“May God so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” 1 Th 3

“When these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Lk 21

“Be alert at all times, praying that you will have the strength…to stand before the Son of Man.” Lk 21

Dear parishioners,

These beautiful words from this Sunday’s readings really put us in the mood of Advent. They speak of waking up and remembering that the Lord is coming, and of preparing for his coming. They speak of the day of the Lord’s coming as a happy day, the day of our redemption. They assure us that we will indeed be given the strength to stand before the Son of Man. Now, Advent, the season we are in, is the time to remember Christmas, the Lord’s first coming, the beginning of the Incarnation, of his being from that moment on and forever, Emmanuel, God with us. To remember that even as we remember his first coming, we await his second coming, the definitive one, from which time we will be with him face to face, forever. By the grace of God, may we live this Advent season “waiting in joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.”

Just a few announcements this week.

Our Migrant Ministry team is celebrating it’s 10th anniversary! This is a time to pray to God in thanksgiving for their perseverance and effectiveness in the tough ministry of coming to the help of migrant workers, some of the most vulnerable people in our midst, in any way they can. A time to pray for their continued perseverance and success. A time, of course, to simply thank them for this important ministry that they exercise on our behalf.

A few resources for the Advent season. The “Little Blue Book”, a booklet of meditations for each day of the Advent/Christmas season, is available at all exits as you leave the church today. Please take one for yourself, and perhaps one for someone you know who isn’t attending church these days, and who would like to have one. Unfortunately the second Advent/Christmas booklet we have ordered hasn’t arrived. Hopefully, it will be available to you before Advent ends. Also, effective this weekend, there will be a daily talk on Formed.org, given by Dr. Michael Patrick Barber on the topic: “The True Meaning of Christmas”. These talks will run from now until Christmas Day. I believe they will be excellent, because they will sum up the contents of a book he has published on the same topic, and which has received glowing reviews from many very qualified people. The directions on how to access Formed.org and Dr. Barber’s daily talks will be on the parish bulletin and on the parish website from now until Christmas.

That’s it for this week. I pray for a light-filled Advent and Christmas season for you all.

Fr. Guy