In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Good morning and welcome. Thank you for joining us for our morning prayer with the Oblate Family

 In the gospel we call the Annunciation, filled with the holy spirit, Mary said ‘yes’ to what God asked of her. While visiting Elizabeth and sharing her good news with her, Mary prays aloud, if not sings out to God. In this prayer called the Magnificat, Mary calls God her Saviour and recognises the great and wonderous things the Lord has done for her. At this his time of the year, can we take some time to recognise God as our Saviour? Can we also prayer in thankfulness and gratitude for all the great things the Lord has done for us over the last year.

Our Father..

Lord, we thank you for these final days before we celebrate the Nativity of Jesus. Guide and lead as we prepare to welcome Jesus into our hearts, homes and families.

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Thank you for being with us this today for our morning prayer.

Good morning and welcome to today’s Advent Moment reflection with the Oblate Family on Sunday December 21st, the 4th Sunday of Advent, by Veronica Conlon. We reflect on Matthew 1:18-24.

Joseph was contemplating divorcing Mary because of her pregnancy until an angel appeared to him in a dream and announced ‘ Joseph, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’  And we are told that when he woke from his dream he did what he was asked.

Like Mary, Joseph is a model of faith for us.  As Christmas approaches let us consider the faith of Mary and Joseph in the light of our own lives. Let us enter wholeheartedly into the Chrtmas story as it enfolds.

A prayer by Joyce Rupp

God of hope, come!  Be the Morning Star in our midst, the Light that can never go out, the Beacon of Hope guiding our way to you.  Come into our midst and make of our lives a home, where your everlasting goodness resonates with assuring love and vigorous hope. 

Amen.

(Taken from Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp. Used by permission of Ave Maria Press.  All rights reserved)

Thank you for joining us this morning. 

Good morning and welcome to today’s Advent Moment reflection with the Oblate Family on Saturday December 20th by Veronica Conlon. We reflect on the Gospel of Luke 1:26-38.

The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and announced that she was chosen to be the mother of God. Mary was initially surprised but after being reassured by the angel she readily agreed to what was being asked of her.  Whatever her dreams and hopes were before that ‘yes’ were completely overturned.  Nothing in her life would ever be the same again. She was willing to do God’s will even if it seemed difficult and impossible. By saying yes Mary is a model of faith for us all.  This attitude of Mary’s is the attitude that we are called to have.  One of trust and of openness and receptiveness to the will of God in our lives.  

Let us pray:  Hail Mary full of grace, the Lord is with you.  Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.  Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Thank you for joining us this morning. 

Good morning and welcome to today’s Advent Moment reflection with the Oblate Family on Friday December 19th by Veronica Conlon.

Today we have the well-known account of the visit of an angel to the priest Zechariah, husband of Mary’s cousin Elizabeth. Zechariah is informed by the angel that his wife will give birth to a son and they should name him John.  This was an answer to their prayer. However Zechariah was struck dumb and would not regain his voice until the birth of the baby. He was compelled to wait in silence. 

Angels appear at very significant moments in people’s lives as we shall see in the readings of the next two days. They are messengers from God. Angels remind us of the spiritual part of our lives where God wants to be heard. As we wait for Christmas let us be open to the many ways that God wishes to enter into our lives. Maybe between now and Christmas  we can make an effort to take some time in silent contemplation in front of the crib.

A prayer by Joyce Rupp

God of hope, come!  Enter into the lives all of those I hold dear, the ones whose lives are marked with pain, struggle and anxiety… Come and gift them with a deep belief about you and your never-ending faithfulness and companionship.

Amen.

Thank you for joining us this morning. 

(Taken from Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp.  Used by permission of Ave Maria Press. All rights reserved.)

Good morning and welcome to today’s Advent Moment reflection with the Oblate Family on Thursday December 18th by Veronica Conlon.

Jeremiah prophesied the birth of Jesus:  ‘he shall reign as king…..and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.’ He was also offering words of hope to the Israelites that they will be brought out of exodus to live in their own land.

There is always room for hope.  To maintain hope in our world can be difficult in the face of wars, flood, famine, displacement, abuse, dishonesty - the list goes on. The message of Christmas reassures us that God is always with us with comfort and support. 

