Every year it seems that the cultural observance of Christmas starts a little bit earlier. Stores are constantly seeking to lengthen the time they have to sell holiday items; this year I even saw some stores with Christmas decorations in stock before Halloween!

While this is understandable from a commercial point of view, it clashes with the Church's observance and understanding of Advent -- that time of both preparation for Christmas and anticipation for the Second Coming of Christ.

How can we keep Advent in a culture that has forgotten this important liturgical season?

• Put up an Advent wreath in your home. Light it during meal time with your family.
• Start each day in prayer and reflection. Many parishes provide a booklet of reflections for use during Advent; you can also purchase such booklets from a local Catholic bookstore or online Catholic supply store.
• Utilize a site such as the University of Creighton's "Praying Advent" page for daily prayers and audio reflections.
• Don't decorate your house or trim your tree until the week before Christmas and leave the decorations up throughout Christmas Time.
• Attend the Sacrament of Reconciliation, either at a parish reconciliation service or at your parish's normal time.
• Find or download an album of Advent music (yes, they do exist!) to play during the season.

For the record: This year Advent begins on November 27. The Octave of the Nativity of the Lord begins on December 25 and ends on January 1 (the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God). Christmas Time begins the evening of December 24 and runs until January 9 (the Baptism of the Lord).

Have a very blessed Advent season; Come, Lord Jesus!

At its heart, the Eucharist is a sacrament of communion, bringing us closer to God and to our brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ. If we live the fruits of the Eucharist in our daily lives, we will fill our families and our communities with the life-giving qualities that the Liturgy brings: hospitality, concern for the poor and vulnerable, self-offering, and thanksgiving.

An ancient saying in the Church reads “lex orandi, lex credendi,” meaning that the law of prayer is the law of faith. More loosely: as we pray, so we believe. To that we might add lex vivendi, meaning that as we pray, so we believe, and so we live. In the third edition of the Roman Missal, the bishops and translators have taken great care to ensure that the prayers accurately and fully reflect the mysteries of our faith. Thus, the words that we pray in each liturgical celebration will help to form and strengthen our understanding of the faith.

However, if the effects of the Liturgy stop at the doors of the church, we have not made our prayer and our faith part of our law of living. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that the Eucharist helps us to grow in union with Christ, avoid sin, increase in charity, strengthen communion with our brothers and sisters, and recognize Christ in the poorest and most vulnerable members of society (see CCC, nos. 1391-1397). But what does that mean in daily life?

Living a Life of Prayer

Our prayer lives should not be limited to a single hour on Sunday mornings. In fact, the richer our prayer lives are throughout the week, the more fully we will be able to enter into the Sunday celebration of the Eucharist. Here are some ways to make your daily life more prayerful:

• Try attending daily Mass at least once a week. Your parish may have an early morning Mass, or a church near your job may offer a lunchtime Mass.
• Stop in a church before or after work or on your lunch hour for fifteen minutes of quiet prayer before the Blessed Sacrament
• Make it a practice to say grace before every meal -- even if you are eating in the car.
• Schedule time for family prayer at least once a week. This prayer can be as simple as saying the Our Father or a decade of the Rosary together.
• Take time during the week to read or listen to the readings for the upcoming Sunday. The readings are available online (in print and audio) at www.usccb.org/bible.
• Begin your day with a brief prayer of thanksgiving to God, offering your day to him.
• End your day with an examination of conscience, looking at your successes and failures in what you have done or what you have failed to do. If you are aware of serious sin, receive the Sacrament of Penance before you receive Holy Communion again.

Living a Life of Loving Service

Celebrating the eucharistic Liturgy and receiving Holy Communion should strengthen us to conform our lives more closely to the example of Christ. As Jesus knelt before his Apostles to wash their feet (see Jn 13), giving them an example of humble service, so must we who bear the name Christian live our lives in service to our brothers and sisters.

