Advent begins four weeks before Christmas, and the First Sunday of Advent this year is December 3. Advent is a time of preparation, waiting and hope. The primary sanctuary color of Advent is purple, the color of royalty to welcome the coming of our King!
Why do we celebrate Advent for a full four weeks before we celebrate the birth of Jesus? Because, our story doesn't start on the day Jesus was born. Before the wise men or the star, before the miracles and parables, the family line of Jesus stretches waaaay back. In fact, the entire story of Jesus was a long time in the planning. So, we start the countdown to Christmas four weeks before, with Advent, which means "coming". We get ready to celebrate Jesus, reminding ourselves of the bigger plan he is a part of, and of how much the world was anticipating him long before Mary and Joseph.
To celebrate His presence in our lives, we can let our love shine every day...just like the candles on our Advent Wreath shine so brightly! If you don't have an Advent Wreath, it is very easy and inexpensive to make your own, click HERE for a DIY Advent Wreath you can make as a family using materials from the Dollar Store!
Next weekend, we light the first purple candle on our wreath. Click HERE for the meaning of the Advent Wreath and each of the four candles it holds, along with a special prayer for each week of Advent.
This year, our Holy Trinity parish children and families will come together once again to adopt the custom of Preparing the Manger for Christmas. This is originally a French custom that quickly spread to other countries. It is the tradition of making Baby Jesus' bed soft by adding straws in the manger.
The manger, or crib, is a symbol of our hearts. Advent is the time to prepare one's heart for Christ's coming at Christmas. The straws in the manger reflect the extra good deeds, the prompt obedience, the kindness to others, the well-said prayers, the sacrifices, and the help given to others all Advent long. In doing these things, we are preparing our hearts for Christ to enter on Christmas.
Everyone is invited to take a small piece of straw and place it in the manger near the sanctuary. As you place your straw into the manger, consider what is in your heart such as prayers of praise and thanksgiving; prayers for the needs of others; an act of service you have done for another; loving choices you have made. These things we do to prepare our own hearts to receive Jesus.
The manger bed will begin to form and fill as we celebrate the Advent season. The manger will become part of our nativity scene in our church, and we will look to welcome the Baby Jesus at our Christmas Mass celebrations at Holy Trinity where he will be laying safe and sound on the soft bed of our straws…all the prayers, good deeds, kindness to others, loving choices we have made.
This tradition will culminate at our Christmas Masses as we celebrate the efforts that we have made as a parish family to Prepare the Manger, as we prepared our hearts. We will ask God's blessing upon us as we renew our invitation to him each day to reside in our hearts always.
Friday, December 8th (after the 5:30 p.m. Mass)
Help us celebrate The Immaculate Conception with the “Night of the little candles,” in honor of our Blessed Mother. Come and join us in this Colombian tradition of cooking, praying, and celebrating together. Fr. George will cook the typical Colombian dessert for Christmas. You can bring something to share with our fellow parishioners or help with cleanup.
Please contact the parish office to acknowledge if you are coming to this celebration. The celebration will start with the Eucharist at 5:30 pm. Come, let us pray together and enjoy this wonderful Colombian tradition.
Our parish children will be presenting Journey to the Manger on Sunday, December 17 at 12:15pm in our church. All are invited to come and experience the retelling of this very special story of the birth of our Savior. Mark your calendars...and all are invited to join us afterward for punch and cookies (and special guests) in Trinity Hall!
Eucharistic Adoration is held every Thursday from 3:00 to 4:00 PM. Every THIRD THURSDAY of the month, we offer extended Adoration from 3:00pm - 7:00pm with a Holy Hour and Benediction 7:00pm - 8:00pm. It is an ideal time to bring your prayers and concerns to the Lord in the beautiful setting of our main worship space at Holy Trinity. Come as you are for any length of time, or join us at 7:00pm for a full hour. Jesus invites you with open arms, and so do we.
SLEEP-IN-SUNDAY Youth Mass
Mass will be followed by our YOUTH CHRISTMAS PARTY in Trinity Hall and we will have an optional Service Project as we make blankets for Project Linus . Donations of 2-3 yards of fleece fabric (especially for teen boys) is appreciated!!
In addition to a homily conversation just for you, all ministry roles including Liturgical Greeter, Prayer Leader, Lector, Usher, Gift Bearers, Altar Servers, Sacristan, and Musicians will be filled by our teens! Youth can sign up HERE to serve!
We have several newly added ways to serve your Holy Trinity parish family!!
- Assist with Family Program - Dec. 10 or 12
- Usher for First Reconciliation - Dec. 13
- Sleep-In-Sunday Youth Mass - Dec. 17
And also Bottles & Cans...December is still available for a family to help take donations to Nickelback!! Your help is greatly appreciated - all money raised goes to Youth Ministry events for our Middle and High School youth!! Sign Up HERE
Click the button below for more information or to sign up!!
Holy Trinity Faith Formation
For more information about our programs you may contact:
- Tricia Kull, Faith Formation Coordinator at (585) 265-4750 or Tricia.Kull@dor.org
- Silvia Parravano, Administrative Assistant at (585) 265-1616 x328 or Silvia.Parravano@dor.org
Email: wholytri@dor.org
Website: holytrinityweb.com
Location: 1460 Ridge Road, Webster, NY, USA
Phone: (585) 265-4750
Facebook: www.facebook.com/holytrinitywebster/
