Good Evening Dear Family!

Welcome to the week before Christmas! Just one more week! Yikes! Okay! Let's dial it down and spend time engaging in the # Be Stills", Meditating on our daily #AdventWord #Sing etc. But first today I want everyone to take a look at y/our #PrunePlan and choose one item, event, and thing on your heart to get rid of for the remainder of the season. Spend 30 minutes doing this and then let us move on to our mindfulness time.

Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Pause.

Peace be still
Peace be.
Peace.

Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am.
Be still and know.
Be still.
Be.

Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Pause.

Peace be still.
Peace be.
Peace.

Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am.
Be still and know.
Be still.
Be.

Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Pause.

Peace be still.
Peace be.
Peace.

Be still and know that I am God.
Be still and know that I am.
Be still and know.
Be still.
Be.

Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Pause.

Let us meditate and ponder on today's #AdventWord #Sing!

"To me, singing is basically a form of prayer. I get this great joy when I`m singing - whatever I`m singing. I missed it when I left it." ~ Maureen McGovern

"Wisdom comes with all we see, God writes His lessons in each flower, And ev'ry singing bird or bee Can teach us something of His power." ~ Maud Lindsay

"If I cannot fly, let me sing." ~ Stephen Sondheim

"Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth." ~ William Watson Purkey

"The Book of Psalms instructs us in the use of wings as well as words. It sets us both mounting and singing." ~ Charles Spurgeon

"The soul of one who serves God always swims in joy, always keeps holiday, is always in her palace of jubilation, ever singing with fresh ardor and fresh pleasure a new song of joy and love." ~ John of the Cross

"God sent his Singers upon earth
With songs of sadness and of mirth,
That they might touch the hearts of men,
And bring them back to heaven again." ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"Captive people have a need for song." ~ Michelle Cliff

"Praying is another way of singing.You plant in the tree the soul of lemons.You plant in the gardens the spirit of roses." ~ Dannie Abse

"The danger with the internet is that you don't need to think about music, you just search for it and you find the answer. Singing used to be part of everyday life. Women sang while pounding corn. Men sang while paddling canoes." ~ Pete Seeger

A RULE OF LIFE is ‘an exterior framework for an interior journey’ it has a root meaning of ‘a signpost’ pointing away from itself to the direction of travel and ‘a banister rail’ providing support as you journey

You Lord are in the midst of us, and we are called by your name. Leave us not.Jeremiah 14:9

Great O Antiphon for today

O Sapientia (O Wisdom)

O Wisdom, coming forth from the mouth of the Most High,
reaching from one end to the other,
mightily and sweetly ordering all things:
Come and teach us the way of prudence.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel -J. Rutter

Let us confess our need for God’s healing grace.

Silence

Compassionate God,

we confess our weaknesses and our need for your

strengthening touch.

We confess that some illnesses stem from our own fault,

while others are beyond our control.

We turn to you, source of life,

and ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ

for the gifts of true healing and life in you. Amen.

May the God of love visit us in our times of trial and weakness,

and raise us to newness of life, through Jesus Christ, in the

power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Now let us Light Additional Candles and be at prayer.A Prayer When Lighting A Candle

O Blessed Lord, accept this burning candle as a sign of my faith and love for you.
Like this candle, I am ready to be used in your service, without asking why and to what purpose.
Even as this candle, I wish to stand in your presence to be consumed in the light and warmth of
your love.
Please hear my prayer and, if it be your will, grant my petition.
Above all, make me loyal and faithful to you in all circumstances of my life.
Amen.

(www.stanthonysparish.com)

The Light of Christ in me Recognizes the Light of Christ in you!"

I hold holy space for you during this time of prayer, vigil, and meditation.

Light of the World Phos hilaron

Light of the world, in grace and beauty,

Mirror of God’s eternal face,

Transparent flame of love’s free duty,

You bring salvation to our race.

Now, as we see the lights of evening,

We raise our voice in hymns of praise;

Worthy are you of endless blessing,

Sun of our night, lamp of our days.

Psalm 134 Ecce nunc

Behold now, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, *

you that stand by night in the house of the LORD.

Lift up your hands in the holy place and bless the LORD; *

the LORD who made heaven and earth bless you out of Zion.

Psalm 141:1-3,8ab Domine, clamavi

O LORD, I call to you; come to me quickly; *

hear my voice when I cry to you.

Let my prayer be set forth in your sight as incense, *

the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

Set a watch before my mouth, O LORD,

and guard the door of my lips; *

let not my heart incline to any evil thing.

My eyes are turned to you, Lord GOD; *

in you I take refuge.

+++

Prayer Over The Advent Candle

O God, as light comes from this candle,
May the blessing of Jesus Christ come to us,
Warming our hearts and brightening our way.
May Christ our Savior
Bring life into the darkness of this world,
And to us, as we wait for his coming.
Amen.