To help us in this endeavor, Church Tradition has identified works of mercy. These fourteen practices demand great sacrifice and generosity, but they also draw us more deeply into conformity with the Lord. Focusing on one of these works each week may be a practical way to integrate them into our personal, family, and parish lives.

Corporal Works of Mercy

• Feeding the hungry
• Sheltering the homeless
• Clothing the naked
• Visiting the sick
• Visiting the imprisoned
• Giving drink to the thirsty
• Burying the dead

Spiritual Works of Mercy

• Converting sinners
• Instructing the ignorant
• Advising the doubtful
• Comforting the sorrowful
• Bearing wrongs patiently
• Forgiving injuries
• Praying for the living and dead

Our parishes and civil communities offer numerous opportunities to live out these works, from assisting with religious education classes or volunteering at a food bank to encouraging our legislators to put forward policies that protect the life and dignity of each person. As we grow in conformity to Christ, we see more clearly that all people are made in the image and likeness of God (see Gn 1:26) and so have an inherent value and dignity. By helping to build a more just and compassionate society, we act as Christ’s Body in the world.

It All Comes Back to the Eucharist

Living the Christian life is not easy. “What material food produces in our bodily life, Holy Communion wonderfully achieves in our spiritual life. Communion with the flesh of the risen Christ . . . preserves, increases, and renews the life of grace received at Baptism. This growth in Christian life needs the nourishment of Eucharistic Communion, the bread for our pilgrimage” (CCC, no. 1392).

And so, each Sunday, we return to the Eucharistic table, bringing all our efforts of the previous week, the good and the bad, the successes and the failures, the joys and the sorrows. We gather with our brothers and sisters in the Lord and, together with our priest, we join these efforts to the perfect sacrifice of Christ, asking that God will receive what we offer back to him in humble thanksgiving. The Catechism explains it as follows:

The Church which is the Body of Christ participates in the offering of her Head. With him, she herself is offered whole and entire. She unites herself to his intercession with the Father for all men. In the Eucharist the sacrifice of Christ becomes also the sacrifice of the members of his Body. The lives of the faithful, their praise, sufferings, prayer, and work, are united with those of Christ and with his total offering, and so acquire a new value. Christ’s sacrifice present on the altar makes it possible for all generations of Christians to be united with his offering. (CCC, no. 1368)

Then, strengthened by Holy Communion, we are once again sent forth into the world to glorify the Lord in our lives.

Reference

Catechism of the Catholic Church (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2000.

Excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, copyright © 2000, Libreria Editrice Vaticana–United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2010 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

Dr. Daniel Greene, MD, Ob/Gyn, answers some common questions about Natural Family Planning:

Natural Family Planning (NFP) is an umbrella term for certain methods used to achieve and avoid pregnancies. These methods are based on observation of the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of a woman's menstrual cycle.

NFP is not “Rhythm.” The Rhythm (or Calendar) method was developed in the 1930s. It was based on the scientific theory that ovulation could be predicted by calculating previous menstrual cycles. This method was often inaccurate because it did not take account of the unique nature of a woman's menstrual cycle. Today’s methods of NFP do take account of such variations. Based on observable signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of the menstrual cycle, NFP methods track the changes associated with ovulation and not only treat each woman as unique, but each cycle as well. The accuracy of women’s observations has been validated by scientific research.

NFP is a holistic approach to family planning. Both husband and wife understand their fertility, emotions, and family planning intention (whether to have a baby or not). Its successful use to avoid pregnancy relies upon a couple’s following what they know about the method and one another. Successful use of NFP requires a couple to communicate. In the daily charting of their fertility signs, couples quickly appreciate their shared responsibility for family planning. Husbands are encouraged to “tune into” their wives’ cycles, and both spouses are encouraged to speak openly to each other about their sexual desires and their ideas on family size.

