¡Alégrense! Meditaciones de Adviento con la Sagrada Familia, Diario

Walking with Mary and Joseph during this advent is helping me keep our marriage grounded. I'm learning how to pray for my husband and is making our relationship stronger. It is the first thing I do in the morning and it shapes the rest of my day. Thank you!

So blessed to have walked through Advent with this series. The content and accompanying videos helped deepen my understanding of the unique relationship which Mary and Joseph shared with one another in a way that no other resource has ever delved into. The artwork is stunning! Fr Mark Toups writes beautifully!

I enjoyed connecting Joseph and Mary's relationship and never considered the depth of their love for one another. It was an eye opener to think of Joseph's sacrifice in preserving Mary's purity - such Godly love. I also enjoyed bringing the bible readings into each day of Advent.

I enjoyed walking through Advent 2020 with Joseph & Mary immensely! Going through the daily reading and meditations really helped me to find out more about myself which allowed me to prepare to receive Jesus and make room for Him in my heart for Christmas, understanding better what He wanted to work on within me! Hearing Mary & Joseph’s perspective touched my heart. I will definitely be exploring this series of books from Ascension for future liturgical seasons!

What a great way to celebrate Advent! Loved this book and the weekly talks and prayers with Father Toups. Thank you!

My church Book Club chose this book and I am so thankful!!! I especially grew in appreciation and love for St Joseph! He was entrusted to protect Mary's purity, to be her safe place, to be vigilant at all times, and to stay nourished in God's Word. The last week's meditations guided me into slowly and deeply imagining what Mary and Joseph were thinking and feeling as parents of Jesus, the Messiah. The day after I finished the last mediation, I went to a funeral Mass and rosary at church. We prayed the Joyful mysteries. I have always struggled with meditating on the mysteries with the rosary. Practicing with the book Rejoice! proved to help me enter into a deeper meditation during this rosary! Because all the ladies in my Book Club loved the book Rejoice! , we decided to read the Lenten Companion for our next Book Club meeting. I am hoping this book will draw me closer to the Sorrowful mysteries.

I receive emails and offers from Ascension in a regular bases as sent. I welcome them in order to choose speakers and programs that I can relate to. Father Mike, Father Josh, Father Mark Toupe & Sister Marion are just a few of those who have opened my heart, mind and soul. I’m in my seventies yet these young people inspire me and my faith journey.

This program offered a fresh reflection on the lives of the Holy Family. The study caused me to think about Mary and Joseph, and their family life in a way I had not ever done before. It provided me with a meaningful preparation through Advent and helped me to ready for the coming of our Lord.

Unfortunately, I can't provide a review because I never received the item. I'm not sure how widespread this problem is but mail delivery in our area has been running 6 to 8 weeks behind. I'm still receiving Christmas cards. So, perhaps it will still show up.

I loved the idea of this book, meditating on the different perspectives of both Joseph and Mary, incorporating their emotions and possible thoughts during the time of their preparing for the birth of Our Lord. However, it seemed to me that the book was not very successful in this. Oftentimes the meditations were shallow, tending towards the obvious, and did not take the reader deep enough. But most especially, my disappointment came when the book veered so far away from the traditional teachings about the early life of Mary and Joseph. While I know they are not canonical, I still prefer to hold to these. For example, it is traditionally thought that St Anne and St Joachim (Mary's parents) were very old when they had Mary. They brought her to the Temple at age three to be raised there. When Mary was betrothed to Joseph, her parents were no longer alive. Joseph could not have approached them! There were many instances of this! It was very hard for me to overcome these deviations. Coupled with the shallow content, I was disappointed.

This great resource taught me so much about Jesus' earthly family. The background and insights taught me so much. I will now look at Joseph and Mary very differently. After awhile, the commentary and the questions enabled me to be more insightful than the bible readings. Therefore, I meditated on these.

This is the third year that I have used Fr. Mark Toup's Rejoice Advent meditation. The first year I journeyed with Mary, the second year I journeyed with Joseph and this year I journey with Joseph and Mary in their marriage. God gives me what I need, when I need it most. And this year I needed a renewal in my marriage. The devil had attacked me in my marriage for the first time in 44 years this fall and when I saw that the Rejoice Advent series was on Joseph and Mary's marriage, I knew that the Lord was speaking to me. I studied the meditations each day, prayed with it and poured my hear and soul into the daily journal. I loved watching the weekly videos with Sr. Miriam, Fr. Josh and Fr. Mark; each one touched my heart and encouraged me to make the necessary changes in my life. The daily journaling helped me to make a good Confession prior to celebrating our Lord's birth on Christmas day. Thank you Fr. Mark for listening to The Holy Spirit to be inspired to compose the Rejoice series! You are a blessing to me along with Sr. Miriam and Fr. Josh! May our Lord bless you all as you continue your ministry to His people!

My husband and I did this Advent Meditation book together but each with our own book. We watched the weekly videos together and would discuss with each other how the Lord was speaking to us and what we were learning. It was such a beautiful time for us. There were days when we would come to the other and speak on something that we had to ask forgiveness for based on how we were moved by how Mary and Joseph loved each other. It was such a beautiful time of healing and growing closer together. We have been married 4o years and have been growing in our love for each other but also for our deep love of the Lord, Our Blessed Mother, and our Catholic faith. I was introduced to Joseph in a way I had never been before. My love for him grew and started me on a journey of learning more about him. I have been recommending this to many couples and families. What the Lord does with a simple "yes" is truly amazing and I am so grateful. Thank you Fr. Mark Toups for this gift. It made our Advent more meaningful and joyful.

