HOPE HAS RISEN

 

At Christmas, we received a card from France from the Abbey of Jouarre, where our foundress Mother Benedicta Duss started.  We were all struck by the one line on the card from NABIL ANTAKI a doctor in Aleppo, Syria.

In 1986 with his wife Leyla and brother Georges Sabé, he founded the association “The Ear of God”, a project that would involve him in solidarity with the most needy people in his city.

 

In 2012, with the war, “The Ear of God” became the “Blue Marists”. Currently the group in Aleppo, Syria, has 150 volunteers who work helping the displaced and refugees of Aleppo, promoting and encouraging care and health service programs, labor, educational and social projects, and also distributing food packages and hygiene kits, distributing food plates and visiting the most vulnerable people. 

“We are not a charitable association, we are an association of solidarity. We want to live with the poor and the displaced in order to alleviate their suffering and to develop humanity and hope. This is our goal. To sow hope. To help people to live and to stay in their country.”

 "To Hope is to live fastened when everything trembles

It is to accept the risk when everything is assured
It is to propose a presence when everything is senseless
To Hope, is to live inhabited by love,
nourished by tenderness,
encouraged by peace
to Hope, is to advance when everything seems to be blocked
when everything seems to be finished
when all is condemned
It is to live at the  limit, at the frontier, at the extreme
of an essential choice:

'do not fear anything,
I carry you in the palms of my hand
I make you my friend'

 To hope, is to say Magnificat
You are in my life
and I am in yours
an eternal poem of Love
It is Hope which helps us to exceed, to go beyond the gift and the sacrifice of self, to love more than one could imagine, to believe with all our heart and not only with all our reason.  Hope means that Jesus, who was incarnate and died on the cross for us, has risen and He lives in us."

BAPTISM- THE BEGINNING OF HOPE

 

The BAPTISM OF JESUS, is a sign of HOPE for all in a life that Christ has promised we too will participate in. It is the hope that can come only when we realize that through the birth and death of Jesus,  we have been baptized into new life through Him who was baptized by John in the Jordan River.

 

                                           Baptism of Jesus by Ivanka Demchuk- Ukraine

This feast should also be a reminder of our own baptism where we are born into new life in Jesus bringing us Hope. Hope that can only come from our Savior, whose birth we have just celebrated. He who came into this world as a light in the darkness, where we have new life and where death has lost its sting.

"If we are true to our Baptism, we will spread the light of the hope—Baptism is the beginning of hope, that hope—of God, and we will be able to pass on to future generations the meaning of life."

Just as this Advent season gave us hope of new life, so too does the baptism of Jesus, for baptism is the sacrament of hope and of new beginnings.

The Christmas season comes to an end with the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord. 

RETURN TO THE HEART

 

 

 

In calling for 2025 to be the YEAR of HOPE, Pope Francis has asked all Catholics to become “pilgrims of hope”. “Kindness is not a diplomatic strategy” nor “a set of rules to ensure social harmony or to obtain other advantages” but rather “a form of love that opens hearts to acceptance and helps us all to become more humble... Wars, social injustices, and the many forms of violence we are exposed to every day should not dishearten us nor draw us toward skepticism and discouragement… The door of God’s Heart is always open; let us return to Him. Let us return to the Heart that loves us and forgives us.”

PILGRIMS OF HOPE

 

"In the last two years, not a single country has been unaffected by the sudden outbreak of an epidemic that made us experience first-hand not only the tragedy of dying alone, but also the uncertainty and fleetingness of existence, and in doing so, has changed our very way of life. Together with all our brothers and sisters, we Christians endured those hardships and limitations…

We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us, and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision.

 The forthcoming Jubilee can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth that we so urgently desire; that is why I have chosen as the motto of the Jubilee, Pilgrims of Hope.

This will indeed be the case if we are capable of recovering a sense of universal fraternity and refuse to turn a blind eye to the tragedy of rampant poverty that prevents millions of men, women, young people and children from living in a manner worthy of our human dignity. Here I think in particular of the many refugees forced to abandon their native lands. 

May the voices of the poor be heard throughout this time of preparation for the Jubilee, which is meant to restore access to the fruits of the earth to everyone. As the Bible teaches, “The sabbath of the land shall provide food for you, for yourself and for your male and female slaves and for your hired servant and the sojourner who lives with you; for your cattle also, and for the beasts that are in your land, all its yield shall be for food” (Lev 25:6-7)." (Pope Francis)

Pope Francis call for “signs of hope” in the Jubilee Year, including the desire for peace in the world, openness to life and responsible parenthood, and closeness to prisoners, the poor, the sick, the young, the elderly, migrants and people “in difficult situations.” Pope Francis calls on affluent counties to forgive the debts of countries that would never be able to repay them, and address “ecological debt,” which he describs as “connected to commercial imbalances with effects on the environment and the disproportionate use of natural resources by certain countries over long periods of time.”

While many jubilee events will take place in Rome and at the Vatican, it’s a celebration for the whole Church. On Dec. 29, diocesan bishops are expected to open the Holy Year locally with Masses at their cathedrals and co-cathedrals. Catholics are encouraged to make pilgrimages to their cathedral during the year, and should watch diocesan communications for local events. While Pope Francis encouraged bishops to designate Holy Doors for their own cathedrals during the Jubilee Year of Mercy in 2015, there will only be Holy Doors at the Vatican and in Rome this year.

The Jubilee Year concludes with the closing of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica Jan. 6, 2026, on the feast of the Epiphany. However, the Holy Doors at Rome’s other major basilicas will close Dec. 28, 2025, the same day dioceses are to end local celebrations of the Holy Year.

