December 2012 • Volume 30 • Number 11 • www.archdiosf.org
Ser ving The Multicultural People of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe
“Glory to God in high heaven.”
Photo by Celine
Luke 2:14
This gleaming star is believed to be near the place Jesus was born. The star is inscribed by the Latin words Hic de Virgine Maria Jesus Christus natus est (Here Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary). One must kneel to view this star situated on the floor of the Grotto located inside the Church of the Nativity in the West Bank town of Bethlehem.
Hic de Virgine Maria Jesus Christus natus est
And so Joseph went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to David’s town of Bethlehem because he was of the house and lineage of David to register with Mary, his espoused wife, who was with child. While they were there the days of her confinement were completed. She gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the place where travelers lodged. There were shepherds in that region, living in the fields and keeping night watch by turns over their flocks. The angel of the Lord appeared to them as the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were very much afraid. The angel said to them: You have nothing to fear! I come to proclaim good news to you, tidings of great joy to be shared by the whole people. This day in David’s city a savior has been born to you, the Messiah and Lord. Let this be a sign to you: in a manger you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes.” Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in high heaven, peace on earth to those on whom his favor rests.”
Peace on Earth 46th Annual World Peace Day is Jan. 1, 2013
Holy Father selects “Blessed are the Peacemakers” Theme
P
ope Benedict XVI has chosen the theme “Blessed are the peacemakers” for the 46th World Day of Peace to be celebrated on January 1, 2013. The Holy Father will encourage everyone to take responsibility for peace building and to embrace the fullness of the concept of peace; then, highlighting the fundamental human rights, including freedom of conscience, of expression and of religion. The Message will offer an ethical reflection on the world’s response to financial and economic crisis, the educations crisis, the crisis of the institutions and politics. It will also look at the 50th Anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the encyclical letter by Pope John XXIII, Pacem in Terris, which states that the primacy is always for human dignity and freedom, for the building of an earthly city to the service of every person, without any discrimination, and directed to the common good which is based on justice and true peace. Visit www.usccb.org for resources. Source: Press Office of the Holy See
Inside this Issue Advent ..................................................... 2 Archbishop’s Letter: Ordination of a New Bishop .......................................3 Groundbreaking for Our Lady of Belen .....................................................5 Year of Faith ............................................ 6
U.S. Cardinal Edwin F. O’Brien touches the Grotto Nov. 28 inside of the Church of the Nativity. Cardinal O’Brien was making his first visit to the Holy Land as grand master of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher, a chivalric order that supports church institutions and Christians in the Holy Land. (CNS photo/Heidi Levine)
Parish Incorporation ............................... 8 Finances ..................................................10 Meet Our Seminarians............................13 Catholic Education .................................18 Bioethics: Taboos and Tattoos..............21