Couples using NFP to avoid pregnancy abstain from intercourse and genital contact when the woman is fertile and can conceive. The total days of abstinence will vary from woman to woman and even from cycle to cycle. Whatever the length of the fertile phase, no barriers or chemicals are used at any time to avoid pregnancy. To achieve pregnancy couples have intercourse during the fertile time of the cycle. NFP is not a contraceptive. It does nothing to suppress or block conception. Instead, couples adjust their behavior according to their family planning intention using the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of a woman's cycle.

NFP promotes openness to the transmission of human life and recognizes the value of children. Sexual relations are understood as love-giving as well as life-giving. It is true family planning. Because NFP respects the twofold nature of sexual intercourse, it can enrich the bond between husband and wife. Indeed, it can be said that NFP promotes the understanding of “self donation” between spouses. For these reasons it is an acceptable form of family planning for people of various religious and philosophical beliefs.

The Diocese of Springfield in Illinois offers NFP courses for couples interested in learning more about this natural, God-given means of achieving and avoiding pregnancies. For more information, contact Carlos Tejeda in the Office for Marriage and Family Life at 217-321-1132.

On the popular public television program Antiques Roadshow, people from around the country bring their treasures to be appraised by various experts. An antique might be a cherished family heirloom displayed proudly in a prominent place in the home, or a long-forgotten trinket gathering dust on a shelf in the attic. Whatever the item, the owner is usually surprised to hear the expert’s comments. The appraiser might put a low price tag on something the owner thought had great value. And what was originally purchased for a few dollars sometimes turns out to be a prized collector’s item now valued at thousands of dollars.

Take a look around your home. What is your family’s most valued possession? Is it an object, a person, a relationship? How does your family express delight and pride in this treasured possession?

The Second Vatican Council teaches that “the treasures of the Bible are to be opened up more lavishly so that a richer fare may be provided for the faithful at the table of God’s Word” (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy [Sacrosanctum Concilium], no. 51, in Vatican Council II: Volume 1: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, new rev. ed., ed. Austin Flannery [Northport, NY: Costello Publishing, 1996]). Do we consider the Bible a treasure, a special table around which the family gathers? Is the family Bible among your home’s most valuable possessions? As we consider practical ways to share the Word of God at home, perhaps we will be surprised to discover that the family Bible, regardless of whether it is prominently displayed or is gathering dust on an attic shelf, is one of the most valuable spiritual treasures in a Christian home.

A Living and Effective Word
“Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern the reflections and thoughts of the heart,” writes the author of the Letter to the Hebrews (4:12). God’s Word is “living and effective” because we welcome it, in the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2nd ed.), “not as a human word, ‘but as what it really is, the word of God’” ([Washington, DC: Libreria Editrice Vaticana–United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2000], no. 104, quoting 1 Thes 2:13).

But how is the Word of God to become “living and effective” in our homes, in our families, in our professional and social relationships? Here are a few practical ways to make the treasures of the Bible into a table at which your family is nourished and strengthened for the Christian life.

Reading, Reflecting, Renewing

Begin to break open God’s Word in your home by dedicating some family time each week for a brief reading of a Scripture passage, perhaps the Sunday Gospel. Given the hectic and stressed pace of life and our typically overworked schedules, making family time for the Bible reminds us of the need to put God first. Gathering around the table of God’s Word enriches and strengthens the experience of family as a “domestic Church.”

Choose a comfortable and quiet place in the home, away from the distractions of television and ringing telephones. Read the passage aloud, and then allow some time for the family to reflect on and share its meaning together. Since Sacred Scripture is the “speech of God as it is put down in writing under the breath of the Holy Spirit” (CCC, no. 81, quoting Second Vatican Council, Dei Verbum, no. 9), this time dedicated to reading puts your family into living communication with God. Remind everyone gathered that this family activity brings them to a living encounter with Christ, who is present as the Word among them.

Practical Resources

In recent years Catholic Bible study resources have become more readily available. Choose a study aid that is user-friendly and suited to the ages of children in the family. Rely on those resources as aids, not as substitutes, for reading the words of Scripture itself. No resource, however well written, can replace reading God’s Word.

