O Come, All Ye Faithful!
Merry Christmas!!! On this Christmas Day, we are invited to join Mary and Joseph at the manger and adore the Christ child. God made Himself so vulnerable that He must be cared for by His earthly parents. It is in this vulnerability, Jesus’ laying in the manger as a baby, that He prefigures His vulnerability on the Cross, the act by which He would be willing to submit to execution for our salvation. Without the manger, we do not have the saving moments of the crucifixion and the Resurrection. Jesus’ vulnerability also gives us an example of how we are to depend upon Him and the entire Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. By exposing our hearts and souls to the Lord in the Mass and in personal prayer, we can allow Jesus, the Divine Physician, to heal our broken hearts and weary souls. So come to Him who was made Man for us. This Christmas, receive the gift of healing that Christ came to give to us His brothers and sisters from our Heavenly Father.
The weekend of January 14-15, we will be voting for the patron of our Family of Parishes. If you are unable to attend Mass at one of our four churches, you can stop by any of the parish offices the week before or after January 15 to cast your vote. We are also going to make sure our homebound parishioners and nursing home residents get a chance to vote. Please remember that each parish will retain its name and identity. Even after we become one canonical parish, each campus will still be identified by its current name. To drive this point home, next weekend, you will find an insert and explanation of our current patrons and why they will continue to be excellent patrons for us to turn to in the future. The overarching structure will be whatever the patron you as parishioners of NW-7 choose (it will be nice to not be known by our number designation.) So, each parish church will still be known by its name. Here are the possible patrons:
1. St. Joseph, Pillar of Families – St. Joseph was the most popular nomination and his title “Pillar of Families” was attached to about half of these nominations. I think this title also touches on what is so special in our Family of Parishes: the centrality of the family. It is your pastor’s personal favorite.
2. St. Philomena – was second behind St. Joseph. I have noticed that many families from across our Family have a devotion to St. Philomena. She has worked many miracles in our Family.
3. Mother Thrice Admirable – There is a beautiful devotion to our Lady in our Family of Parishes. Mother Thrice Admirable is the patroness of the Schoenstatt movement.
4. Holy Family – also reflects the importance and centrality of family in our Family of Parishes; an excellent model for our families to imitate and ask for aid from.
The staff and FIT Team sifted through the many wonderful nominations you all submitted, and we were able to discern that these would be the most fitting possible patrons.
A very Merry Christmas to each one of you. It has been a real blessing to be in NW-7 Family of Parishes since July. I know that I have learned a lot and still have a lot more to learn, but have been grateful for every day and every lesson.
Peace in Christ,
Fr. Jarred Kohn