®   Volume 22, # 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . December, 2006

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Plant these "seeds" well and water often. Enjoy!

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Task of Advent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Seek That Which Is Above,1986

    "Advent is concerned with that very connection between memory and hope which is so necessary to man. Advent’s intention is to awaken the most profound and basic emotional memory within us, namely, the memory of the God who became a child. This is a healing memory; it brings hope. The purpose of the Church’s year is continually to rehearse her great history of memories, to awaken the heart’s memory so that it can discern the star of hope.…

    It is the beautiful task of Advent to awaken in all of us memories of goodness and thus to open doors of hope."

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A Clear Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Peter Marshall

    "Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for. Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen."

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Love Your Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mother Teresa

    "Love starts at home: family first, and then your own town. It is easy to love people who are far away, but it is not always easy to love those who live right next to us. I do not agree with the big way of doing things. Love needs to start with an individual."

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Outstanding Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sam Walton

    "Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their people. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish."

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World is Dangerous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Albert Einstein

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it."

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Genuine Heroism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ralph Waldo Emerson, Positive Press

    "The characteristic of genuine heroism is its persistency. All men have wandering impulses, fits and starts of generosity. But when you have resolved to be great, abide by yourself, and do not try to reconcile yourself with the world. The heroic cannot be common, nor the common heroic."

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The First Virtue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cato the Younger

    "The first virtue is to restrain the tongue; he approaches nearest to the gods who knows how to be silent, even though he is in the right."

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True Repentance . . . . . . . . . . . Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, Growing Each Day – Tishrei 6

    "At an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting a man who had been sober for twenty-one years, said, ‘The man I was drank. The man I was will drink again. But now I am a different man.’

    Consequently, repentance is not complete if one merely regrets having done wrong. One must ask, ‘How did this sin ever come about? In what kind of a state was I that permitted me to commit this sin?’

    True repentance thus consists of changing one’s character to the point where, as the person is now, one can no longer even consider doing the forbidden act. Of course, the person’s character may deteriorate—and if it does, he may sin again.…[H]is degree of repentance and correction of his character defects are such that, as long as he maintains his new status, he will not commit that sin."

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Spirituality is Born . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ernest Kurtz, The Spirituality of Imperfection, p. 20

    "We seek help for what we cannot face or accomplish alone; in seeking help, we accept and admit our own powerlessness. And in that acceptance and admission, in the acknowledgment that we are not in control, spirituality is born.

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Good Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Rohn, The Treasury of Quotes, p. 34

    "You cannot speak that which you do not know. You cannot share that which you do not feel. You cannot translate that which you do not have. And you cannot give that which you do not possess. To give it and to share it, and for it to be effective, you first need to have it. Good communication starts with good preparation."

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The Great Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kirsopp Lake

    "Faith is not belief in spite of evidence, but life in scorn of consequence—a courageous trust in the great purpose of all things and pressing forward to finish the work which is in sight, whatever the price may be."

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Start Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Henry James

"It’s time to start living the life you’ve imagined."

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The Presence of Christmas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward

"Christmas is not just a season, Christmas is not just a day, Christmas is more than a reason For parties, presents and play. Christmas is truly the essence Of joy that the Savior brings; Christmas is surely the presence Of Jesus, the Kings of Kings!"

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Message of the Christmas Tree . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II in his Angelus message on 12/19/04 said: "The traditional ‘Christmas tree’ is a very ancient custom which exalts the value of life, as in winter the evergreen becomes a sign of undying life. In general, the tree is decorated and Christmas gifts are placed under it. The symbol is also eloquent from a typically Christian point of view: It reminds us of the ‘tree of life’ (see Genesis 2:9), representation of Christ, God’s supreme gift to humanity.     "The message of the Christmas tree, therefore, is that life is ‘ever green’ if one gives: not so much material things, but of oneself: in friendship and sincere affection, and fraternal help and forgiveness, in shared time and reciprocal listening."

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Bells on Christmas Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pulpit Helps, Dec. `92, p. 23

    "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was filled with sorrow at the tragic death of his wife in a fire in 1861. The Civil War broke out the same year, and it seemed this was an additional punishment. Two years later, Longfellow was again saddened to learn that his own son had been seriously wounded in the Army of the Potomac.

    Sitting down to his desk, one Christmas Day, he heard the church bells ringing. It was in this setting that Longfellow wrote these lines:

	I heard the bells on Christmas Day Their old familiar carols play, And wild and sweet The words repeat Of peace on earth, good will to men! And thought how, as the day had come The belfries of all Christendom Had rolled along The unbroken song Of peace on earth, good will to men! Till, ringing, singing on its way, The world revolved from night to day, A voice, a chime, A chant sublime Of peace on earth, good will to men! Then from each black, accursed mouth The cannon thundered in the South, And with the sound The carols drowned Of peace on earth, good will to men! It was as if an earthquake rent The hearth-stones of a continent, And made forlorn The households born Of peace on earth, good will to men! And in despair I bowed my head; "There is no peace on earth," I said; "For hate is strong And mocks the song Of peace on earth, good will to men." Then pealed the bells more loud and deep. "God is not dead, nor doth he sleep! The wrong shall fail, The right prevail, With peace on earth, good will to men!"

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