Our Faith - Religion - Prayer 

 St Patrick's Church Walcha 

For Baptism or Marriage enquiries phone Monsignor Ted Wilkes 67784070.

Mons Ted Wilkes would like to invite parishioners to Sunday Mass 10am.

The Third Sunday in Advent - REJOICE -17th Dec

This upcoming Sunday, we celebrate “Gaudete Sunday,” the Third Sunday of Advent. The Latin word Gaudete means “Rejoice!” On this day, we take a short hiatus from the mostly penitential, somber nature of Advent and rejoice in the nearness of the celebration of Christmas. To signal this, rose vestments may be worn by the celebrant, instead of the typical violet for Advent. One may also note that the third candle on the Advent wreath is rose coloured. Rose signifies joy. Thus, today’s second reading calls us to “rejoice always.” Christian joy goes beyond a mere emotion and, therefore, supersedes circumstances. The joy we have in Christ can remain regardless of what challenges we are facing in life. That is because we know God is in control of our circumstances. He is “faithful,” as Paul says. Therefore, we can “rejoice always” and “in all circumstances give thanks” because we have hope in God. Still, in order to experience the fullness of this joy, the Apostle Paul indicates that we must obey God. We must listen to the Spirit of God and “refrain from every kind of evil.” We are called to be “perfectly holy.” This is the true path to joy: sanctity. Following God’s will and allowing His grace to transform us leads to true happiness. Let us, therefore, seek Him, trust Him, and obey Him to find the deep joy that can only be found in God.

The church's year began again this month with the season of Advent, but the school year has now come to an end. Our prayer for the last edition of the newsletter this year is one that we have been preparing for: We cry out, "O Emmanuel! O God with us!

Remembering when the people of Israel became slaves in a foreign land, we pray in the hymn for God to 'ransom captive Israel.' The prophets, like Isaiah, told them to have hope. God would send the messiah to rescue them. We are now ready to welcome the Saviour with great joy.

Listen to the words of the prophet Isaiah:

Then Isaiah said:

"Listen, every one of you in the royal family of David.

The Lord will give you a proof.

A virgin is with child;

she will have a son and will name him Immanuel."

The word of the Lord.

Christmas Blessings

May your homes be filled with joy during the holiday season, and may your hearts be filled with love and your lives filled with laughter.

Catherine McAuley

Catherine’s spirituality was centred on the mercy of God…prayer in action…action in prayer.