Tuesday Night at the Movies
Franco Zefferelli, Jesus
of Nazareth, 1977
Candace’s Corner-Today is Howard Hughes birthday
· JESSE TREE: Jesus is Light of the World: John 1:1-14 Symbols: candle, flame, sun
· Make reparations to the Holy Face-Tuesday Devotion
· Pray Day 5 of the Novena for our Pope and Bishops
· Tuesday: Litany of St. Michael the Archangel
a. Wake up to the sweet aroma of eggnog in the air. Start your day with a cozy cup of this holiday favorite. Next, dive into the magical world of books with a Christmas Book Flood. Select a festive read and immerse yourself in its pages. Feeling the pressure of last-minute shopping? Embrace it wholeheartedly on Last-Minute Shopper’s Day. Make a list, check it twice, and head out to find the perfect gifts for your loved ones. As the day winds down, light some candles and set the mood for Carols by Candlelight. Sing along to your favorite holiday tunes and bask in the warm glow. Remember, it’s not about the extravagance, but the joy of celebrating these special moments. Embrace the spontaneity, savor the simplicity, and create memories that will last a lifetime.
33 days to Christmas-Start the 33 days to Eucharistic Glory[9]
Want to start a small group? Download our 33 Days to Eucharistic Glory Study Guide
Day 33
On this 33rd day the reception of the Eucharist encourages ongoing reflection and prayer, integrating the Eucharist’s grace into daily living
Copilot
The Eucharist encourages ongoing reflection and prayer, helping believers integrate its grace into their daily lives in the following ways:
1. Post-Communion Reflection: After receiving the Eucharist, many Catholics spend time in silent reflection and thanksgiving, deepening their awareness of Christ’s presence and the grace they have received.
2. Daily Prayer: The experience of the Eucharist inspires a commitment to daily prayer, allowing believers to continually connect with God and reflect on their spiritual journey.
3. Scripture Meditation: The Eucharist fosters a love for Scripture. Meditating on Bible passages related to the Eucharist helps believers understand and internalize its significance.
4. Examination of Conscience: Regular reception of the Eucharist involves self-examination and repentance, prompting believers to reflect on their actions and strive for personal growth.
5. Gratitude and Praise: The Eucharist nurtures a spirit of gratitude and praise, encouraging believers to recognize and give thanks for the blessings in their lives.
6. Spiritual Journaling: Many find that keeping a spiritual journal helps integrate the grace of the Eucharist into daily life. Writing reflections and prayers can enhance personal growth and understanding.
7. Participation in Adoration: Eucharistic Adoration provides additional opportunities for prayer and reflection, deepening the relationship with Christ and fostering ongoing spiritual renewal.
8. Living the Gospel: The grace received from the Eucharist inspires believers to live out the Gospel values in their daily interactions, making choices that reflect their faith.
9. Acts of Charity: The Eucharist encourages believers to act with greater love and compassion towards others, integrating Christ’s sacrificial love into everyday actions.
10. Community Involvement: Engaging with the church community through Mass and other activities strengthens the sense of unity and shared purpose, reinforcing the grace of the Eucharist.
11. Mindful Presence: The Eucharist teaches believers to be mindful of Christ’s presence in their lives, prompting them to reflect on this presence throughout their day.
12. Strength in Trials: The grace received provides strength and resilience in facing daily challenges, helping believers to reflect on how Christ supports them in their struggles.
13. Encouragement to Evangelize: The transformative experience of the Eucharist inspires believers to share their faith and the message of Christ’s love with others.
Through these practices, the Eucharist not only becomes a central part of worship but also a continuous source of spiritual nourishment that permeates daily life, guiding believers to live out their faith with purpose and devotion.
DECEMBER 24 Tuesday-Christmas Eve
Luke, Chapter 2, verse 8-10:
8 Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. 9The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great FEAR. 10The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
During this season let us daily ask of our Lord to remove our hearts of stone and give us a heart of love thus making the winter brighter and our burdens lighter and bring cheer to the hearts of all we encounter. May we through love be brought to Holy fear!
Christmas Eve[1]
Read: The liturgical season of Christmas begins with the vigil Mass on Christmas Eve and concludes on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. During this season, we celebrate the birth of Christ into our world and into our hearts and reflect on the gift of salvation that is born with him . . . including the fact that he was born to die for us.
Reflect: Take time to reflect on today's readings by practicing the ancient art of Lectio Divina.
Pray: Offer up these words to the Heavenly Father for a renewed spirit of evangelization, so you might live as a missionary disciple this liturgical year.
