Faith Life

Adult Formation

ADVENT RESOURCES 2021

Check out these online resources from the Archdiocese of Chicago to help you and your family through the season of Advent!

Ascension Press
  • The True Meaning of Advent is not just about preparing for Christmas, it’s also about preparing for Christ’s Second Coming. One day we will meet Christ face to face, and Advent is the stark reminder that we need to get ready for eternity.
  • If you are looking to experience a more peaceful, more joyful, and more meaningful Advent season, you can turn to these Advent journals from Ascension Press. Choose from Rejoice! Advent Meditations with Mary, Rejoice! Advent Meditations with Joseph, Rejoice! Advent Meditations with the Holy Family, or, new this year, Rejoice! Finding Your Place in the Advent Story.

Ave Maria Press
Adore: A Guided Journal for Prayer and Meditation (Link)

Catholic Apostolate Center
Advent Resources (Link)

Catholic Current
Includes Advent Calendar, bulletin inserts, prayers, living the faith reflections, social media posts, facts of faith, and stories of saints. (Link)

Catholic Health Association (CHA)
Sunday, Nov. 29, marks the beginning of the liturgical year and the season of Advent. To help Catholic health care organizations celebrate this important time, CHA has produced a reflection for each week of Advent as well as a Christmas reflection. (Link)

Catholic News Agency
Saints of Advent (Link)

Catholic Relief Services
CRS “Gift of Hope” Catalog (Link)
Families or communities can purchase a symbolic animal or other life-saving gift. It covers a wide range of CRS programs around the world- Health, Education, Clean Water, Emergencies- and your donation is directed toward that specific program.

Chicago Catholic
Gift Guide (Link)

Creighton University
A rich and powerful season of the Church year, we often miss Advent's power because these December weeks are full of secular Christmas parties and preparations for Christmas. Each year, the busyness of this season serves to distract us from having an Advent season that truly prepares us for the celebration of Christmas, with all its meaning. These reflections for adults help us with the un-named anticipation or longing in our hearts.  They allow us to enter into the experience of our darkness and therefore to give glory to God for the Light.

Dynamic Catholic: Best Advent Ever
Sign-up for their Advent season daily e-mails and videos. In addition to the personal journey, you will find resources for your parish – a guide, bulletin inserts, posters, etc. For more information, click here.

Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions
Liturgy preparation aid for the seasons of Advent and Christmas – Year of Grace 2021 available in English (PDF)
All resources (Link)

Ignatian Spirituality Resources
Enjoy Ignatian contemplation and reflective resources for the season of Advent, including video reflections, sign-up for daily e-mail reflections, online Advent calendar, podcasts, Advent examen, and articles. (Link)

Loyola Press – 3-Minute Retreats
3-Minute Retreats invite you to take a short prayer break right at your computer to spend some quiet time reflecting on a Scripture passage. Enjoy the First Sunday of Advent Retreat and many other titles. New 3-Minute Retreats are added daily. Sign up here to receive them by email. Available in English & Spanish

Maryknoll
We have been seeking compassionate, comprehensive immigration reform since 2005. In this 15th year of the journey may we accompany and welcome our immigrant sisters and brothers through prayer, reflection, and action. Please see our Advent Calendar 2021. (NEED NEW CALENDAR)

Relevant Radio - Advent Inspirations
Deepen your faith daily as we prepare for the coming of Our Lord! Sign up to receive daily Advent inspirations in your email inbox each morning.

The Road to Emmaus Podcast - The Coming of Advent
We tend to glamorize the Nativity by portraying the manger scene with a rosy glow but contemplating what the Holy Family faced in order to keep the Christ Child safe helps us remember how incredible Christmas truly is. On this episode of The Road to Emmaus Podcast, Scott Hahn suggests taking a new look at Christmas to experience Advent more deeply. 

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
The USCCB site offers the blessing of an Advent Wreath (Link)
And “O Antiphons of Advent” (Link)

University of Notre Dame
The McGrath Institute for Church Life is offering a free “Digital Advent and Christmas Calendar”. Subscribe to receive a daily e-mail which will contain a brief prayer and an image of a crèche from around the world. (Link)

Xavier University
Missionary Childhood Association: Advent-Christmas Calendar (PDF)
Explore and share resources to celebrate the season of Advent, including a Family Advent Calendar, Prayer for Lighting the Advent Wreath, St. Nicholas Day Blessing, and Praying the O Antiphons. Available in English and Spanish.

FOR TEACHERS, CATECHISTS, AND PARENTS
Enjoy these free downloadable and printable resources for celebrating the season of Advent. Resources include Celebrating Advent at Home, The Jesse Tree, Las Posadas, and other topics.

