A Season of Special Joy
Dear Reader,
When we are young, a year takes so long that when the Advent wreaths go up again, we barely remember last Christmas. For me, and I suspect for most of us, last Christmas is so recent that we still remember vividly taking the decorations out of their storage last December and returning them there in January. And still, despite the relentless passage of time, for us Advent must always be a season of special joy as we anticipate the birth in Bethlehem of the Incarnation.
Time races, and I was jolted to realise that this issue is already the fourth Advent & Christmas edition of The Southern Cross magazine! This year we have the customary popular seasonal material — the Big Christmas Trivia Quiz, Fr Ralph de Hahn’s beloved Christmas story, the biography of a famous Christmas carol, and Grazia Barletta’s seasonal recipe. As before, we also feature Advent advice and reflections.
One story may inspire us as an example of how we can put Christ back into Christmas in places where he is missing. The Schoenstatt Sisters in Cape Town set up a stand outside a shopping mall, inviting passers-by to pray, reflect and engage with the Lord. You can read about their experience on page 25.
If you are part of an apostolate that puts Christ into Christmas, or know of one, please let us know. Maybe it will feature in next year’s Advent & Christmas issue.
One of the joys of producing a publication is in receiving positive feedback on our content and presentation. This encourages and sustains us, while constructive criticism can help us improve.
A particularly lovely comment was left on our Facebook page (facebook.com/ScrossZA), where reader Amy Maria Jacobs posted a photo of herself doing the Quick Crossword. She wrote: “We couldn’t wait to get home to solve the puzzles after church this morning, so we did it at breakfast.”
This message delighted us, because all items on the puzzles pages are prepared exclusively for The Southern Cross. But aside from providing entertainment and brain-exercise, we hope that some of the puzzles and quizzes also serve a catechetical function, by including subjects that may help us think and be informed or curious about our faith.
As we were producing this edition, we were sad to learn of the death of Fr Oskar Wermter SJ. Although he was based in Harare, where he was well-known for his courageous and accurate critique of the Mugabe regime’s misrule, Fr Wermter wrote many spiritual articles for us over the years. He was also a contributor in the first issue of The Southern Cross magazine, dated October 2020, with a reflection titled “I am not myself on my own” (read it at wwwt.ly/U8HBl). We have lost a fine communicator.
In this issue you will find several Catholic institutions conveying their Christmas wishes to the Catholic community. Of course, we reciprocate the good wishes, and do so also on behalf of our readers.
From all at The Southern Cross, may your Advent give you ample peace to quietly contemplate the coming of the Lord, and may your Christmas be holy and filled with joy.
God bless,
Günther Simmermacher
(Editor)
- Archbishop Tlhagale: The ‘Gangster’ - February 7, 2025
- Bishop Edward Risi: The Liturgist - February 5, 2025
- Archbishop Nubuasah: Apostle of the Batswana - February 3, 2025