Once every so often the Forth Sunday of Advent falls on Christmas Eve and this year is a challenge. As well as being the standard day-before-Christmas, it is also falls on a Sunday. Since this is the case, There are two separate obligations that must be fulfilled for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (Sunday, December 24) and Christmas (Monday, December 25). Soo please make sure that you check the bulletin and website as to the proper times for the celebration of the Advent Sunday and Christmas Holy Day obligation.
With Christmas day 2017 on December 25th falling on a Monday it’s going to be a busy time for us in the Church as we transition from our Advent season environment to the Christmas season. Make Plans for your family decorate the Church for Christmas starting immediately after the 10:00 am Sunday Mass today. There will not be a Noon Mass this Sunday in order to make way for the 5:00pm Christmas Eve Mass. The liturgical Environment team along with various parish organizations, and a collection of families from the parish, could use a hand in decorating the church, Guyot Hall, the Religious Education building and the parish grounds.
Let’s take a look ahead to the Christmas schedule. Our Christmas Mass schedule is as follows: Sunday, December. 24th,Christmas Eve: 5:00 pm, 8:00 pm and 12 midnight; Monday, December. 25th, Christmas Day: 8:00 am and 10:00 am.
Everyone knows that Christmas is a time of gift-giving. The meaningfulness of a gift is not dependent upon the amount spent but on the heart given. The greatest gift ever given is the greatest heart ever given: God sent the only Son to dwell among us. Jesus came among us as God’s gift of Salvation to us. As a gift of salvation, Jesus is the incarnation of God’s loving presence among us. This gift cost us no money. It does cost us our own life: a heart turned to God.
As we move into the Christmas season please let us continue to pray for our country and our governmental leaders that they may continue to work hard to cherish the gifts of life and liberty and work to safeguard those liberties. We always keep in our prayers those who are serving our country in the military services, especially those far from home at this time of the year. May the Lord protect them and guard them, and bring them home safely and soon.
As you are “making your list and checking it twice” for those you will remember at Christmas, might I so humbly ask that you please don’t forget your church. The parish relies on your end-of-the-year donations to help us meet our ever-growing financial obligations for our parish. We are happy to assist those who might need or want to make end of the year tax donations of cash or stocks, or if you have a minimum distribution from your IRA that you must take, we can help in that area as well. There are several ways in which you can donate to the parish: Online through Faith Direct, Pay Pal on our website, or simply mail or drop off your donation to the parish office. Please call the parish office for details. Thank you for your generosity and support of STHY.
I send out my sincere thanks to all who made a pledge for our Building Faith, Family and Future Capital Campaign. I truly appreciate your generosity and support. Please consider making a year end pledge. Envelopes are in the Narthex along with our collection box specifically designed for our Capital campaign or you can do so online through the parish website. As we enter the Christmas season and the time for giving, we can all do our part, and every pledge, of every size, is most needed and welcomed. Thank you for doing your part to help us reach our goal.
The parish office will be closed on December 25th and 26th in observance of Christmas and January 1st – 3rd for the celebration for the New Year. On behalf of the staff here at St. Hyacinth, we wish you all a Merry Christmas and a joy filled New Year!
Happy Fourth Sunday of Advent and Merry Christmas, God Bless, Fr. Reginald Samuels