A prayer of hope by Joyce Rupp:

God of hope, come! Enter into every human heart that cries out for a glimpse of your love, for a sign of your welcoming presence, for a taste of your happiness.  Be the one who calms the restless and gentles the ache of the human journey.

Amen.

Thank you for joining us this morning.

(Taken from Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp.  Used by permission of Ave Maria Press.  All rights reserved.)

Good morning! Welcome to today's Advent Moment reflection with Veronica Conlin, on the gospel from today's mass, Matthew 1:1-17.

Today’s reading begins with the verse - ‘The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David and the son of Abraham.’  It then continues by naming all Jesus’ ancestors ending with ‘Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.’ Genealogies are important. They give us our roots and help us understand our heritage.

In the native American tradition they often begin their rituals by ‘calling in the ancestors’. We too particularly remember our ancestors during the month of November.  Today we can show our gratitude to God for the faith which was passed down to us by our ancestors. A faith which sustains us through difficult times.

A prayer of hope by Joyce Rupp

God of hope, come!  Stir up stories of how the ancestors hung on to your promises, how they stole hope from tiny glimmers about you, passed on from age to age.  Help me hear the loud, crying voices of the prophets who proclaimed that a new age would dawn. 

(Taken from Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp. Used by permission of Ave Maria Press.   All rights reserved)

Thank you for joining us today!

Dear friends, welcome to today's Advent Moment - our Advent Daily Reflection for Tuesday December 16th on Matthew 21:28-32 by Veronica Conlon. 

Once more Jesus challenges the Pharisees who were seen as men who taught one thing and did something different themselves. Jesus told them,

‘The tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.’  In this reading we are asked to examine our lives and how we are living. Are we too much like the Pharisees? Are we calling ourselves Christian but not living a Gospel-led life? 

Advent gives us the opportunity to answer these questions truthfully in the light of the hope which Christmas brings.

A prayer of hope by Joyce Rupp

God of hope, come! Enter into this heart of mine which often loses itself in self, missing the message of your encouragement because I am so entangled in the web of my own whirl of life.  Enable me not to lose sight of the power of your presence or the truth of your consolation. 

(Taken from Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp. Used by permission of Ave Maria Press. All rights reserved)

#advent #advent2025 #christmas #faith #bible #catholic #jesus #gaudete #joy #sunday #showandtell #reflect #pray #timeout #peaceful #prayer #podcast #audio #praytogether

Dear friends, welcome to today's Advent Moment - our Advent Daily Reflection for Monday December 15th on Matthew 21:23-27 by Veronica Conlon. 

In today’s gospel the chief priests and elders question Jesus’ authority when they pose the question: ‘By what authority are you doing all these things, and who gave you this authority?’  One of the cornerstones of our faith is that Jesus is the Son of God and is himself God and there is no greater authority than this.

We are now in the third week of Advent, only a week and a bit away from the birth of Jesus, the Son of God, when we will celebrate the gift of his presence in our world.  In this season of hope we can bring ourselves to God with all our imperfections and ask to be made spiritually healthy in preparation for the great feast of Christmas. 

Throughout the week I will share with you some prayers of hope  written by Joyce Rupp.

God of hope, come! Enter into every human heart that cries out for a glimpse of your love, for a sign of your  welcoming presence, for a taste of your happiness.  Be the one who calms the restless and gentles the ache of the human journey. Amen.

 (Taken from  Out of the Ordinary 2000 by Joyce Rupp. Used by permission of Ave Maria press. All rights reserved)

#advent #advent2025 #christmas #faith #bible #catholic #jesus

Good morning! This is Kirk Jacob bringing you today's reflection on the 3rd Sunday of Advent. 

Amen. 

#advent #advent2025 #christmas #faith #bible #catholic #jesus #gaudete #joy #sunday #showandtell #reflect #pray #timeout #peaceful #prayer #podcast #audio #praytogether 

A very good morning! Its Kirk Jacob once again.

#advent #advent2025 #christmas #faith #bible #catholic #jesus