Mass Times: Saturdays at 5:00 pm;
Sundays at 8:00 am and 10:30 am.
Mon, Tues, Wed* (*Communion service),
and Fri at 8:15 am;
Thurs at 6:00 pm.
St. Rita Roman Catholic Church
1008 Maple Dr., Webster, NY 14580
585-671-1100
 

The Parish Office is open from 9 am to noon, Monday through Friday.  Stop by or give us a call at 671-1100.

Pastoral Messages

A Prayer for the Fourth Sunday of Advent

Heavenly Father,

Help us to prepare our hearts in these final moments of waiting. May we open ourselves more fully to Your love, and allow that love to guide us in all that we do. Grant us the grace to be instruments of Your peace, compassion, and joy, especially to those in need around us.

Lord, as we light the fourth candle of Advent, symbolizing love, we pray that Your love will be evident in all our thoughts, words, and actions. May the love of Christ, which surpasses all understanding, fill us with warmth, and may it shine brightly in the lives of those we encounter.

We pray for a spirit of unity and goodwill, that through the coming of Jesus, we may grow closer to You and to one another. Prepare our hearts for the birth of the Savior and let us rejoice in the promise of His coming.

We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.


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Scripture

An Introduction to the Sunday Scripture Readings - December 22, 2024

“He Shall Be Peace!”

In this fourth Sunday of Advent, the Church shifts our focus from the prophesies of the end times to the coming birth of our savior, Jesus.

In our first reading (Micah 5:1-4), the prophet Micah proclaimed the role of Bethlehem, the ancient birthplace of King David, as the birthplace of the savior Messiah, who would restore the children of Israel from the scattered lands. The Prophet Micah writes, “You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel … He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the LORD, in the majestic name of the LORD, his God….”

In our Epistle reading (Hebrews 10:5-10), we hear of Jesus's suffering for the sins of the world, in contrast to the repeated and imperfect sacrifice of the priests under the old law. Jesus understood that the continual offering of blood sacrifices did not effect the forgiveness of their sins, so He, perceiving the will of the Father, offered His own body for the forgiveness of sins once, for all. The Hebrews author writes, “When Christ came into the world, he said: ‘Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight. Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll, behold, I come to do your will, O God.’“

In our Gospel reading (Luke 1:39-45), we hear of Mary's visit to her cousin Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth proclaimed the child in Mary's womb as "my Lord" as Elizabeth's own child in her womb "leaped for joy" at the sound of Mary's voice. “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?’”

And so we take heart - it won't be long now. Our Christ is near, and when He comes, He Shall Be Peace! May we take that peace into our hearts and may it rule our lives.

www.bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/122224.cfm


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© 2014 St. Rita Roman Catholic Church - Last updated 2022-09-13 21:11:10
Mass Times: Saturdays at 5:00 pm;
Sundays at 8:00 am and 10:30 am.
Mon, Tues, Wed* (*Communion service),
and Fri at 8:15 am;
Thurs at 6:00 pm.