A YEAR OF HOPE

2025  is a JUBILEE YEAR- which occurs every 25 years.  The theme this time is HOPE. The last ordinary holy year, the Great Jubilee Year of 2000, which took place under St. John Paul II, was one of the biggest events in the history of mankind.  Pope Francis wants this Jubilee Year to be lived as a “year of hope,”  symbolic in times when wars across the world seem to be multiplying.

From the Letter of the Holy Father Francis to the Most reverend Rino Fisichella, President of the pontifical Council for the New Evangelization for the Jubilee 2025:

“The Jubilee has always been an event of great spiritual, ecclesial, and social significance in the life of the Church. Ever since 1300, when Boniface VIII instituted the first Holy Year – initially celebrated every hundred years, then, following its biblical precedent, every fifty years, and finally every twenty-five years – God’s holy and faithful people have experienced this celebration as a special gift of grace, characterized by the forgiveness of sins and in particular by the indulgence, which is a full expression of the mercy of God. The faithful, frequently at the conclusion of a lengthy pilgrimage, draw from the spiritual treasury of the Church by passing through the Holy Door and venerating the relics of the Apostles Peter and Paul preserved in Roman basilicas. Down the centuries, millions upon millions of pilgrims have journeyed to these sacred places, bearing living witness to the faith professed in every age.”

Jubilees were started in 1300 by Pope Boniface VIII,  but they trace their roots to the Jewish tradition of marking a jubilee year every 50 years.  According to the Vatican website for the jubilee, these years in Jewish history were “intended to be marked as a time to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation, and involved the forgiveness of debts, the return of misappropriated land, and a fallow period for the fields.”

Jubilees are traditionally held every 25 years, with occasional extraordinary Jubilees for special causes. Pope Francis called for an Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy in 2015-2016. Jubilees include pilgrimages to Rome, indulgences for sins, and reflections on our spiritual life and forgiveness, leading us closer to Christ.

The 2025 Jubilee, with its theme of reconciliation and unity, comes at a time when the world is striving to recover from economic challenges, environmental crises, and division in society, all of which we see, not only in third world countries, but in wealthier countries, such as the USA. The Jubilee is expecting over 25 million visitors to Rome.

Jubilee 2025 opened Christmas Eve with the rite of the opening of the Holy Doors at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican immediately before Pope Francis celebrated midnight Mass. Holy Doors were also opened at Rome’s three other major basilicas: St. John Lateran on Dec. 29, St. Mary Major on Jan. 1, and will be opened at the Benedictine St. Paul’s Outside the Walls on Jan. 5. The opening of the doors  represent the passage to salvation. 

Major events in Rome, include special liturgies, speakers and papal audiences to celebrate different groups within the Church. The first is the Jubilee of the World of Communications Jan. 24-26, followed by the Jubilee of the Armed Forces, Police and Security Personnel Feb. 8-9. The jubilee also includes gatherings for artists (Feb. 15-18), deacons (Feb. 21-23). Some of these special gatherings will coincide with major canonizations, such as the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis during the Jubilee of Teenagers April 25-27, and the canonization of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati during the Jubilee of Young People July 28-Aug. 3.

“Often we come across people who are discouraged, pessimistic and cynical about the future, as if nothing could possibly bring them happiness. For all of us, may the Jubilee be an opportunity to be renewed in hope. God’s word helps us find reasons for that hope.” (Pope Francis)

OUR MOTHER IN THE NEW YEAR

 

 

 

Why do we celebrate the feast of MARY THE MOTHER OF GOD on New year's day?

In his Apostolic Letter, Marialis Cultus, Pope St. Paul VI explained: “This celebration, placed on January 1 …is meant to commemorate the part played by Mary in this mystery of salvation. It is meant also to exalt the singular dignity which this mystery brings to the “holy Mother…through whom we were found worthy to receive the Author of life.” It is likewise a fitting occasion for renewing adoration of the newborn Prince of Peace, for listening once more to the glad tidings of the angels (cf. Lk. 2:14), and for imploring from God, through the Queen of Peace, the supreme gift of peace.”

                                                Icon-Lyuba Yatskiv- Ukraine

As we enter the new year, we ask the MOTHER OF GOD (and our Mother) to bless us through the gift of her Son, Jesus, who  guides us along the narrow path to the heavenly homeland.

HOLY FAMILY

 

Pope St. John Paul II writes:

For every believer, and especially for Christian families, the humble dwelling place in Nazareth is an authentic school of the Gospel. Here we admire, put into practice, the divine plan to make the family an intimate community of life and love; here we learn that every Christian family is called to be a small “domestic church” that must shine with the Gospel virtues. Recollection and prayer, mutual understanding and respect, personal discipline and community asceticism and a spirit of sacrifice, work and solidarity are typical features that make the family of Nazareth a model for every home.

Prayer to the Holy Family:

Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
in you we contemplate
the splendor of true love; to you we turn with trust.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
grant that our families too
may be places of communion and prayer, authentic schools of the Gospel
and small domestic churches.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
may families never again experience violence, rejection and division;
may all who have been hurt or scandalized find ready comfort and healing.
Holy Family of Nazareth,
make us once more mindful
of the sacredness and inviolability of the family, and its beauty in God’s plan.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Graciously hear our prayer.
Amen.     (Pope Francis, Amoris Laetitia, 325)

Both icons are by Kateryna Shadrina a Ukrainian contemporary artist. In addition to painting, she creates graphics and bas-reliefs. Her works are in private collections in Ukraine, Russia, France, Italy, Australia, Canada, USA and the Netherlands.

 "I came to icon painting consciously. The impetus for this was the theoretical basis. I wanted to make art that makes sense, and the language of icon painting is meaningful and comprehensive. Some say that the icon is a spatial boundary between the visible and invisible world - in that case, the study of sacred art is not just exciting but also responsible."