BISHOP O'CONNELL HAS SHARED THIS MESSAGE for the Third Sunday of Advent.
For most of us, the idea of “going home” brings eagerness, comfort and joy, whether it be simply after a long day at work or, in some cases, following a much longer period of separation. It's good to be home. When we walk up to the door of our home, we anticipate the good things behind it: family and loved ones waiting for us; things familiar to us; a place where we can be most truly ourselves, most truly “at home.”
For those of us who are “cradle Catholics,” our parish Church has always been a “second home” to us and our families. In a broader sense, the Catholic Church is a home to all the baptized, a place for the entire Catholic community. It offers a world-wide family with things familiar to all the faithful: the opportunity to be “at home” with God and our fellow believers – all things to celebrate with joy.
Some of our Catholic sisters and brothers may be very active in the Church and are never far from home while others may not have darkened the door of the Church in a very long time. In either case, it is appropriate for the whole Church community of faith to accept the invitation that the season of Advent and Christmas gives us this year.