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By Christmas Eve the Advent wreath is aglow with the candles of love, hope, joy and peace, and we await the lighting of the White Candle which signifies the coming of Jesus into our world and into our lives. We pray again that this presence will become a reality which we can sense and touch, but for many it becomes an elusive dream that vanishes when they awaken from their restless sleep.

Already vulnerable and alone, many homeless and at risk youth are finding themselves dealing with more than the coronavirus and its restrictions this Christmas. To them, loneliness is another pandemic.

Isn’t it fascinating how, back in spring 2020, at the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, the first impulse for comfort and familiarity was an urge to watch Christmas shows? The goodwill and good feels of Christmastime pageantry is powerful medicine.

A diocese of immigrants will be using Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz’s acclaimed Angels Unawares as its Nativity this year.

COVID-19 Christmas ornaments are flying off the shelves in Ottawa this holiday season.

There is one sure sign that Christmas is around at The Catholic Register — the sudden surge of mail into the office on deadline day for the our annual children’s Christmas drawing contest.

It’s been a long process, but Sandra Dionisi is finally seeing the fruits of the more than 300 hours labour she put into this year’s Canada Post Christmas stamp.

It is a sad fact that melancholy is a palatable state of mind for many as Dec. 25 approaches — especially in this year of the pandemic.

Situated in one of Canada’s coldest and most geographically isolated regions, the area encompassed by the Diocese of MacKenzie-Fort Smith in the Northwest Territories is a nature lover’s dream.

A great story will certainly emerge from this Advent; a year like no other. An Advent to remember for sure and the stories we tell about this time will be noteworthy.