{"id":9537,"date":"2025-12-12T13:24:56","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T12:24:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/?p=9537"},"modified":"2025-12-12T13:27:46","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T12:27:46","slug":"advent-week-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/2025\/12\/12\/advent-week-3\/","title":{"rendered":"ADVENT Week 3"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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3d Week of Advent<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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beginning on Sunday, 14 December 2025 \u2013 Gaudete Sunday<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The Announcement of Joy \u2013 with the shepherds in the fields<\/h5>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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<\/h5>
Gospel passage<\/strong><\/h5>
Luke 2:10\u201312; 15<\/h6>

The angel said to them, \u201cDo not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: today in the city of David a Saviour has been born for you, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a newborn baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.\u201d (…) When the angels had left them and gone back to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, \u201cLet us go to Bethlehem and see what has happened.”<\/p>

Preparation<\/strong><\/h5>

Lord, in this week of joy, open my heart to the Good News. Make me, like the shepherds, a simple and amazed witness to Your coming. Grant me a poor heart, capable of receiving and sharing the great joy of Christmas. <\/p>

Setting<\/strong><\/h5>

Transport yourself to the hills near Bethlehem. It is night. It is cold. Smell the wet grass and the sheep. Listen to the silence of the countryside, the breath of the wind. Around a fire, simple men, shepherds. They are on the margins of society, considered unclean. It is to them, the least of society, that the first announcement is made. Suddenly, the night is torn apart by a glorious light and a heavenly song. <\/p>

Contemplation<\/strong><\/h5>

I listen to the angel’s announcement of the good news that is the source of the shepherds’ joy: \u201cUnto you is born a Saviour.\u201d I observe the shepherds’ fear (\u201cthey were seized with great fear\u201d), which immediately turned to joy. I reflect on the sign given, which is paradoxical: an almighty God is found in the fragility of a baby lying in a manger. I am attentive to the shepherds’ immediate reaction: they get up and set off. Their joy is not passive; it is a driving force that pushes them towards Bethlehem. <\/p>

And me? Do I allow the Good News of Christmas to be a true source of joy in my life? Or am I jaded, accustomed to it? Do I believe that this joy is also for me, here and now, in my poverty and simplicity? Does this joy set me in motion? Does it move me to \u201cgo and see,\u201d to seek Christ in the \u201cmanger\u201d of my life: the poor, the humble situations, the simplicity of everyday life? <\/strong><\/p>

Colloquy<\/strong><\/h5>

I speak to the shepherds: “Simple and valiant shepherds, you were the first witnesses. Share your wonder with me. Teach me to listen to the angels’ announcement in the midst of the nights of my life. Take me with you on your joyful journey to the manger.\u201d Then speak to Jesus: \u201cLord Jesus, You are the source of all joy, thank You for coming for me. Make my heart a simple dwelling place where You can be born and bring Your light. “<\/p>

Resolution for the week<\/strong><\/h5>

Actively seek an opportunity to share a simple joy with someone: a phone call to a lonely person, a sincere compliment, a small unexpected gift, a smile. Become, like the shepherds, a messenger of the Good News. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During Advent, we invite you to take the road from Nazareth to Bethlehem in the company of a character from the nativity scene, preparing us to welcome the Baby Jesus. 3d week: with the shepherds in the fields, the Announcement of Joy <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":9530,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spirituality"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9537"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9537\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9540,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9537\/revisions\/9540"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9530"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cenacle-gen.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}