...of the Pope's new book for Common Ground, the magazine of the Council of Christians and Jews. It will appear in the next edition.
Organised my 2011 subscription to Magnificat, the now indispensable booklet which, beautifully produced and illustrated, arrives each month with Morning and Evening Prayer, lives of saints, useful information, inspirational reading.
Been writing Christmas cards, wrapping gifts, organising goodies to take to family gatherings, and doing other Christmas preparations. Two lots of carol singing this week, two lots next week. The Crib is now erected above our fireplace, minus the Bambino...he will be taken to Mass on Sunday to be blessed, in a tradition not long established in our parish but which has firmly taken hold and I think is delightful.
Went to an evening Mass at Westminster Cathedral - candles glowing on the Advent wreath, two tall trees at either side of the sanctuary.Now that Gaudete Sunday is past, there is a sense of Christmas truly being near.
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2 comments:
Lovely post :)
I,too,"across the Pond" look forward to and get much from my monthly Magnificat. I especially enjoy the articles that explain the religious art which is often cropped for the gorgeous covers and then shown in full inside. The morning & evening prayers are comforting, and it is essential for daily Masses.
In NY, on 12/13, we had our 1st & unpredicted snow & ice which inspired many to SHOP in our local village patronizing small merchants for a change--a very good thing.
On Christmas Eve, the entire village will gather at 5:30 p.m. for its Christmas Pageant outside on a church hill, all faiths represented, to re-enact the Nativity. Your church's custom of blessing the Manger Babe is lovely, and one worth suggesting here.
Our apartment's lobby is decorated with a LIVE tree and wreaths and is breathtaking...and we began with a Menorah, of course, for 8 days. I'm behind in my decorating and will do so now since the temperature high is the low 20s(!) and the winds are howling. What shopping I do is finished; the wrapping remains. But my eye remains on the prize, i.e., Christmas hymns, Confession, Christmas Mass lectoring or serving as a Eucharistic Minister, and our own culinary feast in His honor. For me, the true meaning of Christmas, not the secular trappings. Write MORE about your daily preparations...so interesting and unifying.
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