FOR CATHOLIC EDUCATORS
National Catholic Education Association
The NCEA offers Advent resources that enable Catholic educators to help celebrate this season of Advent with students. Filled with research-based strategies, publications, website and technological tools, these resources will provide Catholic educators with insight and best practices during this Advent season: Advent Resources – with resource tabs for catechists, for families, for anyone

Religion Curriculum Publishers:

EVENTS

Waiting, Together, in Joyful Hope hosted by the Archdiocesan Office of Lifelong Formation
Step away from the busyness of ministry and pressures of daily life to reflect this Advent and to spend time with God on your own time. The Waiting, Together, in Joyful Hope Advent Virtual Retreat Series will walk participants through weekly reflections on accompanying others as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
  • First Sunday of Advent - Show Us Your Love (available Nov. 22)
  • Second Sunday of Advent - Make Straight Our Paths (available Nov. 29)
  • Third Sunday of Advent - Mercy is Life-Changing (available Dec. 6)
  • Fourth Sunday of Advent - Mary: The Model of Accompaniment (available Dec. 13)

Bellarmine Jesuit Retreat House - Advent Day of Reflection for Men & Women
Dec. 16, 2021 at 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (cost: $30-$60)
Fr. Michael and Mary bring you A Cup of Christmas Tea: Stories, Poems, Songs & Traditions of this most beloved season of the year. This is a day to soften the heart and open your spirit to the soulful, creative celebration of the Word made flesh, the birth of our Savior. Virtual and in-person options are available.

The Christmas Story: By No Means a “Fairy Tale!
Dec. 10, 2021 at 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. (cost: $40)
Dan Cheely, prominent Chicago attorney and Director of Stewardship, Catechesis and Evangelization at St. Mary of the Angels Parish in Chicago will speak on the little known historical and astronomical clues buttressing the Christian belief in the historical reality of the Nativity of our Lord. Hosted by The Catholic Citizens of Illinois. Click here for details.

RECOMMENDED BOOKS FROM AMAZON.COM

 
Keeping the Seasons for Advent and Christmas 2020-2021: Bilingual Print and Digital Resources for Your Parish
This resource includes seven handouts, in English and in Spanish, one for each week of Advent and Christmas. On the front of each handout is a prayer, illustration, and a reflection on the Sunday Scripture. On the back is catechesis for each weekday about the day's Scripture, saint, or Catholic practices, along with a smaller illustration. Citations for Scripture readings are included with each day. By sharing the art and formation found in Keeping the Seasons, you can help parishioners celebrate the seasons of Advent and Christmas Time. (Link)
 
Advent and Christmas Wisdom from Henri J.M. Nouwen: Daily Scripture and Prayers together with Nouwen's Own Words.
The inspiring words of Henri J. M. Nouwen guide the faithful on a spiritual journey through the Advent and Christmas season in this book of waiting, hope, anticipation, and celebration. Each day of the Advent season (28 in all, to accommodate the varying number of days in the season) and each day of Christmas (12 in all, ending with Jesus' baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist) contain a pertinent excerpt from the writings of Father Nouwen, a related quotation from Scripture, a prayer for the day, and a suggested activity that offers a concrete response to mark the season.
(Link)
 
When God Comes Down: An Advent Study for Adults.
‘When God Comes Down’ is a five-week study, providing one lesson for each week of Advent and one for Christmas. Each lesson includes a key Scripture, a brief reflection, discussion/reflection questions, a brief prayer, and a focus for the coming week. In this study, Harnish explores the meaning of the incarnation…God with us in human flesh. (Link)
 
 
 ALSO... Save the Dates, Parents and Alums!
 
Men's Silent Retreat 
"You, Too, Are Christ!"
March 25-27th, 2022
Retreat Master: Fr. David Meconi SJ

Women's Silent Retreat 
"Embracing the Whole of Life: Ignatian Holy Contemplation"
February 4-6th, 2022
Retreat Master: Fr. Jeff Putthoff SJ

Both Retreats at Bellarmine Jesuit Retreat House 
(Barrington, IL)
 
Please contact chuck.thompson@ignatius.org for more information.
Wishing you and your family a blessed and joyful Advent season!  
-- Fr. Fairbanks SJ, Gail Krema and Deacon Chuck

  • Encourages active participation in adult programs such as annual retreats, spiritual direction, and faith sharing groups.

  • Offers continuing education and Ignatian formation opportunities for board members, parents, faculty and staff, alumni and coaches.

  • Promotes partnership with the mission and identity of the Society of Jesus, as well as the Archdiocese of Chicago.

  • Provides models of service, communal prayer, Ignatian discernment, and the fundamental importance of the Eucharist.

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