(If you don’t have time to read this now, please take note of the buttons on the right. They are free for the taking, for you to use on your Web site. Click on a button to pick up the html code.)

Advent is here again! Sunday, December 2 is the First Sunday of an Advent that will be shorter than most, with only three full weeks this year and Christmas Eve on Monday after the Fourth Sunday. More and more, we’re seeing that parish Web sites are becoming a key way for parishes to reach out to their parishioners and beyond: to tell people about the Church, to encourage them to come in person, to inspire them with words of wisdom from the pastoral staff, to help them find times and dates for parish events and, most importantly, to announce the coming of the Kingdom in their midst! Isn’t that what Christmas is all about?

Last week our art director, Connie, who designs the many buttons that we offer to you, gave a talk to a group of parish webmasters working in the Cincinnati Archdiocese. Her bottom line: Keep it simple and visually attractive. I hope that we’re able to help you achieve that with our seasonal offerings of link buttons that lead to awesome seasonal features.

We’ve updated our “Advent to Epiphany” feature again this year. We’ve got a new Advent calendar and daily activities, meditations and peacemaking ideas. We’re also offering new Advent and Christmas e-greetings at our ever-popular CatholicGreetings.org. Father Greg Friedman, O.F.M., has produced a few very nice video introductions to the season, which we are posting at YouTube (the Internet keeps evolving!). He also is producing Sunday Soundbites for FranciscanRadio.org, which are linked from our Advent feature. You can add some of these links individually to your site or simply put a link up to the entire feature.

Coming soon in December are the feasts of St. Nicholas (Dec. 6) and Our Lady of Guadalupe (Dec. 12), for which there are e-greetings that you can share with your visitors. We also have an e-greeting for St. Juan Diego (Dec. 9), whose feast this year is superceded by the Second Sunday of Advent.

God bless, and have a fruitful Advent!

John Feister
Editor, AmericanCatholic.org

Need ideas for integrating parish news into your site? Take some time to look at this site, which does an excellent job at keeping visitors informed of the latest happenings and upcoming dates. This is particularly important as we enter the season of Advent. There are numerous events listed at the online home of St. Elizabeth of Hungary: Christmas 2007 Giving Tree, Respect Life Committee poinsettia sale, Knights of Columbus tree lighting and other events for the whole family. Also, the Christmas Mass schedule is already posted. (It's never too early!) In addition to its noteworthy news and events, StElizabeth.org provides a parish registration form, a detailed parish history, Lenten and Advent reflections, links to daily Scripture and more.

 

“A Web site of print-ready resources promoting Catholic Social Teaching on issues of justice in society,” EducationforJustice.org is ready for Advent. Sign up for a free trial account to download Advent poetry and prayers, suggestions for celebrating the season and a list of useful resources. Before signing up, browse sample resources free for anyone, and take a tour to learn about the site's mission and special features.

 

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