Introduce children to the New American Bible (NAB) translation of the Sacred Scriptures once they receive First Holy Communion. While the New American Bible was not translated with children specifically in mind, it is the basis of the readings proclaimed at Mass. This relationship of the New American Bible to the liturgy means it is invaluable for affirming children in the faith of the Church: it allows them to make the connection between what is proclaimed and heard in the liturgy with what is read in the home.

Parents with young children are encouraged to include as many Bible stories as possible in a child’s library and to devote time to reading and discussing the rich levels of meaning in the sacred stories. When children, with their natural capacity for awe and wonder, marvel at the biblical stories, they can be led to connect the story of their life and their family to the story of salvation itself. Biblical stories and figures who reveal human weakness and sinfulness provide opportunities to discuss, at age-appropriate levels, the realities of human experience in the light of God’s love and mercy.

Praying the Scriptures with the Church
Couples and parents with children can also choose to integrate family prayer time with the reading of Scripture. The Liturgy of the Hours is biblical in content and inspirational through and through. So when praying the Liturgy of the Hours as a family, whether Morning or Evening Prayer, your family participates in the common and universal prayer of the Church. Again, several handy resources are available to make the daily praying of Morning and Evening Prayer simple and sustainable.

Another practical way to break open God’s Word in the home is through the practice of lectio divina. This ancient Christian practice is being recovered in our time, and it was particularly encouraged by the 2008 Synod of Bishops on the Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church. Through a series of steps—reading, meditation, contemplation, and prayer—lectio divina allows the Word of God to bear rich spiritual fruit in the lives of the faithful. Your family can also experience the riches of God’s Word by adapting this ancient approach to a meditative and prayerful reading of Scripture in the home. Several handy resources, in print and online, explain the steps of lectio divina with practical adaptations for the family. A good place to start is the article “Ever Ancient, Ever New: The Art and Practice of Lectio Divina,” included among the 2009 Catechetical Sunday materials available from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: http://www.usccb.org/catecheticalsunday.

Another often overlooked source for praying with Scripture is the variety of traditional Catholic prayers, such as the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Rosary. These prayers, being rooted in the Bible, can help families contemplate the wisdom of Scripture and the life of Jesus as recorded in the Gospels.

Finally, one practical way to make the Scriptures come alive is to assign a family member to gather artistic images that convey and express the biblical themes of a particular Scripture passage. Let a painting, sculpture, stained glass, or piece of sacred music serve as a reference point for reflection on God’s Word as it takes artistic form in the Christian tradition.

From Hearing to Living God’s Word
The lives of the saints are filled with examples of holy men and women who have translated God’s Word into action. In fact, one could say that the life of a saint is like a good Bible commentary. The saints stand out because of their unique and graced capacity to be not only hearers but doers of God’s Word (see Jas 1:22). In the faith, hope, and love of the saints, God’s Word—recorded in the pages of the Bible—comes alive in the book of life.

Take St. Augustine, bishop and doctor of the Church, and the powerful story of his conversion. In the twelfth chapter of book eight of his Confessions, Augustine recounts a turning point in his life as he tearfully struggles with his personal and intellectual past. While sitting in a garden, he heard the voice of a child chanting over and over again, “Take it and read, take it and read.” Turning to pick up a Bible that he had set down only moments earlier, he read a passage from the writings of St. Paul that called him away from the life he once led. He goes on to write, “I had no wish to read more and no need to do so. For in an instant, as I came to the end of the sentence, it was as though the light of confidence flooded into my heart and all the darkness of doubt was dispelled” (trans. R. S. Pine-Coffin [London: Penguin Books, 1961], 177-178). The rest of Augustine’s life and work was spent living out the meaning of God’s word.

