Advent & Christmas. The Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative. Faith Formation Family Resource

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1 Advent & Christmas The Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative Faith Formation Family Resource

2 Reverend Paul Ritt, Pastor Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative Pastoral Leadership Team Reverend Tony Luongo, Parochial Vicar Deacon Edward Elibero, Deacon Deacon Tom O Shea, Deacon toshea@ola-smg.org Donna Delahanty, Director of Parish Ministries ddelahanty@ola-smg.org Donna Hegan, Pastoral Associate dhegan@ola-smg.org Kate McGrath, Pastoral Assistant kmcgrath@ola-smg.org Pam Guerrieo, Director of Youth Faith Formation pguerrieo@ola-smg.org Piri Collard, Coordinator, OLA K-6 pcollard@ola-smg.org Bethany Kilroy, Coordinator, SMG 1-6 bkilroy@ola-smg.org Jamie Bossi, Faith Formation Facilitator jbossi@ola-smg.org

3 Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative Celebrating Advent & Christmas Dear Faith Formation Families, The season of Advent is here! For the next four weeks, we wait in joyful expectation for the coming of our Lord at Christmas. The Advent season is a time of waiting and a time in which we are called to prepare our hearts for Jesus birth. As we look forward to Christmas, the Faith Formation Team invites families to make use of this booklet as a guide to the Advent and Christmas seasons here at the Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative. During the Advent and Christmas seasons, we invite you and your family to participate in the many opportunities we have for prayer and building community. This booklet is intended to be engaging and interactive for families and for children. We have structured this booklet so that it follows the four weeks of Advent and have included for each week a prayer and/or meditation and reflection questions. We have also included ideas for the Advent and Christmas seasons. Each week, we invite you and your family to learn something new about our faith and put faith into action (see the family activity for each week). As you and your family use this booklet and as we all wait for the coming Christmas season, may our waiting be patient and joyful, may our patience be filled with joy and expectation, and may our joy open our hearts to receive Jesus - who is the way, the truth and the life. May these seasons of Advent and Christmas be ones of joy for you, your family and all those at the Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative! We wish you a happy Advent season and a Merry Christmas! Sincerely, Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative Team

4 Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative Advent and Christmas Schedule December 2 nd : December 7 th : December 8 th : December 9 th : Christmas Dinner 6:00pm at SMG Feast of the Immaculate Conception 4:00pm at OLA 7:00am at SMG 9:00am at OLA 7:00pm at SMG Breakfast with Santa 10:00am 12:00pm at SMG December 10 th : Bambinelli Sunday 10:00am at SMG 11:00am at OLA December 17 th : December 18 th : SMG Open House 11:00am at Parish Hall Confession 6:30pm at OLA and SMG December 24 th : Christmas Eve Mass 4:00pm at SMG (Note: No 5:00pm Mass) 4:00pm at OLA Church and School Cafeteria December 25 th : Christmas Day Mass 9:00am at OLA 10:00am at SMG 11:00am at SMG

5 First Week of Advent Prayer for Lighting the First Advent Candle: Advent is a season of waiting. As we await the joyful coming of our Lord at Christmas, we light this first Advent candle, praying together: Lord, we wait for the day of your peace. May we help to bring this peace to our families, our communities, and our world ( Amen. Reflection: Mary s Yes to God When the angel Gabriel tells Mary that she will be the mother of God, Mary responds saying, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your will. Mary says yes to something that she did not fully understand. Her yes to God can be for us an example of faith. Reflection Questions: Do my words and actions say yes to God? Do I have the courage to say yes to who God calls me to be this day and in my life? Family Activity: Make an Advent Wreath During the Advent season, a custom is to use an Advent wreath, marking the four weeks of Advent. Using the Advent wreath at home is a popular practice and can be easily incorporated into family time. The Advent wreath itself is rich with symbolism: The Advent Wreath is made of evergreen branches, symbolizing life. The circular shape of the wreath, represents the eternity of God (it has no beginning and no end). The Candles represent the four weeks of Advent. There are three purple candles and one pink (rose) colored candle. We light the purple candles on the first, second and fourth Sundays during Advent and we light the pink (rose) candle on the third Sunday of Advent (known as Gaudete Sunday). Gaudete Sunday is a day of joy as we know Christmas is near!

