The Church has a liturgical year that is different from the calendar year that begins on January 1st. The beginning of the Church’s liturgical year is always the First Sunday of Advent, which this year begins next Sunday, December 2nd. So the Sunday before Advent (today), the Church concludes its liturgical year with the Feast of Christ the King. This feast reminds us of the end of time when Christ our King will return and human history will be brought to an end. That may sound a bit frightening, but for us as people of faith, it is the best of news for when Christ comes again (also referred to as his “second coming,”), there will be a defini- tive end of evil and the experience of nothing but goodness and love in God’s kingdom. This is what we hope for, pray for, and work for. It is the culmination of the Gospel, the Good News that Jesus proclaims. Even the first couple of weeks of Advent carries this theme until we get closer to Christmas and recall the first coming of Jesus when he was born among us. So look for the Advent candles and the purple color and the time of preparation for the Feast of the Nativity (Christmas).
It’s always good to use the time of Advent preparation to grow in the understanding & appreciation of our faith. Since there is nothing more important to the experience of faith than the Mass which we celebrate every week, we want to provide you with the opportunity to learn more about how the Mass came to be & why it is so central to our Catholic way of life. Bishop Robert Barron, the greatest evangelist in our country today, has produced another series of videos on the Mass. This series is sure to hit home as we all pray the Mass every week (or more). I can’t speak more highly about Bishop Barron or his videos as they are a fascinating look at why Catholicism is so rich in its history and meaning. We will view these videos in the Parish Community Center on Mondays, December 3, 10 & 17 from 7pm-8pm. I know that you will walk away with a much better understanding of the Mass & it will change the way you worship here every week! Here is some information on Bishop Robert Barron:
Bishop Robert Barron is the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He is also the host of CATHOLICISM, a groundbreaking, award-winning documentary about the Catholic Faith, which aired on public television.
Bishop Barron is a #1 Amazon bestselling author & has published numerous books, essays, and articles on theology & the spiritual life. He is a religion correspondent for NBC and has also appeared on FOX News, CNN, and EWTN.
Bishop Barron's pioneering work in evangelizing through the new media led Francis Cardinal George to describe him as “one of the Church's best messengers.”