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What Christmas Reminds Us Of After the season is over, the Christmas lights come down, the fragrance of pine dissipates into the air, and the Christmas music no longer plays on the radio, we may ask, ‘What happens next?’ The wonder and awe of Christmas is just a beginning. Christmas reminds us that the babe born in Bethlehem has given us purpose for living, and what happens next to us largely depends on how we embrace our Saviour, Jesus Christ, and follow Him. — Rosemary Wixom We can still sing these songs!!!! But singing is not enough!!! Today too, amid so much darkness, we need to see the light of hope and to be men and women who bring hope to others. To protect creation, to protect every man and every woman, to look upon them with tenderness and love, is to open up a horizon of hope; it is to let a shaft of light break through the heavy clouds; it is to bring the warmth of hope! — Pope Francis

Week Four - Christ Brings Love to all peoples Jesus said: “I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me” Pope Francis: "It's hypocrisy to call yourself a Christian and chase away a refugee or someone seeking help, someone who is hungry or thirsty, toss out someone who is in need of my help ... If I say I am Christian, but do these things, I'm a hypocrite." Merciful God, we pray to you for all the men, women and children who have died after leaving their homelands in search of a better life. Though many of their graves bear no name, to you each one is known, loved and cherished. May we never forget them but honour their sacrifice with deeds more than words. We entrust to you all those who have made this journey, enduring fear, uncertainty and humiliation, in order to reach a place of safety and hope. Just as you never abandoned your Son as he was brought to a safe place by Mary and Joseph, so now be close to these, your sons and daughters, through our tenderness and protection. In caring for them may we seek a world where none are forced to leave their home and where all can live in freedom, dignity and peace. Merciful God and Father of all, wake us from the slumber of indifference, open our eyes to their suffering, and free us from the insensitivity born of worldly comfort and self-centredness. Inspire us, as nations, communities and individuals, to see that those who come to our shores are our brothers and sisters. May we share with them the blessings we have received from your hand, and recognize that together, as one human family, we are all migrants, journeying in hope to you, our true home, where every tear will be wiped away, where we will be at peace and safe in your embrace. Pope Francis Learn more Pope Francis – Migrants and Refugees United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees – Environmental Refugees Amnesty International UN Sustainable Goals Watson Institute - Brown University: Refugees and Health

Week Three – JOY - Christ Brings Joy to the World through CREATION Jesus said: These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. John 15:11 Pope Francis - In the Christian understanding of the world, the destiny of all creation is bound up with the mystery of Christ, present from the beginning: “All things have been created through him and for him” (Col 1:16). The prologue of the Gospel of John (1:1-18) reveals Christ’s creative work as the Divine Word (Logos). But then, unexpectedly, the prologue goes on to say that this same Word “became flesh” (Jn 1:14). LS99 The Earth is the Lord’s This we know: the earth does not belong to us. The earth is the Lord’s and so are all its people. This we know: we did not weave the web of life. The earth is the Lord’s and so is all that breathes on it. This we know: we are called to till and work the earth. The earth is the Lord’s and so are all who work the land. This we know: that we are called to take care of creation. The earth is the Lord’s, yet we have polluted and abused it. This we know: that whatever befalls the earth, Befalls the sons and daughters of the earth This we know: that the earth is the Lord’s. And so we will serve Him in it. Amen Source: Bishop Eric Pike, Diocese of Port Elizabeth (South Africa): adapted from various sources including Ray Simpson Learn More Laudato Si Movement Prayer Resource Tearfund Daily Prayers for Advent

At 5:00 pm ET on Saturday December 9, 2023 we celebrate the final profession of vows in the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary | Loretto Sisters of Sarah Krista Catherine Rudolph at St. Basil's Catholic Parish, Toronto View the livestream Download the Eucharist booklet Image art: Susan Daily, ibvm

Week Two - PEACE Christ Brings Peace to a World Broken by Violence Jesus said, ‘Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. ' John 14:27 ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ' Matthew 5:9 From Lao-Tse, a Chinese philosopher from the 6th century Before Christ… If there is to be peace in the world, There must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the nations, There must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the cities, There must be peace between neighbours. If there is to be peace between neighbours, There must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the home, There must be peace in the heart. Learn more and TAKE ACTION Good Work Development and Peace/Caritas United Nations Association in Canada - Toronto Branch Canadian Peace Congress Amnesty International Talitha Kum - End Human Trafficking War in Ukraine War Israel/Hamas Mary Ward Sisters – Advent Calendar