Feeding Your Family Food for the Soul

Recent surveys have shown that few Catholics read the Bible on their own or as a family. But what better place is there to encounter the person of Jesus Christ than in God’s Word? As St. Jerome once noted, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”

The Church continually invites us to return to God’s Word. For when we pray with the Bible—personally and in our homes—our encounter with the living Word of God is not a mere intellectual exercise but a spiritually nourishing feast. As we find ways to share God’s Word in our homes we will experience firsthand what the Second Vatican Council means in Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum) when it states that “in the sacred books the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them. And such is the force and power of the Word of God that it can serve the Church as her support and vigor, and the children of the Church as strength for their faith, food for the soul, and a pure and lasting fount of spiritual life” (no. 21, in Flannery).

Copyright © 2009, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to duplicate this work without adaptation for non-commercial use.

 

To show that God is at the center of their lives, many families enthrone the Bible, the Word of God, in a visible place in their homes. By placing the Sacred Scriptures in a prominent place decorated with flowers and art, and by gathering at this spot for daily prayer, families show that God is present and active through his Word.

Enthroning the Bible in your home is easy. Simply pick a place where the Bible can be honored. The Bible should be placed where it will be seen regularly, but the location should be apart from the noise and confusion of the family entertainment. Place the Bible, opened to a favorite passage or the readings of the day (these can be found at www.usccb.org/nab), on a table or shelf. Decorate the area around the Bible with a cloth, flowers, and/or a candle—whatever makes sense to you. Use the following ritual prayer when you gather as a family to enthrone the Bible.

Things to Prepare

• Bible
• A shelf or table where the Bible will be placed (the shelf may be adorned with a cloth and candles)

Ritual

When possible, the ritual may start outside the main door to the house or outside the main entrance to the room. One member of the family holds the Bible, raised slightly. The father, mother, or other leader begins the celebration with the opening litany:

Leader: Our Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Word of the Father.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You became one with us to tell of the Father’s love.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You are the light that shines in the darkness.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You save us from fear and break the bonds of sin and death.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You come to guide our steps and lead us to God.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You are the Word of eternal life.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

Leader: You fill us with the Holy Spirit.
Response: Come, Lord Jesus, come.

As everyone enters the house or room, they may sing a suitable song.

Then one of the following Scripture passages is read from the Bible:

Matthew 4:17-23 Jesus calls and heals through the power of his Word.
Mark 4:1-20 The Word is like the seed.
Luke 4:14-21 Jesus proclaims the Word in Nazareth.
John 1:10-14 Jesus is the Word of God and the light of the world.

After the reading, the leader places the Bible in the place prepared for it. All bow deeply before the enthroned Bible.

Leader:
We have heard your words, Jesus.
They give us joy and bring light and truth into our lives.
Your presence gives us peace in our troubled and divided world.
Let your Word create in our hearts a deep desire for you.
Be with us in our hearts and homes, in our community and country.
Give us your Holy Spirit to help us to understand your Word.
We enthrone now this Holy Bible in our midst.
Make your Word the center of our lives.
May your Word inspire all that we think and say and do.
May your Word bind us together in unity with each other and with you,
today and forever.

Response: Amen.

All join in saying the Lord’s Prayer.

All repeat after the leader:

We promise to respect the Word of God in our midst.
We shall read and reflect on it as a family of God.
May we draw from it inspiration for our decisions,
strength for our work,
and comfort in suffering.
Jesus, help us to be faithful to our promise,
you who live forever and ever.
Amen.

The celebration concludes with a sign of peace.

Adapted from Enthroning the Bible in the Family, by Pauline Publications Africa. Used with permission. Handouts may be reproduced to use in promoting Catechetical Sunday.

Copyright © 2009, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to duplicate this work without adaptation for non-commercial use.

My wife Jennifer and I went and saw an amazing movie Saturday. We were just married October 4 and with the craziness that follows a wedding, we really had not had a chance to just go out and have a date. So we decided to go see a movie and then catch a bite to eat afterwards. Even though we have only been married for a little under two months, we know that it's not every day that you find a movie that is dedicated to strengthening marriages. Fireproof is just that.

