Light up your Advent: Resources from U.S. Catholic

By all means, have yourself a merry little Christmas, but before all that jingle-jangle, don’t forget to have yourself a worthy, watchful Advent. Here is a gift bag of practical and spiritual resources to guide you through this period of waiting and expectation. If you're having trouble keeping the season bright in the midst of shopping and parities, return to this page throughout Advent (and the 12 days of Christmas) for spiritual refreshment. Don’t forget to share it with your friends. 

Advent Meditation Room blogs
Do you have a tradition (new, old, serious, fun) to keep the holidays holy? Submit a guest blog to onlineeditor@uscatholic.org [1]. We may put this together into a holiday theme Meditation Room for the magazine next year. Any reflections selected for publication will win $50!

Tradition! [2] by Megan Sweas
Teaching Christmas [3] by Molly Jo Rose
Happy St. Nicholas Day! [4] by Meinrad Scherer-Emunds
Lighting more than Advent candles [5] by Johnny Zokovitch
Christmas preperations [6] by Amanda Curran
Crafting perfect Christmas memories [7] by Lisa Calderone-Stewart
Christmas cactus [8] by Alice Camille
Building a Baby's bed [9] by Ellen Chmiel
Rejoice Sunday and every day [10] by Stephanie Niedringhaus
Buy more presents [11] by Cathy O'Connell-Cahill
Prayers for Christmas mobs [12] by Jim Coniff
Timeless Christmas carols [13] by Sue Stanton
The other Christmas tree [13] by Bryan Cones
Christmas story time [14] by Kathy McGourty
Grief at Christmas [15] by Kathleen O'Hara
Quiet Christmas in the Holy Land [16] by Cathleen Chopra-McGowan
Simply having a wonderful Christmas Time [17] by Meghan Murphy-Gill
Los Posadas: Celebrating together [18] by Father Bruce Wellems, C.M.F.
Visitations today [19] by Judie Harron
Christmas movies: A break from the chaos [20] by Paul Jarzembowski
All about family on Christmas Eve [21] by Philip J. DiNovo
Prayer comes first on Christmas day [22] by Angelica N. Quinonez 

Advent and Christmas practices

I'll be green for Christmas [23]
Our celebration of Jesus' incarnation should bring joy to the world rather than destruction to the world, argues Megan Sweas
See also: Special section on fair trade [24]

Standing room only [25]
More than the Magi visit the Christ child in Santiago Cortes-Sojberg's nativity scene. His crowded creche shows how Jesus came to all of humanity.

Open some doors this Advent [26]
In a classic from 2000, Joyce Rupp encourages hospitality at the holidays, even if you'd rather not let your in-laws in your house.

Unwrap the gifts of Advent [27]
This Advent season, shop the scriptures rather than the malls to prepare for Christmas. Joan Chittister looked at Advent scripture from 2001, but her reading will still give you cheer.  

Do you take your values Christmas shopping? [28]
What parent doesn't want to make their children's wishes come true at Christmas? But respondents to this Reader Survey on gift giving say that playing Santa has become an ethical landmine.

The more days the merrier [29]
The 12 days of Christmas aren't just a song. Nick Wagner offers 12 ways to continue celebrating Christmas after December 25.

Family

Christmas presence [30]
Give your kids yourself for Christmas this year, writes At Home With our Faith editor Cathy O'Connell Cahill. Find more family resources at homefaith.com [31].

'Twas the fight before Christmas: A survival guide to a fairly happy holidays [32]
Family drama bringing you down? Leslie Scanlon shares how Catholics can get through the holiday despite loneliness, grief, and arguments.

Get wrapped up in family traditions this Christmas [33]
Tradition! There's nothing like it to teach your children what the holiday season is really about, writes Mary O'Connell.

Reflections

A reading from the prophet Bonnie [34]
Father Ronald Raab, C.S.C., shares how an unruly visitor brought Jesus into his parish's midst.

Away from the manger [35] 
Pieces of her aunt's nativity scene popped up in unexpected places, reminding Frances Leap of the Incarnation.

What child is this [36]
What does the Lord's birthday mean 2,000 years later? Megan McKenna offers the hopeful vision that the Incarnation of God in human flesh still matters.

What are you waiting for? [37]
Advent is the liturgical season of vigilance or, to put it more mundanely, of waiting, Father Robert Barron writes.

Have yourself a defiant little Christmas [38]
Defy winter and embrace the light, greenness, and love of Christmas, writes John Shea.

Hold your fire! Let's call a truce in the War on Christmas [39]
Making a mockery of the supposed "war on Christmas," Father Paul Boudreau says that putting Christ in Christmas is up to our families.

Scripture

Birth Announcements [40]
It's hard to know what to make of the infancy narratives in some but not all of the gospels. Bible scholar Laurie Brink, O.P. digs out the truth among the differing facts.

The greatest story never foretold? [41]
Was Isaiah really talking about Jesus of Nazareth? In this U.S. Catholic interview, scripture scholar Pauline A. Viviano shares with us what to make of those Advent Old Testament readings.

Ready or not, here I come [42]
Even wonder why we hear passage about the end of the world at Mass during Advent? Meinrad Scherer-Emunds uncovers the Catholic understanding of the Second Coming.  

 

Check out a list of Advent resources and gift guide from our Claretian partner site Homefaith.com [43].

To make shopping easy for you, give gift subscriptions [44] to U.S. Catholic. Also see our first annual Guide to Christmas Gifts that Matter [45]. If book shopping will be a big part of your gift giving this Christmas, please stop by the U.S. Catholic bookstore [46]. A purchase here simplifies your Christmas shopping and helps support this valuable online ministry.