Pastor’s Letter: December 14, 2025

Pastor’s Letter: December 14, 2025

12 Dec 2025 | Posted by: chadmin

Dear St. Philomena Parish Family,

Continued Blessed Advent to you all! As we celebrate the Third Sunday of Advent this weekend, the Ordo (Order of Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours and Celebration of the Eucharist) reminds us this day is “traditionally known as Guadete Sunday, so-called from the first word of the antiphon at the Introit [Entrance Antiphon…if you follow along in the Missalette you would find it on p. 5, #4…”Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.”].  Gaudete (“Rejoice”), taken from the Latin translation of Philippians 4:4-5, sets a tone of joyful expectation for the Lord’s birth and Second Coming, as does the permitted use of rose-colored vestments” (Ordo 2026, p.13).

In this Antiphon, St. Paul is reminding just how joyful it is to recognize the Lord is near! If we stop and think about it, we are so blessed by the many ways Jesus chooses to be near us! Of course during this time of year we think about Jesus coming to dwell among us and being born in a manger. How amazing is that!?!? What an incredible gift to consider! Almighty God Himself, Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, wanted to be that close to us—wanted to be united with us in such way that He would be born in a manger in Bethlehem.

The beginning of St. John’s Gospel is so striking, reminding us of who Jesus truly is…and the true glimpse of God we receive as we look upon Jesus: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God…and the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth” (Jn 1:1-5, 12, 14). Of course this passage can remind us of Christmas…but it also reminds us of His dwelling among us in the Holy Eucharist.

One of my favorite altars where I have celebrated Mass has John 1:14 inscribed across the frontal of the altar. For me, it was always a physical reminder of how Jesus comes to dwell among us in the Mass and remains present among us in the tabernacle. For those who are able to receive Jesus in Communion, He comes to dwell within our hearts, uniting our hearts to Himself. Amazing! Amazing that almighty God would want to be that close to us!

Without a doubt, God truly loves us and wants to be close to us. That should especially give us confidence at those times when we know we have separated ourselves from Him by our sins. Thankfully, the Lord, in His generosity, has provided us a Sacrament that heals that separation—the Sacrament of Reconciliation. As we have begun reviewing through the Sacraments, we will pick back up in 2026, starting with the Eucharist and then covering Reconciliation/Confession/Penance. Until then, I wanted to just highlight a couple of additions that will hopefully help our experience of the Sacrament of Forgiveness.

As a priest who hears confessions regularly, there a few things I have noticed that seem to make people feel self-conscious, including the beginning dialogue of Confession (traditionally, “Bless me father, for I have sinned…”), naming sins, and then the Act of Contrition. We often have in the back of church a tri-fold pamphlet from our Diocese that is supposed to help in preparation (reviewing through the examination of conscience, this one being based on the 10 Commandments) and then also guide a person through the celebration of the Sacrament. I have often noticed that the tri-fold format is hard to maneuver for people, and it always seems the Act of Contrition is nearly impossible to find! =)

In an effort to help our students have a smoother and more joyful experience of the Sacrament, we have prepared a simplified sheet that includes just the traditional words of the Rite, a blank space for any notes about what to confess, and then the Act of Contrition version that our students learn here. The students are still encouraged to look at an examination as they are preparing, making notes if they wish to help them remember what they want to say to our Lord. It has really gone well—so well—that I thought it could be helpful to have those sheets available for anyone who would like to use them. We will plan to have those on the small table near the confessionals.

What should we do with those papers (or any other personal notes we use) after receiving absolution? While people are certainly free to do whatever they wish, we have been encouraging our students to drop them through a slot in a box in the confessional marked “God’s New Beginning Box.” In a practical way, it is a reminder to leave the sins behind and trust in the Lord’s mercy as we go forth in freedom. The priests will monitor the boxes and discreetly burn the contents as needed. If it has been a while since you received our Lord’s forgiveness and a fresh beginning, I encourage you to check out these new additions over the next couple of weeks…or plan to join for our Advent confessions which will be before all the weekend Masses on Dec 20/21 and at 6:30pm Monday, Dec 22.

Know of my prayers and blessing for you all this week!

In Christ,
Father Luke