Advent Reflections

National Gallery of Art. Leaf from a Choir Book (Antiphonary) 1450 1 Samuel 1: 19-28 Psalm 122 Luke 1:46-56 1 Samuel 1 and Luke 1 both speak about the praise given and the faith kept

Psalm 33: 1-5, 20-22 Song of Songs 2: 8-14 Luke 1: 39-45 These readings are about praise and rejoicing, trusting in God’s love and mercy. If we associate praise and rejoicing with outward circumstances, this

Isaiah 7:10-14 Psalm 24 Luke 1:26-38 Reflecting on Psalm 24 in the light of this year’s theme, ‘Waiting in Hope’, I find myself humbly questioning the relevance of this biblical passage to our present-day circumstances.

James Tissot (Nantes, France, 1836–1902, Chenecey-Buillon, France). Portrait of Zacharias and Elizabeth Jeremiah 23: 5-8 Psalm 72: 11-1 Matthew 1:18-25
 The gospel of Matthew harkens here to the Old Testament where Elizabeth, wife to a temple

MagnificatSt Mary Magdalene Church Trimdon Village Bridget Jones design Isaiah 61: 1-4, 8-11 Canticle 18, The Song of Mary* 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-24John 1: 6-8,19-28 The Song of Mary and Isaiah both speak about injustices

MIGUEL ADÁNWood relief, polychromed and gilded 1530-1600 Sirach 48:1-11 Psalm 80:1-3, 14-18 Matthew 17:9-13  In the reading from Matthew’s gospel, the disciples and Jesus have just shared an experience of “transfiguration.”  This is an event that lies

Panel depicting two angels in a scene from the Nativity; possibly from the Infancy of Christ window in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Clermont-Ferrand, France. Glencairn Museum, Isaiah 48:17-19 Psalm 1 Matthew 11:16-19 When reading

 Velino Shije Herrera, Story Teller, ca. 1925-1935, gouache and pencil on paperboard, sheet: 10 x 15 in. (25.6 x 38.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum Isaiah 41:13-20 Psalm 145:1-4, 8-13 Matthew 11:7-15 How do we communicate our experiences of faith in God in