THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT Matthew 11:2–11 REFLECT “Gaudete!” the Church sings today! “Rejoice!” we cry. Rose vestments and joyful music change the tone of our Sunday Advent meditations. And why? Because our joy flows from Christ, from the promise that he is truly the Messiah. […]
SATURDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF ADVENT Psalm 80 REFLECT The psalmist writes ,“O God, restore us; / light up your face and we shall be saved” (Ps 80:4). These words haunt many believers. We long to see God’s face. We want to gaze upon […]
Optional Memorial of Saint Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin 1 Corinthians 1:26–31 REFLECT Speculation about the historicity of the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe has existed for centuries. As early as 1794 a Spanish historian and philosopher named Juan Bautista Muñoz contested the authenticity of the […]
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin MARY Luke 1:26–38 REFLECT Particular saints or feasts can become important to us for all kinds of surprising and radically personal reasons. For me, the Immaculate Conception is one such patroness. She’s the patron saint of […]
MEMORIAL OF SAINT AMBROSE, BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH Ephesians 3:8–12 REFLECT The best teachers hope to someday be surpassed by their students. Saint Ambrose’s greatest student, Saint Augustine of Hippo, went on to become the greatest theologian of the early Church. As a […]
OPTIONAL MEMORIAL OF SAINT NICHOLAS, BISHOP Isaiah 40:1–11 REFLECT St. Nicholas Day is a little Christmas. Growing up, at St. Charles elementary school, I remember making construction-paper shoes, which we left overnight on our desks for Saint Nicholas to fill. We put our shoes out […]
MONDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF ADVENT Isaiah 35:1–10 REFLECT One of the main differences between Advent and Lent is that the two seasons have a different approach to the desert. During Lent we talk about heading into the desert as a metaphor for being […]
SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT Matthew 3:1–12 REFLECT The four Sundays of Advent are dedicated to preaching the mystery of the four last things: death, judgment, heaven, and hell. Each Christian will face the end of our earthly days, and we’ll have to account for the […]
Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, PRIEST Is 30:19–21, 23–26 REFLECT It is written in the Book of Isaiah, “No longer will your Teacher hide himself, / but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher” (30:20). In seeing Christ, we see the Teacher of […]
FRIDAY of the First Week of Advent Isaiah 29:17–24 REFLECT The Lord tells the prophet Isaiah, “In a very little while, / Lebanon shall be changed into an orchard, / and the orchard be considered a forest!” (Is 29:17). At that time, Lebanon was uncultivated […]
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