January 2024 Newsletter – To Everything A Time

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven

A number one hit with the oldest lyrics? That is Pete Seeger’s song Turn, Turn Turn covered by the Byrds in 1965. The lyrics from Ecclesiastes ca. 300 BC

The first eight verses of Chapter 3 tells us that everything is suitable for its time. God is in control, indeed sovereign, and that gives us reassurance and a sense of sobriety. We cannot necessarily fathom the mystery of God, but we can say that we are ok with the mystery He offers if we have faith in His goodness – the goodness of God Who gave His Son Jesus so that we might be saved. We just celebrated that beginning by allowing Jesus to be reborn into our lives.

I remember my mom talking about songs like Turn, Turn Turn with some sense of amazement – ‘they’re singing about the Bible,’ or words to that affect. Truthfully, it wouldn’t take too much effort in going through the pop and rock songs of the 1960’s and 1970’s and even beyond to see the influence of faith, the Church, and scripture in a good number of those hits. I suppose my memory of my mother’s talking about scripture in pop and rock music attuned my ear, gave me an awareness of God permeating every time and season, every method of expression.

It is a positive practice for us, as Christians, to remain aware, to listen and look, for God is continually making Himself known through ordinary means and in each time and season. We will find Him in music, literature, the beauty of nature, and in each other. Speaking of times and season, we just experienced a very short Advent which kicked-off the new Church year. Now we will experience a somewhat shorter Christmas season because Pre-Lent begins January 28th. Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent is just around the corner – February 14th. As we wend our way through God’s seasons and times, as we keep our eyes, ears, and hearts open to the revelation of His mystery and His timeless grace, let us meet each season in this new year both reassured and open to Him.

Happy New Year and welcome to our January 2024 Newsletter. The Newsletter covers the good we are doing and will be doing as God’s people in our corner of the world. Need your house blessed? It is Epiphany / Kolędy House Blessing season so make your appointments with Fr. Jim. The annual parish meeting and elections are upcoming, please plan to attend. Why not run for office… We are once again holding our Outrageous Valentine’s Raffle to support our youth ministry. Get your tickets now. We give thanks for the many blessings in our lives and look forward to the events of 2024, Lent which is just around the corner, and our Basket Social! Also, check out the poetry of Rev. Walter Andrew Hyszko for the New Year. Check it all out in our January 2024 Newsletter.

February 2023 Newsletter – Prepare, Grow, and Build Like Noah

By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. 

The text above is from Hebrews 11:7, wherein the writer is reminding people who knew the Hebrew Scriptures, of Noah’s faithfulness to God’s instruction and the fact that by being faithful he became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 

This year, the Pre-Lenten season begins right on the first Sunday in February, and by the time this two-and-a-half week season passes on we are in Lent. It will go by quickly. This year, let us liken ourselves to Noah. We all know the account found in Genesis Chapter 5 – 9.

Scripture says that Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation and that he walked with God. While this was true of Noah, and because of Noah was also true in his family, the rest of the world was corrupt, violent, and filled with continuous evil (sound familiar?). The question to ask – Am I faithful like Noah, and how will my faithfulness affect this age? Noah certainly did not know what to do with the corruption of his time. While he acted properly, was righteous and blameless, he made no impact on those around him. God had to intervene to change the situation. For us, we live in the light of God’s greatest intervention. Not the flood, but the sending of His Son Jesus. That means we now know what to do and we have the power to do it (no flood needed).

Jesus showed us the way to go. He  gave us the gospel that is life. He enjoined on us the Beatitudes as a way of life along with all the other instruction from the Sermon on the Mount. If we do as Jesus taught, we will deeply impact our time, culture, and the people around us. As with the early Christians, people will be amazed and enter the kingdom. Like Noah, let us use this time to prepare, to grow in faithfulness, to build a way of life consistent with the gospel. Where we have succeeded, let us build further.  Where we have fallen short, let us prepare to fix it now, and fix it this Lent.

Welcome to our February 2023 Newsletter. With the start of February we enter the Pre-Lenten Season of Septuagesima. We engage in preparation for our Lenten journey because by the end of February we will be in Lent. This month and next we engage in the ministry of administration with our annual parish and financial meetings. Our Valentine’s Raffle is underway. SouperBowl Sunday is February 12th – let us give generously to feed those in need locally. We also celebrate Scout Sunday, review the great scholarships we have available, and list some fantastic Youth events/opportunities upcoming. There is a pizza/game night around the corner and the Basket Social is not that far away.

Check out all that and more in our February 2023 Newsletter.

January 2022 Newsletter – Fullness of Life

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,

Our celebration of the Christmas, the coming of God among us, His incarnate Being in our midst, is so important it must be celebrated for more than a few days. This season marks God’s chosen moment in which the story of salvation takes a major step forward. So, we must celebrate and set to ongoing work. The story of salvation is a continuous saga. It began with creation, God called us into being so we might belong to Him. The world rejected that call and turned away from God by sin. God would not give up! Salvation is not a once and done offer, and God would not rest until we were His as we hear in our Eucharistic Prayer based on the Canon of St. Basil the Great: “You did not abandon us to the power of death… You came to our help… Again and again You called us into covenant with You… You taught us to hope for salvation… In the fullness of time You sent Your only Son to be our Savior.” 

Jesus’ incarnation is the moment we were drawn permanently close to God in our humble humanity. God took what was broken and deformed and made it holy and beautiful by His unity in human flesh. Flesh that was cursed and apart from God now became one with God. St. Paul is saying something really amazing in Colossians 2:9. He summarizes in ten words the whole mystery of faith – that Jesus is God among us in our flesh. That changes everything. It makes us all capable of being washed free of the worldly choice of sin and one with God, heirs to heaven. All flesh was hallowed in Jesus, each person’s dignity certain. All flesh is given the opportunity to be one with Him if we choose so in faith. Furthermore, Jesus, before His crucifixion, provided for the permanent presence in His flesh and blood which is for His faithful to this very day: Take, eat and drink. This is My body. This is My blood. The totality of Christ is ours for the taking. In it are closer to His divinity and strengthened for our work.

We are in the story of salvation and we have work to do in our evangelism until His return. So, open the door, invite, He awaits.

Welcome to our January 2022 Newsletter and Happy New Year. In the Newsletter we explore the year ahead as we focus on Being a Eucharistic People. We have our upcoming annual meeting and election of parish officers (time to get involved). We give thanks for so many blessings brought about through your charity and our common work. It is time to prep for the SouperBowl of Caring (the soup pot is out). We reflect on the past year – our Centenary – and we celebrate. Check out the Newsletter for all that and more – including Music Scholarship Sunday and the Return of the BASKET SOCIAL – hurray!!!

This and so much more within our January 2021 Newsletter.