4th Sunday Advent
- St Paul's Catholic Parish
- Dec 20, 2025
- 5 min read
Collect Prayer
Pour forth, we beseech you, O Lord, your grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ your Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may by his Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of his Resurrection. Who lives and reigns...
Readings
Isaiah 7:10-14 Psalm 24 Romans 1:1-7
Matthew 1:18-24
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel’ — which means, God with us. When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife.’
Readings Next Sunday (Holy Family)
Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14 Psalm 128 Colossians 3:12-21 Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23
Joseph, Do Not Fear!
Cf. Pope Francis, Angelus 22.12.2013
Today’s Gospel tells us: “Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly” (Mt 1:19). This brief sentence reveals a true inner drama if we think about the love that Joseph had for Mary! But even in these circumstances, Joseph intends to do the will of God and decides, surely with great sorrow, to send Mary away quietly. We need to meditate on these words in order to understand the great trial that Joseph had to endure in the days preceding Jesus’ birth. It was a trial similar to the sacrifice of Abraham, when God asked him for his son Isaac (cf. Gen 22): to give up what was most precious, the person most beloved.
But as in the case of Abraham, the Lord intervenes: he found the faith he was looking for and he opens up a different path, a path of love and of happiness. “Joseph, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit” (Mt 1:20). This passage reveals to us the greatness of St Joseph’s heart.
He was following a good plan for his life, but God was reserving another plan for him. Joseph was a man who always listened to the voice of God, he was a man attentive to the messages that came to him from the depths of his heart and from on high. He did not persist in following his own plan for his life, he did not allow bitterness to poison his soul; rather, he was ready to make himself available to the news that, in a such a bewildering way, was being presented to him.
And thus, he was a good man. He did not hate, and he did not allow bitterness to poison his soul. Yet how many times does hatred, or even dislike and bitterness poison our souls! And this is harmful. Never allow it: he is an example of this. And Joseph thereby became even freer and greater. By accepting himself according to God’s design, Joseph fully finds himself, beyond himself. His freedom to renounce even what is his, the possession of his very life, and his full interior availability to the will of God challenge us and show us the way.
Weekly News
Closing Of The Jubilee Year On 28. December In Larnaca
Parishioners who would like to come, please, contact fr. Ismael. Program on
the board of the Church. Bishop Bruno’s letter on our website:
New Parish Website
Pray For Vocations
The Latin Vicariate of Cyprus is dedicating a Year of Prayer for Vocations to the priesthood, religious, married or consecrated lives. Join us! For more information contact Sister Elizabeth (95983631 / pastoralcareofvocationscyprus@gmail.com)
Parish Community Shop
Refreshments, coffee and tea. Check our religious section for rosaries, Christmas Cards, scapulars, devotionals, etc. Check also our books sections. Don’t miss the opportunity to meet other parishioners and grow as community. All funds will go to the building of the new Church. If you’d like to volunteer, please talk to Fr. Ismael.
Caritas St. Paul's
Thank you for your prayers, contributions, food and clothes donations … we can also reuse your shopping bags. If you wish to volunteer, please, contact fr. Alessandro.
Christmas Schedule
24 December:
6PM - H. Mass (AK)
6PM - H. Mass (in the town of Polis)
8PM - Christmas Carols (AK)
9PM - H. Mass (AK)
25 December:
10AM - H. Mass - Latin (AK)
11AM - H. Mass - Polish (AK)
12 PM - H. Mass - English (AK)
26 December:
12 PM - H. Mass (AK)
Solemnity Of Mary, Mother Of God
31 December:
6PM - H. Mass (AK)
1 January:
12PM - H. Mass (AK)
6.15PM - H. Mass (in the town of Polis)
Mass schedule
22-28 December
Mon: No Mass;
Tues, Thurs, Fri: Masses at 9:00am in Agia Kyriaki
Wed Mass at 12:00 pm (AK)
Saturday: Masses at 4:30pm (AK); 6pm (town of Polis)
Sunday: Masses at 10am, 11am & 12pm (AK)
Eucharistic Adoration: Wed 10:50am (this week no Adoration on Thu)
Filipino Mass on last Sunday of the month at 12pm.
Sri-Lankan Mass on 3rd Sunday of the month, 12pm (Presbytery chapel)
MASSES IN POLIS
From January 2026 Holy Mass in Polis will start at 6.15pm
Prayer for Vocations
God our Father, author of life and giver of all gifts, we thank you for the gift of the families to our Church communities. Let them be the foundation of faith, seminary of vocations and model of obedience to your will. Enlighten and guide parents to have a generous spirit to support their children’s decision and choices in life. Help them to encourage their sons and daughters to pursue your call without fear and resistance. Touch the hearts of the children with the desire and longing to know, love and serve you more with great joy wherever you may call them to follow Jesus Your Son our Lord. Teach us to love one another with patience, kindness and forgiveness so that our home may reflect the light of Christ to the world. O Holy Family of Nazareth, model of every Christian family, we entrust all the families to your loving care. Amen.
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