6 Second Week of Advent Prayer for Lighting the Second Advent Candle: During this season of Advent, we prepare ourselves for the birthday of Jesus. As we prepare in us a home for Christ s dwelling, we light the second Advent candle and pray: Loving God, as we prepare for the birth of your Son, we ask that you open our minds and our hearts so that we may be ready for Jesus birth. May we always be mindful of your dwelling in us so that we may be instruments of joy and peace. Amen. Reflection: The Shepherds Who Care for their Sheep The word shepherd could be read as a noun: as in someone who tends a flock of sheep, or it could be read as a verb: as in the act of guiding or leading, shepherding a group along. Whether noun or verb, a shepherd or to shepherd calls for care, patience, leadership and gentleness. The shepherds who came to stand at the manger can help us to reflect on the care we give to others each day. Reflection Questions: How am I doing in my relationships with friends, neighbors, coworkers, family members? What are ways that I tend to or care for my relationships with others, with God and with myself? Family Activity: Advent Questions As a family, try to see if you notice ways in which we as a faith community observe Advent. Answer the questions below as a family: 1. What color does the priest wear during Advent? Why do you think he wears that color? 2. Why do we light Advent candles? 3. Why do we celebrate Advent? What is the purpose of Advent?

Third Week of Advent Prayer for Lighting the Third Advent Candle: In joyful expectation for the coming of Christmas, we light the third candle of Advent, praying: Lord God, may we, your people, who

7 Third Week of Advent Prayer for Lighting the Third Advent Candle: In joyful expectation for the coming of Christmas, we light the third candle of Advent, praying: Lord God, may we, your people, who look forward to the birthday of Christ experience the joy of salvation and celebrate that feast with love and thanksgiving. We ask this, through Christ our Lord ( Amen. Reflection: The Darkness of Night and the Light of Christ Have you ever noticed that darkness carries something different than light? What is heard, seen and experienced at night is quite different than what is heard, seen and experienced at morning - or at least sometimes it seems so. Darkness can sometimes help us see things with new eyes. It is in darkness that we see the stars and it is in darkness that light shines brightly. Though without light in darkness, we can stumble and fall. Darkness needs light and to see the light, sometimes we need a bit of darkness. Reflection Questions: What helps me keep faith? Where do I see God in times of darkness? Family Activity: Celebrate Bambinelli Sunday Bambinelli Sunday is celebrated on the Third Sunday of Advent. On this day, children and families are invited to bring a figurine of the baby Jesus from their nativity scene at home to church. The figurines of the baby Jesus are then blessed during the Mass. Bambinelli Sunday at OLA and SMG! We will be celebrating Bambinelli Sunday at the 10:00am Mass at Saint Maria Goretti Parish and at the 11:00am Mass at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish on December 10 th.

8 Fourth Week of Advent Prayer for Lighting the Fourth Advent Candle: In this season of Advent, we are invited to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord at Christmas. As we light the fourth Advent candle, we do so with joy, reminded that God draws near to us, and so we pray: Long ago God came as one of us. Through the ages God continues to come as Spirit, as Word, as bread and wine, and in each one of us when we reach out to those in need. Believing in a God who draws near to his children, we wait; we hope and we labor for a more just, loving and peaceful world. As we make this Advent journey we invite God to come again and again so that our waiting, our hoping and our laboring may give way to the fulfillment of God s promise to come in glory ( Amen. Reflection: The Shining Star Stars are luminous, especially on clear nights when they can sometimes appear to be shimmering. Stars are also helpful for finding direction and can be like guideposts in the night sky. Like the three wise men who saw the star they needed to see, and who followed the star to the place where Jesus was born, we too have a light Jesus - to follow. He is the one who will lead us back to where we need to be: resting in God s love. Reflection Questions: What helps me know that I am following Jesus? What helps me to recognize moments when I am not following Jesus? Family Activity: Create an Advent Tree of Kindness As a family, think of many different things that you could do together for your neighbors, friends, family, etc. Using old Christmas Cards, make ornaments and decorate them to hang on your Christmas tree. Write down your good deeds on the Christmas card cover and each day during Advent, choose one of the good deeds to do as a family.

