Dear friend,<\/p>\n
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I hope everyone had the chance to celebrate with family and loved ones. On January 1, 2011, the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God, we opened our Adoration Chapel. The Chapel was officially consecrated by the Bishop in the spring of 2011. The last nine years of chapel use has benefited our parish community in many ways. An Adoration Chapel allows us to enter the presence of Jesus. Prayer in the chapel can take many forms, but essentially it is spending time with Jesus to discuss our needs, concerns and gratitude. Time in the Chapel is never wasted time and provides many spiritual blessings to our lives. St. Teresa of Avila used to say that time spent before the Blessed Sacrament would provide fruit the rest of the day. The parish gives out keys that provide 24-7 access to the Chapel. If you don\u2019t have a key and would like to make use of the Chapel, please stop by the Parish Office during normal working hours. I hope you will find the Chapel to be a simple and beautiful prayer space. The graces associated with parishes that operate an Adoration Chapel are well-founded.<\/p>\n
The Solemnity of Mary during the Christmas season also allows us to maintain our focus on Mary\u2019s \u201cyes\u201d and her participation in the Divine Plan. I often find it interesting that Mary can be a topic of contention between Christians. Non-Catholics often claim there is an over-emphasis on Mary\u2019s role within the Church. Most of the claims simply are misguided teachings. We don\u2019t claim Mary is divine, she was created just like the rest of us. The Church teaching is that God created her free from Original Sin in order to bring forth the Christ-child free from the Fall in the Garden of Eden. This being true, Mary still was free in her \u201cyes\u201d to the Incarnation. Our veneration for Mary revolves around her faithfulness. When we often fail in our spiritual efforts, Mary remains ever faithful. We pray through her intercession as she presents our prayers before the Lord and we resolve to model her love, holiness, and humility. As we begin 2020, after celebrating the Church New Year in Advent, may the new calendar year bring many blessings to our parish and families as we resolve to live our Catholic faith with greater joy and thanksgiving.<\/p>\n
Thank you for all the Christmas blessings during the last several weeks. I am overwhelmed by the cards, notes, and generosity. I am deeply thankful for your support.\u00a0 Have a Blessed year.<\/p>\n
God bless,<\/p>\n
Father David<\/p>\n
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