Christmas is the celebration of Jesus, God’s greatest gift to us, coming into our lives. At this time, Jesus—the Word of God—tells us again that he is the God we are in search of and that he has come into our midst.

Christmas is also a season of gift giving, a tradition that originally centered on the Feast of the Epiphany, commemorating the visit of the Magi and the revelation of the Lord to the whole world.

See Liturgical Calendar–Seasons–Christmas for additional background information and prayer.


"A Friend of the Poor" Prayer Celebration Notes

Focus		Sharing what we have with those who have less
Materials		Prayer table with Bible and candle, canned goods for the poor, a basket to collect the items, music
Reading		Psalm 92
Music		"Let Us Go Rejoicing" (Instrumental), "Blest Are We," Blest Are We Music CD 6; "Come, Lord Jesus," Marilyn Ifcic, (OCP Publications), "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," (VENI, VENI EMMANUEL, LM)
Preparation		Ask participants to select a group to whom they would like to donate food and have them organize a food collection project. Print out and photocopy the liturgy, "A Friend of the Poor."
Adaptation		Arrange a secret-pal project within your group, and have participants look for ways to give, in secret, to their pal. This could be done throughout the Christmas season.
Additional Materials		"Let Us Go Rejoicing," [instrumental], "Blest Are We" Blest Are We Music CD 6 Call RCL Benziger at 1-877-ASK-4-RCL (1-877-275-4725). ORDER NUMBER: 0-382-36657-3 Blest Are We Song Book Words and melody for children; contains music for levels 1-8 ORDER NUMBER: 0-382-36617-4 Blest Are We Accompaniment Book Contains accompaniment music for levels 1-8 ORDER NUMBER: 0-382-36618-2