Posted on 11/30/2002 5:52:46 AM PST by Salvation
November 21, 2002 Copyright © by United States Conference of Catholic BishopsAdvent Calendar for Adults
December 1
Make or buy a clay pot. Put it at the center of your prayer space or near your Bible. On small slips of paper, write down the ways in which you see or watch for the presence of God in your life during this Advent. Fold the slips of paper and place them in the clay pot.
December 2
Adopt a form of grace before breakfast, lunch, or dinner to use throughout the Advent and Christmas season. Suggestions can be found in Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers.
December 3
Today is the feast of St. Francis Xavier, a Jesuit missionary to Asia and the Pacific. Learn three facts about Catholics today from Asia and the Pacific Islands. How has the Asian and Pacific presence influenced your local community?
December 4
Pray the rosary using the A Scriptural Rosary for Justice and Peace.
December 5
Reread Sunday's Gospel (Mark 13:33-37). What is the Gospel's sense of time? How is the Gospel's sense of time a challenge to our cultural sense of time during these weeks?
December 6
The virtue of St. Nicholas was his love and charity for the poor. Read short excerpts from Principles, Prophecy, and a Pastoral Response and reflect on your response to poor in the world.
December 7
Make your Christmas gift list. Set a limit on Christmas gift buying. Donate a percentage of the total amount spent on gifts to a local charity.
December 8
Write your Christmas cards. Include a copy of the Prayer for Peace or A Prayer for Families. and invite your friends and loved ones to pray the prayer with your throughout the holiday season.
December 9
On the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, identify in what ways Mary is a model of holiness for you. Examine some of the traditional prayers to Mary in the Book of Mary.
December 10
Reread The Harvest of Justice Is Sown in Peace. What one action can you take as an individual, a family, a parish, and a taxpayer to sow the seeds of justice this Advent?
December 11
Pray the rosary using A Rosary for Peace.
December 12
Celebrate Eucharist at a Spanish-language or bilingual Mass on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
December 13
Light a candle in your home or at a Church and pray for the blind on this memorial to St. Lucy.
December 14
Adopt one of the spiritual works of mercy from Penitential Practices for Today's Catholics as part of your Advent journey.
December 15
Reflect on the Magnificat in Luke 1:46-55. What experiences of God in your life, work, and community prompt you to respond, "My soul proclaims the greatness of God" or "Holy is his name"?
December 16
Today is the first day of the nine-day celebration of the posadas, when the difficult journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem is reenacted. As you hear the figurative "knock on the door," how do you respond to the question, "Is there room at the inn?" and welcome the strangers at your door?
December 17
Sing O Come, O Come Emmanuel, the sung version of the O Antiphons, as part of your prayer. Each antiphon addresses Christ using a Scriptural title. One of the seven antiphons is prayed each day from December 17 to December 24.
December 18
In Sunday's Gospel, John gives testimony and bears witness to the light that is to come. How do you continue to bear witness to the presence of Christ's light in the world, especially during this Advent season?
December 19
Put up and decorate your Christmas tree. Bless it using the "Blessing of a Christmas Tree".
December 20
Pray the rosary using Unity in Diversity: A Scriptural Rosary. Identify the migrants in your community and how you can be a more welcoming community during this Advent.
December 21
Read the Canticle of Zechariah in Luke 1:68-79. In what areas of your life do you need to ask God to guide you to peace?
December 22
Make a list of the ways in which, like Mary, you have said "yes" to God's presence in your life.
December 23
Finish wrapping your Christmas gifts.
December 24
Begin the Novena for Peace (to end on January 1.)
December 25
Celebrate the birth of Christ by attending Eucharist. Spend time with family and friends.
December 26
Remember St. Stephen, first deacon and martyr, on his feast day today. Collect old, usable clothes, non-perishable food items, and unused toys and donate them to a local shelter or charitable organization.
December 27
Start writing thank you notes for the gifts that you received on Christmas.
December 28
On the Feast of the Holy Innocents, read the brochure A People of Life. In the coming year, in what one way can you better care for and protect life?
December 29
Write a card or letter to each member of your family. Thank them for all that they have shared with you. Send them a copy of the A Prayer for Families.
December 30
Memorize the Canticle of Simeon, part of yesterday's Gospel, and begin the practice of Night Prayer individually, as a couple, or as a family.
December 31
Review fundraising requests from charitable groups and decide which ones you will support. Send out the checks to make the December 31 deadline for charitable deductions.
January 1
Pray the Prayer for Peace with your family, friends, or colleagues before watching the parades or football games on this holy day dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and Queen of Peace.
January 2
Basil the Great and Gregory Nazienzen were examples of great and faithful disciples Jesus in the early Church. What are the calls and "costs" of discipleship today?
January 3
Read what you wrote on the slips of paper in your clay pot. Reflect on the experience of "epiphany" in the Gospel for this coming Sunday.
January 4
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was deeply affected by her experience of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist (read the U.S. bishops'). How has your experience of the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist changed the way in which you experience the presence of Christ in others?
January 5
Today begins National Migration Week. Write a letter to your senator or representative on one of the current issues related to migrants.
______________________________USCCB Publishing
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 (202) 541-3000
To order toll-free: 1-800-235-8722
Church year is marked by the beginning of Advent.
Any comments?
Some of these suggestions look pretty good to me.
Please notify me via Freepmail if you would like to be added to or removed from the Advent Ping list.
Makes me think of depictions of female saints in various states of undress.
"Adult" typically means "adolescent" nowadays.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.