The calendar year is coming to a close this week. On Thursday we ring in a new year with the celebration of Mary the Mother of God. Please join us at our vigil mass on Wednesday evening at 4:30pm, or at our 10:00am mass on Thursday. We will be enjoying the beauty of our Christmas decorations until January 11. Thanks to all who helped transform our lovely church into an even lovelier Christmas place of worship.
Have you given any thought to some New Year resolutions? I would like to suggest a resolution which will deepen and bring new life to your faith. In early February we will begin the Christlife program in our parish. Why not resolve to give this program a try? For seven consecutive Tuesdays, you will be invited to come together for a meal, followed by a few minutes of prayer. A video will come next on the theme of "Discovering Christ," and the final activity of each evening is a time to share your reflections on the video at the same table you shared the meal. If this is not the time for you to make this resolution, I have another to consider: a daily prayer for those who will take part this year in Christlife.
In the weeks ahead, I will end each column with a few sentences from Pope Francis' exhortation, "The Joy of the Gospel" Here is one quotation to pray over as 2014 comes to an end:
"God constantly renews his faithful ones, whatever their age: “They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not be faint” (Is 40:31). Christ is the “eternal Gospel” (Rev 14:6); he “is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb 13:8), yet his riches and beauty are inexhaustible. He is for ever young and a constant source of newness." (par. 11)