Act: Take some extra time with this passage today and remember the true spirit of Christmas. "Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus . . . and of his kingdom there will be no end." (Lk 1:31-33)
Love compels us to “Be Not Afraid”[2]
1. "Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good
news of a great joy.... For to you is born this day in the city of David a
Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Lk 2: 10-11). On this Holy Night, the liturgy invites us to
celebrate with joy the great event of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. As we
have just heard in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is born into a family poor by
material standards, but rich in joy. He is born in a stable, for there is no
place for him in the inn (cf. Lk 2: 7); he is placed in a manger, for
there is no cradle for him; he comes into the world completely helpless,
without anyone's knowledge, and yet he is welcomed and recognized first by the
shepherds, who hear from the angel the news of his birth. The event conceals
a mystery. It is revealed by the choirs of heavenly messengers who sing of
Jesus' birth and proclaim glory "to God in the highest and on earth peace
among men with whom he is pleased" (Lk 2: 14). Through the ages their
praise becomes a prayer which rises from the hearts of the throngs who on
Christmas Night continue to welcome the Son of God.
2. Mysterium: event and mystery. A man is
born, who is the Eternal Son of the Almighty Father, the Creator of heaven and
earth: in this extraordinary event the mystery of God is revealed. In the
Word who becomes man the miracle of the Incarnate God is made manifest. The
mystery sheds light on the event of the birth: a baby is adored by the
shepherds in the lowly stable, at Bethlehem. He is "the Savior of the
world", "Christ the Lord" (cf. Lk 2: 11). Their eyes see a
newborn child, wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger and in that
"sign", thanks to the inner light of faith, they recognize the
Messiah proclaimed by the prophets.
3. This is Emmanuel, God-with-us, who comes to fill the
earth with grace. He comes into the world in order to transform creation. He
becomes a man among men, so that in him and through him every human being can
be profoundly renewed. By his birth he draws us all into the sphere of the
divine, granting to those who in faith open themselves to receiving his gift
the possibility of sharing in his own divine life. This is the meaning of the
salvation which the shepherds hear proclaimed that night in Bethlehem:
"To you is born a Savior" (Lk 2: 11). The coming of Christ among
us is the center of history, which thereafter takes on a new dimension. In a
way, it is God himself who writes history by entering into it. The event of the
Incarnation thus broadens to embrace the whole of human history, from creation
until the Second Coming. This is why in the liturgy all creation sings, voicing
its own joy: the floods clap their hands, all the trees of the wood sing
for joy, and the many coastlands are glad (cf. Ps 98: 8; 96: 12;
97: 1). Every creature on the face of the earth receives the proclamation.
In the astonished silence of the universe, the words which the liturgy puts on
the lips of the Church take on a cosmic resonance: Christus natus est
nobis. Venite, adoremus!
4. Christ is born for us; come, let us adore him...God
became man in order to give man a share in his own divinity. This is the good
news of salvation; this is the message of Christmas! The Church proclaims it
tonight, by means of my words too, for the peoples and nations of the whole
earth to hear: Christus natus est nobis Christ is born for us. Venite,
adoremus! Come, let us adore him!
Christmas Eve-Church or Home?[3]
Christmas Eve at Church
The certitude of His coming is made
clear in two images. The first is that of the closed gate of paradise. Since
our first parents were cast forth from the earthly paradise the gate has been
closed and a cherubim stands guard with flaming sword. The Redeemer alone is
able to open this door and enter in. On Christmas Eve we stand before the gate
of paradise, and it is for this reason that Psalm 23 is the theme of the vigil:
Lift up your gates, O princes,
Open wide, eternal gates,
That the King of Glory may enter in. . . .
Christmas Eve at Home
It must be so that the grown-ups may devote themselves with a quiet
mind, unhindered by any commotion, to these great mysteries of the Holy Night,
that in most Catholic countries the giving of gifts has been advanced to
Christmas Eve.
Christmas Eve is an appropriate time
for the exchange of gifts, after the Christ-Child has been placed in the
manger, and the special prayers before the crib — and a round of Christmas
carols — are over. If the gifts are given out before the Midnight Mass, the
children can concentrate more easily on the great mystery which is celebrated,
when the Greatest Gift is given to all alike, even those who have received no
material expression of Christmas love. And then, too, Christmas Day with its
two additional Masses can be devoted more to the contemplation of the Christmas
mystery and the demands of Christmas hospitality.
Christmas Eve Customs[4]
The Christmas Tree
Much confusion surrounds what is arguably the season's most famous symbol. Christmas trees start appearing in shops, homes, and even some churches soon after Thanksgiving. Traditionally, however, the Christmas tree was not put up until Christmas Eve and was not taken down until the Vigil of the Epiphany. (Thus, it was only around for the Twelve Days of Christmas.) The reason for this will be explained in the section on Christmas customs; for now it suffices to point out that the Christmas tree is not meant to be a part of the Advent landscape. However, because finding a tree on December 24 can be difficult, one practical measure is to buy the tree early and leave it in the home undecorated until the 24th. An undecorated evergreen brought indoors is not a Christmas tree but a "Yule" tree, a harmless, pre-Christian reminder of life to help dispel the gloom of winter. When the tree is decorated, it will then be transformed from a natural token to a Christian statement rich with supernatural symbols for the season.
