Second Sunday of Advent Prayer: Keep the Heart

In the prayer for the second Sunday of Advent we now meditate on guarding the heart, keeping in it the spiritual things that are indispensable to grow in our lives of holiness towards the Child God. Last week we began Advent; this Sunday we will light the second candle of the Advent wreath. If you have not yet done the Crown, at the end of this publication you will find how to do it.

Time of Advent.

Advent is the name we give to the liturgical season in which all Christians prepare for the celebration that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, Christmas. The word Advent comes from the Latin phrase "Adventus Domini", which means the coming of the Lord.

Perhaps you wouldn´t know it, but the Advent season is of varying length, and the starting date changes every year. It begins four Sundays before the date of celebration of Christmas (known as the First Sunday of Advent), which can fall between November 27 and December 3, and always ends on Christmas Eve.

The common traditions for this liturgical season can be observed in churches and at home: decorating the house with an Advent wreath adorned with candles and maintaining an Advent calendar.

Second Sunday of Advent.

To live the family liturgy with the prayer for the Second Sunday of Advent, it is recommended to place the crown with some image of the Virgin in a special place, to create an atmosphere of recollection with little light and to make a beautiful family prayer for each specific Sunday of Advent.

The readings can be distributed beforehand among the members of the family, and they can be exchanged each of the 4 Sundays so that everyone participates actively. The prayer on the second Sunday of Advent is a call to keep hope.

It is significant that the leader´s role is played by the father, mother or both parents together. If this is not possible, then the person in charge of the home and the education of the children will take it.

Prayer for the Second Sunday of Advent.

In this prayer of the Second Sunday of Advent, we open our hearts. We prepare ourselves in a minute of silence and gather to have this dialogue with the Lord.

Sign of the Cross: By the Sign of the Holy Cross, from our enemies, deliver us Lord our God. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Leader: "Our help is in the name of the Lord".

All: "Who made heaven and earth".

Leader: "In the days of Advent, we remember our wait for the Lord´s deliverance. We always need His salvation. Around this crown we will remember His promise.

Reading from 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24.

Leader: "May the God of Peace himself consecrate you wholly, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be guarded without reproach until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. He who has called you, is faithful and will keep his promises" - Word of God.

All: "We praise you Lord".

Two candles are now lit, the first one that was lit last week, plus the new candle that corresponds to this Sunday of Advent.

Leader: "Let us bless the Lord".

All: (making the sign of the cross) while saying: "Let us thank God".

Leader: We remember the virtue of Charity this week.

The Visitation: Mary was quick to serve her cousin St. Elizabeth, as the angel warned her that a child would be born to her: John the Baptist. She did not fear the distance and the difficulties. She responded with a love that becomes service and that unites hearts.

We as a family are called to action. It is time to go and serve those who need us most, especially the poor, the sick, the elderly.

Now, all the members of the family take a time of silence to interiorize in everything read. Then they include a time of intercession where they ask for the needs of the family and each member, their acquaintances, the Church and the whole world.

All: Pray an Our Father and a Hail Mary.

Leader: Closing Prayer: "Lord Almighty, rich in mercy, when we go forth in courage to meet your Son, let not the cares of this world prevent it; guide us to him with divine wisdom so that we may share fully in his life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ.

All: "Amen".

We all now embrace each other in peace and through this prayer of the second Sunday of Advent that we have meditated on, we ask God to make us have more charity for each other, especially for the members of my family.

About Advent Sunday.