Prepare

Together

Advent at the St. John Paul II Parish Family

Has the Gospel story ever overwhelmed you—not just informed you, but
moved you to surrender your entire life to Jesus? St. John Paul II taught that
an ardent proclamation of Christ’s message should do just that.

This Advent we will be preparing our hearts for the Nativity by reclaiming
this remarkable story of hope. We’ll focus on four “big questions” to help us
understand the profound reason why the eternal Son of God became man.
The mission of Jesus was nothing less than to rescue us.

Join us!

Sign up to receive our Advent reflection emails throughout the season of Advent.
Journey through Advent using The Advent of Rescue devotional. This daily guide is designed to help you prayerfully explore the season and find Christ-centered answers to life's deepest questions. Download information is below. Weekly reflection questions will be posted below.

Prepare Together this Advent

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Download The Advent of Rescue, 2025 Advent Reflections based on The Rescue Project. Please use the password sjpii-advent when prompted.

There will also be a few printed copies in the back of each church for parishioners who have limited accessibility to technology.

A note about digital downloads: The system will only allow one download per email account. Please make sure you are using your preferred device when downloading. All popular e-reader formats are supported (Apple Books, BookFunnel, Google Play Books, Kindle, Kobo, Nook, along with EPUB and PDF).

Proclaiming an Advent of Hope & Rescue

Rediscover the story we’re presenting (or more accurately, re-presenting) this Advent. It’s the story of who Jesus is, what he has done, and what he’s asking of me. This story can be understood by answering four “big questions” about life, about human existence:

Why is there something rather than nothing?
Why is everything so obviously messed up?
What, if anything, has God done about it?
If God has done something, how should I respond?

This year, to go along with our Advent devotional, each priest will be addressing the above questions in a homily series on the four Sundays of Advent. These homilies and our Advent of Hope and Rescue is based on the book Rescued* by Fr. John Riccardo. If you would like to purchase that book, you can do so here.

*Riccardo, Fr. John. Rescued. The Word Among Us Press, 2020

Created

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Captured

Rescued

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Response

Created

Week 1 - Why is there something rather than nothing?

Why am I here?

Now there’s a question for you. And it’s not the same as, “How did I get here?” The origin of the universe is something science can try to address, but it’s not equipped to answer why. And until you know the meaning and purpose of your life, you will not experience lasting peace and happiness.

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Captured

Week 2 - Why is everything so obviously messed up?

What the heck happened?

The beginning of our story is so beautiful. Behold the spectacular creation and its magnificent Author—an omnipotent God whose greatest, most cherished creation is the human person, made in his image, destined for eternal friendship, and known by him intimately.

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Rescued

Week 3 - What, if anything, has God done about it?

Has God intervened in our hopeless predicament?

Yes! He didn't merely observe from heaven. He, the King of Creation, willingly abandoned His throne, descending into the battle like a front-line soldier to personally rescue us from capture and secure our freedom. This was foretold by the prophet Isaiah:

Can prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of a tyrant be rescued? Surely, thus says the LORD: “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued, for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children…Then all flesh shall know that I am the LORD your Savior, and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob” Isaiah 49:24-26.

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