Advent

Today marks the first Sunday of Advent. Advent, which means "arrival" in Latin, is a joyful and hopeful time as we await the coming of the Son of God, our Savior.

The Church divides Advent into two parts. The first part runs from the First Sunday of Advent until December 16, while the second part from December 17 to 24.

During the first part of Advent, we reflect and prepare for the Lord's second coming at the end of time. The second part is a time for direct reflection on the preparation for the celebration of Christmas. To help us count down the Sundays of Advent, we use the Advent Wreath, which has four candles.

On the first Sunday of Advent, we light the candle of Hope, on the second Sunday the candles of Hope and Peace on the third Sunday candles of Hope, Peace, and Joy and on the fourt Sunday the candles of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love. Many families also have Advent candles in their homes and light them during prayers, meals, and family gather The Advent wreath symbolizes the community of the Church as we await and prepare to receive the Lord. One of the forms of preparation is participation in the RORATE MASSES celebrated in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In our parish we will do that every Saturday during Avent at 7:00 am in the morning.

The season of Advent is an opportunity for spiritual awakening. It is a time to reflect on our faith in God, the purpose of our existence, and the path to salvation. We can ask ourselves about our preparation for the encounter with God.

What do we need to change in our lives? What separates us from God and others? Maybe we need to break with the sin of laziness in prayer, skipping Sunday Mass, wasting time, unkindness to people, pride, drunkenness, impurity, anger...

To better prepare for the joyful celebration of Christmas, we often participate in spiritual exercises and receive the Sacrament of Penance (reconciliation). In our parish we will celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation on December 13 at 6:30 in the evening. The Advent season is another opportunity to open ourselves to Jesus and to see His traces in our daily life, and to spread Advent joy around us.

"Let us praise Christ and thank Him for His reception in the Eucharist, which is the announcement of the Second Coming in Glory."