Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
 
Merry Christmas and Happy Feast of the Holy Family!
We continue in this great octave of Christmas celebrating the sublime truth of God the Son, having assumed a human nature to Himself was born of the Virgin Mary to usher in new hope of salvation.  God in perfect love condescends to His fallen sinful creatures and is born among them utterly vulnerable.  This great mystery of faith shows us God’s love and greatness for only the transcendent God with Whom nothing is impossible could do what He did.  His creation had been taken over by sin and was now an enemy to Him.  So God slipped in behind enemy lines, as it were, sneaking into our sordid realm of suffering, but with a plan to rectify, redeem, rescue, and resurrect His creation.  This celebration of this event cannot be contained in one day, so the Church gives us this octave and a whole season of Christmas. 
 
Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God is a Holy Day of Obligation - January 1
To further emphasize the truth of the Incarnation, the Church honors Mary as truly the Mother of God. The Church has always believed this, but the teaching was officially recognized at the Council of Ephesus in the early fifth century. In our country this solemnity is obligatory.
On December 31 will be the regular 7pm Vigil for the Holy Day.  January 1, Masses are at 8:30am and 5:30pm. 
Please also note the morning Mass on December 31 is at 7am as usual, but there will NOT be adoration or benediction during the day. 
 
Next Steps
The season of Advent was all preparation for a major step in God’s saving mission.  Now we celebrate that event and meditate on it for a while.  Going deeper this Christmas season will help get ready for the next steps that lead us to Christ’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection.  So keep the celebration going and keep those decorations up!  Don’t let our culture dictate to us when Christmas is over.  Keep wishing people Merry Christmas! 
 
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Pfr