Advent and Christmas
O Come, Let us Adore Him
Advent and Christmas at stella maris
O Come, Let Us Adore Him
In the hustle and bustle of November and December, it’s easy to miss the season of Advent. Amid the swirl of commercialism and sentimentality, Christmas comes and goes, sometimes leaving us feeling exhausted and empty. We can feel like we missed out on something important.
This year at Stella Maris, we are trying to stay out of the sway of consumer culture and are working to recover a deeper sense of the beautiful liturgical seasons of Advent and Christmas. We’re doing this through the various initiatives highlighted on this page.
Our theme, “ O Come, Let Us Adore Him,” echoes the invitation of the shepherds and the Magi who came to worship the newborn Christ. In that same spirit, we are invited to draw near to Jesus, not only in word and song, but also in silence and adoration before His Eucharistic Presence.
JESUS IS COMING, JESUS IS HERE
Adore Jesus
Beginning the First Sunday of Advent, we will offer a brief time of Eucharistic Adoration near the conclusion of selected weekend Masses. This simple yet profound moment will allow us to remain in the Lord’s presence — to adore Him, to rest in His peace, and to prepare our hearts to receive Him anew at Christmas.
- First Sunday of Advent (Nov. 29–30) — St. Mary / St. Peter
- Second Sunday of Advent (Dec. 6–7) — St. Thomas More
- Third Sunday of Advent (Dec. 14) — St. Bernadette
ADORING JESUS THROUGH CARMELITE SPIRITUALITY
Advent with the Carmelites
In concert with the overall Advent/Christmas theme of “O Come, Let Us Adore Him,”Enjoy a talk series on how to spiritually approach Christmas through the lives of the Carmelite saints by Mother Marie-Cécile, OCD, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Compline (Night Prayer), and Benediction. We will offer a reception after the December 10th session. No registration required!
Session 1: Wednesday, December 3rd
- 7:00 – 8:15pm
- Topic: St. Thérèse of Lisieux & St. John of the Cross
- Location: St. Mary Church, Bethel
Session 2: Wednesday, December 10th
- 7:00 – 8:15pm
- Topic: St. Teresa of Avila & St. Elizabeth of the Trinity
- Location: St. Mary Church, Bethel
CHRISTMAS MASS SCHEDULE
Celebrate Christmas with Holy Mass
St. Bernadette
Christmas Choir
1479 Locust Lake Rd
Amelia, OH 45102
St. Mary
Christmas Mass Times
3398 State Route 125
Bethel, Ohio 45106
St. Peter
Christmas Mass Times
1192 Bethel-New Richmond Road New Richmond, Ohio 45157
St. Thomas More
Christmas Choir
800 Ohio Pike
Cincinnati, OH 45245
More than a story
God’s response to our desire
Christmas is God’s completely surprising response to our wounded humanity. It did not come from the closed system of our broken world, but from beyond it. God broke through the ceiling of our expectations and shattered our limited possibilities when the Word became flesh and was born in our midst. God’s response is a person. He does not shout from the heavens. He does not remain a distant unmoved mover. In an act of unsurpassed humility and love, he draws near. He becomes small. He makes himself accessible. He who fashioned the cosmos from nothing, the God who holds the stars in their places, he is here with us.
This is Christmas: the encounter between our desire and God’s response.
Practical and powerful
The Forgotten Way
Thanks to the generosity of one of our parishioners, Stella Maris is happy to gift each family a copy of Matthew Kelly’s new book The Forgotten Way this Christmas! The Forgotten Way is easy to read, but much more challenging to put into practice. Still, as we seek to adore Jesus this Advent, Christmas, and beyond, no doubt the life of discipleship places demands upon us, including how we speak.
This book is based on one epic spiritual truth from the Letter of James: Governing your speech is a sure path to holiness. Imagine if you learned how to control your speech. Imagine if you transformed the way you talked to God, the way you talked to yourself, and the way you talked to others. It only takes one epic spiritual truth to reorient your life. It only takes one epic spiritual truth to transform your future. The Forgotten Way is such a truth. Are you ready to discover it?
Books will be available at each of the four churches during the Christmas Masses and the weekend following. We invite you to take a book, read it, reflect upon it, and put its principles into practice!
