Fourth Sunday of Advent: See the Holy in the Other, Encounter
"Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” Isaiah 7: 14
"To deepen our interior life, our capacity for contemplation and for listening to the heartbeat of God in ourselves and in our world;" General Chapter 2016
“Thus we learn to contemplate reality and to experience it with His heart, to commit ourselves to the service of the Kingdom and to grow in love.” 1982 Constitutions, #21
“Jesus is still calling us to be ‘Women of the Heart,’ giving us the possibility of listening once more to God’s dream for humanity.” Life Unfolding, p. 17
Third Sunday of Advent: Rejoice! Generosity, Discipleship
“The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song.” Isaiah 35:1-2
"To go out, to "set sail" as a Society and go with others....to accompany the life that is emerging there, to defend justice, peace and the integrity of creation in response to all of those who are searching for meaning in their lives, those who have been wounded, displaced, and excluded because of poverty, violence and environmental degradation." General Chapter 2016
“The Gospel, radiant with the glory of Christ’s cross, constantly invites us to rejoice….” Evangelii Gaudium, Intro, Part I, #5, and following paragraph
“All of us are asked to obey [God’s] call to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the ‘peripheries’ in need of the light of the Gospel.” Evangelii Gaudium, Ch. I, #20
“God, who calls us to generous commitment and to give him our all, offers us the light and the strength needed to continue on our way. In the heart of this world, the Lord of life, who loves us so much, is always present. His love constantly impels us to find new ways forward. Praise be to him!” Laudato Si,Part IX, #245
Second Sunday of Advent: Prepare the way of the Lord
“Brothers and sisters: Whatever was written previously was written for our instruction, that by endurance and by the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Roman 15-4
“…Return to that simplicity which allows us to stop and appreciate the small things, to be grateful for the opportunities which life affords us, to be spiritually detached from what we possess, and not succumb to sadness for what we lack.” Laudato Si, Part IV, #222.
First Sunday of Advent: Awaken From Inside
“You know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep.” Roman 13:11
“A strong sense of hope in the future has helped us connect with the world that is emerging. Discerning what this world might possibly look like opens us as a Society to new horizons that challenge us.” General Chapter 2016, p. 13
“Learning from Mary, who pondered all things in her heart, we try to develop awareness and a contemplative outlook that will help us to be thankful for the diversity, depth and beauty of the world and to feel the divine mystery within it.” Life Unfolding, p. 20
During the Advent season, we invite you to use these reflections from Scripture and the documents of the Society of the Sacred Heart and Pope Francis to enter into the Advent mysteries and the Incarnation of God in the world. During this sacred season, may we all choose the paths that lead to peace.
The Provincial TeamUnited States-Canada ProvinceSociety of the Sacred Heart
Text: Sally Rude, RSCJ and Uche Oluoha, RSCJPhotos: Linda Behrens
