Pastor’s Weekly Letter: December 23, 2018

Pastor’s Weekly Letter: December 23, 2018

21 Dec 2018 | Posted by: chadmin

Dear friends,

Happy 4^th Week of Advent and Merry Christmas! We have one bulletin for the weekend and Christmas. I pray the Advent Season has been a time of peace and preparation for the coming of the Lord. This season is meant to be a time of real peace as we reflect upon the depth of God’s love for humanity. The miracle of the Incarnation, or the birth of Christ, shows God’s desire to communicate directly with us and to be ever present. We often find the health of relationships is communication related, Christmas is a reminder that God’s communication to us flows through the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. The celebration of the Mass is the continual reminder that God communicates with us in the Eucharistic sacrifice and the reading of Scripture.

This time of year always invites us to reflect upon the love of God and the meaning of family. The most beautiful and most challenging aspect of life is always our relationships. This time of year offers us the opportunity to reflect on the importance of friends and family and to communicate how we feel. So often, days and years can pass without truly communicating ourselves. As we enter this Christmas Season, it is good to reflect on who we need to better communicate with and pray for God to guide our conversations. We may need to emphasize our sentiments of love and thanksgiving for family and acquaintances. We may even need to apologize and ask forgiveness of those in our lives. We each know our own hearts so it is important to pay attention to divisive thoughts and relationships in order to bring about unity and peace. As we celebrate the birth of Christ, let us celebrate by living authentically the Gospel call to love others as we love ourselves.

Our current culture can present challenges to the way we celebrate Advent and Christmas. Christmas parties, work socials and family gatherings are all a blessing this time of year. The challenge for Christians is to remain focused on the reason for the season. When we gather or shop for loved ones, the reason is our belief that the Father loved us so much that He sent the Son into the world. The reality of our Church teaching presents us with the fact that each of us can daily renew our understanding of what God has revealed and what he invites us to experience in relationship with Him. This year as we gather and prepare to offer gifts, we all have the opportunity to renew our reflection of “why.” The spirit of giving, peace and joy is all an extension of the heart of God. As we pray the next few weeks of the Christmas Season, let us ask the Lord to keep us focused on the reason for the season. In this way, we will seek interior peace and a heart that not only receives love and mercy from God, but also allows God’s love to flow through us to others.

The last few years we have purchased a Christmas gift for the parish family. This year we are gifting a prayer book from the Knights of Columbus. “Prayer Time: A Collection of Catholic Prayers” includes prayers for different needs and occasions. The Stations of the Cross, the Rosary, some aspects of Church Teaching are all included. My hope is that this small prayer book will assist you and your family members deepen and maintain a personal relationship with God. Merry Christmas!

God bless you,

Fr. David