Happy New Year

These days have been full of celebration! From the 4th Sunday of Advent to the Feast of Epiphany - we have 5 Major Celebrations in 2 weeks! And for us as a parish -The Sunday between Christmas and New Years is our Parish Name Day - our Feast Day. 
Thank you to the Knights of Columbus for sponsoring the Parish Family Skate on Sunday Dec. 28th! The Hot Chocolate, the Donuts, and the skating were all terrific!

Thank you also to the Prayer group for providing refreshments for the Movie Night: Mary of Nazareth. We have copies of the movie available to purchase in the Parish office - they are $30 each.

We are looking forward to the Feast of the Epiphany, which is really all about the universal nature of salvation. These sages from the East represent the "foreigner" (the "gentile" in the Jewish world) and so the Incarnation is not for an elite few, not simply for a distinct nation or race, but for all of the Human Family.  The Manifestation of the Christ (the anointed one - the messiah) in the Epiphany, in the Baptism of Jesus, and in the Miracle at Cana, all proclaim who Jesus is - and who he is for! He has come for all of us - Sinner and Saint. Broken and healed.

In the midst of this busy time I have also been spending a lot of time at the Hospital - visiting some people who have been seriously ill. One of them was Kathryn Burt - from my previous parish - who had Lung Cancer - which eventually moved into her Bones and then into the Brain. I was able to see Kathryn 2 times this week - and had a very good conversation - talking about those typical questions - Why Me? etc.  We spoke of how this was a privileged place to be in - to be able to face our mortality and still have the chance to speak the words necessary to our loved ones.
Kathryn died peacefully on New Years Day in the Morning. She was only 60 years old - so please keep her Son and Daughter (Mike and Sonia) in your prayers as they prepare to bury their Mother.  Eternal Rest grant unto her. O Lord, and let perpetual light shine on her.  May her soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in the peace of Christ.  Amen.
Peace