From the Pastor
November/25/2009
Welcome to the holy season of Advent! This is that wonderful time of year for quiet hope and preparation. It is also the time of year when the hours of darkness are greatest for those of us in the northern Hemisphere. The early darkness is marked by the winter solstice, when the sun’s hours begin to gradually increase. When Advent ends at Christmas, we celebrate the gift of God’s own Son to us. Jesus is the Light of the world, which the darkness cannot overcome!
The late, great Christian writer, C.S. Lewis, loved the story of the birth of Christ. In fact, he argued in his book, “The Grand Miracle,” that every other miracle of Scripture resulted from or prepared for or demonstrated the mystery of the Incarnation (the Word becomes Flesh). Lewis classified a miracle as “an interference with Nature by supernatural powers.”
We thank God that He does interfere in our world! Left to our own instincts, we would go our own way. But God became one of us because He yearns to make us one with Him. That’s why God has been miraculously interfering with us for thousands of years; He is constantly working miracles in our life. The problem is that we rarely stop to contemplate the depth of this fact. So, the season of Advent is the perfect time to do so. Even though God is somehow hidden in these miracles, none of these is as remarkable as the mystery of God becoming man in a tiny body, like any other, that a mother would hold, cherish and nourish. As we begin the season of Advent, and the start of the Church’s liturgical year, let’s recall the nearness of God to us through Jesus’ coming into our world. May the Great Miracle of God that happens once again at this time show you the miracles God wants to work in your life.
Next Sunday, December 6th, at 2:30 in the afternoon in our church, we will offer the musical drama, “Amahl and the Night Visitors.” This one-act Advent-Christmas presentation will be a delight for you and the family, and is an excellent way to prepare us for the Advent-Christmas seasons. We will have one performance only. Our choir and cast have been rehearsing their parts so as to make this a most memorable event. We invite you to invite your families to join us and witness this spectacular program in our sanctuary. No tickets will be sold, and no special seating will be reserved. A free-will collection will be taken up that day to assist in defraying the costs. We guarantee that you will be moved by the beauty and content of the message it brings.
Congratulations to our high school honor students who have done very well in the first quarter. From Pope John Paul II High School in Boca Raton, we have the following honor students: Principal’s List – Emily Sama; First Honors – Lindsay Brammer, Clare Brinkman, John Churey, Caroline Cook, Rachel Day, Arthur Drexler, Bianca Loreti, Timothy Marten, Nicholas McNamara, Michael Porter, Christina Richardson, Charles Roussin, Katherine Roussin, Stephanie Schappert, Alyssa Skehan, Holly Stryjek, and Gerald Williston; Second Honors - Collin Transleau. From Cardinal Newman High School in West Palm Beach, we have: First Honors – Christine Delgado, Jennifer Grant, Alec Therien, Elise Therien; Second Honors – Arielle Routhier and Allison Swank.
THANK YOU for your support in trying to help us reach our goal in the annual Diocesan Services Appeal (DSA). As many of you hear the testimony from Deacon Chris last weekend, the support you give to this program will enable young men, such as him, to reach the priesthood through support of our St. Vincent de Paul Seminary. Additional funds help support the poorest schools of our diocese, and help maintain Catholic Charities activities, including a counseling center on our campus, day care programs for the children of migrant workers, religious education programs in our poorest parishes and the supplying of nutritious food for poor young children. We are getting closer to reaching our goal (which we haven’t done in over 6 years). You can use a DSA envelope in the back of the church or an envelope in the pews marked for special collections. Just write the words DSA on the envelope so that we can get proper credit. Then, when all the results come in, we won’t have to take from operating expenses to reach our goal.
Very Rev. Canon Tom
The late, great Christian writer, C.S. Lewis, loved the story of the birth of Christ. In fact, he argued in his book, “The Grand Miracle,” that every other miracle of Scripture resulted from or prepared for or demonstrated the mystery of the Incarnation (the Word becomes Flesh). Lewis classified a miracle as “an interference with Nature by supernatural powers.”
We thank God that He does interfere in our world! Left to our own instincts, we would go our own way. But God became one of us because He yearns to make us one with Him. That’s why God has been miraculously interfering with us for thousands of years; He is constantly working miracles in our life. The problem is that we rarely stop to contemplate the depth of this fact. So, the season of Advent is the perfect time to do so. Even though God is somehow hidden in these miracles, none of these is as remarkable as the mystery of God becoming man in a tiny body, like any other, that a mother would hold, cherish and nourish. As we begin the season of Advent, and the start of the Church’s liturgical year, let’s recall the nearness of God to us through Jesus’ coming into our world. May the Great Miracle of God that happens once again at this time show you the miracles God wants to work in your life.
Next Sunday, December 6th, at 2:30 in the afternoon in our church, we will offer the musical drama, “Amahl and the Night Visitors.” This one-act Advent-Christmas presentation will be a delight for you and the family, and is an excellent way to prepare us for the Advent-Christmas seasons. We will have one performance only. Our choir and cast have been rehearsing their parts so as to make this a most memorable event. We invite you to invite your families to join us and witness this spectacular program in our sanctuary. No tickets will be sold, and no special seating will be reserved. A free-will collection will be taken up that day to assist in defraying the costs. We guarantee that you will be moved by the beauty and content of the message it brings.
Congratulations to our high school honor students who have done very well in the first quarter. From Pope John Paul II High School in Boca Raton, we have the following honor students: Principal’s List – Emily Sama; First Honors – Lindsay Brammer, Clare Brinkman, John Churey, Caroline Cook, Rachel Day, Arthur Drexler, Bianca Loreti, Timothy Marten, Nicholas McNamara, Michael Porter, Christina Richardson, Charles Roussin, Katherine Roussin, Stephanie Schappert, Alyssa Skehan, Holly Stryjek, and Gerald Williston; Second Honors - Collin Transleau. From Cardinal Newman High School in West Palm Beach, we have: First Honors – Christine Delgado, Jennifer Grant, Alec Therien, Elise Therien; Second Honors – Arielle Routhier and Allison Swank.
THANK YOU for your support in trying to help us reach our goal in the annual Diocesan Services Appeal (DSA). As many of you hear the testimony from Deacon Chris last weekend, the support you give to this program will enable young men, such as him, to reach the priesthood through support of our St. Vincent de Paul Seminary. Additional funds help support the poorest schools of our diocese, and help maintain Catholic Charities activities, including a counseling center on our campus, day care programs for the children of migrant workers, religious education programs in our poorest parishes and the supplying of nutritious food for poor young children. We are getting closer to reaching our goal (which we haven’t done in over 6 years). You can use a DSA envelope in the back of the church or an envelope in the pews marked for special collections. Just write the words DSA on the envelope so that we can get proper credit. Then, when all the results come in, we won’t have to take from operating expenses to reach our goal.
Very Rev. Canon Tom