Third Sunday of Advent

12-15-2019Weekly ReflectionFr. James Aboyi

Dear Parishioners,

This weekend we celebrate Gaudete Sunday. “Gaudete” is a Latin word for “rejoice.” Today, we light the rose-colored candle on our Advent Wreath, symbolic of our expression of joy on this Gaudete, or Rejoice, Sunday. We are invited to reflect on the things that make us truly joyful. What brings us joy? Is it our job, family, faith, money, good health, sports, or something else? We are also invited to go beyond identifying what makes us joyful during this Advent season, to determine how we can share our joy with those who are in need around us. The tradition of giving gifts at Christmas is a way of sharing our joy, not only with those who are in need, but also with our family and friends. I thank all those who have participated in the Angel Giving Tree. I saw many precious gifts brought in to the parish to be shared with many of our friends around our community. Thanks, also, to our parish choir for the beautiful Christmas concert this past week. We await the St. John Bosco School Christmas Program, coming up this Wednesday, December 18. These are an indication that we are truly a people of joy!

Together Let Us Go Forth - Updates

Thank you to all the families that are currently participating in the Together Let Us Go Forth ~ Juntos Sigamos Adelante Campaign. So far, 170 St. Benedict families have made a pledge to the campaign. Thanks to your generosity, we have achieved 48% of our entire financial goal! In just the past two weeks alone, we have jumped 10% closer to our overall goal and have seen an increase of over 40 families participating in the campaign, bringing our total amount pledged to $622,017. To me, this speaks about the generosity of the people of St. Benedict. To each one of you, I say thank you! Thank you so much!

I encourage all families who have not yet participated in the campaign to help us reach our goal by returning a pledge card prior to the end of the year. I would love to see us reach 50% of our goal before the end of the year. Together, we can reach this next milestone together!

Please note, any pledge payments given before the end of 2019 will be included in the first disbursement that our parish will receive in February 2020. This will provide us with the opportunity to begin the projects listed in our parish case statement sooner. Please go to the parish website at stbenedict.org and on the home page you will find a direct link to TogetherGoForth.org. Here is where you can set-up your pledge directly online. If you prefer, pledge cards are available at the entrance of the church to complete and return to the parish office.

Thank you and Remain Blessed.

Fr. James