Fr. Jeffrey Kirby of South Carolina reflects on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17, and its call to "rejoice always" and "pray without ceasing" as it relates to the holy season of Advent.

The church calendar is not amiss on this important occasion. "Each week of Advent focuses on a different theme — hope, peace, joy, and love.

The annual liturgical calendar reminds us of the cycle of seasons— Advent, Christmas, Easter, Lent, and Ordinary time. This year, 2024, Advent begins on De. 1 and ends Dec. 24.

Third Sunday of Advent December 15, 2024 Zephaniah 3:14-18a Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6 Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:10-18 What a picture! God, so in love with humanity that divine joy explodes into dance ...

This story appears in the Marty Haugen's Advent reflections feature series. View the full series. A mother and son make an Advent wreath at St. Joseph Parish in Libertyville, Ill., in 2010.

Like John the Baptist, Fr. Neenan reminded us about the things in life that pull us away from being our best selves: selfishness, greed, sin, hatred, racism, stubbornness, jealousy, ego--to name just ...

The third Sunday of Advent is Gaudete Sunday. We rejoice in the closeness of the Lord’s coming to us. Two things we can do this week. First, pay close attention to what brings joy: a sunrise or ...

We are meant to live in community, one people, all God’s people. On this Rejoice Sunday, I pray for nothing less than a season of joy for each and every one of you. Amen.

The final weeks of Advent are about joy, power and majesty—all appearances to the contrary notwithstanding. On the third Sunday our church puts aside the priest’s purple vestments with their ...

For many, Christmas celebrations follow the four main themes of Advent: hope, peace, joy, and love. Subscribe to have The Washington Times’ Higher Ground delivered to your inbox every Sunday.