Theology

We celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, a Holy Day of Obligation, on December 8.

In 1854, Pope Pius IX declared the dogma of the Immaculate Conception:

The Most Holy Virgin Mary was, in the very first moment of her conception, by a unique gift of grace and privilege of Almighty God and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ the Redeemer of mankind, preserved free from all stains of original sin. (Ineffabilis Deus, Apostolic Constitution of Pope Pius IX on the Immaculate Conception)

Thus, the Church teaches that the Blessed Mother was redeemed by her Son, just as we are, but by a divine anticipation of the merits of the Word‑made‑flesh. Like Eve before her, she was not subject to the Fall and thus to the prince of this world. However, unlike Eve, she would never surrender that freedom that God’s grace provided her. 

December 8

In 1531, the Blessed Mother appeared four times to St. Juan Diego asking for a church to be built in her honor. The last time she appeared to him, on December 12, 1531, she arranged roses in his tilma, which he then took to the bishop. When he opened his cloak, the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was miraculously present on the tilma.

We therefore celebrate the Feast day of Our Lady under the title of Guadalupe on December 12. It is preceded on December 9 by the Feast of St. Juan Diego, who was canonized in 2002 by Pope St. John Paul II.

December 12

The Church celebrates the “marvelous works of God” through public worship, or liturgy, commemorating the great events in salvation history. The Nativity of Our Lord celebrates the point in history when the Son of God became Man for our Salvation—an act of loving obedience to the Father, and saving love for us, that will culminate on the Cross.

Philippians 2:5-8. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.

December 25-January 11

St. John the Apostle was one of the Twelve Apostles and the “beloved disciple” of Jesus Christ. He is well-known for being one of the four evangelists (or Gospel writers). Called by the Greeks “the Divine,” John was a Galilean, the son of Zebedee and Salome, and younger brother of St. James the Great. St. John is the author of the Gospel of John, the three Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation.

 December 27

The Feast of the Holy Innocents, or Childermas in Old English, commemorates the death of male children in Bethlehem who were two years of age or under. King Herod the Great had ordered this, in order to ensure that the infant Messiah sought by the Magi would be unable to displace him on his throne. This is why St. Joseph was told in a dream to take the Child and the Blessed Virgin and flee to Egypt to escape the persecution of King Herod. On this day we are reminded, as well, that all lives are precious, and it is our responsibility to protect every life from the moment of conception to natural death. 

December 28

This feast day honors Jesus, the Blessed Mother, and St. Joseph as the holiest of families, and therefore a model for all Christian families. They were holy because they placed God at the center of their family life, they loved and sacrificed for one another, and they radiated that love to others in the redemptive mission of the Word Incarnate.

Pope St. John Paul II said, “The Redeemer of the world chose the family as the place for his birth and growth, thereby sanctifying this fundamental institution of every society” (Angelus message, December 30, 2001).

December 28