November 27th, 2022 – First Sunday of Advent
Dear Friends,
Every Advent I try to pick a virtue that I will work on in my daily life. And every Advent I come up with the same one – PATIENCE.
Does anyone else have trouble being patient? If you said no, please see me for Confession! (smile) We all struggle at times with patience, and at least for me it is tied to not being able to live in the moment, in the present. I am always thinking ten steps ahead and get impatient when things aren’t working out the way I think they should to get me to my goal. Plus my long-range plans become my short-term worries!
Living in the present is knowing that the future will unfold as it should, because Christ, who knows all, is already there, and assures me that he has things covered. “Breathe, I have your back; I have things covered,” he tells me.
Advent is the perfect time for practicing patience, and be patient with yourselves as you practice!
Let’s pray for each other, and peace for our struggling world!
Sincerely, with love,
Fr. Tim
November 20th, 2022 – The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ,
King of the Universe
Dear friends,
This weekend we celebrate Christ as King of the Universe. This celebration of Christ King also marks the end of our Liturgical year in the Church, and it is fitting to end the year this way to remember that in the end, as Saint Julian of Norwich said, “all shall be well”.
It might be hard to celebrate someone as “king” when we have witnessed people in authority making choices that caused pain. We have a major war going on in the world today for instance, started by oone man in power whose choices have caused death and destruction. Christ’s Kingship, however, is radically the opposite; it restores people to wholeness and makes them have life in abundance and assures all of us that, in the end, “all shall be well”.
This week we will also celebrate Thanksgiving Day! Our families are real and there is joy, but also some struggles that accompany daily life. When gathered around the table, however, I hope that we can all forgive and love one another with a generous heart and thus realize that, despite the ups and downs of the year, in the end, “all shall be well”.
Our pastor Fr. Tim and I, and all our wonderful parish and school staffs would like to wish you a Happy and Joy Filled Thanksgiving celebration in union with your families and loved ones!
With love,
Fr. Carlos
November 13th, 2022 – Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.”
Dear Friends,
That was the one of the first pieces of advice that our beloved Sr. Ellen Barrett, BVM gave as I was appointed pastor over 23 years ago. Today we celebrate the anniversary of her passing in 2007. I miss her so, but I know she lives on in the many ways she served so beautifully and faithfully.
Needless to say, changes have happened and continue to happen, sometimes at a breakneck and perplexing pace. Be it in our personal lives, or the life of our Church, or our beloved country and the vast planet we share.
I have never been a fan of amusement parks, but when I needed to chaperone a trip and had to go on a merry-go-round or roller coaster, I found that I could limit the awfulness of sickness and dizziness by staying focused on one thing till the crazy ride was over.
So too in the dizzying and at times disorienting ride of a life filled with so many changes, it has helped to stay focused on Christ. The ride of life goes on in its crazy way, but we know one day it will be over. One day, Christ, who is on the ride with us, will welcome us home. No more dizziness, no more pain or conflict, no more unknowns…
Just light and peace forever! Just love forever!
Sr. Ellen, and all our beloved friends who have passed, and dear Saints, pray for us!
With love,
Fr. Tim
November 6th, 2022 – Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear friends,
We are people of hope.
Every time we recite the Creed, we say “I believe in the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” The seed of eternity has been planted in our hearts, and it grows within us in the form of desires for that which endures and lasts forever. Even death, as scary and painful as it is, cannot take away from us the gift of eternal life that Christ promised to those who believe in him.
This month of November, before the season of Advent begins, the readings at Mass will lead us to think of that final and definitive encounter with Christ, an encounter that we anticipate with hope. I often think of those encounters that I have had with people, friends, family members, that I wish never ended.
Such will be our final encounter with Christ like, one that we hope never ends and that, in fact, will never end.
I hope that we are able to cultivate in our lives those moments, those encounters that have a flavor of eternity. They are a statement of faith in the life of the world to come, a life that is already found in the world that we live in for, as we say at Mass, “heaven and earth are full of God’s glory.”
With Love,
Fr. Carlos
N.B. I will be visiting my family in Colombia from 11/3 to 11/10. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers during my time away.