9 Christmas Prayer for Christmas Day: God of love, fill each of us with the joy of this Christmas day. May the joy of this day open wide our hearts to receive your grace. And may the grace we receive help us to have the wisdom to see that in the dark of night, it is your son who gently and humbly guides us and leads us back to you. Amen. Reflection: The Crèche The Christmas season helps us to see the love God has for us. When we see each element of the crèche scene individually, we know Mary s yes to God, we see the Shepherds and their tenderness and compassion, and we notice the darkness of night and the star that shines brightly - all of which point us to the baby asleep on the hay. Jesus, who held in his mother s arms under the star, is the one that shows us the way and remains for us the truth and the life. Reflection Questions: Where do I see the love of God today? In what way is Jesus the way, the truth and the life for me? Family Activity: Join us for a Christmas Mass at OLA or SMG! December 24 th at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish and Saint Maria Goretti Parish: 4:00pm at SMG (Note: No 5:00pm Mass) 4:00pm at OLA Church and School Cafeteria December 25 th at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish and Saint Maria Goretti Parish: 9:00am at Our Lady of the Assumption Church 10:00am at Saint Maria Goretti Church 11:00am at Saint Maria Goretti Church

Epiphany Prayer at Epiphany: As this season of Christmas draws to an end, let us be thankful for the many gifts God has given to us especially the gift of Jesus.

We pray that like the three wise men who saw the star shining brightly, we too may see and know the light of Christ that is present in our midst. Amen.

10 Epiphany Prayer at Epiphany: As this season of Christmas draws to an end, let us be thankful for the many gifts God has given to us especially the gift of Jesus. May we be ever mindful of God s presence to us, and may we know that we can always turn to God in times of pain and in times of joy. We pray that like the three wise men who saw the star shining brightly, we too may see and know the light of Christ that is present in our midst. Amen. Reflection: The Three Wise Men who Followed the Star Epiphany is the feast which commemorates the visit of the three wise men to worship the baby Jesus. According to the Gospel narrative, the three wise men brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh gifts which were precious, having meaning and value. This feast day can help us reflect on who or what it is that we follow. Reflection Questions: Does God hold first place in my life or do distractions take over? Do I trust where God leads me? Family Activity: Chalk Blessing On the Feast of the Epiphany, blessing one s home is a common practice. A traditional way of doing this is to use chalk, writing above the entrance: +20CMB18+: The letters CMB have two meanings: The C, M and B are the initials of the three magi: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar; They are abbreviated for the Latin, Christus mansionem benedicat, May Christ bless the house. The + represents the cross. The indicates the year.

11 Advent & Christmas Family Resources and Activity

Advent & Christmas Family Resource Guide ONLINE RESOURCES: Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative: Find us online at www.lynnfieldcatholic.org for parish and collaborative wide events.

12 Advent & Christmas Family Resource Guide ONLINE RESOURCES: Lynnfield Catholic Collaborative: Find us online at for parish and collaborative wide events. Loyola Press: For fun family activities this Advent and Christmas, check out Loyola Press at: Catholic Icing: For Advent family activities check out the Catholic Icing blog: Look to Him and be Radiant: Check out this blog for Advent prayer and craft ideas:

13 Advent & Christmas Word Jumble Directions: Below are jumbled words. Can you guess what the correct spelling is for each word? Next to each jumbled word, write the correct spelling. HINT: Each word has something to do with Advent or Christmas. VAENDT: GAENL: LBMEETHHE: NCEALD: TCSHARMIS: TGIF: SJSEU: EJHOPS: NMRAEG: RMYA: INYATTVI: PPERREA : ASETLB: TSRA: EWHRTA: Answer Key: Advent, Angel, Bethlehem, Candle, Christmas, Gift, Jesus, Joseph, Manger, Mary, Nativity, Prepare, Stable, Star, Wreath.

14 May the light of this season brighten your homes and may the joy of Christmas fill your heart! Merry Christmas!

15 The season of Advent is a time of waiting, a time when we prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord at Christmas. May this season of Advent be a time of peace for you, your family, and for the Lynnfield Catholic community! O Come, O Come Emmanuel! In peace, ~ The Faith Formation Team

* Our next meeting is January 6,

*** Our next meeting is January 6, ** St. Patrick s Religious Education Eucharist I Lesson Plans December 2, 2017 January 5, 2018 (Please note the Lessons have been aligned to coincide with the celebration of Advent and Christmas) *** Our