New Liturgical Year and the Holy Season of Advent

My Dear Parishioners,

I hope you all had a very enjoyable Thanksgiving celebration with family and friends. This week we begin a new liturgical year and the holy season of Advent. Advent is about preparing for the birth of Jesus, but it is also about actively waiting on the Lord. While we wait we also have to rush and get a lot of things done. It is a bit incongruous. I pray that you and I will take time to experience the wait, the longing for God that this season calls forth.

One way to prepare spiritually and to express your anticipation of Jesus is to make use of the various opportunities for confession. Our regular time for confession is Saturday afternoon from 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. This year we have been invited to join with St. John Bosco Parish for a communal Advent Penance Service. The invited celebrant will be Msgr. George Majoros, who was recently appointed as a Missionary of Mercy. Missionaries of Mercy are appointed priests worldwide and given a special mandate to lead missions or facilitate specific initiatives with particular attention to the sacrament of reconciliation. Please consider coming as a family to the Communal Advent Penance, on Thursday, December 14, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. at St. John Bosco parish. There will be additional priests available for confession.

The Christmas Bazaar is this Sunday, Dec. 3^rd in the Church Hall. Please come down after Mass and get a jump on your Christmas shopping. Our parish Christmas Cards will be available for purchase. A special thank you goes to Mrs. Rita Roley, and her fantastic team of helpers.

I am happy to let you know that we have formed a guiding committee for the Parish Pastoral Council. The members are Teresa Anatasia, Cathy Cain, Laura DeHennis, Brian Gozdan, Tom Molz, and Lisa Sciscio. We have voted on and accepted a parish Mission Statement. It is:

We are a faith filled family of believers who are committed to nurturing our relationship with Jesus Christ as we join together through Prayer, Sacraments, Proclamation of the Word, and Service to the Community on our journey to God’s Kingdom.

This year, Christmas falls on a Monday. This presents us with the unique situation of celebrating the Fourth Sunday of Advent on Dec. 23-24^th and then Christmas Eve and Christmas Day on Sunday Evening and Monday morning. We will therefore have to decorate the church for Christmas before the Fourth Sunday of Advent, in order to be ready for the Christmas Season. Also there is the obligation to attend Sunday Mass and also Christmas Mass. For those who choose to do this, you may attend one of the regular Sunday Morning Masses and receive Holy Communion, and then also attend one of the afternoon or Midnight Vigil Masses and receive Holy Communion again.

This Friday we celebrate the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is the patronal feast of our country and it is always a Holy Day of Obligation. Our Masses will be as follows: Vigil Thursday night at 5:30 p.m. On Friday, Dec. 8th Masses at 8:00 & 10:00 a.m. and also at 7:00 p.m. This feast celebrates that Mary was born without the stain of Original Sin, in anticipation of her giving birth to our Savior Jesus Christ.

May God Bless You,
Fr. Bordonaro