Making Room for Sacred Leisure
According to an ancient (and practical) tradition, by Christmas
Eve the house is to be thoroughly cleaned, all tasks finished or removed from
sight, all borrowed items returned, and no task allowed to be begun that cannot
be finished by nightfall.
Christmas Eve Dinner and Celebration
Most people associate Christmas feasting with the dinner on Christmas
Day, and rightfully so, for as a Vigil Christmas Eve was traditionally a day of
abstinence and fasting. Yet there were also delicious Christmas Eve dinners
that conformed to this restraint (see Foods). Afterwards, the family would
gather around the newly decorated Christmas tree, reciting Vespers or praying
and singing hymns to the infant Jesus now in the crib (the figurine had been
conspicuously absent during Advent). In some countries, it was at this time
that gifts were exchanged.
The Christmas Candle
One of the most symbolically rich customs of Christmas Eve was the Christmas candle, a large white candle representing Christ. In Ireland, a Christmas candle was bedecked with holly and lit. It would burn through the night and be relit on each of the twelve nights of Christmas. The entire family would pray before the candle for their living and departed loved ones. In England and Ireland, the Christmas candle often consisted of three individual candles molded together in honor of the Trinity, while in Germany a highly decorated pyramid of smaller candles called a Weihnachtspyramide was used.
Lights in the Window
Another Irish custom during Christmastide was putting lights in the window. This practice originated during the times of persecution, when Mass had to be held in secret. Faithful Irish believers would place a candle in the window on Christmas Eve as a sign to any priest who happened by that this home was a safe haven in which Mass could be offered. When interrogated by the British about the meaning of this practice, the Irish replied that the lights were an invitation for Joseph and Mary to stay the night. Unthreatened by this supposed superstition, the British left them alone.
Midnight Mass-Vigil of the Nativity or Christmas Eve[5]
CHRISTIAN, for the love of Christ, and for thine own salvation, occupy thy mind, during this holy night, with holy thoughts and aspirations, in order to make thyself worthy of all the graces which Christ will grant thee on His coming. Consider how St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary, in obedience to the edict of Cesar, and in perfect submission to the will of God, went to Bethlehem, and, finding no room there, at last entered an open stable, where they were content to stay. Does not the Son of God deserve all our love when He thus humbled Himself for us?
Iceman’s Childhood Christmas
Christmas
Eve was my father’s time to celebrate and open the presents and later we would
go to midnight mass. Mom and Dad always put the presents under the tree as they
got them; wrapped of course and I think this was done to create a sense of
anticipation for Christmas. It was remarkable we didn’t break the gifts from
all the shaking we gave them to try to figure out what the gift was. Mom and
Dad never had much money, but Mom would start going to the garage sales in
October and get tons of stuff on the cheap. We never knew what Mom would find
but she never gave us anything that would take away from our dignity or
disappoint us with an awful Christmas sweater. After all Christmas is
celebrating the greatness of a God that took it upon Himself to raise the
dignity of man.
Holy
Night[6]
Some say that ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein our Savior’s birth is celebrated,
The bird of dawning singeth all night long:
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir
abroad;
The nights are wholesome; then no planets
strike,
No fairy takes, no witch has power to charm,
So hallow'd and gracious is the time. --Hamlet
I.i
Since ancient times, popular folklore has attached a wondrous goodness to the night before
Christmas. Like Shakespeare's Hamlet, many Catholics believed that there
was not only a special charm about this night, but a holiness. Nature awoke
with unbounded joy in the middle of the night to greet its Maker: bees hummed
sweet symphonic hymns, cattle fell on their knees in adoration, and trees and
plants bowed in the direction of Bethlehem. No wicked spirits roamed the earth
on this night, no evil forces prevailed, for on this night God had blessed the
earth with His Son. Consequently, one hour before midnight, some churches in
the British Isles would toll their bells mournfully as if for a Requiem and
then peal joyfully at the stroke of twelve. The funereal ringing was called the
"Devil's funeral" to indicate Satan's
demise at the birth of Christ.
Oplatek[7]
This Polish custom of the breaking and passing of the thin wafery Oplatek bread at the Christmas Eve meal reminds us of our daily bread and the Bread of Life who came into the world.
