Let me wish all of you, once again, a very blessed Christmas!  We gather this morning to celebrate the most blessed event of all time: the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh, as we hear presented so poetically in today’s gospel.  It is a mystery beyond our full understanding but one that benefits us all.  Speaking of benefiting from great mysterious things, I’ve become a great fan of Siri and ChatGPT.  I can ask them any question and receive a very helpful […]

The “Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God” that we celebrate today is the most ancient feast of Mary in the Roman calendar.  It celebrates Mary’s unique role as the Theotokos, a Greek word that means God-bearer.  Mary was officially given the title of God-bearer, or Mother of God, way back at the Council of Ephesus in 431AD.  This was in response to a great debate that arose in the early Church.  There were those who could not accept the notion that Mary was the mother of […]

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with some time to enjoy this special season with your families as you shared your gifts, reflecting the great gift that God has given us: his son, Jesus.  One of the gifts that so many of you share with our parish is your family life.  The love and dedication you demonstrate in your marriage and family are an inspiration to us all.  You have generously accepted God’s call to marry and have children so that more of God’s children may come to […]

Every time we gather to celebrate the Eucharist, we recall the new and eternal covenant that Jesus established, the covenant that establishes us as God’s family of faith and anticipates our reunion with God in heaven.  And, at every Eucharistic Celebration, shortly after the bread and wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ – the sign of that new and eternal covenant that Jesus established – the celebrant mentions Mary, Joseph, the apostles and martyrs and all the saints whom we wish to join in the glory […]