The following parishes and schools have informed the Catholic Courier of their upcoming Advent activities:
* Children from St. Joseph parish and school in Penfield will retell the birth of Jesus during the Festival of Lessons and Carols Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph Church, 43 Gebhardt Road. A bilingual Mass for the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be celebrated Dec. 11 at 7 p.m., and an Advent penance service with individual confession will be Dec. 16 at 7 p.m.
* St. Charles Borromeo Parish, 3003 Dewey Ave., Greece will offer an Advent penance service with individual confession at 2 p.m. on Dec. 6. The service is being sponsored by the Eastern Greece and
Charlotte parishes. After St. Charles’ 10:30 a.m. Mass Dec. 13 families will gather in the Parish Center for a pancake Breakfast in Bethlehem and a live presentation of the Christmas story by the parish’s youth group.
* Church of the Assumption, 20 East Ave., Fairport, is focusing on the Year of Mercy this Advent. At 7 p.m. Dec. 1, Sister of Mercy Barbara Moore will speak on Advent mercies in church as she leads evening of prayer. From noon to 2 p.m. Dec. 16, a luncheon celebrating Mercy will be held. Father Ed Palumbos, pastor, and several other "mercy heroes" will participate in a panel discussion during the event and show some slides depicting God’s mercy. RSVP for the luncheon by calling Debby at 585-388-0040. A penance service will be held at 7 p.m. Dec. 14, and a Cantata will be presented at 2 p.m. Dec. 13.
* Sacred Heart Cathedral, 296 Flower City Park, Rochester, will offer its annual creche display from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily through Jan. 10. There will be Taize prayer from 3:30 to 4 p.m. Dec. 5, 12 and 19, and there will be a Breakfast with Santa Dec. 5, with seatings at 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. Tickets for the breakfast are $5 per family (up to 6 people). Call the cathedral office at 585-254-3221 for details. Advent morning prayer will be available at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 21-23.
* Holy Family Church, 85 North St., Auburn, will offer an Advent Bible study titled "Opening the Doors of Mercy: Stories of Forgiveness from the New Testament," led by Father John Gathenya. The Bible study began Nov. 30, and continues Dec. 7 and Dec. 16 from 7 to 8 p.m. in Holy Family School.
* St. Kateri Tekakwitha Parish, 445 Kings Highway S., Irondequoit will have a "Waiting for the Star" program from noon to 2:30 p.m. Dec. 6 and 5:45 to 8 p.m. Dec. 7. The event will feature prayer, food and workshops for all ages, plus guest speaker Nora Bradbury-Haehl, who will make a presentation on the spirituality of waiting. Register at http://conta.cc/1ONteKk or 585-338-1146. Walk-ins are welcome. Additionally, facilitated "Around the Table" conversations will be held either at the parish or at a local residence. Conversations will include discussions about the Catholic faith, and such faith-filled resources as DVDs and online tools will be provided by the parish. Call 585-338-1146 for details.
* Our Lady of Lourdes, 150 Varinna Drive, Brighton, and St. Anne, 1600 Mt. Hope Ave., Rochester, will offer an Advent retreat on the Gospel of Luke with Sister of Mercy Barbara Moore. Each session is offered twice, from 4 to 5 p.m. and 6 to 7 p.m., with a soup supper in between. The sessions will be Dec. 2 at Our Lady of Lourdes and Dec. 3 at St. Anne. Reconciliation services will be held at 2 p.m. Dec. 12 at St. Anne and 2 p.m. Dec. 14 at Our Lady of Lourdes. Lessons and Carols is scheduled for 4 p.m. Dec. 13 at St. Anne, while Our Lady of Lourdes will show "A Christmas Carol" during Family Movie Night at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 19. A youth Mass will be offered at 10:30 a.m. Dec. 20 at Our Lady of Lourdes, and an international carol sing will be held at St. Anne at 2:30 p.m. Dec. 20.
* Our Mother of Sorrows Parish, 5000 Mt. Read Blvd., Greece, will have Advent Lessons and Carols at 4 p.m. Dec. 13. Music will be provided by the parish’s music ministers as well as musicians from Eastman School of Music.
* Cornell Catholic Community will host Advent Evensong on Dec. 3 at 9 p.m. at the Anabel Taylor Hall Chapel at Cornell University in Ithaca. The chapel’s choir will present works of Christian music from the Renaissance to the present. E-mail Anna at amo82@cornell.edu for more information.
* St. Agnes School, 60 Park Place, Avon, will host a spaghetti Supper with Santa from noon to 3 p.m. Dec. 13. Prices are $7 for adults, $5 for children and free for children under age 4. Tickets are available at the school office.
* The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Brass will present a "Holidays Around the World" concert at 12:45 p.m. Dec. 18 at St. Agnes Parish, 108 Prospect St. Avon.
* At Immaculate Conception Church, 113 N. Geneva St., Ithaca, Father Jeffrey Tunnicliff will present "Introducing the Year of Mercy" at 7 p.m. Dec. 1 in the parish hall. An Advent penance service with individual confessions will be held Dec. 5 at 11 a.m., and Christmas caroling to the homebound will take place Dec. 18 beginning at 6:30 p.m.
* St. Mary Parish, 15 Clark St., Auburn, will offer Compline (the night of prayer of the church), which will be sung in candlelight at 8 p.m. Dec. 6 and 13. It will be preceded at 7:30 p.m. by an organ recital performed by students from Eastman School of Music. Symphoria from Syracuse will present its annual Holiday Concert in at the church on Dec. 11 at 7:30 p.m.
* Franciscan Mystery Players will present "The Birth of Jesus" Dec. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Patrick Parish, 115 Maple Ave., Victor. The parish also will offer a Festival of Lessons and Carols Dec. 13 at 4 p.m., and an Advent Day of Penance Dec. 16 at 7:15 a.m.
