As we approach the New Year, consider how you may be challenged to live in a re-energized way. Is it time to align your experience of Christ with your everyday desires, hopes, questions and fears? Continue Reading
Month: December 2008
Christmas Light
Advent is the Season of Promise leading to the Season of Light. The morning readings on the last day of Advent richly reflect the Promise we have inherited throughout the ages. By evening at our Christmas Vigil we are delighting in the reading of Jesus’ Birth. Continue Reading
Christmas Message from Prioress Sr. Phyllis McMurray
And she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes
and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:7
We have heard this passage from Luke many times. The words naturally conjure up an image of gentleness and compassion. God became a little baby. A sleeping baby attracts our attention and engenders tenderness. A baby is powerless and totally dependent on others for care. And yet, that is how our God came to us. The profound mystery of the Incarnation brings with it a sense of awe and wonder. Continue Reading
Seeing God's Care through Your Family
You may recall Matthew begins his Gospel with an incredibly long family history. It was intended to show his audience of Romans that Jesus is a descendant of Abraham and therefore the long-awaited Messiah. If you can ignore the complicated names and focus on the connection generation after generation – well, then you get Matthew’s point. God’s care flows through the generations. Continue Reading
Immersion in Jesus
One of my favorite characters in the Gospels is John the Baptist. His story is essential to Advent – for he prepares us for the Coming of Christ. Jesus and John, as we know, are only months apart. Mary went to visit Elizabeth during their pregnancies and a close relationship between their sons began. Continue Reading
The Risk of God's Call
Mary is a unique personality in the Gospels. On December 8, we celebrated Mary, Mother of God, in our Church. Actually, we know very little about Mary in that there are not many details about her life. In the Gospel, we hear her accepting God’s challenge to bear Jesus and we learn what is most essential about Mary. Her trust and love for God, her deep faith that allows her to freely accept that she is to bear a child who is God’s Son. Here, we get a glimpse of real humility. Continue Reading
A Discernment Walk with God
The Gospel at this mornings Eucharist really struck me in a new way. Perhaps you remember the story in Matthew’s Gospel about the man who built his house and sand and it slipped away while another man who built his house on rock remained sturdy? Often this story is interpreted as whether our foundation with God is one built on sand or on rock. Continue Reading
Watching for the Lord
On the First Sunday of Advent the Gospel ended rather starkly. The last word uttered was watch. That word has stuck with me since. It is a stark reality of what our lives must be about: Watch for the Lord who comes in many unexpected ways. I am not saying life is fragile and can be sniffed out at any moment. I am saying we must be alert for how the Lord enters our daily lives. Continue Reading
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