Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec 2, 2010 / 05:58 am (CNA).- Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City urged Catholics in his diocese to be “faithful” to the Advent Season this year and hold off on celebrating Christmas until Dec. 24.
In his first pastoral letter since his appointment as leader of the diocese's 300,000 Catholics, Bishop Wester stressed on Nov. 24 that Advent is a time of silence – of waiting and expectation.
“Few would disagree that we live in a busy and rushed society,” he said in his opening remarks. “We rush from one thing to the next; in the end, many of us are restless and tired, yearning for stability and peace in our community and family.”
He added that in “our hurried society,” many stores have already decorated for Christmas, radio stations are playing Christmas songs and parishes have begun preparing for Christmas parties for early December.
“In the midst of all this hurry, the Church teaches us to slow down, to be patient, and to wait,” he said. “What is the rush? Are we really so eager to get to all the decorations up, celebrate the event, and quickly dismantle all the decorations so we can move on to the next event?”
Continue reading here: http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/catholics-urged-to-hold-off-on-christm...
Btw, I agree with the Bishop, Advent, it seems, has turned into a mad shopping spree with a total regard of whose Birthday it is! Some stores even refuse to use the word Christmas in their ads. I personally try to avoid shopping in those stores who do not recognize Christ as the reason for the season!
Deacon John
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