the Church
(Church/Plaza) |
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Connections… December 16, 2001—Third Sunday of Advent Ç “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain
their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are
raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.” There has
been none greater than John the Baptizer; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven
is greater than he.”
Matthew 11:2-11 ‘Las Posadas’ Today our Latino brothers
and sisters in the southwest and in Mexico begin their celebration of
Las Posadas—the feast of “the shelters.” In Latino communities,
beginning on December 16 and continuing on the next nine evenings, the “holy
pilgrims” (Mary and Joseph) travel each night from house to house, seeking a
place to stay on their journey to Bethlehem. In some communities, the pilgrims are played
by a could, with Mary riding a little donkey led by Joseph; in others, statues
of Mary and Joseph are carried through the streets. Those accompanying
the holy pilgrims carry lanterns in procession, singing songs and offering
prayers as they look for shelter. When they come to a house,
the family proudly makes reparation for the old refusal. “Come into our
humble home, and welcome!” the host family proclaims, “and may the Lord give
shelter to my soul when I leave this world.” The family opens their doors and welcomes all
who accompany Mary and Joseph to the feast the household has prepared. Different homes and
families are visited each evening until Christmas Eve, when Las Posadas ends with the celebration of Midnight Mass. Las Posadas, which began in Mexico in the late 16th century, is a time
to open the doors of our hearts to give shelter to the Christ who travels among
us in the guise of our families and friends, of the poor and needy, of the
forgotten and ignored, the abused and victimized. CONNECTION: In the hymn Joy to the World, we sing, “Let every heart prepare him room.” The beautiful
tradition of Las Posadas and today’s Gospel challenge exactly how willing we are
“to make room” for the Messiah not only in our hearts but in our homes and
households, our schools and playgrounds, our offices and businesses, our towns
and cities.
Are we willing to make an extra place at our table for Christ the poor
beggar? Are we
willing to make time in our busy lives for Christ the child or the friend who
needs someone to listen? Are we willing to cancel the meeting or the
golf game to be with Christ our spouse, Christ our son and daughter? In every day or
every season of the year, Mary and Joseph and their Holy Child knock on our door
looking for shelter, looking for a place to make their home. May our Advent
prayer be that we have the wisdom and love to welcome them. u |
