Happy Advent! Happy New Church Year! - November 29, 2020

I had to write this about two weeks ahead of time due to Thanksgiving and publishing requirements so a lot may have changed, but then again a lot has changed since last year in Advent. How do we do Advent and Christmas during the Coronavirus Pandemic? As best we can, and maybe better than ever if we try hard and are open to things being a bit different. Maybe this year will be a bit more like the original — a little less polished and far less fanfare, but more simple and sincere. Certainly, I hope you’re joining in our “Ignite Your Parish” Advent & Christmas project for good reflections. But what about doing some other simple things we often forget or rarely do this time of year that are easy to do during a pandemic?

Stargazing? Remember that a star appeared to guide the magi to the newborn king. Those magi had been watching the stars always, noticed the change, and recognized the sign. I know its cold out, but consider finding a clear night just to look at the stars God has given us. They fill us with a sense of awe that the world is far bigger than us. The light from the stars has been traveling to us over millions of years, so we see a glimpse into the past.

How about an outdoor walk, or spending some time in your local barn or cave (probably hard to find except for the “man caves”)? We could do this in honor of Mary and Joseph who journeyed from Nazareth to Bethlehem and ended up in a stable/cave for the birth of our savior. As we walk, we might meditate on our hopes and dreams.

Confessions? Yes, we will have them this Advent, though they may be held slightly differently than previous Advents. We are having a lot of little times spread out over December to keep people spread out. During each time available, we hope to have at least 2 of us priests available. We want to help you prepare for Christmas through this gift of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, but do so as safely as possible. The parishes of Johnson County (at least for the most part I believe) are not having big penance services. With COVID it just didn’t make sense to get a lot of people in one place at one time with a lot of priests. So instead, lots of little times here at Prince of Peace just for you! We will be announcing a few more times for later in Advent (please check all our communications), but currently I am planning on the normal times of every Wednesday at 12noon and every Saturday at 3:30PM, with the addition of every Wednesday evening of Advent from 6:00-7:30PM.

Could this be a more simple Advent with less of the busyness and commercialism? I think it can be and that might very well be a good thing for us. I pray you all stay safe and healthy, and that you have a deep and holy season of Advent. We wait for our savior. If we feel the pain of the pandemic continuing, perhaps this is little compared to the pain of so many centuries of waiting for Christ for the people of Israel. O come, O come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel!