December 2, 2018
 
Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
 
Ad Orientem
“People look East, the time is near!”  So finally the time to turn east is here.  This First Sunday of Advent we are looking East with “ad orientem” worship.  This means that during the offertory and Eucharistic Prayer of the Mass the priest and people look together in the same direction “toward the east”.  This symbolizes how we joyfully move toward the Lord as He humbly comes toward us (Advent derives from the Latin which literally means “to come toward”).  This liturgical gesture is a bit different from what most are used to.  In the pews and missalettes for the four weeks of Advent are pamphlets to help parishioners and any visitors who might have questions about this liturgical option.  Our hope is that this option helps people to enter the season of Advent as we grow in joyful expectation for the coming of our Lord.
 
Community Christmas Concert
This weekend after the 4:30 Mass will be the Firestone Park Community Christmas Concert.  We are blessed to have a large church and the ability to host this event which includes the gifts and talents of the ecclesial communities in our area.  Thank you to Lela Brown from the Akron Seventh Day Adventist Church for organizing it.  Thank you to Jeanne Bearer, our St. Paul Ecumenical liaison, and to Heidi, our Director of Sacred Music, for facilitating.  Please join us for a joyful night of prayer and song. 
 
December 8 - Immaculate Conception - Holy Day of Obligation
This coming Saturday is the Solemnity of Mary of the Immaculate Conception.  This gets a little tricky; even though it falls on a Saturday, it is still a holy day of obligation.  So we will have our regular 7pm Vigil Mass on Friday, December 7.  There will be an 8:30am on the 8th.  Later at 4:30pm Saturday will be the Vigil Mass for Sunday like normal.  One might then ask, if I go to the 4:30pm on Saturday, does that count for both the holy day and my Sunday obligation.  The answer is, “No, nice try.”  There are two obligations here so one must participate at two Masses (not that one should be trying to get out of attending Mass).  So make sure you plan that between the evening of December 7 to the Sunday afternoon on December 9, get to two Masses.  Whichever combo you want; one Friday and one Sunday or even going to both on Saturday could work. In the end it is all about spending more time with God and thanking Him for His Son, Jesus, and for our Blessed Mother who was immaculately conceived in order that she would bring Him into the world. 
 
33 Days to Morning Glory Retreat and Consecration
For those retreating with us these past weeks, we are in the final stretch.  On December 8 following the 8:30am Mass we will commit ourselves faithfully to God by consecrating our lives to Jesus through Mary.  We ask for the prayers of others to help us be faithful because while the retreat itself is coming to an end, the real blessings begin as we entrust ourselves ever more to Mary who tenderly loves us and mysteriously by God’s grace makes our Crosses sweet.  I have been blessed to journey with our retreatants and am looking forward to renewing my consecration with them.  This does not need to be a onetime thing.  If others desire to make this retreat at a later time, contact the rectory. 
 
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Pfr