Happy Advent – this year we invite you to look back over 2023 and reflect on 4 global ‘crises’ – Food Insecurity (Hope), War (Peace), Climate Change (Joy) and Refugees (Love). Week One - HOPE Christ Brings Hope to Broken World Jesus said to them, ‘They need not go away; you give them something to eat.’ Mt. 14: 16 Pope Francis: “Millions of people continue to suffer from poverty and malnutrition around the world, due to armed conflict, as well as climate change and the resulting natural disasters," the pope said in his message. "The challenge we face demands joint and collaborative action by the entire family of nations," he wrote, and "There can be no room for conflict or opposition." 43rd session of the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization conference July 5, 2023 Who are the Hungry in the World? Concern UN – SDG GOALS Bread for the World How can you 'give them something to eat' and be Christ's HOPE this Advent and beyond Food Banks Canada Out of the Cold Concern Global Good Shepherd Ministries Look around you - are there neighbours who are experiencing food insecurity?

Today we remember all those who have sacrificed their lives to ensure our freedom in Canada . At 11:00am, observe a minute of silence to reflect and give thanks for their heroism.

Reflection O Divine Gift-giver, I stand beneath the endless waterfall of your abundant gifts to me. I thank you especially for the blessing of life, the most precious of all your gifts to me. I thank you, Ever-generous One, for clothing to wear, for food and drink to nourish my body, for all the talents and skills that you have bestowed upon me. I thank you for the many joys of my life, for family and friends, for work that gives to me a sense of purpose and invests my life with meaning. I thank you as well for the sufferings and trials of my life which are also gifts and which together with my mistakes are among my most important teachers. Grant that I may never greet a new day without the awareness of some gift for which to give you thanks. And may constant thanksgiving be my song of perpetual praise to you. by Edward Hays, Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim

September 30 marks the National Day for Truth & Reconciliation. The day honours the children who never returned home and survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. Public commemoration of this tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a crucial component of the reconciliation process. Reconciliation is the responsibility of all Canadians. It means acknowledging the past and ensuring history never repeats itself by respecting Indigenous treaties and rights, and letting go of negative perceptions and stereotypes to work towards solidarity. How to make change Take a moment and reflect on how you can work towards reconciliation in your own life and create your own personal reconciliation plan. Wear orange on September 30. Attend a Truth & Reconciliation event in your community.

80 years: Mary Julia 70 years: Sheila 65 years: Evanne We express our gratitude to God for the presence of these women in our Institute and for their many years of faithful dedicated service as vowed religious women. We also remember today with special love and gratitude, the life and ministries of our departed sisters, Donata, Josepha, Mary Martin, Rose, and Sheila S. Thank you for your many years of loving service. God's richest blessings be yours.

Sr. Sarah Rudolph recently had an article published in the Bulletin of the International Union of Superiors General. Entitled "Promoting the Full Flourishing of Children in the Church", this article is an adaptation of her Master of Divinity thesis in which she explores the theoretical foundation for a praxis of pastoral accompaniment of children as well as four concrete means by which pastoral accompaniment can occur. The intent is to build a culture of intentional empowerment of children within the church as a way in which to respond to the harms done by the sexual abuse crisis. Abstract Promoting the Full Flourishing of Children in the Church Sarah Rudolph, IBVM The fundamental dignity and rights of the child are located within the foundation of the fundamental dignity of the human person. At the Second Vatican Council, the Church affirmed the inviolable dignity of the person created in the image of God capable of loving and knowing the Creator. Jesus is the “image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15). In the Incarnation, Jesus unites himself with humanity. Through his death he delivers humanity from sin. Thus the Christian person conformed to the likeness of Christ becomes “capable of discharging the new law of love.” Children, as human persons, are imbued with dignity through their creation in the image of God and grow in holiness through conformation to the life of Christ, particularly through the experience of childhood.

St. Ignatius Loyola, whose feast the Church celebrates on July 31 each year, can be considered as much an inspiration and guide for those in the twenty-first century as he was in the sixteenth. The world in which he and his early companions lived was beset, as is ours on a larger scale, by wars, violence, disease, poverty, shifting populations, neglect of refugees, and brutal abuse of women and girls. The fruit of Ignatius’ conversion from the life of a Spanish courtier and soldier to that of a Christian leader and saint has much to offer us today whether we are lay or religious. He blessed his companions with an active apostolic spirituality which seeks the presence and the greater glory of God in all persons, things and places. His followers are called to serve generously with and for Christ wherever in the world the need is greatest, be it in the local neighbourhood or in the missions far abroad. It is no wonder that Mary Ward was inspired to “take the same as the Society.” St. Ignatius, please give us your generous loving spirit! Many thanks to Sr Angela for preparing this message