A bit shallow in the observations and reviews.

This book was a great prayer companion. I would definitely recommend it for anyone (or couple) wanting a great spiritual guide in preparing and praying during the Advent season.

I love so many things about this program. 1. I do not have to spend daily time with the computer. Once a week about 15 minutes. 2. Great speakers. 3. Emphasis on reading the scriptures, spending silent time contemplating them, listening in silence for what God is saying to us, putting my thoughts down on paper, practicing different forms of meditation. What could be better?

I was so moved by the A Quiet Moment meditation that I purchased a mini for myself and then I purchased one for my friend. We had completed the Consecration to St. Joseph earlier this year and have been consecrated to Mary for years. The statue is now part of our daily devotions. Thank you for this program. Have been with you from the first one and always will be.

I liked the book by Fr. Toups very much, but I found the combination of the book and then the weekly videos and then the videos of the lighting of the advent wreath a little confusing. I didn’t get email reminders and as was promised about the videos.

This was my third year participating in this advent series. I enjoy the fresh perspective each year and how it truly helps prepare me for Christmas.
That said, this particular volume really would have benefited from better editing. Some days had very repetitive phrasing and grammatical errors. In all, it felt like it had been assembled rather quickly.
It is a beautiful series but better attention to detail would have enhanced the reading experience.

Loved The encounter with Saint Joseph during Advent, helped to make the Advent season more meaningful in prayer and spiritual growth. I enjoyed participating with friends as each one contributed something of value to the meditations, prayers, and readings.
Our world is quite troubled at this time. Our country is in dire need of fathers in the family to help raise their children, and model what positive fatherhood should be. Saint Joseph is the perfect model of divine fatherhood.
Thanks for Rejoice

We chose this study because it had a journal for personal reflections, a video with the focus for each week, weekly prayer service, and three wonderful spiritual guides. We added a "small group" component for our family, Facetiming on Sundays to discuss our experience of the week before pray together while lighting the Advent candles.

The biggest take away for our family - how much we came to know about the Holy * particularly Joseph. We marveled at what it must have been like for them to be "called" so unexpectedly to these roles.

It was also very real to us because of the events and effects of this pandemic year. Trusting, Adapting, Persevering, Loving.. these were relevant and timely lessons.

I agree with another reviewer who mentioned that the Lectio passages often too long to absorb. We ended up shortening our repetitive reading to the section(s) that spoke to each of us after the first reading. But the journal allowed us to record what/why and, when we "met" on Sundays, to benefit from the alternative choices/reflections of others. The Holy Spirit moved and used each of us for the benefit of all. This rich, multifaceted study really stretched us to consider aspects of the Holy Family we had overlooked/ignored. It took us out of ourselves before bringing us back to how we are to imitate them. Thank you, Fr. Toups, for all your guidance and wisdom.

I found the layout a wonderful journey through the advent experience. I was grateful for the way the author brought attention to the different perspectives of Christ's birth. Recommended.

This Advent program kept me engaged in the daily scripture related to the events leading up to Christmas. Thought provoking questions that made me think about how I needed to take quiet time and reflect. The content had thoughts I had not considered before. I enjoyed every aspect of the program and would be willing to do another.

This book was my guiding star for Advent. I was able to have beautifully focused prayer and purposeful reflection that enhanced the Advent and Christmas seasons. The videos that accompany the book were so well done and a welcome introduction to each week. This is my 2nd Advent using the Rejoice Series, and I look forward to using the series in Lent and in Advent seasons to come!

This meditation provided a beautiful way to enter in more deeply to the Advent Season. I greatly enjoyed the reflections on the purity and love present between Mary & Joseph in their marriage, as well as the real human struggles they endured. Thank you Father Mark Toups for these beautiful meditations!

I offered this program at my parish for the 1st time for Advent 2020. Had a decent response in terms of participants. All of the participants have given great feedback on the journal and weekly video reflections. We had inspired Zoom sessions as an optional and very meaningful part of the journey this Advent and participants felt more able to enter into this holy and often overlooked season. They also loved the art in the journals - captivating and inspiring. I personally loved the daily journal content and thought it helped focus me each day.

The scriptures for reflections were good, but some were very lengthy (not ideal for Lectio Divina or Imaginative Prayer IMO) and for those that were not as familiar with the Bible, it was hard to find some of the scriptures, or the extra step of finding it was intimidating. I did start emailing to the group the scriptures each day, and that helped many more read them each day. I recommend that to anyone leading this for a group.

Overall, AWESOME! I hope to offer it again next year.

Rejoice! is a uniquely written perspective on the Advent season that helped me find peace during a time of many distractions. Fr. Toups is a gifted writer who is led by the Spirit to take the reader on the journey meant for them during the Advent season. Beginning today, I plan to go back through the meditations one by one to help me start out with a spiritual focus for the new year. I am already looking forward to the 2021 Advent meditations and what Fr. Toups will bring to us.

This was an amazing journey with the Holy Family throughout advent. The daily meditations and short bible readings are very thought provoking and there is an area for journaling. During the pandemic it has been difficult to meet in person. So we met every Monday on zoom and discussed the questions and then watched the DVD. I would highly recommend this spiritual journey with the Holy Family. We did the Rejoice Advent Medications with Joseph last year and am looking forward to the next series.