(www.catholicnewsagency.com)

Smudging Prayer

Creator, our Father in heaven, we come to you as your children. We confess that we are weak and broken images of you. We pray for the forgiveness and healing you give in Jesus Christ. May his Spirit clean our spirits, minds, hearts, and bodies. We pray that your Holy Spirit will help us to worship in spirit and truth. We pray in the name of Jesus, so that his Spirit will carry our prayers to you. Amen.

God and Creator of us all we pray and light our candles this night at a time where we are finding ourselves sorely divided one from another by a myriad of circumstances. We pray that we may start to learn from each other and place our egos and the need to be right at the door. We pray that we may use gentle speech and kind actions when we meet someone who differs from us. We pray that we may lovingly enfold them in our arms and extend to them radical hospitality and welcome. We pray that we may continually beat the weaponry of hate into ploughshares and turn the spears of division into pruning hooks and that we may grow into a peace-filled and loving world. We pray this night for all who are enduring any kind of pain that they may be comforted and that we may lovingly respond to their needs. We pray and ask this night for forgiveness of any action or word we have done or spoken this day and that we may turn away and repent of the wrongs we have done. We pray that we may spread God's light of love, peace, and learning to this world and that we may be beacons of hope, joy, love, and peace. We pray that we may follow Jesus and imitate him by being CALM (Compassionate, Accepting, Loving, and Merciful) and show the world that we are carried aloft by the Holy Spirit's Love Energy and that our Hearts and heart homes may be enlarged and that truly we may become one family of God and Love and brothers and sisters one to another. Amen.

A Song of Wisdom Sapientia liberavit

Wisdom 10:15-19,20b-21

Wisdom freed from a nation of oppressors *

a holy people and a blameless race.

She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord, *

withstood dread rulers with wonders and signs.

To the saints she gave the reward of their labors, *

and led them by a marvelous way;

She was their shelter by day *

and a blaze of stars by night.

She brought them across the Red Sea, *

she led them through mighty waters;

But their enemies she swallowed in the waves *

and spewed them out from the depths of the abyss.

And then, Lord, the righteous sang hymns to your Name, *

and praised with one voice your protecting hand;

For Wisdom opened the mouths of the mute, *

and gave speech to the tongues of a new-born people

44 Deus, auribus

1 We have heard with our ears, O God,

our forefathers have told us, *

the deeds you did in their days,

in the days of old.

2 How with your hand you drove the peoples out

and planted our forefathers in the land; *

how you destroyed nations and made your people flourish.

3 For they did not take the land by their sword,

nor did their arm win the victory for them; *

but your right hand, your arm, and the light of your countenance,

because you favored them.

4 You are my King and my God; *

you command victories for Jacob.

5 Through you we pushed back our adversaries; *

through your Name we trampled on those who rose up against us.

6 For I do not rely on my bow, *

and my sword does not give me the victory.

7 Surely, you gave us victory over our adversaries *

and put those who hate us to shame.

8 Every day we gloried in God, *

and we will praise your Name for ever.

9 Nevertheless, you have rejected and humbled us *

and do not go forth with our armies.

10 You have made us fall back before our adversary, *

and our enemies have plundered us.

11 You have made us like sheep to be eaten *

and have scattered us among the nations.

12 You are selling your people for a trifle *

and are making no profit on the sale of them.

13 You have made us the scorn of our neighbors, *

a mockery and derision to those around us.

14 You have made us a byword among the nations, *

a laughing-stock among the peoples.

15 My humiliation is daily before me, *

and shame has covered my face;

16 Because of the taunts of the mockers and blasphemers, *

because of the enemy and avenger.

17 All this has come upon us; *

yet we have not forgotten you,

nor have we betrayed your covenant.

18 Our heart never turned back, *

nor did our footsteps stray from your path;

19 Though you thrust us down into a place of misery, *

and covered us over with deep darkness.

20 If we have forgotten the Name of our God, *

or stretched out our hands to some strange god,

21 Will not God find it out? *

for he knows the secrets of the heart.

22 Indeed, for your sake we are killed all the day long; *

we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

23 Awake, O Lord! why are you sleeping? *

Arise! do not reject us for ever.

24 Why have you hidden your face *

and forgotten our affliction and oppression?

25 We sink down into the dust; *

our body cleaves to the ground.

26 Rise up, and help us, *

and save us, for the sake of your steadfast love.

Isaiah 8:16-9:1

Disciples of Isaiah

16 Bind up the testimony, seal the teaching among my disciples. 17I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him. 18See, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. 19Now if people say to you, ‘Consult the ghosts and the familiar spirits that chirp and mutter; should not a people consult their gods, the dead on behalf of the living, 20for teaching and for instruction?’ surely, those who speak like this will have no dawn! 21They will pass through the land,* greatly distressed and hungry; when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will curse* their king and their gods. They will turn their faces upwards, 22or they will look to the earth, but will see only distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be thrust into thick darkness.*

The Righteous Reign of the Coming King

9*But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

Canticle 15

The Song of Mary Magnificat

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

my spirit rejoices in you, O God my Savior, *

for you have looked with favor on your lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed: *

you, the Almighty, have done great things for me,

and holy is your name.

You have mercy on those who fear you *

from generation to generation.

