Keeping Advent in 2023

This page is a collection of practices that can be done at home and a schedule of gatherings at St. Ignatius to help us prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus Christ at Christmas. The deeper importance of these days of Advent can easily get squeezed out by the persistent message we experience in our cultural environment to buy more, to watch or listen to the right things, and to make Christmas “magical.” But God gives us these days before Christmas so we can prepare ourselves for Jesus’ coming; to make Christmas a true celebration of God’s love manifested in the Word becoming flesh for our salvation.

Throughout this page, you'll see an "Advent booklet" referenced. This booklet is available at the Church at St. Ignatius Martyr. You may also download the Advent booklet for use on your phone or computer.

Advent Week 1: December 3-9

At St. Ignatius

Lighting of the Advent Wreath on the First Sunday of Advent

After Mass, come up to the Advent wreath to view it. Note that only one of the four candles is lit. The wreath "embraces" the Tabernacle - the real presence of Christ contained within. During this time of Eucharistic Revival, we honor the Real Presence by the décor and by how we reverently genuflect before the Body of Christ. The wreath with its colorful ornaments reflects the everlasting presence of God and our delight as we anticipate Christ’s return and the celebration of his Nativity.

December 8: Solemnity - Immaculate Conception of Mary (Holy Day of Obligation)

From the moment Mary existed, she was preserved from original sin and its effects. Mary was proactively redeemed by Jesus. In celebrating her Immaculate Conception, we celebrate God’s plan for salvation for all humanity. Join us for Mass at 7 a.m., 12:05 p.m., and 7 p.m. (bilingual).

At Home

Bless Your Advent Wreath

Praying with an Advent wreath is a wonderful tradition to help us visibly mark the passing of time during Advent at church and at home. At home, it is appropriate for Advent wreaths to be blessed on the First Sunday of Advent, or when we first pray with an Advent wreath during the Advent season. Place your wreath where you want to pray this Advent and use the blessing on page 4 of the Advent booklet or this PDF.

Set up a Manger or Nativity Scene (Crèche)

Place your Nativity scene in a place of prominence – a prayer space, the dining table, on a coffee table, or elsewhere. To draw yourself deeper into Advent, frequently gaze at the Manger and imagine yourself as one of the characters. What was it like to be a shepherd and hear the angel’s proclamation? What concerns did St. Joseph have during the long trek? What would you offer Jesus as one of the magi? For inspiration, read the Gospel of Luke’s telling of the Nativity (Chapters 1 & 2).

Bless your Christmas Tree

After you hang your last ornament but before you plug in the lights, bless your Christmas tree using the blessing on page 5 of the Advent booklet, or this PDF. By blessing the Christmas tree, we make explicit the connection between God’s generosity, and our generosity; the Tree of Life (the Cross), and our own tree and our own crosses; and the Light of the World and the lights on our tree. We offer back to God the gifts he has given us and make holy the space around the tree and the tree itself.

December 6: Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop

St. Nicholas is more than the image we have of Santa Claus today, but was a man of great generosity (read more here). In some homes, it is the custom for children and adults to place their shoes in front of the fireplace or another prominent place in the house. Before going to sleep, one of the parents places a small token gift (chocolate, apple, orange, ornament, etc.) and/or a short love note symbolizing St. Nicholas’ generous heart.

Pray with Sacred Art

Pray with the full-page version of “Light of the World,” by William Holman Hunt on page 12 of the Advent booklet using the prayer guide on page 11 of the Advent booklet. The artwork and prayer guide can also be found on our Advent Art webpage.

Advent Week 2: December 10-16

At St. Ignatius

December 10: Carol Service, 7 p.m. - Church

Enjoy the Advent and Christmas seasons by singing beloved carols with the Parish Choir of St. Ignatius Martyr. Your favorite carols and short reflections will intersperse the evening.

December 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe Celebration

“Am I not here, I, who am your mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle, in the crossing of my arms? Do you need something more? Let nothing else worry you, disturb you.” – Our Lady of Guadalupe to San Juan Diego

All are invited to take part in the celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas. See schedule below:

• 5:30 p.m. Rosary
• 6 p.m. Serenade to the Virgin Mary and Traditional Dance
• 7 p.m. Bilingual Mass
• 8 p.m. Dinner
• 8:15 p.m. Traditional Dance
• 8:45 p.m. Play performance

December 16: First Posada, 7 p.m. – Family Center

In Mexico and other Latin American countries, the nine days leading up to Christmas are celebrated by a nightly reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s search for an inn or “posada.” Join us for the first Posada at 7 p.m. in the Family Center, which will include prayer, song, food, and fellowship.

At Home

December 13: Memorial of Saint Lucia

St. Lucia’s feast is vibrantly celebrated in Swedish culture. The darkness of northern portions of the globe is quite unlike Central Texas. In our homes, we can keep St. Lucia’s feast by lighting candles as we eat our dinner and share with our friends or family how we see the light of Christ shine in them. In our prayer, we can remember all those who live in darkness due to war or poverty. Learn more about St. Lucia.

