Advent Penance Service at St. John Bosco Parish

My Dear Parishioners,

The Christmas Bazaar was a great success; thank you to all our vendors and volunteers. A special thank you goes to Mrs. Rita Roley, and her fantastic team of helpers. They planned and executed a great event for the parish. A job well done! Christmas cards and St. Joseph 100^th anniversary mugs can still be purchased at the rectory.

We are asking that the gift cards for the Advent Giving Tree be returned no later than Monday, Dec. 11^th to the box at the base of the tree, or to the rectory. We want to be able to get them in the hands of those who need them as soon as possible so that they will be able to use them. Thank you for your generous support.

This year we are trying something different when it comes to our Advent preparations. 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 US Bishops have prepared a brief examination of conscience. I have copied it below from their website. The first reflection is based on the 10 Commandments.

#I – I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me: Have I treated people, events, or things as more important than God?

# II. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Have my words, actively or passively, put down God, the Church, or people?

#III Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day. Do I go to Mass every Sunday (or Saturday Vigil) and on Holy Days of Obligation? Do I avoid, when possible, work that impedes worship to God, joy for the Lord’s Day, and proper relaxation of mind and body? Do I look for ways to spend time with family or in service on Sunday?

#IV Honor your father and your mother. Do I show my parents due respect? Do I seek to maintain good communication with my parents where possible? Do I criticize them for lacking skills I think they should have?

#V. You shall not kill. Have I harmed another through physical, verbal, or emotional means, including gossip or manipulation of any kind?

#VI. You shall not commit adultery. Have I respected the physical and sexual dignity of others and of myself?

#VII. You shall not steal. Have I taken or wasted time or resources that belonged to another?

#VIII. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Have I gossiped, told lies, or embellished stories at the expense of another?

#IX. You shall not covet your neighbor’s spouse. Have I honored my spouse with my full affection and exclusive love?

#X. You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods. Am I content with my own means and needs, or do I compare myself to others unnecessarily?

This  second  examination  comes  from  Jesus’ identification of the two greatest commandments.

How well do we love God and others? Do we love as Christ calls us to? In the Gospel of Matthew, Christ gives us Two Commandments: “He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments’” (Mt 22:37-40). Not sure what love is? St. Paul describes it for us in his Letter to the Corinthians. Is this how you love God and others? “Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quicktempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails” (1 Cor 13:4-8). Copyright © 2013, United States Conference of Catholic
Bishops, Washington, DC.

It is time to put the yearly reminder in the bulletin about parking in the near lot and leaving large gaps in the middle. I ask your assistance once again with this issue especially during the Christmas Masses. When parking in the lot closest to the Church, please pull all the way up to the preceding car. If everyone parks in an end spot, we prevent others from getting a space. Also some of our guests may not be familiar with our parking routines and so I ask your help and patience in keeping it as orderly as possible.

May God Bless You,
Fr. Bordonaro