O Antiphon Reflection

Thanks to CGSUSA for posting this on their website :-)

First Sunday of Advent

Happy New Year! 

How blessed we are as Catholics to live the ebbs and flows of the liturgical year. After a long period of ordinary time, we as a church move into the expectant time of waiting; a time of preparing our hearts for the one who is to come. The readings for this season give us hints of the prophets, those who listened to the voice of God and shared His message with the people. They speak to us today, illuminating our lives and our faith. The youngest children in the atrium hear five short prophecies proclaimed during their three years in the atrium. The six to nine year old children revisit those five prophecies while beginning to synthesize their messages and add two more prophecies from Isaiah to the list. By the time the children are in 4th grade, they are ready to study four of the prophets more deeply, learning about the prophets' call and their struggles, along with the contents of the prophecies. As for me, I'm happy to count these Old Testament heroes among my friends - they inspire me and give me hope as I ask myself "Am I ready for the coming of Christ?"

I do love this quiet time of waiting – the build up of anticipation for the coming of of our Lord. It reminds me of my own pregnancies, joyfully anticipating a new sweet babe. It also mirrors watching those children grow and seeing glimpses of the life that is yet to come. 

Below are some notes I compiled for the first Sunday of Advent:

CCC 524 When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, she makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for his second coming. By celebrating the precursor’s birth and martyrdom, the Church unites herself to his desire: “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Simple Advent Wreath Blessing:

Leader: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

All: Who made heaven and earth.

Leader: O God, by whose Word all things are sanctified, pour forth Your blessing upon this wreath and grant that we who use it may prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ and may receive from You abundant graces. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

The wreath would then be sprinkled with Holy water,if you have some at home.

Leader: Heavenly Father, as we begin this Advent, give light to our eyes and peace to our hearts. May the Lord find us watching and waiting in joy when He comes. We pray in Jesus' name.

All: Amen.

Some links to peruse:

Simple Advent traditions for families

The USCCB's Advent calendar for families

Prayers for each day of Advent

Last year's post on the First Sunday of Advent

"The one true God, ‘the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,’ is not a God who is there in Heaven, unconcerned with us and our history, but he is the-God-who-comes. He is a Father who never stops thinking of us and, in the extreme respect of our freedom, desires to meet us and visit us; he wants to come, to dwell among us, to stay with us. His ‘coming’ is motivated by the desire to free us from evil and death, from all that prevents our true happiness. God comes to save us." ~ Pope Benedict XVI Dec. 2006

Feast of Christ the King

In his homily for the Feast of Christ the King, Pope Francis reminded us of the ultimate importance of being merciful in our lives and actions. As a mother, this was a call for me to reflect on our family life - how we treat one another. Am I a model of mercy and gentleness to my children so they can in turn be merciful towards one another?

"Today’s liturgy invites us to fix our gaze on Christ, the King of the Universe. The beautiful prayer of the Preface reminds us that his kingdom is “a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love and peace”. The readings we have listened to show us how Jesus established his kingdom; how he brings it about in history; and what he now asks of us.

First, how Jesus brought about his kingdom: he did so through his closeness and tenderness towards us. He is the Shepherd, of whom the Prophet Ezekiel spoke in the First Reading (cf. 34:11-12, 15-17). These verses are interwoven with verbs which show the care and love that the Shepherd has for his flock: to search, to look over, to gather the dispersed, to lead into pasture, to bring to rest, to seek the lost sheep, to lead back the confused, to bandage the wounded, to heal the sick, to take care of, to pasture. All of these are fulfilled in Jesus Christ: he is truly the “great Shepherd of the sheep and the protector of our souls” (cf. Heb 13:20; 1 Pt 2:25). 

.....

"The Gospel teaches what Jesus’ kingdom requires of us: it reminds us that closeness and tenderness are the rule of life for us also, and that on this basis we will be judged. 

......

"The starting point of salvation is not the confession of the sovereignty of Christ, but rather the imitation of Jesus’ works of mercy through which he brought about his kingdom. The one who accomplishes these works shows that he has welcomed Christ’s sovereignty, because he has opened his heart to God’s charity."

The Ordinary days of Summer ;-)

The great feast of Pentecost has brought the Easter season to a close. We attended Mass elsewhere this weekend and it was very moving to watch Father and the servers take the Paschal candle from its place by the Ambo and process with it down the aisle to the Baptismal font. Every candle mounted to the walls of the church were lit in honor of the Holy Spirit - truly beautiful!

Momma Church does ease us out of the festive season - now we can look forward to Trinity Sunday, followed by the feast of Corpus Christi, which like the Ascension, has been moved from Thursday to Sunday...

The summer season, is a good time to reflect on saints, so hopefully I'll have a bit of time to list a few of them along with ideas on how to celebrate their days within the next couple of weeks ~

Beate

Pentecost..

..is in just a few more days! Hopefully your Pentecost Novena is going a bit better than mine. At any rate, we finished our Ascension craft and I have our Pentecost decorations ready to put up. For more on that, see last year's post here.

Father Francis Weiser's book Christian Feasts and Customs is available to download here. He has an interesting chapter on Pentecost that begins on page 264 of the PDF file.

Have a joy-filled week ~
Beate

The Domestic Church

From the CCC: 

VI. THE DOMESTIC CHURCH

1655 Christ chose to be born and grow up in the bosom of the holy family of Joseph and Mary. The Church is nothing other than “the family of God.” From the beginning, the core of the Church was often constituted by those who had become believers “together with all [their] household.” ¹⁶⁶ When they were converted, they desired that “their whole household” should also be saved. ¹⁶⁷ These families who became believers were islands of Christian life in an unbelieving world.

1656 In our own time, in a world often alien and even hostile to faith, believing families are of primary importance as centers of living, radiant faith. For this reason the Second Vatican Council, using an ancient expression, calls the family the Ecclesia domestica. ¹⁶⁸ It is in the bosom of the family that parents are “by word and example . . . the first heralds of the faith with regard to their children. They should encourage them in the vocation which is proper to each child, fostering with special care any religious vocation.” ¹⁶⁹

1657 It is here that the father of the family, the mother, children, and all members of the family exercise the priesthood of the baptized in a privileged way “by the reception of the sacraments, prayer and thanksgiving, the witness of a holy life, and self-denial and active charity.” ¹⁷⁰ Thus the home is the first school of Christian life and “a school for human enrichment.” ¹⁷¹ Here one learns endurance and the joy of work, fraternal love, generous – even repeated – forgiveness, and above all divine worship in prayer and the offering of one’s life.

These paragraphs give me a lot of things to think about. All too often I find myself falling woefully short in modelling love, charity and forgiveness! However, even in my own failings there is grace - life is messy, loving not easy, forgiveness a struggle at times, yet that's what the "school of human enrichment" is all about. If all were perfect, we'd be tempted to stagnate rather than always striving to grow closer to the Father. So don't get discouraged - know that our dear Papa in Heaven is always willing to pick us up and dust us off when we stumble and fall. Let's pray for one another!

In the peace of the Good Shepherd,

Beate

Preparing for the Ascension

Ascension Thursday is May 29, 2014

Even though in our diocese the feast day is celebrated the following Sunday, our family will remember the day this coming Thursday. When I was growing up, 'Christi Himmelfahrt' was a state holiday and celebrated with a procession by most of the village.

Catholic Cuisine suggests a hillside picnic with some Ascension inspired food choices here and a "Heavenly lunch" complete with table decorating idea here. I'll probably incorporate some of these ideas into our dinner and dessert plans. Cream puffs - yum! I'm pretty sure I can make the pastry ahead of time, and then have the kids fill them Thursday afternoon.

We've never done the Ascension Glowing Cloud Craft, but I'm gathering supplies because I know my crew will love this. I also found an Ascension Word Find and an Ascension Coloring Page which I've printed out and left laying near the printer just waiting to be found. 

http://webspace.webring.com/people/vc/catholicinspired/ascension.pdf is another 3 d Ascension craft that doesn't require as many materials :-)

I love this prayer from St Augustine, which we will use for our mealtime prayer:

"Today our Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven; let our hearts ascend with him. Listen to the words of the Apostle: If you have risen with Christ, set your hearts on the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God; seek the things that are above, not the things that are on earth. For just as he remained with us even after his ascension, so we too are already in heaven with him, even though what is promised us has not yet been fulfilled in our bodies."

Have a blessed day ~
Beate

Entering into the Mystery of Easter

In School Year - Church Year, Peter Mazar writes: " The season lasts 50 days, from Easter Sunday until Pentecost. Why 50? Seven is a sign of fullness - there are seven days in a week. Seven weeks signify "fully full." And when one more day is added - to make 50 - we have  a sign of fullest fullness.... " He goes on to say that this, our most ancient season, encompases 1/7th of the year and was termed the "Great Sunday" by St. Athanasius. "As the Lord's Day is to the week, the Easter season is to the year."

How do we celebrate this beautiful season in our Domestic Church? In our home this year, the big girls are off on an adventure and my garden is sadly neglected. However, we've opened the windows relishing the moderate temps and the songs of the birds. The little kids happily pick flowers to fill assorted cups and vases. The glory of God surrounds us, reminding us to live the Resurrection. It's an important season that deserves more time than I've given it this year. I'm looking for inspiration :-) We picked up some Lighthouse cds for in the car and are hearing God's call to prayer and sanctity. We laugh together, enjoying the gift of one another. We're making plans for the Ascension and Pentecost...How about you?

In the peace of the Good Shepherd,
Beate

William E. may reminds us:

"Lent is ... an opportune time to meditate on our Divine call to be saints in and through our daily deeds." 

CRS Message for Today

Sacredness and Dignity of the Human Person

“You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. I praise you, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are your works! My very self you know.”

—Psalms 139:13-14

Created in the image of God, all human life is sacred and possesses a dignity that comes directly from our creation and not from any action of our own.

“This teaching rests on one basic principle: individual human beings are the foundation, the cause and the end of every social institution. That is necessarily so, for men are by nature social beings.”