It is filled with action and drama, love and humor, and some very intense emotion. It's amazing. However, I found myself sitting there during the moving amazed that I was watching this in a theater, because the message it was sending, you rarely see on the big screen these days. The idea that your marriage is worth fighting for, let alone including God in the process, is not something you hear about anymore in main stream culture.

Kirk Cameron, who played Mike Seaver in the 1980's TV show "Growing Pains," stars as Caleb Holt, a fireman who is on the brink of divorce. He gets caught up in the snare of selfishness many couples fall prey to in marriage. Self-preoccupation rears its ugly head as both Caleb and his wife express mutual hostility and putting other people and things ahead of each other.

In training a rookie firefighter, Caleb is adamant that he never leave his partner behind, especially in the midst of a fire. Unfortunately, Caleb cannot see that he is disregarding his own advice in his personal life. Thankfully he has a fellow firefighter and friend who is able to help him see the light.

Scene from Fireproof

When Caleb shared with his father that he was getting a divorce, his father asked him to wait 40 days. Caleb’s dad had been down this road before and sent Caleb an experiment called "The Love Dare." "The Love Dare" was a journal from that had 40 days of readings and practices for Caleb to use to restore the love and faith in his marriage. The unique aspect of "The Love Dare" is that it shows that it only takes one person to really change a marriage. It might not be easy, as Caleb finds out, but if you truly put faith into it, can reap unexpected benefits.

When Caleb started "The Love Dare," he was just going through the motions, often not reading the biblical passages at the bottom of each page. The practices suggested were not these big, grandiose ideas you hear many people suggest. Instead they were things such as refraining from saying anything negative to your spouse; doing something nice for your spouse or calling them just to check on them. These were the practices that Caleb had to perform, but until he transformed his heart, they didn't work. One in particular that was stressed was studying your spouse. "Get a bachelor's, then a master's then a doctorate degree in your spouse."

Marriage is a promise. Marriage is a covenant. It is not merely a contract that can be canceled at will. Rich rewards await those who push through the pain of personal growth to overcome the challenges and obstacles that all couples face. Fire is a great analogy used in this movie for the refining fire of marriage.

Scene from Fireproof

In one memorable scene, Caleb comes to his wits' end regarding how he can possibly continue to love when his love is not received. How can he love when his love is rebuffed and rejected? It is then that he awakens to the role Jesus Christ plays in his ability to love his wife, as he must be able to within marriage. It is then that his heart is transformed and softened to a state that makes him capable of loving in the true spirit of love.

Somewhere in the midst of Caleb's awakening to and acceptance of Christ, there seems to be a transfer of power, such that Caleb is now able to love more so as God loves. This love that we seek in marriage is the love that God freely gives.

The road to Caleb's transformation is not easy. It is full of heart-wrenching pain. It is quite obvious that the process is excruciatingly slow. It is easy to see how such a marital journey is quickly abandoned by so many for the seemingly apparent "peace" that divorce deceptively promises.

I encourage everyone to see this movie and to encourage others to do so as well. Fireproof is great marriage education for engaged couples as well. Jennifer and I are still newlyweds and we found many great ideas to incorporate into our marriage. Going into marriage with an understanding that successful marriages take effort, and knowing a few of the keys to marital happiness are a couple of great gifts that we can give our youth.

The movie opened Sept. 26 in theaters. If you miss it there, be sure to get the DVD when it comes out January 27, 2009. You can check out the movie trailer and learn more about it below.

It is never too late to Fireproof our marriages.

Links you should check out

• Fireproof Movie Website: www.fireproofthemovie.com
• Fireproof Movie Showtimes: www.fireproofthemovie.com/theaters/
• Fireproof Your Marriage Website: www.fireproofmymarriage.com
• Fireproof Couples Resources: www.fireproofresources.com