3D Nativity Coloring Kit

Children and adults will enjoy this activity that can be done alone or with others: coloring a 3D Nativity! A resource put together by our friends at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame, download the kit to print at home. A limited supply will be available at Masses on the weekend of December 9 and 10.

Pray with Sacred Art

Pray with the full-page version of “St. John the Baptist Preaching,” by Pieter Brueghel the Younger on page 13 of the Advent booklet using the prayer guide on page 11 of the Advent booklet. The artwork and prayer guide can also be found on our Advent Art webpage, which will be updated weekly with the artwork for the next week.

Advent Week 3: December 17-23

At St. Ignatius

December 16/17: Gaudete (Rejoice!) Sunday

Gaudete is Latin for rejoice. The color rose (a shade of pink) symbolizes our shared joy that Jesus is almost here! Wear rose (pink) to Mass.

Bring Your Infant Jesus Figurine

Bring the infant figurine from your crèche at home to church for a blessing by the priests or deacons after Mass this weekend. This tradition is popular in Italy and elsewhere in Europe.

December 17-23: Posadas in the Family Center

In Mexico and other Latin American countries, the nine days leading up to Christmas are celebrated by a nightly reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s search for an inn or “posada.” Join us!

• Sunday, December 17 at 2 p.m.
• Monday, December 18 to Saturday, December 23 at 7 p.m.

December 21: Help Decorate the Church for Christmas, 1-3 p.m.

It is said that many hands make for light work. That is true of decorating our church for the "big" solemnities. Most of the heavy lifting takes place earlier in the week thanks to our maintenance staff. The work we will do is organized in such a way that people of any age can help, even the smallest of children. Usually, all the work is done within two hours. Come even if you can only help for an hour.

At Home

Spread Joy

Reflect on the joy in your life. Joy can serve as a reminder of God’s love for us, and we’re given this time of the year to rejoice with our God who loves us so much that He wanted to tell us in person. Take a moment this week to do at least one thing that brings you joy and offer that moment to God with a prayer: “Thank you God for the joy you give me in this moment.” To go further, take one action this week (or one action every day this week) to bring joy into the lives of your neighbors, coworkers, friends, family, or even a stranger. Be God’s joy and love in the world this week!

Pray with the O Antiphons

You may be familiar with the “O Antiphons” from the hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” – Wisdom, Lord, Root of Jesse, Key of David, Morning Star, King of Nations, and Emmanuel. The antiphons are prayed during the Evening Prayer of the Church (Vespers) from December 17 to 23. Rooted in imagery from the Old Testament, each antiphon is a title for the Messiah, and a petition for him to come and save the people of God by fulfilling the Scripture. Learn more and pray with the O Antiphons this week.

Pray with Sacred Art

Pray with the full-page version of “Saint John the Baptist Preaching,” by Anton Raphael Mengs on page 14 in the Advent booklet with the prayer guide on page 11 in the Advent booklet. The artwork and prayer guide can also be found on our Advent Art webpage, which will be updated weekly with the artwork for the next week.

Advent Week 4: December 24

At St. Ignatius

December 24 Mass Schedule

What a unique (and confusing!) liturgical day. December 24 is both the Fourth Sunday of Advent and Christmas Eve this year because Christmas falls on a Monday. Below is a brief explanation of how our parish will celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day.

To fulfill the Sunday Mass obligation on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we will have our usual Masses at 5 p.m. on Saturday, December 23, and on Sunday at 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. We will not have our usual Masses at 11:15 a.m. or 1 p.m., though, because we will switch the church over to celebrate Christmas. At these Masses, the full Advent wreath will be lit and we will conclude the season of waiting for our Lord.

On Sunday evening, we will begin our celebration of Christmas, the Nativity of the Lord. The first Mass for Christmas Eve is at 4 p.m. followed by a 6 p.m. Mass. Both Masses are well-suited to families with young children. Please note that our 4 p.m. Mass is very crowded At 8 p.m. we will celebrate the Misa Vespertina de la Vigilia Navitado del Señor in Spanish.

Later, we will celebrate the Midnight Mass. There will be a short carol service beginning at 11:30 p.m. as the Parish Choir will present several Christmas anthems and assist the assembly in singing some of the great Christmas Carols. Then at midnight we will celebrate Mass and pray like the shepherds, who heard the news of Jesus’ birth while they were keeping the night watch.

On Christmas Day, we will have Mass in the morning at 10 a.m. About fifteen minutes before this Mass the festive prelude music begins.

At Home

Bless your Manger or Nativity Scene

The blessing of the Christmas manger or nativity scene may take place on Christmas Eve or at another suitable time. This blessing can open our family celebration of Christmas at home, as we place the baby Jesus in the manger.

Go to page 9 of the Advent booklet for the blessing, or use this USCCB webpage.

Pray with Sacred Art

Pray with the full-page version of “The Annunciation,” by John Collier on page 14 of the Advent booklet with the prayer guide on page 11 of the Advent booklet. Find the image here and use the prayer guide on our Advent Art webpage.

December 24 - Christmas Eve Masses

• 4 p.m.
• 6 p.m.
• 8 p.m. español

December 25 - Christmas Day Masses

• 12 a.m. Midnight (Carols at 11:30 p.m.)
• 10 a.m.