You have shown strength with your arm *

and scattered the proud in their conceit,

Casting down the mighty from their thrones *

and lifting up the lowly.

You have filled the hungry with good things *

and sent the rich away empty.

You have come to the help of your servant Israel, *

for you have remembered your promise of mercy,

The promise made to our forebears, *

to Abraham and his children for ever.

THE SECOND LETTER OF

Peter

Salutation

1Simeon* Peter, a servant* and apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ:*

2 May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

The Christian’s Call and Election

3 His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by* his own glory and goodness. 4Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants in the divine nature. 5For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, 7and godliness with mutual* affection, and mutual* affection with love. 8For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9For anyone who lacks these things is short-sighted and blind, and is forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. 10Therefore, brothers and sisters,* be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. 11For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.

A Song of Faith

1 Peter 1:3-4,18-21

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, *

by divine mercy we have a new birth into a living hope;

Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, *

we have an inheritance that is imperishable in heaven.

The ransom that was paid to free us *

was not paid in silver or gold,

But in the precious blood of Christ, *

the Lamb without spot or stain.

God raised Jesus from the dead and gave him glory *

so that we might have faith and hope in God.

Luke 22:39-53

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him. 40When he reached the place, he said to them, ‘Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.’* 41Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, 42‘Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.’ [[ 43Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. 44In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.]]* 45When he got up from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping because of grief, 46and he said to them, ‘Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not come into the time of trial.’*

The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

47 While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him; 48but Jesus said to him, ‘Judas, is it with a kiss that you are betraying the Son of Man?’ 49When those who were around him saw what was coming, they asked, ‘Lord, should we strike with the sword?’ 50Then one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51But Jesus said, ‘No more of this!’ And he touched his ear and healed him. 52Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, ‘Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit? 53When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness!’

A Song of Christ’s Humility

Philippians 2:6-11

Though in the form of God, *

Christ Jesus did not cling to equality with God,

But emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, *

and was born in human likeness.

Being found in human form, he humbled himself *

and became obedient to death, even death on a cross.

Therefore, God has highly exalted him *

and given him the name above every name,

That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, *

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, *

to the glory of God the Father.

God we pray the words of the Ancient Hymn O Come, O Come Emmanuel! May Emmanuel come soon.

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, thou Wisdom from on high,
who orderest all things mightily;
to us the path of knowledge show,
and teach us in her ways to go. Refrain

O come, thou Rod of Jesse, free
thine own from Satan's tyranny;
from depths of hell thy people save,
and give them victory over the grave. Refrain

O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer
our spirits by thine advent here;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
and death's dark shadows put to flight. Refrain

O come, thou Key of David, come,
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery. Refrain

O come, O come, great Lord of might,
who to thy tribes on Sinai's height
in ancient times once gave the law
in cloud and majesty and awe. Refrain

O come, thou Root of Jesse's tree,
an ensign of thy people be;
before thee rulers silent fall;
all peoples on thy mercy call. Refrain

O come, Desire of nations, bind
in one the hearts of all mankind;
bid thou our sad divisions cease,
and be thyself our King of Peace. Refrain

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear. Refrain

God we pray these our prayers in the Holy Name of Jesus. Amen.

We light this final candle for our peace, hope, love, and joy in the world and within ourselves:

Here are prayers from almost a year ago if you'd like to use those too.

Gracious God we come to you this night with our prayers for all neighborhoods, cities, counties, states, and nations that need to be renewed and restored to places of safe and peaceful living.

Gracious God we come to you this night in prayers for all children who are ill and hospitalized in Pediatric Intensive Care Units.

Gracious God we come to you this night in prayer for all refugees and those who have been displaced by war and calamity. We remember all our family members who are economic refugees who flee from the countries of their native origin to seek a better life.

Gracious God we come to you this night and pray for peace in your fragile and broken world.

Gracious God we pray for all of our family members who are traveling this holiday season by air, train, car, bus, that traveling mercies may surround them.

Gracious God we come to you this night praying for all of our family members who are homeless and are forced to spend the night in the cold and all of our family members who are the least of these.

Gracious God we pray for all our family members who are mourning the losses of family members.

Gracious God be with all clergy who are preparing to preach your Word to our family members who may only hear the Gospel message once a year. Inspire their words and speech so that they may empower and touch the hearts of those who listen.

Gracious God be with us who may not feel jolly this season. Comfort our hearts that we may feel the gift of your presence and our family members who can't be with us.

Gracious God we come to you this night with additional prayers, thanksgivings, celebrations, and remembrances

Gracious God we pray and offer these our prayers in the name of your only Son Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Praying to God who is Love!

God of Love help us to be loving to all of our family of love. We pray that we may lovingly respond to each other's needs and concerns.

O Come Emmanuel, Come Soon and enliven our spirits with your compassion, acceptance, love and mercy! May we always show love, bring joy, give hope, and make peace to all of our family members and living things.

God of Love we pray for all who are traveling the next few days to visit loved ones. We pray for all of our loved ones whom we haven't seen for awhile.