Christ is the reason for the season

Stop. Pray. Reflect. Read. And prepare for Jesus' birth

By BILL GLEN
WCR Staff Writer
Edmonton

While looking for an empty parking space outside the shopping mall before heading in to buy the latest toy or video game, Catholics might ponder more meaningful ways of celebrating the season.

Bringing Christ into the centre of the Christmas celebration might see fewer shopping trips and more family involvement, suggests Father Ray Guimond, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Wainwright.

Time to reflect

"Families have symbols placed around the house, like the Advent wreath and the creche. But there needs to be more than that. Families should set aside some time every week for reflection on what Christmas is about."

Catholics are not too far removed from the days when families gathered around the family Bible. Meditating on readings from the Scriptures during Advent brings Christ to the centre of an individual, Guimond said.

"Avoiding the distractions of Christmas with personal reflection and prayer makes a difference," he said.

"The people of Israel were getting ready for the Messiah because the prophets were speaking. The same thing applies for us.

"That's why the Church gives us the readings."

The readings

With the readings, Father Brian Inglis says parents can reveal the true essence of Christmas to their children by teaching them that there are many other children who are less fortunate.

"Parents could encourage their children to help with a Christmas basket, getting them involved by thinking how they can contribute to someone else's Christmas," said Inglis, pastor of Our Lady of the Foothills in Hinton.

"Children find great comfort and meaning in being generous to other people."

Advent is about getting focused on the central meaning of Christmas in December which is often taken up with everything else, he said.

"Advent is designed by the Church and by tradition. The wreath in a home or in a church that marks the time and the prayers that go with it, are ways to prepare for the coming of Christ."

Inglis suggests that children should be encouraged to think of other people because Christmas is a time of giving, not getting.

For a little change of pace, Lynnell Prediger suggests Catholics should slow down and spend more time in prayer.

"They can take a retreat. People need to step away from the madness before Christmas and spend time alone with God," said Prediger, program director of the Providence Renewal Centre.

"During a retreat, they find peace amidst the rush. They tend to focus on the real meaning of Christmas and not the commercialism."

Come to the Quiet

The centre is offering an overnight, 22-hour retreat Dec. 16-17 called Come to the Quiet. She recommends it for any person who is unsettled by the rush of the season.

"People see that Christ is the reason for the season."

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