“…as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah:
A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” Luke 3, 1-6
The prophets who spoke for God (like Baruch, Isaiah, and John the Baptist) are speaking to us today. The “mountains” they speak of are still dividing people from one another. They are mountains of debt which keep poor people and poor nations helpless and hopeless. They are mountains which make it hard to discover the truth in a world of lies. They are mountains of unforgiveness which make compassion and understanding within our families supremely difficult to obtain.
These prophets call us today to remove such obstacles or, perhaps, build bridges and repair broken relationships. To do that, we have to bend low and come down off our mountains of pride and privilege, and let the grace of Advent touch us and change us.
It has been said that Advent is not so much about “the coming of Christ,” but “what we are becoming because of Christ.” May this holy time help us re-discover our greatest needs: to be cared for, forgiven, and healed. These are gifts we can give one another because they have already been given to us … so often and so freely by God Himself.
Let us pray. “O God, in the wilderness you sent a messenger to prepare your people’s hearts for the coming of your Son. Help us to hear his words, so that we may clearly see the way to walk, the truth to speak, and the life to live for Him, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
Parish Announcements:
A.- After the 9am Mass on Sundays, we will continue our Inquiry sessions with the Rite of Christian Initiation (RCIA). If you have questions or you know someone who does about how one “becomes Catholic” or what the process looks like … or if you simply have questions about the faith and the Church: please join us in the parish convent right after Mass.
B.- We are saddened to announce that the First Sunday of Advent marked the end of our livestreaming. We are grateful to our team of Bob Kerns, RJ Tagorda, and Felipe Perez for their able and loyal assistance at the camera and the computer. We owe these men a deep debt of gratitude. If you are able to join us now in-person, please continue to respect others around you by wearing a mask in church, maintaining a safe distance, and washing your hands. We will continue to offer three Masses each weekend: 5pm Saturday, 9am Sunday, and 12pm Sunday in Spanish. As the need arises, we will be at the ready to offer livestreamed Masses in the future, but (again) last Sunday marked the end of our “regular schedule” on YouTube.
C.- Advent Giving Project: We are teaming up with our St. Vincent de Paul Conference again this year to provide Christmas baskets for parish and school families who are going through challenging times. Envelopes are available in the church and at the office. Donations can also be made at holycrosspdx.org/holy-cross-church/give
D.- At the entrances of the church and in our “treasure box” at the office:
1. You can find Christmas Flower envelopes. If you would like to help us provide flowers and decorations throughout the Christmas Season, please use this opportunity to honor someone living or recommend a family member or friend who has gone before us. We will being praying from December 24th to January 7th for all those recommended to us.
2. You can also find Advent resources which will help you deepen your experience of this holy season. Please take look at the Scriptural and other “helps” we have made available.
E. We thank everyone, especially the medical team, who helped offer our most recent Vaccination Clinic. It was another “proud Holy Cross day!” Nearly 400 people were vaccinated!
F.- These important questions remain on our parish’s agenda: What are we going to do this week to make this a better place (a better parish, a better neighborhood, a better city, and a better world)? What are we going to do this week to make us a better people? If God has called us to lead others to Him by way of a virtuous life, how are we going to do that this week?
