Seasonal Introduction to Christmas

The Christmas Season takes its direction from the splendor of the light of Christ, which breaks into our Advent darkness with the three liturgical celebrations on Christmas Day. We then proceed into the Octave, which contains numerous feasts. There is an intensity of...

Second Sunday of Advent

Our gospel passage for today begins with these words: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.” The word “gospel” literally means “good news.” So we are reading the beginning of the good news of Jesus, the Anointed One, the Son of God. It is...

First Sunday of Advent

A blessed new liturgical year to all! Since the current calendar year has been marked by a catastrophic pandemic, our hearts are bursting with a most hopeful anticipation of a new and better future. Hopeful anticipation is what the season of Advent is all about. In...

Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Many people, including some Catholics, find it strange that we celebrate a joyful feast in honor of the Holy Cross. What is there about the Cross, an ancient Roman instrument of torture and execution, that we should “exalt” it? Of course, there are historical...