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advent

Advent calendars: Old tradition and modern commercialism, same message

The Advent calendar with one tab or box to open each day for 24 or 25 days taps into something people really like: countdowns. It also highlights the anticipation that is at the heart of the four-week liturgical season of Advent.

Advent is time of vigilance and prayer, Pope Francis says

Christians can turn Christmas into a “pagan” or “mundane” holiday by focusing on the gifts and the tree rather than on the birth of Jesus and his promise to come again, Pope Francis said

Advent: The season to encounter Christ, the Coming One

One of the most ancient titles of Jesus in the liturgical tradition of the church is He Who Is to Come. It captures the essence of the Resurrection, rightly portraying Jesus not only as someone raised from the dead 2,000 years ago, but as someone who is in our midst, active and bringing about something new in the world.

St. George parishioners make Advent wreaths

The Adult Faith Formation ministry at St. George Parish in Tinley Park hosted an event at which parishioners made Advent wreaths on Nov. 30, 2018.

Three Advent traditions to slow you down

Advent, the four-week period preceding Christmas, is a time to slow down as we wait in hopeful expectation for Christ’s coming. It’s a time to take stock of what’s important in our lives, casting away extra commitments and wasted energy we’ve added throughout the year.

Dec. 17: 3rd Sunday of Advent

In all four Gospels, John the Baptist looms large at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. This ascetical prophet made a deep impression on the people of his day. John used the barren area of the Judean desert as the backdrop for his message. Here the Jordan River ends its long trek from the Sea of Galilee in the north and empties into the Dead Sea. This was the crossing point for the Israelites as they completed their desert sojourn and entered into the Promised Land.

Dec. 10: 2nd Sunday of Advent

What a great word “anticipation” is. Its Latin roots literally meaning to “take” or “experience” something beforehand.

Advent meditation: Joy during life’s struggles and sorrows

Rejoice always! Those words from St. Paul in Thessalonians reverberate through the ages, through prayer and song. Again, I say rejoice. This Advent, we take time to pray with St. Paul, one of history’s most compelling figures. A focused and intense man, he dedicated himself to persecuting followers of Jesus. Then, after a dramatic encounter on a journey to Damascus left him blinded and dazed, St. Paul changed course entirely.

Catholic churches avoid Christmas decorations, carols in Advent

During the weeks before Christmas, Catholic churches stand out for what they are missing.

Season of Advent prompts questions of the heart

Within hours of Black Friday, if not sooner, streets become adorned with Christmas lights, coffee cups change color and stores ready for another holiday season; the Advent season begins.

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