Third Sunday of Advent 

Theme:  courage to embrace the possibilities

Collect

O God, who see how your people faithfully await the feast of the Lord’s Nativity, enable us, we pray, to attain the joys of so great a salvation and to celebrate them always with solemn worship and glad rejoicing.

 

Readings and Gospel

1. Isaiah 35:1-6a.10 (God himself will come to save us.)
2. James 5:7-10 (Make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.)
3. Mathew 11:2-11 (Are you the one who is to come or should we look for another?)

 

Invitation to reflect on the words of our founders:

1. “Unity strengthens the weakest, while discord weakens the strongest.”

(Bishop Ketteler,1844)

On our journey together, what stands in the way of accepting one another – the prerequisite for unity and harmony?

1. “Therefore, my mission is based, not on human institutions, but on the holy order established by Jesus Christ, the Son of God, in His Church.”

(Bishop Ketteler,1850)

As I fulfill our mission, am I willingly opening my human will to God's order?

1. “By God's mercy, I will diligently strive to grow in the spirit of religious life and in all its necessary aspects.” (Mother Marie 1851)

As a member of one unified Religious Community, I earnestly implore God for mercy, so that I and my sisters may lead mature religious lives.

 

Closing Prayer:   Prayer for Congregational Chapter 2026

Provident God, give us a sense of your Presence on our Holy Adventure together.

Strengthen our trust in your providential love and care

as we explore new paths for the future before us.

Open us to see possibilities, give us the courage to embrace them,

and to enter into this Congregational Chapter

ready to embark on a Holy Adventure with You. Amen.