                                     —Pope John XXIII, Mater et Magistra #219 (Mother and Teacher)

This speaks to me as a parent and as an educator, challenging me to recognize Christ in all I encounter. It's also a reminder that our inherent value is always in our being, and not in our doing.

~ Beate

First Friday of Lent

Most of the family started out Lent marked with ashes, a reminder that our life here is temporary. While searching through my Lent resources, I reminded myself to do one thing and do it well. This year, I've chosen Donna Marie Cooper O'Boyle's:

Bringing Lent Home with Mother Teresa: Prayers, Reflections, and Activities for Families

This was published a couple of years ago and Donna wrote a new booklet for the current year which is available as an e-book. It uses quotes from Teresa of Avila Thérèse of Lisieux, so should be just as good. :-)

As a family we discussed doing three things each day:

• Fast - give up something. This could be different each day, just some type of self-denial. 
• Almsgiving - do something for somebody else.
• Pray - add one extra prayer time to your day.

Last evening after our daily meditation from the book, my husband and I were surprised to hear the sounds of camaraderie coming from two of our children who have been especially at odds lately. Definitely music to a parent's ears ;-)

I'm also encouraging the kids to watch the CRS videos featured on the Rice Bowl app each week. All too often it's easy to forget how very blessed we are. 

May your Lenten season be fruitful!

Beate

Lent begins March 5!

For by your gracious gift each year 

your faithful await the sacred paschal feasts 

with the joy of minds made pure. 

From the Preface for Lent

I love how the focus in the Preface is joy! Are you ready? I need to replace my purple cloth for the prayer area and figure out where I've put the Lent tub! Maybe we'll make the crown of thorns, but I'll leave that up to the kids.

CROWN OF THORNS Lenten Project

 

Ingredients

1 cup salt 

2 cups all purpose flour (I also add ½ c cocoa powder)

1 cup luke warm water (or left over coffee)

Directions

1. In a large bowl mix salt and flour.

2. Gradually stir in water. Mix well until it forms a doughy consistency.

3. With your hands form a ball with your dough and kneed it for at least 5 minutes. The longer you kneed your dough the smoother it will be.

Form 3 long ropes and braid loosely into a ring, joining the ends.

Stick toothpicks into the wreath in every direction to represent the thorns. Bake braid on parchment paper at 275 degrees for one to two hours or until dry.

There are a few options to color your salt dough:

1. Add powdered tempera paint to your flour,

2. add food coloring or paint to the water before you mix it with the salt/flour, or

3. add natural coloring like instant coffee, cocoa, or curry powder.

For each sacrifice that a child (or adult) makes or act of love he commits he

takes out a "thorn."  The goal should be to remove all "thorns"

from the crown by Easter. 

Once the thorns are removed, glue brightly colored beads where the

thorns once were and if you'd like paint the crown. This makes a

beautiful Easter Sunday center piece with a great story to share.

Apparently I'm the mom of saintly children - last year the crown was picked clean before the first Sunday of Lent!!

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If you're wondering how to approach this season with your children, my advice would be to keep it as simple as possible, yet interesting enough to engage everyone to participate. Young children have no concept of sin, but do know about waiting ;-) It can be terribly difficult, so taking advantage of the feast days that fall within Lent is great. When Lent starts early, I'm the one counting down to St. Joseph's feast day on March 19! (Not that we ignore Lent on solemnities, but a nice dessert is definitely in order!) 

As our children mature, they recognize sin and often need reminders of the mercy and love our Lord so desires to share with us. Participating in the sacrament of reconciliation as a family is a wonderful activity esp. for older elementary and middle school children.

Counting the days of Lent is done easily with either a calendar, or with a paper chain. I'll have a calendar for you to pick up in the entrance way of the RE building. The children can mark off the days, add a sticker, or color the squares, whichever works best for you.

A nice way to start the season, is to celebrate Fat Tuesday by having pancakes for dinner. The kids also like to gather up the palm branches left over from last year in order to burn them for the Lenten prayer table. Sometimes I'm just a tad concerned at the pleasure they seem to take in burning things!

In our family, we've run the gamut of creating elaborate plans only to end up with mom and kid burnout ;-) and coasting through Lent with barely a nod at the season. Believe it or not, there is a middle ground! This year, my youngest is 10, so the goal is to have all the kids help to plan the season. As a family, we do talk about sacrifice as well as adding a spiritual exercise to our lives.  

If you like to be inspired by some things others are doing during this season, here are a few links I've found helpful:

Exploring Lent is a nice starting place with some background and activities that are well suited for families.

A Lenten Guide poster that can be printed and posted on the fridge.

How about some Lenten trivia? Challenge each other with these questions at dinner one night.

There are some other sites listed in the "helpful links" section, but again, keep it simple! Oh, speaking of keeping it simple, here is an article aimed at adults titled "Keeping it simple this Lent with Fr. Jim's 1-1-1 Plan"

May the peace of the Good Shepherd be with you all ~

Beate

"Be courageous, and go to confession,” ~ Pope Francis