Dear Friends,

When Christmas comes, we can yearn for those simpler days. We'd like our lives to resemble a Christmas card. They don't!  And if they did, we wouldn't yearn for God.  God sent his Son because we weren't doing very well on our own. He came to fill the empty places, to light the dark places, to be with us in our fear, to bring hope to our hopelessness.  So it doesn't matter what shape our lives are in ... broken or troubled relationship, illness, death of a loved one, addiction, depression ... Jesus comes to bring hope.  We are not alone!

How important it is to be home for Christmas! Some of us won't be able to spend the holiday with relatives. Others of us are estranged. But that doesn't mean we can't be home! Our home is certainly with God ... and Christmas is our celebration of God making His home in us! Many people attend Church on Christmas ... even those who rarely attend otherwise. It's probably a yearning for the seemingly easier and simpler times. It just wouldn't be Christmas without going to Church. If you choose to go, I hope you find a very warm welcome! It's wonderful when we come to see God's house as our house as well ... Church as our second home!   We hope that you consider yourself a cyber-member of our parish as well, and that your visits here are a touch of home for you.

And of course, Jesus comes again at the end of time as well. How glorious it will be when we're able to understand the things that elude us now. When we'll see God face to face! When our doubts and fears are removed permanently. When we are no longer afraid to risk sharing ourselves with others. As we yearn for that final Home, we enjoy this one. And we do our best to make it a better one for those around us. Even the heart of Scrooge was melted on this holiday. May the poor, hungry, homeless, the sick and the needy find generous friends in us ... not just at Christmas, but all year long. When that happens, God's kingdom comes, just a little bit, by our allowing Him to reach out to others through us.

The magic of Christmas is in the giving. We all have something to give. One of the nicest gifts is a simple prayer, perhaps for someone who needs that prayer the most! As soon as we immerse ourselves in the needs of others, our own self-seeking slips away, and light appears in our darkness. And Jesus is born!

We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Holy New Year. May Jesus be born in our hearts. When our hearts become more like His, the world will be a little better. Fear can give way to hope ... the darkness to light. "The hopes and fears of all the years, are met in thee tonight!  Have a Happy, Healthy and Holy New Year!

God Bless,

You are visitor since 15 December 2000