Today is the Fourth Sunday of Advent. On the last Sunday of Advent, the Church focuses attention on Mary who prepared for the first Christmas in a very special way. According to Luke, Mary (the mother of Jesus) and Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist) were relatives and were pregnant at the same time. In this Gospel passage, the two pregnant women meet and Elizabeth acknowledges the supremacy of Mary’s unborn child. Mary responds with the song of praise known as the Magnificat.
For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited reflection on the image of Mary, mother of Jesus. In today’s picture from his book, Christmas Time with Teddy Horsley, Teddy Horsley and Betsy Bear see Mary place the baby Jesus in the cattle’s feeding trough, while the animals looked on.
Lord Jesus Christ,
you were born as a baby like us.
Inspire us by Mary’s example
to see you in every human child;
for you are one with us.
Amen.
Christmas Day follows on closely after the Fourth Sunday of Advent. A core Gospel reading for Christmas Day is the prologue to John’s Gospel which sets out the mystery of the incarnation. The image to help prepare for Christmas Day is Christmas lights. You can find out more about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
Prayer Requests
Would you like to submit a prayer request? You can do so through the Prayer for Liverpool website.
Notice Sheet
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