DIRECTIONS
We have adopted a custom from the Polish for Christmas Eve. At their Christmas Eve meal, after spreading hay under the cloth and (in times past) on the floor of the room, the Polish family stands together and the father breaks off a piece of the Oplatek (pronounced opwatek), the blessed Christmas wafer, and passes it on. This is a thin bread pressed in oblong irons in the convents, and on it in relief is the Nativity scene. Made like the host, it is a reminder of our daily bread and the Bread of Life who was born a man tonight. The father passes it to the next member of the family, who breaks a piece and passes it, until all the family has shared it. It is to remind them what this night is, who comes to us, why, and what it makes us, one to another. An extra place at table tells the little Christ and His Mother that they would be welcome in this "inn" should they knock at our door.
In the past the Oplatek was given us by our Polish friends. Now we use this holy symbolism with bread we bake ourselves — and mixing it is a beautiful meditation for a mother. It is baked as rolls in a round tin, round like the circle of eternity and like the everlastingness of God. After the Blessing of Bread, the father or an older member of the family sprinkles the bread with holy water, breaks off a roll and passes it to the person on his right, who breaks a roll from it for himself and passes it. It is our own custom, in terms significant to us. The father or ranking member of the family reads the Blessing of Bread.
A story was told us by a woman whose family is still in Poland. Every Christmas their family had Oplatek. When some migrated to America, those in Poland sent Oplatek to America and those in America sent Oplatek to Poland. Came the Russians with their persecution and espionage, and the family in Poland learned to conform, withdraw, carry their religion in their hearts and write between the lines of their letters.
When it was time to send the Oplatek, they determined to find a way. That year the family in America received a conventional card on which was pasted a red paper-like disk with a conventional greeting. The censor never suspected it was Oplatek, properly blessed, cut in a circle like a host, painted red for Divine Love not for Communism, and sent as a salute from one part of the Mystical Body to another half a world away. They were reminding each other that they share the same Body, eat the same Flesh.
Spiritual Crib[8]
A special devotion that can be performed during Advent to prepare for the coming of the Infant Savior. It can be adapted for adults and/or children and applied as is appropriate to your state in life.
· 14th day, December 24th: THE SWADDLING CLOTHES—Inward Recollection All your thoughts today, all your wishes, your aspirations, your love and your joy, must be for the dear Infant Jesus, who in a few hours condescends to be born in your heart.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN
MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN
SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER TWO-THE SACRAMENTS OF HEALING
Day
195
1420 Through the sacraments of Christian initiation, man
receives the new life of Christ. Now we carry this life "in earthen
vessels," and it remains "hidden with Christ in God." We
are still in our "earthly tent," subject to suffering, illness, and
death. This new life as a child of God can be weakened and even lost by
sin.
1421 The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and
bodies, who forgave the sins of the paralytic and restored him to bodily
health, has willed that his Church continue, in the power of the Holy
Spirit, his work of healing and salvation, even among her own members. This is
the purpose of the two sacraments of healing: the sacrament of Penance and the
sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.
1422 "Those who approach the sacrament of Penance
obtain pardon from God's mercy for the offense committed against him, and are,
at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have wounded by their
sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer labors for their
conversion."
1423 It is
called the sacrament of conversion because it makes sacramentally present
Jesus' call to conversion, the first step in returning to the Father5 from whom one has strayed by sin.
It is called the sacrament of Penance, since it consecrates the Christian
sinner's personal and ecclesial steps of conversion, penance, and satisfaction.
1424 It is
called the sacrament of confession, since the disclosure or confession of sins
to a priest is an essential element of this sacrament. In a profound sense it
is also a "confession" - acknowledgment and praise - of the holiness
of God and of his mercy toward sinful man.
It is called the sacrament of forgiveness, since by the priest's sacramental
absolution God grants the penitent "pardon and peace."
It is called the sacrament of Reconciliation, because it imparts to the sinner
the love of God who reconciles: "Be reconciled to God."7 He who lives by God's merciful love is ready to respond to the
Lord's call: "Go; first be reconciled to your brother."
1425 "YOU
were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." One must appreciate the
magnitude of the gift God has given us in the sacraments of Christian
initiation in order to grasp the degree to which sin is excluded for him who
has "put on Christ." But the apostle John also says: "If we
say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in
us." and the Lord himself taught us to pray: "Forgive us our
trespasses," linking our forgiveness of one another's offenses to the
forgiveness of our sins that God will grant us.
1426
Conversion to Christ, the new birth of Baptism, the gift of the Holy Spirit and
the Body and Blood of Christ received as food have made us "holy and
without blemish," just as the Church herself, the Bride of Christ, is
"holy and without blemish." Nevertheless the new life received in
Christian initiation has not abolished the frailty and weakness of human
nature, nor the inclination to sin that tradition calls concupiscence, which
remains in the baptized such that with the help of the grace of Christ they may
prove themselves in the struggle of Christian life. This is the struggle
of conversion directed toward holiness and eternal life to which the Lord never
ceases to call us.
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: An end
to the use of contraceptives.
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
[5]Goffine’s Devout Instructions, 1896.
[7]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/activities/view.cfm?id=283
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